Remodel

This is what we have had to resort to in order to save the few remaining dishes we have left in our house that have not been thrown off and shattered by unimaginably fast little hands and climbers. The rule in our house now is you CANNOT leave the table unless every one of the dishes is cleared and you have tipped over your chair. If you forget to tip your chair over, you clean up the mess that will 100% of the time follow (example...just last night we lost another cup and an almost full bottle of jam, dad had to clean up)!

All garbages are now on the table and below is the last remaining plant that I have not removed or taken downstairs. Notice the four poor remaining leaves left. I guess this plant will symbolize my dying attempts to try and keep something nice left in the house. Once the last leaf falls I will force myself to just accept my fate and quite trying for the time being.

So this is a small sampling of the makeover my home has been through the last couple of months since the boys have learned to walk, run, and climb. These changes do not show however, the constant disasters that are taking place. The most fun recently has been Hayden, who has found pure joy in first going to the toy box and throwing every toy, with great force, out of it. When he gets that completely cleared he usually starts laughing, thoroughly pleased with himself. He will then continue to the drawers of the two dressers we have in the living room and throw every book and game out of them. Next, he moves on to the kitchen and proceeds to throw all of the dish rags and cloths out of their drawer and all of the pans from under the stove. He will accomplish all of this in about a ten minutes time, usually while I am trying to make dinner or help the girls with their homework and am just too tired to try and stop him (for the 20th time that day). We've also had to remove the little kids chairs we had in the dinning room because they can now scoot those to where ever they want, usually the kitchen counters, and grab and throw anything they can get their hands on. My once nicely furnished house is depleting very quickly. Despite the insaneness of it all the boys are so much fun and a complete joy to have around (especially when sleeping)!

Desperation

So this is the start of Jeff trying to influence his boys into becoming wrestlers. It's a good thing he is starting early because it might take a lot of coercing. I think he might have more of a chance with Canyon but Hayden it's not looking so good. He LOVES balls and throwing. They both love balls but Hayden definitely seems to more. When we go to the gym they love to watch the guys playing basketball and the other day Canyon picked up a basketball and walked right under the hoop and looked up. He knew exactly where it should go. I guess only time will tell, but I think Jeff will have his work cut out for him if he wants wrestlers.

First and almost the Only

Here are some pics from our first family ski outing of the winter, and sadly it was almost the only. After this great snow fall in Nov we had some crazy 40 above weather and rain that proceeded to melt almost all our snow and then it turned freezing cold and we have not recieved any snow since. Out of desperation we went for a ski over Thanksgiving but there was barely enough snow to cover the rocks and since Thanksgiving we have had below feezing temps almost every day. Example, it is -36 now as I type so it has been impossible to get the kids out. So needless to say we are VERY anxious to go home for the holidays where we can finally get out and play!

Ring Around The Rosies

This is one of the boy's favorite games to play and play and play. Thank goodness for AWESOME big sisters!

Being 8 is Great

So this is WAY overdue, but despite being horribly late I still wanted to post a little about our wonderful daughter who turned 8 on Oct. 30th.

I can't believe our little girl is 8 years old. Ali turned 8 on Oct. 30, so of course, I'm a little late on writing about this, but she needs to know how much we love her and are so proud of her. Ali is such an amazing girl and is growing too quickly for her mom and dad. She is a wonderful big sister and always includes Saige in everything she does and is sometimes a better mother to the the boys then I am. She loves to play with them and make them laugh and is always watching out for them. She is incredibly smart and loves to read and always tries her hardest to do what's right. Our bishop from church encouraged Ali to pray about the decision to be baptized. In our church children can be baptized at the age of 8, that is the age set forth by our church that children are old enough to start being accountable for their actions. We also encouraged Ali to pray about the decision to be baptized because we wanted it to be her decision and not ours. So she prayed about it for several nights and then came back and told us she felt good inside when she would pray about the decision and wanted to be baptized. We are proud of her for making that important decision. It was also so cute, a few weeks ago she got up in church and all by herself went to the front and shared her testimony about how she knew Heavenly Father and Jesus loved her and how thankful she was for her family and that she could get baptized. We will forever be thankful to have such a sweet, special, beautiful girl as part of our family. We love you Ali!!!

Halloween Fun 2010

Here are some pictures from this year's Halloween.

This one was taken at the girls Halloween Carnival at their school. Canyon is the crying tiger and Hayden the giraffe. The lion was a friend we were watching because her mom was at the hospital having a baby.

My mom sent the girls these great houses to make for Halloween. They had a blast and Saige even took her's to show for show and tell.

These are from the Halloween party they had at our chruch. Here Ali was a unicorn and Saiger the dog. They had fun games for the kids to play and then they got to go around to the class rooms for trick or treating.

It did not take long for the boys to figure out the whole trick or treating thing. Put a bowl of candy in front of them and give them free rein and it was all over!!! It was funny to watch the differences in them. Someone would hold out a bowl or bag and Hayden would go over and take one piece of candy and then here Canyon would come, and before anyone could stop him he would reach in as fast as he could and grab two fistfulls of candy. What a character!

So we didn't go trick or treating on Sunday, but we had our Alaska Grandparents over, the Groses, and had a fun Halloween dinner. The idea for the monser apples and bone bread sticks came from a good friend Tammy, who had us over for a Halloween lunch, and the ghostly goolosh I found on the internet. We then let the girls go trick or treating to the doors in our house and called it good for Halloween this year. Whew!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Jeff had a meeting this past Friday night so the girls and I decided to make this funny video for something to do. We're excited the holidays are here!

Ice Skating

We did our first ice skating on Oct. 18th this year. We have this great pond just down the road from our house that is perfect for the kids to skate on. We met up with some friends and after a little shoveling had our ice rink cleared and the fun was on. Saiger did great for having only skated a couple times last year. We should be strapping on the skiis pretty soon next!

The boys had fun being pulled around in the sled. Hayden in front, Canyon behind.

For Brando, my Mom, and Anyone who's Bored

One of my brother's, Brandon, has just left to serve a mission for our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (if you would like to learn more about our church you can check out their great website at http://www.lds.org/), in Tempe, Arizona. He lived with us this summer while he worked here in Fairbanks saving money for his mission. Anyway, we won't get to see him for two years so I'll be trying to put some videos and a few more pics so he can keep up and see how our crazy clan is growing. Most of them aren't really about anything, just a chance for him and my mother to see the kids in action. We miss you Brando and hope you're doing great!

Love that Face

Here some pics of the boys, mostly Canyon, and what they look like after every meal. Most meals consist of food but others, like below, can range from dirt, rocks, dog food, leaves, poop (I know, it's too gross to talk about), and crayons. Canyon trying to look all grown up by sporting a dashing Go-T.

Hayden, by far, is the least messy of the two and usually stays pretty clean during meals and eats his food more slowly and carefully. Canyon on the other hand can finish a whole banana in two bites, not to mention he thinks he's pretty funny!

Canyon, need we say more!

Winter Is Here

Winter I'm afraid is officially here. We received our first snow on Oct. 6th and it has pretty much stayed. The boys at first weren't sure about it, they mostly didn't like being bundled up or having their hands covered, but they soon learned the value of gloves. We also managed to build I think the first snowman we have built in Alaska. Usually our snow is very dry and imossible to pack but it warmed up enough that with a lot of work we were able to construct our first AK snowman!

Trying to figure out all this white stuff and why it is so darn cold!

Hayden and Frosty

Mystery Solved and Resolved

Ali before surgery with her stuffed dog they let her bring in with her.

We have FINALLY figured out a huge mystery that has been going on in our family for over two years now and even though it ended up being a little scary for Ali it turned out to be a huge relief and blessing. So Ali has been dealing with these bad stomach pains since she was five. We took her in to the doc over two years ago and they did tests and xrays but could never find anything. Our doc did mention that it could be food related and suggested we try taking her off dairy or wheat. I couldn't even fathom the whole wheat/gluten thing so we decided to try the dairy and started with milk. It seemed to help immediatley and we thought we had figured it out. But over the last two years, despite no milk she would still continue to get these pains but they were so random and varied in length that we could never figure out what she ate or what was causing them. Despite when, they were always very painful and she would usually spend the next one to three days doubled over in pain and keeping her up at night. The poor girls, we would always just say, well try going to the bathroom, or drink some water, or you must have had too much icecream, yadda yadda yadda. Well, about two weeks ago they came really bad and for about five days. She had to miss school and was very misserable. I was so sick of this I decided we were going to get to the bottom of it once and for all. I had never had her officially tested for any food allergies and decided we needed to get it done and figure out what foods were causing the havoc. I called our doc and she said she wanted to take a look at her and do some tests and if they came back with nothing she would send us to the allergy doc. I was a little annoyed because I just wanted to skip this useless step. We had done all these test several times before and they never showed anything. Well I agreed and brought her in and of course she asked all the same questions, is she nervous or anxious at school, does she stress or try to be perfect? No, no, no, she's in second grade!

OK, to try and make this long story not so short the doc basicly had no idea what was going on and of course the blood work came back fine but she did want to do an ultrasound to make sure everything was fine on the inside. Again, I thougt was pointless because she had had xrays done and found nothing, but again I agreed. So Jeff took her in on Thursday, two weeks ago, for the ultrasound and lo and behold they discover she has a HUGE gall stone in her gall bladder. Who would have ever know, but FINALLY! So because she was so young there was no surgeon in Fairbanks who could perform the surgery, she had to have her gall bladder removed, we had to go to Anchorage to a specialized pediatric surgeon. It just so happed that that next week on Tuesday we were going to Anchorage anyways for a conference Jeff had there and the surgeon was able to squeeze us in for our consoltation on Wednesday. At that meeting the surgeon said this was indeed the cause of incredible pain and need to be removed ASAP so he said how about tomorrow. So after some very hectic scambling one of our friends, our heaven sent angel, Leisel, said she could watch the boys and Saige for the entire day while I was in the hospital with Ali. Jeff couldn't miss his conference so he couldn't be of any help. So last Thursday Ali had her gall bladder removed by an amazing surgeon who was fantastic and it went great. It has been almost two weeks now and she has done great. We are just so thankful to finally have this figured out and that it was something that could be fixed with just a minor surgery and not something that she might have to deal with the rest of her life, if it had been a food issue. Every doctor we came across said this is almost unheard of in someone her age, and those that do have it so young she doesn't have any of the conditions that might have caused it. So it was a very freak thing and the poor girl has had to deal with it for over two years before it was finally discovered but to try and make it up to her, as soon as she could, we let her have a big bowl of icecream. Since she's never had an issue with milk this entire time. So whew, there,s our mystery and how thankful we are that it is resolved.

Side note: you can live just fine without a gall bladder!

Fun Fall Pics

I have to hurry and post a few fall pictures because of what is next and all ready here. We did have a beautiful fall that lasted about two weeks longer then last year, three weeks this year, so we can't complain too much. I just feel bad for the boys. They love to be outside and have only in the last month or so really been able to get around on their own so this will be a tough blow for them. Canyon checking out his first real leaf pile

Hayden trying to decide if leaves are more fun to play with or eat.

Our cute leaf rakers taking a break

Canyon on the left, Hayden on the right

Fun in the leaves

2010 Hunting Recap

It was quite the hunting season this year. Jeff really got to enjoy one of the perks of working as a teacher, hunting season off. Even though he did way more packing than he did shooting it was still some very memorable and exciting times had by all. Jeff's Dad and brother Clint came up the first week of the season and on their last day, of four they both shot this ram. His Dad on one end and Clint on the other. Jeff played Sherpa which was to hint the theme for this seasons hunting adventures.

Packing out animal number one!

The second week his brother Bart came up to do a caribou and sheep hunt. Bart drew a very hard to get caribou tag, along with myself. We were all suppose to go caribou hunting for four days but as I'm sure you have heard the story by now I was able to go the first day and then spent my next three in the hospital with Hayden. So I was here when Bart shot his first caribou and that was exciting. They spent the next three frustrating days looking for sheep in the clouds.

My super man packing out Bart's caribou, animal number 2. Sometimes he does let us carry a little!

The next week my wonderful, did I mention wonderful, friends Dana and Lance watched the kids for two nights so that I could have another chance at getting my caribou. This HEAVEN sent caribou showed up right as we were about to call it quits and I was able to shoot my first caribou, almost minus my husband, who shocker, was busy looking at sheep.

Jeff packing my boo out, animal number 3, but of course I was there as well and experiencing the heaviest pack I have ever had to carry.

Then almost last but not least, here is a picture of Jeff's sheep HE was able to shoot this year. This was suppose to be the half day hunt that turned into a two and a half day hunt, that let to a very good friend coming to his rescue, Keith Clark, again. Forcing the two of them to miss church, again, plus share one sleeping bag and a one person tent for the night, plus forcing us to seek refuge an unexpected night with poor Jessie and causing us to miss church in Fairbanks. Not that it's that big of deal except I had to teach a class. So to put it in Jeff's words, not mine at all, "This was the dumbest thing he had ever done!" But with it all said and done he did come away with a beautiful sheep and some new rules that he now must abide by or he is not allowed to hunt! No packing pics on this one, animal number 4, need to get them from Keith still.

To FINALLY wrap it up, the next week he returned to Healy to go moose hunting with Keith and helped him pack out his moose, animal number 5!

Hunting season 2010 is OVER!!!!!

Wildflowers

Some pictures from a day spent at the gardens at the university

If you can't tell them apart yet, Hayden on left, Canyon on right

Our beautiful wildflowers!

Here is Saige on her first day of kindergarden. I can not believe she is old enough, but then whoever can. She was so excited though and could not wait to ride the bus home with Ali. Ali is such a good big sister and is always looking out for Saige, they are such good friends, most of the time! We are so blessed to have such wonderful girls and kids.

A Day at the Fair

During the week Jeff was hunting with his Dad and brother, I took the girls to the fair. We met some friends from Denali and had a fun day visiting the animals, riding the rides, and looking at the exhibits. Next year it will be Jeff's turn to experience the fun and I'll be out hunting!

Ali and Saige with the bunnies

Canyon with a bunny

Hayden making friends with a goat

Ali, Saige, and friend Riley getting ready to ride the Ferris Wheel

Ali and Saige riding the little, but very fast roller coaster. They are the second from the front.