Jenna's Walkin'!

Okay. So this is the first video I've tried to upload. Sorry it's sideways. I didn't think about that when I held the camera. She's getting pretty good at walking with the push toys and along furniture but hasn't done much of anything at all on her own. I hope you enjoy the movie. You may want to pop some popcorn and watch it over and over since my kids are just so darn cute!

It's a start!

Yeah for Jenna! She's just starting to walk with the help of this little toy. Earlier in the week she tried once but she would just laugh and fall to her knees after only one or two steps. Then, yesterday, while I was visiting teaching she started going around in circles with a toy stroller. That was the most she's ever done. I decided to have her try again tonight and she took several steps while pushing this toy. The poor thing's pants kept sliding down even though I tried to roll them up. She'd probably have done even better if her pants weren't in the way. She seems so small but she is a year now. The boys were both about 13 months before they walked so she's right on their schedule. It sure goes by fast. It seems like yesterday that we were bringing her home from the hospital.

Our New Treasure

Here's another plug for Craigslist! I saw this piano listed on Craiglists maybe a week and a half ago for $4oo. The listing had been posted for about a week so I emailed them to see if it was still available. She wrote back to say she still had it and that she had dropped the price to $250. I thought about it but decided we really didn't need to spend the money. Then on Thursday she wrote to say she had to move the piano within the week and that she'd sell it to me for $100! I went to look at it Friday and we made the deal. Dustin rounded up a few helpers and picked it up last night. The piano is definitely an antique. There's a sticker on it that says it was tuned in 1926! Dustin and I can already play a song together. Now we just need to get our kids into lessons so that they can grow up to be concert pianists and make us all rich! Hah!

Yum! Yum!

Here are a few photos of Jenna tonight as we celebrated her first birthday. It was so fun to decorate the dining room with pink, red, and purple hearts. We even had pink cake with pink frosting. The Smiths came over and we all had a nice evening visiting and eating and watching Jenna open her gifts. Thank you to the Smiths, Grandma Pamela, and Grandma Pat for the fun presents. We all had a great time. Happy Birthday, Jenna! We hope this next year is even better than the first!

Happy Birthday, Jenna!

Jenna is one year old today! It's gone by sooooooo quickly. These photos were taken yesterday afternoon since the weather report, which ended up being accurate, called for rain today. Tonight we're going to have cupcakes and open presents. We've invited our friends the Smiths who have a daughter just a couple of months younger than Jenna. We'll be sure to post photos of those activities later tonight.

A Campin' We Will Go!

Well, Dustin had to try out that new topper on Mater so off he and the boys went on an end of summer camping trip. This was a boys only activity which prompted Henry to say, "But, Mom, Missy is a girl." Missy is our dog and, at the time, was all loaded up in the back of the truck. I reassured Henry that it was okay because she's a dog. The went out to Belt to help our Bishop's father-in-law chop firewood for the winter with the Ward's Elder's Quorum. By how much dirt they brought home on their clothes and bodies I'm sure they all had a great time!

Our Jeffy

Can Jeff get any more cute? Tonight, while I was making dinner, Jeff told me from the other room that he was putting a diaper on Woody. I had to check this one out and sure enough, that's what he was doing. The camera was right there so I snapped this photo. The little pink basket usually stays hidden in the living room with diapering supplies so I don't always have to run upstairs. You can see on the floor that Jeff even took Woody's vest off and got the Desitin out! So cute!

Mater gets a new addition!

Mater is our 1966 Ford F100 pick-up. We found him last year right after we moved to Montana and right after the boys saw the movie Cars which is where he got his name from. We only paid $1ooo for him and we all love him. Anyways, I was on Craigslist on Saturday and I came across this topper in the FOR FREE section! It was a 1968 model so it's PERFECT for Mater. Dustin had been saying he wanted a topper so that he could take the boys camping even though it was getting colder at night. I was so excited when I found it. I mean, wow, for free? So Dustin and Jeff drove down to Missoula today to pick it up. It is really cute and for being 40 years old it's in FABULOUS shape. It even has little louvered windows that crank open. I love it when things come together like this.

The Child Magnet

I realize the photo is a little dark- it's a little dark outside. While Jenna and I were out front with the flowers, Dustin was in the back yard "bouncing" the kids on the trampoline. I don't know how it happens but the yard slowly fills with other people's children when someone is on the trampoline. If you look closely there are 8 of them on there! Don't worry there's only one on there whose name we don't know. We'll learn it soon enough. Having grown up in the country this is all new to me. The kids seem to enjoy having everyone over. I just need to figure out how to get other people to watch my kids!

Enjoy 'em while you can...

Tonight, as Jenna was helping me tend my flowers the thought occurred to me that they weren't going to last much longer. Couple that thought with how absolutely darling she looked standing there and I couldn't resist taking her picture. Yes, winter sets in early in Montana. Last year we'd had our first snow by now. I am hoping for a miracle and that it holds out until my birthday next month. We'll just have to wait and see. Until then, though, we'll be sure to enjoy the sunshine and flowers while we can!

The Air Force Ball

Tonight was the Air Force Ball. It was fun getting all dressed up and going out for the night. We enjoyed a nice meal, an inspirational message from General Deppe, spending time with friends from church, and dancing. We're not so good at the dancing part, although we have fun trying. We both have aching feet tonight. Dustin's shoes were just too shiny to be comfortable and mine, well, when are women's heels ever comfortable?

While the cat's away, the mice will play...

Sooooooooooo, I went out tonight for a quick meeting at church. I came home at about 8:20 or so. It's a school night so my precious children should have been winding down and climbing into bed. But what did I find when I came home- a party house! Dustin was grabbing up kids and saying, "Get upstairs, get upstairs!" with a huge grin on his face, a movie was ending on the computer in the living room, there were traces of popcorn and candy wrappers on the floor, two children were colored blue, and the other one was naked! Meanwhile Dustin just keeps laughing like he's gotten away with something. The whole situation was terribly funny to me, too. I pretended, though, like they were all in really BIG trouble. I couldn't really be mad- He did do an awesome job tonight. They were headed up to bath, hence the naked child, the kitchen was clean, the blue marker was technically my fault since I did leave it out after a Primary project, and everyone was happy. Nights like this are why Dad is the hero and mom is, well, mom. We're just happy that Dad's schedule is back to normal and that he's not deployed so nights like this can happen. Yeah for Dads!

Caught Ya!

My kids are busy! So when I caught Jeff tucked quietly behind this chair reading books I had to capture the moment. He was soooooooooooo cute sitting there reading aloud to himself. I LOVE that my kids like to read and to be read to. We read together EVERYDAY. I hope they grow to love reading as much as I do.

Up, Up, and Away

Today hasn't gone as I'd expected. Dustin and I took the kids to Harley Davidson Open House today. I thought we were going for the free lunch and to look at all the new 2008s. Dustin had mentioned that he needed a new front tire and that the flyer mentioned free mount and balance but I didn't think much of it. Well, I should have. We left the Open House with 2 new tires, new brake pads, and a bill for $368 and some change. As Dustin's mom says, "Life costs money!" It's no big deal, really. We just have a bit less left in savings. Anyways, getting to the photo. Since Dustin rode the bike home and I left before him I had to unload everyone by myself. I brought Jenna in first so she'd be "safe". But when I came in with a half-asleep boy and a load of shopping bags, there she was- half-way up the stairs as happy as could be. She had only thought about trying this one out before. Me, the crazy mom ran the 8 or so steps into the kitchen to get the camera saying, "Don't fall, don't fall, don't fall." Yeah, I probably should have grabbed her up and skipped the photo but she just looked so proud of herself! Boy, do we have to watch this one!

Henry's First Day of Kindergarten

Henry's officially in school now. We can hardly believe it. I didn't know how I'd adjust to having something everyday to get ready for (last year was just T/Th) but it's been great. The kids have always been early risers so we've been ready long before bus time everyday. The bottom picture is of our Jeffrey right after Henry's bus pulled away for the first time. We're still insure if Jeff was crying because his brother left him or because he didn't get to go. He's much better now and even has an "after bus stop" playdate tomorrow with another little boy who also gets left behind.

Jeff's turn

This is absolutely one of my favorite photos of Jeff. It was taken earlier this year by Dustin's cousin Jeannie at Sluice Boxes State Park. Jeff rarely smiles for the camera. In fact, it's usually a grouchy "don't you take my picture" look so I love any photo that captures that darling face.

Showing Off Jenna is so FUN!

This is Jenna last month looking especially pretty in her 24th of July outfit which I finished sewing around August 3rd! A little late maybe but you can't argue with the results. She looks adorable. At least we think so! She helped choose the fabric. The girls (Jenna, Mom, and Grandma) all went to the fabric store. Jenna was in her car seat in the front of the shopping cart. I laid this red fabric bolt across her seat and then went to look for a contrast fabric to go with it. When I tried to pick up the red bolt to match it, Jenna started crying- VERY loudly. I laid the bolt back across her seat and she stopped- IMMEDIATELY, held onto it with one hand, and started patting it with the other. Needless to say, we HAD to buy the red fabric.

Jenna Mae

So the weather here in Great Falls is definitely changing. The past two mornings have been a little cool at the bus stop so I decided to put Jenna in this little sweater today. So cute. I just wanted to take a break from the vacation slideshow and update you on little Jenna. She did something cool last night...we were downstairs watching a movie as a family and she was cruising back and forth from the chair to the couch and she let go from both for just a second, got scared, grabbed back on and started crying. It was pretty cute. She will be walking soon! The boys were both 13 months before they walked. I wonder if she'll beat them...

Swimming with the Dolphins

This is me swimming with Dolphins. The one I am talking to is Nani. We also had Kaleo and 16 month old Lupita in our group. I hadn't planned on doing this but Dustin insisted siting the fact that I had been dreaming about it for the longest time. I was a little nervous though since you hear horror stories about places who mistreat the dolphins. I asked someone who had been there before (we were making reservations in the hotel lobby) and she reassured me it was a nice place and a nice experience. She was right. The trainers were wonderful people who truly seemed to love the animals and the animals seemed healthy and it was a nice facility. We got to be in the water for about 45 minutes. They truly are amazing animals and this was one very special experience.

Hawaii without kids!

This is Hawaii without kids! I am so glad that went to Hawaii for the first time without my precious children. Sure, I missed them quite a bit but everytime we saw a toddler throwing a fit in a store, or a mom pushing a stroller not full of children but full of beach stuff with group of children crying about walking, or we played all day and ate dinner at 9:30pm, or we sat in the hot tub in the adults only swimming pool area, or we decide on a whim to rent racquets and play tennis for an hour, or we decided to go to icecream at 10pm, I was glad we were childless. It was such a nice VACATION, because you know, it's never a real vacation for mom if the kids come- it's just a business trip- it's the same work just someplace else.

The Temple

This is the Laie Hawaii Temple. It's located on the Northwest corner of the island. It's very near BYU Hawaii and the Polynesian Cultural Center. We went to the 11 am session and had a wonderful time. In LDS temples, couples are married, or sealed, for time and all eternity. We also perform these sealings for people who died before a temple sealing was available to them by proxy. Well, we were staying at the Hale Koa hotel on Waikiki Beach. It seemed like there was either a wedding or a renewal of vows ceremony everyday at the hotel. I kept thinking how fun that would be. But Dustin and I were married in the temple and we don't do that. But after our session a gentleman came up and asked us if we would help with some sealings that morning. It was so fun to do these 10 sealings for 10 couples who had been waiting so long and to get a chance to think about our own sealing 6 years ago. So we may not have been invited to any of the weddings at our hotel, we got to participate in 10 very happy weddings at the temple. I must admit, I didn't miss the cake a bit!

A Ring and a Prayer

OK. Let me start by saying that Waikiki us fast becoming a Mecca for high end shopping. I say that as a Wal-Mart shopper which means items in these stores cost well over $100 and they don't even plug in. Stores like Yves Saint Laurent, Prada, Coach, Burberry, etc., etc., etc. line the streets along the beach. Well, there was also a Cartier jewelry store, yes, like from France. There were two gorgeous rings in the window case and I was curious. I asked Dustin to come in with me to ask about them. He said, "No way, too dangerous." So I went in by myself. I told the woman (and the security guard) that I just wanted to know how much the ring in the window cost. She tried to look up the prices in a book but then went to unlock the window case. I really wanted to know about this emerald cut one so she brought it out. The price? How about $241, ooo?! She even let me try it on, hense the photo above. I couldn't believe she let me even breathe on it. Obviously it was meant for some tiny Parisian princess since it only fit my pinky finger, but hey I got it on. I was giddy. Dustin didn't understand the big deal until I asked him why he thought it was soooooo cool to go to the Harley store and sit on all the new 2008 models. No further explanation was necessary.

One of the last photos...

This is Dustin at the start of his first surfing lesson. I have some fabulous photos that the surf school took with an amazing telephoto lens but those will have to wait. This is one of the last photos we have of Dustin's wedding ring. Yep, that's right, it slipped off while surfing and I think we've decided it's gone at least for our lifetimes. We reported it to the police there in Waikiki and posted a Lost & Found on Craig's List Hawaii but I think it's resting at sea at this point. Thank goodness we have that jewelry insurance add-on to our renters policy that Dustin said we didn't need! Not to say, "I told you so." or anything.

John C. Stennis Aircraft Carrier

On Monday of our trip we toured Pearl Harbor. We didn't know it, but we picked an AWESOME day to be in Pearl Harbor. The John C. Stennis aircraft carrier came into U.S. port after 9 months in the Persian Gulf. There were 4-5 sets of parents waiting with us at the USS Arizona Memorial. Tears came as we watched the carrier come slowly into port with H-60 helicopters as escorts. It was especially touching to me, as a military spouse, to think of the families who then knew that their loved ones were home safe again. You can see the sailors standing at attention on the deck. We watched as they raised the U.S. flag and everyone cheered. The harbor looked beautiful to me as a tourist and I could just imagine how beautiful it was to these military personnel after being away from home and at war for so long. It was one the highlights of the whole trip.

More of Manoa Falls Trail

I just loved these HUGE ferns. This was the first thing we did in Hawaii and it really was a wonderful way to start off this amazing adventure.

Hiking Manoa Falls

This is us at Manoa Falls, an easy day hike near the University of Hawaii in Honolulu. It's just what I imagined hiking in Hawaii would be like. It was gorgeous! The plants were huge and beautiful. A slight rain caught us on the trail but it was a welcome respite from the heat. You can swim in the pool beneath the falls. It was a romantic idea until we read all the signs posted about threats of contracting certain bacterial infections. We decided not to risk it. We would definitely recommend this hike to fellow travelers but I think I would suggest taking the hike on a weekday as it was pretty busy on the Saturday that we visited.

HAWAII!

This is one of my favorite photos from this past month's trip to Hawaii. Dustin and I were able to spend a whole week on Oahu while the kids stayed with Grandma in Idaho. It was an amazing trip. I can't wait to add more photos and stories as I learn more about this. This photo was taken at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, Hawaii.

Our First Post

So, I am finally jumping on the bandwagon and starting one of these. The main reason being that I need to keep grandparents in the loop with their growing grandchildren and I am not so good with keeping up with the emails. So I am giving this a try. Now, if I can just figure out how to add photos to this thing we'd be on our way...