Boy Scouts

Last week Kaden went to his first Boy Scout Day Camp. The scout leader called to tell us about it the week before and she told us Kaden would need his little scout uniform. Kaden and I were both excited to go get all the things he would need. Because he is my son, we had to buy all the accessories too and one crisp Benjamin later we had one cute boy scout.

He had a great time at Day Camp and couldn't wait to get home to show me what he had purchased at the Trading Post. He was barely in the door when he pulled out a pocket knife. That's right, they sold a knife to my 8 year old. Mercy. He had to show me each and every tool that was on the knife and what it was for. He was so proud. All I could think was it shouldn't be long before we are getting stitches in the ER. OH and I had to lay down the law that under no circumstance is he allowed to take it to school. Yeah that would be less than super to get expelled in the 3rd grade for bringing your scout knife.

Now we have a month to pass off his little achievement thingies so he can earn his Wolf. Yeah, I've got no clue what all that means, but Eagle Scout Jason sure does. A few days ago Jason's mom pulled out all of Jason's old scout stuff. His fancy shirt with all the badges and all his little neckerchiefs and slides and pins and thingies. So stinking cute. Scouts should be an adventure for us, and with 4 boys I'm sure to be a pro before long!

Father's Day

We enjoyed a great Father's Day with Jason this year. Jason makes the family breakfast every Sunday morning, and as Father's Day falls on a Sunday I thought I ought not break with tradition. So he prepared us a wonderful waffle breakfast.

The boys helped me chose a few gifts for Jason this year and I had a lot of fun shopping with them. The card I found was hilarious. It said something to the effect of "For the Do-It-Yourself Dad" and inside was a band-aid. Jason cracked up, because in the last 3 months of finishing the basement he has broken his pinky finger, electrocuted himself, smashed his index finger between a 2X4 and some duct work, scratched his cornea and dislocated his shoulder. What a man!

About 2 months ago Jason and I decided to buy a new camera. Well it was more of I really really wanted a new camera before the baby is born and Jason surprised me by telling me we were going to "just look" and then buying the fancy one I wanted. Because the camera was pretty spendy I said it could count as our Mother's Day and Father's Day gifts.....and birthday and anniversary, and probably Christmas as well. But I don't think the camera counts as the gift from the boys, do you? I didn't think so. So they picked out a nice shirt, a tie, some vanilla Oreo's, and Biggie pack of gum. Perfect.
Although I know Jason would have been perfectly content with just having his 3 fantastic boys around him all day.

As long as they don't want his vanilla Oreo's. I know I know, vanilla Oreo's are practically a crime against nature, but since we had to completely change Jason's diet after he passed his 12th kidney stone, chocolate is out! I don't want to say he is demonstrating addictive behaviors with his vanilla Oreo's, because well I'm not the therapist in the family, but when he hides them, only eats them when no one is around and rations them out to himself just in case they are the last package on Earth.....I'm just sayin. If you'll notice the Oreo's he's sharing with Ethan are MY Oreo's and his are safe from little fingers.
Honestly sometimes I don't know who is worse to get to smile a "nice" smile in group shots, Jason or the kids. Hello Crazy Eyes. What a nerd.

Jason is such a tremendous father. Our boys simply adore him. He leads and guides our family with so much love that at times I stand in pure amazement at his talent, ability and desire to be a good father. M. Russell Ballard said, "You see, we’re all on a journey. Dads are a little further down the road, but none of us has yet arrived at our final destination. We are all in the process of becoming who we will one day be. Fathers and sons can play a critical role in helping each other become the best that they can be." I watch Jason with the boys daily and I can see how this is profoundly true. I've always said, Jason never looks better than when he is holding one of our sweet little boys. They certainly bring out the best in him and he ever encourages them to be the best they can be.

Ya'll Ready For Some Football?!

Those that know me know I'm not really a sports fan (apart from UFC, which I love!) and I don't follow the football at all. I don't have a favorite team, in fact I think I would be doing pretty good to name 5 professional teams in the NFL. I'm a little fuzzy on most of the rules and as far as the difference between a line backer and a defensive end, I've got no clue.

But Monday Night Football may soon become a common place occurrence in our home as Kaden and Jase both decided they wanted to try their hand at flag football this year. Football has suddenly invaded my life and become a sneaky focal point in my week. With 3 practices and 2 games a week, we are spending a good deal of time gathered around a field. But oh what fun we are having.

Kaden's first game was a few weeks ago. It's been a lot of fun to watch him get the feel of the game. I haven't quiet gaged whether he likes it or not. He definetly has some skill that's for certain, it's just applying that skill in a game setting we need to work on. Also Kaden is very high energy and football is more of a make a play and take a break kinda game. Regardless he seems to be enjoying himself, gaining experience and running off some energy!

Kaden usually ends up being the "snapper". Not sure that's a real term, but he's the little guy that snaps the ball, so logically "snapper" works as a job title.
My sweet little Jase....oh bless his little heart. You give that boy a game where there is the potential to plow someone over, throw an elbow and run from one end of the field to the next with breaks in between and my word you've given him an almost custom made sport. He is absolutely loving it!! He's played 2 games thus far and has scored 2 touchdowns in each game. As well as made multiple tackles. It's so fun to watch him, because he gets all business like.

Here is a series of shots from his first touch down run.

He really had that look of intense concentration.
He displayed some dang fine foot work as he evaded the other team!

He even pulled away from the kid that got a hold of his shirt tail and tried to drag him down. These fellas are going to have to do better than that to stop my boy!

After his touch down he didn't do a little victory dance or jump up and down, he just tossed the ball to his coach and looked around like, "What what?! Would you expect anything less?!" It totally cracks me up and makes me one proud momma when he shows his cool confidence.

What a fun summer this should be!

OH BOY!!!

I'm not even sure how to begin this post.... Generally I have cute pictures and snappy comments, but today my heart is so full of love and gratitude that finding words that could even begin to express my feelings is proving difficult. Yesterday we went in for my 20 week ultrasound. I was a nervous wreck. It's the fourth time I've been through this, but the excitement and anticipation never diminishes. I decided this time I wanted all my boys to be there for the appointment (which I scheduled for 9 in the morning....crazy idea since Jason had a training to teach that morning which left me to get the boys and myself ready and out the door, yeah, I don't do mornings. But we made it.) Jason met us there and we all went into the little room together to see the new little life that will soon be joining our family. I have had 2 ultrasounds prior to this one and from those everything looked great, but I was still so worried that something may be wrong. As the technician checked every part of our baby, everything looked perfect. Two arms and legs, 10 fingers and toes, a heart that beat a beautiful 136 beats per minute, a wonderful little brain and spinal column. So much relief and thankfulness was felt with each thing that checked out.
Then it was time to check the gender. Our little baby was being a bit shy and I was worried we weren't going to find out. But after some poking and prodding by the tech she got the baby to uncross those tiny little legs. Cheers erupted from the 3 boys and 1 very proud man who surrounded me as the technician said, "Well boys, looks like you'll be getting another brother."
I won't deny the moment of disappointment I felt at finding out my last child would be another boy and not the little girl I had hoped for. I refuse to beat myself up over feeling that moment of disappointment. I had always thought I would have a little girl. And finding out I won't was difficult. The sadness however was quickly overshadowed by such a profound feeling of joy, wonder and humble gratitude. I looked at the sweet faces of my 3 sons who are here with me now and knew that I am beyond blessed to be their mother. They are the very best part of me. Nothing I'll ever do in this life will ever in my eyes have warranted the gift I've been given by my Father in Heaven to be their guardian, their protector, their teacher, their mother. And to have the opportunity to bring another of Heavenly Father's chosen spirits into this world is truly an honor. To have another son to raise in righteousness humbles me immensely. My children are my inspiration, my light when I won't let myself see through the darkness, and my everlasting encouragement. And of course, then I saw Jason. One would have been hard pressed to find a more jubilant man in all the world. 4 sons, what father could be happier? I think he may have literally walked on air as we left the office.
When we got home he hugged me gently and asked if I was all right. I told him of course I am! I'm having a beautiful baby boy! And he's healthy and perfect. Then I cried. I would blame it on the hormones, the lack of sleep or a hundred other things, but Jason knew me better. Because he's wonderful he let me have my moment and just rubbed my back. Then he said, "Now don't go spend too much at the store." I laughed.
The Lord has blessed me beyond anything I deserve. To be surrounded by righteous honorable men is every girl's dream come true, and such is my life. I believe Heavenly Father knows us better than we know ourselves and loves us beyond our understanding. These are the reasons I give to how I can possibly be so blessed. I am so thrilled for my son's arrival in October. I cannot wait to see his face, hold him in arms and experience the feelings of embracing a spirit straight from heaven.

A White Trash Farewell

Jason had a business trip to Boise 2 weeks ago, and I thought I may as well tag along. A few days before we left Jason asked me if it would be ok if we went to a farewell party for our friend Rusty, who is leaving Boise to come back to Pocatello. Rusty is such a lovely gal, I thought of course. Then Jason told me it was a themed party, and we had to dress up. Excellent! I love a costume party. He qualified his statement with, a White Trash themed party. Holy crap, how fun! I had a great time finding us outfits for this. I spent all of like 10 bucks for the 2 of us and we ended up looking pretty good.

When we arrived in Boise, Jason had to run some groups and see a few clients, so I went along with Rusty to get all the fixins for a real classy party. We hit up the Honk's $1 in Nampa (mercy this store was about as trashy as it gets! So fun.) We were able to find the perfect snacks for the evening. Don Pancho cheese puffs, Velvetta chili dip for the Fritos, Capri Suns, who knows what name they were vanilla sandwich cookies, and fake Cheez-its. For our main course we enjoyed corn dogs, burritos, and pork n' beans. What a smorgasbord!
Oh yes, what wonders a little Aqua Net, blue eye liner and scrunchies can do.

Rusty is always a good time. She filled water balloons, put them in the ends of a pair of tights and slung them over her neck to create a pretty nice rack. They even doubled as a table for her. She had some great "Skecher's" tennis shoes as well. The best part was when I realized the word Sketcher's wasn't spelled right. Seriously that's some funny stuff!

No white trash party is complete without a can being smashed on someones head. Done and done! Check out the look of intensity on her face.
We also had a bubble blowing contest. We were each given 2 pieces of Bubblicious gum. Contrary to what some may think, I have a pretty small mouth and 2 pieces of gum was way more than I could manage. All I ended up doing was drooling and getting a few pieces of hair stuck in my gum.
After our jaws had chewed as long as they could, we had to dispose of our gum. So why not have a gum hawking contest?! I dominated this event. I think my aqua heels helped me achieve just the right amount of arch I needed to win.
It's a time honored white trash tradition to have a panty flinging contest. And wouldn't you know it, Jason won! Not exactly sure how he became the Jedi Master of panty slinging.
Ah yes, this picture could have been taken at any county fair in Idaho. I'll give you all a break down on our outfits, because I know you're all dying to know. Jason's first. First we started with the multi functional cargo camouflage army pants. They really are appropriate for any occasion. And they looked great with his cowboy boots. Cowboy boots transition so nicely from work to party. I paired that with a very classy, "Free Gas" t-shirt and plaid jacket. I topped him off with a trucker hat. He looked good. For myself, nothing says classy lady like a tube top and in my signature color, red. Especially when you're 5 months pregnant. A cut off denim mini skirt is always fashionable, particularly when it's a Girbaud mini. Adding some lacey leggings and aqua heels added a bit of sass. I kept my accessories simple so as not to take away from my ensemble, but when you find glitter bangles at the Honk's $1 at a $16 value you don't ask, you just buy!

We had a wonderful time in Boise at Rusty's party and are looking forward to planning a similar party in Pocatello when she returns in July. The best part about the whole thing is that I always end up meeting Jason's co-workers at costume parties when I look ridiculous. I can only imagine what they may think of me. Whatev, we had a blast!

Sheet Rock!

As I mentioned my dad was home for Memorial Day weekend and he helped Jason put up some dry wall in the basement. I could not believe how much they got done! My basement is starting to look like a real house!

They had a great system worked out that kept them both busy and moving all the times. It was no wonder so much got done.

A few weeks ago I surprised Jason with some new drills. I had planned on getting him an 18 volt drill, but when I got to the store they had a two pack. It came with an 18 volt drill, an impact driver and 2 ion-Lithium batteries that completely recharge in 15 minutes. Since I'm always a girl looking for a bargain, I got the 2 pack. Well that and I let the 3 different groups of contractors I bumped into at the Home Depot convince me that was what he "needed". Whatev, Jason was thrilled and has definitely gotten some good use out of both of them.

Working hard!

I thought this was so funny. They would hang the piece of sheet rock and THEN cut out the window. Jason used his fancy tool he got from his parent's for Christmas for this (you remember the tool he gave my dad a pedicure with). Apparently he had another attachment for cutting dry wall.

Having my dad's help was such a blessing that day. I think the two of them really enjoyed each other's company and were pretty impressed with how much they accomplished. The next weekend when Jason went down to work on the basement, he shrugged and said, "It's too bad your dad isn't here." Now that he's finally had some help down there his solo progress seems slow. But he's done a fantastic job and I'm so proud of everything he's done. All the framing and wiring he's done by himself. What a guy! We are hoping to have these two bedrooms completed by the end of July. Wish us (or should I say Jason) luck!

Merry Go Round of Doom

We enjoyed a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. My dad made it home for a few days and it was so nice to see him. Saturday I asked him if he would come help Jason put up a little sheet rock in the basement and he agreed to help. Apparently the two of them were enjoying themselves so much that they worked all day and got two bedrooms almost completely done. It's starting to really come together! Oh that reminds me I have pictures of it...I'll blog those later I guess. So Sunday my parents invited us and Lane & Serena's family for dinner. Delicious, mouth watering, grilled to perfection hamburgers. Oh soooo good! After we feasted we all went for a walk to the park to enjoy the relatively nice weather. The three older boys decided to let Lane give them a nice ride on the merry-go-round. Kaden and Jase were holding on good and tight, but poor Laney had a much more leisurely grip.

As Lane spun the kids faster and faster, Laney slid further and further off the merry-go-round.

He wasn't giving up just yet.

You know he's thinking, "Oh crap!"
Finally he succumbed to the forces of gravity and lost his grip just as he swung past Lane, who caught him by one leg and softened his fall....marginally. Actually he ended up doing a pretty solid belly flop on the gravel. Poor kid! He cried for a second, then bucked up and got back on. He was a bit unsure at first, but quickly secured his grip and enjoyed the rest of the evening spinning round and round.The two smaller boys eventually wanted their turn on the merry-go-round so Grandma Marley got on with them. I've got a pretty hilarious video of her ride, but in keeping my blog "G" rated I've opted not to post it, as it contains some adult language. Nice Grandma! You would think she would church it up a bit with the little ears around, but nope she dropped a few choice bombs. But holy crap it was hilarious! What a great weekend!