Life is moving faster and faster

We are still here, with much to report, but we seem to be whirling too quickly to stop and write it all down. Autumn turned 3 and is ever-surprising us with her antics. She loved her make-up, dress up clothes and kitchen. She is a girly-girl one moment and playing tigers the next!

Jaxen's football team, came back from a rough start to win the Carnation Bowl. It was a bitter sweet victory, as we were proud of our team, but Jaxen choose not to participate because the game was held on a Sunday. I was so proud of him for doing so with a good attitude and being such an example to his siblings. Jaxen had a great season and improved a ton as a Corner this year. Jason and Papa Ed gave away three months of their lives to help coach, which is a GIANT commitment! At times it all felt a bit over-the-top, but seeing this three generation band-of-brothers was a treat! GO NIGHTHAWKS!!!

And let us not forget the holidays!!! We love having puzzles out, having egg nog in the fridge and hearing Madeline practice her Christmas piano music. Jro picked another giant tree for us to trim. It is always a bit scary and overwhelming at first. Still, after the lights and decorations are in place, we all love our unique symbol of holiday hopes as it towers in our living room.

Now that school is out, I am so excited to pull the family in close and ignore the world for awhile! Ho! Ho! Ho!

Two almost three

Oh, the roller coaster
of being two and almost three


A baby, a big girl
She can't decide which to be



Energietic and lively
She's as smart as a whip



Though she tries to fight it
Into a nap she can slip



An angel in slumber


As cute as can be


Hurry up and slow down
My little two going on three

All Hallows Eve

Halloween is changing at our house and all I can do is watch. Jaxen and his buddies planned to each be a brand name, he chose "under armor", which was no surprise to me. He rushed out after his traditional backed potato soup and did return until 9:00PM. I love his friends and trust him, but it felt strange how he didn't even look back or miss going around with us. We are officially not as cool as his friends and while it feels natural, it hits my heart a bit.

Luckily, Autumn still makes it totally magical. While I was fixing her hair she said "Mom, shouldn't I have make-up to be "'puntzle"
My response "Absolutely!"

Madeline is so mothering and helpful. I rely on her a bit too much sometimes, but it is nice having another female to help care for this family.

And my Elijah is perfect at 6 years old. With him, more than anyone, I want time to stand still. He is so curious, so sweet and still young enough to want me around. I love his mind, his great jokes and the fact that he will still say " You're the bestest mom in the whole world". SIGH!!



(Trick or Treating at grandma Marty and Papa Ed's

Autumn has a bit of a crush on a married man. My friend Nedra is sweet about sharing her husband, but the cuddling and goggly eyes she makes at him are getting a bit ridiculous!!! "Mom, can I sit with Mr. Matt?" "Is Mr. Matt coming to church today." "Can Mr. Matt come to by "birfday party?" We are in trouble with this one.

Wyoming Photos

Still here

Wow! I am still waiting for a moment to breathe, but it seems like I have awhile yet to wait. It's been busy around here! You know, the kind where your family is eating in shifts and you're forgetting what it's like to chat with your spouse. We've had a sick kid, some parenting quandaries, an outbreak of kids talking back and being inappropriate, a parking ticket and a fender bender (long story..... I was guilty-yet innocent...no claims filed). Jason works 20 night shifts a month, sleeps in my closet during the day and is coaching football (a monumental task with 9 hours of practice and games, as well as film review and scouting other teams. Let me remind you that Jaxen is only 11!!! Scouting other 11 years-old teams!!!! It boggles my mind)
My head hurts, my butt is expanding from delving into the chocolate to relief some stress and I find myself day dreaming of mornings of the past when I would meet my friends for long/winding jogs.

SIGH!!! When did it get so complicated. Is this just our stage of life, or are we way off track??? (By the way, this little rant coincides with a bit of PMS) It isn't running totally smoothly here with the crew, but we're still here! We are still kickin' and hoping for calmer times. Thanks for checking in.

A preview of some of our Wyoming photos to come.

I mean, Seriously!!!

Okay, so for those of you who do not know Miss Autumn personally, this photo wraps it up!!! We were doing a huge Stake Service project, wearing our new "Helping Hands" T-shirts and feeling a bit hot and tired. Sensing it was time for comic relief, Autumn began to fire up her over-the-top personality. She was being super cute and I wanted to take a picture of her dirty, happy face. However, knowing this would please her siblings immensely, every time I tried to snap a photo, she gave me one of these looks, get a laugh from her audience and then go about her performance.

I really am 50/50 with this girl, never knowing if I should laugh or cry. I am simultaneously 100% concerned that I have lost any chance of reigning her in and 100% impressed by her thought processes, cunning and natural humor (though she uses them for disobedience) She is so stinkin' smart, so socially advanced and SO TOTALLY NAUGHTY!!!!!!!

One thing for sure......I look forward to watching this one take the world by storm!

And They're Off!!!

I have had mixed feelings as usual about my kids heading back to school.
I LOVE getting them set, packing their packs and feeling their anticipation.
I MOURN them growing up so fast. I try to put together some semblance of reality on how fast my babies are growing older, growing taller and growing farther and farther from my protection.
I WORRY about the obstacles that each one must face. One has trouble with friends, one struggles to stay on task and one is so shy that he hides his perfect smile way too often. It's hard to let them face these things alone and to trust them to figure it out. I am the one to look back for one last look. I am the one giving last minute hugs and inspections. They all just went straight ahead, they are not worried, they are facing things head on!!
I say SILENT PRAYERS all day. Let them make good friends, learn good things and make good choices. This agency thing can be hard for me, but luckily, they hold tight to their right to it and force me to let go a bit more each year.

Oh yeah, and this is Miss Autumn. She is sure to never miss a photo op. Here she is, 3 years before she starts kindergarten.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of Pie

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book had cleaver writing and a clever heroine. It was a murder mystery with dark subjects, but the novel never felt heavy to read. With eleven year old Flavia as the narrator, her fascination and matter-of-fact approach to death, kept me intrigued but not burdened by it. A fun read, a few twists that caught me totally by suprise.



View all my reviews

Engulfed in Wild Flowers!!!

One of the benefits of Jason's profession is that his signature seems to be quite valuable. Well, not like super valuable, but much more than mine at least. All it took was a one hour meeting and his signature for him to be called the "Medical Director" for a company based out of Boulder called Avid for Adventure. His payment..... a free trip for the crew!! (Except Autumn, but she had a lovely time with both grandmas)




Now this was camping!!!! They set up the tent, did all of the cooking and took our kids each morning from 8AM-2Pm. The kids went hiking, canoeing and on a ropes course. As for Jason and I, we were able to hike, explore, read and mountain bike at our leisure. I personally loved it. Jason on the other hand, did not love being a part of a group and having to do "appreciations" around the camp fire at night. Can you see his disgust for warm fuzzies right now?




Anyway, the best part, by far, was the scenery. This was my first trip to Crested Butte, about 5 hours South-West of Denver. This is a town to visit! It is both "the last great Colorado ski town" and "the wild flower capital of Colorado" The elevation is 8924ft. so, even in August, we were comfortable. The kids played camouflage in the flowers and played under a water fall. Jason had to stop several times on his ride, so he could take the flowers out of his spokes, but said it was the best ride he had ever done. It was truly amazing and almost Jurassic Park-like.










(Oh yeah and the lake was a bit chilly)