I'M RELATED TO A STAR!

Yes, it's true, I am related to a superstar. Today will be his bid debut, and there will be thousands flocking to see him. "Who is this most amazing superstar?" you ask. Well, let me give you a hint. The first name is INDIANA!

Now before you fall to pieces and drool all over yourself thinking I am related to Harrison Ford, let me correct you. I am indeed related to THE INDIANA, but he is someone more important and incredible than Harrison Ford. Who be this VIP? It is my nephew, Henry Alden "INDIANA" Green.

My sister-in-law, Mandy is a movie FREAK! She LOVES Star Wars and Indiana Jones. What do these two movie series have in common? Harrison Ford of course. When she married my brother Brent she let it known that one of her children would be named after this most handsome of stars. Thus the name "Indiana" was chosen when their 2nd child was born.

You may ask, "So?" Well, today is my nephew, Indiana's 7th birthday. I don't think it coincidence that he was name after the infamous Indiana Jones, or that today is opening night for the movie, "Indiana Jones: The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."

It is such a big deal that newspapers all over the state have been coming to interview young Indy, who with his trusy bull-whip in hand (which is real by the way), confidently shows his whipping skills.

You can read the 1st article on him posted in the Daily Herald at: http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/267493/17/ You can also check out more of Indy doing his "Indiana Jones" poses at http://brentandmandygreen.blogspot.com/

Yes, I feel priveldge to be related to such an amazing person. Indiana Green is a star in my eyes and has so much more endearing qualities that will forever remain with me, more so than the so-called star of the newest Indiana Jones movies (although Harrison Ford is still pretty much up there in my "Most Hottest of Hot Guys" book)

Love Ya INDIANA! Happy Birthday to one of my favorite, most bravest heros!

WELLSVILLE MILE!

On Wednesday, Stoney had the chance to compete in the Wellsville Mile. What is the Wellsville Mile you ask? Well, apparently it is a race for 4th & 5th graders in the Cache Valley School District. This race has been going on since "the beginning of time" according to our neighbor. She grew up in this area and competed in it when she was this age, which was quite some time ago since she is a grandma now. It's a way to promote healthy living and staying physically active.

Apparently, this is race is pretty well known. The official Timer for the Boston Marathon loves this race and what it promotes so he comes and volunteers his services and times the races for free. How AWESOME is that!

The students have been training for the past 6-weeks, increasing their indurance and strength. Stoney had the fastest time (by 2 sec. - 6.45) for all the 4th grade boys in the district coming into the race. He was excited about that, and knew he would do a good job.

The day of the race was CRAZY! There were kids running around everywhere, parents, grandparents & siblings lining the sidewalks, and police ars & orange cones placed at street corners. You would have thought everyone was getting ready for a grand parade.

They had the 4th grade girls compete first. There were three heats for each grade / gender. Which ever heat the child competed in was determined by his / her time. The 1st heat was for slower times, 2nd heat for average times, and 3rd heats for the faster times. Stoney competed in the 3rd heat for 4th grade boys. Peity, Brody and I made bright signs to cheer Stoney on. We had a great time making them.

It came time for Stoney's heat, and he was a little nervous. He was so excited his dad was able to come watch him, and it was fun hearing Brett give Stoney last minute tips to help Stoney run a better race. There were about 30 boys in Stoney's heat -at least. The gun went off and Stoney was on his way. He began sprinting, and unfortunately ran out of gas a little sooner than we thought. As he came around for the 2nd lap, he had dropped behind, but he was stilling doing great.

We held up the signs high & cheered him on as loud as we could. The finish line was exciting and we were anxious to see our little guy rounding the corner and starting his "kick." He was able to pass a few people and ended up coming in 10th in his heat & 20th out of 98 4th grade boys. HE DID FANTASTIC!

We were so proud of him. He ran a great race, and he learned a lot. He was a little disappointed because he was expecting to do a little better, but he realized he started out too fast, and he also got trapped in a big group of boys and ended up getting pushed into the ditch, but he had a great time.

Next year, he wants to train a little harder and gain tips to get a better time. If you're ever out this way during the 2nd week of May stop by the tiny town of Wellsville and cheer on these kids as they run a fantastic race.

WAY TO GO STONEY!

WE'RE SO PROUD OF YOU!

News Flash! - What We Do For Our Kids!

The Daily News Team!

Corky Davenport - Head Anchor: Cassidey Harward

Stone Henge LeFever - Investigative Reporter: Stoney Harward`

Cotton McMurphy - Sports: Gunner Harward

Pixie VanPelt - Weather: Peighton Harward

Announcer / Sheriff / Dave "Smelley-socks" Strykes: Brett Harward

Videographer / Opening Theme Song: Cammie Harward

Bet you didn't know our kids were T.V. Celebreties did you? Yes, well neither did we until Cassidey so conveniently mentioned a few days ago that she had a Power Point Presintation (say that 3xfast) due for school. How wonderful! We shouted praises of joy over the fact that we didn't have weeks to compile her report, instead we had just 3 short days! I'm so glad Cassidey was thinking of us and not wanting to bother us with time. According to Cassidey, this report wasn't due for a LONG time, well this LONG time happens to be tomorrow! Can you say, "HOLY CRAP!" and because she waited so long, she changed from using Power Point to just wanting to video tape it. What a GEM!

Tonight, after Cassidey so willingly leaped up the stairs to work on homework, she sat right down and began working on her presentation, which happens to be a report on adoption, and adoption thru the Black Market. She decided to do a news report, which I thought was a creative idea -at least that was my feelings last week. Today, I was ready to find the first article on adoption or Black Market and plagerize the crap out of it. Finally at 9pm the script was done. I quickly editted it and we set our acting skills in motion. Well, it worked out AWESOME!

Her brothers & sister were such great sports to pitch in and be anchor people (is that the politically correct phrase?). We tried to get them to ham it up, but we didn't start recording until 10pm! The kids were EXHAUSTED! We finally finshed at 10:40pm, the kids were dragging themselves to bed, with a smile on their face for a job well done.

The News Report turned out great, and who knows, maybe someday you'll see one of them on The Today Show with Matt Lauer, or Good Morning America, or CNN. Hey, it could happen! Either way, it was a great way to spend our Sunday evening together as a family (except Brody who went to bed early - maybe next time Bro.)

I'm Baggy Eyes signing out!

SPRING BREAK - 2008!

Ahhhhh Spring Break. A time for a much need rest from the labors and stresses of school life. A time of staying up late, a time to PAR-TAY with friends, and if your lucky, a time to go somewhere warm -say like Hawaii- especially if you live in the Rocky Mtns., and have had the winter we have had. And if you have really cool parents -which Brett and I so aren't.- Disneyland or better yet, DisneyWorld would make the ultimate Spring Break vacation!

Well, I'm happy to say, the Harward Gang did it ALL! except go somewhere warm, cause well, we're lame and we have 5 kids, bills, and clothes and food to buy, so we stuck with the surrounding attractions. My kids are so jipped. :P Here are our top 20 things we'll remember about SPRING BREAK 2008 !

SPRING BREAK TOP 22 COUNTDOWN!
#1: Spending time together as a family! THE BEST THING OF ALL!

#2: American West Heritage Center's L'il Buckaroo Rodeo & Mutten Busting (in short, cheering for our kids as they hung on for their lives as they rode for over 16 sec. on the back of a sheep!)

#3: Hearing each of the kids BEGGING for us to BUY an animal - any animal, it didn't matter. (sheep, rabbit, chicken, calf, llama - I kid you not, these animals were all for sale.)

#4: Watching the boys try and CATCH a turkey, a chicken, and all other sorts of birds.

#5: Brody's SMILE from ear to ear as he road a horse for the very first time.

#6: Watching Peity RE-INACT scenes from the movie, "FLASHDANCE" as she got her "GROOVE THANG" on at the water fountains at LAGOON!



#7: Seeing the look on Cassidey's face when we told her she was allowed to go off ON HER OWN -WITHOUT parents!

#8: Feeling every MUSCLE in Brody's body SHAKE on each decent of the tidal wave. (I'm thinking he's going to need therapy after that ride.)

#9: Hearing Brody scream, "I WON!" at the end of his turn on the bumper cars!





#10: Laughing our heads off when Stoney, Gunner & Shanna were being CHASED by a wandering GOOSE.

#11: Seeing the excitement on Gunner's face when he realized he was TALL ENOUGH to go on all but 2 rides!

#12: Watching Stoney run through the park like he was on a never ending sugar high - excited that he had made every "HEIGHT RESTRICTION"!

#13: Happy that Brett didn't end up "SPEWING" in one of LAGOON'S trash cans from going "around, and around, and around......"

#14: Seeing the barred white teeth of a SIBERIAN TIGER as he growled, and crouched down, like he was ready to pounce.

#15: Hearing Peity giggle & say, "I have a FUNNY IN MY TUMMY!" as she dropped down from the Dino Egg & Lady Bug Drop rides.



#16: Seeing the LOOK on face as we rode side-by-side on a LAGOON icon - THE CAROUSEL - PRICELESS!



#17: Riding on RATTLESNAKE RAPIDS, again, and again, and again......

#18: Forgetting that the temperature was only 55-DEGREES AFTER we were done riding Rattlesnake Rapids.

#19: Seeing LAGOON'S biggest MONEY MAKER as we came off of Rattlesnake Rapids, a gift shop filled with DRY sweatshirts, DRY t-shirts, DRY ponchos, etc. How convenient!

#20: The LONG WALK back to our car in DRIPPING WET clothes! (I swear we walked over 5 miles!)

#21: Feeling LUCKY we didn't come down with pneumonia. Hypothermia... YES! But pneumonia... no!

#22: Having made some AWESOME MEMORIES with our kids! Again, THE BEST THING OF ALL!

As you can see, Spring Break 2008 was a success! Unfortunately, the kids got ahold of my camera and deleted ALL my pictures, but luckily I still have a few videos to remember this great weekend.

OWL SKAT!

Gunner is in 2nd grade and such an inquisitive little guy, always wanting to know how things work, where things come from or how it was made, especially when it comes to animals, so needless to say this last unit of study he did in class was right up his alley.

His class has been studying a few different units; 1. the body, which included: bone structure, shape, how they grow, and how to keep them healthy; and 2. studying the habits of different animals, and learning if they slept during the day or at night. They were able to combine these two units while they studied Owl droppings! You heard me right, Owl droppings, better known as POOP!

Gunner talked about this for days, and was worried when we decided to go out of town for a few days that he was going to miss the day when they would dig through the droppings to find out what they ate. Fortunately he didn't.

A few days ago, when I picked the kids up from school, Gunner immediately jumped in the van and couldn't wait to show me his latest picture. I looked at it, and couldn't believe what I was looking at, a skeleton of a Vole, which apparently is a cross between a mole and a mouse. This is what Gunner found in his owl's droppings.

Gunner thought it was the coolest thing ever, and I, well, when I was his age, I would have felt the same way, but now, it's a little wierd to be preparing dinner and as I go to open the fridge there, staring me in the face is the skull of a Vole (it still has a little bit of fur on it - excuse me as I shudder).

I'm not sure how long we need to keep our "Pet Vole" up, but it's been fun watching Gunner's excitement day by day as he learns more and more about the body and animals.

Learning is AWESOME!

A SOLEMN ASSEMBLY!

What a wonderful weekend it has been. So many memorable things have taken place over the past two days, the best, hearing from our newest prophet, Thomas S. Monson speak to us for the first time as prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

What a blessing it has been to watch the 178th LDS General Conference, and be part of the Solemn Assembly where I raised my hand along with member's throughout the world as we sustained Pres. Monson, his counselors, and other leaders of the church.

Although I've heard Pres. Monson speak many times thoughout my life, hearing him speak to us today as our prophet was something I will remember throughout my life. What a remarkable man he is, and what an incredible prophet, and president of the LDS church he will be.

Each talk that was given was truly inspired. At times I felt as if their words were being spoken directly to me. Hearing the testimonies of so many of our church leaders was uplifting. They increased my testimony, and gave me knew insight on what I need to do to increase and strengthen it.

How I love this gospel. How I love that we have a true and living prophet who speaks to us today, one who is in constant contact with our Father in Heaven. What a time to be alive and be able to raise and teach our children, -the "chosen generation", helping to prepare them to fight and endure the temptations of this world.

Yes, this has truly been a memorable and wonderful weekend.

BARTHOLOMEWS! - BFF!

Ahhhhh, the Bartholomew's! - Brian, Jozianne, Andrea, Jane & Emily! These are some of our most favorite people ever and they happen to be our best friends!Since our move from Colorado to Utah 3 months ago we have missed them soooooo much. Our families get along so well, and Jozianne and I are like sisters! Man I love that gal! Well, this past week we are lucky enough to have them spend a few days with us.

We decided to go to Eden (just outside of Ogden) to Wolf Mountain Wyndham Resort. Although it was cold and snowy we all had a great time sitting around playing games, eating, laughing, playing the Wii, wrestling, playing raquetball, pool, staying up late, and just plain having a good time.

On Saturday, Jozianne and I were able to take Emily & Cassidey to the General YW Broadcast. Jozianne had gotten us tickets to attend it live at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City. I had never been there before and was not prepared to see the immenseness of the conference room. If I remember right, the conference center seats over 100,000 people. It's incredible.

We were able to hear from the General YW's Board (Sis's. Susan W. Tanner - Pres., Elaine S. Dalton - 1st Coun., Mary N. Cook - 2nd Coun.) as well as from Pres. Henry B. Eyring (1st Coun. to Pres. Monson). The theme for this year's meeting is "I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable" (Mosiah 5:15). The spoke of standing strong in the face of adversity and temptations. To have the light from within to guide and direct us in the way God and Jesus Christ would want us to go. They were wonderful talks, as well as inspired words which Heavenly Father wanted his daughters to hear. It was a special night to spend with Cassidey and to bond with her and spend some quality time together.

After the broadcast, we went to a place called "Spoon Me." It was sort of like an ice cream place, but the "ice cream" was nothing I've ever tasted before. It's kind of like a very tart sorbet that is very, very cold. Apparently they say this "treat" comes from the asci (ahh - sigh - ee) berry found in the rainforests of Brazil. They say it has a lot of antioxydents so it's actually healthy for you to eat (plain that is - not with any of the toppings you can put on it). It was pretty good. Apparently Cassidey & Emily thought it was so good that they had to have seconds. All-in-all it was a great evening spent with my daughter and friends.

Today is not such a great day since we will be saying good bye to our dear friends. They won't be heading home today, but we won't be able to see them for quite awhile. The Bartholomews have played such a huge part in our family. They have been there for us through good times and bad. They are always there with open arms and making us feel a part of their family. We have been so blessed to be their friends, and are grateful this is a friendship that will last FOREVER!LOVE YA! BARTHOLOMEW'S!

Of course one of the entries that would do well with pictures will not happen because I forgot my stinkin' camera - AGAIN! I swear I just need to clip the thing onto my key chain, that way I'll always have it with me.

Kissed By The Sun!

To say that I wear makeup would be telling a HUGE lie. In almost 18-years of marriage I have literally spent no more than $75 on makeup, but last week I spent that much in one big selfish splurg! I only end up wearing makeup on Sunday's. I do this for two reasons, 1. Because I hate the makeup I have. 2. So that during the week, Brett will look at me and think I'm beautiful, and then when Sunday rolls around, I walk out to head to church and smile as his jaw hits the floor because he thinks I'm the HOTTEST BABE that has ever walked the eart.

It's not so much that I hate makeup, cause I see some women with makeup on who look beautiful, and sometimes I wish I could look like that. But then I remember how much time it probably took to look like that and the thought of wearing makeup is gone in a flash. If anything takes longer than 6-min. to apply, it's so not worth it in my mind. I have too many things I need to put my time to instead of applying makeup. That is why my hair is massively short so that I can shower, blow dry, apply a little product and be done in under 5 min. LOVE IT!

The only makeup I have ever really wanted to buy was makeup from BareMinerals. I've seen it advertised several times on the internet and thought it sounded so great! All you had to do was "SWIRL, TAP, & BUFF". There's no heavy creams or liquid's, just a tiny bit of all natural powders and you'r done. I thought, "Now that's my kind of makeup!"

I've wanted this stuff for the past couple years, but could never bring myself to make the call. Then, as I was reading my friend Xochi's blog, I was looking at her favorite things list and low & behold there was a link to the stuff. I took this as a "sign" so I clicked and ordered.

It came yesterday, and today I used it for the first time! Let me tell you, it's as AWESOME as they say it is. I love it! It took me all of about 10-min. to apply, but that time will drop since I now know what I'm doing and don't have to read the instructions.

I decided to put it on my mom to see how she would look, and holy cow, it was amazing! She's 74-years old and looks great for her age, but she does have aged skin, and has the broken capillaries on her cheeks and stuff. It totally covered it all, and it didn't even look like she was wearing makeup!

I look like I've been KISSED BY THE SUN!!! If it's really this easy, I may just look like a SUPER HOT BABE from here on out! Thanks Xoch for having it on your blog - Love Ya! Yeah for BareEscentuals! http://bareescentuals.com/

Catching Up

It's been a while since I've been able to posts due to the fact that our computer decided to go "postal" so I will try and get myself caught up on what's been going on in our family's life.

Woman in the Tortilla Mask!


We have a lot of crazy, fun times at our home, and as you can see it doesn't cost a whole lot of $, nor does it take much to create these fun times. We are able to find fun with what ever seems to be laying around. To make this amazing, yet creative craft all you need is a flour tortilla, some good chompers, and a know-how of where face features should go, and wham there you have it, a fun tortilla mask! Make your own today!




TEAM EXTREME!


One of the best things that has happened for Stoney since we moved here was to make it onto his class's geography team. He competed against all the students in his class for 1 of the 7 spots and made it! He was so excited! For the past 6-weeks, the team - TEAM EXTREME! - has studied everyday, learning all about the geography of the world (landforms, flags, states, capitals, continents, fyi's, etc.) This was great for me because many of the things he was learning I didn't know. The whole 6-weeks of studying built up to a competition between all the 4th grade geography teams in Providence Elementary, and the winner of that competition would go on to compete against schools through out the district, and then throughout the state, so it was a pretty big deal for them all.

This past Thursday, March 20, was the big day! Stoney was excited but nervous. They were 2 "quarters" in the competition, each quarter had 15 questions. The first 15 questions Stoney knew all but 2 of the questions, and by the end of the first quarter, TEAM EXTREME! was in the lead, but not by much (86 pts., 85 pts., 84 pts., & 83 pts.)

The next quarter started, and these questions were a little more difficult. All the teams did great, and Stoney tried his hardest along with his teammates. When it was all over, TEAM EXTREME! took 3rd place. They were 4 points away from the 1st place team. According to the principal, this was the closest, and highest scoring Geography Bowl the school had ever had.

Stoney was bummed that his team wasn't able to move on to the next level of competition, but he had a great time, really learned a lot, and most importantly it helped him gain confidence moving into a new school. He did great! Great job Stone! We Love You!

HOPPY EASTER!

We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful Easter than today! It was sunny, and in the 50's! It wasn't necessarily shorts weather, but we didn't have to be bundled up either. The kids were able to play outside and not have to wear boots or gloves. YEAH! Maybe spring really is on it's way.

Our Easter morning started out with Brody waking up, walking out of his bedroom door, noticing the "bunny droppings that were strewn all over the floor, and with a big smile on his face said, "This is AMAZING!" We then let the kids have a healthy breakfast of Candy, Candy, and more Candy! We have got the be either the world's best or worst parents. After you check out the video of Brody eating a Sour Patch Kid it might help you make up your mind.

After the traditional easter egg hunt, and having the kids rumage through all their Easter Basket Fodder, we turned the conversation to where and what it needed to be about - our Savior, Jesus Christ.

We asked each of the kids what Easter meant to them. It was interesting to hear their own responses and how it changed as we went from the youngest to the oldest. when I asked Peity what Easter meant to her she said it meant Jesus died. Brody heard this and said, "Jesus died! I love Jesus!" (if you listen closely to the video, you'll be able to hear it.) It was quite touching, because in his own little 4-year old way, he gave his explanation and testimony of what Easter meant to him.

We attended church and got to hear some wonderful talks about Christ and the sacrifice he made for all of us. We were then able to enjoy family company as my mom, and my brother Evan and his family were here to celebrate with us.

Just like Christmas, Easter lets us truly focus on and appreciate all that our Savior has done for us. It was a wonderful day! I'm grateful for all my Savior has done for me, and that he sacrificed everything so that we all can be resurrected and be together as a family forever!

"Mature" Rated Computer!

It's been a while since I've posted and I have a perfectly good reason... My computer decided to go become a "Mature Audience Only" computer!

It first started a few weeks ago, where it began to run pretty slow. We weren't sure of the reason and it wasn't really doing anything "funny" so we didn't think too much of it. Then we started getting warning that our computer was at risk for viruses. I ran a scan with the security software I had, and according to the software said they had cleaned everything up. Boy was it wrong!

It then began telling me that we were at risk for spyware. I wasn't quite sure of what spyware was, but I was looking for ways to get rid of it when "WHAM!" up pops some of the most aweful pictures I have seen! I was able to stop it, and we didn't use it for a few days. I was still looking for ways to get rid of it.

A few days later, I turned it on, again, the same warnings popped up. I thought I had found the right antispyware to download, when one window of the same stuff as the last time began popping up. I couldn't close them all fast enough. We were so worried that one of the kids would turn it on and see these pictures so we hid the computer until we could take it in to an expert. We were also worried that our identity had been compromised because of some things that were done, so we had to change some things at our bank as well. What a pain!

After 3 days, our computer was back to normal health. It was totally infected with some horrible spyware, and it was hid throughout the computer. The computer "doctors" brought it back to life and here we are... YEAH! Our computer is now back to being "G-Rated!"

Who Knew I Lived In A Wildlife Reserve?

Seeing the beauty of nature and the wonder of wildlife is beautiful, but stepping in it isn't quite as lovely!

Living in Colorado was great over the past 5-years because we got to see wildlife you wouldn't normally see in town, like foxes (is that right?) and hundreds of Canadian Geese that fly overhead almost daily. It was really neat. but today, we got a bird's-eye view of nature close up.

Throughout the winter, you had to watch your step in our backyard due to the large piles of deer "skat" left all over. We wonder if our backyard was used as a "nesting" place for a couple head of deer when they would nest for the night, but we had yet to see any. That all changed today.

While Brett and I were fine tuning our Sunday School Lessons Cassidey suddenly yelled, "Deer!" We looked out our Living Room Window, and sure enough there were two deer, what looked to be a Mama Doe and her Yearling, walking into our yard! They were very cautious and walked very slow as they took their time making their way to our backyard.

We wondered if this happened to be at least some of the deer who had been making themselves comfortable in our backyard. We all watched them, quietly peeking from behind the blinds in our family room and kitchen. They looked directly at us a couple times but kept walking around.

They stayed in our yard for about 15-min., and then took off running & leaping off across our other neighbors yards, and then across the street, out of sight. The kids thought it was the greatest thing to see deer so close up, and Brett and I thought it was a treat as well. I was able to catch a few photos of them. I love living close to the mountains and all the "pluses" that come with it!

The Mark of Zorro Isn't Always A Good Thing!

The legendary character of Zorro and the mark he leaves to those who need a lesson taught to them has come to be known as a sign of comfort and safety among people, but not in my case.

A few days ago I was discussing the newly acquired bags under my eyes with my wonderful husband. These bags are not things that I packed when I moved from Colorado, no, they came all on their own, shipper unknown. I woke up one morning and "WHAM!" there they were! I kid you not! Once in a while, I've had bags under my eye, but again, only once in a blue moon and that was when I have stayed up really late or didn't get much sleep the night before. But now, these succers are determined to stay. It doesn't matter what time I go to bed or how much sleep I get, the puffy, over-packed things are always there, and they last almost all day. I can't stand it!

As I mentioned, I was discussing this fact with Brett when he so lovingly said, "Yes, I've noticed. You have definate crows feet on your eyes, and a really cute mark under one of your eyes that looks like the mark of Zorro." Did he think I was suppose to take that as a tender remark? I mean seriously, I use to look a lot younger than my age, but now.... Holy CRAP! I look like I could be a grandma.

I use to laugh at the commercials the advertised the eye cream or the "filler" creams, and I would think you had to be pretty vain to buy those expensive creams. Well..... guess what! I am now that vain person. I need some major eye cream. Not necessarily a filler, but one that plumps out my wrinkles and shrinks my eye luggages that has so rudely decided to hang around. Who know, I might even try some hemorrhod ointment on those bags to see if it will shrink 'em up! :p I'll let you know how it works out. :o)

A Cool New Addition!

So as I was scrolling through and coveting several blogs, how they look, their designs, colors, ideas, etc., and wishing mine could be like more like theirs, I came across a cool tool from slide.com. It's a Guestbook.

It lets anyone "sign" it and add where they are from. It's especially cool for people like me because if enough people sign it, then it makes me feel like I have TONS of friends from all over! It might work as an instant boost to my self-esteme.

So, scroll down to the bottom of my blog and add your name to my Guestbook Map. Add a picture too if possible. Enjoy. I can't wait to see this guestbook grow!

GIVE ME STRENGTH!

Ahhhhh, life with a teenager! Never before have I felt such tranquility, such peacefulness, such love, SUCH STRONG FEELINGS TO STRANGLE MY OLDEST OFFSPRING! ;p Today happened to be one of those days.

Don't get me wrong, we love our 13-year old with all our heart and soul, she really is a great kid! But then there are times when suddenly without notice the Terrible Teenage Troll appears, takes over her body, and we don't know who or what we're talking to. Her face becomes distorted, there is great gnashing of teeth, her words begin spilling out of her mouth in a high-pitched, ear piercing tone with vocabulary that makes her feel older than she is but yet makes her sound younger than her youngest sibling (who happens to be 4.) And in a blink-of-an-eye, the fearsome troll disappears and our sweet, innocent, playful daughter reemerges and life is good again for another brief second in time. Nothing is ever her fault, and things always seem to go to hell-in-a-handbasket whenever she is overtaken by the gruesome troll - let me tell you, it's AWESOME!

I'm thinking my monthly hair budget will soon be increasing since I will be getting frequent hair colorings to cover up the gray hair I will be growing over the next few years! What am I saying, few years? Try the next 15 years since that is when our youngest will reach the last of the teenage years. OH, HEAVEN HELP ME!

INTRODUCING THE NEWEST 4-YEAR OLD!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR. BROJANGELS!

Brody's Birthday was on March 1st. We were in East Canyon at the time, so we got to celebrate it with family. We had cake and ice cream, but we decided to holdoff giving Brody his main Birthday Gift until we got home. Up at East Canyon we spent his birthday on the sledding hill, which he LOVED! He became brave enough that he didn't wait for Mom or Dad to go with him. If he saw an empty tube or sled (whether it be ours or not) he would hop on and down the hill he went, giggling and laughing. It was quite the sight! I can't wait to sare pictures of these as soon as Brett's dad gets them to us.

For his birthday, he got come K-nex building blocks, which says that it is for ages 3 & above, but after looking at the directions and seeing all the small pieces, it must of been a type-o, or else it meant 3 decades instead of years cause even Stoney, who is 9 was having a hard time putting things together.

He also got a new big wheel, and because we're so rich (:p) we splurged and bought a radio flyer brand. Actually we got it because it was the only big wheel we could find. What's up with that? Don't you remember when we were all kids how popular big wheels were? You could find them anywhere. Our family growing up went through big wheels like they were water. We were even riding them when we were teenagers, and for one of my brothers, he would have races down Provo Canyon at midnight when he was in high school. Well, I guess the days of the sturdy big wheels are gone, cause they are so hard to find now, and when you do find a nice one, they cost an arm and a leg. Oh well, Brody's having fun (along with the rest of the kids), and we thought this might be a better way to teach him how to peddle and use his tiny little muscles.

For someone who has been in this country for only 21-months he's really caught on to the whole birthday thing. Ever since his birthday, he wakes usp screaming, "It's my birthday! Where's my presents?" Seriously, where did he learn that!

He hasn't quite figured out that he is 4 now instead of 3, but that's o.k. We're just happy he's here and a part of our family. He had changed so much over the past 21-months, he really isn't the same kid that was standing in front of our door in Inner Mongolia.

We're so happy he's part of our family! He adds so much to the diversity of our family. Happy birthday big guy!

Winter at East Canyon!

Oh, the joys of spending a winter vacation at East Canyon!

I have been vacationing with Brett & his family at their timeshare since Brett and I were dating. We spend a few days in summertime, a few days in winter, as well as attend a few family reunions. There's about a gazillion kids, lots of snacks, diet Coke, card games, and movies. During the winter, if you're lucky enough to be 16 or older you get to take a dip in the hot tub. Ahhhhh, East Canyon, with its majestic mountain scenery brings with it lots of fun family memories. Here's our latest:

Of course, I forgot my camera, so I was unable to take pictures of the fun time we had, so now I'll have to wait for Brett's dad to pass along the pictures he took. Anyway, this winter "holiday" was spent with a smaller group this time. This year we actually had a TON of snow so sledding was the activity of choice for the kids (if we could get them away from the Wii long enough).

We laughed, A LOT, talked, played "Playground" on the Wii, and DDR, where we really got to shake our groove thang, and had an "adult only" dip in the jacuzzi, until it was raided by a group of 16-year olds that were having a "sweet-16" birthday party. So a hot tub that was almost overflowing with 10 large adults was now flooding with 8 sixteen year old girls clad in "itsy-bitsy-teeney-weeney - well you get the drift," who thought they were all that and a bag of chips! Needless to say, there wasn't much room to move around. The best part of this "activity" was when Brett got a few "Happy Birthday to Me!" surprises from one of the young girls sat on his lap a few times! It was quite comical.

We did have a great time, but it's always fun to come home as well. We now get to sleep in a real bed, not one that is covered with plastic for the "oops" times, and the kids won't be on a 24-hour sugar rush.

Ahhhh, East Canyon! It's truly a vacationing oasis! :P

"Great Clips"...... NOT!

Cutting Hair is a talent, either you have or you don't. I realize stylists have trained long and hard for their license, but just because you have one doesn't necessarily mean you should practice what you trained to do. Let me tell why.....

We took the 4 younger kids to get haircuts yesterday because I wasn't feeling too good. The kids were excited to have their hair cut for the 1st time by a "PROFESSIONAL HAIR STYLISTS." They were anticipating how handsome/beautiful they would all look AFTER the "PROFESSIONAL STYLISTS" were done with their hair.

Well, 15-min. after walkin in to Great Clips, we walked out - I kid you not! And man did my kids hair look amazing! NOT!

When asked if they liked it, they said, "Mom, will you cut our hair next time?" This goes to show you that a license might give you the knowledge, but not necessarily the skills or talent.

I have wanted to go to cosmetology school since I was in 2nd grade. I was a major tomboy growing up, never playing with dolls except only if I could do their hair. My younger sister was the one to play with dolls, and I would secretly take her dolls, sit back, look at their face shape, skin color, ect, and think of what type of hair style would look good on them, then.... CHOP! off came the hair. In 2nd grade I wasn't too good of a stylist, and BARBIE usually ended up being bald or had a very short crew cut. Today though, I do have to admit, I am pretty good with a pair of scissors and clippers.

Next time my kids need hair cuts, I'll put my sick feelings aside and do it myself, saving myself 15-min., and the $45 dollars I had to dish out.

"Holy Coolness Batman - IT'S A LUNAR ECLIPSE!"

I'm sure most of you have better pictures of the Lunar Eclipse that took place last nigt, but I'm still trying to figure out my camera and how it works, so give me a break - sheez!

It's pretty cool to witness a lunar eclipse, even when the temperatures are in the high teens, and your bare feet are frozen to the sidewalk. This was our case while we watched for moments at a time. I didn't have the patience nor enough thermal underwear to allow me to watch the entire thing, but we did check back from time to time to see the progression.

The kids, especially Stoney, thought it was pretty cool! When we called Gunner & Peity to come look at it, they simply looked out the window, said, in a rather dull tone, "Oh, cool," then quickly ran back to what they were doing. I mean, my gosh, couldn't they at least act like it's the coolest thing they've ever seen and want to stay up all night watching the entire movement of the eclipse? What went wrong in my parenting?

From what I read on the internet yesterday, the next Lunar Eclipse will happen again in 2010 - man will I be old!

"GREAT"..... A VISIT FROM FRIENDS!

So this past weekend ROCKED! We were most excited because some of our bestest friends, Jane (aka Janey Waney) & Emily Bartholomew (aka Smellimy Barf all over you) came all the way from Colorado to spend President's Day Weekend with us! Actully, just Emily came from Colorado, Jane is in her 2nd semester at LDS Business College. Brett & I basically think of them as our adopted daughters, since while we lived in Colorado our families were together ALL THE TIME!

Cassidey loved seeing her bestest buddy - "M"! These two girls are two peas in a pod. I swear they were split from the same mold in heaven because they are exactly alike. The other kids couldn't get enough of jumping on them (Peity), hugging them (again Peity), kissing them (Gunner), and pretty much annoying them to DEATH (and again Peity)! They probably left here saying, "Holy Crap - I won't be visiting again any time soon!"

During the weekend we went to see Spiderwick Chronicles (http://www.spiderwickchronicles.com/)! It was AWESOME! It was nonstop action from start to finish, and my kids LOVED IT! It was a bit scarry at times, and I thought for sure my kids would wake up with nightmares, but they didn't, and they said, "It wasn't too scarry for me, Mom!" We had a great time!

Then it was off to The Cache Valley Fun Park, it's like Ghettoville Boondocks, only with indoor activities only, like roller skating, a HUGE soft play area with a wicked slide, the usual video games that spit out tickets and and never work, Lazer Tag - everyone's favorite that night, and bowling, as well as the usual greasy pizza. It was fun for the most part, especially since I didn't come home with too bad of a head ache from the loud music blasting the entire time - HOLY COW! I just realized I've turned OLD!

The rest of the time, we just hung out, got our groove on playing, Dance Dance Revolution on the Wii, and just plain having a great time together. The weekend went too fast because before we knew it, Monday had arrived and we were heading to the airport to drop off Emily, and take Jane to her apartment.

We miss the Bartholomews! (excuse me while I blow my nose and wipe up the tears spilling out of my eyes.) They are our bestest buddies, and wish we could see them more. I told them before we moved to Utah that I was going to find a way to get them to move out here, and I have been trying really hard (any body know of a great paying job in the cheese business here in Cache Valley?)

Anyway, just wanted to share a few pictures and a video of the awesome girls! We miss you Janey Waney & Smellimy Barf all over you!

AMAZING Abstract Photography & NEWS REPORTING!

Oh our ever-so adventerous Peity, who never seems to be at a loss for words, or energy. She has fallen in love with my camera! When ever I can't find her, it's usually because she is off somewhere taking pictures of whatever seems to catch her eye, or what ever seem to have the "right light", which is usually herself. This also goes for video taping. If she can get an audience, or even if she can't, it doesn't matter to her, cause on goes the camera and what ever she can think of, she say or do.

When I first got my camera, I was keeping all the pictures she took, because well hello, it's my child using her imagination and being creative, plus isn't that what a parent is suppose to do, -to treasure, keep and capture ANYTHING their child EVER does, so that when the child reaches the age of maturity you can proudly pass on the 103 boxes of "TREASURES" so that it can now take up room in their own storage closet?

Well, I finally had to take a stand when each time I went to take a picture of a memorous occasion all the memory on my camera had been used up with over 1000 pictures and videos of Peighton talking, Peighton Singing, Peighton's Blanket's, Peighton's stuffed animals, Peighton's shoe, Peighton's hair accessories, Peighton's eye, Peighton's teeth...... Are you starting to get the picture?

I think she really has a knack for photography, she really is quite good. She loves to use different angles, and things. I thought I'd share a few picture's and video that she took the other day. She was really on a role, because in just one day - actually, in a matter of 1 hour, she had taken over 65 pictures and 22 video clippings. So to narrow it down to these was quite hard. By the way, I ended up keeping I think 8 of her pictures and 4 of her video clippings (which 3 of them were the recording of Nickelodian's Fairly Odd Parents - Fairly Odd Baby! -can I be sued for breaking copyright?

With that said, Peighton keeps our life exciting and energized. For someone so tiny to have so much energy is amazing and I can't imagine what our life or family would be like without our Little Princess Pei Pei!

ENJOY!