Happy Chubby Baby!

YUMMY!

Oh YES i did!!!

Can you believe that HE let me!?!?

More to come on my conversion story:)

Nutcracker

The past two weeks have been spent shuttling Ruth to Nutcracker, EVERYDAY!! It has been fun, crazy, and a bit surreal. I got to go watch her very first performance and as I sat there and the lights went out and the music began...I cried. All the memories from my childhood came flooding back to me, and now I was sitting there to watch my BABY! I was so excited for her to have this experience. I is some of my fondest memories of my youth. To be able to dance with these professional dancers, and on such a big stage, there is nothing like this.

As the Mother Buffoon made her way on the stage the anticipation for me grew! I couldn't wait to see her come out from under that skirt. I was worried that it would be hard to tell which was her. Well, she did not disappoint. She can right out of the skirt did the "buffoon jump"(that is what we call it around here). I was so proud of her. She was beautiful. Way to go my little Ruthie. That is a moment that I will never forget. When she is old and left my home, I will remember when she was mine and I watched her shine on that stage for the first time! I hope she will have many more opportunities just like the one she had this year.

She and I are so lucky to have the support that we do. She had many loved ones come to watch her. It was such a highlight for her. After all the hard work, and practicing to have people that she loves come and watch her, was priceless. She wanted me to thank them all on my blog. She is so grateful for the support, and loves you all so dearly!

What a great experience for my "Baby Ruth" can you believe she is old enough to do that?

This was the night of her first performance. Her brothers were so proud, and they LOVED the show even more now that she was in it!

Here is a collection of flowers that she received. She got a special delivery backstage from her Daddy! Good thing her mom was there to order it for him:)

Thanksgiving 2011

This year I am once again so grateful for so many blessings. As I get older and my children get older I am most grateful for them! They make my world turn. I am also grateful for my sweet Hubby and best friend. He helps my world to stop turning when my kids have spun my world upside down! :) Right now, that seems to be often.

We were in Park City this year. I LOVE it up there. We come on Wednesday night and we don't leave until Friday. It is so much more fun than showing up for dinner at 2:00 and leaving by 6:00! What a blessing it is to have a place that can hold us all. The kids enjoy it. We were entertained this year by them with some Thanksgiving plays.

I love thanksgiving because it is just as much about family and Christ as Christmas can be, with out all the presents! I love it!

Boys hanging out watching Football. Hank is really into that this year! It has been so much fun for Colin.

The annual Turkey Bowl. This year it was out on the golf coarse at Glenwild. So fun!!

Whoops, she did it again!

So, two days after Ruby fell and got stitches she fell AGAIN! She split her head open and passed out. (a common occurrence when she gets hurt). So, back to the Insta Care. I am always the one that has taken my kids in the past. Part of me just can't send my hurt baby to the doctor with out me! This time I really wanted Colin to have this experience. So, begrudgingly, I put her in her carseat, gave Colin strict instructions and waved goodbye.

Well, the Doctor wouldn't restitch her, so 45 minutes later Colin came walking in with some glue and steri strips on her forehead. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING! I had to endure my sweet baby wrapped in a sheet, and buried under a sheet over her face while they numbed her and did 10 stitches. Half the time I was in tears, thinking that they should put me in jail for allowing this to happen! I seriously can't catch a break!

I'm sure this won't be our last encounter with emergency care, maybe I will be strong enough next time to send them with Colin. There is still hope for him to experience the beauty of Insta Care:)

Winner!

Hank won the Reflections contest this year! I am so excited and a bit shocked. He is not interested in art at all, and I made him do it. I think he spent all of 15 minutes on it! I will not argue that it is good for him to win and build some confidence.

The biggest winner might have been Ruth. She LOVES art and was so excited about Reflections. She didn't win or get and honorable mention this year. The winning part is that she was so excited for Hank, genuinely. She didn't ask if she did or anything she just revealed in his victory. Then she asked if she could call Ellie and see if she won, because she thought "Ellie's was good and should win." Thank goodness for a gracious loser. I know it won't always be that way, but today we were victorious:)

Hank with his painting...(no I am not storing food in my cheeks for the winter! I am ready to get this baby weight off!)

Him with the other winner's from the other age groups.

Yellow Belt

Jack has been taking karate and LOVING it. This week he earned his yellow belt. He got to break a board as a way of earning it. Jack is quiet and shy, and karate is breaking him of that! Yippee!!

Crazy Day!

Jack and Ruby were playing this morning AND

This happened!

This past week has been completely insane with Halloween and a birthday. Hopefully, we are ending crazy with 10 Stitches!!!

This is her while the gel numbed her boo-boo.

Halloween fun

We went trick or treating!

Jack had a parade at school

This year Colin and I were Colonel Sanders and a Chicken:)

Casey and Kysha

Justin and Anna

Jonny and Ashley

Scott and Niki

Ty and Di

Spencer and Ashlie

We do this every year with some of our friends it is so much fun! I am always so excited to see what people are going to be!

BYU

We have some great friends who have great connection to BYU basketball. The boys got to go to Provo this week for the blue and white game. They had great seats for the game, they got to play on the court after the game, and then they went into the LOCKER room! I think Hank was in HEAVEN. We are lucky to have such fun and generous friends to share with us a great experience!

Hank's first piano recital

Hank had his first piano recital a few weeks ago. He was so excited. I truely love this little guy. He did a great job. He got to where his costume, which is an added bonus. At the end everyone brings treats and we eat. Hank went to town on that part too. It was honestly like Christmas morning for him. It is so fun to see the excitement for a PIANO RECITAL!

Happy Birthday Jack-O-Lantern!

My little baby boy is turning 5 tomorrow! Wow, where has the time gone? He is the light of this family. We are so lucky to have him in our little family. For his birthday this year we went to Black Island Farms to play. It was so fun and a great turn out!! I asked him what his favorite part was, he said, "The presents!" Spoken like a true 5 year old.

UEA Weekend

We had a great weekend!

On Thursday we went to Frightmares

And Grandma had some fun Halloween parties for everyone. She did them in age groups so I had some one on one time with my Ruth! It was a great day.

Friday we went to Park City with our cousins.

Hank had a birthday party on saturday, and we ended the weekend with flag football and a U of U football game.

Lego Lover

This is the latest creation from...Hank.

**Can you see that he spelled his name? What a fun little boy!

Always Naked

Ruby is ALWAYS naked. She is full of life and spunk. I adore her.

Movie Night

My girlfriends and I have a tradition to go to late movies during the week. It is so much fun and a much needed break from routine! This week we went to Footloose, which I thought was a great "Chick Flick". This was the first time I have left Rose in 5 1/2 weeks!

It was a GREAT opportunity for these two to bond...

Sunday Backyard shannanigans

We have a Sunday rule that no friends inside on Sundays, and my kids are not allowed to go inside their friends house either. The fact that we live next to our cousins can sometimes confuse the rule. Between our houses we have 11 kids! They range in age from 13-1 month. They all adore each other and play so well together. This summer the older ones have had some great ideas to add to the joy and the heat of the backyard on Sunday.

*They have done plays

*Created a clubhouse and club

*Had a carnival with an obstacle coarse and face painting

*Major soccer games

*Just face painting

*Treasure hunts

*And so on...

TODAY, they topped it all! They had their own church. They called it "Mini Church" Complete with testimony meeting, where they bore their testimonies to each other, and Sacrament. Hank came in to go to the bathroom and informed us that they would be holding sacrament in the backyard. Colin and I looked at each other, like, should we stop them? We decided "no". It is innocent. Besides, who doesn't want there kids in the backyard bearing their testimonies to their friends?! Can you believe that they did this after they already "endured" 3 hours of "Big church" already?

Very Joseph Smith style wouldn't you say!

LOVE them

Blessing day!

Today we blessed Rose. It is always so fun to do that. We gather the troops of wonderful family. We gave her the name Rose Mary Wright. I am always worried that Colin will exert his priesthood authority and change the name last minute. He didn't today! She is a beautiful baby that brings heaven to our home. We love you Rose Mary!

I love this picture with her tongue out! She is so YUMMM.