Our FOUR Sons

McCoy-Joy is 4!

2012-02-07T13:33:00.001-08:00

McCoy is our adventurous jokester. He loves to take things apart or run many scientific tests to see at which point it will break, spill or come crashing down. He is full of energy and this can be both good energy running around like crazy or the energy it takes to throw an amazing tantrum. Nonetheless, he can always make me laugh and smile. He is very intelligent and has great timing in his one-liner jokes. And he loves to say "I love you mom" out of the blue and HAS to be touching as we drift off to sleep for nap time. He turned 4 on January 31!

For his actual birthday, we went to Boondocks with Azure and played some mini-bowling, played on the playground and rode the mini-carousel and had fun winning tickets. Since we went during school, there was no one playing laser tag, so he got to play against one of the workers. He LOVED it.

That night we had cupcakes and he opened presents from family.

It's was McCoy's turn this year to have a friend birthday party. After some deciding, he finally settled on a carnival theme! Perfect for 4 year olds!!!

Chad and I made a roller coaster cake - per request from McCoy.

Here's the party crew - one was a bit late, so he didn't get in this shot.

We had setup about 6 carnival type games for them to play: bucket toss, ring toss, tower knockdown, ball pit, pin drop, and the squirt gallery where they used a squirt gun to knock down rubber duckies. They got prizes after each game and collected them in plastic popcorn buckets. Chad's siblings attending BYU were here to help run some games and it was so nice!!

While cake eating, each person had a chance to get their face painted. Chad had some energetic 4 year olds as his canvas, but he did well. :-) The kids were so serious when I took their pictures.

Happy Birthday to McCoy! May you never stop exploring and discovering!!

Strummin' Azure turned Two!

2012-01-27T20:57:00.000-08:00

Azure, our baby turned 2 on the 25th!!! Wow, it has really flown by with him! He is our LITTLE baby still only weighing in at 21 pounds, but is talking up a storm and catching us by surprise with his feistiness.

We struggled on what to do for his cake as he is obsessed with wearing Elmo pajamas nearly every night and reading Elmo books. He also spends every second with his almost 4 year old brother who demands we listen to The Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack when we get into the van. Thus, there have been some fights over who gets to sleep with the stuffed Jack Skellington at night. Weird, but true.

However, even given these loves of "Elmo" and Jack, whom he calls "La," he is above and beyond addicted to his dad's guitar, his dad's two ukeleles, Boston's play guitar, and his own ukelele which we bought in Hawaii for him. And I'm gonna brag - he's plays better than I do!!

A MUST watch video of his ukelele skills - the beginning shows some of that feistiness too!

Here's the link if this isn't playing:

http://www.blogger.com/video-play.mp4?contentId=6283075299c30a68&type=video/mp4

So we celebrated his 2nd birthday with a ukelele cake!

We had the local cousins over to help us eat it and help him celebrate his big day.

He also got showered with some amazing Elmo gifts, which he LOVED.

And here he is with his first electric guitar. (And a new Elmo shirt!)

Happy 2nd birthday to our snuggly, funny, loving, little Azure!

Car Crazy Kayden is 9!

2012-01-17T19:31:00.000-08:00

Kayden turned 9!! It's so crazy how time is flying by and our little train-toting toddler has turned into a responsible boy who still loves to delve into his favorite subjects with every fiber he has. He has taught our family all about trains, oceans, dinosaurs, dragons and now we are learning about cars.

Lucky us, the Utah Auto Expo came to town on his birthday exactly. We found discount tickets and didn't tell him what we were doing until we walked up to the door. On the way there, a commercial was advertising the show and he got all excited, but we just flipped it off and told him we'd look it up on the internet when we got home. Needless to say, he was an excited 9 year old!!

Jeep course that Chad, Kayden and Boston rode on.

They had ride on Jeeps for the little ones. Lucky Boston fit in both categories.

After getting home and resting up, we had the cousins over for cake and ice cream and presents.

Chad and I created a Lamborghini cake for him the night before the big day. I did all the baking of cake and frosting and fondant. Chad shaped the car and did the main fondant decorating and I helped with details. It was a fun 3 hour date night after the kids were in bed.

Holiday Season 2011

2012-01-12T14:03:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful holiday season, as apparent to my non-blogging. Here's a quick recap...

THANKSGIVING

Thanksgiving was spent in Oregon (thanks to some very helpful family members) and was a wonderful vacation. We were able to eat tons of yummy food, go shopping and even spend a day swimming. No snow made for perfect travel as well.

PRE-CHRISTMAS EXCITEMENT

We came back ready to begin our Christmas season with our local light parade that sadly lasted all of 5 minutes. One positive thing - we were able to take home still warm children.

We also made it to the festival of trees this year. Chad and a group from work played their ukeleles at the festival. The picture below is when the boys were helping them sing Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.

McCoy's (and Azure's now because he spends all day with McCoy) favorite people were at the festival of trees - Sally and Jack Skellington.

Even without snow, Christmas was constantly on all of our minds. Boston made a Lego scene, we took all of them to visit Santa, and Kayden sang a solo in the 3rd grade Christmas program.

Kayden is bottom left. Before the show, he said they had to wear toilet seat covers, but Chad showed him a picture of what old time carolers wore and then it seemed doable.

COUSIN FUN

Two days before Christmas, we were able to play and exchange gifts with the local cousins. An ideal thing for this bunch (especially my kids) would be an indoor trampoline room, but we managed to have them all gather for a short time for present exchanging and a picture. They are all close friends.

In order of age and size (for now). Kayden, Carson, Elijah, Boston, McCoy, Clarissa, Azure.

CHRISTMAS EVE

Christmas Eve day we took the kids swimming for almost 4 hours. This needs to be a tradition, as no kid (or adult!) had trouble going to sleep that night. In the evening we did the nativity, gave them new pjs and an ornament and read a story before tucking them into bed.

Kayden - the wisest wiseman

The first year I didn't have the be Mary! McCoy ASKED to be Mary and did a fabulous job!

I think this photo was the only time that Azure was actually laying still to be baby Jesus. Boston was Joseph.

Kayden: Dragon pjs and Hawaii ornament. Boston: Mario pjs and Angry Bird ornament. McCoy: monster pjs and Jack Skellington ornament. Azure: Elmo pjs and Elmo ornament.

Chad reading The Littlest Angel

CHRISTMAS DAY

Christmas morning was magical as always with little ones. They woke up and saw that Santa came. We opened their Santa gifts and played with them for a little while before eating some cinnamon rolls and attending church. The minute we got home from church, we changed back into pjs and opened presents and played the whole day! It was perfect!

Happy Halloween 2011

2011-11-07T09:43:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin patches, playing in the leaves, carving pumpkins, dressing up and getting lots of candy. That pretty much sums up our kids' vision of Halloween time.

Getting ready to pick out our pumpkins

Hay bale maze where we all played tag

Giant pumpkins at the pumpkin patch

Azure LOVED the inside of the pumpkins and helped everyone empty and refill them the whole time. McCoy on the other hand would not even touch the inside, thanks to an Annoying Orange video of carving pumpkins.

Beth: flower, Chad: manta ray, Boston: Bowser from Mario Bros, Kayden: humuhumunukunukuapu'a'a, McCoy: Oogie Boogie, Azure: Elmo

Playing in the leaves with our friends, the Lewis family

Trick or Treating at a house turned into the Haunted Bridge

The CANDY

McCoy was Woody the Saturday before Halloween when we went to a few events and then he wanted to be a skeleton for trick or treating.

It was a perfect Halloween and Azure is still calling anything scary "the RAR".

Hawaii - need I say more?

2011-11-06T18:34:00.000-08:00

We were lucky enough to spend a week in Hawaii in October with our oldest son, Kayden and Beth's parents. Chad's parents came to Utah to spend the week with the 3 youngest boys and Aunt Cara came from Arizona to help out as well. It was a fun week for all! Here are some of our highlights from the big island of Hawaii!

SNORKEL and BEACH

As soon as we set foot in Hawaii, Kayden was asking when he could go swimming. Our first stop was to get snorkel gear and then we headed to our hotel and the lagoon there for his first try at ocean snorkeling (he'd been practicing in the swimming pool all summer). This is the view from our room where Chad and Dad were reading and sleeping and Kayden was snorkeling.

He was a champ from the beginning and we all couldn't stay out of the water from that point on. We swam with MANY turtles and beautiful fish.

The best snorkeling in our opinion (although it was really good all along Kona area) was near the Place of Refuge, called Two Step. Below is the from the Place of Refuge and then Kayden swimming with his first of many turtles.

MANTA RAY

We wanted to take one chartered boat trip and we let Kayden choose from a few different trips. He chose to snorkel at night in this bay where giant manta ray gather to eat plankton. This was a trip I will never forget!! They came belly to belly with us and were so graceful. The picture below is the ray going to belly to belly with Kayden and Chad is on the left and my mom on the right.

Because it is the newest island (thus the live volcano), there are so many types of beaches: green sand, black sand, mixed black and white, white, etc. Here's Chad at the black sand beach.

LUAU

We went to our resort's luau one night and all loved the dancing show and the food. Here's Kayden when they took out the pig.

TEMPLE

We were able to go to church on Sunday at a ward that met right next to the Kona temple. Then on Tuesday, Chad and I did a session at the temple in the morning and had breakfast together.

VOLCANO

We spent a day at the volcano. We were able to go to the lava tube and then hike across a flat bed of lava from the 50's for 4 miles. We saw the crater active with gas all day and then stayed until it was dark, so we could see the glow of the crater at night. Remarkable place!!!

HILO SIDE

We went to the Hilo side of the island for a day where there are lush rain forests and gorgeous cliffs and waterfalls.

KAYAK

On Friday, we rented a kayak and Chad, Kayden and I took it to Captain Cook Monument and snorkeled there. It was so fun to be out in the ocean and is so peaceful and clear there to snorkel.

This is a picture of the sign at the place where we rented kayaks. The nicest man owns the property and rents out kayaks, but some crazies try to come and take his business. The sign was a fun joke on the trip.

GOODBYE

We went to numerous beaches, wandered around Kona quite a bit, drove everywhere on the island, but gave you just a snapshot of our adventures. We also slept wonderfully and the weather was PERFECT!!

This is Chad and Kayden saying goodbye to Hawaii (for now anyway) and boarding our plane home from Kona. Amazing vacation!!

Layton Marathon 2011

2011-10-11T10:37:00.000-07:00

Chad ran the Layton Marathon on October 8th with 3 of his siblings: Brendon, Breanna and Amberlyn.

Brendon finished first of the 4 of them and 10 minutes after him came Chad. Breanna finished next and then Amberyln. Even though he didn't have an official number, Amberlyn's husband Nathan was with her for the last 7+ miles.

The boys and I traveled around to each running, cheering them on and getting to see each of them a few times along the route and then at the finish. It was a proud moment for them!!

Just being kids

2011-10-05T20:18:00.001-07:00

Kayden is on the swim team now and practices are 2 hours long. There have been a few times where we have just decided to spend that time playing at the park near the pool. Life isn't all about the big events and trips and since that's what I've been blogging about most of the time, here are some fun moments at the park.

the 3 youngest

my cute Boston

Azure - love it!!

McCoy at an art/sculpture area downtown when visiting daddy for lunch

Kayden during practices at his first meet. I did not get good pictures of the actual competitions, but he really enjoyed himself and loves swimming.

State Fair Yee Haw

2011-10-05T19:59:00.000-07:00

We made our annual trip to the fair. We worked out deals and prizes this year to where we all were able to get in free and only had to pay for 1 of the 4 wristbands. Tradition of course is also going to the all-you-can-eat ice cream for only $3 a person! The kids may be throwing up after (not this year thankfully), but we sure did have a kickin' time!

Dreaming of actually growing pumpkins, let alone big ones

Is Kayden really this big? He still enjoys himself!

Azure and McCoy riding the tractors

Boston caught a fish! (this is a favorite every year)

All-you-can-eat ice cream and toppings and ice cream bars

One of the many rides we ventured to. This one they all did together.

Labor Day Wedding

2011-10-05T19:26:00.000-07:00

Amberlyn and Nathan Kleinman

Our Labor Day weekend was spent in Arizona for the wedding of Chad's sister, Amberlyn. It was a fun time playing with cousins and chatting with family. Overall, we had a good visit, except for the Salmonella caught by Beth about midway through the trip. Otherwise, there was fun to be had and celebrating to be done.

Playing in the river with the cousins. We arrived a day earlier than everyone else, so the boys would have time to play before they had to wear church clothes 2 days in a row.

Boston and his ninja moves/gang signs

Azure enjoying the mud

Sterling, Colton, Ryland, and Kayden

Our family at the reception.

First Day of School 2011-2012

2011-08-24T20:47:00.000-07:00

We have a 3rd and 1st grader. The first day of school brought complete excitement from both. Kayden's teacher took a bit getting used to, but after only 3 days, he feels positive about her now and loves her organization. Boston thinks just everything is awesome about school and everyone is his friend.

It was a sad day for me to say good-bye to them after a fun summer of long car trips, days swimming together, adventures and just passing the time together. I cried when they weren't looking and then focused my attention on the other two at home.

In the afternoon, Azure was sleeping and McCoy and I were enjoying popsicles on the porch. He said to me, "How many miles until Boston and Kayden come home?" We all missed them.

Swim Lessons to End the Summer

2011-08-24T20:37:00.000-07:00

The last two weeks before school, we took official swim lessons. They still went swimming in our pool almost every afternoon or evening, but it was nice to get lessons in and work on strokes.

McCoy

He was in the preschool group with his cousin Clarissa. They had a blast singing songs, finding coins and just being in the water. He kept asking when they were going swimming. He is the one racing along in the middle.

Boston

This year he worked on perfecting his floats and front crawl. His highlight was jumping off the diving board.

Kayden

We walked away from swim lessons this year with information on joining the swim team (Kayden's request from the front desk). It looks like we'll be trying it out in September. He has always LOVED swimming.

Boston's 6th Birthday

2011-08-24T20:15:00.000-07:00

Boston turned 6 on August 12. Before breakfast, he got a call from his Grandparents in Oregon and they told him to open his present. He was ecstatic to find Super Mario Galaxy 2 and since we had just bought him the shirt, that was his attire for the day. The game was his enjoyment for the morning (and has been nearly every day since).

We had his friend party on his birthday and then went out to dinner at Boston's Gourmet Pizza and then camped in the backyard as a family. He was happy all day long.

He couldn't decide on a set theme for a long time, so we came up with this one together:

For the party, we played yard games based on the 3 video games from the invitation: Angry Birds (built a cup towers and then used sling shots to knock them over), Plant vs Zombies (Shot cardboard zombie with water cannon until it fell over), and Super Mario (obstacle course).

Between those we swam and jumped and swam, swam, swam. Thanks to my sister and one of my friends, there was always a lifeguard on duty.

The cake was a round swimming pool with the characters floating in rings.

Here we are camping at night. We were looking at a star chart and trying to spot the constellations.

Happy Birthday to our big smile, outgoing, video-game loving, ninja/boxing Boston! I can't believe he's starting First Grade!!! It's been a wonderful 6 years!!

Summer is Funner!

2011-08-18T12:10:00.000-07:00

It's been too long since I've posted, but we have been busy having fun this summer! This is kind of a long post, but is a great journal for our adventures.

SAN FRANCISCO

A week after school, we met up with Chad's family for a reunion in San Francisco. Tons of activities, great food and lots of games and chatting.

McCoy, Kayden, Boston, and their cousin, Colton

Our family in our reunion t-shirts

SACRAMENTO & SANTA MONICA

The next week, Chad headed back to Utah for work and the 3 oldest boys stayed with their Grandparents in Sacramento for the annual Gma & Gpa Camp. This year the them was Knights and Princesses.

While they had a blast, Azure and I headed to LA to visit my sister and her husband for the week. We went to the beach, slept, ate wonderfully and relaxed. Azure had all my attention here.

Azure swinging near Santa Monica pier

OREGON - vacation

From Sacramento, the boys and I drove to Oregon to visit my parents. We had such a good week here. We visited family, Kayden went fishing twice, the boys helped Grandpa in his shed, we caught creatures, went in the hot tub every night, celebrated the 4th, went to Kah-nee-tah, played at Gma's work, took Shani's senior pics, giggled and chatted a lot, etc.

Azure enjoying his size pool!

Grandma Candland holding McCoy during fireworks

At Kah-nee-tah

Kayden and Boston with Grandpa Candland

We were planning on driving back on Saturday, but learned that it was July 9th, the 2nd anniversary of my grandfather's passing. We decided to stick around 1 more day and go with my grandmother and my mom and my kids to the cemetery and then spend the rest of the day with my grandma, including watching some videos of grandpa. It was a good day and then we drove home on Sunday.

My Grandma Pat Snow at her husband's grave, with her daughter (my mom) Sandi and Azure

HOME FOR A WEEK

We were home for 5 days - filled with swimming in our pool, a trip to the zoo and of course finally getting to see Chad - when we got the call that my grandma had passed away from a major heart attack. My mom and her sister run a dry cleaners and we knew they would need help with that and with preparations, so my sister and I packed our 7 kids total in our vans and headed to Oregon.

At Zoorassic Park at the Hogle Zoo

OREGON - funeral

The week was hectic, but we were glad to be there. The funeral was beautiful. Everyone loved my grandma. She had the most welcoming personality and always wanted everyone to feel comfortable, at home and well fed. She was the funnest and nicest grandma ever and I loved just visiting on the phone with her about my own kids. She will be missed!

Her son-in-law, grandsons, and grandsons-in-law were pallbearers. Everyone was family when they joined her family.

Kayden waiting to put his rose on the casket. Azure slept through it all.

My mom (left side) with all of her siblings

2005 babies from the Candland family

2003 babies from the Candland family

SUMMER AT HOME

The rest of the summer has been spent at home. Time has flown by (the kids start school on Monday), because we were gone most of the summer. Almost every day, the kids have been in the pool, either just them or with friends and cousins. We've also ventured to Lagoon, Ogden Nature Center, swim lessons, parks, etc.

Our pool

Working Outside

2011-05-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

The weather is finally warming up and we were outside this morning fixing a few things in the yard. The boys were actually quite willing to help.

Valentine's Day

2011-03-16T08:27:00.001-07:00

We HEART you!! (this is our funny squishy Azure)

Valentine's Day was celebrated at home with our children and was truly wonderful. We had a special dinner that we used our China and 'clink' glasses for and made cookies for them. The weekend before, Chad and I went out on a fun date to the Ogden Nature Center where we played a game of Jeopardy with other couples about the mating habits of animals. We won - thanks to Kayden's documentary-loving.

The flowers and cookies and setup for Valentine's Day

Playing a game of pin the heart on the target!

Not on Valentine's Day, but a funny random picture of the boys in their homemade Iron Man Masks. We kept these around the house for quite a while.

Kayden's Baptism

2011-03-16T08:05:00.001-07:00

On February 5, Kayden became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He chose to be baptized and was so willing to learn all that he needed to know and was truly ready for the baptism. When he was coming out of the water, he truly glowed and immediately gave his father a huge smile and a big hug.

Kayden in his baptism clothes

Chad was able to baptize Kayden

Kayden and his daddy listening to Grandpa Candland give a talk on receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Our family after the baptism. It's amazing how fast the kids are growing up!!

We had quite a few family a friends come to the baptism. Shaun (Chad's brother) and his wifeCat, Chad's sister Breanna, Beth's sister Christina and her family, Beth's parents, Beth's aunt and uncle, and family friend's, the Lewis'. Other's that couldn't make it, sent letters or wrote notes to Kayden. Here is a picture of Kayden with his grandparents.

Our 8 year old is also a Cub Scout and this was when he was receiving his Bobcat badge. He LOVES scouts!!

This is Halloween ... or McCoy's 3rd Birthday

2011-03-01T08:15:00.000-08:00

Our little McCoy has embraced toddlerhood! He discovers, explores, takes apart, laughs, and enjoys every second that he is awake. His timing of jokes and using movie quotes is phenomenal and every guest that we have had recently has received their own personal McCoy show that usually includes the singing of numerous Nightmare Before Christmas songs - nearly every word correct. We love our CoyCoy!!

McCoy wanted a "Jack the Pumpkin King" party for his 3rd birthday. We have chosen to follow other family members and only have friend birthday parties on even birthdays, so this year was a family party.

We did invite the cousins over for the afternoon and evening though and played some fun Halloween games. With the movie soundtrack playing in the background, Jack (aka McCoy) helped wrapped everyone up like mummies with toilet paper and then I wrapped him up. Then we had put some random objects with different textures into a bag and had them stick their hand into the "unknown realm" and guess what they were feeling. Then, we of course watched The Nightmare Before Christmas with some popcorn.

That evening, they stayed for pizza, presents and cake.

Chad made a Jack cake for McCoy and they both were very happy with the results. Not too many dads would attempt this, but it is always impressive what he creates - cake or other media.

McCoy truly brings joy and happiness and laughter to our home, but there have been many a time where we questioned that maybe he was sent from Halloweentown.

He was happy with ALL the presents he got. Thank you everyone!

Our now regularly read book. This book is the original poem that Tim Burton wrote and illustrated and that the movie was based on. It is wonderful!!

His new friend to snuggle with at night.

Trains, trains, and boys

2011-03-01T08:07:00.000-08:00

During a couple weeks in January, Chad volunteered at the Sundance Film Festival. He loved every minute of it and we missed him a lot, but loved that he was able to be involved a little with movies. He missed us a lot as well and made the time that he was home precious.

On one of the Saturdays that he was gone, I took the boys to Union Station in Ogden where they have a great train museum, along with two other wonderful museums with guns and cars. Here are some fun picks from our train adventures.

Azure's 1st Birthday

2011-03-01T07:57:00.000-08:00

January 25th was the first birthday of our cute little Azure. He has made our year so wonderful with his peaceful demeanor and his ever increasing desire to learn and explore. We love how he has embraced being a baby. Since we brought him home, he has loved being snuggled, loved to watch his brothers run crazy around him, and just seems to really enjoy being alive. He is quick to give out smiles and to giggle. He truly has been a blessing to our family. His small frame and his taking his time to crawl and stand has really enabled us to enjoy his just being out little baby!

Ready for his party

He loved the balloon we gave him and played with it all night and for days to follow.

The cake we made him. He devoured the block.

Opening presents. His brothers of course eventually helped him.

Starting to eat his cake.

Done! At least with the best parts!

Kayden turned the big 8!

2011-01-25T14:04:00.000-08:00

FAMILY CELEBRATION

Kayden turned 8 and he believes it is now his lucky number, as with it comes a new set of scriptures, he has chosen to be baptized and he is now in Cub Scouts!

Here is our family celebration and gifts on his birthday.

I made chocolate covered cake balls, which he was so surprised and excited about.

Kayden with a new journal and new scriptures.

Playing his new Nintendo DS. Boston is just as fascinated to watch video games as to play them, so of course he is right there.

New fly fishing items.

Just happy to be his birthday.

Here's our new Cub Scout.

FRIEND PARTY

The next week, we had a science-themed friend party. We did about 3 experiments, had them make some cool flying things to take home, had a volcano cake with dry-ice and then took the snake out for his friends to view and hold if they desired (with adult supervision of course).

Here they are doing a bubbling-over experiment with vinegar, dish soap, food coloring and then baking soda.

The kids with their 'zippy zoomers'.

The volcano cake.

The inside of the volcano cake.

SNAKE

We didn't get any pictures of the party-goers holding the snake, but here are some of the boys holding on the next day.

The was Azure's first time and he did not mind it at all.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-13T20:38:00.000-08:00

Cheers to 2011!!

Christmas Fun

2011-01-13T20:22:00.000-08:00

We spent Christmas at home with just our little family and had such a relaxing and perfect holiday. We dressed up for the nativity story and acted it out. Baby Jesus (aka Azure) was trying to escape the whole time, but happily enjoyed all the attention. Boston was an angel, McCoy a shepherd and Kayden a wiseman. Chad and I were Joseph and Mary.

On Christmas Eve, we give the kids ornaments to sum up their years. Kayden gets stuck in things he loves and has multiple trains, dinosaurs/dragons, and fishing ornaments. He still loves 2 of those things, but we decided to branch out a bit and do robots to go with his Halloween costume and that he loves building/creating things. Boston got school things, as he started kindergarten. McCoy loves Buzz Lightyear and Azure got the first year baby ornament. Chad and I share one, so we picked the Grinch as he was that in the Seussical this year.

Here's the boys pajamas for Christmas. For those that know McCoy well, we stumbled across some that were PERFECT!! ("Dear Santa, DEFINE GOOD")

And finally, Santa brought our family a Wii. One would think that having one would get the kids excitement to eventually die down over playing it - especially when we go to visit friends. Well, it's still January, but the excitement has NOT died down. Even with time limits in place, Boston would prefer every conversation to be game-centered.

California Trip - October 2010

2010-12-10T08:37:00.000-08:00

Enjoy our video slideshow of our adventures in California in October 2010. We saw friends and visited old stomping grounds, then met up with Beth's family to visit her sister Leah and her new husband and then play at Legoland and Disneyland and the beach.

Happy Halloween

2010-10-31T23:16:00.001-07:00

Our front door

Pumpkins. Kayden: scary face, Azure: funny face (carved by Kayden), Boston: white ghost, Beth: Goofy, Chad: Vinylmation Mickey, McCoy: Buzz Lightyear

Excited Azure Dinosaur

Boston a.k.a. Spiderman, showing off his web face

Kayden: homemade robot costume, Boston: Spiderman, McCoy: Buzz Lightyear

Art Projects

2010-09-23T19:42:00.000-07:00

The PTA has an art contest every year and it gives the kids the opportunity to really think about creating something. Here's our submissions for this year. The theme is "Together We Can". They both had a lot of fun and really put a lot of time and effort into them. It's so nice to have my dining table back!!!!!

Together We Can Celebrate

by Boston

Together We Can Live and Play

by Kayden

Together We Can Discover

by Kayden

Labor Day Hike

2010-09-15T12:56:00.000-07:00

My parents came to visit from Oregon for Labor Day weekend. Amidst the throwing up of our family, my sisters family and my mom, we did get to see and do a lot. On Friday, we all rode our bikes on a path to a pond and had a picnic dinner. Kayden complained for about 20 minutes because he had a crash on his bike a couple months earlier and didn't want to try again. After Chad's patience and my impatience, he finally took off and now loves bike riding - until the next crash.

On Saturday, the flu bug started hitting and a few of us went to Mirror Lake and surrounding areas. It was so crowded there and we attempted fishing, but with the wind and the amount of people, we soon packed up to go find a less crowded location. We finally found a lake that you had to hike up to. It was about a 2 mile hike completely up hill. About 1/3 of the way up, the flu bug hit my mom and another of my sister's boys so they headed back to wait out the horrid 24 hour illness over the porcelain throne and the Hutchings clan headed the rest of the way up.

When it comes to hiking, my boys do not complain. I already explained the biking whine, but with hiking, these boys push and push to make it to our destination and love every bit of it. Kayden looks for creatures and critters, Boston always has a stick in hand and is on a lookout for an even better one and McCoy just enjoys being part of the boys. He was packed on Chad's back the whole way up, but walked every step coming down with bruises to prove it. When he would fall, he would say "I died" and get back up and go again.

Taking pictures of a waterfall.

Kayden explorer.

Our destination. It was beautiful.

Our family - we were the only ones at the lake, so a tree held the camera for us.

Azure and Mommy sporting our shades.

Lava Hot Springs

2010-09-15T12:43:00.000-07:00

One week after school started, we took our last summer vacation and went camping at Lava Hot Springs in Idaho. We had it planned for a couple months, but when it arrived, the forecast for the whole weekend was rain. Well, it down-poured there, but because of that, the boys will definitely remember the trip and are already asking to go again in the winter.

Cool/rainy weather seems like a perfect time to go there. The water ranges from 102 degrees to 112 degrees and feels amazing when it's raining outside. The pool with waterslides is heated as well, so it was much warmer to be in the 90 degree pool than out of it in the wind.

At the entrance to the hot pools at 8:30 in the morning. It is the perfect time to beat crowds and well, we were up so why not!

Enjoying one of the hot pools. Your body really only allows you to stay in for a short time.

Azure taking his afternoon nap after a morning of swimming.

Chad with the 3 oldest in the pool. The thunder clouds are rolling in the background. We had to leave shortly after this because of lightning and then we hung out under a pavilion while it drenched the city and then headed to the hot pools to enjoy their warmth in the drizzling rain.

Back to School

2010-09-15T12:22:00.000-07:00

Kayden started 2nd grade and Boston started Kindergarten this year! Chad went into work a little later that day, so we could tag team to drop them off in their classrooms. McCoy had to be in the back to school picture and to be honest, I think he was just as excited because it means that he's the oldest at home now and can make up most of the rules.

It's only been 3 weeks, but it's been a good year so far and they are both still excited about school and happy to learn.

In the front yard before heading up the street to school.

Azure along for the ride and of course enjoying every minute.

He is always enjoying life with a huge smile.

Kayden opted for a shoulder bag this year as it was 'more cool' and Boston chose Star Wars Clone Wars for his first backpack.

Boston on his first day in his classroom.

Kayden at his new desk.

It was my last week of cake decorating class, so I chose to make them a cake.

Boston is 5!

2010-08-16T15:30:00.000-07:00

Boston celebrated his 5th birthday. He had so much fun and just kept saying, "I can't believe I'm the birthday boy!" Chad's parents were in town to drop off their youngest at college, so he felt pretty special.

He and Kayden worked to put together the new Hero Factory toy that Boston got. He also got the Star Wars apron that he's wearing and wore it the entire night at Boondocks.

We went to Boondocks (family fun center) that night. Here he is riding with Kayden in a boat and Gpa Hutchings is shooting them with water.

Boston with his Aunt Breanna riding the go carts.

He requested a Lego Bionicle cake and I got to make it at the cake decorating class that I've been taking with my sister just for fun.

Pool Time

2010-08-16T15:20:00.000-07:00

For the past month, we've been spending nearly every day in the new addition to our backyard - our pool. It is a 4 feet deep, 18 feet wide pool that was 50% off and being that I was overwhelmed by the size of my garden, we decided to make the growing place half as big. Here are a few shots.

And just for fun, here are a couple of our 6 month old, Azure. He is the most content baby. He smiles at everyone and truly makes raising the other 3 crazies doable, as he is my cheerful medicine.

Summer Sun

2010-07-13T22:47:00.000-07:00

It's summer now. It's been so long since we've blogged and there is no way I could catch up. Here's a very quick recap:

---Kayden completed 1st grade
---We went to Sacramento for the kids to attend the annual Grandma & Grandpa Hutchings camp
---Chad was the Grinch in the Kaysville City musical, Seussical the Musical (he and the entire show were so good!)
---2 weeks of swim lessons
---Camping in the backyard
---Parade, BBQ and fireworks with cousins over July 4th

and lots of water, crafting, building, playing, gardening, exploring, day trips to water parks, aquarium, etc.

The picture above just sums up our summer so far. . . everything BOY and SUMMER! (They were all sweating in the jeans, but we were doing some annual pictures of them.)

Promises on future blogging in the summer cannot be made with 4 boys at home and some summer relaxing, but we hope you are all enjoying your summer as much as we are ours.

Spring Break 2010

2010-04-12T15:03:00.001-07:00

Monday:

We made a rainy day craft inside in the morning and then went and saw How to Train Your Dragon with our friends, the Lewis family, in the afternoon. Everyone enjoyed it, except the man in front of McCoy who was the sad recipient of McCoy's sippy cup flying through the air and into his head. Luckily, he had kids with him and didn't seem to mind that much.

Tuesday:

Sledding

We woke up to 8.5 inches of snow on Tuesday and decided to make the best of it and go sledding.

Wednesday:

Goblin Valley State Park

We left early Wednesday morning to head southeast. Our first stop was Goblin Valley - a boys paradise!

Thursday:

Indian Ruins and Natural Bridges National Monument

We hiked to see the cliff dwellings that we at a random stop on the side of the road and then at Natural Bridges we took this hike that literally went down the side of a cliff. The path was steps that were chiseled out of the side of the cliff face. Needless to say, I was quite a bit weary of the whole idea, but it was definitely worth the hike!

Friday:

Canyonlands National Park

Beautiful park with a lot of fun hiking trails. The boys especially enjoyed Whale Rock, which is basically this giant rock that looks like a whale and you get to hike up the back up of it. That night we stayed in Moab and it was warm enough for us all to swim in the hotel's outdoor pool.

On the way to Moab, we turned on a quick byway and were able to see some petroglyphs and dinosaur tracks.

Saturday:

Arches National Park

This place is breathtaking! The boys made it on hikes to quite a few arches, but they enjoyed the Sand Dunes Arch the best where they were able to play in really fine sand. After we were done here, we headed back north.

Easter 2010

2010-04-12T14:48:00.001-07:00

We celebrated Easter here at home with Chad's brother, Kelby. His family moved to Missouri and he will be following in a few weeks. We were able to dye eggs, and then the Easter Bunny came and delivered baskets.

The easter bunny brought Kayden and Boston new Bionicles, McCoy a couple fun books like "There's a party in my tummy!" from Yo Gabba Gabba and Azure a new baby carrier.

The easter bunny hid chocolate eggs inside and our dyed eggs outside. It was fun for everyone to find the eggs!

The 3 older boys each got new church clothes and when the time came to take their pictures, they were not the most thrilled to show them off.

Azure's Blessing

2010-03-11T15:11:00.000-08:00

We blessed Azure on Sunday, March 7. It was such a nice blessing and a really nice gathering afterward for food and visiting. Azure slept through it all.

Here are the pictures of family that was here for the big day.

Our family - FOUR boys!

All the kids that were here. Snapped this one and then let them run off to play. You can't have a kid picture without screaming ones - love it!

Adults from Beth's side of the family. Jeremy and Christina Jones, Pat Snow, Chad and Beth with Azure, Sandi Candland, Kathy Turpin, Rich Candland, Howard Turpin, Scott Turpin

Adults from Chad's side of the family. Shaun and Cat Hutchings, Chad with Azure and Beth, Kelby Hutchings

Men in the blessing circle. Cameron Lewis, Shaun Hutchings, Kelby Hutchings, Chad with Azure, Rich Candland, Scott Turpin, Howard Turpin

Our kids with their Grandma and Grandpa Candland and Great Grandma Snow

February Fun

2010-03-10T20:22:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day

For Valentine's Day we had 3 of Chad's siblings and their families and also Chad's parents here to visit. We had a dinner with mostly pink items and played games and visited a lot. The day before, we celebrated a birthday - Shaun, Chad's brother - complete with a train cake and pinata.

A week before the holiday, we all decorated jars for others to put nice thoughts and notes into. Chad's parents were here to help out after Azure's birth, so they had a jar too.

Grandma and Grandpa making Valentine's sugar cookies with the boys. The kids ate about half the dough, so we had to make three batches.

Kite Flying

While my mom was here for Azure's birth, she got each of the boys a kite. Kayden had been monitoring the wind daily in anticipation of being able to fly it, so we finally found the right day.

Kayden flying his dragon kite.

McCoy waiting for his turn with his kite.

Boston was very excited to go kite flying, but once we got there, he nicely asked if it was ok if he just played in the sand/dirt. If you refer to my post about sledding, the same kind of thing happened. He'd rather be digging!

McCoy's 2nd Birthday

2010-03-03T13:53:00.000-08:00

This is over a month late, but we did celebrate McCoy's birthday - even though it was only 6 days after his new brother's birth. January will be a busy birthday month for us!

He enjoyed having lots of company for his party and really felt special. He kept singing Happy Birthday to himself or to whoever he was next to.

After he blew out his candles, his daddy was moving the cake away to cut it and he quickly snatched some the frosting with his mouth. True McCoy style!

What an adventure he is. He has such a loving, funny personality and we've loved how much his talking has taken off lately. He still is our most curious child and when the house is quiet, the question always asked is, "Where is McCoy?" He can be found playing with the toilet-including dipping cups in them for a drink, taking apart someone's beloved toy or simply smashing it against the wall, spilling anyone's leftover food or drink that may have been left on the counter, etc. We love him dearly and he knows how to keep us on our toes. As one of our friends commented, "It's a wonder that you still have a working television."

Happy Birthday to our curious and destructive 2 year old - may you always find wonder in the world!

New Arrival

2010-01-29T19:48:00.000-08:00

Welcome to our new son!! Azure Snow was born on January 25, 2010 at 9:02 am, weighing 5 pounds, 10 ounces and 19 1/2 inches long.

Pre-Delivery

Having placenta previa (see an earlier post), my c-section had been scheduled at 37 weeks as was set for Tuesday, Jan. 26. My mom planned to arrive the Saturday before to help with last minute preparations before the delivery.

On Saturday, my mom arrived from Oregon as planned and we spent a nice and relaxing day together visiting and going to a couple stores. That evening after dinner, I discovered some serious spotting (due to the placenta previa) and after getting things together, receiving a blessing and saying goodbye to the boys and my mom, Chad and I headed for the hospital to have the bleeding and baby monitored.

All was well with the baby and Chad and I spent the next couple nights/days in the hospital being monitored and working with the doctor to have the c-section moved up to Monday instead of Tuesday.

The Delivery

The c-section started out as planned and was going smoothly. Chad was with me and they were telling me they could see the baby during delivery. Azure was actually breech and facing up, so there was a bit more work to get him out. As they were pulling him out, I felt a tug on my heart and lungs and then everything went black. I came back to with Chad whispering in my ear and a nurse yelling my name. I apologized to everyone and then told them that my heart hurt very badly, but soon after, I could hear my baby cry and tried just focusing on that.

As I lay there, they explained why my heart was hurting so badly. I learned that my vitals dropped and I was pumped full with epinephrin (adrenaline) to bring my vitals back, thus my heart hurting and pumping so hard when I woke up. They attributed this episode to a vagal nerve being affected when they were pulling the baby out and every person in there said they had never seen it happen before. Later that evening, I also learned that there was a rush to get the baby out and while I lay there blacked out, Azure was limp and blue and took 2 minutes to revive, having to use oxygen and stimulation to get him to breathe.

THANK YOU is the least I can say to the staff who worked so hard to keep my baby and I alive. They all reacted quickly and used the knowledge they had with speed. What a scary few minutes Chad had to deal with thinking he was losing so much, but they said he was remarkable and calm and strong and just talked me through the whole ordeal with his head next to mine.

Hospital Stay

We continued to stay in the hospital until being released Thursday morning. About 20 minutes after birth, Azure had a fast heart beat and they found out that his blood sugar was very low. He was setup in the special care nursery with an IV and I was told to frequently nurse him to bring the sugar back to normal.

He also had a mildly high bilirubin count and it was decided to put lights on him, since he was already in the special care nursery. Chad drew some fun eyeballs on his glasses and also decorated his windows with drawings while I would nurse.

WE'RE HOME

On Thursday at noon, we were all healthy enough to be released from the hospital and the boys finally got to meet their new brother and see their mom who had been gone for 5 nights. There was so much excitement!!!

Kayden is 7!

2010-01-20T08:38:00.000-08:00

CELEBRATIONS

Our oldest turned 7 in mid-January! It's crazy to consider all that we've been through and experienced with him in 7 years. The time sure has flown by. For his birthday this year, we just decided to have a family party and surprised him by taking him to Boondocks - a giant fun center with bowling and games and a huge jungle gym, etc.

Blowing out candles on his Lego cake.

The quaint family party.

At Boondocks on the roller coaster ride. He wanted to do this one about 5 times.

SKI LESSONS

Having a January birthday keeps getting harder and harder as he gets older. He'd received the toys he wanted for Christmas and was still playing/building with them by the time his birthday rolled around 2 weeks later. This year he was completely stumped on what to ask for. We tried to give him some suggestions that were not toy related and so he thought and thought about what he wanted and then decided on downhill ski lessons.

We hunted around for the best deal and decided to go with a 3 lesson package at Wolf Creek Mountain near Ogden. His first lesson was the Saturday after his birthday and his second was that following Monday. He'll do his last lesson probably this coming Saturday and then after completion, the deal came with a season pass, so he's excited to get to go with his dad some more.

He went with such a good attitude both times and both times the class sizes have been amazing and he has caught on quickly! The first time was a private lesson and the second time it was him and one other 10 year old girl. Here's some fun pics from the first day.

With his teacher

Making his skis into a 'pizza slice' on the way down.

He was smiling the whole time.

After 3 times down the learning hill, he was getting bored, so they hopped on the lift and were off. His teacher said he loves to go fast and just gets back up to go again when he falls.

The weather was so nice and sunny the entire day - the perfect weather to be introduced to skiing!

Holiday Break Fun

2010-01-20T08:17:00.000-08:00

During our holiday break, we were able to go on quite a lot of adventures. Some fun pictures came from playing the snow and sledding and our visit to the Hill Air Force Museum. Enjoy!

SLEDDING

We have two die-hard sledders and one who goes down the hill a couple times and then just prefers to build and play in the snow. It's quite a surprise to me who was who, but Boston in our "rather be playing" boy and Kayden and McCoy are the ones who giggle and laugh down the hill and then the second they are down, they start making their way up to do it again.

Kayden catching some air over a jump.

McCoy getting setup to go. We'd try to sit him down on this sled and he would immediately flip to his stomach. Not sure if it was because that's how Kayden rides it, or if it really was more comfortable.

Boston hanging out at the bottom of the hill just playing.

This is just an extra picture from one of our trips out to the snow in the backyard. The boys could spend hours out there - but only when the sun is shining.

HILL AIR FORCE MUSEUM

We finally made it to the air force museum that is only about 10 minutes away and we were surprised how big and fascinating it was.

They have two huge buildings of planes and air force items.

There was a cute kids area where they have dress-up outfits, flying simulators, computer games, toys, etc.

Kayden pretending to be a pilot.

McCoy is ready for take-off (as always!)

All the boys outside the museum.

Christmas 2009

2010-01-09T12:24:00.000-08:00

Christmas was spent at our home with visits to my sister's home for Christmas Eve and visits from my parents who were staying with my sister. We also had plenty of visits made to and from our neighbors and nearby friends. It was a very calm, peaceful, perfect Christmas and all the kids were smiling and excited - except when being pulled away from their new toys so they could eat something.

Christmas Eve program at their cousin's. Kayden was an angel, Boston a wise man and McCoy was Joseph.

New pajamas

Santa came!!

(Notice our tree is only decorated from halfway up thanks to a curious 1 year old.

Made setup and cleanup easier though.)

Boston playing his new Star Wars video game that Santa delivered with Kayden dancing in the background and his Erector set that Santa brought nearby.

Expecting Boy #4

2009-12-15T21:22:00.000-08:00

30 weeks pregnant

As my shirt continues to appear that the ball inside it is getting bigger and bigger, I thought it only fitting to make a blog post about the pregnancy as it seems it will be over soon.

My first three pregnancies have been very smooth - no issues. My first delivery ended up being a c-section, but I was able to deliver the other two without any issues. So along rolls my fourth pregnancy and things have been a little different.

I have placenta previa this time around - that has only become more severe as the weeks have rolled on. Basically, it means that the placenta (the baby's lifeline) has attached at the top of the birth canal and if I were to go into labor, I would deliver the lifeline before the baby. Thus, it means that I am to take things easy and that the baby will have to come c-section at 37 weeks - so I do not get too close to the end (40 weeks) and go into labor.

Today we set the date for the morning of January 26. If there are no issues before then, that means that will only be 5 days before McCoy's birthday!!

In terms of me feeling different this pregnancy, I don't. I feel perfectly fine and frequently enjoy the kicking and moving of the baby. Kayden has especially taken an interest in my belly and lays on it frequently to talk to his brother and feel him kick. I've tried to get Boston to feel the baby, but he is not interested. He is however interested in stuffing a ball up his shirt frequently and running around bumping into McCoy. McCoy sees my belly as just being in the way. It is a little harder to cuddle after his nap, but after we find a comfortable holding position, he is satisfied.

Chad is as giddy as ever. He loves little babies! He is a bit worried about what to expect with the condition and has been a huge help jumping in to take care of things that I cannot/should not do, but all and all he's just excited to have another little boy wiggling around here soon.

Pregnancy is an exciting time and the anticipation of him coming is even more exciting. We are hoping for a smooth final 6 weeks and just enjoying the time we have together during the holidays.

Visit to Santa

2009-12-15T21:13:00.000-08:00

Santa came to our local grocery store for a visit and the kids put in their requests for the year. It took some coaxing to get Boston to go talk to him and was done so by me dragging him up there screaming, but when Santa asked for a high-five, all fears seemed to shatter and the request was then happily made while sitting on his lap.

Kayden kept trying to get McCoy to ask for something, but he just happily sat there and then got his candy cane. Who needs more toys when you have an entire house to destroy!! Come on!!

Boston asked Santa for a Star Wars video game.

Kayden asked Santa for an Erector Set with motors.

(Have to note that he is wearing his dad's childhood "California Raisin's" t-shirt that he picked out of the drawer and told me that he thinks he looks like a teenager in it.)

Gingerbread and Snowy Days

2009-12-15T21:01:00.000-08:00

It has definitely felt a lot like Christmas here! We've had lots of snow and been able to go sledding (sorry no pics - I just have enough hands for sleds and kids) and play in the snow almost every day. There have been fort making with the neighbors that then led to a fun snowball fight, days just wandering through the yard filled with snow and making tracks and enjoying some sunlight, and of course the shoveling of snow - all done by Chad this year due to my ever-growing belly.

McCoy's favorite part of playing in the snow is eating it. I'm not sure there's a whole lot else he could do when bundled up like a marshmallow.

Boston shows off his ninja moves with a racket.

Simply just the weapon of choice for the day, as no sticks could be uncovered.

To also go along with the holiday spirit, we decorated a gingerbread house and then it was promptly devoured. We kept trying to convince the boys that it could be a decoration for a while, but they wouldn't have it and because the roof kept slipping off, I quickly gave up the convincing.

Thanksgiving Celebrations

2009-12-15T20:47:00.000-08:00

For Thanksgiving this year we stayed at home. In months leading up to the holiday, we had thought we were going to have visitors, but all plans ended up changing and we then decided to have dinner with my aunt and uncle that live nearby and their family. It was a really relaxing day and we all enjoyed the food and games.

Thanksgiving weekend continued with Chad doing the Black Friday shopping this year. After standing in one line for 3 hours last year, I opted out and Chad graciously took over. Friday night was also a light parade in Kaysville that was perfect and calm and not crowded at all. It was a bit short, but was the perfect length for kids in the cold.

Saturday night we headed to Ogden for their light parade, fireworks and turning on the lights in their cute Christmas village. Ogden was a bit crowded, but we managed to find a good spot for the parade and really enjoyed the fireworks.

It was a quiet weekend, but filled with fun times and memories. Pictures below are of the Ogden Light Parade.

The boys at a train in the Christmas Village after seeing the fireworks. They were all so happy - even McCoy being strapped into the stroller all night.

We saw this Layton City float at both parades.

The Nutcracker

Had to get this one of the local Star Wars lovers. Boston was especially excited, but honestly all of the boys loved it.

The Dinosaur Park had a Flintstone's themed float.

Basketball

2009-12-15T20:38:00.001-08:00

We signed the two oldest up for community basketball on Saturdays during the fall/winter. They both absolutely love it and fun is all that matters at this point. Here's some pics to enjoy.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-04T14:59:00.001-08:00

Our Halloween this year was a lot of mixed characters, but was so fun!

Kayden the Vampire

Boston as Yoda (love that shadow!!)

McCoy as Dumbo

Trick-or-Treating was a lot of fun for everyone. Chad took the crew out first and after about 1.5 hours, they came back and Boston was done. I took the Kayden and McCoy out to get more candy while Chad (the caveman) setup a fire for our trick-or-treaters to enjoy.

Pumpkin Carving Extravaganza

2009-11-04T14:42:00.000-08:00

Our annual pumpkin carving this year was done with our good friends, the Lewis family. They used to be our neighbors in Burbank and now only live 25 mins away from us again, so we have had lots of fun together.

Kayden loved every aspect this year and cleaned and carved his own pumpkin.

Busy cleaning and cutting

Boston just enjoyed cutting all the extra pieces to bits.

McCoy thought that if the pumpkin guts are coming out, why not also put them back in. He filled up many a pumpkin and then would splash around in the gooey wonderfulness.

Our family's finished products. Chad did Jack the Pumpkin King from scratch, Kayden did the scary face and also drew my silly face, Boston wanted a spider and McCoy was excited for the train.

Main Bathroom Redo

2009-11-04T09:00:00.000-08:00

The beginning of July, our swamp cooler leaked down through all of our walls and one of those was in the main bathroom. We had to remove wallpaper in order to dry the walls properly and since then, have been slowly taking down all the wallpaper and then picking out how we wanted to redo the bathroom. It is finally done!

Sorry, we never took "before" pictures of this room.

Sacramento Sun

2009-11-04T08:24:00.000-08:00

In the middle of October, we took a trip to visit Chad's parents in Sacramento.

WEDNESDAY

We arrived on his Mom's birthday and celebrated that night.

THURSDAY

The next day, we went to Funderland and then the kids had a sleepover at their Aunt Mindy and Uncle Jason's house while Chad and I went to the temple and to dinner with his parents and then home to play games.

FRIDAY

Friday we took a trip to the Jelly Belly Factory, which was a hit for everyone.

SATURDAY

The next day, we took a Halloween decorated train ride in Old Sac, walked around the shops there for a bit and then everyone was ready for naps.

That night, we went to a trunk-or-treat in his parent's old stake. Chad and I and McCoy were a Caveman family, Kayden was a power ranger and Boston a ninja. Grandma and Grandpa were pirates.

SUNDAY

We headed home on Sunday, after debating on whether to travel, as sickness had gradually hit all but me throughout the vacation and we still didn't know what it was. It was one of the longest trips we've taken. We cleaned up 3 throw-ups, kids just wanting to lay on the floor at each gas station and Chad being a trooper, but definitely not doing well.

We did make it home with high fevers, but the kids just crawled into bed and were finally sleeping. Monday morning after calling the doctor, we realized they all had H1N1 and had been fighting it for a few days. We then stayed in the house for the rest of the week and 'weathered the storm'. (Looking back, we do apologize for spreading it to unknown people at Jelly Belly, Old Sac and the trunk-or-treat. We are truly sorry - we didn't realize what it was!)

Fall Adventures

2009-10-19T14:50:00.000-07:00

Here are some cute picture updates of a few things we've been up to the past couple months.

Chad took the 2 older boys on the last camping trip of the year in September. Kayden enjoyed the fishing and Boston enjoyed the fire. They all enjoyed the outdoors!!

One night for Family Home Evening, we decided to take advantage of the rain! The boys still talk about how much fun this activity was.

For my birthday at the beginning of October, we went as a family to a Pumpkin Patch that had huge plastic slides, corn maze, train ride, blow-up jumpers, campfire, etc. Everyone was in perfect spirits and was a perfect birthday!

The boys in a corn kernel sandbox.

At the campfire in the middle of the pumpkin patch.

McCoy making his way through the kiddie maze.

Kayden after going down one of the slides.

HE DID IT!!

2009-10-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

Since May, Chad has been training to run a marathon. He created a running schedule to gradually ease into it and also competed in 5ks, 10k and 1/2 marathon to get ready for it. At the end of September, he completed the Top of Utah Marathon in Logan, UT.

We are so proud of his accomplishment!!

4 year old Boston (aka Darth Vader)

2009-09-04T20:38:00.000-07:00

After recouping from our summer travels, we managed to have Boston's friend birthday party. It was only 2 weeks after his birthday, but at least it was still the same month.

We started off doing a Star Wars memory game while the kids arrived and then we introduced them to Jedi Chad. Jedi Chad instructed them on how to complete the Jedi training (obstacle course), combat training (pin the sticker on the fighter ships) and light saber training (hitting balloons with light sabers while wearing a Darth Vader mask).

The kids, especially Boston all had a blast and Chad of course did a fantastic job keeping the kids entertained. The night before, Chad made him a light saber cake, which turned out so good and was gone by the end of the party.

Destruction Prevails

2009-09-04T20:20:00.000-07:00

Since my little silent tornado takes up about 80% of my time, it is only worthy that he also get a blog post. He isn't starting school or just had a birthday or anything special, but here's to McCoy - the terror that rips through my house and captures my heart.

With Grandma Hutchings

At the end of July, I ended my 8 year run with IBM. I was working at home for 6 1/2 years of it and was really looking forward to being able to completely devote my time to being a mom and taking care of my house a little better. According to Dr. Laura, as a completely stay at home mom, I would now have more energy to take care of the things that mattered and would be able to feel on top of things a lot more.

Well, Dr. Laura did not have a McCoy. By 9:30AM on one particular morning, he managed to open a box of pasta from our food storage and decorate the office with it, empty every drawer in the kitchen by throwing the items across the floor, empty the dirty laundry from the hamper after dragging it into the middle of the living room, snapping a DVD in half (luckily the extras disc) and well, frankly the list has just begun.

Saying "Cheese" after playing in the garden and then trying to wipe off his hands on his face.

He is so dear to my heart though and I love him and have to laugh at the way he is always so busy. He is so quiet about it and just seems to enjoy the pure event of destruction. He has started occasionally saying words, but never on demand. He says: crackers, cheese, shoes, Jesus and after recently getting burned on the top of his foot with my curling iron, has started saying It's Hot which turns into one word that would be spelled Shot. However, when coming out of a baby voice and not being able to pronounce everything perfectly, when repeated over and over, it sounds like he's cussing.

I do wish that when I do get completely sick and/or have a newborn, which is only a few months away, I am hoping that he tones it down a bit or there will be nowhere to walk, as I am the constant vacuum running behind him. As he grows, may he learn to channel that energy towards great things!

First Grader... and going to be toothless!!

2009-09-04T20:08:00.000-07:00

When I started first grade, I had this adorable t-shirt that proudly said "I'm a First Grader!" No, I did not hunt have the time or guts to hunt one down for Kayden. However, he actually is nerdy enough like me and was that excited that he would have LOVED to wear the shirt though!

(He said that it looked like it might rain that day so requested the umbrella,

thus the hook coming out of his backpack.)

After his first day, when asked what he liked best about his new teacher he said, "Her kindness." Cute, cute.

Since this is getting posted late and is also appropriate for 1st graders, Kayden lost his first tooth yesterday, September 3. This happened only a few days after the announcement that he and his 'girl' friend at school are both vampires. (Yes, we quickly went over the no biting rule and well, let's just keep and hands and lips/mouths to ourselves.) Wonder if vampires are supposed to lose their teeth??

Summer has come and gone

2009-09-04T19:35:00.000-07:00

From the middle of summer to the end, it was all kind of a blur. A lot of fun times, but we were busy traveling, playing, visiting and dealing with not so brilliant contractors. Here's a quick recap.

OREGON

After my grandfather passed away, we of course made a trip to Oregon for the funeral. It was a nice service and glad we were there.

It's always fun to see family and for the kids to play with their cousins. Chad went back home with my sister and her family after the weekend and the boys and I stayed 3 more days to visit and play and then drove back near the end of the week.

CONTRACTOR ISSUES

After Oregon, we were home for a week and expected our new central air conditioner to be installed as soon as we returned. Well, after countless (literally) delays or cancellations from them, they finally had it "working" a full week after we returned, only to have the pipes frozen the next morning. There were also MANY issues with our 'one man demolition' crew coming in and leaving 3 huge holes in the ceiling, leaking spots in the unit inside and well, I could go on and on.

We took pictures of everything that went wrong and sent to the company. While I was away on our next trip, they came in with a 6 man team to fix everything that 1 guy managed to screw up himself and well, we did have air, but it was really completed until after Girls' Camp, 3 weeks later!!

ARIZONA

We were home for a week and then the boys and I loaded in the car again for the annual Grandma and Grandpa Hutchings camp. This year it was in Arizona. Kayden and Boston spent the week with their Hutchings' cousins and grandparents. The theme this year was Nifty Nature and they had a blast fishing, collecting bugs and frogs, getting scared out of their tent by a relentless skunk, going on a safari to Out of Africa and just playing to their hearts content. Grandma has all the cute pictures from this event, but it was fun had by all.

McCoy and I stayed with Chad's sister for the week. I was very low on energy and felt 'morning' sick every afternoon. I did manager to get some projects done that I had taken and McCoy of course managed to rummage through their house in its entirety.

GIRLS' CAMP

We arrived back home from Arizona on Friday night and then I got ready to leave on Monday for Girls' Camp, as I am a leader over the young women in our ward. My mom was kind enough to drive from Oregon and volunteer her time and ENERGY to spend the week with my kids. She also brought along her mom as well.

Girls' Camp was fun and very good to get to know the girls and leaders more and had some wonderful experiences there. Home I hear was busy, but it sounds like it was a lot of fun. Boston's birthday happened while I was gone, but they celebrated by going to a Bee's baseball game and he was in heaven. We also had a family party when I got back and then a friend party a couple of weeks later.

After camp and saying goodbye to my mom and grandma, we had a week to recuperate from our busy travels before school started, but we did manage to squeeze a trip to the water park, Cherry Hill for one day (forgot the camera).

Good bye summer. We will be missing the adventures when the snow comes and then stays and stays and stays!!

He whom finishes last...

2009-08-14T13:02:00.000-07:00

We've never claimed that our boys were the most coordinated people on the face of the planet, and on a trip to the local roller skating rink, our worst fears were confirmed...they will never grow up to be the professional competitive foot scooter racers we had hoped they would become.

Passing of My Beloved Grandfather

2009-07-09T22:01:00.000-07:00

Last night the world said goodbye to a great man. He had not won any major awards or been in any major office, but he was great in the sight of many - especially his family.

George William Snow, my grandfather, passed away after suffering through years of his body losing functionality. His passing was peaceful and he led a full life. Death is never easy, but everyone seemed to have the chance to say goodbye, phone or in person. I thought in honor of his passing that I'd write up a few of my memories of him.

He was a hard worker. He bought a business when he moved his young family to Oregon and really made it his own and grew it.

Not only did he work in his business, but he had the best garden and spent nearly every evening caring for it and his yard. He enjoyed it.

He loved family and was devoted to them. My mom always talks of how they went water skiing every weekend in the summer as an entire family and he continued to do that even with grandkids. There were always family events and family outings.

He strived to go to each of his kids and grandkids events and be one of the loudest to cheer. He was one of my biggest fans. He and/or my grandma would travel to nearly all my away games with my parents for any sport and he even came to follow me for 18 holes during state championship for golf.

He made me feel special and I know he did to many others. He had nicknames for most of us and each time we saw him would encircle us with his long arms and have a warm smile.

When I worked at the cleaners during the slow summer afternoons, he'd stop by for a while just to chat and listen and tell me stories or growing up or war time. He'd do the same while I was painting his house one summer. He would just sit and chit and chat and of course tell me if I made a mistake, but in his teasing tone.

While in little league, he would take me out to the baseball fields by his home and spend hours hitting me grounders and fly balls. Or he would take me to the pitching wall and just stand in the background while I practiced, offering advice as needed.

He was a dear friend. Someone that I knew loved me no matter what happened. He will always hold a special place in my heart, not for necessarily extraordinary things, but for the little things that he continuously did to show his love. Besides, like they say in the movie "UP", it's the boring things we seem to enjoy the most.

I will be excited to see him when my time comes and know that he'll encircle me once again, calling me 'Bethy' with that soft smile.

Thanks for the memories, for spending time with me and each family member, for being an example of how to work hard and for truly loving and experiencing!

Swamp Coolers really do 'swamp'!

2009-07-09T20:17:00.000-07:00

We spent a great 4th of July weekend camping at Zion National Park and watching fireworks in St. George. The boys went on a 3 mile hike and they honestly did not complain at all. They are still talking about the fun they had hiking and at the Emerald Pools where the hike led us. Kayden caught tadpoles there (only one of which survived and is not doing well), Boston was on a quest for the best hiking stick and lucked out in the middle of our long hike and McCoy got to hitch a ride on Chad everywhere and pull his hair and scratch his neck, all while laughing.

When we returned home on Sunday night, I luckily took our dirty clothes bag to the laundry room and discovered about 1/4 inch of water on the laundry room floor. At the same time, Chad had climbed on the roof because there was quite a lot of water coming out of the gutter and wanted to check the swamp cooler. At nearly the same time, we realized the issue and I started turning off the water as Chad came running to tell me to do just that.

Basically, the water line leading to our swamp cooler broke and water soaked through our roof, down through our bathroom and hallway walls, and down the ceiling of the laundry room. The next morning a man came to do a wet check of our house and told us what needed to be done.... part of the wallpaper in bathroom removed, part of the ceiling in the laundry room removed, molding in the hallway removed so holes could be drilled - all within the next 2-3 days, as the walls needed to be at least drying by 5-7 days.

Then he told us that we needed giant fans to run in our house for at least a week and even told us about one of his employees living in our neighborhood who he'd check out the fans to for free so we wouldn't have to pay. Really nice guy - both of them, actually.

So we did all those things and are currently living in a 90 degree house with 3 really loud fans trying to dry out our walls so mold doesn't grow. Luckily our swamp cooler and water lines were covered under home warranty still, but we have to work out all the details with the warranty company on that.

Anyway, as of now, if you're interested in what it's like walking through those air blasters they have at the end of car washes, or if you want to go way above and beyond the skirt flipping of Marilyn Monroe, come on over.

Kayden's First Year of Baseball

2009-07-02T22:47:00.001-07:00

Kayden's first year of little league is over and he had such a fun time. It was coach pitch and all the players got to hit each inning and no one got out. It's good to learn when there's no competition involved.

He looked forward to every game and was always so positive and wanting to try harder . . . Except the very last game was extremely hot and one inning he went missing. We thought he took off to go to the bathroom somewhere, as there are no restrooms around, so we hunted for him while his team was on the field and nearly panicked. Then, when his team came back in he suddenly reappeared. Turns out he was hiding under the bench because it was too hot to play and he said he was just all sweaty. Fun times!

Enjoy the pictures. They were taken on a game when Chad was covering for the coach.

Summer Water Fun

2009-07-02T22:20:00.000-07:00

Summer means lots of water, swimsuits and of course mud.

Thought we'd share a bit of our summer pics with you.

Towels line the deck after our daily swim lessons or after a romp through the sprinklers.

Boston in his swimming lessons. He especially loves when they get to throw torpedos and dive after them.

McCoy's favorite part of swim lessons in splashing. He drop to his knees and them throw his arms and chest in to splash whoever is around and then laughs. This happens over and over and over.

Kayden's front crawl.

Kayden's backstroke

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MUD!!!!!

I knew what was going on in the backyard and that nothing was being damaged, so I let them play in the mud for about an hour and then they got to hose off everything, including themselves.

Yellowstone Rocks! and animals

2009-06-30T14:50:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was a blast in Yellowstone. We headed up through Idaho to stay in a Cabin with The Candland Grandparents and The Jones (Beth’s sister). The park blew us away not only because of the varied wildlife we saw, but just the sheer size of it all as well. It seemed like we were driving the good majority of it. We basically got to see the entire park, Old Faithful, the geyser basins, Mammoth Hot Springs, Entrance Gate, Yellowstone Lake, The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and all sorts of things. Besides the innumerable buffalo, we were also graced with the presence of chipmunks, squirrels, ravens, coyotes, deer, elk, moose, pronghorn sheep, falcons and bald eagles. Despite the effort we put into fishing the Madison and Gibbon rivers, grandpa Candland was the only one to catch a fish. A 4 inch trophy trout…whoopee! Here's to Yellowstone, enjoy some of our trip!
Lower Falls and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

Climbing Sheepeaters Cliff

At a geyser basin (yes, that is blue steam)

The deer could care less how close I got

The rain ponchos made the bouts look like Hobbits on a quest

Playtime at the Cabin

Ice crean break at Old Faithful

Old Faithful

There were ravens everywhere either waiting for us to leave food, or die

Mommy and Baby

A Cool Tour Cab

Mommy and Baby

New Favorite

2009-06-22T15:28:00.000-07:00

I needed a spring/summer project. I know you're thinking what about your garden! Well, it rained for the past two weeks and I was staring at my furniture and thought, why don't I refinish the piano. Of course this is during naptimes, otherwise I wouldn't have the time.

Anyway, on my trip to Home Depot to look for some refinishing things, I came across this product.

It comes in tons of colors and said it was basically a rub on restore product and since I have no experience at refinishing pianos, I thought I'd give the easy way (and cheap $7) a try first before really jumping in.

Well, I have to say that this was what I needed! All the scratches and even the teeth mark from the dogs my parents have had (this was my great-grandmother and then my mother's and now mine) - all the blemishes are gone! No kidding! It looks amazing!

After that fix, I was taking this product around practically our whole house fixes scratches on wood. I will need to sand and officially refinish our coffee table, but it completely renewed our door to our garage as well that the previous owners dog had scratched badly.

Seriously, this would work on restoring cabinets or anything if they are not really deeply scratched. Happy refinishing!

Summer is here

2009-06-09T21:11:00.001-07:00

We enjoyed quite a few nice days of weather before the rain set in that is currently helping out a garden.

Memorial Day was a lot of fun with roasting smores with cousins and camping in our backyard. On Sunday we visited Chad's grandparent's grave in Provo and then stayed down there for Memorial day with Chad's brother and his family to go fishing and play in the water the next day.

Grave of Eugene and Rita Roth

The catch of the day - catfish.

Daddy was nice enough to do some face painting. Here's Kayden's pick:

Here's Boston's pick for Daddy to paint on him:

McCoy and his cousin Mikelle splashed the day away.

We've also played in the yard a ton, had picnics in the park, fished in the ponds with no luck, played and visited with friends and also one day we met up with my sister and her kids at the zoo for an afternoon.

Brothers! You can feel the love!

This past week was Kayden's last day of kindergarten. We celebrated by having his best guy friends over from school for a little water party. The rain only came for about 5 minutes and then it was nice. Saturday we celebrated Chad's birthday with a fun yard party with family and friends. Lots of food, good conversations and once again the rain only visited us for about 5 minutes, but we weremostly sheltered under the deck eating dinner.

Here's a picture from the beginning of Kayden's cute program. I've been trying to dig some up of Boston's program, but we just took video. They both had great school years and were both very ready for summer break.

Birds and Mice, oh my!

2009-05-22T14:17:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been contemplating if having a garden is really worth it. Worth all the visitors, I mean.

When we first tilled up the soil, we had many a pretty bird come visit to dig up the freshly lifted worms. They were oh so pretty and we thought about how they might eat some of our garden with how many appeared, so we read a bit online and people suggested that getting a bird feeder would draw them there instead of your garden.

So we hung a bird feeder and feed they did! They got so restless feeding that quite a bit of the seeds dropped all over the ground. All of them enjoyed the bird food, except the robins.

Our strawberries were just barely starting to come on when I realized that they were all suddenly gone and even the leaves were sorely damaged. I had remembered seeing the robins back there quite a bit, but thought they were just digging for worms since that spot of our garden seems to get a lot of water. I was wrong!

Well, netting may eventually appear over the strawberries, but for now I took some online advise and spread some toy snakes and also some shining snakes around the strawberries. I have not seen any robins in the 2 days they've been there, but I think I need to move the snakes around or something in case the birds get too smart.

As for the bird seed that fell all over the ground, it has attracked a family of mice! No joke! I see them scurrying from under the fence (must live at the neighbor's, whew!) and to the bird seed at least 20 times a day and that is when I have time to watch.

I bought some normal mousetraps and within 10 minutes, caught one by the tail. It escaped after about 3 minutes (which is really quite long), but I could have killed it with a shovel if I hadn't been squeeling and disgusted and not knowing what to do.

If anyone has some great advise AND a heads up for other fabulous animals I may encounter with a garden, it would be appreciated.

Spring Blossoms and Bud Confusion

2009-04-27T14:07:00.000-07:00

Spring has sprung here and brought some nice weather and beautiful blossoms. Being that I've killed every indoor plant in the last almost 8 years of marriage (including a cactus that was a Mother's Day present), I just had to show off some of the bulbs that I planted in the fall.

Along the very front of our house is just barely started to blossom, so maybe those pics will have to come later. However, our backyard blossoms will never be seen by anyone anymore. They were looking so pretty and then Saturday at dinner, Boston confesses, "Since you don't like the buds, I used my light saber (a.k.a stick) and chopped them all for you." WHAT!!?? Who said I didn't like the buds? I felt the sadness and rage emerging and then was wrestling between how to let him know this was a really bad thing, but also show him that I was glad he told me the truth. I tried to help him remember how he helped me plant all these last fall and he didn't remember. I'm not exactly sure what was accomplished (punishment, truth is good, or both), but he does know now that I do indeed like buds.

Spring Break

2009-04-24T09:00:00.000-07:00

So we did it. We managed to get back to Southern California during Spring Break and had such a good time. We started off with a stop for the night in St. George and then headed to my sister, Leah's home in Santa Monica.

Saturday night, the boys and I went for a walk to the beach while Chad went to Priesthood Session of General Conference and Kayden and Boston kept getting more and more wet. By the time they were done, they had basically been rolled in the waves with all their clothes on. They were all smiles until we started walking back.

BURBANK VISIT
On Sunday, we went and visited a few people in Burbank. Here's Kayden and Boston with their friends Lucie and Will. We were neighbors when we first moved to Burbank and then they moved out of the complex, but we still kept up playdates and Kayden and Lucy have become the best pen pals.
We also visited the always welcoming Smith family, Ben & Kerrie Flinders and kids, and our dear friend who we celebrated a few Christmas' with and had a garden in her backyard, Mary Bench.

BEACH and TIME with LEAH & THOMAS

Sunday night we ate another one of Leah's yummy meals and had a fun visit with her and Thomas. Monday we spent at the beach with them and then had a great dinner at his Pizza shop, Abbots Pizza Co. So good!!Makes you want a slice, huh!!

CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE
Monday night we headed to Anaheim where we met up with Chad's sister Mindy and her husband, Jason. We spent Tuesday at California Adventure.
AQUARIUM
Wednesday at the Aquarium of the Pacific and swimming in the hotel pools.

DISNEYLAND
Thursday was at Disneyland. It was the busiest we've ever seen it, but we were able to do everything we wanted to. The highlight of the day was the Jedi Training.

Both of the boys were picked to learn to be Jedi's. When they met up with Darth Vader, their personalities really came out. Boston just whipped the light saber around with no fear. Kayden was very methodical. He wanted to do the exact move he was taught earlier and thought through the whole thing, a bit slowly. It was so fun to watch them both.

Kayden got to fight Darth Vader and use the force to 'push' the Storm Troopers away.

Boston was way into fighting Darth Vader. Look how little he is compared to him!!

This was us in on Small World, but the camera kept running out of batteries, so you actually can't tell where we are.

Jason, Chad, McCoy, Boston, Kayden coming out of the Winnie the Pooh ride, while Mindy, Leah and I had just come from Splash Mountain.

Friday we headed back for the gathering of Chad's family for his brother, Shaun's wedding on Saturday.

Bright, Inviting Office

2009-03-23T14:39:00.000-07:00

I love my new office! The final touches have been done and I am calling the office complete. Chad may think that I rarely call things complete and he may be right about little touches here and there, but for right now, the office is done.

The natural light in this room is something everyone needs in an office. It has a huge window that opens right up to our backyard where I can spy the boys digging, jumping, playing, exploring, imagining, and yes, fighting. I wanted a color that really played on this natural light and with the help of my husband, we found the right hue to go in our now cheerful office.

When looking at your house now or when house hunting, look beyond the dull and dark and horrible wallpaper. For me the draw to this room was the window. Find what you do like and then run with it. Some may not like my choice of color, but just come visit me on a sunny afternoon and you'll feel just as drawn to be in my office as I do - and that's hard to do in an workspace.

BEFORE: There were three different wallpapers. - textured on top and plaid on the bottom with a hunting border in between the two. Maybe they were trying to play on the dark green carpet. And oh the sad place for the desk - blocking the window!?

AFTER: We removed the wallpaper and replaced the carpet. The baby blue countertops that were replaced in the kitchen were primed and repainted white and steel legs were added. Now there's room for kid's art/drawing and both computers and the room still feels, well... roomy.

The built in dresser was painted as it had a medium-toned stain and we put new hardware on. We even managed to find a nice space for Chad to paint. Now he just needs more time and for people to unlearn the fact that he designs and edits.

Spring! Uh, nevermind.

2009-03-23T14:32:00.000-07:00

Last week was so gorgeous! We spent nearly everyday outside either at parks or letting the boys get dirty in the backyard. On Saturday, we woke up discussing what to do and just decided to take advantage of the springtime weather (it was the official first day of Spring!) and went on a hike. The hike was to a waterfall and we were very excited to see it. However, we managed to get to some water and had our picnic and then looking at the dragging feet of the boys, decided that we didn't want to lug an extra 50 pounds each (Chad was already packing McCoy), so we enjoyed ourselves at the water and promised to try again another time to make it to the waterfall.

Today is Monday, two days after it being nearly 70 degrees and we've got snow. Not sticking, but it's still snowing. So here I type, still with anticipation of a TRUE spring - to stay.

Leprechaun Visit

2009-03-23T14:24:00.000-07:00

St. Patrick's was celebrated for two days at our home. We had our corned beef and cabbage meal on Monday and delivered cookies to a neighbor and then LEM the Leprechaun came to visit on the morning of St. Patties (Tuesday). Kayden setup 3 traps for him and nearly caught him with plastic wrap, but he managed to get away and left his footprints through the flour that he split. Could've used that pot-o-gold, but we'll try again next year!

Here's our cookies that Chad made the yummy dough for and then I made the spiral designs. We have to admit that the end result was pretty fantastic and gone quickly.

Lem's footprints through the flour.

Kayden doesn't look like he's in too much of a hurry to clean up after the Leprechaun, but just enjoying the chocolate 'gold' that was left behind.

Family Room... check!! (whew!)

2009-03-05T14:55:00.000-08:00

Our family room has been completed for some time now, but I've finally got all the pictures together to show off our work. This was a many, many, many step process, but we are very happy with the results and very happy that it is all done!

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Here's what the family room looked like when we were touring the house before buying it. The wood panelling had pictures of pheasants and deer etched into it. Some may like this, but this was not for us.

We took off the wood (messy, but the boys had fun) and discovered this beautiful green-striped wallpaper underneath.

After many a hour steaming off the 70's wallpaper, our walls were finally white, but the wall was damaged from it being on there for 30 years. The drywall paper had ripped of in strips.

The first attempt of trimming the ripped up drywall paper, plastering and then priming and painting ended with a bubbling wall. Not so beautiful. We sanded and started again by purchasing a special sealer and putting that on all of the rips. That sealed the paper so it wouldn't be effected by the water-based paint.

Because the wall was so badly damaged, we decided to add texture to it, so all of the imperfections wouldn't stand out nearly as bad. We sponged on the texture little by little.

Our plan was to put on wainscotting around the bottom of the wall, so we taped off where it would go and painted above it.
Here's what our furniture looked like for a few weeks. The plastic saw so much dust from sanding and also plaster and paint that we were grateful for the cover!

Kayden and Boston always insisted helping when painting time came around.

I didn't get any pictures of the MULTIPLE pieces of wainscotting that are put together to make the beautiful end result (it is NOT all one piece) or how it looked before we puttied the nails and painted the wainscotting, but here is the FINISHED RESULT.

It is a movie-themed room, thanks to Chad's work at a major movie studio for four years, my grandparents old camcorders and equipment and Chad's love of film.

Birthday, Visits, Love and More Snow

2009-02-17T21:44:00.000-08:00

FIRST BIRTHDAY

McCoy's big 1st birthday was a lot of fun. He hadn't completely emerged from the constant rounds of sickness, but was still a good sport. He has since been healthy for the past week and is happy and emptying all drawers, cupboards and shelves. Come to think of it, we've all had a healthy week! Needed the break! Here's our cute pics of McCoy's birthday.

VISITS

This past week we said our goodbyes and good lucks to Chad's brother, Brendon as he goes on a mission for 2 years to Missouri.

Chad's parents came to drop Brendon off at the Missionary Training Center and we had many a party and get-together. All of Chad's brothers were here for the first weekend and I have to admit there was way more wrestling and boy-bander than normally goes on in my boy home, but was fun! The girls went to our soon-to-be sis-in-law's bridal shower. We played games and watched a movie and McCoy managed to pass along his throw-up illness to half of them - had to share. No sleep, but a lot of fun!

These pics are from the Nickelcade after said our farewells to Brendon.

McCoy with his cousin Mikkelle.

Kayden with his Grandpa Hutchings.

VALENTINES

We got lucky this year and had free babysitters (gma and gpa even!!) and Chad and I went to lunch on Valentine's Day and then spent the evening with family and truly had a fun time at dinner, opening the notes in our jars that we filled throughout the week, making chocolate dipped pretzels and marshmallows and drinking sparkling cider.

Here's the jars we decorated for others to put nice things in during the week.

(Beth, Boston, McCoy, Kayden-spider web that caught bugs, Chad)

MORE SNOW
So at least for today, I decided to embrace the additional 6 inches that we got and spent a few hours with the boys in the morning and then in the afternoon out in it. I loved it and it was so much fun. It was super wet snow so we built a slide, a snowman, and here's our snow fort. It looks like there's not much snow around us, but we basically collected it all making this thing.