Fun video

Inception

We are go for Inception... The movie that is. Next Saturday, the 18th, I think. 7pm. Date night. You should know the drill by now. Smiley face.

First Day of School

I realized that I never posted pictures from Wyatt's first day of school! Here they are:

Right before leaving:

And pickup:



AH HAH! I finally remembered my password.

It has been ages since I was able to get on the blog (I am adding it to my "morning coffee" -- a Firefox add-on -- so that I'll get to read it weekly). I found the note where I wrote down my password, so all is well again.

We got our new windows today! They worked very quickly, and all of the old were out and the new in within 2 1/2 hours. They cleaned up after themselves, and we got the "bonus" of having our back porch shoveled for us (until the storm tonight, that is).

Just a bit before Thanksgiving, Liam fell and hit his head on a wood chair. He split his head open, and required 6 staples to get it closed up again. I would post a picture, but I know that there are those who are squeamish that read this blog. He bounced back quite quickly, and claimed that it didn't hurt a bit when they pulled the staples back out. He can be such a brave boy!

We took Liam in to be tested by the Utah Department of Child Development, and the diagnosis is Asperger's Syndrome. We were told that if we get him into a therapy group, there is a good chance that he can learn the social skills that he is currently lacking. The psychiatrist said that while it will never come naturally to him, he can come to recognize the social cues that he otherwise misses and his social life will be only minimally impacted. I was so relieved to hear that. It is apparently a good sign that Liam enjoys being social and has no problem with meeting new people. There are many Asperger's kids that would be content to be pretty much solo all of the time, and are uncomfortable with approaching someone new.

I thought I would have a LOT of news to pass along here, but it seems that this is it (for now). I will be adding pictures of the new windows when my camera battery is recharged and I have light outside. The sun is going down now, and my camera is still charging.

Spaghetti Dinner

Brendan & Katie had a sleep over at our house on November 19th. We had spaghetti for dinner. I only got pictures of Luke & Katie though. The others only stopped playing for a few minutes to eat and I didn't have my camera right then.

The pictures of Alex and Corwin were taken the next time we had spaghetti (Dec. 1). Corwin doesn't like spaghetti sauce, so he eats his noodles plain and this is as red faced as he gets.

Alex, Our Little Rock Band Star!

I just had a few videos to share of Alex playing Rock Band.

Scouting - A Family Affair

Wednesday evenings are big and highly anticipated at our house - at least for the boys! Quint does a great job involving and teaching boys of all ages :-)

Emeline's Baby Blessing

Quint gave Emeline a name & a blessing at church on Sunday, November 7th. He did a wonderful job and thank you to all the family there to support her. We stayed for our meetings and then had dinner back at our home. Corwin, Luke & Alex were very excited to have cousins join them for primary; they could hardly stay in their seats.

Halloween

They said they were scary, but I think Corwin, Luke & Alex were some of the cutest skeletons I've ever seen!

Quint & Emily Family Pictures

On our 18th anniversary, October 16, we went up to the church quarry for new family pictures.

Luke in Preschool

Luke goes to preschool Monday - Thursday from 12:30 - 3:30 and he loves it. We volunteer in the classroom on occasion. I went to help on October 4th and Luke was the chart caller. There are 4 groups of 4 children and this involves calling out which group goes where when they separate for centers or rotate centers. He did this about 4 times during the day and each time 2 of the groups get to choose between about 4 activities. After he would call out a group that could choose, he would turn to them and kindly pointing his finger would say "So be thinking about it". It was so cute how he would mimic how the teachers do the chart calling. There were about 5 adults in the room and we'd all stop what we were doing to watch him do the chart calling and after he would do this, we'll all smile and laugh a little. I'm so glad I got to go watch him that day.

I also wanted to post this picture of Luke getting a stuffed moose from Julie for his birthday. It's his new sleeping buddy :-)

Pictures of Emeline

I can't believe that it has been so long since I updated the blog. I don't even have pictures of Emeline - what kind of person am I. . . :-)

She is such a good little girl. All of the boys love her and love to take care of her. Corwin is very quick to help out if she cries and wants to hold her daily. Alex likes to help feed her and give her a pacifier too, but he usually tries when she's sleeping :0

Dan's Birthday

As always, your welcome to come and stay for as long as you like. Starting around 2pm we'll be playing games; Starcraft 2, Rockband 3, boardgames, whatever your ilk may be. Sandwiches at 5pm with cookies and ice cream afterward. After 7pm Toy Story 3 will be playing upstairs and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World will be screening in the home theater. My brother and his family as well as Sho, Jason & Danielle from daycare have also been invited. I have a couple books listed on Amazon.com. I'd like the Wrath of Lich King expansion for World of Warcraft. Clothes are always accepted. Or just money for some upgrades on one of my PC's. Thanks for reading this, hope you can make it. :)

Dan

Return of the Red-faced Indian!

I want to issue a blog challenge!  We had spaghetti this week and seeing Wyatt's little tomato sauce-covered face made me want to snap a few pictures.  I thought it would be fun if sometime in the next week or so, everyone made spaghetti and then took pictures of their little red-faced Indians.  Here's ours:

 

Happy Halloween!

At Wyatt's school, they had a fall carnival and made masks in art class instead of dressing up in costumes.  Wyatt decorated a dog mask.

Here is my first forray into homemade costumes.  I couldn't be more pleased with how it turned out.  Wyatt won't wear socks lately and definitely won't wear a mask or gloves, but the look is pretty good.  "The Dash likes!"

Brendan's birthday

Brendan had a good birthday. He has been so excited to turn six. About two weeks ago I mentioned to Brendan that I could hardly believe that there was going to be a six year old in the house. He must have really liked that thought because there were many times when he would look at me and say "can you believe there is going to be a six year old in the house?".
In Brendan's kindergarten class he was asked to make a poster about himself that would be displayed for the week. He was so excited to make it and was very particular about what should be on it. He wanted pictures of himself but not of the family and he wanted stickers. I think it turned out pretty good. I went with him to his class on Monday to share things about Brendan with the class. Brendan got to stand in front of the classroom while I talked and then the other students got to ask him questions or give him complements. The teacher is the only one that asked a question. All the kids that Brendan called on said things like "I like your shoes" and "I like you". When one kid was called on he just stood up and said "would you like to see my shoes?". Brendan just kind of nodded and gave him a thumbs up. Later that day when I picked Brendan and Katie up Brendan mentioned several times how much he enjoyed being in front of the class. It makes me happy to know that he has made friends and is really enjoying school.

WOOHOO!!!!!!

I just got notification that I've passed the first essay in my Ethics class! I just have one more essay to write and *hopefully* pass that and I'm done with this class. The next essay is to write up a code of ethics. I'm a little worried about this one, but I'm going to do my best. I just can not believe how well I am doing with school. :D Thanks to everyone for your support. It really means a lot to me.

Correction

I just checked. I have passed my first class! I just got the review on my second paper. I got 4 out of 4! And that was on my first time submitting it! Now it's really on to business ethics. I'll be doing a lot of reading to begin with. But at least I know what to read and now that I know what to do with my papers, they can only get better from here on out.
I just had to share my good news. :D

School

I just got confirmation. I passed the first part of my Business Law class! Now I just need to hear about the second part, which was on FMLA, ADA and age discrimination, to see if I've fully passed the class. Now onto Business Ethics. Bring it on! :D

Google Voice

Hey, I got a Google Voice number!  You all will probably just use my (801) number because it is local to you, but I thought I'd give out my new number too.  Call (314) 270-2848 and it will ring to my cell phone!  Cool, huh?

Leigh

Top 50

So, I went in for my 6 month cleaning with Dr Danny Theurer on Wednesday. Wait...let me back up. I was sick earlier this week and had to stay home from work for two day. Not the funnest way to use my pto, but it had to be done. By Wednesday, I was feeling much better and went in for my check up. (One minor cavity that needs to be fixed next Wednesday. No biggie.) I got an oral cancer screen (Yep. I'm clear!) and I got a black envelope. Dr Theurer told me that he and his brother, who he shares his practice with, have an annual "Top 100" patients social, (50 from each) and as it turns out, I'm one of Dr Danny Theurers top 50 patients. They are going to have a social the first part of October...with candy. Yes. Candy at a dentist party. It made me laugh. So after he cleaned my teeth, took an x-ray of the tooth that will be fixed on Wednesday he was talking to me. I was very tired at this point. And apparently looking very tired. I had only slept about 3 hours total the night before. And then I had been working on school work for a few hours before having to dash out the door in order to get there on time. He looked at me and said, 'You don't look good. I'm thinking one of two things. Either you are really pissed about this, or you are tired." I reassured him that I was just tired and not upset at him for having to do more dental work. If anything, I would be most upset at myself because I didn't go to the dentist for 7-8 years. You live and learn, right? Anyway, back to the social. I've wanted to tell my friends at work, but I have two friends who go see Dr Theurer and I don't know if they were invited. And if they didn't get invited, I don't want to come across as a snob and sounding like I'm better than them. But you, as my family, don't get that privalige of me holding back my feelings. And since none of you go see Dr Danny, I don't feel so bad about saying this. :)

School update

Well...I'm 16 days into my 6 months of school. And so far it's going well. Just a few minor hang ups, what with not being able to get access to certain school websites. So I've been doing a lot of reading. I've just got my first two assignments that I've set a due date for the end of the month. One is a 3-5 page essay and the other is a 5-7 page essay on two different case studies. Seems really easy on the surface. But I'm sure once I get working, it will become more detailed and in depth than I first thought. Good thing I've done a lot of reading about the first subject. :)

I was talking with Mom and told her that there is a school hoodie that I want to get, but it costs $40 with shipping. She told me that if I complete my assigned courses by the end of the year, that I could buy it. And speaking of the end of the year...if all goes well, I will have completed 14 credits. And I will still have time to take on another class if I'd like. :) February 2014 doesn't look so scarily close any more. My goal is acheiveable! :D

Emeline

Will someone please post pictures of my new niece?  And let me know how everything is going?  Pretty please?

The kids are gone

Jason and Grace are gone and it is bitter sweet. I can't live with them and yet it is funny how much I think about them and wonder how they are doing. I hope everything goes well for them, they deserve a bright future, and right now it looks pretty dim. I felt like we made some progress but they will probably backslide now that they are with Anne, she definately does things different than I do. I wouldn't have made it through without the help of Julie, Dad, Christa, Liam, Danny, Tommy and even Wes. Yesterday was the first day to myself since the end of July. It was good to put my place back together-at least part of it. Life rushes on. Love to all of you, Mom

Countdown

So...as you all know, the count down began last week. We are now down to 4 full days, and 2 partial days until Jason and Grace will be going back to Anne. I can not wait for this! I've had a very difficult time with this some days. But I've been lucky and have had Mom to help me...and me help her. Our relationship is stronger because of this trial. I've learned one major thing from this. I've come to realize how much I really do love my nephews and niece. (I'm sure the newest addition will have my heart the second I see her.) So thank you for raising such wonderful kids that don't get into every little thing at our house. And also, thank you for taking them home at the end of the day. ;)

One more thing...if for some odd reason you haven't heard, I start school on Wednesday September 1. I'm so excited for this, but also a little scared. I'm asking any and all who would be willing to check up on me regularly to make sure that I'm keeping up with my school work. I'm sure I'm going to need all the encouragment I can get. :)

Miscommunication...

Yesterday Wyatt was tugging on my hand trying to get me to come with him.  I kept saying to him to "tell me what you want".  He just got more and more upset.  I said "use your words" and in his most distraught tone he looked at me and said "Words!"  Sometimes I forget that Wyatt doesn't quite get some of the phrases I use.  We're still working on getting him into a pre-K class (school has been in session for a week now) where he will be able to work with some specialists who can hopefully coax some words out of him and get him to make connections between his language and the world around him.  Clearly I'm clueless about how to do that.

Way to go Katie!

It seems a bit funny to be posting this but it is a big milestone. Kathryn is well underway with potty training! She has been wearing underpants almost exclusively for the last week. She has had a few accidents but is doing very well with going into the bathroom and using the toilet on her own.
Tonight Katie went into the bathroom and a few minutes later came out and said that she had pooped. I asked her if it was in the potty and she said that it was. It was an exciting moment because up until now she has refused to even sit on the toilet if she had to poop. She got a treat which happened to be a candy bar and two stickers to put on her chart. She was very proud of herself! Brendan was great about it. He congratulated her on it several times.

The Great Ceiling Cave-in!

I'm sure you've all heard the story, but here's a recap with photos. One afternoon, Wyatt snuck upstairs and pushed a small table into our bathroom. He had a grand old time playing in our sink while I watched TV in the basement, completely unaware of what was going on. Forty or so minutes later, I walked upstairs to see a dripping wet Wyatt and hear water running in the background. I ran upstairs to find a bathroom drenched in water, but all the faucets turned off... where in the world was the water turned on? I ran downstairs and found that the water sound was coming from the stream of water pouring from our ceiling. I quickly grabbed buckets and tried to contain and clean up as much as I could. After a few hours, the water had finally stopped trickling out of the ceiling and I went to bed. Cut to 3 a.m. Jake's at the hospital when I hear a loud crash from downstairs and think "great, someone is trying to break in" so I slowly creep downstairs with my phone ready to dial 911, when I see what has really happened: a huge chunk of the ceiling has fallen down. The Sheetrock had become so saturated with water that the screws could no longer hold it.

The Carnage:

The Aftermath:

The Repairs:

Painting:

It still looks kind of wonky; we'll probably need to do some more work on it eventually. As for now, at least the hole is covered up!

Recipes

When Mom came out to help bring Jason and Grace home, I made a couple of meals in the crock pot and she has been asking me to send her the recipes ever since. I got them both from a wonderful website called Prudence Pennywise (also where I got the recipe for that yummy tortilla soup I made while I was in Utah). Any-who, here are the recipes:

Pineapple and Green Chile Pork Tacos in the Crockpot
1 lb. pork chops (I use chicken - Leigh)
1 8 ounce can crushed pineapple with juices
1 cup tomatillo salsa (green salsa or salsa verde)
1 4 ounce can green chiles, undrained
1/3 cup brown sugar

For serving: warm flour tortillas, queso fresco (or feta), chopped cilantro, lime wedges, more green salsa

Combine all ingredients in the crock pot and cook on high for four hours or on low for 6 to eight hours. Shred pork, season to taste with salt and pepper and serve in soft flour tortillas with desired accompaniments. (I like them with cheddar cheese, lime juice, sour cream, red salsa and some lettuce or cabbage - Leigh)


Slow Cooker Pulled Pork
1 lb. pork chops
1/2 cup ketchup
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons prepared mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon or more tabasco sauce, optional
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke, optional

Place all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Shred meat. Serve on homemade rolls or bakery buns with cole slaw (I love to put the cole slaw right on top of the meat for a creamy, tangy sandwich! - Leigh)

Funny video

Have you all seen the parody of the Old Spice commercial for the BYU library? I found it on You Tube when I entered "BYU library". I think it is called new spice too. It's pretty good. While watching it, watch the tree in the L hand corner and then in the next shot. Enjoy,

Mom

Happy Un-Birthdays!

Happy belated birthday to Emily and Brenda! I'm getting worse and worse about remembering people's birthdays on the actual day. Just one more reason why we need to get back to Utah!

Boys at the Cabin

We went to the cabin with Grammie, Grandpa & Aunt Julie on Monday, July 5th. We weren't able to get much done, but Corwin, Luke & Alex had a great day playing.

We are looking forward to spending more time up there this summer and getting the addition finished!

4th of July (on July 3rd)

We had a fun afternoon/evening at Grammie & Grandpa's house. The boys played outside and kind of ran in the sprinklers, but the fountain was what really got them wet. We had a great BBQ, did parachutes & fireworks.

Thank you for making it such a fun day!