Six Kids Later

2010-03-24T22:15:00.000-07:00

That's me!!! Lucky number 7! I received my Lifetime membership today for reaching my weight loss goal and staying below it for six weeks! I am so proud of me! Weight loss total, you ask? Well, only about 45 pounds!!!! (25 with Weight Watchers, the rest came off at first with exercise, but I plateaued for a llllllooooonnnnnggggg time till I figured out that I had to eat right too!) It is too bad that on such a momentous day I didn't think to put on make up or brush my hair after my shower and opted instead for the ol' hat and messy bun doo instead. Oh well!!!! Yay me!!!

Happy Birthday, Anna Banana!!!

2010-02-28T21:19:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday, Anna Banana!!!

Nine years ago today our precious little Anna was born! So, according to Blogger tradition, I will rattle off nine of my favorite things about Miss Anna.

9- I love her cute little snout. Funny little inside family joke. We love you Grandpa!

8- I love that she loves being a little girl. I love that she loves dolls and pretty dresses. I love that she is clinging with all her might to the reality of the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus. Love it.

7- I love how much she LOVES to sleep. Ever since she was a baby, she has loved it. I have never had to fight with her to go to bed or to take a nap. She used to even rock herself to sleep in her carseat. I know someday soon this will bite me in the fanny as I am sure I am going to have to yank her out of bed for school, but for now, I will continue loving it.

6- I love her cartoon voice. She is a very animated little girl. She reads stories to us and always uses different voices for all the characters. It is VERY entertaining.

5- I love that she is so content. She is very even keeled and happy to be so. Whatever she is doing is exactly what she would like to be doing, except cleaning. That is the exception. But now she is 9. I hear that is the year kids start to like cleaning. Here's to hoping! :)

4- I love that she loves pickles and olives. Not just likes them. She LOVES them.

3- I love what a smart little cookie she is. She gets things. I like that in a kid.

2- I love that she loves her family. She really is a source of peace in our home and I appreciate it so much.

1- I love that she loves her Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I love that she loves the gospel, the temple, and primary. She is a tender hearted little angel, and I wouldn't trade her for anything!

Here we are at Anna's favorite restaurant, Olive Garden, for her birthday dinner. Most of us anyway, Jessica is not such a fan of pictures.

Our FANTASTIC neighbors, John and Elaine, joined us for dinner. We love these two. They have become our surrogate family here in California.

And here is our sleeping little Angel with her Bear named Elaine and her new Felicity doll.

Happy Birthday, Anna! We love you!!

Don't Mess With the Kerns

2010-02-22T21:10:00.001-08:00

We are so stinkin' tough!!! Anna and Reese started Tae Kwon Do about a year ago and have loved it! We thought it would be fun to get the rest of us involved earlier this year, so here we are! Jeff even gets in on the action every once in a while! This is a fun, wholesome and healthy activity we all enjoy and can do as a family. We love Merafuentes Tae Kwon Do!!!

I Have to Give Credit Where Credit is Due...

2010-02-07T22:32:00.001-08:00

So.....Josie! You are one amazing Chick! Thanks for the inspiration behind all the RAVE reviews I have gotten simply by copying sweet little you!!!

Jeff turned two on the 4th. I cannot believe my baby is 2! He is such a little sweetheart and probably the smartest little two year old out there. He LOVES Elmo and Cookie monster, so I just whipped these little guys up! Not really. Funny story.

I am not usually one to ruin food, I consider myself to be a pretty good cook. This week, however, was a different story. Two Wednesdays ago was a busy day, so I decided to have a freezer meal that night. I took my stoneware cookie sheet out of the oven so it would heat up faster and forgot to put it back in to catch any drips. So, while I was at my meeting, I got a call from Jessica that the house was filling up with smoke. It had dripped all over the bottom of the oven. Oops #1. The following Sunday I decided to make roasted potatoes to go with our steak, and wouldn't you know it...I had forgotten about the spills in the oven and turned on the oven. Once again, the house was filled with smoke. Oops #2. Then last Wednesday, I knew it was going to be another busy day so before I went to my evening class with all the kids, I put the potatoes into the (now clean) oven and put some chicken breasts on the stove to simmer til we got home. We came home to, you guessed it, a house full of smoke. I had not put the chicken on simmer, but HIGH! Yikes!!! Oops #3. I got the house all de-stinked (I'm sure in some parts of the country that is a real word, so I'm going to go with it.) . That was Thursday. Jeffs birthday. I made up the batter and put the cupcakes and cake into the oven, timed beautifully to come out of the oven RIGHT when I got home from taking Maya and Bella to school. It was really rainy that day, so I drove them. And since we were already in the car, why not go fill up the gas tank and get a few things at Office Depot. As I was paying for my things I all of a sudden remembered the cakes in the oven and headed right on over to the grocery store to buy a new cake mix. Oops #4. I am thankful that that oops wasn't nearly as stinky as the previous 3. So there. I guess we all have our troubles and I think I have met my quota for a while.

On to Valentines day...

Another idea kiped right from my dear sister-in-law! I love them! We only had to make about 94, so it was only a little overwhelming.... :)! But fun! The kids love them and are so excited to give them out! BTW, all it is is a box of conversation hearts dressed up a little! With the right link at Family Fun and a few punches, you too, can make these beauties!

Well, there you go! A lovely new post! I have been doing this for 2 years now and have yet to hit 100 posts! I will get there soon enough, mark my words!

Oh, by the way, we are moving in June. I will make another post about that. :). That ought to take the total up to about 70 :).

Whatever you do.....

2009-11-30T12:38:00.000-08:00

Kern kids:

"Whatever you do, do not, I repeat, DO NOT take the band off the giant container of grapes or Mom and Dad will think we have been snitching them."

I have been giggling about this for a few days. I really don't care if they want to eat all the grapes, even in one sitting. It is just comical that they don't think to, you know, OPEN THE PACKAGE or, heaven forbid, WASH THEM. It is much more fun to be sneaky! Silly kids!

A Day in the Life of Me....(aka my sorry excuse for not blogging)

2009-11-10T21:19:00.000-08:00

I have sure been MIA lately. Every now and then I check my blog and think, "Geez, I am so sick of seeing her wicked weekend, when is she going to change it up, already?!?!" and then I remember that it is me and try hard not to cry. So.....I have a few blog ideas that I am actually kind of excited about, (and you might be too! :)) so hang in there with me. Unfortunately for some of you, you are going to have to sit through another update blog before I can get to the real fun, but it is coming...Maybe even as soon as tomorrow! (There is, after all, no school tomorrow!)

And now for my sorry excuse.

I present to you......A Day in the Life of ME. Starring me, of course.

I'll set the stage: Ben is in Las Vegas til Wednesday when he will then be in Kansas City until late Friday Night. I am enjoying a blissful 4 hours of sleep because of a lovely chat with my dear friend Gina, whom I haven't seen in years.

4 :30 am Jeff wakes up screaming. He can't find his dang binkie. So, I find it for him and lay him back down till he starts screaming again at...

4:48 am Once again, the binkie is lost, it is actually right by his cheek, but he was too sleepy to help himself. I have already pushed snooze, so I guess it is officially time to wake up. I get ready for spinning at the gym, taking my time in case Jeff is going to wake up again. He doesn't, so at...

5:16 am, I leave for the gym and enjoy a sweaty, stinky hour of one of my favorite things in the world.

6:30 am I come home and make sure Jess is up and at 'em. She isn't, so I get her out of bed and go out and sit on the couch for "just a minute" and I proceed to fall asleep until it is just time to take her to her 0 hour Jazz Band. At...

6:55 am, I wake up all the kids and we take Jessica to school. We come home and finish up the homework that didn't get finished with FHE last night. As I am sitting at the table listening to reading and questions about input and output boxes, I doze off, so this homework session lasts A LOT longer than it should have. I race up the stairs at...

7:50 am with strict instructions for the kids to put homework folders in backpacks and to get dressed while I go take a quick shower. At...

8:10 am I finish my quick shower. Yes, I know that 20 minutes is not a quick shower, that is one of my faults. I recycle, I can make a tank of gas last a whole month, my one environmental splurge is my "quick" showers. Oh, and my six kids. Just think of how big my carbon footprint must be. HA! At...

8:12 am I am dressed and have my hair wrapped in a towel. I race downstairs to make lunches and breakfast and get kids out the door. I do this in record time and with a surprisingly little amount of yelling, until...

8:28 am when I am yelling at Reese. "Where are your glasses? Go get them NOW! We have to go!!!" He comes back downstairs and it is then that I realize that he is wearing the EXACT same outfit he was wearing yesterday. (I set clothes out for him) "Go upstairs and change your shirt!! HURRY!!!" As we walk out the door, I realize that I still have my hair wrapped in a towel, and since I am also in sweats, decide that one humiliating mother factor is enough for one day and take the towel off. We get to school at...

8:30 am and that was that. Now on to chores. I was a laundry slacker yesterday, so I had a whole weekend plus a day to catch up on. That would be 8 loads of laundry. Yuck. Beds made, dishes done, laundry everywhere. YUCK. We finish up the twins homework, eat lunch, and get them off to school at...

11:15 am. Since I noticed that I was completely out of diapers and had to resort to my emergency glove compartment diaper, Jeff and I were off to Costco for a few essentials. At...

12:00, I go to drop Jeff off at my friends house so she can babysit while I go help at school and while I am waiting for her to get back from dropping off her Kindergartener, I notice all my gray hairs shining in the sun. It was not lovely. I am pretty sure I am due for a color.

12:15ish, I get to the school to read with 1st graders. Lots of fun.

1:00 pm, I am off to 3rd grade to do SRA (reading comprehension) with Anna and her class.

1:30pm, time to go help with the last of Native American day in Kindergarten, and at...

2:30 pm I pick up Jeff. I go home with really good intentions of changing out of my sweats, but run out of time as I was busy swapping laundry, changing diaper, putting away groceries, and hiding some Christmas presents before the snoops....er....kids get home from school. So, alas, at...

3:10 pm (Well, that would have been ideal, as this is the time school gets out, but I'm not going to lie...I was late.)

REVISED 3:17 pm I am still in my sweatpants picking up my kids and heading over to the Junior High for Jessica's Basketball game. They lost, Jessica didn't play much today (which I am SURE is the reason they lost). Her knee is hurting her and is swollen. We had the doctor look at it, but she was sure it was just that she is growing. Does swelling and horrendous pain usually accompany growing? I don't know. I'm not very tall.

4:30 pm we are done and heading home. Thank goodness for freezer meals, because it was nearly done by the time we got home! At...

5:15 pm I start requesting that the table be set as dinner is just about on. No one listens, so I ask again. And again. And again. Nothing. SOOOOO....in the world of mean mothers, this is what we call a natural consequence.
I have had to do this once before and it worked wonders. It has been several months since I have had to resort to this. No plates, no utensils, and if I was crazy enough to want to do some serious floor mopping, no cups. Oh wait. There are still no cups. They just have to be thirsty.
As you may imagine, there was a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth, mostly from Reese. He was NOT going to eat food that was just "plopped right onto the table. I PROMISE!!!" Right Reese, he would eat gum off the street if I didn't stop him, I am sure. So there I sit (and doze) until...
6:15 pm when everyone has finally finished their dinner and I can clean the table and start dishes and do more laundry before...

7:00 pm when we have to be at Achievement Day/Young Womens/Karate.

8:00 pm we gather the kids and head home for a night of no-school-tomorrow fun. Oh shoot. Reese and Anna are beating eachother up in the car, so...

8:45 pm.... it is off to bed for them. I swap laundry one more time, only seven loads have been washed today. One more tomorrow, plus what we used today and I will be done. We start Mary Poppins for the little girls and Jessica puts the trash cans out....

And here I am.

THIS, my friends, is where I have been. This is why I have such a tremendous amount of gray hair. This is why I often wonder if I will make it through another day.

But then, I go in and check on my sleeping little angels, and remember that it is all worth it. I will go to bed soon and fall asleep hard and fast and wake up tomorrow and do it all over again.

And I will love it.
Mostly.

I may even put on some real pants.

My Wicked Weekend

2009-06-02T13:20:00.000-07:00

You may recall that a couple months ago my sweet, yet forgetful husband failed to remember a certain special day commemorating the blessed day of my birth. It happens, I know. He has a lot on his mind. I now know that I may need to email him some important dates so they can be plugged into his Outlook Calendar and be more easily remembered. Anyhoo, I made out like a bandit! I got a nice romantic dinner out of it, an Aerosmith guitar hero game, and last but not least, a romantic weekend away with my man. (It looks like he made out pretty well too!)

He bought 2nd row tickets to see Wicked at the Orpheum in San Fransisco and we spent a quiet night at the Hilton with a lovely view of a fog draped Golden Gate Bridge. The play was spectacular! We could see all of the facial expressions AND the spit that occasionally flew out of the actors mouths! I loved it! I am already planning to take my girls to see it later this summer! We had a great time eating out, have you ever had Dim Sum? Have you ever eaten it in China Town? Fun Stuff!

I think he has paid up now, so I will let him off the hook for his oversight. I love you, Ben!

Sara!! You outdid yourself once again!

2009-05-29T07:26:00.000-07:00

I love my in-laws. They are all so wonderful! I also love that my sister-in-law Sara has my password to my blogger account and makes such pretty backgrounds for me! As it is nearly June, the Happy Holidays background was probably a little outdated, but since it was halfway back to that most wonderful time of the year, I thought I would just leave it! What a nice surprise to find. Doesn't she do good work?

Such a handsome BOY

2009-05-18T10:40:00.000-07:00

The other night at the gym, I was putting away my gear when I noticed a cute little girl in the play area looking through the window and smiling at me. I smiled back at this cute little button-nosed girl and realized that it was not, in fact, a girl, but my own sweet baby boy. Time for a haircut.

He didn't seem to mind at first, he sat there playing with the soft little hairs on the stool.

I kind of look like I know what I am doing, but don't be fooled. I've messed up a head of hair or two in my day.

The clippers were a little much for him, but now he really does look like a boy. No more baby mullet. I am kind of sad right now. This was my last first baby haircut. Sigh.

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-12T14:50:00.000-07:00

I look at this picture and smile. Can you believe all these kids came out of me!!! I really am amazing! I am so happy to be a mother and wife! My Heavenly Father has blessed me with 6 beautiful children and 1 fabulous husband. I am grateful they are mine. I love the handmade and hand-me-down gifts and the special balloon and flowers! I hope your Mother's Day was as relaxing and rewarding as mine, and as a special gift to you, I actually did 2 posts today!!!

I'm Not So Good With Lyrics

2009-05-12T13:34:00.000-07:00

This morning in Spin Class, a certain song came on. I started to laugh a little to myself because this is one of those songs whose lyrics have confused me for a long time now. It wasn't until I was singing it on Guitar Hero a few weeks ago that I realized what the real words were, and that they were nothing like what I have been singing for years. If this were an isolated incident, I wouldn't think too much of it, but lyrics are not my thing. I am not blessed with the ability to hear a song once or twice and be able to sing along. I have to go to elyrics, one of my favorite sites, and read along as I hear the song, then I do a little better from there on out. There have been a few times, however, that after reading the lyrics, I have had to stop listening to the song all together. For instance, there is a great song by Maroon 5 called "Makes Me Wonder" that I absolutely love(d). After listening to it so often I actually could sing along I thought I would go check it out and see if I was missing something. Well, I was. Turns out the F-bomb is dropped a few times and I didn't even notice, I just sang right along, not even realizing what I was singing. Oops. Delete.
I thought I would humor you with a few of my favorite lyrical blunders. Ben loves them and more often than I like, looks over at me with a huge smile on his face and says "WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!?!"
Here goes.
This morning's song:

Emily Lyrics:
Hey little thing let me light your candle cause I'm sure the handyman, gets around.

Actual Lyrics:
Hey little thing let me light your candle cause I'm sure hard to handle, now, yes I am. (Black Crowes-Hard to Handle, the name should have been a clue for me, but those are also tricky for me.)

Emily Lyrics:
(Inaudible humming with an occasional syllable or two), then something about a carpet knife.

Actual Lyrics:
You're one of those guys who likes to shine his machine
You make me take off my shoes before you let me get in
I can't believe you kiss your car goodnight.
(Shania Twain- That Don't Impress Me Much)

And last but not least, my favorite. This song, THIS VERSE actually, has two blunders so silly, we still sing them like this, just because!

Emily Lyrics:
Well I hear you went up to Saratoga, and your horse naturally won. (Not bad so far)
Then you flew your pigeon up to Nova Scotia to see the total eclipse of the sun. (Really? A Pigeon?!)
(More inaudible humming/singing along) and when you're not you're with some (humming) or the wife of the postman, wife of the postman....

Actual Lyrics:
Well, I hear you went up to Saratoga, and your horse naturally won.
Then you flew your LEARJET (learjet...pigeon...close, right?) up to Nova Scotia to see the total eclipse of the sun.
Well, you're where you should be all the time,
and when you're not, you're with some underworld spy
or the wife of a close friend, wife of a close friend.....
(Carly Simon, You're So Vain)

There are so many more, I hope I haven't ruined any of your favorites for you! Do you have any of your own?

p.s. Do you know who is singing back-up for Carly? I do know that!

How's This For Random?

2009-05-07T06:56:00.000-07:00

The gym I go to shares space at a strip mall with stores such as "Body By Design", a health food store, "Picturesque", photography services, and "F.Y.E.", movies and game store. There are also a few restaurants like Mariachis, which has great Mexican food, Little Caesars, which has great cheap pizza, and Sunshine Donuts, which apparently has great donuts. I say this because when I leave the gym at 6:30 every morning, there is quite a crew of old men in there enjoying their morning coffee and donuts, along with what I am sure is very stimulating conversation. So here is the random part. Yesterday as I was leaving the gym, one of the old men came out of the donut shop carrying his donut pillow. It's probably pretty juvenile of me, but I got a little chuckle out of it and wished I had thought to bring my camera.

2009-04-19T23:26:00.000-07:00

I just don't know what to say. I read blogs and really enjoy them, everyone has such interesting and witty things to say! My life, while rich and full, is pretty much the same day in and day out.

Get up, gym, kids up and ready for school, off to school, chores, pick up kid, lunch, chores, don't sit down in the afternoon or I will fall asleep, kids home from school, "can I call so-and-so to play," "is your homework done?", "Do your homework." "What's for dinner?" "I don't know." dinner, karate/young women's/ Relief Society etc., pajamas, family prayer, kids to bed, chores, bed.

I spice things up with things like friends, preschool, volunteering at school, extra classes at the gym, choir, a little shopping every now and again, facebook... you know...fun stuff.

I love my life and am happy that it is mine, but I worry that people really won't want to read about the everyday things. Then I think of my husband who is often gone and really would like to see what we do everyday, I think of my mother-in-law who loves reading about her grandkids and seeing them grow up, even if it is just in pictures, and then I feel bad that I am not finding and sharing the joy that I could be in the small everyday things like a) happy, healthy, hilarious (although sometimes a little bit naughty) kids, b) a routine c) a truly blessed life.

So I apologize for my slacking. I will be better, even if it is just for me. I can use this blog to my advantage if I want to.

Among other things, I can:

* Journal funny things. A friend of mine told me once that if you will be able to laugh about it later, you might as well now. I need to be better about that.

* I can pat myself on the back for my own little successes and triumphs.

* I can vent to an understanding group of fellow mothers of young children, and reap wisdom from mothers who have more experience than I do.

* express my thoughts and random musings on things. I do think about things, I am just not very good at expressing them (obviously...). It just comes out boring. I think I need to read more. I see other people do it on their blogs and I am usually highly entertained by those posts, so maybe it won't be so bad.

So here you go. I am turning over a new leaf. I will be posting a lot more regularly, even the mundane. You may see pictures of my laundry and dirty dishes. You will definitely see my kids without their hair brushed, probably dirty, etc. But that is us.

If you have read this far, I applaud you. And now, without further ado, I present our life the last two months.....

Ok...I am just going to start uploading pictures. I don't know if they will be in forward or reverse order, so we'll see!

The kids were off track the whole month of February. Last year, the weather was absolutely beautiful the whole month. We go to enjoy it from the couch, as I had just had a baby. This year, it rained the entire month. I am grateful for the rain, we live in a big agricultural area, and it is a blessing, but it did get really old.

Jessica and her friend Jessica out playing in the rain.

Ben got a new toy. He told me we were going to Costco to pick up his contacts. The truck seemed to magically make its way to all the motorcycle shops in Modesto, finally deciding that the Yamaha Dealership was the place to be. Happy Valentines Day, Ben! This is a happy guy! He works hard all week and really looks forward to some manly time.

On Presidents Day, Ben went out for his first ride. He hit a sweet jump wrong and had a little bit of a crash. His ankle is still swollen. He didn't seem to mind too much, and has gotten back on the bike, so it must not have phased him too badly.

Anna turned 8!!! We had a little party with a few or her friends and went to go see the Jonas Brothers' tour movie.

We followed the movie with pizza, cake and ice cream. She is such a beautiful girl! I am more and more impressed with her everyday! She loves to learn and can be the sweetest thing ever!! I can't seem to find her baptism pictures right now, so I will post them a little later. We had a great time and are so glad to have this little angel in our family!

After quite a dry spell in the visitor department, we had our first set of guests in March! Josie and Blake brought their kids to visit on their way to Disneyland. We had a wonderful time with them and took them to one of our favorite places, Monterey. We went to the aquarium and spent about 10 freezing cold minutes on the beach...plenty of time for all the kids to play in the water and get drenched! They are crazy! The kids had a great time with their cousins and I was happy as can be to have them all here!

The next set of guests came about a week later, and I had no idea they were coming at all!!! My sweet sisters knew how much I miss my family, and surprised me with a visit!!! I am going to just send you on over to Libbie's post on the surprise, I loved it so much and am looking forward to seeing what they have up their sleeves next!!! I love you guys!

http://localib.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html

Next on the list of activities was my birthday! Yay for me!! I am 33! My sweet friends surprised me with a beautifully decorated bike at spinning! I usually am one of the first people there, but that day I accidentally overslept until 5:14 and was a little late. It was so pretty, complete with a flag, streamers, and a pretty little basket filled with some of my favorite things!

Sorry about the sideways video, I don't know how to fix that. Lucky for me, my kids messed up the resolution on the monitor, so while every other picture makes me look especially wide and squatty, this video makes me look so long and lean. So humor me and mess yours up too!

My friends Deanna and Sally also had birthdays within a few days of mine, so we gathered up a group of all the coolest ladies and headed out for a night on the town. Dinner consisted of a whole smorgasbord of appetizers. We thought it was such a fun idea, til we were all so sickened by all the fattiness, we had all wished we had ordered a salad. The company was great!

I went ahead and told my kids it was my birthday, even if it meant that I might possibly have to make myself a cake, but I didn't have to! Good friends brought me some delicious cheesecake to share with the kids! They know I am not such a fan of cake, especially when I have to make it myself! I am really glad I have such wonderful friends who know how to treat a girl right on her birthday because my husband forgot all about it. Dang guy. He's lucky I love him. He was feeling really bad about it and is going to be treating me soon to a weekend in SF where we will stay in a nice hotel...no kids!!!!!.... and hopefully see Wicked. I am really looking forward to it!

Last but not least, we had a beautiful and quiet little Easter at home. Ben and I made Leg of Lamb, roasted new potatoes, grilled asparagus with Hollandaise (homemade...thank you Martha Stewart!), Fresh Lemonade, and Chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. It was delicious!!! We enjoyed eating outside in the yard that we have been working so hard in and are really starting to love!!!

The kids are all getting so big! I love this picture, and with a little photoshop, I think we can get them all looking at the camera!!! Aren't they such cuties? I love them all so much!

Thanks for being patient with me. Hope it wasn't to long and boring! Now, the time is 1:23am, and I am bushed. I have to wake up in about 3.5 hours so this is going to have to do!

Ohhh, its gonna be a big one!!!

2009-04-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

Well, lookey, lookey! Its little ol' me with a bit of a teaser! I haven't posted in an absurd amount of time, I am feeling a little guilty. I have had A LOT to blog about, but more pressing issues like exercising and Twilight have won over. Oh, and I am wondering if anyone even reads this anymore becuase I have been such a slacker. SOOO, I'll tell you what. If I get 5 comments telling me things like "oh, I have missed you and your posts" on here before 8 o'clock tonight, I will put Edward and the DVRd Housewives of NYC off for a while and spend the evening catching up with you all. If I don't get 5, sorry, it'll just have to wait!

Comfort and Compassion Kid Style

2009-03-03T12:45:00.000-08:00

We were at Costco AGAIN yesterday. I practically live there, and why shouldn't I? That place has it all. I was going through the aisles with 5 of the kids, telling them MANY O' TIME not to walk right in front of the cart "I can't see you", "I might not be paying close enough attention to you to stop in time...I am on a mission", "You're going to get smashed" etc. I think these are all very convincing reasons to steer clear of the front of the cart, but that's me. My kids like to walk on the wild side, they laugh at danger. Today, though, I think they might have learned a little something about velocity and getting in its way.
Here's the scene: We were walking with our ginormous cart back out to the car. It is starting to rain a little so I am walking a little faster than I would on, say, a sunny day. The parking lot is sloping gradually towards a drain. All of these factors contributed to what happened next, but none were as much to blame as Mr. Reese and his chosen path. It wasn't a gradual veer that led him to that treacherous place, but a sudden 90 degree left turn right in front of the cart. AND....he's down, SCREAMING as only Reese can. I pull the giant pack of toilet paper off of him and help him up. "Are you okay?" But, being the mean mother that I am, that was about as far as the compassion went. " Do you see why you shouldn't walk in front of the cart?!?!" and all of the reasons mentioned above were restated, along with the whole speed+intersecting vectors= no good quickie physics lesson. We got everyone and everything into the car and headed home, Reese still crying in the backseat.
Sometimes people give me a hard time for having so many kids. I loved growing up in a big family and am happy to raise my own kids in a not quite as big a family for many reasons, one of them being that there is always someone there to help you feel better. On this day, a little extra compassion was what was needed, and it came in the form of Maya.

Reese: "Whaaaaaaaaaaa!
Maya: "Weese, why don'tt you justt stop thinking aboutt yo owie, and then itt won'tt hutt anymo." (Her t's are always very crisp and enunciated.)
Reese: "WHAAAA! I can't stop thinking about it, it hurts so bad!"
Maya: "Well, why don'tt you think aboutt Gwamma wewing yo undowew and then you won'tt think aboutt yo toe anymo."

What a sweetheart.

My Baby is One!!!

2009-02-17T23:07:00.000-08:00

Look at this handsome young man!

This was my first look at my 6th and last little baby. I have loved every minute of having him here in our family, he is such a sweet little guy!

G" border=0>Ok, I baked the cake and as it was cooling I thought I would go ahead and shower, since it was about 6 o'clock and I still had my exercise sweat on. Yuck, I know, but hey, it was a busy day! As I am showering, Anna, Reese, Maya, and Bella decided to help themselves to the frosting. I came back downstairs to half of the container in their bellies. So, being the mean mother that I am, they had to have plain cake. Guess what? No complaints. I think they maaayyyy be learning. Here's to hoping.

Jeff has recently found his nostrils. If it weren't so cute, I would be grossed out.

Jeff loved his birthday dinner of sloppy joes, tater tots, cake and ice cream!

What I Love about Jeff!
*I love how he smiles so sweetly when he wakes up.
*I love how he walks with his arms raised up above his head.
*I love how much he loves milk and vegetables.
*I love how much he LOVES Jessica.
*I love it when he pats me on the back.
*I love it when he reaches for Ben.
*I love it when he hugs Madge (the dog).
*I love it when he helps me put the clothes in the washer
and then stands there and watches it go around.
*I love how he thinks he is so funny and laughs at himself.
*I love that he loves his bubby, he is definitely my baby!
* I love how he loves to take naps in his bed.
*I love how he sings little tunes while he is waiting for his food. It is so sweet!
*I love how he tries to communicate with us with little hissing sounds.
*I love it when I hear him out playing with his brothers and sisters. He is so comfortable and secure with his family.

I could go on and on...
So I'll tell you a funny story.

Yesterday I took the kids to Costco for grocery shopping. It was crazy busy, but we managed. The kids were generally well behaved and were rewarded with plenty of free samples. As I was putting the groceries on the conveyor belt and keeping the kids in order, Jeff was playing happily in the cart. After a few minutes I noticed that he was playing in my purse and had thrown my sunglasses out onto the floor. Oh dear, I better get them. As I am picking up the sunglasses...oh no! I see the wrapper from my emergency purse tampon on the floor under my cart. Oh dear, dear, dear...under the cart of the people behind us is the plunger of the applicator...I am panicking....please no more! But yes! Out in the middle of the two lines is the top part of the applicator...I race to grab it....BUT WHERE IS THE TAMPON?!?!?! I look at my sweet little baby, sitting so contently in the cart... and there it is. HE IS SUCKING ON IT! AAAAAA!!!! I turn around to see if anyone has noticed this disgustingness....THEY HAVE!!! There's a nice middle-aged couple behind us with huge smiles/laughs on their faces. To the very nice woman I say (trying really hard to not laugh my head off) "WHY DIDN"T YOU SAY SOMETHING?!?! I THOUGHT WE WOMEN WERE SUPPOSED TO STICK TOGETHER!!!" She just laughed and her sweet husband replied, "It was way too entertaining! Look how happy he is!"

I love Jeff.
Happy Birthday!

Poor toes

2009-01-22T16:53:00.001-08:00

You all really pulled through on the comments, and for that I thank you. I feel a special closeness with you, my blogging friends, so I feel like I can share with you a little bit of a sad story.
As you know from my last triumphant post, I have had a really sore hip. Almost a week later, I am still struggling with it, but it is on the mend. I can now walk up the stairs with alternating steps instead of the crawl I used at the beginning of the week. It has been really painful, but still worth it, in my opinion.
Now for the sad part. Ben was in Kansas City this week, so someone still had to take care of the kids. I was making dinner one night and thought I would save myself a few excruciating steps and just separate the packages of chicken where I was standing at the freezer. I dropped one of the pounds of frozen chicken, and because I couldn't move my leg out of the way fast enough, the package dropped right on my poor little pinky toe. I didn't cry through the whole hip ordeal, but I did cry about the toe.
It does feel a little better with a fresh pedicure and coat of nail polish.

Accountability Update aka YAY ME!!!

2009-01-18T23:01:00.000-08:00

I think it was back in August that I told you all that I was going to run a 1/2 marathon in hopes of motivating myself to get into shape. Well, this was the weekend, and guess what....I DID IT!!!! I am so proud of me! We met up with Ben's sisters, aunt, cousins and grandma in St. George, Utah for the race. We had so much fun! I love my in-laws, they are all THEE BEST!
So, here is the rundown of what I have been doing.
I joined the gym. Best thing ever. I love going to the group classes. I know me and this is what motivates me. Here's my schedule:
Mondays and Fridays: 5:30 power up (kind of a cardio/fat burning weights class)
Tuesdays, Wednesdays (@ 8:30) and Thursdays: 5:30 spinning--my gosh--after your bum gets used to the seat wedged into it, this class is so much fun! Thursdays I also go back at 9:15 for Butts and Guts. Soon we will have another core class to fill in on Wednesday mornings.
I also try to get back and do more cardio on the elliptical or go out running 4-5 miles. I like the elliptical because it doesn't kill my knees.
I also said in my previous post that I wasn't going to weigh or measure myself, and for the most part I haven't. I didn't want to discourage myself. I am nursing Jeff still and my body still wants to hold onto fat, but I finally did weigh myself and I have lost about 10 pounds! Even better than that, though, is that instead of buying XL pants and shirts, I am feeling very comfortable in a Medium!
I don't usually make a habit of taking before and after shots so I don't have much for concrete evidence. I was looking through pictures and found this one. Now don't barf......

My tummy (among other things) is so gooshy!
Here I am at the end of the race with my SILs and CIL (that is cousin in law). Thank you (marathon running) Kristi for hanging back with me! You saved the day. It was my goal not to walk at all. I did let myself have a little rest at the water stops, just enough to drink my water without sloshing it all over myself, but at mile 6 my hip started to really bother me. I tried to stretch it out, but at mile 10 I couldn't handle the pain anymore. I had to walk. DANG IT! I was able to pull it together and run most of the last mile, but I was absolutely dying! I have had a really hard time walking the last couple of days, but it was worth it to be able to finish a goal I had set for myself. I am pleased, however, that the rest of me is doing great! For the most part, besides my hip, I don't have any other sore muscles, and my heart rate and recovery were in tip-top shape! I feel really good about the lifestyle changes I have made and am going to keep everything up. I set out with this race as motivation, but now have other goals for myself.

Last but not least, I LOVE THIS GUY! He has been so supportive and kind. I am really looking forward to him running it with me next year!

OK, that's about it. It sure is a narcissistic post, but guess what, this is my blog. Now, I am expecting a lot of comments containing phrases such as "Oh my gosh! You look so good!" and "Way to go, Emily! You are truly amazing!" and maybe even "Six Kids Later is HOT!" Any of those will do, or any other for that matter!

Why?

2009-01-06T19:24:00.000-08:00

It was clean yesterday. This is what I find today. Why do I even bother? Today the story is that they were making tattoos. What this has to do with toilet paper shredded all over the floor is beyond me. I think, to their credit, that they may have been trying to clean up the make-up smeared all over the counter, that may have something to do with the empty Clorox wipe containers smashed on the floor. I hate to admit that tooth brushing is already a privilege that must be earned daily and supervised by a competent adult (this is because I was tired of tubes of toothpaste being squeezed out almost daily and spread out on counters, door knobs and pillows--you know, funny pranks like that). I am considering making usage of the bathroom for whatever reason a privilege also. Why are my kids so destructive? What have I done wrong? ARRRR!!!!!

Movie Review

2009-01-04T18:53:00.000-08:00

Ben and I went to see Valkyrie last night. I LOVED IT! It definitely was not a make you feel good movie, but I went in there knowing what was going to happen and it was still exciting. We had seen a documentary on the real Valkyrie plan on the History Channel a few days ago and it really gave me an appreciation for what these brave men and women knew they had to do. It was touching to see the children of those involved speak so proudly of what their fathers had done for Germany and all of the world. I have seen reviews of this movie and have been reminded of how ridiculous Hollywood is. Many reviews were based on Tom Cruise, not the movie. I liked them both. The only bad thing about the movie was that right in front of us, a family had brought their LITTLE kids. They were banging their heads on the back of the seat and into my leg for awhile (until I told them to knock it off), and giggling the whole way through the movie, until the end ***SPOILER ALERT*** when they quieted down and sat still through all the suicides and executions. That is what I call responsible parenting. Idiots!
We also went and took the kids to see Marley and Me when we went to Tahoe last week. We were really looking forward to seeing it so we braved the casino and the singing Elvis we had to walk through to get to the theater. I think it had a lot of potential, but our kids started asking too many questions like "Why did she say there is a naked lady in their bed?", and "What is a _______?" so I guess I will have to wait for the DVD to find out on my own how that one ended. Oh well. Have you seen any movies lately?

Hair Troubles

2008-12-28T11:11:00.001-08:00

My hair has a hard time behaving. It all started when I was about 12 years old and in one day went from having stick straight hair to coarse, frizzy hair. A lot of people gave me advice on how to better manage my hair; "try hot rollers" (not so good in the 8th grade, a little better now), "if you would just put gel in your hair it would look like mine and then maybe you could have a boyfriend, too" (I'm not kidding--someone really said this).
I finally learned some tricks to manage my unruly locks and make the natural curl look somewhat presentable, when wouldn't you know it, I have a baby and went from unruly curly hair to straight-in-some-sections-and-curly-in-others. I have to say that this has been a little easier to manage, but more hair troubles ensued.
We moved to Nevada, and as I have mentioned in previous posts, I did not love it. I blame Nevada almost completely for the grey hairs that popped out when I was merely 25. To cover up these grey hairs, my sister-in-laws and I decided to try a box of hair color with "just a little red" (requested by Ben). That little bit of red turned my hair completely BURGUNDY. It took 7 treatments within a month to get it back to semi-normal. Needless to say, my hair was fried. In our new ward I met a lady who told me that she would love to do my hair. I looked at her own frizzy mullet, and since I am a firm believer that your hair will in some way resemble your hairdresser's, Bambii did not get the job.
I have kind of trucked along over the years and have discovered some real tricks that help. I can't live without: a) good shampoo and conditioner, b) my S-Factor smoothing lusterizer, and c) my round brush and blowdryer. I have also learned that it is good to give my hair off days, but my exercise schedule and the sweat that comes with it, make this part of my regimine a little tricky.
One of the only pleasures that comes with my hair is that it LOVES to be played with. I am putty in the hands of whoever runs their fingers through my hair. I will let my kids stay up as late as they want as long as they are playing with my hair. So, on Christmas night, we were watching Wall-E and I was in my hair-being-played-with catatonic state, when all of a sudden something was terribly wrong. My usually tough scalp was being pulled at in a very strange and uncomfortable way. There were strange clicking sounds..."What are you doing to me, Maya?!?" I reach up and grab the cuticle scissors that came in my manicure set from Santa out of her little hand.

Will there ever be peace in my hair's life?

Quick Updates and Birthday Adventures

2008-12-14T20:14:00.000-08:00

I AM A BLOG SLACKER. I don't know if you noticed, but it has been about a month since my last late post. I don't know what to say, other than things are busy here...nothing earth shattering, just life in general.

Here's the skinny--

*Thanksgiving was fabulous, Utah was beautiful. I LOVE my inlaws. They are all so much fun to be around.

* I ran my 6K, I use ran loosely. I finished and did pretty well for my age group, which was 98 for some reason.

Um, that about does it for updates worth writing about. So, onto more current things.

Jessica Turned 12!

Time has really flown by. It seems like just yesterday we brought this beautiful little lady home from the hospital. I thought that growing up in a large family would prepare me for life as a mother, but I learned REALLY fast that I had no idea what I was doing. Here was this beautiful baby, with a perfect little round head and big gorgeous eyes, depending on me for everything she needed. She has been such a joy in our lives since she was born. She is beautiful and talented. She is sensitive and kind. She is my right hand gal. I LOVE HER TO PIECES!!! She wanted to go to San Fransisco for her birthday so off we went! We had a great time together as a family and then enjoyed some present opening over breakfast and delicious Penne Rigate for dinner. She got some great gifts, including the first Twilight book which she finished within 2 days. But....the most exciting news is that she got her ears pierced!!!!! She has been looking forward to this day her whole life (believe me). She had to call a few people and interview them about their ear piercing experience so that she could make an educated decision and use her agency wisely. She is so big, and I am so old. Happy Birthday, Jessica!

Ben turns 35 (that's halfway to 70, you know)!

It's true. He is even getting the grey hairs to prove it. He is such a good daddy, he wanted to spend the day with his family so we went to Jamestown and rode the steam engine. It was lots of fun for everyone. Santa, a very talented fiddler, and a band of raucous casino patrons were also on the train. We have missed cold weather and snow so we drove a little farther and were able to play in the snow...for a few minutes before we got too cold and decided that being warm is also very nice. Then it was off to the Bass Pro Shop for a little manly shopping. Happy Birthday, Ben!

Better Late than Never

2008-11-12T13:19:00.001-08:00

With everything else going on in our home, back to school, elections, Ben gone, etc., I have been a neglectful blogger and have failed to post our halloween pictures. Exciting as they are, I am sure you have all been eagerly anticipating them, so here they are!

Halloween Morning, we began with our pumpkin carving. Ideally, this would have been done by now, but this isn't an ideal world, plus, they get rotten very quickly around here, and who wants rotten pumpkins sitting on their porch? Not me! (We have a couple extra helper friends.)

The finished products.
So, after a few more election reminder calls, we are off to the trunk-or-treat.

Oh, here is a fun game...Bobbing for Apples...

...Until you fall into the tank. Don't worry. Being the good mother that I am , I got a picture before I offered comfort. Poor Minnie/Bella. She was soaked from head to toe.
I forgot to get a good picture of all the kids in their costumes before we left, so I'm afraid this is as good as it gets. Here we have Minnie (Bella), Spider (Jeff), Cinderella (Maya), Geisha (Anna), Kangaroo (Reese). I was feeling a little lazy as far as costumes go this year, so we just raided the dress up box. I think we did pretty good, everyone seemed to be pleased, except Reese. His Kangaroo wasn't quite as ferocious as last years Great White Shark, but when he added vampire fangs and became a blood sucking Kangaroo, it was a little more do-able for him. I don't know why nobody likes the Kangaroo. When I bought it for Jessica years ago, she hated it too. I would love to be the Kangaroo. I think it is stinking cute. It even has a little Joey for the pouch. Oh well, you can't win them all.
Jessica is a big girl now and wanted to go off with her friends. Doesn't she make a lovely Vampire?
There you go! Happy Belated Halloween!

November 5, 2008

2008-11-05T14:41:00.000-08:00

Proposition 8 Passed!!! It was a close one, but we did it. We worked really hard, literally until the polls closed, and got the job done. Thank you everyone for your help, prayers etc.

That is the good news... the other good news is:

For at least four more years, I will not have to worry about:

* Gas for my evil suburban--BOs all over it.
* My mortgage payment--oh wait, we rent---somewhere out there, there must be some sort of program in the works to get me into my very own home, I do have a right, you know. I have my eye on one for sale. It is only about $600,000. I think now is the time, and if I can't afford it later, BOs got my back on that one too. YESSSSS!
* We've got two sets of braces looking us in the face next year, I was going to use our flex account, but I think I heard something about a universal healthcare program...the senators kids get braces, why shouldn't mine?
* All that talk radio, I am really sick of the biased hosts of talk radio. If only they were more open minded and fair, like network TV, everyone would REALLY see how stinking good things are going to be now that BO is in charge, good thing for the fairness doctrine. That is going to RULE. No more of this dang brain washing that has been going on.
* Bush's shrill, "unedumacated" talk. Yup, for at least 4 more years, its only the tobacco induced, dulcet tones of the great orator for all of us, lulling us all into a much deserved hypnotic break from all of the problems going on in the world. Who really wants to know anyway? We'll just let the smarter, more educated people do the thinking for us. We have much more important things to worry about, like our guns and our religion.
* Phew! I was afraid that I was going to have to teach my children that you have to work hard and get good grades to get into college, and that once you get there, it is still not a free ride! What have I been thinking? Not only do my children have a BO given right to go to college, he is also going to see to it that it is paid for, I don't know by who, but what do I care? Count them friends, that is 1,2,3,4,5,6 educations PAID FOR (somehow)! HOT DOG!

You know, I really must have been smoking something to think that McCain would have been a better choice. These next few years are going to be SOOOOOO AWESOME!!!

Maybe, you are sensing a little sarcasm. In all fairness, this is a historic year, and I am really hoping that it is not going to be as crappy as I think it is. If it isn't, I will take away the paragraph about my sarcasm.

How I Spent the Afternoon

2008-10-25T18:25:00.000-07:00

To show our support for and to help raise awareness for Prop 8, several people from our ward and stake stood out on the street today. Once again, this was WAY out of my comfort zone so I was very nervous, but all in all, it was rewarding AND educational.
Quick list of things:

* I was given "the finger" more today than I think I have ever been in my life.

* I heard the F-bomb directed at me more times than I ever have in my life.

* I was called a racist (I am not sure where that came from, or where that "lady" went to draw that conclusion).

* The 2 girls making out on the same corner helping to illustrate a point, (I am not sure who's they were hoping to make, but I am pretty sure they made it either way).

These things were all pretty negative, but balanced with the many, many supporters with their honks, waves, thumbs-ups and "thank you's", and also with the knowledge that we were serving a righteous cause made it all worth it. I believe that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God, and that it must be kept sacred. I am not trying to take away the rights of anyone, but I also do not wish to have someone else's morals or lack thereof shoved down my or my children's throats.

VOTE YES ON PROP 8!!!

It Was A Good, Long Run.....

2008-10-22T21:06:00.001-07:00

I went to the dentist today, by I, I mean all six kids and I. That was a real treat...no really! They took a few kids at a time, then took me back for my turn and the receptionist held the baby! I just sat and relaxed as my teeth were x-rayed, probed and cleaned. It was great--mostly. I have been a lucky gal for 32 years now, and have escaped the dreaded dentist's drill, until today, well, actually until November 18 when I have all SIX of my cavities filled. YIKES! I have never had a cavity in my life and now SIX! I will give myself a break because the dentist said that they are just the beginnings of little tiny ones on the ridges of my teeth and that it was good to catch them this early, but still! I am a little bummed. Also, my "classic european bite" (my teeth are somewhat inverted and are becoming more so every year) is causing wear on my lower teeth and so it was recommended that I get Invisiline to correct it. I am okay with that.
Jessica is also about to get braces. I gave her a little teasy scare when I told her we couldn't afford a certain appliance she needs and that she would just have to get headgear. We even looked up some headgear pictures online. I really had her going. It is going to be a fun year for our wallets and our mouths.

6 years old!

2008-10-02T08:37:00.000-07:00

My big boy is six!

On September 26, Reese turned six years old. We had a weekend full of birthday including shark cupcakes with his class, Johns Incredible Pizza, and Reese's favorite-Seafood Linguine- for dinner! It was fun for all of us! Reese has grown to be such a sweet little guy. He is always very thoughtful, especially of me. He loves to give away hugs and kisses and loves to learn! I am so proud of him!
Here's a shot of his birthday loot. We got him a fun halloween shirt at Target with a skull on the front. When I picked him up from school on Monday I asked him how his day went.

Mom: How was your day?

Reese: Good, except the kids thought I was a bully.

Mom: Why?

Reese: Because I have a (th)skull on my shirt! HELLO!

Mom: Shall we not have you wear it anymore?

Reese: No, I will still wear it, I'll just tell the kids that I am a nice boy.

...And he is! Happy Birthday Reese, We love you!!!

In addition to being another year older, Reese has grown taller and has eight permanent teeth. But that is not all. Reese is also growing into quite the creative little boy. He loves scissors and tape, and can work miracles with them. He is also getting to be quite a good little artist. This is his latest masterpiece. It is called "Me, Tooting Underwater." What a funny little boy.

The Magic of a Good Playlist

2008-09-27T09:50:00.000-07:00

Today, being Saturday, was a good day to give running outside a try. I am still a newbie at this, so I decided in order to push myself, I would run outside of my neighborhood so I would not be tempted to just run back home when I got tired. I ran (I say run, but it is still pretty much a slow jog, bear with me, it makes me feel good) out of my neighborhood and around the CSUS campus. I started out really good, I ran for THREE WHOLE songs, took a one song walk break, and then ran some more. I was well into my second running stretch when I started second guessing my lofty goal and wished that I was on a treadmill so I could just stop and go home, when the angelic strains of Gloria Gaynor's inspiring anthem of victory started on my ipod, inspiring and uplifting me, and reassuring me that I will, infact, survive. Let me just tell you though, that that is one LONG song, 8 minutes and 2 seconds to be exact, but I made it through and even survived a little Maroon 5. After that, it was time for another small walk break to one of my favorites, Rob Thomas and his Matchbox buddies, about falling and dusting off, and "if I am too tired to make it, be my breath so I can walk" (SWOON!!!). I did finish strong, and am feeling really great and looking forward to my next class and run. Laters!

Accountability

2008-09-18T08:46:00.000-07:00

I am writing this post in hopes that you all will help me stay motivated. I think that if I go ahead and write my goals down, I may feel a little more of a sense of accountability as I try to reach them if I know other people are watching me. I joined a gym a month or two ago with a few goals in mind:
1. fit into my pants again
2. look better in my pants when I do get them on again
3. lose as much fat as I can so that when I get a tummy tuck (ha ha), it will be cheaper with less lipo.

That pretty much sums up my list of starting goals. Pretty vague though, so I thought I should set some milestone type goals. I have read so many blogs about 1/2 marathons and have always thought that they were definitely not for me. My attitude is changing, however, and I have realized that in order to reach my goals I am going to have to get out of my "status quo" comfort zone, and try new things. So, I am signing up with Sara, Emily and Josie (my SILs) to run a 1/2 marathon in St. George in January. Just verbally committing has worked wonders for me. Now, instead of a sleeping-in-as-long-as-I-can Emily, you will find me at the gym most days at 5:30 am either in a class or on the treadmill and for the most part LOVING IT! Several times, I have even woken up before my 5 am alarm!
I know, I know!!! I didn't ever think I would say that, but I love the feeling of sore tired muscles that I had forgotten about and the quiet in the morning when all the kids are still sleeping. I am still a beginner so I am still building up my stamina. I start with a brisk walk for a quarter of a mile then I run for as long as I can. It started out as a 1/2 mile run before I wanted to die, but now I am getting up there to 1 1/2-2 miles inbetween walk breaks. I certainly do not expect anything grand timewise, I just want to be able to finish the race and look somewhat good doing it.
Also, there is another race in Sacramento in Nov or Dec that I might try. I will have to see how I am doing, but I think for that one my goal will be to do the 10k.
So...here is where you come in....
1. Periodically ask me how I am doing. (by the way, I haven't weighed or measured myself and I am not going to, I think I will measure my success by how I look and feel).
2. If you have any tips for beginning runners, let me know.

Thanks in advance for your help!

It Was Quite a Day!

2008-09-07T18:54:00.000-07:00

I love politics, especially in an exciting presidential year. I love listening to speeches and debates. I find myself on pins and needles waiting for the daily poll numbers and trying my hand at political analysis. I have very definite opinions about the way things should be and am usually not afraid to tell people how I feel, but I realized recently that my social world is full of like minded people, and that I have never really had to get out of my comfort zone, politically speaking. A few years ago, 61% of the voters in California passed an initiative stating that only marriage between a man and a woman is recognized in California. A few months ago, that decision was overturned by a the State Supreme Court, so now we have a new proposition, Proposition 8, that will hopefully be passed, adding an amendment to the state constitution, preserving traditional families. We have been instructed by the First Presidency to do all that we can do to help, including donating our time and resources to the campaign. We were given a folder a few weeks ago with the names of people in our voting precincts and the streets that they live on. We have been asked to walk door to door polling these people. That folder sat on my entry way table for two weeks. I would walk by it a just get sick at the thought of the task at hand. I prayed for strength and was always comforted that all would be well, that this was something that is VERY important to the Lord and to the Prophet, and that I should just buck up and do it. So I did. Yesterday was our walk. I am happy to report that I was a brave girl and even did the talking a few times! We were able to contact a lot of the people on our list and only had 2 definite NOs and 1 Undecided, and MANY people who were definitely in favor of the amendment. There were a lot of people who were willing to put up a yard sign for us, and a few who wouldn't "because it is just to controversial, but thank you for doing this for us." It really pointed out to me that there really is (I hope) a silent majority, and that we all really need to get involved to spread the word. It was a real test for me, but I did it and know that I will be blessed for it. So...Please pray for our state, and pay close attention to your own state politics.

On a lighter note, we had a great ward activity last night. We all had so much fun. My ward is my favorite thing about California. We had a Chili cookoff and guess what??? WE WON!!! Ben and I had a lot of fun doctoring up our recipe, adding this and that and it turned out delicious! What was our secret ingredient? LOVE! (and chocolate! shhhh!)

Yet Another Trip

2008-08-27T11:09:00.001-07:00

I have been such a slacker lately! I go about my days and think, " I should go blog about this" but it never happens. Sorry that you all have to endure the boring recap blogs as I am trying to catch up.
It is a good thing that gas is so cheap these days! We took another trip to Washington for my Family Reunion. I was a terrible picture taker so I will just send you here to see all of my sister's fun pictures and a quick summary of our fun reunion. It was great to see my cousins and Aunt and Uncle along with most of my family. Just one of the reasons we were happy to leave town. OK, we were sitting still in a parking lot, so this picture is a bit of an exaggeration of the real situation. In actuallity, it was only 109.
I am a genius. When we were in Yellowstone last month we saw a family using drawers for each kid instead of suitcases. I decided to try it out but with my own little fabulous twist. I bought two sets of 3 big drawers and put an outfit and pajamas for each child in each drawer. I also put diapers in so that all I had to do each day was take in that days drawer. After the kids got ready for bed, I put the dirty clothes back in the drawer, put the dirty drawer back in the car and got the next day's drawer out. When the first set of three were all used, I moved the next set into place and washed the dirty clothes, resorted them, and put it all back in the car. I don't think it took up any less space in the car, but it sure was easier to manage everything! The car usually wouldn't be so full, we did have to also bring 7 sleeping bags and pillows. Not bad, I must say. I would TOTALLY do this again!

After WAY TOO MUCH fighting in the back seat on the way home, we stopped in this desolate wheat field for some "encouraging" words. After a few (idle) threats of leaving them there, we climbed back into the car and continued on our very long journey with a lot less bickering.
Jeff got his first two teeth on the 14th of August. He loves to rub his tongue along them. He is also getting up on his hands and knees and doing some form of crawling resembling an inchworm.

4 years old times 2

2008-08-14T00:29:00.001-07:00

It seems like just yesterday I was toting these two little princesses around, growing some amazing biceps. Now they are 4 years old! They have been such a joy! I have loved watching them grow up together, always having their best friend close by. They are wonderful playmates and definitely a comfort to eachother. When I found out I was having twins, the ultrasound tech told me that I was the first person she had told twin news to who hadn't cried on the spot. I was so excited, and although there have been trials, I wouldn't trade this wonderful twin experience for the world! I love these girls with all my heart and am so glad they are a part of our family! Happy Birthday Maya and Bella!
These are their new Princess Dresses for the Princess Party. We made tiaras and purses, played Pin the Kiss on the Frog Prince, and Don't Eat the Princess. We had a lovely pink princess lunch and some delicious cake and ice cream. Now, I am really good at a lot of things--I can play any hymn in the hymnbook, I can remove almost any stain (including sharpie) you throw at me, I mow the lawn like a pro, just to name a few. But baking, especially cakes, has never been a strength of mine. Some of Ben's fondest memories of when he was young are the fabulous cakes his mom made, so I thought I would try a little harder to create the same memories for my kids. The girls really wanted a castle cake-that, or the Spongebob cake at Raleys. I thought, how hard can it be? Well, take a look......
Pathetic castle, huh! In my mind it was A LOT more castle like. It looks more like an enchanted forest, but the girls were absolutely thrilled. They really do love me for who I am!

Oh yeah, one more thing...

2008-08-03T20:23:00.001-07:00

Funny Reese Quote, coming right up!

Today while getting ready for church, Reese walks down to Ben in the family room and says," Little Miss-Behavior whacked me with her saltwater (sandal) right in the face, and she is sitting right there! (Pointing to Bella)" What a funny little guy.

OK, two more things. Reese and his friend Gretchen got the star student awards for their class for "Excellent Academic Achievement and Good Citizenship." What a stud.

Swim Lessons, Sun Tans, etc.

2008-08-03T19:26:00.000-07:00

Apparently it has been a while since I have had anything to say. I apologize, but I think you will see from this post, that nothing very exciting has been happening here at the Kern house. Here is the past 3 weeks in review. Jeff is officially eating food now. He is a big fan of applesauce and bananas, but not so much the squash. He is also getting to be a pro at picking up the arrowroot cookie and getting it into his mouth. He will be 6 months tomorrow...I can't believe it.
We have had the kids enrolled in 2 sessions of Swim lessons, one with the city and one with Josh, one of the young men in our ward. I have been very pleased with their progress and new found ability, although I did grossly underestimate Jessica's abilities, and she was stuck in a class with kids 3 ft shorter than her. She did well, and is ready to advance about 3 levels next time. Sorry, Jess!!! All of the hanging out at the pool has been really good for me and my tan...
I would like to call your attention to the contrasting tones of skin. Those of you who know me, know that I am not one to ever get any color to me. Some people tan in the sun, some people burn...I get a rash. So this new color is very exciting to me. I have gone from cadaverish to a slightly darker shade of pasty. Woo Hoo!!!
We have some friends in the neighborhood that are very good about calling us and getting us to the park nearly everynight. It is a good way for us to get our homework and chores done, so we can all go out and have some fun at the park.
We have three kinds of Grapes in our yard. They have been a special project of Ben's this summer. Our Thompson seedless varieties are ripe now and DELISH! Our cabernets are nearly ripe and I am sure will make a lovely juice. ;)
I canned some spaghetti sauce and pears this week, my 12 hours of work netted me a total of 25 jars. I am wondering if they were worth it, but soon we will eat them and I will be reminded of why I kill myself to do things like this.
The best event that took place during my blogging hiatus, is that one of my visiting teaching ladies and her husband were sealed in the Oakland Temple. I am so happy for them. It was wonderful to see them sealed and to remember all of the blessings we can receive because of the beautiful sealing ordinance! Congratulations, Scott and Cori!

First Day of School

2008-07-09T09:40:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was the first day of school! Reese started Kindergarten. He was so cute and VERY ready to go. Anna is in second grade now and also very excited.
Jessica is in sixth grade this year. Isn't she beautiful?

Family Filled Vacation and Fourth

2008-07-08T17:42:00.000-07:00

We have spent the past week and a half in the beautiful state of Idaho with members of both sides of our family. We are really grateful for this beautiful part of the world, and glad that we were able to visit so many people in that amount of time.

Days 1 and 2:
-Leave Turlock approximately 5 hours past projected time, thats okay--I needed to sleep as I had stayed up until 3:30 am packing and cleaning. I did come home to a clean house and sparkling toilets, compliments of my new favorite cleaning tool, drywall sanding screen.
-Drive through the smoke in the Sierras and through some of our old "haunts" in Nevada, including the big BM that so eloquently summed up my experience living in the "burbs" of trashy Battle Mountain. I am so glad that part of my life is over.

-Spend the day with Josie and her family in Twin Falls. Thanks Josie!
-When the Husbands finish with work, off we go to Island Park. Things were going a little too smoothly so we spiced things up with a blown-out tire on Josie and Blakes trailer. Good Times.
Days 3 thru 8:

-Island Park, Idaho. We had so much fun with all of Ben's sisters and their families, then throw in Aunts, Uncles and Cousins! Ralph and Connie have been planning this Plant Reunion for a long time, we had such a wonderful time. Thanks, Chad and Emily for letting us stay with you in your cabin, you guys rule.
-Game nights-Curses was fun, but playing cards was even better (HA HA HA--LOSERS!!!) We'll have to do that again sometime!
-4 wheeler/ranger rides make for some of the dirtiest kids you have ever seen. We thought we were so clever to bathe the kids outside in the kiddie pools to keep the mess outside. #1 on the list of things not to do again.
-Yellowstone-We loved this! The kids were so amazed at the animals we saw, we were even in close proximity to a Grizzly Bear, but never got to see it. Don't worry, we stayed REALLY close to the Ranger and his gun, but gave up and moved on. It was very exciting though!
-BYU-I Showtime Theater Performance/Sacrament Meeting in West Yellowstone. (Steven Covey was there). Very interesting. I say this with raised eyebrows and pursed lips. It was a nice little sample of the next night's activity--"See How They Run" at the Playmill theater, complete with a lovely little Contemporary Dance to "Starry, Starry Night". It was a cute play, I am sure EVERYONE including the cast wished that we had not brought 10 noisy kids to the performance, #2 on the list of things not to do again.
Days 9, 10 and 11:
-Off the the Boise Area to visit my sister Gretchen and her family. My mom came through on her way back from Utah, so we got to see her, and my sister Libbie and her family, and my Brother Tyson and his wife Tsveti. Love these guys!

-Movies on the lawn and FABULOUS ribs and fish (YUM!), a waterslide bounce house and dunk tank, our kids were sufficiently worn out.

-Fourth of July spent with Ben's aunts and cousins on Willowbrook. We haven't been for several years, we remember why we love it so much! Fun people, great food, spectacular fireworks, and only one smallish fire.

-Floating down the Boise River. I have never done this before! It was so much fun once Jeffrey fell asleep. #3 on the list-no small babies on the river.
Day 12-Pack up the car and head home. This time I brought along a dear friend of mine, Strep Throat. Nothing like coming home to 12 loads of laundry and feeling like crap.
We had such a fun vacation and were really glad to have the time to spend together with Ben and the rest of our families!

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!

2008-06-23T00:03:00.000-07:00

Well, we finally left the house. My niece Lauren came to visit. It is a quick visit, simply because she didn't get out of school until 6/16 and our kids start on 7/8. Next year when Jessica starts Jr High and is on a traditional schedule, we hope she can come and stay a little longer! Anyway, we haven't had a lot of time to pack in all the activities we want to do, hence...our lightning fast summer o' fun.
After we picked Lauren up in Sacramento, we thought, Heck, why just go home when we can drive an extra 3 hours (round trip) and load up on the best jelly beans known to man? So off we went to Fairfield, CA for a quick tour of the factory that dumps you right into the gift shop. Many jellybeans/giant gummy rats/flavored lip gloss later, we headed back to good ol' Turlock.

The rule of the tour is "If you have a head, you must wear a hat." Doesn't he wear it well?

Thursday we went to Monterey, our favorite place in CA so far, to see the new Splash Zone at the aquarium. We were lucky enough to see the cute penguins being fed. Lots of fun things to see and do, we are glad to be members of the Aquarium so we can buzz in and out without feeling like we have to see EVERYTHING to get our money's worth.

After the Aquarium we were off to the beach. It was a little tricky changing everyone in the car into their swimsuits, I'm sure someone in the parking lot may have seen a little more skin than they bargained for, but hey, what are you going to do? We had a GREAT time. The weather was absolutely BEAUTIFUL, we were priviledged to see dolphins jumping a little way out...Amazing(!!!)... AND as Ben pointed out, I took 7 children to the Aquarium AND the Beach,all by myself, and came home with all 7 of them, without even a sunburn, I might add!

We heard about an exhibit at the Fresno Zoo where you can pet docile sharks and rays. As you can imagine, that was appealing to us, so our activity for Saturday when Ben was home was to go pet some sharks. We looked up the zoo online to make sure everything was a go/get directions etc., filled the gas tank in the Suburban and the truck (we are maxed out seatbelt wise with our own family, when we have guests, we have to take two cars) loaded up on water bottles and ice, and drove an hour and a half down to Fresno. We pulled into the Zoo parking lot at 12:59 pm and as we were about to pay for parking, the attendant informed us that the zoo was closing from 1-7pm for a "special event". DANG IT!!! I am going to go ahead and go out on a limb and assume that Saturday is probably their busiest day of the week, why the heck are you going to close the zoo, and if you are, WHY NOT POST IT ON THE WEBSITE SO THAT PEOPLE WHO MIGHT WANT TO DRIVE ALL THE WAY DON'T WASTE THIER TIME AND GAS!!! That being said, we thought we would get some lunch and decide on a Plan B. We punch Restaurants into the GPS and decide that a little Carls Jr might do the trick and followed the directions given. We were led into what we thought was the Ghetto, but it turns out from all of our driving, that pretty much ALL of Fresno is the Ghetto. My goodness, I was A LOT out of my element. The Carls JR was WAYYYYY too scary, so we decided on Denny's instead. We found out that there was a Metropolitan Museum downtown, so we checked it out, by checking out, I mean driving by and LEAVING. Basically, our big shark petting plans were a bust, but to keep things positive, we did get to see a sweet, pimped out caravan...

and were able to bring home a souvenier from our trip to exotic Fresno...a rocket sippy cup, filled with a beverage of our choice.

Other newsworthy items...
1. After approximately 6 reschedulings, I was finally able to enjoy my Mother's Day afternoon at the spa. It was fabulous.
2. We were having spider issues, common around here, so we called pest control. They came out and did their thing, and later that night, our house was crawling with earwigs and...I saw a mouse!!! YUCK!!! So I called pest control again to come get the little critters and bought some traps. A few nights of watching that stupid mouse come a sample the peanut butter with no positive results for me, I adjusted the traps and I caught it. I was a brave girl, and through the shrieks of my girls and to the delight of my boy, I even picked up the trap/dead mouse and disposed of it. Sometimes I really hate having to be independent.

Happy Father's Day!

2008-06-15T19:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day! We were so happy to serve our wonderful Daddy breakfast in bed this morning, but are unable to post any pictures due to threats of camera confiscation. I am lucky to be married to such a wonderful man! What a wonderful husband and father he is! He loves us all so much, and we love him! Here is our Father's Day tribute to our Dads and all the other fathers out there! Enjoy, and watch out for the dog poop!

Lazy Days of Summer

2008-06-15T17:24:00.000-07:00

I was noticing that I haven't posted in a while. I haven't had a lot of time, but more than that, I haven't had anything interesting going on. I think I hit a real low with the clean toilet. So, I took some pictures of the kids this week because they are my life.

Reese had an especially busy week. In addition to a haircut and wart removal, he lost his two front teeth. He spent all last week wiggling his two front teeth so they would be ready for Dad to pull them. Well, they were. They were so loose that they would move in and out as he breathed, but I am a wuss when it comes to teeth pulling, so there they stayed until Monday night FHE. We had a lesson on motorcycle/4-wheeler safety in preparation for our trip, and our activity was watching Reese have his teeth pulled. It was very entertaining. He is so cute with the teeth missing, and now can't say his s's. Oh, wait. He can't anyway!!!

Tuesday, Reese had a special visitor. He had invited his primary teacher, Sister Forbes-McGee, over for a visit the previous week. She didn't realize how serious he was until the next Sunday when he invited her again. So we scheduled a little visit for Tuesday morning. Reese was quite the gentleman. He opened her door for her and served her cookies and "Limenade". It was very cute to see him interact so properly with her. I think she got a kick out of it too.
Sorry about the shadows over all the faces in the next pictures. I am no photographer, but you can get the gist of what we are all doing.

We had a few really hot days, and I am surprising myself to say this, but I think I am getting used to this heat! We had picnics in the backyard and played in 100+ degrees without dying.

Anna led the girls in a Yoga session on the patio.

Maya relaxing.
Bella relaxing.
Reese was the trooper on the slip and slide, even after an unfortunate run in with the clothesline. He now has a nice gash between his eyes, but don't worry, he washed off the blood on the slip and slide.
Jessica has been such a helper these days! I am sure she is just bored stiff. Lauren is coming to visit next week and we are all VERY excited, especially Jessica.

Jeffrey spends his days snuggling in the shade with his Mama, and being one of the six cutest babies ever. He went to the Dr. last week and is 15 lb. 10 oz. He also shot up from the 25th percentile in height to the 80th!!! That explains his love of eating!

Oh yes! The big news is that "something handy happened" Thursday morning. Reese got gills! He really is part shark!

The Rundown

2008-06-01T23:06:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day. Ben was home after a long week away, the kids were generally happy and well mannered in church, we had a delicious dinner...Grilled Tri-tip, roasted potatoes, tomatoes with s&p, and watermelon. Yummy!!!
The highlight of my day was when Reese bore his sweet testimony about a time when his prayer was answered. He was a little teary as he told his story. He came back down to his chair and said, "That felt so good, I just had to cry. Sometimes when people feel good inside they just cry." I sometimes forget how sensitive and good he is. He is such a special little guy. Then in Primary when the Primary Pres said something about Family Night he announced to the whole Primary that we don't have family night. Someone told him that Family Night is the same thing as Family Home Evening. We really do have FHE. Sometimes, however, it is merely a lecture or a lesson as we are eating our dinner. Probably not ideal, but we do attempt!

I bought some sun dresses for Maya and Bella at Costco a few weeks ago and have had them hanging in my closet since then, waiting for myself to buy t-shirts to go under them for modesty's sake. Bella and Maya asked if they could wear them the other day and since we weren't going anywhere and I was behind on the laundry, I let them wear them. They were so excited and told everyone that I let them be immodest that day. It was very exciting for them. Anna was irked because she didn't have a sundress to wear immodestly along with them. Poor thing.

In other news, I have decided, just for kicks, to make a Where in the World Is Ben? tracker on the side. It will be simple, but maybe I will figure out something more exciting later on.

Tagged x2

2008-06-01T22:23:00.000-07:00

I've got a few minutes, I thought I would catch up on a couple tags.

One Word Tag
Answer the following with only one word.
1. Where is your cell phone? ....................Purse
2. Your significant other?......................TALL
3. Your hair?....................................haystack
4. Your mother? .................................good
5. Your father?..................................industrious
6. Your favorite thing?..........................family
7. Your dream last night?........................New Zealand
8. Your favorite drink...........................juice
9. Your dream/goal?..............................Peace
10. The room you're in?.........................playroom
11. Your children?.....................................Lots
12. Your fear?...................................loss
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years...........home
14. Where were you last night?...................toysrus
15. What you're not?.............................quiet
16. Muffins......................................nothanks
17. One of your wish list items?.................nap
18. Where you grew up?........................... Kennewick
19. What you read last........................lesson
20. What are you wearing?........................skirt/shirt
21. Your TV?.....................................old
22. Your pets?...................................Madge
23. Your computer? ..............................new
24. Your life?...................................blessed
25. Your mood?...................................content
26. Missing someone?.............................sisters
27. Your car?....................................fullofcarseats
28. Something you're not wearing?................shoes
29. Favorite Store?..............................Costco
30. Your summer?.................................short
31. Like someone?................................Ben
32. Your favorite color?.........................depends
33. Last time you laughed........................today
34. Last time you cried?.........................sacrament

Seven Random Things
1. I love to watch the same movies over and over again. There are enough variables in my life, I don't need to worry if Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett will eventually fall in love. When Ben is gone, movies often keep me company.

2. Since I was young, I have always been ashamed of Cinderella's lack of tact. Those mice risked their lives to makeover her mother's dress. When the Fairy Godmother waves her wand and makes her a new dress, Cinderella says that it is the most beautiful dress she has ever seen, (or something like that) RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE MICE!

3. All my kids have a double letter combo in their name (Maya is different-the a's are separated). We didn't plan this, but realized it in time to plan Jeff's name to follow the pattern. Also not planned, all the girls end with a...if Jeff was a girl, he would have been Brenna.

4. When I would load the dishwasher when I was younger, I would put one piece of silverware in one space at a time so that all the spaces had an equal number of silverware in them. That way it was fair, and none of the spaces had to feel jipped.

5. I don't really have time to watch primetime TV, so I usually get hooked on a show a few years after it has been cancelled. Some of my favorites... Everybody Loves Raymond, King of Queens, and a "new" discovery, The Bernie Mac show.

6. I haven't had any caffiene in 13 years.

7. I don't ask for much. Fine living, for me includes not much more than liquid fabric softener and actual Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

I almost forgot to tag someone else... I tag Laurel, Jennie T., and Alicia.

A Happy Working Blog

2008-05-28T21:42:00.001-07:00

Would you take a look at this beauty?! Have you ever seen such a gleaming specimen? I have been having a heck of a time getting out those stubborn hardwater (and other) stains and was getting tired of looking at them. I have tried the pumice stone and found that it was just scratching the porcelain. I mentioned this problem to a friend of mine and she suggested I try Drywall sanding screen. "What is that?" you may ask. Well, I don't know, but I tell you what, it sure did a number on those stains! They came off so easily, cleaning the toilet today was {dare I say} almost FUN!! So come my little friends, I have two more to do! YEA!!!!
Couple things---I had a clever little "Happy Working Song" playing while you read my toilet blog and the playlist is having trouble with it for some reason. That is where the "come my little friends" reference is from. It is as though I am inviting friendly rats, pigeons, and cockroaches to help me out like Giselle! So much for my attempts to be cool. Also, just in case you want to try this sanding stuff out, make sure you use the 220 grit. I assume no liability for scratched toilets! Happy scrubbing!

Bittersweet News

2008-05-26T02:06:00.000-07:00

Our house finally sold, or is pending anyway. I guess this is good news...we got a good offer, they love the house and all that. We won't be making double house/utility/maintenance payments anymore, but I am really going to miss this house. I guess it is officially time to become a real Californian and register my car here.

What I Love About My Kids Today

2008-05-23T23:11:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a total brag blog...sorry, but these are my babies and I have to share!

Jessica was able to go with the 4th graders to Yosemite National Park for a three day field trip. They dressed in period costumes and took on the role of various early Californians. She was Mary Peregoy, an early hotel and restaurant owner. It was a wonderful experience for her, I am really glad she was able to go, but I sure missed her! She is an amazing helper and only complains every once in a while. She always does her best and is eager to try new things. Her teacher has sparked an interest in art in her, and I am happy to oblige. She is so talented and beautiful. I love this girl!

Anna is so happy to be Anna. She is so sweet and excited about life! She loves to sing and has an uncanny ability to remember lyrics to songs (she didn't get that from me). She became a Math Master at school ("BEFORE JESSIE," she will tell you) and loves to read. She has such a funny personality. The other day she had to take out the garbage so she paused the TV show the kids were all watching and hid the remote in her purse. While she was putting the new bag in the trash, she heard the TV come back on, looked in her purse and said "Stinkin' kids! They stole the remote!" She is such an easy going kid and I love her to pieces! Reese is amazingly creative. He is always making something...usually with something he pulled out of the garbage. One day he hung up Anna's loom and had everyone look through it at the "Wild River". He loves to know facts about various things and has a wonderful vocabulary. He is really excited to start Kindergarten in July, I am excited to hear what stories he tells!
Maya is very agreeable. Her newest thing is "Sums up, Mom" after complimenting me on a yummy meal or a paricularly fabulous ponytail etc. She loves to help and is my best laundry folder. She is also a GREAT bubby (blankie) sharer, which, if you know me is huge in my book!

Bella is quite the nurturer. She loves to help with anything regarding Baby Jeffrey, especially if it involves stripping down to her undies and helping with his bath. She is such an outgoing little sweetheart! Jeffrey is getting so big and gets cuter and sweeter everyday! He reached for and grabbed his first toy yesterday. Ben was so proud until I told him it was a Barbie. Today, however, it was not a Barbie, but Jessica's oil paints. She was holding him and painting for some reason (???) and now both of them have paint all over themselves. Oh well, it washes, not very easily, but it washes!

Isn't he sweet? I could just eat him up!

My Mental Health Day...ok WEEK!

2008-05-23T22:51:00.000-07:00

Last week was a bit of a doozy for me. After an unfortunate styrofoam/broken vacuum incident and a few days of clean up, I had reached my wits end. Fortunately for me, my Heavenly Father loves me. In the depths of despair, my prayers were answered by a sweet sister in the ward and I felt inspired to read Elder Ballard's talk again. I am so glad. It was really nice to be validated by an Apostle. So, I followed his counsel and took some time to do the things I wanted to do. I did the minimum around the house and enjoyed my kids. It started out being just Monday, but I was enjoying myself so much, it turned into Tuesday thru Friday too! So there you go. Now I can get back to my normal life, refreshed and renewed and RARRRRing to go!

Happy Muzzo's Day!

2008-05-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful day! I love being a mom to so many great kids! They have been so sweet all week, wishing me a Happy Muzzo's day every day. The primary kids sang Mother I Love You in Sacrament meeting. The video is a recap, but with the added bonus of the dog singing along. Jessica did not want to be on the video but still wanted to sing. Ben and the kids surprised me with a spa day which I am really looking forward to. We were talking about what would be considered BAD Mother's Day gifts. Here's what we came up with:
1) a scale
2) an oinking/mooing cookie jar
3) cleaning products/equipment
4) nothing

Did we miss anything?

Mom and the girls

I would also like to wish my mom a happy Mother's Day. She amazes me. Not only did she raise 15 kids, which in and of itself is an amazing feat, she did it with such patience and love. Rarely did she raise her voice at us and has always been a great source of comfort to me. I am grateful to her and my dad for her staying home to raise us, even though it would have been easier for her to go to work. I am glad that she is always willing help, even if it is just to offer encouragement and advice. She has a strong testimony of the gospel and does her very best to live it. I love her very much and am so glad to be her daughter! I love you Mom

Last Requests

2008-05-09T11:50:00.000-07:00

We drove past the cemetery today on the way to the dry cleaner. After an Earth Day ward service project a couple years ago, my kids have a very healthy attitude of what a cemetery is--almost too healthy. Reese looked out the window and very thoughfully said, "Mom, when I die and you bury me in the ground, will you please put plastic sea animals by my gravestone and put a picture of me scuba diving on it?" (I took this picture a while ago--please don't think I had him pose for this post!) My eyes filled with tears as I told him that I would, but that I hoped he wouldn't die before me. He asked if I would be sad if he died and I told him that my heart would break because I would be so sad, but that I know that I would be his mama forever, so I would be okay.
I am crying as I am writing this. I am so grateful for temple marriage and for the knowledge that I have that families are forever. I love my kids with all my heart and am thankful for the comfort that my testimony gives to all of us, but I still hope that I don't ever have to go put plastic sea animals by my son's grave. Boy, this is a depressing post...Sorry.

Our Daily Fashion Show

2008-05-08T00:08:00.000-07:00

I am trying really hard to be better about finding humor in the little things in my life. Some things are really funny; what my kids say, what they do, and often times what they wear. What I am struggling to find the humor in, among other things, is the amount of laundry I do. So far this week, I kid you not, I have done twelve loads of laundry, and there is still more to do! This amount amazes me. I am not a clothes horse (I'll post about that another day), most of Ben's clothes are sent out to be dry cleaned, and I only have six kids (HA HA HA). Why on earth do I have so many clothes to wash? Two words: MAYA and BELLA. Here is where I need to laugh at things. I love these girls, but I tell you what, they change their clothes no less than 3 times a day. I have yelled and threatened, and I have even on occasion tried to gently persuade them to leave their original outfits on for a whole day. I have considered putting their clothes in my closet and locking the door so they had to wear the same clothes all day. If we are not going anywhere, I will usually let them exercise some autonomy and choose their own clothes. That is why they usually look like rag-a muffins. I buy cute clothes for them, and I always buy two of everything. Then there are the beautiful hand-me downs from their little friends that have to be worn at least a few times so there are not hurt feelings. Unfortunately, these usually end up being the favorites for a while. The honored new outfit is given a special ceremony the night before its debut and laid out in its entirety, (you remember) so that if you were a flat person, you could just lie down and shimmy your way into the days apparel. I will usually let them wear the new dresses/skirts etc a few times before they mysteriously disappear, but in the meantime we are blessed with a fashion show like no other. These pictures are a sampler of my day today. I did miss one outfit on each of the girls, it was on and off so fast.

Bella #1
Maya #1 This is actually #3 for both, I missed #2. This is what they were hoping to wear to the Primary activity this afternoon. One of the perils of twin-hood is that there are two left shoes and two right shoes, and sometimes they just don't get paired up correctly.
Maya and Bella #4. This is what they ended up wearing to the activity, not much better, but still an improvement.
Maya #5

There you go...don't forget about all the pajamas. Did you know that if you layer a shirt on top of a nightgown it looks like you have on a skirt? The funny thing is that it also makes more laundry. I will never win.

Point Reyes National Seashore

2008-04-27T10:18:00.000-07:00

We are trying to create experiences for our children and have decided to try to go on an "adventure" once a month. One of the good things about California is that there are a lot of neat things to do. We haven't ventured down south yet, but will someday. On Saturday we went to Point Reyes National Seashore to see if we could catch the tail end of the Grey Whale Migration. We didn't see any whales, but were able to spend some time playing on the beach, gathering seashells, and poking the anemones in the tidepools.
Jessica found this "cool" mussle shell with "things and barnacles" growing on it.
Anna was worried about losing the 8 million shells they found so she started digging holes in the sand behind this log to hide them in. What a sneaky kid.
Reese is on Shark Patrol. He was right in his element here.
These girls are so stinkin' cute!

Jeff's first trip to the beach. He did well thanks to the Baby Bjorn.
Typical mom, I had all the jackets, monkey packs, binoculars and seashells...and happy as could be about it. I loved watching my family play.
Ben really took his job of "finding things worth seeing for the kids" seriously. It was cute to watch him be a little boy again!

The beach was great, we got to see some of the dreamiest dairies in the world, (they were on the cliffs just overlooking the ocean, I think these must be the happy California cows), and then we ended up in Liberal Land aka Point Reyes Station. I had seen The Cowgirl Creamery featured on Martha Stewart a while ago and being the cheese connoisseur I am, thought we should stop there and get some cheese and ice cream. So we pulled up in our evil gas guzzling SUV with our blatantly overpopulated family (their opinion, not mine). It was a little uncomfortable, one vendor even had a sign that said "Everytime you vote Republican, God kills a kitten." But don't worry, I got my cheese.
We went home through San Fransisco so we could see the Golden Gate Bridge. We were all very impressed, and very touristy as I was taking pictures through the window. We were most interested, however, in the "character" driving his convertible PT Cruiser, wearing His pink sweater vest with his upturned collar, rocking out to Fergie. It was a SF classic. I tried to get a picture, but in my attempts to be incognito, only got the doorhandle of said PT Cruiser. Oh well, use your imagination.

All in all it was a very fun and beautiful day....Next month we think we will try Yosemite! See Ya!

Even Mama Pigs Need a Break

2008-04-22T22:49:00.000-07:00

I saw this mama at The Farm in Snohomish Washington. My uncle works there with some friends and I have to say that it is one of my favorite places in the world. She just laid there as her little piglets nursed and pulled at her. They climbed all over her, squealing and fighting, but she peacefully laid there doing her job...taking care of her babies. As we were leaving the petting zoo area a little while later, we walked by her again. This time she was in a totally separate area of the pen, her piglets still in the first area, still squealing and climbing all over eachother. She was standing all by herself, doing nothing but taking nice deep breaths, seeming to enjoy a little bit of peace. I think of her a lot...especially when I have days like I have been having lately. I feel so bad about the mother that I am somedays, like I am being stretched in a million different directions and nothing and no one is being taken care of properly. I get so frustrated and irritated when I should be showing more patience and love, and all I really want to do is either climb back into my bed and lock the door, or go somewhere far, far away and stay there for a very long time. I comfort myself with the thought that it is completely natural for me to need even a little break to gather my nerves up off the still unmopped floor and regroup. I love my children with all my heart, and I am extremely blessed to have them, but even mama pigs need a break.

Ben...What a Guy!

2008-04-20T21:31:00.000-07:00

This is Ben. As you can probably see, he doesn't really enjoy picture taking, but he loves me so he pretended to not be too ticked off.

This is Ben sleeping. He especially doesn't like pictures of him sleeping, but it is so rare that he is home and able to sleep in his own bed, I thought I would try to capture the moment. I am really happy to have someone to snuggle with. This is Ben's office in California. He is the regional director for Delaval (A dairy manufacturing company). He is in charge of everything west of Kansas, which is why he is gone a lot.

This is Ben playing and singing with the kids. He is taking a break from his favorite Carole King "It's too late Baby" song and humoring them with a little bit of "The Little Mermaid." What a great dad!

Random pictures, I know, but all to celebrate my wonderful husband and MY NEW DIGITAL CAMERA!!! Can you believe it? Last Monday he mentioned that he was in the mood for a banana and I said "There are bananas at Costco! We could go there and get some and also a new camera" and he said "OK"! I hurried and got the kids in the car before he changed his mind. A few hundred dollars later, I had my digital camera and he still had no bananas (they were out). Yea for me, and thank you BEN!

Our New Yard!

2008-04-20T21:05:00.000-07:00

I thought I would be clever and post things newest to oldest so that they would end up in the right order, but I messed up, so you get to see the after pics of our yard project first. Scroll down for the before pics.

A new "behind the roses" picture.

Isn't this better? There is actually somewhere for the kids to play!

The kids call this the "Special way". They can run all the way around the tree with this special path. I think it will also make a nice place to play hide and seek. We left the iris' around the pomegranate tree because they looked so pretty and cheerful. The snails love them too.

The kids are really excited about the yard, and even though they can't play on the grass yet, the girls thought they would go out before church today and play barbies on the porch. It was a little chilly for them, but don't they look cute?

Thanks for looking. This has been my focus for the last couple of weeks. Now I can mop the floor. Goody.

The Taming of the Yard

2008-04-20T20:18:00.000-07:00

I have written before about our yard. It was quite a jungle. These before pictures are actually after pictures of what it was before the big pruning of December 2008...yes, in the central valley of California we do yard work during Christmas Break. We called it a pruning of biblical proportions. It took us three weeks of ours and our neighbor's green bin to get rid of all the junk. These pictures show what we have done since then.

Isn't this lovely? The scraggly grass is now looking a lot better with the help of a lot of really good fertilizer and plenty of water.
This is what we call "behind the roses." We have a bed of roses (not the Guns 'n Roses kind) in the middle of our yard. They are quite stunning, but right in the way. We thought we would utilize the space behind them so we moved all the plants that were randomly placed everywhere.
I like mint in gum and toothpaste and especially in grasshopper cookies, but not in my yard. Pretty much everywhere you see dirt there is actually mint and/or ivy. I spent hours pulling it out. Good thing pulling weeds is one of my favorite things to do and another good thing that my baby takes somewhat regular naps.

Mint/ivy VANQUISHED!

Raspberries transplanted and Madge (the dog) checking our work.

Ahh, Sleep at last!

2008-04-14T11:42:00.001-07:00

Have you ever seen a sweeter baby?! I love this little guy! He is at the fun, just starting to really interact with us stage. He coos and smiles at us all the time. He is especially wonderful because for the last three nights he has slept through the night!!! I am flying high on 8.5 hours of blissful slumber!

Snakes and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails.....

2008-04-14T11:15:00.001-07:00

We have been working REALLY hard to tame the jungle that is our yard. I will post some before and after pictures once we get the sod in this weekend. I am really excited to have a place for my kids to play. The weather is perfect right now and we need to take advantage of it before it gets too hot.

Our yard is full of all kinds of things including snails. I had never seen these kind of snails before we moved to California, but they are all over the place! They look just like the ones in storybooks with their little spiral shells and everything. The kids LOVE to play with them. They make houses for them and give them lovely names like Meghan and Rebekah. It makes me want to throw up to see them with snails all over them, but isn't that what being a kid is all about...being gross? I think that is also why Heavenly Father gave us hot water, soap and Purell. The other day they had gathered up a mass of the writhing things and put them on a piece of styrofoam. Here it is for your viewing pleasure. I have the kids convinced that the snails LOVE the green garden bin and that the city compost heap is like snail heaven. Now they get so excited to put them in the garbage can. Once again, I apologize for the quality of the picture. It was taken on my cell phone. I have given Ben until Wednesday to get me my birthday digital camera before I go and get it myself. Until then this will have to do.

Blessing Day

2008-04-08T10:25:00.000-07:00

This post will basically be identical to Libbies because she sent me the pictures. Four of us Reil girls all had babies within 5 weeks of eachother: (Me (Emily:)), Bekie, Libbie, and Tanisha. The three of us who live in the US all got together in my parents ward and blessed these precious babies on March 30. It was a very special day and we look forward to more, like baptisms etc!

Mommies and Babies
Daddies and babies
Silly Daddies!

My Birthday

2008-04-07T23:47:00.001-07:00

Today is my birthday, well I think it is still today (April 7) just barely. It was pretty low key with doctor appt and chores. I didn't even tell my kids it was my birthday, simply because I didn't really feel like making myself a cake. Ben is out of town again and I just felt like it was somewhat pointless, but my sweet kids really stepped up and made me this one. It is edible playdough made from peanut butter, honey, milk and flour, topped off with lovely pink sparkles!I am truly amazed at their (mostly Jessica's) creativity! I'll have to play with it tomorrow. I love my darling children and all of you who called/commented to wish me a happy day! Thanks! Sorry about the picture, I dropped the old 35mm (darn it) and broke the back off. All I have now is my cell phone. It really is time for a digital camera. Don't you all think it would make a nice birthday present? Ben, are you reading this???

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EMILY!

2008-04-07T14:15:00.000-07:00

As much as I wish I could tell you happy birthday in person, this will have to be second best. (I know I am totally abusing the use of your password...) So this post is in honor of my wonderful sister in law Emily, who was born on this day 29 years (or so) ago.

The top 10 reasons I am glad Emily was born april 7

10. She likes to farm at the cabin, and any other place it is available

9.She is the food networks next big show - Dinner is a breeze when you store it in your deep freeze. (I love your freezer meals!) Watch out Giada!

8.She loves a project as much as I do.

7. She is very photogenic with the prettiest skin, lips and fingernails I have ever seen (and wish I had!).

6. She has never had a cavity (as a dental phobic, that is my dream!)

5.She lets me post on her blog without permission

4.She has a strong testimony of the gospel.

3.She has given birth to 6 kids. (this one could stand on its own, but even more, she is an excellent mother to ALL 6 of those cute little rascals:)

2. She models swimsuits

1.There is no one else in this world who could have married (and make happy) my very large, guitar playing, dairy lovin, manure smellin, fox news (sponge bob) watchin, thinkin he is so funny and sometimes is brother. Therefore becoming my favorite sister in law!

(THANKS!:)

I "virtually" picked those flowers just for you! I love ya! Hope you have a fantastic birthday!

Jeff's 2 month checkup

2008-04-07T11:56:00.001-07:00

We went to the doctor today and my sweet baby is now 13 lbs and 22.75 inches long! He is such a chub! He did well with his three shots, he only cried for a minute and then was smiling and cooing again. I love this boy!

Pre/Post Baby Chub and My Leaking Breasts

2008-04-06T17:45:00.000-07:00

After the twins were born, I was able to eat anything I wanted because I was nursing both of them. When I stopped nursing them, I didn't stop eating everything and consequently, gained a few pounds.
One day my neighbor came over. Here is how the conversation went:

Neighbor: "How do you feel about hand-me-downs?"
Me: "I love them."
Neighbor: "If, you are interested, I just cleaned out my closet and I have a bunch of clothes I don't fit into anymore, THANK GOODNESS, and I hope I never fit into them again...."

Now you might think that this is bad enough, but she kept on going....

Neighbor (cont.): "....some of them might work for you now and the rest of them you can use as motivation." (She actually winked her eye at me at this point.)
Me: You need to leave now, lady, so that me and my fat self can call everyone I know and laugh at how rude you are. (OK, I didn't really say this, but I was thinking it and should have said it.)

I guess her form of motivation worked because I worked really hard and lost 30+ pounds. As I was doing so, my other neighbor had another comment for me. He told me that I looked like a 28 year old swimsuit model. Thanks, man. This man is wonderful. A few years ago he had a brain tumor removed and is now somewhat disabled. He says what comes to his mind and you just love him for it, (and don't tell his wonderful wife, who would DIE if she knew!)

So, we went up to Washington last weekend to bless Jeff and we went over to see them. As the kids were in the backyard playing with his son, he told me..."Well, you don't look like a 28 year old swimsuit model anymore....and you're leaking." Dang it!

Ode to Sara

2008-03-16T20:20:00.001-07:00

What do you think of my new background? Isn't it wonderful? Now you might think, "Hey, this is Emily's Blog...How did something requiring skill get here?" Well friends, I owe this fantastic piece o' work to my wonderful sister-in-law Sara! She is so talented and fun! She also made a great birth announcement for our sweet baby Jeffrey which I am really grateful for, since he is now six weeks old! Thanks Sara! You amaze me!

Lets Go Fly a Kite!

2008-03-10T23:07:00.000-07:00

We had a pretty low key weekend, the highlight being the beautiful weather and that Ben was home. There was a gentle breeze just begging to be taken advantage of, so off we went to the park across the street to fly the new shark kite from Costco. The kids were all thrilled...for a while, and then the playground lured the little ones away.

Preparing for lift-off

The launch

Success! Isn't it a ferocious sight! We thought the birds might be a little nervous!

The inevitable not-so-soft landing.

I have to say that, as a novice kite flyer, I was rather impressed with Ben's kite flying skills! I must be aerodynamically challenged, because the instructions he was giving to the kids and I were new to me! But thanks to him, we were able to keep it up for quite a while!

Later that night we had popcorn as we watched Phinneus and Ferb and sent the kids to bed so Ben and I could have a "date". We put Jeff to bed and started watching "Becoming Jane" which I was kind of disappointed with. I don't know if it was the movie, or my snoring date, or the fact that my baby was sleeping and I wasn't. Even now, here I am at 11:45 pm and blogging instead of taking advantage a few precious minutes of sleep. When will I ever learn?

Well, thats our weekend in a nutshell. We love these kind of days where there is no pressure to do anything or be anywhere, but wish we had family and friends close by to enjoy them with. We miss you all!

I think its time for a digital camera

2008-03-03T10:24:00.000-08:00

With my dad being a photographer, we always had a camera available and have not really needed to upgrade the old 35 mm. We kept it on hand and used it when something was happening. Now that we have moved, we no longer have the luxury of the quick download option and have resorted to developing the film we have collected over the years. The last couple of weeks I have gone to Costco with a total of 19 rolls of film to develop. At 3.99 per roll plus an additional 2.99 for the CD, that makes a grand total of $132.62 plus tax. I think its time to get a digital camera. I could have almost bought one for that money. It was fun, however, to look at all the pictures and see how much my kids have grown. I've picked out a few favorites for your viewing pleasure.
Maya and Bella- 1 yr old. Aren't they sweet. This was taken at Grandma's house as we were transferring Walter from the backyard to the sheep pasture.
At our house there aren't enough corners to accomodate all the naughty kids in a way that I can monitor all the time outs. So, we strategically place stools around the family room so that no one can touch anyone else. This was a sleepy time for poor Bella who quickly fell asleep. I know that if they would just take naps, the need for most time outs would be eliminated.
Jessica's 11th B-day with her traditional angel food cake with Strawberry topping. No, Reese does not ride the short bus, you just never know when something might fall on your head.
Halloween 2006. Meet Superman, Snow Princess, Hermione Granger, and Thing 1 and Thing 2. How fun!
Fall 2007. Aspen (our funny little friend), Bella and Maya. My little exhibitionists.

Cabin Fever

2008-02-27T13:06:00.000-08:00

This is going to be one random blog, but I hope it won't be too boring. The kids and I really need to get out because we are all going a little stir crazy. We can only watch so much TV. Our poor little Jeff needs a nap so badly, but every time I lay him down the kids start/continue screaming, crying, playing the piano etc., so then he also has his hypocrite mom yelling at everyone to be quiet. Right now I am really glad that we live in California where it is nice and sunny and I can send the kids outside to play. With what? you might ask. Well, nothing but dirt and empty snail shells, but hey, they are outside and my sweet baby has been asleep for approximately 15 minutes.

My poor son. He has been the only boy for 5 1/2 years. Ben is out of town a lot, so Reese is left with all his male attributes (teasing, being gross etc.) in a house full of girls. Thank goodness we now have Jeff. Hopefully in a few years things will even out a bit. It seems Reese is sick of being forced to watch Barbie movies and playing house and is rebelling a bit. A common phase around our house these days is "Are you Two???!!!" This can be used in conjunction with a 5 year old coloring on the walls and the banister, poking the dog in the eye, and recently sneaking scissors upstairs for a midnight haircut (on himself thankfully). He has a funny little boy sense of humor. The twins asked what we were going to have for lunch the other day and before I could answer, he said "Fart Salad." He was drawing pictures of all the girls, me included, with big brown handlebar mustaches. But the other night, the poo hit the fan when we found a little nail sticking out of Anna's pillow. The little turd was trying to poke her! The night before we had found a tack, but thought it was a fluke. I think that he needs an outlet for his naughtiness, and have thought about Karate. What do you think?

Exhibit A Exhibit B

On Valentines Day for the past several years, my husband has been at the World Ag Expo. This year he brought me a special present. He is such a sweetheart and I love him dearly. We aren't big gift givers, we usually talk about what we need and decide to forego any formal gift giving and get something we both need or want. It is when he surprises me with gifts that it is really special. Before I post the picture, remember that he works with cows. I have long been compared to a cow, not in the fat sense (or we would be divorced), but usually in the pregnancy or nursing sense. It is a family joke, so I am OK with it. At Costco a few weeks ago, Anna was talking about how I would feed our baby with my udders. I said "Anna! I don't have udders!" She said that she was afraid it would be bad manners to call them breasts. So, when Ben brought these home for me, we all got a good chuckle. I have to say, these are one of my favorite valentine's day gifts ever.

My lovely cow tag earrings

This is another gift Ben brought home for me a couple years ago. His name is/was Walter. Ben thought we could keep him in our backyard for a while. Great--except we lived next to the mayor! Thank goodness for my mom and her sheep pasture. Walter lived to the ripe old age of 1 1/2 years old before he became a freezer full of delicious steaks.

This is my pretty new washer. It is the 3rd one we've had in 3 years. My old one was in great shape until my sweet Jessica was helping with laundry. She has learned a good (expensive) lesson--you shouldn't put four loads of laundry in. It was smoking and screaming, but now I have a nice new washer! Maybe I should let her use the dryer so I can have a matching set! She is a good helper and I appreciate her so, but she is not touching this washer!

Well folks, that is pretty much all we have going on here. You can wake up now.

I got tagged!!!

2008-02-20T10:38:00.000-08:00

I got tagged! Can you believe it? I don't know why I am so excited about this, maybe its because I don't get out much. Here goes---

What I was doing 10 years ago:

I only had one kid, we lived in Hooper, Utah in an old house we rented from the Stake. Weird, huh? We still slept in a full size bed and we had no dishwasher. I spent my days as a substitute teacher at Sandridge Jr. High in Roy, Utah, and spent my spare time making a lovely puff quilt for my bed.

5 things on my to do list today:

1. Take a shower and wash the sour milk smell off of me.
2. Write thank you notes.
3. Go to the store for diapers and milk.
4. Take a nap.
5. Bring in the trash cans.

Very exciting, I know.

Snacks I enjoy:

I don't have much of a sweet tooth, but I do really enjoy Grasshopper cookies and Stephen's Belgian Dark hot chocolate, but my FAVORITE snack is Cheese. I love artisan cheeses, so I am especially glad that my husband is in the dairy business. Some of my favorites include:
Dubliner Cheddar- it is so good and the salt crystals just add an extra something special. I also have a recipe for Dubliner Spread That they sell at Yokes in the good ol' Tri-Cities--So Yummy!
Fiscalini Bandage Wrapped Cheddar-literally one of the best in the world. Oprah is a big fan of it also. You know when you eat it that it is only made from the best milk from the healthiest cows milked in the cleanest parlors as they use DeLaval products:):) (That's my husband's company.)
Fresh Mozzarella cheese-I love it! It tastes a little bland at first, but then you figure out how to use it with fresh basil and tomatoes on crusty bread and in homemade lasagna and you think that you might die and go to heaven.
Rouge River Bleu-I never thought I would like Bleu cheese, but this one is fantastic! It is so creamy and delicious! There was an article about it in the Oct 2007 Country Living Magazine.
Seriously, go to a good cheese shop and sample everything. I am sure you won't be disappointed. Beechers has a cheeseshop at Pikes Place Market around the corner from the Inn at the Market. They also have a marvelous Flagship Cheddar Cheese.

What I would do if I became a millionaire:

I don't really know, besides pay off cars and houses etc. I would probably go on vacation, but I think that I would probably save/invest the rest. Isn't that boring? When I was younger I thought a million dollars was so much money, but now that I am older and live in California, I realize how fast it could go. Although I certainly wouldn't turn it down, it just doesn't excite me like I would think it would. How is that for Cynicism?!!

Three Bad Habits:

1. I stay up way too late.
2. I say a few bad words and play dumb when my kids say them:):).
3. I am a procrastinator.

5 places I have lived:

Only 5????? Most recently--

1. Turlock, CA
2. Kennewick, WA
3. Payson, UT
4. Nampa, ID
5. Crescent Valley, NV aka He_ _.

5 jobs I've had:

1. Odd jobs at Realife Photography
2. Phone girl at Pizza Hut
3. Media Lab at Ricks College
4. Day Care worker
5. I sold Salt City Candles

5 things people don't know about me:

1. I've never had a cavity.
2. Sliver removal is a passion of mine.
3. I can unwrap a starburst inside my mouth.
4. I won second place and $15 in a handwriting contest in High School. That darned Pheng Siharath won first place.
5. My feet don't get sweaty so sometimes I wear the same socks two days in a row. Don't tell.

OK. Now I tag Sara, Josie, Tsveti and Kari. Josie, now you will have to update your blog!

Our Visitors

2008-02-18T21:37:00.000-08:00

We have had a busy postpartum week. Ben had to go to the World Ag Expo and since I wasn't real comfortable taking care of a newborn and five kids a week after a C-section, my wonderful family stepped up and came and took care of everything! Meghan came first. I had such a wonderful time with her! I miss all of my brothers and sisters so much! It was so nice to visit with her and spend a delightful day watching 13 hours of Anne of Green Gables. It was nice to be able to take a nap and to have someone else make dinner for me! She was wonderful. Right after she left, my parents and a few more sisters and my niece came. It was also great. They all kept apologizing for not doing more to help, but I assured them that my poor kids have been so BORED with a grumpy invalid for a mother and being off track (AAAA!!!) that just being there to entertain them was a huge help. I am so grateful that they were here! It would be a lot easier if we still lived within 5 minutes of everyone!!!

My visitors--Grandpa, Grandma, Jeffrey, Gracie, Maddie, and Lauren.

Meghan and Jeffrey Grandma and Jeffrey

Bella and Maya have always been HUGE fans of Grandpa! They were so excited to see him and were so fun to watch and listen to as they played funny little 3 year old games with him. I think he enjoyed them, too. This is them at the aquarium in Monterey.
Kids in Monterey

Number Six!!!

2008-02-12T10:54:00.000-08:00

I have finally created my own blog. I have been a bit of a blog stalker in the recent past and thought that it was time for me to play fair and let the world read about us. We are very interesting.

Our big news is that we have a new baby!

Jeffrey Allen Kern

was born onFebruary 4 at 11:46 am. He was 7 lb. 10 oz and was 19 in long. He is our biggest baby, complete with chub on his fanny. This is a big deal, as many of our children have had none. He has a nice head of hair and is a champion nurser. He is an absolute angel!!!

This has been the first time that it has been easier to have the baby on the outside than it is on the inside. I think Heavenly Father makes the last few weeks so MISERABLE that you actually look forward to having the baby come out, whatever way that is. For us, it was c-section #5. I have found that each one has gotten progressively better and now, a week later I feel like a million bucks! This is me getting to "hold" Jeffrey for the first time. It was more like a quick squeeze, but I will take it!
Here they all are! Jessica, Anna, Reese, Maya (green jacket), Bella (pink jacket) and baby Jeff! Notice the tennis shoes with no socks--kids need moms at home.

And here is the love of my life! Ben is such a wonderful father who loves his family so very much. I love to see him with our children. He is so big and strong, yet so tender and kind. I am so happy that he is mine!