still catching up...

There has been lot and lots of things going on in our neck of the woods. Just a quick bit...

* Mike is busy with the remodel of his building for work. It is pretty exciting. The building looks so great, and we can't wait to see the finished result.

* I have been doing some extra things with the school (field trips and stuff). I love being involved with the kids and their teachers. It keeps me busy, since I go in two mornings a week, I feel very useful for the teachers in their classroom. I get to use my education degree a bit as well, doing a variety of tasks with the kids. :)

* We had our Primary Activity, which I was in charge of, so that also kept me busy planning for a week or so, I think it went pretty good. I love having my kids in the Primary. I ask them if the things I did were fun, boring, stupid, lame, or too hard to understand, etc. It is good to get their feedback. And let me tell you, my little A does not hold back. My first Sharing Time I did she told me was boring. hahahaa!! I have improved since then. :)

* kids had their school music concert. They did well.

* J and S have started baseball. J is in full swing and is on two teams (one being a traveling team) S is in t-ball and is still just practicing, but is proving to be a little tom boy. And Mike is helping coach both teams.

* We are nearing the end of dance this year and gearing up for the recital, which is one day of pure madness for me.

* had a guest, a co worker of Mike's who is training with the company, stay with us for a week, Mike said he would invite a visitor every week it it kept me cooking dinner and breakfast like I did the week he was visiting.

* had my nephew, Ty, with me for a 4 days. He missed his mommy and Dallin terribly, the first day they were gone he woke up and wandered around the house saying, "find Mommy, find Dallin." He got lots of snuggles from us, and when he was sad my A was always so good to do a little more with him and love him and give him some extra attention.

* did some digital scrapbooking stuff, etc. If you care about this stuff check my facebook page...

*and in all that I have kept taking pictures, just not posting them, not bad.

J and A one day when I picked them up from school.

D was hanging out on the couch eating cheetos and ritz crackers with Luis.

D munching on morning donuts.

I love how his little nose is all scrinched up as he is biting the BIG donut.

field trip to the bird refuge.

This is a peregrine falcon that came by as we were leaving.

Me torturing D as he was crying over something dumb. haha.

Instead of comforting him, I grabbed my camera to get a shot.

Ribbons and ribbons and ribbons.

Working on ribbon stuff for a digital scrapbooking thing.

D playing peek-a-boo with me.

And, yes, Misty, I did notice it was a D heavy camera week. These were two weeks ago pictures by the way. I am hoping to do this weeks tomorrow and then I'll be all caught up! :)

getting seriously behind in posting... :D

so here are some from 11 april to 18 april.  We have been busy, as usual...baseball has started for both J and S (it is S's first year, and J is on a traveling team as well as a city league team), and Mike helps coach, Mike had a co-worker stay with us for a week, I designed T-shirts and made signs, we helped out in school, and went on a field trip.  I always think life is going to slow down, but I think I am kidding myself.  It seems we are getting busier and busier.  hahaha!

D was determined to wear a little tie to church, just like his daddy and brother.

I was determined to get a little shot with my cutie, (thanks J, for being my step in photographer) but D was wanting nothing to do with it!

J and A have discovered the joy of walking around the house with music pouring into their ears... their music of choice is either the Primary songs or Beatles, I can't complain.  J was frustrated that the earphones kept falling out.  He figured out a solution...

My new, hip, fun, and "make me happy" camera straps!

Some things never change...thanks goodness...

J snuggling with his baby blanket.

I made four of these signs for Mike's work's Relay for Life team fundraiser

This was before I cleaned it up, and made the edges all purdy!!

some very much needed "I hadn't seen Daddy in two days" sunggles!

Teaching moments

D decides that he is playing whatever sport the kids are actively playing.  We had opening day for baseball this day.  He was devastated that he didn't have a uniform to wear, so when we got home I dug through the clothes bins and found this old Yankee uniform that J used to wear.  I love it...and clearly, so did D.

This is where my car used to get parked...and now it is turned into a baseball practice area.

hmmmmm?!?!?!

individual kids' photos from our spring pictures

and I think they turned out alright. :)  

J giving me a flower (a dandelion)...sweet!

and here he is looking all grown up!  ACK!

A, just looking sweet!  love her!

AW!!  what a doll! If I do say so myself!

I actually love this one of S...

she is in her "never give mom a real smile" phase, 

so this is one that I snuck in and cropped close up. :)  

SO she hardly knew I was taking it.  Just natural. :)

Here is my free spirit!

And D, just looking cute!

Again, looking cute, however, with a tiny bit of mischief...

that's my boy, with his stinker smirk! :)

And these little people make me so happy!

spring photos

just wanted to get out a few pics tonight before I hit the hay!

a little self photo with the timer...

a little blurry and bad lighting (our basement), but we like it!

we spent the afternoon at the park with scooters and bikes.

D thought it best to fly instead though.  So he FLEW, and FLEW...

all over the park.

We got his hair cut again later that night...

My poor kids...the result of having a mom who loves photography and is trying to learn the skill more and more is that they are often the subject of my photos, willing or not so willing.  I really wanted to try and get some fun spring shots of all the kiddos.  They mostly were alright, but that 2 yr old of mine was definitely and UNWILLING participant this day.

one of these things is doing it's own thing...

He warmed up just a bit, 

but mostly he spent the time telling me how it was his turn to take a picture.

My boys!  and I think they are just the handsomest!

and the boys again!

D, showing S some 'tude.  She is used to it, and doesn't mind, she just laughs it off.

and the girls...aren't they darling, sweet things...

and here they are again.

I have some individual shots that turned out pretty good as well, but I didn't want to post them all tonight.  I also really wanted to get some more Easter shots up soon.  So we'll see.

Happy Spring!

home sweet home... (photos)

AHHH! Blogger (for those of you who get this via email, blogger is the site that I use for my blog) changed format a little, and it took little bit to get my pictures on here and where I wanted them.  But here they are!  BAM!

This week...
lots of laundry...

one of my least favorite parts of any trip is the loads and loads of laundry that await.
(Really horrible photo, bad lighting and blurry...but that is what I have for the day.)

lots of love...

D developed an even stronger bond with A while we were gone... 

and it was cute to see him mauling her a bit as they watched TV.

loads of eggs... (with candy)

I make my kids help stuff the eggs.  

They have fun, it makes it go by MUCH faster, and in the end there is probably less candy to stuff as a result!  hahaaa!

lots of vinegar and food coloring...

We made our own egg dye this year, and I wanted to try all sorts of creative egg decorating techniques that I read in Martha Stuart and that I had seen on the web at the Family Fun site, but they were all a bust due to condensation on the eggs.  Next year, we will get it right, we just have to have the eggs out for a bit so they don't form condensation as they await the dye.  We still have fun and the eggs were colored and the children loved it!

always tons of time on the heater vent...

Oh the cursed heater vent...J will sit on this for hours.  Of course I get it...it is warm and comfy, but it drives me a little crazy when he sits on it instead of getting ready for school, cleaning his room, going to sleep, etc.  I have even moved his dresser to cover the heater vent (I am such a mean mom :D ), but the painters didn't put it back there.  When he saw it uncovered he was thrilled.

lots of tears...(not that you can see in this picture)

Awww, my darling little D.  Oh how he wants to grow up and be just like his big brother.  This day he heard me telling J that he needed to get ready for baseball practice, so D immediately started getting ready himself, running around gathering up baseball apparatus including his Dad's hat, and saying things like, "I ready to to baseball practice," etc.  Then as soon as Mike came home to get ready himself, Mike told D that he couldn't go, and D broke out into tears, he came to me to tattle, "Mommy, Dad says no!" and the cry-fest began.  He was so so sad. 

lots of strumming on the ukulele...

I brought home a ukulele from Hawaii.  It is a big hit among the kids.

oh...to spend a week in paradise...

but before I get to paradise...mmmmm home made guacamole!
and we LOVE homemade guacamole!

The mess I created on my bed while trying to pack.

See, I function oddly while preparing for a trip--I can't pack for myself until all (or nearly all) the laundry in the house is done. So, and this happens on every trip, the day or two before we leave I do a massive laundry washing. It drives Mike crazy, that I have to clean and the like (priority B, as Mike says) before we leave, instead of focusing on priority A, doing things immediately related to our trip. Oh well, the kids had ALL their clothes clean while we were gone.

And with 2-3 hours of sleep the night before, Mike and I packed our bags and left for Kauai, or paradise as we lovingly refer to the island. With the help of some good friends here, Misty and Phil, and then Vanessa and Chris, our children were in great hands while we were gone. With a tearful goodbye, D crying and asking "Can I go wiss you", causing me to cry, which then caused J to cry, I handed the babe off and ran out the door before I caused yet another child of mine to cry. I hate to leave them, and miss them terribly while away.

oh yeah baby--and we're off (and no, we were not in first class, that was just when I took the picture)

day 1 in paradise... golfing...

we got there a day earlier than MOST of the people from Mike's work...so we spent the day golfing (Mike) and chilling in the golf cart (me) with a few others who arrived the same day. it was a gorgeous day. Can't complain about riding around in a golf cart on a course as fabulous as Poipu, with it's incredible views of the beach. The other wives read, as I fiddled with my camera, read a camera book, and learned a few new things. I also got scolded for talking as they were teeing off, and asking Mike to stop mid swing...big no no...so I could take a picture. I guess I have some golf etiquette to learn.

day 2 in paradise...helicopter ride...

we took a helicopter tour of the island and it was AMAZING! We cruised around the coast, saw a ton of beautiful waterfalls, the gorgeous beaches, then clear into the center of the island. It was fabulous!

oh, did I mention the helicopter was DOORLESS!!!

day 3 in paradise...surf lessons...

{insert picture of me rocking the surf board...}

A nicely tanned and fit local kid gave us surf lessons...

We rented boards and spent the day surfing. It was SO SO much fun. honesty, if we lived somewhere I could surf, I think I might take it up as a new hobby. We all loved it. I got rocked by the waves and knocked around by my board once or twice, but I managed to get up and stand on some waves. I just didn't have MY camera, so the pictures I took that day are on a friends camera, and I am counting on her to email them to me.

day 4 in paradise...church and chlling...

went to church in paradise

sang "Aloha Oe" and I actually got teary eyed, which totally caught me off guard. (we sang this song at my mom's funeral)

enjoyed a relaxing day at the pool while Mike did his fantasy draft--thank goodness for poolside wifi.

took a picture from my room balcony as the sun was setting. I loved the lighting and how it hit the trees. It also shows the wind, which was a constant in paradise this time.

day 5 in paradise...shopping and ATVing...

and a photo of a cool tree

I shopped with the girls, and then we did a ATV tour into the heart of the island. great fun!

day 6 in paradise...Mike golfed, and I shopped...
lame that I forgot to take a photo today while I was out...so I snapped a photo of the moon after Mike and I returned from dinner.

day 7 in paradise...a fond farewell...
a photo of the same moon, jut at 6:30 in the morning as we were leaving paradise. I was ready to come home and smooch on my kids. It was a great break and nice trip, but life must go on, in the real world.

the kiddos were with Misty most of the time, at our house, then hers, as it was their spring break. Chris and Vanessa had them for a bit too. THANK you!! We know it takes a lot to watch the extra 4 kids, so thanks so so much!!

I hope to post more pictures soon of our trip, but for now...this is all. :D