End of the Season

Well, T-ball season is done and I feel guilty saying that I am happy about it....but I am. It has been fun watching Sam get so excited about the game and his team and all that stuff, but it has been exhausting going to the games. I hear it gets better as they get better, so we'll see. He still has the same zest he did starting the season so I think we'll be back next year. Here is a picture of his party and the cool trophy, ball, and dog tags. It was a swim party so that is why he is partially naked. He has already asked for a special shelf for all his trophies (this is his first one).

Playin' Ball

Troy has apparently been watching Sam play more than I realized. I had noticed him hanging on to the fence and yelling at the players, but I didn't think he would have picked up the basic jist of the game. While Jeremy was getting the bbq ready for some yummy cookin' Troy decided to play a few innings. We caught him hitting the ball off the T and then running around the jungle gym as though he was running the bases. He obviously forgot the part where you drop the bat, but he might have been hanging on to it just to make sure the other kids didn't snatch it while he ran his home run. Later on, when the other kids caught on to the game he got so defensive that we would scream if they stepped on the grass while he was doing his thing. I must say that I was very surprised by his knowledge of the game.





Just a little fun note, Troy LOVES to watch baseball on tv. A few times on a Saturday I've been busy with things and he was at my feet crying so I put him on my bed and turned on the tv. Well, there just to happened to be baseball games on and it caught his attention immediately. Apart of being relieved that he found something besides my shadow to entertain himself, I was very amused to see that the reason that he did yell for me when I was out of the room was because the game had gone to commercial. He would ask "Were'd da'ball go?" Try explaining commercials to a 22month old.

What the HECK are they doing?????

Shark Reef

Troy, all ready to go.

Green SawFish

Sea Turtles (below) and I think it's the star fish and octopus(above)

Seeing the rays.

It has been a while since we visited the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay, but this weekend was a perfect chance since Aunt Krissy and Uncle Ryan were in town. We got a special discount for having so many people which is one of the benefits to having so many relatives. We met there on Saturday after we picked up Jeremy from work. We had lots of fun seeing everything. Sam was so excited! The whole day he kept telling me that he just couldn't stop thinking about going to the Shark Reef. On the way there we passed the gigantic golden lion in front of the MGM hotel and Sam about lost it! He was so impressed! Shaunie told him that there were lions inside the hotel that you could go see, too. He thought for a minute and then asked "You mean they have a Lion Reef?" Sam was also doing a good job at thinking of questions to ask the people who work at the Shark Reef. I told him they know everything. After looking at the piranha's for a while, his only questions was "What makes them die?" I think we actually stumped him.

Here are Troy and Sam enjoying the Lion fish. Troy was saying hi and waving to all the fish.

Now We Are 6....well, Sam is

Now We are Six (1927)

By A. A. Milne

The End

• When I was One,
  I had just begun.
  When I was Two,
  I was nearly new.
  When I was Three
  I was hardly me.
  When I was Four,
  I was not much more.
  When I was Five, I was just alive.
  But now I am Six, I'm as clever as clever,
  So I think I'll be six now for ever and ever.

The best part of a child's life is the birthday! It is a special day just for them that makes them feel like royalty. I love making a big deal about my children's birthdays. It is my little way of saying thanks to Heavenly Father for the most precious gift he could give just to me...my child.

This year Sam asked for a Transformer birthday cake so here is what I came up with. We used fondant for the transformer part and then peanut butter M&M's for the dots. He was very satisfied. We had a big pool party with lots of cousins and family and a few friends from church and school. Sam felt like a king. I was too busy putting on a party to take photos, but hopefully I'll get some from Aunt Jen soon.

Pool Time

Summer has come very quickly to Vegas this year. We've hit 100 degress a few times already so the only real remedy for that is to hit the water. We decided that since it'll be a little more difficult for me to take the kids to the pool than normal this summer that we would invest in an above ground pool. I did a little research and we bought this pool here. It fits perfectly on our small back patio and it definitely keeps the kids busy and cool. So far it hasn't been too hard to maintain and the kids are good about asking to go in and out. It's only 3 feet deep so I feel much safer than I would if I took the kids to the pool, and the best part about it is that I don't have to drag the kids anywhere or get in a swimsuit for them to play! One day we'll have a house that has a real pool, but until then this will work perfectly.

Auntie Em and Uncle Ben

We got a visit from Auntie Em and Uncle Ben. It was the first time they had been to visit us in Las Vegas and we loved it! Here are the kids doing their best to get them out of bed on a Sunday afternoon. We had lots of fun and the kids got to play a lot. I hope we didn't wear them out.

Creativity and Love

Shaunie decided to make a little fort dedicated to Sam. If you can't see the signs on the wall they read "I love you so much." She took a lot of time putting this together and I was very proud of her. Sam loved it and I think Leah felt a little bit left out even though that didn't stop her from making her presence known. They played games and had lots of fun in this little fort.

Shaunie's class went on a field trip to the Special Olympics. I guess they have a big part of the Olympics where kids from schools get to take their students who would normally compete in the special olympics and combine it with other olympic-type events for the other students to compete in. She competed against other 2nd graders and had a lot of fun. She got a shirt and even a number to wear on her shirt. It was all very non-competitive, but she got to get out and cheer some classmates on and have a lot of fun doing it.

Sam's little creativity shining through. He is very symetrical in almost everything he makes.

As a mother one of the best things is seeing what your kids come up with next. I love to share in their creativity and love of life. It is especially rewarding when they are using their creativity to show love or appreciation for each other. The best reward a mother can receive is to see her children play together without fighting. It seems so simple, but it shows they truly love each other.

When school got back into session Shaunie and Sam received awards for the trimester. I was able to get a good one of Shaunie but not of Sam. Shaunie got an award for the "A" honor roll and perfect attendance and Sam got an academic achievement award and a citizenship award. You can kinda see Sam admiring his awards while he was sitting on the stage with his class waiting for the other kids to recieve their awards.

Easter 2009

Proud Sam.

Distracted Leah.

Cousins and fun. L-R Anni, Shaunie, Emma, Auri, Sam, Front:Leah, Lily
Poor Sam with all those girls.

Troy getting the hang of it.

Our colorful eggs.

We had a great Easter. Ok, I know this is a little late, but I thought I'd get it up anyway. Easter is one of my favorite holidays. I love the springtime and all it's colors and warmth, and I love the whole meaning of Easter. This year we had a special treat for Easter when my parents came down. We had a BBQ at the park and our traditional egg hunt. The kids had fun and got lots of candy and we were able to spend time together as a family and enjoy the great weather and beautiful park. Some the the highlights include:

• Watching everyone realize that we had nothing to cook our hamburgers on and then watching Jesse, after he ran to the nearest store, do his best at getting the fire to stay hot so the coals could really get going.
• Watching Carson stare in awe at some boys playing basketball at the courts near by. He was almost in a trance! Too bad we didn't have a ball for him.
• Watching everyone get creative with their food since we didn't have any ketchup. Josh actually ate his hamburger with warm potato salad!
• Watching Sam "innocently" wander through the area we where we were hiding eggs. He tried not to look but you can't cover your eyes and still see where you are going.
• Watching the smallest egg hunters, Troy, Carson and Ammon, get the hang of finding and filling their baskets. Once they realized that candy was hidden in the eggs they usually wanted to stop everything and eat their new-found prize. It took a bit to keep them going.
  
• Watching my mom run around after the kids and try to get good pictures of the egg-hunting action. It's just really hard to do!

T-Ball Fever

Sam has loved baseball since Jeremy first introduced it to him a few years ago. This year we got him in on a T-ball team with some ward friends. He LOVES it...well, I should say he is obsessed with it. The season officially starts tomorrow, but here are some pre-season highlights.

Here are the boys getting their uniforms. Can you tell he's a little excited?

His team is the Cardinals. "That's a red bird".

Here is Sam playing outfield during their scrimmage game. At first I thought he was really into it but then I realized there was something wrong. Not too long after this we had to run to take a potty break. In any case, this is great video of his first experience in a game.

Happy Patty's Day

It's a tradition and the little leprechaun didn't let us down. He showed up and turned our toilet water green (Leah was scared to go in the bathroom when she heard about it) and left shamrocks and candies all over the place. Here is Leah with some of the booty. (I love the chocolate lipstick.) The kids tried to catch him but were unsuccessful, which is probably a good thing since he brought each one a present at the end of the day. Sam got some baseball gear, Shaunie got a dress, Leah got an "L" necklace, Troy got a shirt and they all got some Lucky Charms cereal. We like this tradition and the suspense it brings.

Resting in Comfort

Comfort? No, it's not the nice soft down comforter, nor the memory foam mattress. No, it's still not the bottle of milk, nor the comfy pajamas. It is the 2 balls under each elbow. If you didn't notice the first time, look again. A T-ball under the right elbow and a red foam ball under the left elbow. Troy wouldn't stay still unless he had one on each side. Once he did, it was all peace and rest after that. He is a boy through and through, and we LOVE every minute of it.

Scream Competition

Laughing All The Way

The kids were so funny the other day. We could hear some loud screaming coming from the backyard, but it wasn't the "Hurt" or "in trouble" screams you may recognize as a parent. After checking it out, we found out that they were engaged in what seemed to be a screaming competition and laughing about it the whole time. Here is a picture of them enjoying their time on the blow-up trampoline in the backyard. I will see if I can upload the video stream in the next post.

Jungle Gym Time

Our kids are small and still like each other enough that they love to be together climbing, or just hangin' around. That's what Shaunie, Sam, and Leah were doing when I caught up with them in the backyard.

Sam came into me the other night after he had been put to bed. I asked him what he needed and he told me... "I just can't think of anything to think about."

Sam's Story

Here is a story Sam wrote the other day. It has a definite reference to our San Diego trip last summer. This is exactly as he dictated it to Jeremy. He typed up the first few lines and then got frustrated so I finished it for him. I kept his typing because it was just too cute. Enjoy...

My Day For Moving

Once Upon a Tme There Was a Family in Anothatr Mmth Thaty Are Going To moue / Ohen They Were So So Happy They were So Happy Eeny Day, because they were moving in another month. They were going in a different stat and then their mom and dad knew that state, and that state was California. They say they love California, and then they loved it because they were going to live in a hotel room.
Then they wanted their hotel room to be by the beach. So, they can go there to the beach. They will want to play there when their mom says, and they just ran out with their shoes on and go to the beach.
When their mom says no, they will just stay inside. They thought about it every day. Everyone in their family thought about it and then in the dark they thought about it. That's why tomorrow they were so so so excited to go. Then they went to California to have some fun.

The End.

Our Young Artists

Recently Leah and Samuel decided that they wanted to further develop their chalk-art abilities. Samuel convinced Leah to outline his body as he lay on the ground. That was fun, but not enough for Sam.



After seeing the body outline on the ground, he decided he needed to make it more life-like. He went and drew, what he says are, "every bone in my body." I thought it was good enough to show the world, so here is Sam's skeleton

Another Bake Sale

Our young entrepreneurs were at it again recently. They decided to have another bake sale since they were out of school that day. We had the usual lemonade and juice, somehome baaked cookies with mini cornbread muffins, and a little something else, magazines and books, as proposed by the neighbor who wanted to help. Shaunie thought it a great idea, and off to work they went.