Carson's Birthday

It's hard to believe it has been 4 years since Carson was born.
His early birth was so scary.
He was so small and so sick, but he was quite the fighter.
We are so glad to be celebrating four years of his life.

We had lots of things happen to help celebrate his birthday.
Playschool was at our house and we had a
happy birthday/un-birthday party.
We played pin the nose on the clown and had a bean bag toss.
We decorated cookies and all the kids exchanged gifts.
Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures during playschool.

In the evening the Casady kids were over (it was our turn to baby-sit).
We repeated many of the activities--
9 kids and a birthday, why not make it a party.
Still didn't take pictures of everything,
but got some fun shots anyway.

Morgan tossing bean bags.

Trevor's turn.

Carson is really concentrating.
Carson really enjoyed opening his presents.

Hmmm!?!
Transformer Walkie-Talkies
Connor likes theses too!

Ooh! What's this?

A train conductor's outfit.

Mommy's little engineer.

Time for birthday wishes.

Let them eat CAKE! and ice cream, too.

YUMMY!!!
Carson, we are so glad you are a part of our family!
We would not be complete without your sparkling personality,
playful ways, joyful laugh, and cuddly hugs.
We love you so much!
Happy Birthday.

Ben & Ione Wells Visit

In August, my grandparents, Ben & Ione Wells, came from Spokane, WA for a visit. They were here in the high desert for a month. It was so good to see them and have time to spend with them. We had a couple of large family get-togethers. Becca organized a family BBQ for Aug. 22nd. To my delight my other grandparents, Joy & Harry Klein, and my cousin, Qiana, with her 2 kids, Mina & Dante, came from San Diego to party with us. We held it at the park and played soccer, water balloon fight, badminton, and horseshoes. We also got to meet Becca's boyfriend, Jaren. We think he is a great guy!
We had a great time visiting and playing. Unfortunately, I didn't take very many pictures of this event so I posted one of the 2 I took. I'll have to get more from Mom.

On Sept. 5th we met at my parents home for dinner and games. Mom made nachos and enchiladas. Yum! We had such a great time together and shared lots of laughs. That day I remembered to take pictures. Yay!

Qiana, Joy, Dante, Jean, Ione, Becca,
Jaren, Ben, Harry, & Mina at the park.

Ione & Ben
Something is funny!

Jaren & Becca

Dad & Mary rock out on Guitar Hero.

Grandpa is bowling on the Wii
while Grandma, Don, Morgan, Becca, & Jaren watch.

We took pictures family pictures with Grandma & Grandpa.

Grandma, Mary, and Noah being a little silly.

I love these last 2 pictures of my mom with her parents.

What a great time we had. I'm so glad that they could travel here so we could see them. Grandma & Grandpa, we sure do love you!! Thanks for the memories.

School and Soccer

School started on August 3rd and so did soccer. The kids all love their teachers and, for the most part, are enjoying school. Sierra started middle school this year. Whoa! Can it really be so! My little girl is growing up. She is attending the school where Don works and likes going to school with her dad. Her best friend, Emily, is in all of her classes which she is very happy about. She does not like that she has to get up earlier (5:50 am as opposed to 7 am). She is not a morning person -- just like Dad. She has a bit more homework than she did last year and a lot more than she would like. Overall, she has made the adjustment well and likes school. Caden is in the 3rd grade and loves school. He has a good teacher and is doing very well. He is a voracious reader often finishing his books in a week or less. Morgan is in the 1st grade and has the same teacher Caden had in first grade. She really likes her teacher and does well in school, even though she tells me every morning that she doesn't want to go to school.
Sierra and Caden are both playing soccer this season. We now spend 3 nights a week at soccer practice and about 3 hours or so at the soccer fields every Saturday to watch the games. It makes life a little crazier trying to fit everything in, but I really don't mind it. The kids are getting exercise and learning new skills. Its fun to watch as they master new skills and improve. The younger kids even like going to the fields during practices and games. They get a chance to be outside and run around. They even like to play soccer. I took the following video of the boys after a practice. Hope you enjoy it.

Boating with the Poulsen's

Our final summer activity was a day at Silverwood Lake with the Poulsen family. They took us out on their boat. Jen tried wake boarding, but wasn't very good at it. I actually got up about 3 times, but I couldn't stay up for more than 30 seconds. Maybe next time. However, Stacy was really good at it. We all had a lot of fun riding the raft while Heath tried to turn it over by going as fast as he could (safely of course). The younger kids didn't like it as much (even though Heath was pulling it as slow as he could), but I'm sure they will like it when they are a little older. Sierra had a blast and we had fun watching her. A few times the raft caught air and was hovering a couple of feet above the water. She was flying! Twice the raft turned on it's side a whole 90 degrees in the air (yes, while it was flying) and then righted itself. And there was Sierra still hangin' on. What a dare devil! :D Unfortunately, Stacy and I both forgot our cameras so we have no pictures of this very fun day. :( I guess we'll have to go again so that we can take pictures. Many thanks to the Poulsen family for a wonderful day.

Big Bear

After our camping trip to Bishop we came home to wash clothes, attend church, and leave again for another camping experience. This time we camped with friends in Big Bear which is only an hour's drive into the mountains from home. This trip wasn't as stressful as the first for several reasons: the drive wasn't as long, we were only a couple of miles from town (if we forgot something it wasn't a big deal), and we were only gone for 4 days instead of 6. With us were the Casady, Riding, Eyanson, and Malstrom families. We had a lot of fun playing games and just getting to know each other better. Before heading up to Big Bear, Don and I put together our own version of the Amazing Race. Tuesday afternoon we organized everyone into teams, gave them their first clue and then took off to our posts. It was so fun to watch everyone come through the check points to receive their clues. Don and I were both laughing so hard. Each team was so competetive -- especially the Casady car. Never saw Dan drive so fast! :) It was so much fun to watch them. The girls were very giggly and loud--something we don't always see. I think everyone had a good time. I know we did. So here are some pictures of some of the other activities we did. We really enjoyed this trip with our friends.

FOOD!

CAMPFIRES!

TREE CLIMBING!

CANOEING!

SWIMMING!

PAINTBALLING!

FRIENDS!

And Fun!
That's what it's all about!
Thanks everyone for the
Great Times and Great Memories!

For Miriam

This past week we got in touch with Miriam who lives in Germany. We have been communicating with her through the internet and have become quite good friends with her. This past Thursday
we took a day trip to Calico Ghost Town. While we were there we made this video for Miriam. As she had trouble viewing it through her email, we are posting it on our blog in hopes she can view it. So here's to you Miriam, our new friend!

Sierra's Birthday

While we were camping in Bishop we celebrated Sierra's 11th BIRTHDAY. Wow! Can she be that old already? Where has the time gone. Sierra is such a delightful girl and we are so HAPPY that she is a part of our family. She is so helpful, funny, and compassionate. We love our Sierra so much. Thanks, for being so wonderful, girl.

For her birthday we fished, hiked, played games, and all the usual camping stuff. Her birthday dinner consisted of steak, potatoes, corn on the cob, with peach dump cake and ice cream for dessert. What a feast! When it was time for her to open her presents, she didn't seem all that excited. Caden and Morgan received and Daddy, Mommy, child date which included a meal out and their choice of activity. Sierra was figuring that she would get the same thing and had been planning it for months. Boy, was she surprised when she opened her gift and found two tickets for the play Wicked! Yes, she got a trip with her mom to see the play she'd been wanting to see for a year or more. She was so surprised and happy. We got lots of hugs and thank yous that day. Check out her smiles!


Our tickets were for Saturday, August 15th. I explained a little theater history and how people used to dress up to go to the theater, but now a lot of people wear casual clothes. I asked her to pick what kind of clothes she wanted to wear. To my delight she wanted to dress up. So we woke early, showered, dressed, curled hair, etc. We left the house about 10:00 AM and headed to San Diego to see the play. The traffic was good and we made great time, arriving 1 1/2 hours early. If you know me that was no small feat. We ate lunch and then walked around outside until it was time to go inside. Our seats were in the center nosebleed section but it was still FABULOUS! Sierra had the soundtrack for a year and was familiar with all the music (I could hear her singing softly beside me during parts of the play). We took binoculars so we could see the costumes and facial expressions up close. It was great! We thoroughly enjoyed the play. Can't say enough about it. Sierra said it was one of the best gifts she's ever had. She kept hugging me and telling me how much she loved me. When we left the theater we stopped in Rancho Bernardo for dinner at Denny's and then headed home (after having air put in a very low tire). We made good time coming home, but I was stressed out most of the way as I was worried about getting a flat tire (we had a nail in one of the tires!) Fortunately, the leak was a really slow one and we made it home just fine. I am grateful for the power of prayer and my Heavenly Father's help. Could have done without the stress though, sure would have enjoyed the drive more. All in all it was a FANTASTIC trip. The best part for me was spending the day hanging out with my daughter and sharing something (the theater) that I love so much with her. Having a daughter this age is a wonderful thing. I am so grateful we can share moments like this together. I look forward to such days with all my children. Being a mom is Awesome!