Bye Bye Kitty.

Ok........... so we got a kitten for the kids for christmas. We thought the birds and cat could coexist. NOPE, one day I came out of the office to see the cat pouncing on our bird Huck. We have had Huck for 3 years and he talks and does a trick. I have a iffy relationship with Huck. He likes me then he doesn't. But I really enjoy him and he's a fun pet. I was horrified at what I was seeing. I quickly got in the way of the cat and yelled for Jonathan to come help me. Well, Huck was not harmed but we had to chose between the cat and Huck. A pet we got just 2 weeks ago or Huck that we've had for along time. It was simple, we picked our feathered friend. So sadly the girls had to say goodbye to their little friend.

I'm a mommy Peter

Peter informed me that he was a Mommy Peter. 

Ummmmmm, I don't wear blankets on my head. 

I don't know where he got that one. Still very cute.

One Last Ride.

We said goodbye to the quad today..... We didn't need it anymore. The kids didn't like riding it and it was just sitting in our garage. Maybe in 5 years we will get another one.

I have the best husband ever.

I got a huge surprise tonight..... Jonathan said he had to go to Home Depot to exchange a light switch. He offered to take the boys with him. It was so nice of him to do that. But that wasn't my surprise. He came home with a new Dyson vacuum for me. Our vacuum is so big, so loud, and very heavy. It's really hard to bring it up the stairs. So he went to home depot for the vacuum not the light switch. I have a great husband.

Earlier that night I vacuumed and this is what my old vacuum didn't pick up

Honor Roll and Preschool.

Peter getting ready for preschool. He loves his batman backpack.

Lily and Emma both got on the honor roll this time. They did such a great job. Yeah for both of them




































Benjamin was bored during the assembly. If I were a kid I would have done the same thing he is doing. It's funny how much he is like me.

Baby and Big Girls.

Lily is getting so old. I can't believe that she's going to be eight soon. She loves playing on the computer. I didn't know how to use a computer at her age like she does.

 

 Miriam is now 4 months old and she's rolling over. It's so cute to see her facial expressions. She's being vocal more and smiles all the time.

Day 5

Best Friends

Boys in Bubbles

Piano Man.

I decided that I'm going to try to post a picture a day for the this year. My sister in law did it, and I want to give it a try.

8 week progress

9 years of BLISS.

Yesterday Jonathan and I had our 9th wedding anniversary. He had to work and it was a Monday so we are planning to do something this weekend. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful man as my husband.

Here are 9 qualities that I love about him. (9 to represent the 9 years I've enjoyed with him)

1. He is a kind and gentle person. His heart is so big. I couldn't imagine him not liking anyone. He also teaches our children to be nice to all people. This was one requirement I had to have in a husband.

2. He is the BEST daddy ever. All of our kids have a great relationship with him. He is constantly complimenting the girls and making them feel sooooo good about themselves. He is a wonderful example to our boys.

3. He knows how to treat me. He always so respectful of me. He treats me like a queen.

4. He is very compassionate. He LOVES to help people. He's given money to people on the street where I wouldn't. There was this one Christmas Eve and he was getting some last minute things and he saw a homeless lady sitting in the cold. He decided to go to the ATM and pull out a 20 and give it to her. After he left he looked back and he saw her go to her knees in thanks. At this time we didn't have the money to give, but he saw that she needed more than we did.

5. He makes the time for us. There are times where he has to get up early but sacrifices sleep to have one on one time with me. We will just talk forever. I never feel neglected. Even when he is out of town. He makes up for it when he gets back.

6. I LOVE his personality. He always makes me laugh. He is so fun loving and isn't concerned if he's out of the ordinary at times. I love that he can be authentically Jonathan. I love that he has a very thoughtful side as well. I love that he's a deep thinker and the conclusions he comes up with amazes me.

7. He KNOWS me. Sometimes better than myself. He makes the time to work with me through the hard days that we all have. He also wants to know me inside and out. I feel VERY blessed to have someone that cares about ME that much.

8. He has a strong spirit and he shows that to all of us. He has a desire to do the right thing. He respects the priesthood which he holds. He often has the spirit with him and it's a wonderful feeling just to be around him.

9. He takes very good care of us. I've been able to stay home with the kids since Lily was born. We went through hard times, but through his hard work it has paid off. He works so hard so we can be taken care of. He went through school with a big growing family. He persevered and did a great job.

The list doesn't stop there. I love my husband with all of my heart and feel like the luckiest girl alive. I'll give thanks to his parents for raising such a wonderful man.

Weight Loss Week 7

So this week I got a great suprise christmas morning..... More than 3 lbs gone!!! I'm so glad. So the total for 7 weeks is 28.8 lbs. I'm going to post pictures at my 8 week mark of my before 4 week and 8 week. I'm excited to hit each mini goal I set for myself. The first being 30 lbs gone and I'm so close to that. Oh I made it through the holidays almost 30 lbs lighter.... Yeah.

Baby Talk

weight loss week 6

I'm down 24.4 lbs. now. I feel so much better. Jonathan made me get new clothes last Friday. My pants were so baggy he said it looked really bad. So to say the least he spoiled me. I feel so much better in my new clothes. I look much better as well. I was really reluctant to get them knowing they are going to be too big in a month or so. I did get somethings that were toooooo tight for lots of motivation. I haven't gone off my diet at all. I am a emotional eater so when I get stressed I eat. There were a couple times that I was so close to eating every thing in the house. But I'm stronger than my emotions and handled it in a different way. I went to bed. Hahaha, I don't know if that's the best way to do it, but at least I didn't mess up all my hard work.

Emma Sings...

Sorry about all the posts
I've been a bad blogger
I have allot to catch up on.

Weekend Stuff

Flying Bird.

Trimming the Tree

5 week weight loss.

It's been 5 weeks and I've lost 21.6 lbs. I feel so much better and my clothes are getting too big. I'm not quite in the next size down but I'm hoping by next week.

4 week weight loss

18.6 lbs, and I'm really happy with that. I'm hoping for 10 lbs this next 4 weeks. Lets see if I can do it.

What imaginations they have!!!!

Peter thinks when the moon is in a crescent shape that it's broken. So last night when we were coming home from a primary activity I showed Peter the very full moon.

conversation goes as follows.

Me: Peter look at the moon it's not broken anymore.

Peter: OHHHHH. It's fixed.

Me: Who fixed it?

Peter: Bob the Builder.

Me: Oh really?

Peter: No..... Jesus did..... but he didn't use tools. He used his hands and threw it up in the sky. (very sure of himself) Jesus DID fix it.

I love the imagination of a child.

3 week weight loss.

I lost another 3.2 lbs as of Friday. So that brings my total up to 14.2 lbs gone. But....... since it's Monday I have more to report but I'm not doing that until Friday.

It's been 2 weeks......

and I've lost 11 lbs. I'm happy with that. Why is it that I can lose weight during the hardest part of the year. Thanksgiving, and Christmas time are notorious for weight gain, but that's when my will power is the strongest. Backward I tell you. But hey I won't have to lose an additional 10-15 lbs from holiday eating.

Motivation!

This was Dec 2004, and I WILL look like this again.

I lost lots of weight after I had Emma and

I'm going to do it again.

Just you watch!

Maybe I'll have a tan this time?

She's growing!

If you remember this picture is when she was 12 days old.

I commented that she was drowning in her car seat.

This is her around 6 to 7 weeks later. Her cheeks have gotten chubbier.

and she is no longer drowning.

Yay for growing babies!

Cute Halloween Hair

Lily is spider girl so I made a spider out of her hair
Emma is a ballerina and I made a flower out of her hair.

Losing Weight? Update

Ok.............. so I have a new game plan.

Preface:

Whenever I have lost weight after a baby I have done it very fast with a low carb diet. It's very strict and you are very limited. I was able to do it, but after I would go off of it I would gain all the weight back just as fast. I wouldn't exercise very much at all. Maybe not at all. I would let the number on the scale rule my day. If I gained some or didn't lose any for that day I would get all cranky and stuff. I guess it was I was so limited in food variety and it was so hard that if I didn't see results all the time it was hard to stay dedicated. So I'm going to do it the slow permeant way this time.

I started the weight loss on low carb this time and went to las vegas and didn't have a kitchen that allowed me to eat so strict so that went out the window. Jonathan and I have been discussing the importance of exercise in our lives and to teach our children to be healthy by keeping active. So we are playing baseball at the park on the weekends and we made an investment in our selves with a treadmill. I love having a treadmill in the house. I can get a great workout while the babies are napping. Just by having gone on the treadmill twice I already have much more energy than before. So what is the rest of my plan. I'm going to cut down on portions and cut out sweets. I'll snack on fruits and veggies, and drink lots of water. I'm going to gage my weight loss by either how my clothes are fitting or measuring I don't know. Maybe both I'll have to see how it affects me.

My feelings exactly!

Almost everyone in my house is sick, and this is how I feel about that!

I got a smile!

This is Miriam's second time she has really smiled at me. Oh how I love when babies start to smile.

One Week Down..... Many To Go.

I just posted yesterday that I'm losing weight. Well I started a week ago and I've lost 6 lbs already. It's typical that I lose this fast at first. I'm doing really well on my diet. I'm trying to move more like walk the kids to school and stuff like that. I'll update my weight loss every wed. I've noticed when ever I start losing weight around the holidays I do really well. Isn't that kind of backwards?

Losing Weight AGAIN!!!!

And I tell you for the VERY LAST time.

Here is a starting out picture that I have. It's blurry and I'm partially covered but that's all I have. I'll post progress pictures as I see fit.

Pretty Hair.

Now that my girls are older and have hair that is thicker and less wispy I have come to enjoy doing their hair in cute styles on Sundays. I found some blogs that gives great ideas and instructions on how to do hair. My girls love it since they are both very girly. It also helps me be more creative as I really need to be creative. I also enjoy the time I get to spend with my girls.

Emma's Do.

Lily's Do.

Front of Lily's Do.

Happy Birthday Emma.

Emma is now 6 and just growing so fast. She's a huge help around the house, and that is a life saver for me. She loves anything pink and girly. She tries very hard to excel in school. She gets all her homework done for the week early so that she doesn't have to worry about it anymore. She's a straight A student so far. She's a great reader, and loves math. Emma always volunteers to serve others. She is a great daughter and I'm lucky to have her. She is very spiritually minded. She wants to do what's right at all times. I love you Emma.

Look at what I made!

Emma wants a ballerina outfit for her birthday tomorrow. I found a tutorial online and decided to make the tutu part. It was really easy and fun. Yay me.

Can I still call you baby?

Now that Miriam is here I see Benjamin as a big boy now. He's just so much bigger than Miriam and it's hard to see him as a baby. But he is a baby still, and I'm not ready to have him move to big boy status. When I got pregnant with Miriam my main worry was Benjamin and how he would be affected by having a baby that required lots of mommies time. Now that she is here he has had a hard time with the care it takes for a newborn. He was the baby, and he loved it. So guess what I have two babies and it's hard work, but I love it. One is just a lot heavier than the other, and gets into a lot more stuff than the other. I can't wait to see how good of friends they will be as they grow. I love being a mother of 5.

Babies, Babies, Babies.

Here are the 3 cousins that are practically triplets. Miriam (on the left) was born first and she was due last. 2 days later Spencer (on the right) was born and he was due first. Craig (middle) was due second and born last was born 3 days after Spencer. Miriam was 5 lbs 14 ozs. Spencer was 9 lbs 1 oz. Craig was 9 lbs 5 ozs. You can sure see the difference in a almost 6 lb baby compared to 9 lb babies. You can sure feel it as well. It's fun having these 3 so close together.

Updates...........

Well it happened I turned 30. It's got to happen at one point in your life. As my birthday got closer and closer I was dreading it. But once the day came I was ok with it. I had a great 10 years in my twenties. I got married to my best friend. He is the perfect man for me and I couldn't be happier. I had 5 beautiful children. I kept wondering if the 5th would come before my birthday. I have learned so many great things in my twenties, and now I have so much to learn, do, and experience in my thirties and so forth. I'm excited about moving forward in my life and enjoy raising my children and loving my husband even more.

Here are some pictures of my little girl. She still seems so tiny to me. She's drowning in her car seat. After my 2 SIL's had their babies. Which were 9+ lbs she seems really small.

Miriam is a really easy going baby thus far. She rarely cries at all. She'll just lay around looking at things. I love it that she is really quiet just like when she was inside me. She's a great sleeper as well. I think she'll be sleeping through the night in no time.

Miriam is here!!!!

Miriam Belle is here and I couldn't be happier. She is a wonderful baby that only cries when she is hungry or getting changed. I have to say that even though the pregnancy was hard it was soooo worth it. I got a beautiful little girl out of it.

Here is her birth story:

Last Saturday I decided that I was done being pregnant, and started to clean the entire house and mow the back lawn. I was getting light contractions throughout the day anyway so I thought if anything was going to come from them might as well stay busy. By 7 that night the contractions were getting pretty painful and I wasn't in the best of moods. We had family night because it was pushed back because of Jonathan's work. So during that time I was not really there as I was trying to get through each painful contraction. Jonathan decided that it was time to get to the hospital at about 9. I really didn't want to go but I was in a lot of pain. We got the kids clothes together and off we went. We dropped the boys off at Maria's house and the girls off at Larry and Margarets house. When we got to the hospital it took them a half hour to come in and check me. It seemed as if it was an eternity because I was really nervous that there would be no change and I would be sent home. Well that wasn't it I was 5 cm and getting admitted to labor and delivery. The next thing I asked for was the epidural. They got me too my room and about a half hour after that I got my epidural. Oh that is a story all in it's self. The epidural lady had the hardest time getting it in. She tried 3 different spots and it was painful. Jonathan was watching the whole time and he said she would put the huge needle in my back and dig around in there. He could here the needle grinding on my bones. I was holding on his hand so tight during it I'm surprised I didn't hurt him. By the end of the second attempt at the epidural he said that he wasn't feeling so good. The nurse told him that his lips were going white and that he better sit down. Jonathan said he was just about to faint. So he sat down and epidural lady tried on last time and I couldn't feel it at all because she had put some of the medicine in earlier. After that ordeal I was comfortable and ready to sleep. But I can't sleep when I'm waiting for something so exciting. I had to wait until 4 am to have the dr come in and break my water. So about 4:30 am he broke my water and hooked me up to some medicine to get my contractions stronger. At 7:15 I told the nurse that I was ready to push and I was. It took about 30 mins for her to come out and during that time the Dr. guessed that she would be about 7 1/2 pounds until she came out and said nope she's your smallest one. Jonathan cut the cord and then they gave her to me. I was so amazed at how small she was. Finally they weighed her and she was 5 lbs 14 ozs. Just a tiny little girl. She is so sweet and alert. She was awake from the time she was born until after lunch time. I was amazed that she was that alert for being early. Well I had my baby and I am enjoying every minute of her and the rest of my family. I have to say that going from 4 to 5 kids is not that bad. There is no change really just more to love.