The Yentes Family Established 1986

Little Miss Gillian showing her style!

2010-10-28T23:47:00.001-07:00

Caleb's Kindergaten Field Trip to the Fire Station

2010-10-28T23:36:00.001-07:00

Our True Identity

2010-07-24T23:38:00.000-07:00

Garrett's Senior Prom

2010-05-12T20:42:00.000-07:00

Garrett and Morgan Flora

Clara, Sola, Matt, Kaitlyn, Garrett and Morgan

Hanging on the boxcar down by the Depot Resturant!

Love this pic!

Out in the middle of the street......so cool!

Garrett and friends had a super fun Prom weekend with a train ride to Fresno Friday Night, followed by a hike and picnic in the Sequoias Saturday morning and Prom Pics with me. (Yay, I was so happy they wanted me to do their pictures but it was a tiny bit stressful too!:) Dinner at the Depot, to the dance and home to our house to hang out for awhile. Busy, busy but super fun weekend!

O That Girl!

2010-01-26T12:34:00.000-08:00

Sometimes Gillian doesn't want to take pictures but most of the time anymore, this is what I get!:) Love the Diva in this girl!

Midnight Meetings

2010-01-20T11:55:00.000-08:00

Since Gillian has been sick this week, she has been waking up in the middle of the night several times which is very unusual for her. She is such a great sleeper and always sleeps thru the night unless of course she is sick. When your kids are sick you rock them, get them juice, sing to them or bring them to your bed during the night all in the name of comfort. But all experienced mommies know that when you do this, you run the risk of getting them off that beautiful sleep schedule and pattern.....but do we care? at the time.......NO! So this is what I have been doing with Gillian for 5 or 6 nights now (i have lost track). Now she is starting to feel so much better but she is definately off her schedule. So last night she wakes up not because of a fever, not for medicine, not to go to the bathroom but because I think she is missing our middle of the night meetings. This is how I know..........Gillian, from her bed "mommy?".......Me, "I'm coming."........Gillian, when I get there........"Good, you are here!"......Me, as I pick her up, "What do you need?"......Gillian, as she snuggles into my shoulder.........."Rock me"........Me, kind of tired but I do it anyways because maybe she still isn't feeling very well......."OK". So as I start to rock her, Gillian sits straight up and looks into my face and says........."Soooooo......you wanna talk about something????" Who can resist that? So we talked and talked and talked. She finally fell asleep and I am exhausted but am grateful for a daughter who wants to talk to her mom even if she is only 3.:)

Mommy Motel

2010-01-20T11:49:00.000-08:00

So all the kids have been sick this week. When this happens, it is a well known fact in our house that the "Mommy Motel" opens and the kids bring sleeping bags, blankets, pillows, toys, books etc. to our room and camp out! The problem this time is that "Mommy Motel" has been open way too long and it really needs to close or daddy might just lose his patience:) But sweet little Caleb keeps reminding me everyday (with a fake cough and a fake sneeze) that he really isn't better yet so he thinks "Mommy Motel" needs to stay open one more night. Of course he says and doe's all of this out of daddy's earshot.:) After 6 nights, I hope he isn't too disappointed when he gets home from school today to find all the sleeping bags and blankets put back in their correct bedrooms and the sign that says CLOSED on the door! :) I had better break it to him in the car. hahaha. At least I know one man in my house that will be happy about this! lol

Shaver Lake January 2010

2010-01-13T22:26:00.001-08:00

We were so lucky to get to spend a wonderful week in Shaver Lake during the holidays at a beautiful cabin. We had several friends of the kids come up to hang out, sled and play in the snow with us! Although there was very little snow, we made the most of it and enjoyed a wonderfully relaxing week!
My attempt at a family picutre.......didn't work out too well. It got a little late in the evening, we didn't all have the right clothes and some of these kiddos didn't want to cooperate very well but I think this is kind of cute:)

Crazy Dance Party! A Yentes tradition for any special occasion. lol

My kids, Morgan Flora, Stephen Henriksen and gary:), getting ready for a little sledding in our backyard........it turned into a hysterical snow-ball (snow-ice) fight. Fun times!

Upstairs on the balcony

In the spa......my kids and Stephen

Up to no good........

Gillian's first walk in snow.....she couldn't even wait to change out of her p.j.'s:)

Some of Garrett's ASB friends came up for the day. I cooked most of the day and the kids played in the snow, went on hikes and just hung out. It was a great day.

Skiing January 2010

2010-01-13T22:13:00.000-08:00

Ski School

Carry those skis!

Griffin's first run.

Caleb's first run.

We went to Sierra Summit over vacation and taught all the kids to ski! Of course the big kids didn't think mom and dad knew much and didn't want to take lessons from us or anyone (well their friend Stephen)lol. So they went off to learn the old fashioned - somewhat difficult way while the 3 youngers took lessons. It was such a fun day! Caleb was like a bulldozer, he took a few falls because he just plays hard.......griffin is a natural, picked it up with no problem. Gillian is amazing. She was the littlest thing on the slopes that day. She didn't say much until we would ask her if she was done and she would emphatically announce that she was going back up on the magic carpet and then she would try to take off. It was so cute! We already have plans to go to Yosemite in February. The kids have all found a winter sport!

Look at this pose!

Coming down the bunny slope with her teacher Nicholas behind her! They were so cute to watch together all afternoon. She actually flirted with him while he was very enamoured with her.:)

My little pink snowman! I love this pic!

Gilly and Nick. lol

Trying to explain to the boys that they probably shouldn't go to the top of the mountain on their first day out but..............yep you guessed it.......they did it anyways!

For some reason Caleb thought he was going sledding:)

Disneyland January 2010

2010-01-13T21:35:00.000-08:00

Another super fun trip to Disneyland. The weather was perfect, it wasn't too crowded, Caleb got to fight Darth Vader, we ate at our favorite restaurants and got to play with friends and cousins! We love our trips to the happiest place on earth!

Watson girls, Yentes boys!

Toy Story Mania......our favorite!

Peter Pan.....gillian's favorite!

Omgosh! Can you see the resemblance? hahahaha. love you Caleb!

And Caleb once again defeats Darth Vader!

Gilly loves her daddy!

Watson's and Yentes'.

Cousin Time! We love the Fosters!

Buzz Lightyear!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-13T20:27:00.000-08:00

A few pictures from Christmas at the Yentes House!

Crazy Cowgirl

What is this outfit?

Gillian and Caleb's Santa's Workshop Party!

Someone got into my makeup again:)

My Loves! Stinkers!

Preschool Pictures 2009

2009-10-20T12:48:00.000-07:00

Gillian and Caleb had picture day today. I dressed them in fall colors. Caleb said, "This is so we match huh mom?" They had a lot of fun with their photo shoot. Caleb kept wanting to pose with his hand on gillian's shoulder and she didn't like that for some reason.:) Then Caleb would put his hat on a certain way or put his hand in his pocket. He was really funny. He really liked his new cool jacket!

Superheros Unite

2009-09-08T14:24:00.000-07:00

We had such a fun time at Caleb's 5th birthday party last week. After doing a special Strawberry Shortcake party for Gillian in July, Caleb felt like he needed an extra special party too so I set about gathering ideas for a "Superhero" party. This idea came about when I asked Caleb what kind of party he wanted and he replied, "I want a Man Party.....you know like spiderman, superman, ironman....that kind of party" So a "man" party he got-------well sort of:)

We sent out invitations calling all superheros together, asked them to send us their superhero info like their name, color and special power and then I started gathering as much superhero stuff as I could at $Tree. I made all the Superheros a cape, a mask and wristbands. Of course we had a Villain that came and tried to destroy the party but after some special superhero training games and a lot of silly string, the superheros prevailed and (garrett) the evil neighborhood villain was defeated! Then they ate cake:)

Happy Birthday Super Caleb or Super Park Batman as you were called at the Superhero Party:)

Last Lake Trip of 2009

2009-08-28T18:23:00.000-07:00

Caleb ready to learn to ski

Cam Standing on the Knee Board

Caleb is a wild man

Gillian Ready to ski

Griffin standing on the knee board

Dad bounced these boys hard.....look at the feet

Gary jumping

Just a few pictures from the last lake trip of the season. Wow! The summer really flies by! It's time to put the boat back into storage and hopefully watch the temperature drop! :)

At the Dunes the Day Before School Starts????? Crazy!!!!!!!

2009-08-13T20:32:00.000-07:00

Griffin

Gillian

Taking a break from 4 Wheelin!

I can make it! I know I can!:)

Garrett

Cam

So I was thinking that it would be fun to do something unplanned, spontaneous and out of character for me the day before school started so after a lot of thought, I loaded up the car and took the kids over to Pismo Beach for the day to ride quads, play, eat and hang out with some friends. I didn't finish getting school supplies or even back to school clothes shopping done, my house was a little unorganized and it is 2 1/2 hours over to Pismo but..........we put caution to the wind, loaded up the Bell's quads in the Morris' trailer (thanks guys) and headed out for a super fun day! Even without Gary there we managed to figure everything out. We met up with some of the Holt family and the Wilcox Family. We took the trucks up the dunes and took turns on the quads. The kids played in the water, hung out around the fire pit, roasted marshmallows and ate really well! After our ride, and a few scary moments for mom, we went over to Morro Bay and met up with some of the Henriksen Family, played at the Tides Park and made our way to Cayucos to the Sea Shanty for dinner and ice cream pie. We finally found our way home around 10:30 and believe it or not, the boys did really well getting up for the first day of school. Tomorrow will be the real test though since they have to be at Seminary by 6:00am. :) As we embark upon this last year with all our children home, living under one roof, we want to remember to take full advantage of those "spontaneous" moments and live each minute to the fullest!

Caleb's First Official Drum Lesson

2009-08-10T21:52:00.000-07:00

Because all the brothers play several instruments, Caleb always wants in on the fun! He loves his guitar and plays it and makes up songs all the time. He plucks at his little piano and does the same. He can be heard all over the neighborhood banging out beats on Cameron's drum set so we all give him mini lessons to encourage him. Today it was like a dream come true for him when I decided out of the blue that it was time for the boy's drum teacher to give Caleb his first official drum lesson. That boy showed us all what he had and his drum teacher was amazed! Here are a few pictures of Caleb strutting his stuff! Too cute!

A Teenage Weekend!

2009-08-10T21:34:00.000-07:00

Dance Off Party Gang

What?

J-Dizzle moves so fast we couldn't even catch it on camera!

Fresno Temple

We had a super busy but super fun weekend! It started with taking Cameron to High School Orientation where Garrett's ASB team greeted all the new incoming freshmen with a crazy, fun party! Lot's of music, games and food. Following Orientation day, the ASB gang came over to our house for more food, swimming, music and hanging out time. After the last teenager left, Gary and I went out to dinner and a movie with friends while all 10 of our combined kids stayed here and hung out. On Saturday, I took Garrett and Cameron to Fresno for a Youth Temple Trip, then out to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory (our favorite!) then some final school clothes shopping. We got home in time to clean up, organize and welcome another group of teenagers over for a Dance Off and movie night in our Basketball Court. I didn't win but the kids taught me some new dances and praised me and gary for our efforts. :) Sunday was a YW lesson for me and Seminary Orientation that night! So what am I doing now?????? Planning another party of course:) It is Caleb's 5th birthday and he is counting the days until his "Man Party". Superman, Iron man, Spider man, get it? A superhero party! Back to the planning board! No rest for this Superhero Mom thats for sure!

Beach Fun!

2009-07-26T23:06:00.000-07:00

We just got back from Cayucos. We had a super fun visit with "the cousins" as the boys like to say. We took the kids kayaking, to the park, boogie boarding, we ate out at some of our favorite spots, took family pictures at the tidepools and hung out at our favorite beach retreat......."The Hanger House". Marti and Dwight treated Gary and I to a little cabin or bungalow surrounded by wild flowers and herb gardens while the kids stayed with them. It was Heaven!

Setting up for our Pictures

Trying to sweet talk gillian into taking off her sweatshirt for the pics!

It was a beautiful day but a little cold and windy.

On the water with most of the Crew!

Cameron and Sean

Garrett and Griffin

Gillian and Caleb in our "Enchanted Beach Garden"

Gillian:)

Houseboat Heaven

2009-07-19T21:41:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our annual houseboat trip to Lake Don Pedro. As always, it was sooo much fun! Our kids would be the first to say that the houseboat trip is the highlight of their summer and is rated by all of us as our favorite family vacation!

Eventhough we didn't get to connect with some of our good houseboating buddies, we did have a few friends up to the lake and lots of fun/comical memories were made. lol.

All the boys continue to improve in their wakeboarding, skiing and kneeboarding abilities. I am always very grateful at the end of the week to know that everyone is safe and no major accidents occured. We weren't sure how this trip would go since within the first few minutes of being out on the lake gillian almost had her toe cut off when caleb slammed the ski storage door on her foot (accidently so he claims) and then about 20 minutes later she sat on a bee and got stung in the bum. That poor girl cried a lot for the first hour or so of our vacation but it really got better from there, thank goodness.

Caleb and gillian learned to knee board. It was super cute to watch. Caleb was a maniac out there and really sees himself as a professional knee boarder now. He even taught our friends to knee board. I got some great video. Too funny!

Tubing was probably the highlight of the trip in many ways this year. As the kids get older the tubing gets harder. Meaning everyone likes to be pulled faster and crazier. It is kind of dangerous but I close my eyes most of the time and say a little prayer.

Thanks Henriksen family for coming up for a few days.....we had a blast!

Summer Fun Is the Best!

Baby Girl Turns 3!

2009-07-10T16:26:00.000-07:00

Gillian had her first tea party today for her 3rd birthday. She wanted a Strawberry Shortcake party of course, so I decked everything out in pink, lime green and red! We painted everyone's face or hand with strawberries, played with strawberry playdo, colored in Strawberry Shortcake coloring books, made strawberry shortcake for a treat, had strawberry sandwiches and fruit kabobs for tea and drank strawberry lemonade too! It was very cute! I am super tired! The whole family helped! Our house is a sea of strawberryland still! We had a lot of fun!

The Invitations!

Strawberry and Me!

Time for Tea!

Some of Gillian's Tea Party Friends

A Birthday Note To Gillian...............

Gillian,

I can't believe how the time has flown! I still remember everything about my pregnancy with you, your birth....you being in the NICU for 2 days, your beautiful rosy cheeks and blue eyes (which are now a beautiful green color). You were the best baby and you loved your schedule but you didn't mind being interrupted from it either. You have always been very easy going.

I never put you down except for naptime and night time not because you were fussy but because I wanted to play with you all the time. You were then and you are now my little doll. Now that you are 3, I guess we can't keep calling you "Baby Girl" anymore..........but that is what you will always be to me. :)

I love your spunky personality. You can be a little shy and afraid of new people sometimes but you always warm up quickly and really, truly love all the people in your life. You don't like dresses very much but we have an agreement that we both have stuck by very well. I get to dress you on Sundays and for special events out or parties and you get to dress yourself the rest of the time. Most of the time you are mismatched and your hair isn't combed but that was our deal and soooo I stick by it and so do you. lol

You love learning!!!!! You read all the time (although most of the words are made up), you like to practice writing your name, you take every direction very seriously at preschool or at home when we are teaching you things and then repeat your newly learned skills meticulously. You love to fold laundry and put things away but that doesn't apply to your toys or playhouse. You change your clothes at least 5 times a day and talk and talk and talk to your imaginary friends.

You love your brothers and are happy to have any of their attention. They love you just as much. We all know this is true when we find one of them playing dolls or letting you dress them up in your room because it makes you feel so happy. Your relationship with them is very sweet.

Your favorite color is pink of course but you are by no means just a girly, girl. You are a perfect balance......... you love your jewelry and playing with your dolls but you try as hard as you can to keep up with caleb and we expect that you will love sports as much as all the boys in the family do. I am sure that you will out-wakeboard, out-boogie board, out-ski, and out-sport them someday. But don't tell them I said that. hahaha

Right now, you are mommy's girl but daddy has your heart! You know right where to go when you need a little love and understanding. haha. I wouldn't say that you have daddy wrapped around your finger because he doesn't want you to be spoiled but you have a very special relationship with him that reminds me of me and my dad.

I love you so very much and I'm grateful everyday for having the opportunity to raise you here on earth. Just as my dreams of having a baby girl to love and grow with seemed out of reach,I was blessed with you. You have enriched my life in more ways than I could ever express to you. Happy 3rd Birthday Sweet Girl!

Mommy

Stars and Stripes 2009

2009-07-05T16:42:00.000-07:00

Yentes and Watson Kids

Our Family

Yummy!

"You're a Grand Ole Flag"

"Some of those SPECIAL FIREWORKS" :)Mom and the guy in charge. lol

Sweet Girl!

Mom and G!

"Where exactly did you say you got those?"

We hosted our 8th annual 4th of July BBQ and Firework Extravaganza last night! This has become Gary and the boys favorite holiday because they get to play with fire! Every year Gary tries to outdo himself from the previous year (meaning he spends more money) lol. This year was the best show ever, mainly because he finally got a hold of some (special fireworks) without my knowledge of course. When he lit the first one, I jumped and exclaimed something like, "Wow! they are really amping up the firecrackers at the fireworks booth this year!" Everyone laughed since they all realized that he hadn't gotten these fireworks at the local firework booth. :) The funny thing was that illegal fireworks were going off all around us so Gary was a little disappointed. I guess other people had the same idea or they all went to the same "special firework booth". haha. We had a lot of fun and great memories were made! This marks for our family another year to celebrate our country's freedoms and independence. We are all so grateful for this land that we live in and for the blessings we have received at the expense and hands of so many others that have gone before us. Every 4th of July I remember with fondness my father's funeral. He was buried 8 years ago at the Veteran's Memorial Cemetery in Riverside and of course flags were flying all over and a military gun salute was given. My father served in WWII, loved this country, loved patriotic holidays and displayed a HUGE flag pole /flag in his yard from the top of the hill that their home was built on. My dad instilled his love of this country in me and we have tried to pass this part of my father's legacy on to our children. Happy Stars and Stripes Day!

My Doll!

2009-05-31T21:50:00.001-07:00

Gillian at the Mother's Day Tea!

More Prom Pics!

2009-05-31T21:41:00.000-07:00

The Favorite Picture!
Being seated at dinner.

The Place Setting

The dinner table
The Resturant

We got a few more Prom pictures back that my girlfriend took who owns "A Natural Image" They turned out soooo cool! We luv you Jacque! The others are some pics that Ben's sister took of the Italian Resturant that I set up in our backyard that night. Fun, fun times! The kids are still talking about it!

Teenagers and More Teenagers!

2009-05-31T21:31:00.000-07:00

How Many kids can fit in the spa?
We hosted our annual Mutual Night Swim party last week for all the teenagers in our Ward. As always, it was a lot of fun, very loud, kind of crazy and really, really wet! No one left without getting in the pool on their own or being tossed in! Ouch! As always, it is a blast having the kids over! Luv you all!

Shaver Lake 2009

2009-05-31T20:57:00.000-07:00

The Marina
Caleb's photo
Daddy and his girl!
Docking the boat
Cam Knee boarding
One of the many silly pictures I plan to use of Garrett on his Wedding Reception Video!
My kids

For the past 15 years or so we have gone to the coast for Memorial Weekend. As we prepared to leave on Friday for the beach, I called our rental company to find out how much money I needed to bring with me and found out that our reservation had been made for the following weekend and pretty much there was nothing we could do about it. :( So we set about scrambling to salvage our long weekend. After many calls and potential plans we ended up at Shaver Lake staying in a cabin that belongs to Gary's Resource Teacher's Family.

Changing plans at the last minute was a bit challenging but we were all determined to "make the most of it". The boys got the boat ready and we changed a few things in our suitcases, took out our boogie boards and headed up the mountain on a new adventure. After some touchy moments (the car had a hard time getting the boat up the mountain during the 2 miles that we ascended 2000 ft or so very quickly) we finally got to the cabin around 9:30 that night. All I can say is "Wow!" we felt like we were in Heaven! The Cabin was beautiful! As big as my house something like 3400 sq. feet with 5 bedrooms and bathrooms. The views were amazing and it was decorated beautifully with a big family kitchen. We love to cook together when we stay at the coast so we were looking forward to hanging out in the great kitchen.

We stayed up that night until way past 1:00 am. We sat in the hot tub, star gazed (what a beautiful sky), played games and talked. Saturday was full of lake fun. It was a little cold. The boys brought their wetsuits which they used. (Check out Garrett posing as Aquaman. What a crack up!) It was a little crowded and somewhat small so we beached the boat, set up a camp on shore and explored, relaxed and played in the water. We were able to dock the boat at the Marina for the weekend so it was fun not having to take it back and forth each day.

We hiked on Sunday, read, watched a few movies (made a few movies. Lol) and cooked a lot! Monday was back to the Lake but to our surprise it wasn't so crowded so the boys got to do more of the water sports that they love. We still set up camp on the beach and I played in the sand with the little ones.

Coming down the hill late Monday night we all agreed that this was one of our "Great Vacations!"

The Ballerina!

2009-05-31T20:53:00.001-07:00

So believe it or not, I caught gillian dressing up in her little tutu and I even got her to pose for me. Sometimes she is such a ham!

Caleb Teaches from the Scriptures!

2009-05-31T19:27:00.000-07:00

Every morning our family tries to read the Book of Mormon together after garrett gets home from seminary. Many times the little kids are still asleep so we try to have a scripture night on Sunday that includes them. Caleb always remembers when it is Sunday and that he needs to read the scriptures to us. So while we all prepare dinner before the boys are leaving for a fireside, our spiritual buckets are filled. (Note the sarcasm in my writing) LoL! In this video I have captured the "essence" of Caleb as he takes his turn reading and teaching us. Of course it turns into a comedy show and not at all spiritual but I can't pretend that this isn't exactly how my crazy family is. Gotta love it! I know I do!

Month's of Catch Up!

2009-05-12T14:59:00.001-07:00

OK so I mentioned that I was leaving my blog to facebook for awhile but it looks like I have been gone for almost 3 months. The great thing about blogging for me is that I can print everything off and put it in a notebook that acts as a family journal so bare with me as I "catch up" mainly for journaling purposes:) I guess I should start backwards. Hope this works. haha

I don't think I put these in order but you get the idea:)

Prom 2009....Romance In Rome

2009-05-12T14:33:00.000-07:00

Garrett asked Emily Hammond at our Easter Party to go to Prom with him. Four couples went as a group. The boys and moms planned out the party together. It was sooooo much fun for all the kids and the parents:).

Garrett wanted Prom to be an all day event, not to cost a lot and be really fun so here is what we came up with. The boys came over to our house Friday night before the Prom to get our backyard ready for several events. They also found a man in our ward who had a handicap bus for his father in law and asked to use it to get to Prom so they decorated that too. The next morning, Gary took all the kids to the Lake near our home at 7:30 am. They skied, wake boarded, tubed and knee boarded then had boxed picnic lunches on the way home. All the kids went home around 1:00 for a nap and to get ready.

The boys picked up their dates around 5:30 and came back to our house for a few pictures. Then off to my friend and photographer, Jacque to do pictures out in the country (I will post those later) then back to our house where Gary and I, along with some other parents had transformed our backyard into an outdoor Italian Restaurant. The boys had downloaded Italian music the night before and set up a sound area and brought in the seating and hung white lights. The rest of the decorations were left as a surprise for all the kids. We decorated with pool candles, candles lining the edge of the pool, lanterns, and lots of turquoise, brown, green, silver and gold accents. The moms all made food and the boys wanted it served buffet style. Cam and Griffin were the Maderdee and the Waiter. I made place cards, restaurant signs, seating cards and even had bracelets at the girls place that matched all their dresses. The cool thing was that the colors we chose to decorate with ended up being the exact colors of the girl's dresses. (not planned:)) It was soooo beautiful.

After dinner, the party bus came to pick up the kids to take them to the dance in Visalia. Brother Day Chauffeured them. While they were gone, we quickly cleaned up, put my little ones to bed and began reorganizing for the "After Party":) The kids came back and changed out of their formal clothes then enjoyed a bon fire, more candles, dessert, the spa and of course more music. Oh and water guns.

Everyone is still talking about Prom 09 and we all decided that Garrett's goals of having an all day party, keeping it inexpensive and having lots and lots of fun was met! Next year......Senior Prom????? oh no! What will we do to top this? It was such a special day! We love all you fantastic teenagers!

Montessori Mother's Day Tea

2009-05-12T14:29:00.001-07:00

We had our 12th Annual Mother's Day Tea at Montessori last week. Here are a few pics of Gillian singing to me and the other Mommies. Can't find the pics of Caleb's class but will post those as soon as I do!

Sweet baby Girl!

Smelling her paper flower Singing to Mommy

Miss G

2009-05-12T14:17:00.000-07:00

I always try to take a picture of Little Miss Gillian on Sunday since that is usually the only day that she will wear a dress or just let me dress her for that matter. Here are a few pics of her posing. So silly! Love that girl!

Easter 2009

2009-05-11T21:06:00.000-07:00

We always celebrate the Easter Bunny on Saturday before Easter Sunday so the Watsons came over and we hid eggs, ate a lot, played some games........ oh and Garrett asked Emily to Prom that day also. In addition to hunting for Easter eggs, we gave everyone a special egg with instructions on where to find their gift from Peter Rabbit. We invited Emily over and of course gave her a special egg too. She had to go to the front door to find her "Peter Rabbit Gift" When she opened the door she actually found Garrett waiting with a box of "peeps" a chocolate Peter Rabbit, roses from our garden and a sign that said, "I know I'm no Peter Rabbit.......... but would you be my chick for the day and go with me to Prom anyways?" Super cute!

Emily and Garrett after the "Prom" Proposal:) Sweet Baby Girl!

Like we usually do, we let the kids play while the adults visited after the Easter Egg Party was over. Well, this is what we found later. My big boys had taken all the furniture out of the library, set up a projector and were watching a movie on the screen so this meant that not only the adults weren't watching the little kids but the teenagers weren't seeing that the little kids were eating every piece of candy in their baskets and then some right under their noses. :) haha. Nice huh? Needless to say, several little guys had tummy aches that night.

Caleb showing us his "fat" tummy. He was saying, "ohhhhh....my fat tummy hurts!!!!!!!" and of course, we were all laughing.

Griffin Loves Track!

2009-05-11T21:03:00.000-07:00

Griffin waiting for the 200 Yard Dash to Start Griffin Showing off his Track Medals

Griffin has enjoyed participating in Track so much this year. A few weeks ago he participated in his school's Track Meet and then last week he competed in a big Track Meet with kids from cities all around us. He was so excited to win 1st place in the Shotput and 2nd place in the 400 meter. This meant that he was invited to go to Fresno next week to compete with all the 1st and 2nd place winners from even a larger area. Go Griffin!

Cam and Griffin Play B-ball

2009-05-11T21:00:00.000-07:00

Both boys played Basketball this year. Griffin for a City Team and Cam for his School. Both boys did really well and always love to get out on the court for their favorite game.

Our Chefs!

2009-05-11T20:54:00.000-07:00

Caleb and Gillian love to create masterpieces in her kitchen. Not sure what they are making. For some reason Gillian loves to pile up all her things in one area. You will even notice a potty chair that Caleb is using to stand on while he cooks some food. Appetizing huh? Crazy kids!

Cam's 14th Birthday

2009-05-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

I'll bet you wouldn't believe that we went to Disneyland to celebrate Cam's Birthday this year:) They were offering free entrance into the parks on your birthday or free fast passes for everyone in your group if you already had a season pass so we packed everyone up and headed off to one of our favorite family get aways!

It was a great break and a fun way to celebrate Cameron turning 14 years old! We love you Cam.

Track Meets

2009-05-11T20:39:00.000-07:00

Garrett has been running on the Cross Country Team the last few years and decided to try out the Track Team mainly to keep in shape I think but all in all he enjoyed it. He ran the 1600 meter. Here are a few pictures from this season.

Oh No! Facebook!

2009-02-02T15:03:00.001-08:00

Well i finally went over to the dark side and started facebooking so I have left my blog for a while. I will be back.....I do love blogging.

A New Year.....A New Chance

2009-01-10T23:32:00.000-08:00

As I contemplate what I want to see happen for me and my family this year, I of course want things like peace, love, prosperity and happiness. But how will I help that to happen? What can I do to become better? How can I help my children become better?

We are always challenging our children (and ourselves) to "do just a little more" or "go the extra mile" so the thought occured to me that maybe by doing for others, by being more giving, being more understanding and by being more charitable we will be able to have peace, love, prosperity and happiness and it will come to us naturally and easily.

I think my hopes and desires for 2009 can come to pass by adhering to council given by President Hinckley a few years ago when he stated..... "let's make a decision within ourselves to be a little better than we’ve been, a little kinder, a little more merciful, a little more outreaching, with a little greater desire to bless those in distress and need. …........ Think of some small way in which we might improve ourselves and draw nearer to our Lord.”

It is my hope that we all find peace in service this year and love for others as well as ourselves.

Family Pictures December 2008

2009-01-10T23:16:00.000-08:00

Disney Mania

2009-01-10T22:25:00.000-08:00

Another fun trip to Disneyland. We were there for 4 days. We met up with several friends and some family. We had dinner at my cousin's house in Lake Forrest one night, dinner at ESPN Zone with my brother for his 40th birthday another night and played and played and played the rest of the time. Unfortunately, now it is back to reality:(

Gillian wanted to see Mickey Mouse's House so bad! But of course she got a little shy when she got to meet him.

Caleb and Ben spinning me in the teacups. Wild ride! Gillian and gary in the background teacup and the Townsend boys

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T23:46:00.000-08:00

We hope everyone had a safe and totally fun New Year's Eve! We had a group of about 40 here for food and fun until about 8:30 when we delivered half of them to the Stake New Year's Eve Party. Then back here with little one's to ring in the new year with a pinata, noise makers and martinellis. It was a fun night. Thanks Watson Family. We can't wait for Disneyland only 3 more days!
Celebrate Good Times!

Friends to the end! And trouble!!!!! :)

Party Girl!

Good Friends, Good Times!

This is actually a little scary! After leaving the guys with 8 little, very loud and very excited kids for an hour and a half (mary and I drove the big kids and their friends to the Stake Center and lingered:) the dads said that this is what they resorted to in order to drown out the chaos and calm their nerves. Not sure how far martinellis and paper towels get you but they are both nuts!

CHEERS!

2008 Family Pics!

2009-01-01T23:41:00.000-08:00

We finally got our family pictures done. Just in time for New Years! Now if I can just find time to send them off to the printer for our annual New Year's Cards I will be happy. Not sure if it will happen anytime soon but here are a few of my favorites.

Christmas With The Yentes'

2008-12-25T13:54:00.000-08:00

Just a few early morning Christmas Pics. Somehow, I didn't get all the kids in front of the tree this year but we did snap these. It has been a crazy morning with lots of fun and happy kids. The big boys were thrilled with all their new clothes and have been playing Rock Band all day. The little ones have been riding plasma cars, trikes and pushing baby buggys all over the house. The favorite gift for Gillian is her kitchen. She has been glued to that most of the morning. It has been raining but now that there is a break in the weather, everyone is off to ride bikes, trikes, ripstiks and throw footballs until it starts raining again. I guess I had better get working on dinner. Merry Christmas to all of you!Waiting happily to see what Santa brought!Tired of waiting......We all draw names and make semi-homemade gifts for each other every year. This was my gift to Cam. A poster of him wake-boarding. He thought it was cool.We all love this kitchen. :) Gillian and Caleb have had a blast with it.Tinkerbell is gilly's favorite so I wrapped most of her presents in this $Tree paper I found. super cute! The new ripstiks.

Gillain's new pink Morgan Bike. It is all metal and the cutest bike ever. It even has a headlight in front. Check out the Fashionista's outfit. What a crack up!

Caleb loves his cowboys!

Gillian the Fashionista!

2008-12-25T13:46:00.000-08:00

I have been meaning to post this for the last 2 weeks. Gillian is very much into "I do it mom!" You know the 2 year old girl wanting to dress herself in what she thinks looks good and matches and not what mommy wants her to wear. The boys did this to some extent but gillian takes the cake! No matter what I want her to wear, she wants to wear something else of her own creation and she wants to put it on "all by myself!!!!!" so I let her......it is either that or a big power struggle so here is my favorite style of hers. She chose the dress for the pockets, the sweat pants because she was cold and she liked the mittens and hat because they matched the pink in the "dolka dots" on her dress. At least that is how she explained it to me. :) Love that girl!

Ouch!

2008-12-21T17:32:00.000-08:00

Gillian has a new boo boo. She burned her finger on the glass of our gas fireplace. It is pretty bad. It was a second degree burn and covers the middle section of the front of her middle finger. We had to take her to the doctor to clean and debrie the wound for a few days and now we have to do it ourselves everyday. Scrubbing it keeps it from getting infected and helps with the scaring. She doesn't like it very much but she really is a good sport. Here she is showing us her wrapped finger. Cute huh?

A Christmas Thing!

2008-12-21T17:04:00.001-08:00

So we were running behind getting ready for church this morning but I have a tradition of taking the kids pictures before church on special days like Easter, Mother's Day or the Sunday before Christmas, etc. They all kept saying, "Is this a Christmas Thing mom?" Can you tell that they really didn't want to do it???? I threatened with presents and Santa but only my babies came over to make their mommy happy. As you can see from the first picture, Caleb wasn't thrilled but after the mention of Santa, he not only changed his attitude but began to do the "Hot Chocolate Dance" from his favorite The Nutcracker. Since you won't see the big kids in these pictures, I will have to make good on my promise of no Santa for some of my kids I guess. :) Won't my big boys be sad when they only get a lump of coal on Christmas morning? (Gary is looking for some coal. It may have to be briquetes from the BBQ but he is determined to leave some sort of coal under the tree for a few cetain boys)hahahahaCaleb is not really happy about picture time.......then I mention......Santa. So......Caleb decides to ask his sister to dance.

The twirl that Caleb is so famous for......The Thank you kiss that Gillian loved

And Ta Da! He did it. "Now can Santa bring me presents mom?"

2008-12-13T20:26:00.000-08:00

I am finally posting pictures from Gillian's two year old photo shoot that we took a few months ago. We had so much fun with this! Gillian happily put on the dress that Mommy had made for her, she willingly let me clip a "pretty" in her hair and she posed and posed and posed. I'm including just a few of my favs. We have all noticed that Gillian looks very different in every picture. We have named this photo shoot....."The Many Faces of Little Miss Gillian."

A Thankfully Quiet and Relaxing Week!

2008-12-11T00:19:00.001-08:00

Just a few pics from Thanksgiving. It was really quiet around here but very productive. We rested, played games, ate, rested some more, ate, decorated for Christmas and I even re-read the whole Twilight series.

Normally we have a large group either here or with other family but this year it was calm and actually very peaceful. Besides our crew of 7, only my mom and brother came to visit and eat and eat and eat with us! Gillian of course couldn't wait for Nana's doggie to get here and didn't leave her alone for a second. It is so funny to watch her with either our golden or Nana's dog.....gillian talks to them and plays with them like they are her best friends. Super cute! oh....yes, that is a diaper on the doggie. I have never laughed so hard in my life! Gillian thought the dog was one of her baby dolls and wanted to keep changing her diaper. I give up! :)

Garrett, Cam and I went to the Outlet Mall's Midnight Madness sale Thanksgiving Night. Them, to see who was there and me to supervise. It was crazy! Lines to get into the stores starting at midnight then lines to buy up all the great deals. The kids were just there to socialize while all the moms fought the crowds. We left around 3:30 a.m. and needless to say, I skipped the 5:00 a.m. Black Friday sales.

We got the Christmas tree up and most decorations. Garrett got all the outside lights up and now the real fun begins. As we always say at the end of Thanksgiving week, "Let the Festivities Begin!" Good luck to all of you!

Look! A "pretty" in Gill's hair

Gillian and Uncle "D"

Caleb....sick of pictures and begging to eat the turkey. "Is it ready now? Or do we have to take more pictures of it?"

Twilight Party Night!

2008-11-22T19:54:00.000-08:00

Well as all of you know, the Twilight movie finally came out. A bunch of us went to see it Friday night and last night I threw a little Twilight Pre-Party for Garrett and his friends on a group date before they went to see it. After the teenagers saw my Tribute to Twilight Table, they all decided that I was more obsessed with Twilight than they were. Those of you who know me well, know that I'm really not obsessed with Twilight that much. I just like an excuse........ any excuse to have a party. It was a lot of fun getting everything together from my party closet and the kids really appreciated it!

After the movie, they had a scavenger hunt at Walmart and walked home (we don't live far) to a big bon fire that Gary and Cam had made for them in the backyard. They hung out, ate Red Velvet Cake and had hot cocoa. They are a great group of kids!

As far as the movie goes, I liked it............ but for me......... it wasn't as good as the book. What movie ever is??????? I really loved the scenery and location. It reminded me so much of places in Alaska that I spent so much of my childhood in. That part was exactly how I envisioned it. Edward was......well.....delicious! Can I say that? tee hee. And Bella, was very much how I imagined her too. The rest of the characters were not what I pictured in my mind but they all worked well. Some of the scenes were a little cheesy, but all in all it was a good movie. Can't wait to go see it again and finish re-reading it! I know, I should have many other things to do but.....I am a Tween Twilighter at heart! I'm not obsessed.......really!

A Formal Affair!

2008-11-17T15:58:00.000-08:00

Garrett went to his first formal dance at his high school saturday night. He got a new suit, shoes, shirt, tie, etc. He was really excited! The group he went with came here first at 4:00 to take pictures. We took lots of pics in front of our house and in the park (that I somehow erased) ):):( Then they went to dinner, took pictures at the dance, came back here to play Guitar Hero, Air Hockey, drums and electric guitars in the Bonus Room. (This picture is of all of them then). They finally made it to the dance around 9:00. Everyone had a great time! It was a fun evening to be a part of. We love having Teenagers!

C.A.M.S. Cherry Ave. Middle School Band

2008-11-01T19:03:00.001-07:00

Cam had a Band Competition in Fowler today. He plays the trumpet in marching band and plays the quads for Winter line. They took 1st Place in both. It was so much fun to see Cam drumming. It is his passion. Go Bulldogs!

This isn't the best video but I was using my little flip camera and taking still pics at the same time. The funniest part is how you notice that I am not holding the camera very still. I started bouncing to the beat and forgot about the video. It really gets bad at the end when the drum line starts bouncing. Great job Cam!

"A Frightfully Busy Week!

2008-11-01T18:28:00.000-07:00

We have had an exhausting week of Trick or Treat Fun. It all started last weekend with a party and Haunted House hosted by one of Gary's teachers then we had our Ward's annual Trunk or Treat party at the church, the next night was the annual Monster Mash at Cherry Ave. Middle School (where Cam attends and Garrett used to), the Harvest Festival at the Montessori School and it all finally ended with our annual family Halloween Party on our front porch last night. I have gotten dressed up 5 times this week and I think I am done with Halloween for a while. It has been an eventful week to say the least.

My Husband the Vampire and our friends well being as silly as they could. Too Funny!

"It's all about the Love!" We always have matching or thematic family costumes each year so here is our best Hippie look. I know it is really silly. While the big boys are happy to use the same costume for each event, the little kids want a change so Caleb of course wanted to be Anikon (Star Wars) and gillian loved her "Go Go" dress but we never could get the hat quite right. She wouldn't let us fix it so we just went with it of course. Fun times!

Caleb and Gillian

2008-10-07T17:28:00.000-07:00

Here are my sweet babies all ready for church. As you can see, still no hair on gillian but.......I gathered together just enough to clip a bow on top of her head. Trust me, this is nothing less than an amazing feat! Not only doe's gillian lack a lot of hair, she doesn't want to have "prettys" in her hair. In gillian's own words......"No, no Mommy! Me no want a pretty in my hair!"

Cross Country

2008-10-07T17:19:00.001-07:00

Garrett started running Cross Country this year. He runs 3-5 miles everyday and is doing pretty well at his "Meets". He seems to enjoy this new sport of his and has a great team and coach. Garrett has been a good influence on Gary and me. We have been trying to run at 5:00 each morning but can only seem to complete about 2 miles. The other kids are showing some interest too. We are hoping to run together as a family in one of the beach runs in Cayucos early next summer. Garrett is our hero!

Disneyland or Bust!

2008-09-11T19:30:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our semi- annual Disneyland Trip with our very good Friends, the Watson Family. Every January and September like clock work, we plan out a 2-3 day Disneyland party that none of us ever wants to end. We think we have been doing this for at least 7 years so that would make 14 trips together. It is so much fun that we keep going back.

This trip was a celebration for Mary's 40th birthday. I made matching t-shirts for both of the families, we stayed at the Disneyland Hotel, we decorated the Watson's room with birthday balloons and lot's of Mickey goodies. Mary said that her family was so excited to see all the stuff we had put in their room that they all started jumping up and down. She said, and I quote, "It looked like Mickey Mouse threw up in our room!" How is that for appreciation! tee hee.

The little kids all tried out for Jedi Training and made it. Yeah! We rode all our favorite rides and even found a new favorite.....Toy Story.

After several trips hoping that we would win something...........anything from the Disneyland Dream Giveaway, I am sooooo happy to say that we were greeted by not one but two Dream Give Away Employees when we got off of Pirates of the Carribean who told the Watson's oldest daughter Clara that she had just won a tour of Walt Disney's Personal Apartment over the Fire Station along with a dinner for 14 at the Plaza Cafe. The computer in Chicago had chosen that ride that day at the exact time that we boarded to be the grand prize winner. We also learned that that particular prize will only be awarded to 10 groups this whole year! It was a prize with a one in 6,000 chance of being won. Thanks Clara for sharing your prize with us and thanks Gary for forcing us on the ride. We almost passed it up.

Disneyland is the place "where all your dreams come true!"

Thanks Watson Family for another super fun family trip!

Grand Prize Winner and Company!

Caleb getting the better of Darth Vader during Jedi Training!

Walt Disney's Apartment!

Labor Day Weekend!

2008-09-11T19:28:00.000-07:00

Another Trip to the Beach, hanging out with good friends, a few more pics of the ocean........what can I say, it is our home away from home. We just can't get enough of the coastal lifestyle!

"A PIRATE'S LIFE FOR ME!"

2008-08-26T09:23:00.001-07:00

We finally had Caleb's 4th birthday party. He thought it would never get here. I think it was worse for him than waiting for Christmas. ha ha.Caleb chose to have a Pirate Party so I set about gathering pirate paraphernalia. It really turned out cute. I bought some things, made a few things and borrowed a lot. We had everyone dress up and we took individual pics by the Pirate's Booty. I love gillian and Caleb's sweet pictures . Pirate children they be!

We Don't Want the Summer to End!

2008-08-15T21:54:00.000-07:00

Gary had an Administrative Retreat recently so it was a good excuse to head to the beach again. The only thing that we could find last minute was this little cottage a few houses up from the beach. It was old and a little cramped but we had a great time! The boys had a little bedroom and bath out behind our main house so they were in heaven. Gary had to work a lot of the week that we were there but the kids and I made the most of our time.

The whole driveway along our little beach cottage was lined with sweet peas. I took several pics of gillian in front of them. It got so everytime we went outside she thought that she needed to pose in front of the flowers before we did anything else. My little sweet pea!

A Record......4 books in 10 days!

2008-08-05T20:18:00.000-07:00

O.K. so I have been waiting to read the Twilight series over the summer and a few weeks ago while we were vacationing in Cayucos, I realized that the 4th and final book was coming out on Friday and I needed to get started before the summer was over so........I drove into San Luis and picked up book 1. The next day I drove back into San Luis and picked up book 2. On the 3rd day I made another trip to San Luis for book 3. My family knows I love to read but they are like, "Are you kidding me?" We got home on Saturday and our neighborhood was having our annual "Hot August Nights". Our boys were playing in the band so after unloading, starting the wash, breaking down and setting the drum set up in the park then hanging out with the neighbors all night, it was time for bed and we had very few groceries in house. I was way too tired to go out and I needed to start reading again. We made it thru Sunday but by Monday morning, my cupboards were bare. At church, one of our friend's asked Gary, "is your wife reading that vampire book?" Gary shrugged and said, " yes" and I'm guessing they rolled their eyes at each other. Unga went on to say that all his wife does is read, "we don't have any groceries, she isn't cooking, she isn't cleaning, watching the kids, etc." Gary told me that all he did was laugh but I'm sure he had more to say than that. After church, Gary related the story to me and the boys and we all laughed...........knowingly. I promised I would get groceries on Monday. I went to bed around 2 that night breaking my "only read church books, scriptures, lesson manuals on Sunday rule" and got up around 6 and started reading again. Gary came up the stairs around 7:15 and said, "I'm going to work now. My house is a mess, there is about 8 loads of laundry left and I had the last morsel of food left in the house for breakfast." I asked what he had and he said, "A hamburger bun!". I died laughing. I yelled after him saying something like, "Why don't you call and ask Unga if he needs breakfast. He might appreciate a hamburger bun." I told my friend Chris the story and today when I got home there was this cute card with a note inside saying, "Since you are otherwise occupied, we thought you might need dinner tonight" I asked griffin what Sister Spencer had brought and he pulled out a bag of hamburger buns. Sooooo funny. Priscilla, if you read this, tell Unga that we have left overs. These books are the best! I gave the first book to one of my teachers and she is as obsessed as I am so we pour over the youtube videos and trailer teasers drooling in anticipation of the movie. I am starting back on book three so I can converse with Jenna (my teacher) about everything. If you haven't read them.....do it!

Gillian Grace

2008-07-25T22:09:00.000-07:00

Gillian turned 2 on July 11th. Where has the time gone? Out of all my kids, gillian has grown up from the baby stage the quickest. Looking back on her very first picture in the hospital all hooked up to monitors in the I.C.U., and seeing her now so beautiful and strong I am and will forever be thankful for her and the joy she has brought into my life and all my boy's lives. We love our gillian more than words can express! Happy birthday sweet girl!

To the Beach Again!

2008-07-25T21:51:00.001-07:00

We went over to the beach for a few days to spend some time with "the cousins" as all our kids like to say. We had a great time! There are .......count them.......9 boys and 1 baby girl that round out this crew. What a great group of kids!

A Mud Fight?

2008-07-25T21:46:00.000-07:00

Gillian and Caleb had a mud fight which had to be broken up by the older brothers because the little ones were showing no signs of ending the dirty battle. This is what I saw once it was over. Can you tell who won?

The Yentes Boys on the Water!

2008-07-25T21:33:00.000-07:00

All in a Summer's Day!

2008-07-25T21:29:00.000-07:00

Summertime is such a busy time but in a way a slow and lazy time too. At least that is how I like to look at it. We all fill our calendars with pool parties, lake trips, beach trips, BBQ's, camping trips, Fireworks, etc. Yet, when the party ends and we have time to relax.......we do. I never feel guilty in the summer for not doing all "my chores" but I would feel guilty if I didn't take the time to relax with a good book, stay up way to late hanging out with the boys, taking long walks on the beach, taking a nap, or sleeping out on top of the houseboat watching the stars in the sky. I love summer!

We have had a wonderful summer so far. So much has happened that I'm just throwing in a few pics of a few of the events. Some things I don't even have pictures for. My camera is on it's way out so it has been difficult getting all those great shots but even without pictures, we won't soon forget the memories we have made this summer and the time we have spent with fantastic friends and family. We hope you are having your best summer ever too!

Summer Fun!

2008-07-25T21:12:00.000-07:00

Houseboating at Lake Don Pedro with our friends The Bell Family. Gary and Garrett tried barefoot skiing. Crazy!

Which Princess Are You?

2008-07-02T18:12:00.000-07:00

I saw this on several blogs and thought it would be fun to do. Try it and see if it matches you.

http://www.greatestjournal.com/quiz.bml?Q=16354"> size=+1>You Are Pocahantas!

Free-spirited and wise. You have a strong passionate spirit that touches and changes all who know you. The wisdom and common sense that you have is really what guides you through life. Even so, you also have a very playful side that loves adventure and excitement.

Which'>http://www.greatestjournal.com/quiz.bml?Q=16354">Which Disney Princess Are You?

Memorial Weekend at the Beach

2008-05-27T20:51:00.000-07:00

We just spent 3 days in Cayucos eating, sunning and having lot's of fun. The weather was beautiful. Gillian loves the sand. She spent most of her time laying down putting her face right in the sand and saying "ooohhh". Caleb dug and dug and dug. I gave him a disposable camera and let him take lots of pictures. He was in heaven. The big kids boogie boarded, played football and wrestled dad on the beach. We stayed up late, watched movies, went to our favorite parks, rode the trolley and enjoyed each other's company.

Junior Olympics!

2008-05-22T13:51:00.000-07:00

Griffin took a Junior Olympics class this summer and it ended with a track meet last saturday. He is very interested in track. He is consistently running in at 2nd or 3rd place for the whole 3rd grade at his school and wants to join the Junior Olympian team this summer which is a team that prepares kids for high school track. Here are a few pics of his track meet.

Mother's Day Tea at Montessori

2008-05-22T13:35:00.000-07:00

We had our 10th Annual Mother's Day Tea Party at Montessori the Friday before Mother's Day. It was very nice. My kids didn't sing as usual (they get shy or scared) but they ate a lot.

First Trip to the Lake Summer 2008

2008-05-22T13:17:00.000-07:00

We had our first trip to Pine Flat last Saturday. It was pretty successful eventhough we worried what the babies would do. For the last 2 summers, gillian just slept most of the time but Caleb drove us crazy begging to jump in constantly and if we didn't hold him down he would climb up and over the back of the boat and dive in before the engine even turned off. This year was different. Caleb was afraid of the boat, he kept saying, "I want to go home". He didn't get in the water and was pretty mellow. gillian got a fever right when we got to the lake so I gave her some meds (because i'm mother of the year...haha.) and she slept most of the time we were there. With all that said, our first trip out was pretty good. Maybe the babies won't be as wild as we thought they would be this year??????

Yentes Look-alike Meter

2008-05-07T21:06:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Pedigree

Yentes Look-alike Meter

2008-05-07T20:50:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Family pictures - Roots

Yentes Look-alike Meter

2008-05-07T18:47:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Family reunion - Make a family tree online

Yentes Look-alike Meter

2008-05-07T18:38:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Yentes Look-alike Meter

2008-05-07T13:56:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Our Tomboy!

2008-05-06T23:19:00.000-07:00

Gillian went to preschool in these clothes today. Of course I had a cute little girlie outfit ready for her this morning but after listening to baby girl pitch a fit for a few minutes I realized that it wasn't worth it so......she wore Caleb's clothes. (which is what she prefers to wear most of the time) While we were in the backyard playing later, gillian put this helmet on, wrestled with the dog, dug in the dirt and ate it, picked up snails and tried to dig them out of their shells, then she drank from the hose with Carlee. What a mess! Where did the little princess go?

2008-05-05T19:37:00.000-07:00

I was helping out taking pics this past week of the kids at Montessori for part of their Mother's Day presents and Caleb kept following me around asking to take "just one more picture" so here are a few. There are more but I will just include these. What a ham.

Sweet Gillian

2008-05-04T19:39:00.000-07:00

Gillian is almost 2. She is talking up a storm, telling us exactly what she wants and chasing Caleb all over the place. She is so much fun! I just had to share these rare photos of her. She won't sit still long enough lately for me to get any good shots but I was happy to get these.

Caleb's Portfolio

2008-05-02T23:38:00.000-07:00

For months I have noticed that Caleb is obsessed with my digital camera and the video camera. I would try to keep the camera up from him and monitor him when he wanted to use it but the kid kept finding it in all of my hiding places so I just started letting him use it. I have been amazed at some of the pictures he has taken. It is so funny to watch him meticulously steady the camera or arrange objects that he wants to video tape. He has learned to use all the "buttons" and takes his photography very seriously. I've included some of my favorites here.

I'm Back

2008-04-17T22:45:00.001-07:00
O.K. I left my blog for awhile but now I'm back at least for now. Here are a few highlights of our family happenings from the last several months.

Caleb Retires His Crown

2008-04-17T22:33:00.000-07:00

Although Caleb still puts on his crown once in a while, he has given the "King" gig up for the "Cowboy" gig for now. He loves his guitar and I swear he is able to play chords. His strumming really sounds pretty good if you can get past his almost yelling his favorite lyrics of "I lub Sally and Lightening McQueen. I lub mommy and my brodders when they not mean".

Baby Girl

2008-04-17T22:27:00.000-07:00

Gillian Loves her "dog, dog". Carlee is very, very good with her.

Just had to add a few pictures of gillian. She is changing so much everyday. She is still very sweet but has a little temper when it comes to Caleb. She thinks he is teasing her most of the time so she yells or squeals, grabs things back from him and sometimes even takes a swing at him. I think this is all because he plays really rough with her soooo.......not so sure she is going to be that little femine girl we thought she would be but we adore her either way. Besides, I have to stick up for myself around Caleb so she really is no different. oh ya! still no hair.

Garrett's 16th B-day at D-land

2008-04-17T22:10:00.000-07:00

Clara and Em

Don't Ask about this pic.

In February, Mary and I took Garrett and some of his friends to Disneyland overnight for his 16th birthday. We really had a lot of fun! We rode our favorite rides, ate at The Cheesecake Factory, stayed up really late and played a few pranks well a lot of pranks! We all decided that "what happens in D-land stays in D-land."
Michael, Clara, Michael and Garrett

Spring Break at the Beach

2008-04-17T21:28:00.000-07:00

We made a last minute trip to the beach during Spring break. We met up with the Watsons and had a super time. The weather was beautiful. Gillian loved playing and digging in the sand and she especially enjoyed eating it.

Beach Baby!

I love this picture. The little boys are
playing on the water's edge and Abby is
watching them a long way off. The mist
looks awesome!

Big Brother

2008-02-21T22:19:00.000-08:00

Caleb is so sweet with Gillian. This picture shows that soft side of him. Caleb calls gillian "my baby" and wants to guide her around and help her all the time. Although gillian is very independent, she really loves her big brother and best friend.

Caleb Sings.....sort of

2008-02-21T21:55:00.000-08:00
Today I heard what I thought was crying in the backyard. When I looked out the window, I saw Caleb in the sandbox playing his version of a concert to some of his make believe fans. By the time I got the camera the show was almost over. When he noticed me taping him, he threw himself into concert mode again. Watch both videos. The second one is hysterical. What in the world is he saying???? Well, When I interviewed the star after his performance he told me that he was singing, "Carlee, I lub (love) you foreber and eber. Lightning McQueen and Sally I lub you foreber and eber too." What a crack up!

Gillian

2008-02-16T22:51:00.000-08:00

Here's a picture of sweet Gillian. She is 19 months old now and amazing us everyday with new things, words and expressions. She is starting to scream a very high pitched sound when Caleb teases her which is a lot of the time and then she swings her arms at Caleb when he is trying to hug her which is the rest of the time. We call her "Miss Independence". Her favorite words right now are "up, (like get up and get me something), we dance, no no, and outside." She loves to wear dresses and "pretty" clothes as she calls them. We are still waiting for her hair to come in. We love our baby girl!

Rainy Day Fun

2008-02-16T22:42:00.000-08:00

O.K. so a few weeks ago we had a lot of rain. I guess my boys were bored because they thought it would be a good idea to give Carlee a bath since she was already wet. What a sight! Thank goodness it was a warm rain. By the time it was over, Caleb was pretty much naked. As his clothes got wet, he would lose them. I'll spare you the picture but you get the idea.

The King has found a Queen

2008-01-10T22:56:00.000-08:00

While we were in Southern Cal. we stopped at my cousin's home in Lake Forrest and went to church with them. Caleb was in heaven because he got to go to a new primary class with his cousin's Nate and Kate and they all got crowns to take home.

After church we went to the Foster's house for dinner. We visited and the kids played. At one point, Caleb and Kate come out hand in hand with crowns and ball gowns on announcing that they wanted to show us their dance. So Julie put on some music and Caleb took Kate by the hand and led her thru a sort of waltz with dips and spins even. It was hysterical but they were very serious about their dancing so we just went with it.

When it was time to go, Caleb was heartbroken.....literally. He cried and hung on to Kate and kept saying, "I don't want to leave her." Oh brother.....if this is any indication of what is to come for him we are all in trouble. He was so distraught that we had to call Kate on the cell phone from the car so he could talk to her "one last time." What a kid!

Disneyland or Bust!

2008-01-10T22:31:00.000-08:00

O.K. I know we seem a little obsessed with Disneyland. But we started taking the kids when Cam was a baby and we just keep going back. It never seems to get old for us. We always buy an annual pass so we feel like we have to get our money's worth. haha. We always spend 3 or 4 days in January there with our friends the Watson's. Both of our families have grown so much that it is a little crazy sometimes but we always have so much fun and the kids consider it one of their favorite traditions.

Caleb made it into Jedi Training this trip so he was very happy. He was a little nervous or maybe concerned while he was learning to fight as a Jedi but he took on Darth Maul and graduated with honors.

Christmas Vacation

2008-01-10T21:50:00.000-08:00

We had 3 weeks for vacation this year so we packed our bags, loaded the car and headed down South for almost 2 weeks. First we made a stop at my mom's house in Apple Valley to visit and enjoy a late Christmas together. My brother was there and as usual gave my kids very thoughtful gifts. My mom made us a very nice dinner and had fun playing with the babies.
It was a nice visit.
We got back in the car and made our way down to Coronado. Grammy and Grampy were there so we got to have another late Christmas with them. The weather was beautiful and of course there was a lot of excitement with New Year's Eve around the corner. We did many of our usual or traditional things during our week in Coronado. We took several walks thru the Hotel Del and on the beach every day. We rode the ferry to San Diego and ate at Anthony's. We rented a buggy bike, played in the sand,visited museums, did a little shopping and ate way too much!

Baby Gillian at our hotel surrounded by her brothers as usual.

Grammy gave Gillian a baby doll for Christmas.
Firefighter Caleb on the Ferry from San Diego to Coronado.
We love Coronado!

Christmas Morning

2008-01-10T21:11:00.000-08:00

Christmas was a little different this year. Since the babies were sick, my family didn't come to visit so it was just our family Christmas morning. I think this was a first. Santa was good to our kids bringing them scooters, race tracks, baby dolls, guitar hero and an air hockey table for our game room.
We enjoyed watching the babies eagerly tear thru presents and light up with excitement. Caleb went crazy. We all had some good laughs.
The older boys were happy with gift cards to book stores, clothing stores and game stores.

Even though it was a smaller crowd than we usually had, I still made our traditional Christmas dinner while everyone played with their new toys and rolled around in all the empty boxes and wrapping paper. haha.

Christmas Eve 2007

2007-12-24T22:54:00.001-08:00

It is Christmas Eve and I am waiting for the kids to go to sleep so Gary and I can finish up down stairs. The babies woke up last night with the flu so we didn't plan to do any of our traditional Christmas Eve things since we didn't know what today would bring. To our surprise, Caleb and Gillian both slept a lot today and seemed so much better tonight as you can tell from the pictures. Yeah!

The big boys went caroling in our circle with our friends next door then Garrett dressed up as Santa (I guess) and made us all laugh so hard. He was hilarious! Caleb figured out pretty quickly that Garrett was "the pretend Santa" but went along with it to get a present. Gillian stayed away.

After the Santa Show, Gary spent the evening in Santa's Workshop where we have set traps outside the door of the bonus room in order to catch any children who might try to sneak a pre-Christmas peek. We have "Do Not Enter" signs posted all along the hallway and the kids are dying to see what is going on in there. Hahahahahahahah. It is hysterical.

I will post more pictures tomorrow.

Our Ward Christmas Party

2007-12-23T23:07:00.000-08:00
We had a great Ward Activity last weekend that our family had the good fortune to help plan and implement. Our Activities Committee took the ever popular "Trip to Bethlehem" program and told the story of Jesus Christ's birth from the Book of Mormon stand point. It was an incredible evening!

We jazzed up our nativity costumes with some bright colors and animal prints and decorated the cultural hall with fabric wrapped booths, white lights and lots of greenery. It was so beautiful. (the pictures don't really do it justice but you can get the idea).

We served food and had crafts at the booths. Everyone was really busy moving about the marketplace visiting and hitting all the shops.

The program that my friend, the Bishop's wife planned was awesome. When everyone first entered the city of Zarahemla, they were asked if they believed in the Christ that was to come. Of course they all said, "Yes" so they were given a bracelet as a symbol that they were a "Believer". During the night, little vignettes were going on where different Book of Mormon Prophets were portrayed talking or preaching in the marketplace just like it might have been during that time. People would stop what they were doing and gather in the center of the marketplace to listen. Actors in the audience portraying "Non Believers" would talk against the prophesies saying that it wasn't true that God would send a Savior born in the East. Incredibly, others who weren't a part of the script would just randomly chime in saying things like, "We believe", "Have faith", "How do you know that a Savior won't come?", "We know that God will bless us with a Savior", etc.

Even the littlest of children got into it. They listened to everything that was going on and participated in their own way. As you can see from the slide show below, Caleb had a sword and pretty much tried to take on any bad guy (as he called them) that didn't believe in Jesus. Way cute!

There were also slide shows and music that would play depicting the birth of our Savior. It was a beautiful evening and a lot of fun. Our family was grateful to be a part of this special night. We all agreed that it set a wonderful tone for our whole Ward Family's Christmas Celebrations.

A Trip to Zarahemla

2007-12-23T23:05:00.002-08:00

The King

2007-12-11T21:35:00.001-08:00
A few weeks ago after Caleb watched Gillian's, Barbie Island Princess Movie he wanted to look like the prince. He kept saying, "I want that on my head" pointing to the Prince's crown. So I made him a crown and he has been wearing it ever since. He wears it to preschool, in the car, around the house, outside playing and even to bed. He gets upset when he can't find his "King" as he refers to it. Now we can't get it off him. Oh....... what have I done???????

Boas and Scarves.....Gillian's New Thing

2007-12-04T20:12:00.000-08:00

Tulare Christmas Parade 2007

2007-12-04T19:59:00.000-08:00

Peanut Butter, Sweet Peanut Butter!

2007-12-04T15:07:00.000-08:00

Caleb decided that he was hungry the other night and instead of asking for something to eat, he climbed on top of the counter, then up into the cupboards (3 shelves high), got the peanut butter and hunkered down in the family room for a little midnight snack. When I saw what he was doing, I was so mad but then I started to laugh at the unbelievable scene. Peanut butter was everywhere and Caleb was smearing it and licking it all up. It was funny and naughty all at the same time. That's our Caleb. Now we not only have to keep locks on the lower shelves for Gillian, but we need to have them up high too. Oh brother.