amazing fall

Fall is a time for changes! So, I've made some template changes!
I might start this every fall since I have noticed a trend; I do great blogging at the beginning of a school year and then it really dies down. Of course, with the busy holidays and crazy school days, time flies by these days. Luckily, I always remember birthdays and with our family having it nicely scattered throughout the year it helps me remember to slow down and get blogging. (We just need a spring birthday... I'm still working on that.)


Fall is our favorite time of year!! Even with spiders everywhere in and outside of our home, we enjoy fall. What's your favorite season?

cool spiderweb on our mailbox

Here is a picture of Noah's birthday present! A bike! Now that we have a neighborhood to ride in we try to ride often. This fall has been amazing with very little rain and warmer weather! I have been enjoying it! We all have.

Noah's birthday present began a trend for our family. We all have bikes now. Greg and I have it from Taiwan but the rest of our boys were lucky to get them here (didn't have to wait for our shipment to come). I took a couple of weekends looking at flea shops and yard sales but only found one- Payton's. The older three all have new bikes from Walmart. (Unfortunatley, I didn't get Payton in this picture because he was down the street with his friends. I'll have to add it later. There is an extra blonde here, he rides the bus with our boys and is in 5th grade. Gray and Tyler hang out sometimes.)



I wanted to throw in a picture of my first yard sale I had with our new neighbors- Heather and Christine and Tiffany. This was at Heather's house this year. We may do a fall yard sale in our neighborhood each year and alternate at who's yard. Coming up soon will be the Halloween party at Tiffany's! (Our neighbor, not a restaraunt. hee, hee)

sept. 10- Payton's surgery and Moldy coaches, etc.

Wow, alot happened in this one day!

Payton had his tonsils and adenoids removed. It was a short surgery but he woke up in so much pain. It all went normal but I almost past out. Luckily the nurses must be used to people coming into the outpatient recovery room doing what I did. (I got pail and needed my feet up. My tummy was a little empty since the surgery was early in the morning. I did eat some while Payton was in surgery but got talking so much to another lady that I didn't eat all my food and thus almost past out.) Anyway, I didn't pass out. The nurse had me sit down in a recliner and gave me coke to drink. Silly mom.

Payton came home the same day. Here is a picture of him not looking so well. He got a little stuffed animal from the doctor. He is on pain medicine.

After missing 6 and 1/2 days of school, he went back acting almost 100 percent. Well, with pain medicine he was 100 percent. He didn't go back to school until I felt like he could make it without his strong pain medicine. After 8 days he was off the strong medicine (which made him constipated) and he just used tylenol. He did eat lots of ice cream, slushes and popcycles for the first two days. The third day he ate rice and other soft foods, bread and butter. On the six day he really wanted a cheese burger so he got it. He ate half of it fine, just in small bites. By the 8th day he was feeling much better. (Finally being able to go the the bathroom helped.) His appetite returned and so he returned to school.) Now, he has fully recovered and is not resticted from any foods or activity. ( as of Sept. 26)

Poor guy asks why he is the one that always gets sick. He has recognized this because he has missed school alot for the surgery and for a bad cough germ and there has been only one month of school. Plus, his brothers aren't as sick. We've told him his body is just getting used to all these new germs that his brothers have probably already been exposed to. They have been in school longer. These set backs haven't dulled his spirits. He is still cheerful. I am so proud of him!

Okay, now while I was at the outpatient surgery center with Payton on the 10th of September, our shipment finally arrived from Taiwan. Greg and his dad where around to help with that. It was also a day off of school and luckily my mother-in-law helped with caring for Gray, Owen and Noah.

After waiting three months for our things, living without a living room coach to sit on, our stuff came. But our brand new coaches that we spent our last 6 weeks in Taipei hunting for and deciding and finally purchasing came all moldy. See pics below. The coaches and shoe shelf were returned immediatley with the shippers. As the week progressed and I immediatly and suspiciously unpacked the other boxes, I found 12 boxes with mold or moldy smells, our treadmill had mold under the belt, and one glass pain from my brand new china cabinet had something on it. (I cleaned that myself with clorox water. I was sick of sending things back to the insurance company to take care of.) Most of our stuff is not replaceable and won't be returned. Luckily, so far, the shipping insurance company is cooperating with us to honor our claims and reinburse what we lost. However, so far, we haven't seen one penny. THE RED COACH WITH MOLD GROWING IN THE SEAMS AND CRACKS. THE SHOE SHELF

UNDER THE BELT OF THE TREADMILL. I FOUND IT BECAUSE SOMETHING WAS GROWING ON THE TOP HANDLES. GREG THOUGHT IT WAS DUST, IT WASN'T. MY NEW CHINA CABINET. I COULDN'T SEND IT AWAY, IT MAY NOT BE RETURNED. ITS ONLY ON THE GLASS. SO I CLEANED IT MYSELF WITH CLOROX WATER. SO FAR IT IS DOING FINE. I PUT ALL MY CHINA IN IT. I'LL ADD A NEW PICTURE OF IT ASAP.

It has been a long ordeal and still isn't finished yet, but hopefully by the end of this month-October- we will have the money. (I already ordered new coaches from a store here, so the money better come!) In three weeks we will finally have a comfortable sitting area for the upstairs that we will enjoy sharing with company. (We had some furniture in storage that we put downstairs so we at least have something to sit on and relax.)

What a day!

arizona 2

You can't visit the valley without spending almost every day in the water! This is our favorite pool, Brimhall. Check out the boys on the diving board. (Gray is on the slides, hard to see him.)

NOAH SUPER CANNON BOMB JUMPER!
PAYTON ON THE DIVING BOARD IN DEEP WATER AT AGE 5!!!!OWEN ON THE HIGH DIVE!!! YIKES, AND HE MANAGED NOT TO LAND ON HIS TUMMY!

Good Job!

Another trip we took was to Show Low, Taylor and Snowflake, AZ. The three seperate towns are all near each other. It is like 15-20 degrees cooler! My parents have a home up there and several of my siblings and their children bunked over a couple nights just before the fourth of July. Oops, don't know where my pictures are of this. We enjoyed hiking, archery and an awesome rodeo at Taylor. They had a very patriotic fireworks ceremony at the end of the rodeo. I loved that small town feeling of "thank God I'm a country boy". Maybe we will retire there some day.

Arizona 1

Here are some pictures of our Arizona trip from this past summer 2007. We had an wonderful visit. However, it was soooo hot, we did complain a little too much. After complaining, we decided to get creative and find ways to have a good time. We took two trips out of the blazing heat and into the northern mountains of Arizona. Here is the last trip we did.


This selection is from a trip we took with my sister Cristy, my brother Al, and a couple of the boys cousins- from another sister.
We went to Slide Rock first. It was cold but we finally got in the water and had fun! It sure was a bumpy and hard slide! The best part was jumping into the waterhole. (unfortunatley no still pictures on that only a video fottage.- I'll eventually figure out how to do that.)


But for now. Here are a few fun pics of us at Sunset Crater, near Flagstaff, AZ. Isaac did a report on this. It was an extra special treat to go there, like a fieldtrip! Here is Gray and Isaac. Then Noah and Porter, then our big group.

catch up #1

Anniversary #12

Going strong! Sept. 1 Greg and I were able to go to the temple here in D.C., for our wedding anniversary; which is actually the 2nd- a Sunday this year. It was also my 12th year temple anniversary- my endowments! It was a very good event. Im greatful for my new visiting teacher, Sarah Bradley, who helped watch our children and for her husband who supported her so she could come to our home.

Here is a picture of our new home on our anniversary! Thanks Sarah for taking the picture.