ROLLIN' WITH THE ROWLEYS

August

2011-09-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

Ressa looses her two front teeth!

Happy 12th Anniversary to Chad and Sarah: we celebrate by spending the night at Wild Horse Pass Resort and eating out at The Melting Pot. 2 hours of slow eating and melting cheese, chocolate, and ourselves with very little air conditioning. Chad felt sick after since he was so warm so we went back to our hotel. Saturday we saw a movie then came home our great kids!

Sarah celebrates her 37th birthday by going out to Texas Roadhouse for dinner with a few friends (not all show). Had a great time!

Spent Labor Day weekend at Nathan and Carries, swimming, bowling, and playing games. A very good day!

Back to School & Empty Nest

2011-08-08T16:49:00.000-07:00

So I know I am not really an empty nester, but what do you call a mother who has all four of her kids in school? Lucky? Free? Happy!! I really am excited to do whatever I plan to do with all this time on my hands! I can get my hair done, go to the grocery store, clean my house during the day and it will stay clean. The list is endless! And I don't have to miss my kids because I will volunteer in their classrooms each week!

The kids rode the bus this morning to give Lauren the full effect, but we will be driving them from now on since they have to combine the high school and elementary kids together on the bus.

Lauren is so excited! She didn't cry or act nervous in her class at all! That has to do in large part that her best friend Cora Clare is in her kindergarten class with her!

We will see how long this little seating arrangement lasts!

Ressa in her 3rd grade class and her own desk! I didn't go in the boys' classroom because they would be too embarassed.

Week 5: Bluff Fort, Utah

2011-08-07T21:21:00.000-07:00

By this point of the trip, being away from home for 5 weeks, I was ready to be home. But I was so glad we stopped in Bluff, Utah to see Grandpa & Grandma Rowley. We arrived on a Friday night and they put us up in a nice sized bunk house for a couple nights. We woke up Saturday and Grandma bought each of the kids a gift from the gift shop there at the Bluff Fort Museum. They have been serving a mission there for three months already and have really been enjoying what they are doing there!

It was too hot to do anything around there so we did alot of driving around San Juan County to see the sights. First we went to the San Juan River, then to the Goosnecks, followed by the Natural Bridges National Monument, and then drove up to Elk Mountain. We had such a great time!

We hiked down below the viewing area at the Goosenecks and Chad found this hat and hiked down to fetch it. I had lost my sunglasses so I was glad to have it to shade me during our hike. Plus, it matched my shirt perfectly! Score!

we climbed down three of these ladders to get to the bottom

Here is a large toad!

Week 3-4: The Grandperrins

2011-08-05T22:46:00.000-07:00

I know you can't tell by this next picture, but I found out the week before that I have adult Mono. I know it's crazy, right? Well, I tried to take it easy during my visit to my parents at Badger Lake. I was there with the kids for three weeks after Chad flew back home to work. I did alittle tubing and swimming, but I did rest. I only jumped of a little 20 ft cliff once. Here is Chad in excellent form!

We took a short trip over to Kennewick to see Derrick and Amy and their house. It was my first time there and we had a nice afternoon! Lauren LOVED her big cousin, K Tyler!

Every morning the girls got up and picked raspberries for Grandma. Nate and Carrie joined us for a few days and that was fun!

Carson insisted on buying a 1000 piece puzzle, finished the border and then had nothing left to do with it. I put the rest together myself!

I like this little restaurant on the lake next to my parent's lake. Good food and atmosphere!

We took another trip up to Clayne and Kelli's for a day and the kids had a blast on the trampoline. Mom and I ran over to the temple and back. Had a nice visit with my brother as he drove me around Spokane and showed me St Georges and other places that have changed so much!

Drove to Moses Lake to visit the Perrins Family during their family reunion. It was a short visit but it was good to see everyone!

Week 2: Mt. Rushmore

2011-08-05T22:33:00.000-07:00

After we left Philmont and our new friends behind, we headed north toward Mt. Rushmore, via Colorado, Wyoming, and slight detour through Nebraska, and finally landing in Hot Springs, SD all in one day. We stopped to see Chimney Rock Monument along the way, but the highlight for Jackson and I was Kimball, Nebraska. Such a pretty little town!

On our way to Mt. Rushmore we stopped at Wind Cave and took a tour. It turned out pretty cool and Ressa earned another junior ranger bade. My favorite was that we went underground 2 miles and the average temp in the cave is 56 degrees. Nice!

Custer, South Dakota had these decorated bison all over town and Chad absolutely LOVED that I tried to take pictures of them all!

We stopped at Crazy Horse Monument and it was very impressive! Not finished, of course, but what an amazing story and process!

Seeing Mt. Rushmore has been on my Bucket List for many years and I was so excited to check this one off! It did not dissappoint at all! We had beautiful, clear weather and had an excellent day there! Here is Lauren hugging a tree to earn her junior ranger badge.

looking up Washington's nose.

Even the rest stops were amazing! This one had a old fort used by a group looking for gold in the Black Hills in the 1800's.

11th Birthday

2011-08-05T08:13:00.000-07:00

My boys turned 11 yrs old last month and to celebrate I took them to Stratum Laser Tag with 7 of their friends! I had to change the time so that a couple of the kids could make it and that meant Chad couldn't make it. So sad! So I packed the boys in the car and made them promise not to sweat on the way home and off we went! I forgot my camera so I took some lame pics with my Bloggie.

They had a great time playing laser tag and video games all afternoon! They were a great bunch of boys, well mannered and funny! I can't believe how old the boys are getting! They enter the 5th grade this year and I think this will be a fun year for them. They love anything US states and presidents so the curriculum with be right up their alley! I love you, Carson and Jackson! Thanks for being such great kids!

Week 1: Philmont

2011-08-01T21:41:00.000-07:00

What an incredible week! I admit I was not super excited to go to a Scout Training Camp for a whole week and didn't expect a whole lot. But that is kinda how I roll, expect the worst and you will always be pleasantly surprised. We arrived at Philmont in New Mexico and were greeted by President Beck, the General Young Mens President and Sister Wixom, the General Primary President. Everyone was so welcoming and excited to see so many families, the most young children they have ever had. So many families came with little babies and I saw several pregnant mothers there. I admired (but did not envy) these amazing women! After registration we found our three tents that were assigned to our family. Here are the girls in their tent!

Jackson in his tent trying out his new hiking sticks he got for his 11th birthday.

Here we are in our tent the first day, the only day we really hung out in our tent. The rest of the week was unseasonably warm and our tents turned into little ovens.

Ressa discovered a love for photography and took a ton of pictures! It was nice not to be the only one taking pictures!

Poor Lauren came down with food poisoning the first night at Philmont and threw up about 6 times. She slept off and on all Sunday, which worked out ok cause there wasn't much going on that day. Sure enough, she was all better the next day and good to go!

Carson and Jackson participated in a flag ceremony one morning and here they are with the General YM and General Primary Pres.

Some of my new friends!

The kids has a parade with costumes that we made in the craft room. There were so many creative costumes! Carson and Jackson chose to pass on dressing up and I was happy to only have to make 2 costumes. Win-Win.

I talked Chad into going on a sunrise hike up to Lover's Leap at 4:30am. We left the kids asleep in their tents and snuck off with a group of couples. It was a nice hike and it was cool!

The kids went off into their age groups each day for their activities/games. They rode horses, went on hikes, and did crafts throughout the week.

Lauren and her bestest buddie, Shelby from Wyoming.

Ressa and Kensley

On the last night all the wives got up and wore the gift the general wives gave us, towel turbans, and sang a silly song about our week at Philmont. I met so many amazing, inspiring women who I will always remember! I learned so much from them and feel more prepared to support my husband in his leadership callings and can honestly say I have gained a testimony of the scouting program and Duty to God. I am so excited to share what I have learned with others! I loved living in a tent community with like-minded people! I wish the week would have lasted longer!

Catapult

2011-08-01T21:03:00.000-07:00

We decided to work on the boys cub scout activity badges one day and make catapults out of popsicle sticks and masking tape. We had a good time making them but the boys had even more fun testing them out. I gave them a big bag of white beans and let them loose on eachother in the back porch. There were white beans everywhere out there by the time they were done so I hope I don't have a surprise crop pop up out there! They also got some new groovy glasses and they love them!

A proud day.

2011-06-23T20:26:00.000-07:00

Jackson

Dance Recital

2011-06-23T11:10:00.000-07:00

Ressa decided to quit karate after one year and focus on her dance career. That was written with a touch of sarcasm. It was becoming too difficult for her to attend her karate class held in the same school gym where her friends were also having dance class. I finally relented and she said good bye to Mr. Mehr and hello to CoolImage Dance Studio. My friends Tiffany and Missy started the studio a couple years ago out of Tiffany's garage and it has grown into a huge success with 150 students. Ressa started in the Fall, taking two classes: Hip Hop/Jazz and Ballet/Tap. She has loved it and it turns out she has a really good memory and learns the dances quickly. Chad and I hadn't seen her really dance until her recital in May and we were blown away at how well she did and so proud of her! I don't know how she keeps from getting so nervous, but she just goes out there and doesn't let crowds bother her. I know that I can get up in front of people pretty easily, but that certainly wasn't the case when I was 7 years old! Way to go, Ressa!

Sisters Week!

2011-06-23T09:38:00.000-07:00

With an 18 year age difference between my oldest and youngest sister, we have waited a long time for us all to be able to get together with just us girls! And it was worth the wait and mom came, too! We all flew into SLC and Samantha drove over from Colorado and picked us up. She was our chauffer and had her fill of back-seat drivers. lol! We stayed in a hotel in Provo that mom had arranged with her rewards and it wasn't too far from BYU. We planned ahead and had our nights scheduled with a musical dinner theater for Thursday and a comedy improv show for Friday. During the days we spent at Womens Conference, attending a variety of classes on prayer, scripture study, unifying our ward sisters, and one other one I can't remember. Sister Beck was a main speaker and so was Elder and Sister Bednar. I missed the Bednars because I chose to wait in the line for the Carl Bloch Exhibit at the Museum. The tickets I preordered were for Saturday and we would not have time to go and make our flight. So I had to wait and wait instead. I was so glad I did-so worth it!

We sat here and ate lunch while mom went over and talked to John Bytheway who happened to be signing books right next to us. He had finished and was there by himself getting ready to leave. We begged her not to ask if he remembered going on a date with our sister-in-law Amy years ago. We don't think she did. This was all of our first time at Womens Conference so we didn't know that many authors and artists came to pedal their stuff and sign books and art. I couldn't believe the size of the BYU bookstore and went upstairs to see if they had the paintings of an artist, J. Kirk Richards, that I recently discovered. I wanted a painting called "Every knee shall bow". When I reached the top there was a display of his and there sitting right there was the artisit himself! He is my age, married with 4 kids and such a nice and unassuming guy. I talked with him and his wife for a while. He signed the picture that I bought for me and I was thrilled! I had it framed and it is hanging in my dining area on my bronze wall and it looks perfect. I plan on printing out the title on black vinyl and putting it under the picture. I hope to get a couple more of his paintings in the future.

Since it was mother's day the next Sunday, we decided to take Mom out and buy her a new wardrobe on Friday night before the comedy show. Our poor mom doesn't have any daughters at home to help her dress ( as illustrated in the picture above) and we introduced her to the 21st century! We had a lot of fun and she was very cooperative and between the four of us girls pitching in we were able to get a ton of clothes thanks to Ross Dress for Less!

The dinner theater put on Sherlock Holmes and it was terrific! My favorite line:

Sherlock: Are there any ships that leave for Cairo?

Weston: No ship, Sherlock

I laughed and laughed!

The improv was stinkin' hilarious and my sisters and I laugh like a bunch of crazy hyenas! I had to apologize to all the people around us. I hadn't laughed that hard in years!

Get ready for some BLUE STEEL...

You go, LeaAnn! It was wonderful to stay up late, laughing with my sisters and talking about life an sharing stories and thoughts. We are all different but similar and feel so comfortable around eachother. I miss having my family around me, especially sisters. I have really felt the loss of having LeaAnn move to San Diego. I hope we can make a tradition of getting together, although I don't know if we will do Women's Conference again. Something a little less structured next time. What a perfect weekend!

What gives?

2011-05-22T09:09:00.000-07:00

What gives with all the sudden posts to my blog, you ask? I have finally taken on the task of putting my blog into books and have finished the first three years, one book per year. It was discovered that I had neglected my blog of late and have determined to catch up. I haven't had the books printed yet, but I am so excited to see all the entries in book form and it has made me so grateful that I started a blog three years ago! I am using blurb.com and am loving how simple (yet time consuming) it has been to edit and arrange it all.

Two down, One to Go!

2011-05-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

Following in her brother's footsteps, Ressa got her tonsils out. Not for the same reasons, however. Unlike Jackson, Ressa did not snore, did not have contant nasal congestion, and did not have chronically enlarged tonsils. She DID get strep throat every two months for over a year! We were so done with it and the nightmare of Jackson's recover had faded over time. Ressa was a bit nervous but she kept it together well and did beautifully. Recovery was a breeze and she has really started to grow faster now that her body isn't always battling.

And why did I title this post, "and one to go"? Well, Carson is healthy so I don't forsee any problems with him. Lauren, on the other hand, snores like a grown up already so I am worried she will have some problems in her future. Let's hope not!

Ward Campout!

2011-05-22T08:52:00.000-07:00

Well not really a ward campout. It was the Fathers and Sons/Mothers and Daughters Campout. I brought Lauren and Peyton Stone with us since the camp ground was not too far away. We stayed in the camp trailer and the boys slept in the little two-man tent Jackson bought with his allowance a few months ago. They squeezed Hyrum in them and slept like 3 bugs in a rug. Good thing since it got pretty cold that night and started raining at about 4am and didn't let up the rest of the morning. But they stayed dry and slept really well, better then their two mothers who kept looking out at their tent, wondering if they were ok, waiting for them to come bang on thier trailer doors. Bishop Frank Rowley insisted we still have the huge breakfast that was planned, so we set up all the awnings that we had and ate standing up since all our camping chairs were wet. Then Lucy and I took our kids into the trailer and hung out while the men-folk back everything up. Chad and I were the last ones to leave and Ressa started crying because Chad told her he would hike up the hill with her in the morning and now we were leaving. So Chad said, "Let's go!" and he took her and Lauren Stone up to the the top of the hill and back, in the rain, while the other two girls stayed in the truck with the heater on. (Carson and Jackson had already left with grandpa.) So Ressa and company came back down wet and happy and we were able to go home. Good times!

This picture of the boys in the tent makes it look rather roomy. But I assure you that object in the picture appear larger that they are! These boys had such a great time together and Sarah and I laughed so hard at them. They told us they were going to scare everybody by jumping out of the tent yelling "Predator! Predator!" Pretty scary stuff. The weather that night was so beautiful! The wind died away and we had a nice evening by the fire.

Cotton Days

2011-05-22T08:50:00.000-07:00

Easter

2011-05-22T08:07:00.000-07:00

Nate and Carrie decided to start an Easter Egghunt tradition. We spent the night at their house the night before so we could go to the Easter Pageant on Friday night and then get up early at their house for the egg hunt. They have a nice big backyard and the weather was perfection! I think they had 500 plastic eggs and like 30 little kids. Ressa found the $50 egg (with uncle Casey's help). Tons of yummy breakfast treats. We already started talking about how to make it bigger and better next year. It will be a fun tradition, especially since I don't have to do it.

Mission: Bluff Fort!

2011-05-22T07:40:00.000-07:00

I disappointed Elaine by waking up early and walking down to their house to see them off the morning they left for Utah. She is a cry baby and wanted to sneak off before we woke up to avoid a tearful good-bye. Too bad! They are excited to work at the Bluff Fort Museum for 5 months! We will miss them terribly, but it really isn't that long. I just love having them as neighbors!

Cotton Blossoms 2011

2011-05-22T07:17:00.000-07:00

This years Cotton Pageant was A LOT of work now that I am on the council. Behind the scenes is pretty crazy and I decided that only people WITHOUT children in the pageant should be in the back. Uhg! But it went relatively well and we learned alot for next year!

Spring Break Part Deux

2011-05-22T07:12:00.000-07:00

I am not blogging about Spring Break Part I because we went to San Diego and had so much fun that I made a photo book about it. So now we are on to Spring Break Part Deux! Lacie brought her sister Averi and the kids over for a whole week! My kids were back in school, but it wasn't too big a deal. We had so much fun just hanging out. Lacie's baby Chandler is such a sweetheart! We went to the ostrich farm, had a 16th birthday party for Averi and set her up on two dates while she was here! I know how to entertain and invited them all the the cub scout blue and gold banquet, too.

Funny story: So I take Carson and Jackson and head over early to the pack meeting so I can pick up my friend Melissa and her three kids. They only have one car and so they often need a ride to things. Lacie was going to bring the rest of the clan and meet us at the church. So Melissa and I arrive at the church and go in to the gym where the banquet is set up. I immediately walk over to Sarah C. and say hello. Ashley, a new member in our ward who I met earlier that week at a playgroup, rushes up to me and whispers frantically in my ear that my shorts have ripped up the back, exposing my entire left, garmetted, butt-cheek! I crane my neck to look back to make sure she wasn't crazy, and sho' nuff! I immediately plop down in the chair right behind me and there I sit while Sarah heads off to the rescue to get me another pair of pants from her house. One minute after she leaves, in comes Lacie with the rest of the kids, Lauren in the lead with a tissue held up to her nose and blood all over her shirt. Apparently, Ressa was trying to pull on something in the car and her elbow released back right into Lauren's nose. Fortunately, Lacie ran into Sarah in the parking lot and Sarah said she would grab another shirt for her, too. So Super Sarah saves the day! She returns with some of my own pants I had lent her a while ago and a clean shirt for Miss Lauren. All dressed and ready for a fun-filled Pack Meeting! Oh, where was Chad during all this, you ask? Home Teaching. The boys were getting a lot of awards that night so I pleaded with him to PLEASE keep his HT visit under an hour, but after having the leaders stall as long as they could, they couldn't wait any longer. But Chad finally came and I think he got there in time for the last couple awards. Hooray!

Friends of Lacie's (and mine) that are still in the area came over for lunch and to visit. I miss our friends that have moved away but when we get together it seems like old times!

Bishop Rowley OR Bishop Rowley?

2011-04-22T06:44:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday Frank was released as the bishop of our ward and Chad was ordained the new bishop. His counselors are Bob Randall and Beau Clare. It was a special day for our family! We are sad to so goodbye to Chad's parents for 5 months as they go and serve a work mission in Bluff Fort, Utah, but it has been a long time coming. They have been looking forward to serving a mission for a long time and they are exccited for this new adventure. Chad and I have also had a feeling for some time that their leaving would mean a new adventure for our family, so his call came as little surprise. Still a bit overwhelming, but not a surprise. We love our ward family and look forward to serving! Chad has some great counselors and I love their wives. We are going to have some fun!

When Chad bore his testimony last Sunday, he said that this Church is not the Church of Bishop Rowley or the Bishop Rowley or President Walton (our Stake Pres) but the Church of Jesus Christ. My boys thought that was the funniest things ever!The reality of it all won't sink in for a while. With Frank here is still seems like he is the bishop. Everyone calls him bishop and Chad is still Chad. Frank has been an amazing bishp these last 3 1/2 years and has seen our ward through some tough economic and spritirual times. What a blessing he has been to all our lives! He will be greatly missed!

I love my husband and know he will faithfully serve our ward and our community and I will support him as well I can. Heavenly Father has blessed me with such a wonderful family! I am grateful to live here in Coolidge and for the experiences that we have had here so far. I love belonging to a community, not just a ward. There is so much to do and so many great people here!

Snow day!

2011-02-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

The kids won't let a winter go by without taking a snow day up to the mountains. Presidents' Day turned out to be the day, so we packed up our snow gear (however too small!) and headed up to Young Mountain. It still amazes me that snow is only a 1 1/2 drive away! We found a great spot to play in by ourselves and the kids went at it for a good two hours. We did a little sledding, but really, Jackson and Carson are all about snowball fighting and Ressa is all about making snowmen and angels. These pics are taken with Chad's phone, so not my best.

I swear we could not find ONE SINGLE pebble on the ground. So I went and got some of our snacks in the car to help Ressa finish off her little snowman. Whatever!

A great day!

Tender Mercies

2011-02-27T05:49:00.000-08:00

I think we all have certain words of phrases that drive us crazy. Or maybe you don't and it's just my neurotic upbringing. My mother about comes unglued when someone mispronounces the word "ensign" or ends a sentence with "these ones". My sister cannot stand the word "journey", as in "my life's journey" or "journey of life". In 1 Nephi 1:20, Nephi says that he will show us the "tender mercies of the Lord" and how they will make the faithful become mighty. While I love to read Nephi and think he was a great writer, this term "tender mercies" has become one of those that makes me cringe when I hear it used in a testimony or a lesson in church. Ugh!

Having said that, I can't help but use this dreaded phrase to describe our families 2011 Pinewood Derby experience. This was the boys' last race, now that they will advance to 11 yr old scout this summer, and I so wanted them to have a good experience. My boys are not sore losers. If they were, it might make it easier for me to watch them be defeated, time after time. I would just get mad at them. But to watch them bravely try to hide their disappointment each year, just breaks my heart! Now, I am not faulting my dear sweet husband who has made every effort to help them make a fast car. He works very hard on them, I assure you! But we have some pretty die-hard dads out there who are in it to win it and make some amazing cars.

So the morning of the derby, I asked the boys if they were exciting for the race and Jackson says quietly, "I hope I don't get last every race." He didn't expect to win the whole thing, just not get last all the time. So I prayed and prayed and asked their grandma to pray and our prayers were answered, thanks to the tender mercies of the Lord. Neither Carson nor Jackson won the fastest car, but they raced very well each time and Jackson was so thrilled to come in first in one of the heats! As soon as he returned his car after the race, I saw him make his way all around the crowd to come and see if we saw him win. He was all smiles and continued that way all night! Carson got 2nd place every race and was pleased with that, too!

Carson's car was car was called "Sugar Rush" and Jackson's limousine was called "Limo-mean!" Jeremy was such a great announcer the whole night and everyone has a great time!

This next picture is totally random, but I wanted to add it on here. I am on the Coolidge Cotton Council that has a program for girls in the community. We had a daddy/daughter night and the dads wore a shower cap with shaving cream on top. Their daughters had to throw cheese balls at them and see who could get the most to stick. It was very funny and the dads were such good sports!

Free Time

2011-01-26T20:36:00.000-08:00

I found this on my sister-in-law, Hollie's, blog.

I was introduced to a little game where you can make a fake album cover for your fake band.

Here's what you do:

1-Go to Wikipedia.org and hit random. The first random article you get is the name of your band.

2-Go to Quotationspage.com and hit random. The last four or five words of the last quote is the title of your album.

3-Go to flickr.com and click on "explore last 7 days". The third picture no matter what it is will be your album cover.

4-Go to picnik.com to put it all together.

Here's mine!

Thanks, Hollie! Apparently I have too much time on my hands, too! Or I just got home from mutual, sat on the couch next to Chad with my laptop and didn't feel like watching tv.

UB40

2011-01-23T15:06:00.000-08:00

I titled this post in honor of Chad's favorite band. Or his LEAST favorite band. I get confused. Nonetheless, it is all too fitting because as of January 10, 2011, my husband-be-forty! He is over the hill, and through the woods, and on his way to the old folks home!

He insisted on a quiet affair, assuring me that all he wanted to was to have dinner with his family, eat some cake and ice cream, and watch the BCS tournament football game. He had wanted to take a cruise through the Mexican Riviera, but sadly my mother was not able to come and watch our kids. So, I gave in and did as he asked. His aunt and two uncles were here visiting, so they were invited along with Chad's parents. We had yummy steaks for dinner and Elaine made Chad's favorite cake, red velvet. It took a team effort to light all those candles!

Here is Chad grilling our steaks on his birthday present. We have used the same grill Chad had before we were married - a tiny, old, broken thing. We have been teased repeatedly about gettting a new one and so I thought this would be a good time. Nothing too fancy, but we were able to grill all 10 steaks at one time! Imagine that!

As soon as dinner was finished, this is where the boys planted themselves for the next 3 hours.

I love Chad. After 11 years of marriage, we have grown closer together and are figuring out what makes each other tick. It was not love at first sight, but I told Chad today that I wish I would have known he was to be my eternal companion when we first met. I wish I could have known what an important moment that was. Like in the movies, when a couple meets and the music starts and the camera zooms in on just their faces. Like that. Our meeting was a life changing event and I don't even remember it! Oh well, I will have to be content with the fact that it didn't take long for me to realize how special Chad was and that we would spend our lives together. Chad is 40 now, working at the same job for 9 years and serving on the Stake High Council. You don't get much more grown up than that. He is a good husband, father, and provider. I feel so blessed everyday that we are a family!

December at-a-glance

2011-01-23T13:59:00.000-08:00

December was a busy, busy month as always. I thought I would just post a handful of pictures of significant events and then move on to 2011, shall we?

Our ward did a float for the Coolidge Light Parade in the early part of the month. The theme was "We Believe..." and Chad and I and the girls walked along side and past out little candy cane messages while the boys rode on the trailer. The weather was perfect and we were glad we participated as we were the only float that depicted the Savior and the Nativity.

Ressa's soccer season ended. Yipee! I always dread the last few games when it gets colder and colder. Her coach was a bit of a tool, always substituting the girls and weakest boys out, as if we were in some ultra competitive league. Oh well.

A family in our ward makes a big breakfast for the homeless in Phoenix on Christmas morning. This year they asked for coat donations, and hygiene kits that they could pass out to the homeless. So the Rowley clan got together on a Saturday and assembled 30 kits, with each family assigned to bring a certain item/items. I chose to bring hand towels but the ones I found at the Dollar Tree were all white, so I bought some dye and dyed them all brown. Chad gave me a hard time, saying the homeless wouldn't care if their white towels showed the dirt, but I am stubborn. The kids had a good time putting them together!

Christmas Eve, we met Nate and Carrie at Polar Ice for some ice skating. It went alot smoother in my head. I didn't imagine the skates being THAT uncomfortable and the kids picking it up easier than they did. Let's just say I needed a back adjustment after holding on to the girls and slowing making our way around the rink. But the kids had fun and that is what matters.

Christmas Eve went smoothly, since all the preparations had been done in advance. It was just our little family this year, a first in a long time. I prefer a large crowd, but this year Chad's family wanted to do their own thing in the morning and meet up later. So we had a peaceful night and then Chad woke us all up at 6am to open presents. He is just like his mother! His parents came and joined us and it turned out to be a lovely, although quiet, Christmas morning! Chad's siblings all came later and we spent two days together. Elaine really outdid herself this year with all the acitivities and food. We had a treasure hunt, nativity play/talent show, and different activity stations. Pretty amazing!

New Years, we threw together a quick little party and a few friends were able to come. We had fun and most the kids were able to stay awake past midnight. 2010 was a good year and I am glad we got along so well. I hope the New Year is good to us, too!

In the mood...

2010-12-30T19:03:00.000-08:00

WARNING: This post if for my children to read when they get older, so you may find this boring.

I woke up this morning, feeling in the mood to write down a little something about each of my kids so they will know what they were like at this stage of their childhood. My soggy memory cannot be relied upon. I used to ask my mother what I was like when I was young, and she would say "I don't really remember. You were a good kid. Happy." Nothing else. But she had 11 childen and therefore, I forgive her. My childhood memories are very few and far between of what I was like. I remember being happy though and playing hard with my siblings and working hard. So I wanted to write down a few things about each of my children so I will have a better answer for them when they ask me what they were like...

Carson (10) - your are our best behaved child. When I am lecturing all of you kids in the car on the way to church about not messing around and getting ready ontime, I really don't mean you. When I am lecturing all the kids about being nice to eachother and not bickering, I really don't mean you. You only drive your mother crazy when you stand quietly near her, wanting something, but not wanting to ask. You just hover around until I notice and ask what you want. You are super easy to please and my only child who says 'thank you' without being reminded. You love to read, read, read. You are currently reading the Eddie Bone series and the Tennis Shoes and Nephites series you got for Christmas. You have been taking piano for over a year now and played a couple Christmas songs at our family program. Your teacher says you are a good site reader. Besides reading, you enjoy hiking, camping, rock climbing, golfing, and playing Harry Potter Lego wii game. You are very quiet, except when you are talking about favorite topics. You are a straight A student and a perfectionist. You do not have any close friends, pretty much a loner, but everyone at school is nice to you and respects you. You will still come and snuggle up to me sometimes and I love it.You are the sweetest sick kid, which is too bad since you and Lauren are my healthiest. I am so proud of you and wonder what I did to deserve such a great kid.

Jackson (10) - Your personality has really started to develp over the past year.You and your twin brother are becoming more and more different. Last year you seemed grumpy and tired alot and now you are happier and have more energy. You are quiet, a loner, but you are becoming more social. You didn't get straight A's last semester and so you have been determined to improve this semester. You have to work harder and spend more time on your homework, but you are determined. You love camping, hiking, and playing the wii. You are especially good at wii sword fighting and kicking your mother's butt. You go to bed before everyone and get up earlier than the rest of us. You are a homebody and love to play with your cars and outdoor adveture toys and get annoyed when Lauren plays with them when you're gone. You don't play any sports and take music lessons but you are searching for something that interests you enough. You don't have many interests, but when you like something, you REALLY like it. You are obsessed with the tv show 'I shouldn't be Alive' and have all the episode recorded. I tried to get you to find other shows you like and you have added 'wipeout' and 'Destroyed in Seconds'. Figures. You love to watch disasters, but you are scared of riding grandpa's 4-wheeler and when dad drives the car with one hand near the canal you scream. Oh yeah, you scream like a little girl. :)

Ressa (7) - You have always been such a sweetheart, but your 2nd grade friends have taught you a couple new tricks, like acting like you don't hear me when I tell you to brush your teeth, or hiding something I have asked you to put away. You obey every rule at school or church and love to participate in every activity you can think of. You are very social and have lots of friends. Friends are always calling to have you come and play and you love to be active, always doing something. You are kind and forgiving of people. You have been taking karate for a year now and have advanced to an orange belt. You are a natural but hate to practice. You just finished soccer and have been taking horse riding/barrell racing lessons from my friend. You were one of the dancers in the school Christmas program and now you want to take dance again, so we will have to evaluate what you are going to drop instead. I am glad you are so busy because if you are home you are in front of the tv. These last couple years have been interesting as far as your health goes. First a bladder disorder causing frequent UTI's, a seizure back in Sept that has put you on meds, and somewhere around 10 bouts of strep throat in the last year. You have an appt to see the ENT about getting your tonsils out. I have been accused of being hardest on you, because everything comes so easy to you and so I expect more. That is probably true.

Lauren (4) - I thought about writing about each of my kids this morning while doing laundry and thinking how funny it is that you hate jeans. You only like stretchy pants or skirts. I have succeeded in getting a pair of jeans on you on a couple occasions, but you always change out of them later in the morning. You say they are too cold. Whatever. I tell people you are my highest and lowest maintenance child. Lowest, because you fall asleep in the car and I can take you out and lay you down again and you stay asleep. You eat the foods I eat. You love Subway and we go there often while the kids are at school. None of my other kids would eat anything from there (well, Ressa has recently discovered a love for tuna so there is hope).You are independent, getting yourself dressed, getting your own snacks, entertaining yourself, riding your bike down to grandmas without saying a word. Highest maintenance because you demand attention and expect anything and everything at that precise moment. I told you yesterday that I was the boss and you said Jesus was really the boss. So I told you Jesus IS the boss and he says to honour your father and mother, making me the boss. You are too sassy and smart for your own non-denim britches. I wonder where you get all that sass? Like Ressa, you are very social and have lots of friends, as long as they are your age or older. You have no time for younger children and ignore them or treat them with disdane. You love me to draw on your back and give lots of kisses and hugs.

There. I think that is enough for now. I will try and do this again in a year or two to keep things fresh. TTFN!

Grandpa Pruitt

2010-12-12T20:11:00.000-08:00

My maternal Grandpa Pruitt died on November 19th at the age of 90 years old. This picture was taken last year, the last time we were to see him alive. What a funny and loving man he was to me and my children! Jackson was especially taken with him and his great grandma. We will miss them both so much, since in a way we have lost our grandma, too. She is my step-grandma, married to my grandpa for 30 years, and now that her husband has past, her crazy neices have come and taken her away to live with them, shunning contact from the Pruitt side of the family. It's a long story, but I hope that she will be taken care of in her remaining time here. She is also 90 and very frail.

Chad and I flew up to Seattle for the funeral over the weekend. 9 of my 10 siblings were able to make it, so we had a nice weekend together and packed in alot in a short time.

Here is my mother (left) and her two sisters, Penny and Pam. They all three spoke at the funeral and did a wonderful job! Of course, my mom spoke the longest. Like mother, like daughter. My mom is a convert to the church and the only member in her family. My aunts had their pastor officiate the service and he gave a rather interesting sermon on the cross and asked why we have a symbol of torture and death as a reminder of our Savior. Good question. Why would anyone? I think he thought he gave a great answer, but our family was not so sure. Speaking of torture, mom asked us kids to sing "I wonder when he comes again" and let's just say it needed some work. My grandpa served in the Army in WWII and so there was a nice salute at the end of the service.

My three sisters and I try to get a picture when we are together.Lanith is the oldest (right) and Samantha is the youngest (left) with a 17 year difference between them. LeaAnn and I somewhere smack in the middle. LeaAnn went and colored her hair dark so she could stand out from the rest of us. Nathan was taking our picture so we had a hard time keeping it together. Ok. So maybe just Lanith and I did, but we are getting goofy in our old age.

I love my Pruitt cousins. They are few, but we always have fun when we get together.

My baby brother and sister.

Lanith's oldest daughter Casssidi (on my immediate right) just had her third baby girl, named Meadow. Of course I gave her a hard time about the name, but she was sure a sweety and so beautiful. BTW, it only recently occured to me that I am a great aunt. Not only that, I have been a great aunt for 6 years now! What an airhead I can be! Here I have been giving my sis a hard time for being a grandma, not even considering my role in all this. I have just been referring to my grand nieces as "my niece's kids". Brindy, botttom left, is another niece.

My nephew Tyler happend to have his football team's state championship game the night before the funeral in Tacoma, so we all met up at the game to watch them get creamed! Here are my parents, Chad, and 5 of my brothers watching the slaughter. We had fun though!

We really like to multi-task when we all get together, so we celebrated my dad's 69th birthday at Red Robin after the game! I love my dad!

My creative side

2010-12-11T23:23:00.000-08:00

Now I have never made a cake for any of my kids birthdays. I don't bake cookies. I use flour on the rarest of occasions. But I do love making gingerbread houses. Strange, I know. But several years ago our family started a tradition of decorating gingerbread houses at Thanksgiving and I thought it was so fun. It has been a few years now that I have made one, so when Bret and Hollie invited us to their annual party, I was excited and started planning in my head what we could do. I immediately thought of the new movie, 'Tangled', thinking that the tower would be fun to do. Of course, I still haven't had the chance to see the movie yet! So I looked at pictures online and made out a design. Chad was along for the ride, but he was a great help and we finished just barely on time! We had alot of fun and I am happy to announce that we were awarded 1st place! Woo Hoo! Thanks, Bret and Hollie, for inviting us (even if you decide not to have us back again next year).

I know the pictures are hard to see very well, but those are marshmallow 'cliffs' in the background. The rule is that everything has to be edible, so Chad said we really should be disqualified because broccoli really isn't edible.

The 3rd place winner was the 'crapper can'. So funny!

2nd Place was also based on Rapunzel, entitled "Let your hair down". They used alot of gingerbread and made an incredible castle!

My Jackson

2010-12-11T23:04:00.000-08:00

Jackson and Carson were out playing in the leaves all afternoon. They would rake them all up, roll in them, then start all over again. When cousin Kelsie told me that Jackson wanted me to come and see him, I figured what he was up to and grabbed my camera. This is what I found...

And this is what happened when I pushed the can over. He said not to, but I thought he secretly wanted me to. Hee hee!

Swan Song

2010-12-09T13:42:00.000-08:00

We had an Elders Quorum BBQ at our house a few weeks ago. Ham and pumpkin pies. Volleyball and roasting marshmallows. Good time. Then the next day Chad and I are called in to meet with Stake Presidency Counselor to call Chad to the High Council. No more Elders Quorum for Chad. It's all suits and briefcases and sacrament talks. Our boy is all growed up. I guess with my baby turning 40 in a month, it's time to face facts.

Thanksgiving!

2010-12-09T13:13:00.000-08:00

It is long past Thanksgiving, and we are fast approaching Christmas! So here are a few pics of our Thanksgiving with LeaAnn, Samantha, Adam and their families. We had such a great time!

Fall Festival

2010-11-07T14:15:00.000-08:00

Finally, the Festival is over and I can relax and let my hair down! I have a great PTO board this year and we had so many volunteers to help us out with this big event! Having said that, I still had to do ALOT and I think it will take me a couple days to recover. I'm not as young as I used to be, I guess.

This time around was alot bigger and more involved than last year, but everything seemed to run smoothly enough. There were a few mishaps: half of the inflatable obstacle course got a big whole in the seam, so it turned into just a large slide. No big deal. We bought way too much food, or rather, it was way too hot and people didn't eat enough. They drank enough, sure! But we have tons of food left over.

People lined up for food

Pie throwing booth victims (all teachers)

I kind of worked every station throughout the 5 hours. Here we are selling wristbands and tickets.

I went to take some water to the couple who brought their horse for horse rides. They looked tired and hungry, so I volunteered Chad and I to take over a while. It was fun!

The Griffins brought a few chickens that they just let run around and the kids tried to catch them. So fun!

Darrin Anderson (principal) having his turn on the dunk tank. It was so hot that day, I almost wish I could have had a turn! Almost.

For my kids, the rock wall was what it was all about. Every time I looked over to the wall, I saw one of the kids up there!

Chili Cook off entries. I didn't get the chance to try any, but I heard they were good.

Cook off judges. Also made up of some teachers.

There are a few things I would like to have differently, but overall, it turned out great! Besides, I told Chad I wouldn't be the PTO president again after this year. But I can still offer suggestions, I suppose. :) It was really just too stinkin' hot for a November day! Ugh! The event finished at 4pm and that is about when the cloud cover appeared and things felt nice. Oh well.

Princess Party

2010-11-04T19:09:00.000-07:00

I was so excited when I realized that we had planned our school Fall Festival on Lauren's 4th birthday. What a lucky girl to have a whole festival celebration on her special day! Of course, when I told Lauren, she said, "Wow! Is that before or after my princess party?" Lauren has been telling everyone that she is having a princess party for a year now, since the day after her Scooby Doo themed 3rd bday party. I really thought she would get over it since so much time has gone by and she really only dresses up when Cora come over to play. Well, even though things have been a bit hectic lately, I decided to throw a quick party with her friends from preschool during the day. They all wore the dresses to school and then I picked them up and brought them here for a little fun. I love the dollar store and Walmart!

I got some face paint and found a fun idea online and painted each girl's face. It was such a simple, yet pretty design. Didn't really take very long.

While the other girls waited their turn, Grandma Rowley helped them decorate their magic wands with foam stickers. Grandma was such a great help and made things run so smoothly. Thank you, Grandma!

Here is our pretty little princess! She is getting so big! Just not quite as big as the other 4 year olds.

We had each friend sit by Lauren as she opened their gift to her. It was so sweet and not very chaotic. The girls were so well behaved, that I actually enjoyed every minute of the party!

I really don't know what this look was about, but I love it!

Lauren was so excited to have her dear friend Haylee at her party. Haylee's family moved to Flagstaff for school, but Haylee has been here in Coolidge all week staying at her Aunt Holly's. These two girls have spent every day together!

After face painting and wand decorating, Grandma read a short story and then we went downstairs to open presents and watch Rapunzel until the parents came.

When I got back from taking Haylee home, this is what I found in the back seat. Awwww. Somebody was worn out from all the fun they had! You know, it was a very nice day today. Especially since the previous day was quite the opposite. Lauren and I have been butting heads all week, but yesterday was especially bad. She can drive me crazy! But this morning when she asked, "Mom? Could I please have some milk?" instead of "I want a drink of milk" I knew we were off to a good start! I love you, Lauren! Thank you for making today worth the effort! XXXOOO

Trunk or Treat

2010-10-30T23:57:00.000-07:00

This is the 1st Trunk or Treat in 4 years that we have attended that I have not been on the Activities Committee. I have dreamed of the day our family could attend an activity without planning it or staying til 10pm cleaning up. That dream will have to wait, since the Elder's Quorum was assigned the Spook Alley and Chad is still the president. He needed help so we started setting up at 8am this morning and finished at noon. The trunk or treat started at 6pm and everyone went home just after 8pm. It took us another 1 1/2 hrs to take it all down and didn't get home until 9:30pm. Ugh!

I really enjoyed getting the girls ready this year. Putting on makeup and doing hair. Good times!

I tried to talk jackson into letting me make a cracker costume to go with his cheese head so he could be cheese and crackers. As you can see, I was not successful in convincing him. Ressa and Lauren were having a blast since their good friends, Audrie and Haylee came to visit from Flagstaff. Also, Lauren and Peyton Stone came, too!

Ladies and Gentlemen! Your judges! Lauren won an award for being such a cute fruit bat.

Carson and Jackson had a good time, I think. At least this picture makes it look like they had a good time. Chad and I were so busy with the Spook Alley that we didn't get to spend much time with our kids. :(

The Larsons. We sure miss them since they moved to Flagstaff while they go to school!

The older kids came home from school after I had my little lunch party and they wanted a turn at bobbing for donuts. Carson couldn't stop laughing to take a bite!

Let the Spookfest begin!

2010-10-30T23:16:00.000-07:00

This month for Taco Tuesday lunch, I added a little "Halloween". I like to mix it up a little every now and then. Keep it fresh. So kids came in their costumes and we played couple fun games. I wanted to make some decorations and found these super cute hanging critters on marthastewart.com. See how they turned out!

So easy and fun to make! I want to make a few more when I have some time to add to the collection.

The first game we played was "Pin the face on the pumpkin". Here is Lauren with her blind fold, feeling her way around the pumpkin. I couldn't believe how well she did!

Our little bat and her jack-o-lantern! She loves Jackson's old bat costume and flaps around, squeeking like a bat.

Next, we lined up each of the kids with a donut hanging from a string and they tried to eat it without using their hands. The key word is "tried". I will use mini donuts next time with kids this little.

Then it was time for the big kids to have a go at all the fun. Jessica beat us handily, but we had a good time!

Fall Break

2010-10-27T08:54:00.000-07:00

Went to San Diego for Fall Break and stayed at my sister, LeaAnn's. She recently had back surgery and my mom had been there for two weeks to take care of her. The kids and I went on the third week so I could help out a little and of course, enjoy the beach. My brother Adam and his family also moved to the area a couple months ago so it was great to see everyone!

I think this is the coolest looking animal there. Can't even remeber what it was called, dukopi or something like that. A cross between a zebra & giraffe.

We spent a fun day with the our cousins, Eli, Enoch, Ella, Issac, Hannah, and Lily. With Adam in the Navy, they have always lived in far away places, but now our kids can get to know eachother. They have such a wonderful family! We missed having Chad with us all week. He was not able to get away from work since they had to layoff 6 people and he had to be there for that. While he was delivering the bad news, we were sitting on the beach, relaxing. I felt so bad for him (and the people they laid off).

It's not what it looks like

2010-10-26T16:26:00.000-07:00

This was a completely innocent trip to the Casa Grande ruins. No alterior motives. Just a mother who wants to teach her children about the Native American history of the area in which we live. I like to take advantage of every moment of everyday, to explore and educate myself and my children. It was by sheer coincidence that other cub scouts and their parents came to participate in the junior ranger program for a badge at the exact same time.

I know what you are thinking. We're in trouble.

Can't get enough of the boys in blue

2010-10-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

Your probably thinking that the only time I blog about Carson and Jackson is when it has to do with cub scouts. And you're probably right. Our next scouting adventure was the Calvin Coolidge Days Parade. Our troop showed their stuff by walking (not riding) in the parade in 93 degree temps. Way to go boys!

My brother Jason and his wife Kimberly have a banner making business so I asked him to make a sign for the troop to carry in the parade. It turned out pretty good!

Here are two fans sitting on the curb to cheer the boys on! We bought these personal mister bottles to keep cool and took a couple more to the scout leaders to keep the troop cool while they walked. One scout told me that I saved thirteen lives that morning! I tried not to let it go to my head.

Just sit back and celebrate!

2010-10-23T20:24:00.000-07:00

Ressa's 7th Birthday!

It dawned on me 6 days before that I needed to plan something for Ressa's birthday. The whole week before was spent taking her to the hospital and dealing with her seizure problem. Thankfully, Ressa wanted to go to BounceU and the kids had Friday off of school. Perfect. BounceU had an open schedule and I made a few quick phone calls and texts to family and friends, and viola!

Cousins Jane and Mabel

Chad taking it easy on the little kids.

"Twin" cousins, Lauren and Grayson, defending their turf from the enemy.

Ressa and cousin Bo

Here we are sitting and watching our kids hopefully wear themselves out. Katie (far left) is a friend of mine and the rest are my sisters-in-law Hollie, Diana, and Carrie.

Cousin Bree and Lauren

When your are little, you have to find ways to improvise. A cross between air hockey and table tennis. Table hockey!

Happy Birthday, Ressa! I am so happy to make this day special for you and celebrating your first 7 years!

"Put your hand on your head if you want lemonade". So the party hosts really took care of everything! They served the pizza, poured the drinks, handed out the presents and read the birthday cards aloud. I felt like a guest at the party!

Basement Makeover

2010-10-09T21:02:00.000-07:00

After a visit with Danielle and Jeff in July and seeing their house, I was inspired to do some wainscotting in our basement. I have been wanting to do something for a long time and Jeff convinced me that it was doable. Then a couple months ago some friends moved and sold us their pool table so we needed to take out the bar counter to make room. Chad and I cashed in some credit card rewards and got some Home Depot gift cards that I used to buy the wood. Hired Bishop Lowell from 1st ward to do the install along with his trusty sidekick, my father-in-law Frank (aka Bishop Rowley). The project took one week to complete and here are the before and after pics!

BEFORE...

and AFTER!

The two Bishops who made it all possible. What a team! They might tell you some story about me showing up and catching them playing pool since they ran out of trim and giving them a hard time about not working. I wasn't THAT critical. :)

The design is a bit of this and that, some ideas I took from Jeff and the idea to use stain came from the Hansen's house. I thought that black stain would look good over light gray and gave it a try. I really like the effect and how it all turned out. My friend Katie was so great to go to Home Depot with me and let me bounce ideas off of her while picking out my trim pieces. We used her long flatbed trailer to load all the wood.

I really like it down in this room so much and we have enjoyed playing pool more now that there is enough room. It had been along time since I have done any decorating and I am glad to have a chance again!

What a blessing!

2010-09-22T12:41:00.000-07:00

On Sunday morning, during Sacrament meeting, Ressa had a seizure. We were sitting on the bench, and I was trying to find a scripture for her to read in Primary. She was sitting next to Chad and Carson was in between she and I. I asked to borrow Carson's scriptures and found a verse for her. I leaned over and pointed out the verse for her to read through in case there were any words she didn't know. She didn't understand what I was saying and I was getting frustrated. I gave Carson back his scriptures. Then I took out Chad's and opened up to the verse and gave her that set for her to use. Again, I pointed out verse 2 for her and again she was not sure what verse she was supposed to read. I gave up and Chad whispered instructions to her and read it aloud (semi-quietly). While she sat and reread to herself was when it happened. I heard her whimper and looked over at her. She was crying, but her eyes were scared and confused. Her mouth was turned down on one side and her lips were trembling. She tried to say, "What is happening to me?" but it was very hard to understand. I was so scared and grabbed her and quickly left the chapel with Chad close behind. I made eye contact with Elaine and she followed us out also. I set her on the floor in the lobby and tried to calm her. She was very confused and could not respond. She could not speak and was drooling without control of her mouth. I sent Elaine to get Charlene Green, a nurse in our ward, and she came and sat with us. She said it looked like a seizure, but by that time it was about over and she was able to understand us better.

The whole episode did not last very long, a matter of a couple minutes, but it was very frightening! Poor Ressa was scared by what had happened and she said it felt hard to breathe, like she was under water. I took her home and Charlene came and tested her blood sugar and it was normal. I called the dr. and he said I should take her to the new hospital in Florence for a CAT Scan. So I took her and Chad met us there after church while Elaine watched the other kids. I am not a big fan of the new hospital as a result of our visit, but she did have a scan done and a EKG and all tests were normal. They took 2 tries to get enough blood drawn and 3 tries for the I.V. Ressa was such a good girl but it was very traumatic being stuck that many times! I felt so bad for her and frustrated with the staff there! They transferred us by ambulance (for liability purposes) to Phoenix Children's Hospital to be observed overnight. I was thinking it was overkill but it turns out it was for the best.

On Monday they did an EEG scan of her brain and the test came back abnormal for partial seizures in the left of her brain! Translation, a mild form of epilepsy. We were shocked by the diagnosis since she didn't have another seizure while we were there. They kept us another night to start her on some medication and then do an MRI today and see if they can find a cause. The MRI came back clear and they let us come home tonight! The hospital staff and facilities were great and kept Ressa occupied during all the down time we had. They had a game room and crafts, even a little school with other patients.

It was such a blessing that both Chad and I were there to witness this seizure and give an eye witness account. Our hope is that early detection and treatment will be the key in preventing any further damage. Ressa is such a precious little girl and she wins over everyone she meets! She is bright and intelligent and we will do everything we can to protect her and help her reach her greatest potential. When I told her I was sorry that this all happened to her, she said, "Well, at least we get to spend some good time together." That's my girl!

Lauren was greatly missed by her little sister. Grandpa and Grandma brought Lauren over to visit and just missed Ressa when she went in for her MRI. We ate lunch all together and waited for her to come out. They had to put Ressa under general anesthetic to keep her still during the long test, so she was very groggy and tired when they brought her back. Lauren was so happy to see her but had to settle for laying by her unconsious figure. So sweet!

The joys of scouting

2010-09-22T12:13:00.000-07:00

Raingutter Regata 2010 - Watching your two children lose one race after another is not my idea of fun, but I am funny that way. Trying to keep their spirits up and not get discouraged is even less fun.

But I have to give Carson and Jackson credit for keeping their mouths shut as they watched other scouts push and scoot their boats along with their hands without any consequences or penalty. Life is not always fair. That is the lesson learned here. Also, did you know you can make a catamaran bottom that goes twice as fast? Neither did we. Ahhh, the joys of scouting.

What's New...

2010-08-30T21:36:00.000-07:00

I haven't been faithful with taking pictures or blogging lately. Blame it on school starting, PTO business, young womens, or book reading. Hard to say, but things have been going well for our little students so far this year! I swear this picture below is identical to last year's first day of school. So I just went and found last years in my blog archive so you can judge for yourselves...

2010

2009

Wait! We're not done! Lauren was not to be outdone. She started preschool with Necia this month, too!

She loves to bring "homework" home with her, even when her teacher doesn't send any home. She simply takes out what they worked on that day and cuts or colors more, just to keep it going.

It's strange to be just me and Lauren during the days again. She tells me she loves me several times a day and we laugh and hang out a lot more. Good times!

Perrins Family Reunion 2010

2010-08-05T23:26:00.000-07:00

Here is my younger brother and sister, LeaAnn and Nate. They were the lucky ones in charge of the massive undertaking that is the Samuel Perrins Family Reunion this year. I had my chance last time when we went to Zion's Canyon, so I know all too well how much work it takes to pull everything off. This year we went to Yellowstone Park and they did a great job and we have oodles and oodles of pictures to prove it! I will try and include just a select few, but it is so hard! It is so amazing to me how well a turn out we continue to have each reunion. With so many family members and being spread out all over the West, I am so grateful that my siblings are able to make this event a priority. We had a total of 71 family members of my immediate family, with only 6 absent. Of course, we dearly missed those 6 that were unable to attend! The theme was Survivor and Nate had prepared various challenges each evening. The teams that lost would be in charge of cleaning up dinner and dessert. Here is Lauren choosing her team color, purple. They were the Purple Pirates. "I am a purple pirate. We steal things." -Lauren

One challenge was a race up to one of the cabins. Each team member had to participate in one of 9 challenges, so here you see that Carson is representing his team. Go Carson!

Lauren throwing horse shoes with Daddy!

We rented 3 large cabins for our group. Here are the boys in our room.

Both Ressa and Jackson learned to ride "little red". Jackson got his first lesson solo while I was playing cards and took a pretty good spill. It may take some coaxing to get him back on again. Ressa couldn't get enough!

My sweet parents have alot of grandkids. I am too tired to count and give an exact number, but somewhere around 50. They also have 3 great grandkids with one on the way. Jori is missing in this picture, so my mom had Sam hold a doll of her. Kinda creep!

We spent a couple days exploring Yellowstone Park. It is sooo big and soo many different things to see! We loved all the waterfalls and hot springs and volcanos. I wish we had more time to explore!

Waiting for Old Faithful

Three of my seven brothers: Seth, Clayne, and Nathan sporting his stylish fedora.

Chad enjoying spending time with his kids. It takes a real man to not be afraid to make a fool of himself!

My mom and dad. I love them so much! Aren't they adorable?

We wrapped up the whole week with a final tribal council and smores. Chad's team (the Great White Sharks) ended up winning the contest. It was all so fun and we are already throwing out ideas to Grant and Seth for the next reunion!

Girls Camp 2010!

2010-07-11T17:59:00.000-07:00

Camp Theme: Daughters of a King - Campalot

Coolidge 2nd Ward - Camp Choose-a-lot

Location: Mt. Lemmon, Tuscon @ Camp Zion

July 6-10

6 first years (Bethanie, Maria, Dawnirae, Sandy, Ally, Paige)

1 second year (Maryn)

3 third years (Tyrza, Selina, Breigh)

5 fourth years (Kaylee, Sasha, Hayley, McKenzie, Jennifer)

1 assistant camp director (Rachelle)

What an incredible week! I am the Beehive Counselor in our ward and also the ward camp director. We have been planning and preparing for this week for so long now and it is a relief to know it is over and we now have the wonderful memories! No drama, no major injuries or illness, no fights, just a bunch of girls who are all so very different but closer because of the experience! The Stake was so organized and things went pretty smoothly. This was my first year at camp so I could empathize with my first year beehives. Thankfully, my assistant Rachelle was a pro, being only 18 and this being her 6th year in a row. I relied on her alot to tell us what to expect and preparing for everything she could think of. We found out that we had been assigned the dreaded camp site along the stairs. I am grateful that we got it this year so hopefully it will be a long time until we have it again.

We took these pictures on Testimony Rock when Brother and Sister Abraham came to visit. I renamed it Photography Rock since no testimonies were born there.

My boys came home from cub scouts with these shirts they had sprayed bleach on. I thought they were cool so we cut out designs on paper with the cricut and made these unique shirts to wear one day. We loved them!

Me with my assistant Rachelle and McKenzie.

I have one of my beehives to thank for showing me the flower setting on my camera to take this picture on our hike. Thanks, Maryn!

Rachelle was tired of me bossing her around and tried to get rid of me.

So one night we had a Pageant and each ward had to choose one of their leaders to be a contestant. They chose me and dressed me up in this ridiculous get up for the WOW wear portionl. We called this ensemble the modern woman's Armour of God. Helmet of Salvation was a tiara and flowers. Shield of faith was a silver handbag, breastplate was a bunch of necklaces, my loins were gird about with polyester/spandex and a pink tutu. Feet shot with black heels and sword of truth cell phone and a zebra patterned chastity belt finished up the outfit. My adoring fans asked for some pictures before I took the stage.

Much to my chagrin, there was also the dreaded talent portion and so I hastily threw together a little song that I learned as a child about a preacher out hunting and coming across a bear. I am no singer but it was silly and Tyrza helped me out by acting as the bear.

I was nervous for the question part but thankfully I was the 2nd to last to go and decided that no matter what question I was asked, I would cry and talk about the poor orphans. It just happened that I was asked what I would do if I was given 1 million dollars, so of course I would build an orphanage so they would have a home full of love. I must have been convincing because Dawnirae asked Rachelle if I was really crying.

All of the contestants. They all did such an incredible job! I was named Miss Sassy, although I can't understand why. Maybe it was because when they had us all come back up on stage together I ran in front of the all the contestants and whooped it up, or maybe it was the time when they introduced the celebrity judges and I ran off stage and shook all their hands and told them how lovely they looked. Who knows.

One day we had a royal tournament with various competitions and this is our sand castle that one the round. We won most of our challenges with the exception of the wood beam walk and archery. Blasted archery!

We used this shoe organizer to hold the girls' notes and little presents they got each day. I used the cricut to make name tags. I used the cricut for many, many, things actually. What a priceless piece of machinery when you are in young womens! I got the girls a charm bracelet and each day they got a new charm to add to it. They were a big hit!

Now that I am home I am longing for the mountains and cooler temps. We are leaving next week for Yellowstone for my family reunion and I can hardly wait!

10th Birthday Bash

2010-07-11T16:24:00.000-07:00

After long last, we stayed in town for Carson and Jackson's birthday. With a birthday falling around the 4th of July weekend, it is hard to not be gone for the holiday. But with the Rowley reunion the week before and Girls Camp the week after, we needed an excuse to stay home! So I decided to send out an email and a text to some friends, inviting them to the party/bbq, thinking that a few would want to come if they were around. We rented this super big water slide to keep the kids cool and we hauled the dunk tank over from the Elks Lodge up the road. The kids had an absolute blast! My brother Adam and his family of 8 were staying the week and LeaAnn and her three kids were also here a few days. So the water slide fun started for all the cousins at 9am and went until 8pm. Lets just say that it is fortunate we have a well and didn't have to pay for all that water that ran ALL DAY!

Here are the birthday boys, with Carson shirtless. Can you believe they are 10 years old??? They are still pretty small and skinny. But they are the best kids and I love them so much! I wouldn't mind if they just stayed this age forever!

I tried counting how many people came and it turned out to be around 80 guests. Old friends came that I didn't expect to make it and it was so fun to see them. I didn't really get to "hang out" as much as I would have liked, since feeding that size of a group is a bit of work!

Here is my dear Chad on the dunk tank. Now he wasn't too thrilled that I wanted to get this brought over. He had helped haul it for the Fall Festival to the school and it is a large and heavy piece of metal. But I insisted and so he and a couple of my brothers and a friend went and got it. I thought it was worth it, since the kids played endlessly on it throughout the day. But when the time came to load it up and return it, Chad got his finger smashed and his WHOLE entire fingernail was pulled off! It is still too upsetting to think about! I feel so terribly bad about it all and wish I had not got that dumb dunk tank! His fingernail is going to take forever to heal! So now I would say it was not worth all the trouble.

My friend Sarah was so great to take pictures while I ran around. She had a tough time pinning down Jackson, but this is Carson anyway.

Please can I have a cupcake?

Here are the girlfriends who made it to the party. I forced them to gather and take a picture so I could put it on my blog. Please, Carrie, make yourself comfortable!

Schools out!

2010-06-11T08:27:00.000-07:00

I know school has been out for a couple weeks, but I wanted to get these pics posted. This year has been a great one for all three of my kids, and a big thanks goes out to Mrs. Chrisman and Miss Evavold! Here is Ressa with Miss E. on the last day of school. It was only a half day and the 1st and 2nd grades had a water day out in the field. I brought Lauren along to help volunteer and prepared lunch for all the little rascals.

Each class and their teacher chose a "Character Student of the Year" and they had an assembly to announce which students had been selected. Character Education focuses on teaching respect, caring, responsibility, trustworthiness, etc. So the teachers made a dvd of them naming their student and giving examples of how they showed these characteristics throughout the year. Ressa was awarded the student of the year for her class and she was so excited! Here are the girls after the award assembly,

I was asked by the Character Education Team to write a little something for their report, telling how I have felt about the program and how the PTO has supported it. I found it a little ironic, because of course, it is the parent's responsibiltiy to teach their children values and we expect the school to reinforce those values, not the other way around. I didn't need to get all wordy and preachy, so here is what I wrote:

As parents, we have the primary responsibility of teaching our children honesty, accountability, kindness, and many other important attributes at an early age. I am thrilled that my childrens' character development is being continued at school. I have been pleased with the efforts that Imagine at Coolidge has made in teaching and reinforcing these important lessons to my three children. I feel that the school and I are working as a team to better prepare my children for a better future. The parent/teacher relationship is vital in helping our children reach their highest potential, which is the primary reason I volunteer as the PTO president. The PTO has been active in supporting character development by promoting family friendly activities such as family movie nights, bingo night, food drives, and helping sponsor Family Character Night.

I want to thank the Character Team for all their efforts in keeping this program strong! You have my support!

For Grandma Perrins

2010-06-08T19:05:00.000-07:00

I colored these shirts and took this picture this morning. I needed it for the calendar that the kids give their dad for Fathers Day. My mom wanted to see the picture, so here you go, ma! I love you!

Best Friend of the Year

2010-06-06T22:26:00.000-07:00

And the award goes to....me.

The last year has seen a great exodus of families moving out of Coolidge. I have said good bye to many good friends. I have consoled myself that my two closest friends here are not going anywhere (knock on wood). So what do I do to show them my undying love and friendship? Completely forget their birthdays, which happen to be a week apart. Yep. That's how thoughtful I am. And I don't mean just forget. Really, not even had a clue.

Now I can blame the fact that NEITHER of these ladies are on facebook, so how am I supposed to know without a little birthday reminder in the upper right hand corner? Or that they don't talk about their big day weeks before, during, and after, like myself. That is no excuse and I feel SOOOOOO bad about it.

Maybe the only way to salvage these two important relationships is to tell them both how much I love them and appreciate their friendship.

Lucy: You are such an incredible person and I thank you for all that you teach me. You are strong in ways that I am weak. You are confident and strong without being loud and obnoxious. Thank you for sharing your insights and wisdom with me on a regular basis. We are so alike and so different at the same time, and I love it! Thank you for putting up with my nonsense and constant jabber! You rock!

Sarah: How I love our phone chats in the mornings while we do chores! I always look forward to talking with you and swapping stories. You are one of the kindest people I know. Is it weird to say that you are a good influence on me? Well it is true. I am amazed by your capacity to love others unconditionally. I thank you for reawakening my passion for reading. (Chad may not thank you, but I do!) You also rock!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

Jog or Blog?

2010-05-26T06:18:00.000-07:00

I woke up before 5am from a bad dream and could not go back to sleep. We had our last PTO meeting before the summer last night, and therefore I had a dream about PTO. Since I am up, do I go jogging or doing some blogging? I am in desparate need of both, so maybe when I am finished here I will put on the 'ol running shoes. I want to explain that although I have seemed to have fallen off the face of the earth, I have begun writing in my journal again. It has been a few weeks since I started and I feel much better now that my thoughts and experiences are being recorded. It is easier without the pressure of providing a cute anecdote or pictures. I love ldsjournal.com!

The first couple years of living in our house, I spent much time (and money) trying to make this large space feel like a home. I painted, crafted, and designed like a woman posessed. Then I lost the appetite and interest. The economy fell and Chad and I turned our focus on preparedness. For a year we built up our food storage and preparedness supplies. I feel much more knowledgable and prepared in that area. We have an EXCELLENT preparedness committe in our ward and they put on the BEST classes and activities!

Naturally, I found myself a little interested in decorating again. Springtime seems to do that. So I am posting a few pics of some projects I have been working on.

I sanded and repainted this old picnic table for our backyard. It had splinters and old paint and sat under our porch neglected.

Our contractor put up number stickers in our window to serve as an address so workers would know which was our house. Not the most attractive solution, but it was functional enough for 3 1/2 years. But then we put up dark sun shades on the windows to cut down on power bill and now you can't see the address numbers. So I found these address tiles at Home Depot and voila!

With the back porch bare, I managed to talk Chad into getting a patio set, sure that if we actually had something to sit on, we might spend more time out there. I found this set on sale for a screamin' deal and got a few pillows for mother's day.

My friend Marci posted on her blog a wall hanging she made using a large canvass, black spray paint and lots of words cut out with her cricut. I wanted to make one too so we got together last week and worked on mine, along with an idea she had for teacher gifts. I hung it downstairs since I do not have a thing on those walls. I love it! Thanks, Marci!

For Christmas the kids gave Elaine a cricut machine and only recently I have gotten my hands on it, to learn its potential in order to teach Elaine, of course! With being Beehive Counselor and ward camp director, I have been needing to get some projects done. Jennifer came over and showed me how to cut out vinyl and here is something I did for the girls' room door. Don't worry, the boys will have their revenge very soon!

I absolutely LOVE my kids' teachers this year! Miss Evavold (Miss E.) and Mrs. Chrisman care so much for their students and it shows in many ways. With being on the PTO for 2 years (soon to be 3) and volunteering in Ressa's class regularly, I have gotten to know these women well and feel so grateful for the impact they have made in such a short time. Today is the last day of school and here are the plaques we made for them. I already had the wood and everything, so a couple sheets of vinyl was all it took!

Well look at the time! I guess I will have to go jogging tomorrow! I hate it when that happens!

Dare to Derby!

2010-03-09T06:54:00.000-08:00

This year Chad was determined to make fast and furious pinewood derby cars for the boys. Especially for Jackson, to make up for a disappointing showing last year. So Chad spent countless hours (and dollars) on making the finest cars ever! I missed the first boys' first derby last year because of the foot surgery I had to have, so I was glad to go and see what the big deal was. Our troop rented a track this year and this couple from Mesa brought out this nice electronic track and big screen that gave instant results. Pretty fancy!

Here are the cheerleaders!

I love this picture of Miles biting his shirt in nervous anticipation!

I am sorry to say that Jackson's car finished with similar results of the previous year. BUT he gets first place from his mother for being such a good sport about it. Each race, I could tell he was disappointed, but put on a brave face and waited for the next time. And the next time. This year Chad put on this oil on the wheels (yes, this kind was legal!) instead of graphite. Well it turns out the one of the scout leaders was putting extra graphite on all the cars' wheels before the race. Chad took a look at Jackson's wheels and they were all gunked up! Carson's wheels weren't as bad, but he still finished in 3rd place! Well, it was a good night anyways. Only one more year in cub scouts. One more year for redemption!

Valentines & enchiladas

2010-02-18T06:00:00.000-08:00

On Tuesdays, I have Taco Tuesday at my house(formerly known as Taco Wednesday). This is a playgroup thing I started a few months ago. This week my friend suggested a Valentines Party afterward for the little kids not yet in school. We don't ususally have this big of a turnout for lunch, I assure you, but promises of candy and hearts was too much to resist.

For some reason, Lauren was under the impression that this was HER valentines/birthday party. So when it came time to go outside, she discreetly informed me, "Mom, I don't need my friends to sing Happy Birthday to me. We can just do our valentines." That was so selfless of her.

I didn't get very many pictures, but here are the few I did take.

Lauren's new do!

2010-02-18T05:41:00.000-08:00

Lauren's hair cut is so cute! We needed something that was low maintenance since little miss thing is just too busy to do her hair everyday. This should keep her hair out of her face for a while! Thanks you again, Natalie!

Disney on Ice

2010-02-09T15:43:00.000-08:00

Carrie and I took our girls to Disney on Ice, while Chad and the boys went ice skating with the Cub Scouts. I hope to get some pictures of the ice skating from a friend, but they had the best time and Chad said the boys didn't want to leave the rink even after 3 hours of skating! I took Ressa to Princesses on Ice a couple years ago and we really enjoyed it. This year was good, but I could tell they didn't have as many skaters and props.

Lauren sat on my lap most of the time so she could see. She is such a "pipsqueak" and for some reason there were big and burly dads sitting all around us and in front of us. I think their wives told them they were going to see a hockey game and tricked them all into coming.

Ressa's good friend came along with us. I was glad she came because at least she acted impressed at the exciting parts. Ressa sat with little or no expression and Lauren kept asking a million questions.

She wanted to know who was playing Ariel, where the "boy" went when young Simba skated out and older Simba skated back in, and how was Tinkerbell flying so high. The only question I had was who was the genius that thought Cars would make a good ice show. They are cars. They don't skate. They don't even have legs. Watching cars drive around in circles on the ice with random voice overs is rather dull.

I thought the Lion King section was the best. Scar was an awesome skater and the stampede scene was well done. We had a nice afternoon all together and glad we went. Thanks, Carrie, for putting it together!

Toddlers and Tiaras

2010-02-08T14:08:00.000-08:00

This weekend was the Cotton Royalty Pageant here in Coolidge. My friend and neighbor puts this all together each year, and the last two years she has added the Cotton Blossoms. These are girls ages 3-13 who get to dress up and get a tiara and come out on stage, curtsy, and recieve a carnation. No competition, just a chance for them to dress pretty. This is Ressa's second year doing it and I am actually glad because it is the only really girly thing she does. She loves soccer and is now in karate.

There were 42 little girls that participated and they all did such a good job. Technically, Lauren was old enough to be a blossom, but I think 5 years old is a good age so I'll let her do it in a couple years.

Here is Ressa walking out on the stage. The lighting is the worst in the auditorium, so this is the best I could get.

This is my absolute favorite picture of daddy and his little girl!

Natalie did Ressa's hair and it turned out gorgeous. Thank you, Nat! And I borrowed the dress from my neighbor since her 5 year old has like 4 formals. She bought this pink one for her to wear at her 4th birthday party and she refused to wear it!

Disclaimer: No hair extensions, fake teeth, artificial tanner, or choreography was used for this presentation.

New Years (and a random picture)

2010-02-08T11:51:00.000-08:00

New Years Eve I decided to have a party at our house. I love having lots of people around, and when our Christmas company left, I had to find an excuse to make the holiday last even longer. We started the evening with a Bunco Tournament. We had lots of fun and there was a TON of food to eat! After the tournament it a few guest had to leave to tend to little ones, but the rest of us stayed and played more games. The Olsens, Shumways, and Todds had some fun games to teach us and we laughed 'til we cried. Well, at least Rachael cried.

My kids were amazed to see an actual air popcorn popper that the Todds brought. I had no idea that it would be so entertaining. But the fun stopped there for my kids. Since everyone else left their children at home, they had no one to play with. They were asleep on the couch by 9:30pm, all except Lauren. She had already had a 4 hour nap and was ready to party all night long, that is until she brought in the New Year by throwing up all over the kitchen floor. Good thing Chad was holding her!

Here is the collage I made of the family pictures Jen did for us.

Christmas 2009

2010-02-08T08:31:00.000-08:00

What an incredible Christmas we had this year!!!!My parents flew down from Washington for 10 days. My sis Samantha and her family drove down from Colorodo. LeaAnn and Walt came for a week before they moved to San Diego. And Nate and Carrie came for a few days from Mesa. We had a houseful, but the kids all got along so well, we played together, and I will cherish the memories of the whole week!

Of course, we had the children act out the Nativity story, with my dad as the narrator. The kids did an amazing job, thanks to their talented director and costume designer (me!). The little cow, portrayed by Bree Perrins, stole the spotlight!

Me and my sisters in our Christmas pj's!

These are all the cousins together on Christmas Eve. What a fun group!

Grandma Perrins snuggling with my kids.

I had to take a picture of these two sleeping together. It was so cute and odd at the same time. I have PLENTY of pictures of Carson and Jackson asleep side by side, but this is a first!

Christmas Eve we invited Chad's parents and Walt's parents over to share the day with us. LeaAnn and I wanted our parents to spend some time with our inlaws, and it was so nice to have them all together. Good food too!

Snow Day!

2010-02-08T07:19:00.000-08:00

One Saturday Chad came home from picking Ressa up from karate and proclaimed that we were heading up to the snow. We scrambled around the house, throwing snow clothes together, lunches/snacks, and headed up to Globe. We found a nice spot just off the highway outside of Globe. I am so thrilled that we have finally reached the point where all of our kids are old enough to enjoy the snow and handle the cold. Lauren loved sledding with Ressa over and over again. The snow whas perfect for making snowmen and snow balls. I could watch Chad have a snowball fight with his boys all day long. What a perfect day!

Caribbean Cruise!

2010-01-02T06:44:00.000-08:00

I can't believe none of you criticized me for not journaling anything along with my pictures! Well, I uploaded the pics and then published them to see how the layout looked and then didn't have time to write anything. I AM going to make a photo book with details and such, but for now I will be brief. Besides, I have told many of you how wonderful of a time we had already. For those of you whom I haven't already told (and who have forgiven me for not blogging in months and might still be interested in my daily life) here you go!

We left from the Port of Miami on a Sunday afternoon and arrive back the following Sunday morning. Our group included two of my sisters and their husbands, my brother and his wife, and my dear parents. It turned out to be the perfect size group to go cruising with! We met for dinner almost every night at one of the two nice restaurants on board (Tsar's Palace or Azura). Breakfast and lunch we ate buffet style. Of course the best meal we had was a local dish in Belize. Our stateroom was very roomy and comfortable. We agreed that paying so much more for a window or balcony is a waste. You spend so little time in your room. Unless you are sleeping or other wise occupied, you are on deck somewhere. And for me personally, sitting and watching the ocean go by was not advisable. I even had to enjoy the gorgeous sunset by sitting with my back to it and taking an occasional glance back. I wore Sea Bands on my wrists, as did my parents and sister Lanith for most of the trip. They really did help, and by the 5th day we had our sea legs and didn't need them as much. What a relief!

These pictures are in such a random order and size, I know. I swear I need a Blogging 101 class! One picture is of the Finale show that the ship's crew put on the last night. The theater was nice and we saw a few good show there. We watched Buddy Anderson's comedy show a couple time and about peed our pants. There were private game rooms that you could use and play the wii or sing karaoke. You can tell by the picture that we played "tennis" in the Red Room. Had I known earlier, I would not have chosen to wear the pink shirt. The colors are a little jarring.So this is my favorite picture of all! We gave Walt and Chad a hard time if ever they went off exploring together, that people may mistake them for a gay couple. Such couples were not uncommon to be found on the ship. So I asked the guys to pose for a picture and this is the result. Adorable!This was taken from the sun deck on the very top of the ship. The weather was gorgeous most of the time, with a little rain on the morning we arrived in Honduras.

Costa Maya, Mexico - We had such fun at this stop. We rode ATVs and took a tour of the shore. Our guide was so nice and the locals were all that way. It felt alot like Rocky Point, and will probably be built up like it in a few years. A big hurricane flattened it about 7 years ago and it is slowly recovering.

Our motly crew in the Bahamas. Cruise lines purchase their own privat island ports and this was their, called Great Stirrup Cay. We relaxed, snorkeled, and went on a little hike. Now I had never snorkeled before, so I was unsure if I would like it or not. I loved it! Chad and I are going to invest in our own gear for the future. I almost drowned laughing at Lanith trying to figure out her breathing. I love that woman!

I know these pics are hard to see but I stole them from my brother's camera and don't know how to fix right now. Needless to say, some are taken in Belize where we went on zip lines and cave tubing. I wish I had a waterproof camera so I could have taken pictures on the cave tubing part. So cool!

On board they had a card room so of course you could find the Perrins Family there on some evenings, playing SCUM or GOLF.

The drink in my hand was a strawberry daquari, virgin of course, Lucy. Actually, Walt bought it for LeaAnn and we all took turns holding it for our pictures. How cheap are we? It wasn't that tasty anyways so glad we didn't waste our money!

What a great experience! Chad and I had such fun together and everything went so smoothly, we couldn't have asked for more!

"Almost" sleepover party!

2009-10-22T08:13:00.000-07:00

Ressa finally turned 6 years old on October 3rd! She is the youngest in her class at school, so it was a relief for her to now be 6 years old like everyone else! I asked Ressa what kind of party she wanted to have, and after a minute of thinking, she said "how about a pajama party?" What a relief! I had no idea what to do and was not in the celebrating spirit, my creative juices all dried up. But a pajama party had so many possibilities without being obnoxious. I started to get excited about the upcoming event and Ressa notice the change. "Mom, how come you are so excited about my party NOW?"

Ressa invited her usual suspects: Audrie, Auralee, Addy, Isabelle, Lauren & Payton S. A new friend, Salma, was also able to come. She is in Ressa's class and her mom, Tina, was able to come and help me throughout the 3 hour celebration. Chad took the boys and Lauren to Pizza Hut, but came back after only 1 1/2 hours and asked if we were almost done! Not quite, buddy! So they hid out in our bedroom but Lauren joined the party, of course.

Here are the girls all together with their eye masks!

Birthday Girl making her wish..

Audrie coloring her piilowcaseSalmaAddyplaying pass the pillowLaurenAuraleePaytonLaurenTina helping girls decorate cupcakesIsabelle

We all had such a great time! I couldn't ask for a sweeter daughter in Ressa. I am so proud of the girl she is becoming; so good to her friends, enthusiastic about life, and ready for any adventure! Happy birthday, sweety!

New Obsession Part 2

2009-10-19T07:44:00.000-07:00

These clips were so easy and fast to make. I love how they turned out!

A new obsession

2009-10-18T07:37:00.000-07:00

Pictures say a thousand words, right? Or in my case, a thousand flower hair clips.

Lauren's 1st Field Trip

2009-10-18T07:05:00.000-07:00

Sarah C., this blog is for you!!!! And you were right! Pictures DO upload to so much faster!!! And thank you for the picures! However, I don't appreciate the strange woman who snuck herself into our photo! :)

Sarah C. & Cora invited Lauren and I to come along with them on their preschool field trip to the AZ Southwest Museum. In my new attempts to take Lauren out on adventures, I accepted the invitation. Poor 4th child gets ripped off by mom burnt out on zoos, parks, and museums. Anyways, Ressa went on this same trip when she was in preschool a couple years ago, so I knew Lauren would love the dinosaurs.

Lauren was enjoying her little dress that day and wanted to show me how pretty it spun around. As for the pink boots, there was a period of 2 weeks where all she wanted to wear was her boots. She has 2 pair of pink ones that were hand-me-downs from a friend.

Here I am trying to get a picture with Cora and Lauren. Cora is always ready to give a sweet smile. She is such a doll! Nice face, Lauren. I LOVE taking pictures of these two buddies, 'cause you can't help but find humor in the size difference.

Let's try that again, shall we? Ahhh, that's much better...

I wish I had this kind of set up in my house for time-out.