Category: Cali

My Little Mama(s)

November 15, 2013 admin No Comments

Cali loves to be mom and play house and their latest “toy” is Millie:

these girls have motherly instincts. They can’t stand to hear their sister cry and will often “check on her” for me and put her pacifier in. We gave Millie a bottle for the first time today and they LOVED it. They thought it was so neat that they were feeding her and she was really drinking it. Anything that Millie does, Rose wants to know if she did that when she was “a tiny baby”… New Babies Are AWESOME. SO MUCH LOVE AND FUN AND JOY and crying.

Categories: Cali, Millie, Rose

Blue Sharks

October 28, 2013 admin No Comments

BLUE SHARKS

Cali got to play Soccer for the first time this year!! She was so excited because she’s been going to her brothers games for as long as she can remember. She was on the same team as her cousin Mia and our friend Jackson. This is the first team that Ben didn’t coach so we had coach Stacey. Cali did really well. She wasn’t afraid to go after the ball and had a good sense of trying to get to the goal. She scored goals in her first and last game! We worked a little on stopping the other team from scoring. She is aggressive and not afraid to get in the middle of the action. I enjoyed watching her play and am excited for spring when they play again.

Categories: Cali

Life with Millie * 9.21

September 29, 2013 admin No Comments

Life with Millie

9.21

Soccer Saturdays are in full swing. Packer and Cali both had 9am games so… Ben had to go coach Packer’s team and I got to take the other 5 kids to Cali’s game 🙂 Luckily Mia and Cali are on the same team and LUCKIER, Michelle insists on helping me with the kids. I am happy that she insists and the help is much needed. We all went to Benji’s game later and then napped and watched some bad football.

soccer girls

dirty babies

Benji playing D

this girl LOVES the pacifier

Millie loves the pacifier. She came out of the womb sucking and hasn’t really stopped. If she is awake she is usually looking for the paci. The kids love it because they LOVE to be the one to give her the Paci and “help” her. The husband also loves it because it calms her down and allows him to be helpful. I like it but it is hard to tell when when actually wants to eat.

Categories: Benji, Cali, General, Millie, Raymond, Rose

Life with Millie * 9.18

September 28, 2013 admin No Comments

Life with Millie

9.18

Millie is 1 week old! My body recovered wonderfully after this delivery. I really am amazed at the process. I’ve done it six times but it is still magical and marvelous. We were a little bit antsy on Wednesday. Kids were feeling cooped up and the weather was just starting to cool off. But Aunt Christy called and the kids decided they needed to draw pictures for her and that helped us get through the day. Friends from our new ward brought dinner and that was great. I really am so grateful because dinner time is my least favorite time of the day.

Categories: Cali, Millie, Raymond, Rose

Back to School

September 5, 2013 admin No Comments

Over the years. Memory Lane. Back to School.

Categories: Benji, Cali, Packer

Cali started her Second Year of Preschool!

August 25, 2013 admin No Comments

Cali was so excited to go back to school. She has a December birthday and she would love to be starting Kindergarten but is to young. She is going back to the preschool that she did last year so she already knows her teachers and loves them. Thursday was her first day and she asks me every day if it is a school day. She is very motivated to learn all of her letters and she likes to try and write things on her own.

I love how the younger siblings always want to be in on the back to school pictures. Any other day you can’t get them to stand in the same place but on school day everyone wants their picture taken. Mia is in Cali’s class again so it will be nice to have them together and being next door is wonderful for carpool. Cali filled out her all about me paper and said that her favorite food is cheese pizza, color is green and blue and pink and purple, loves to ride her bike and play princesses and play with cousins, doesn’t like chores and being scared of the dark, and she wants to be a cheer leader-doctor-ambulance driver when she grows up! I think she’s going to learn a lot at preschool this year. I haven’t always been a fan of preschool but for Cali’s personality it is great.

Back to School!

Categories: Cali

Hiking Y Mountain

July 10, 2013 admin No Comments

they wanted to go and they went and they loved it.

starting the hike

Benji has been wanting to hike up to the Y for quite some time. The Wisconsin cousins came to town and wanted to hike to the Y…. So Ben took our 3 oldest kids and went with the cousins and did a night hike from 8pm-11pm. The rule was that no one could be carried, they had to be big – and they did it!

the hiking crew

B – Y – U

They were amazed at how big the Y was and enjoyed dad telling them stories about the Utes painting it red and to keep their eyes open for any COUGARS.

Categories: Ben, Benji, Cali, Packer

We have a BIKE RIDER!

June 16, 2013 admin No Comments

WE HAVE A BIKE RIDER!

We have been trying to get Benji to drop the training wheels since he was six but he just couldn’t do it. This last time I tried teaching him but he just wasn’t ready so I put the training wheels back on as crooked and lopsided as possible to try and force him to balance. Anyway, now that we live at the new house, in a cul de sac, next to cousins that know how to ride – it was time to learn. And he turns 8 this month and I told him that cub scouts have to know how to ride their bikes. So as Ben left for scout camp he promised him a skylander if he learned how to ride! and we were both determined…
I took him out Monday morning and he did better than ever. Like he actually kind of did it and I knew I was not putting those training wheels back on. We went out Tuesday morning and he started practicing before I could go help him and he just took off! and he hasn’t looked back!! He loves his bike. He loves riding fast and pushing his limits. We had to practice turning on Tuesday and braking on Wednesday and driveway on thursday… I love that he can ride his bike and he is pretty good at it already! He grips the handles so tight that he rubbed the skin off of his thumbs and he has bruises all over his legs. And I am not replacing his shoes until he learns how to use his brakes.

AND CALI CAN RIDE!!

Cali has been on her bike way more than the boys. She has that natural desire to ride. So she had me take her training wheels off on Monday and on Tuesday morning she also just took off all by herself! She is still a little wobbly but she can do it. She races Benji to the end of the street and is so proud of herself. She is pretty cute on that little bike! and has only ran into 1 car so far 🙂 She can go down the driveway and is getting better at turning and stopping. Love that Girl – finally the strong willed, stubborn streak is paying off.

Packer is still a little timid but I am determined to teach him this summer. They have all spent more time on their bikes this week than possibly all bike riding put together at the old house. It’s been a great distraction for all of us while Ben is gone at scout camp this week.

now if we could just get all of the work trucks off of our street!

Categories: Benji, Cali, Packer

Catch Up: May 25th-30th

June 11, 2013 admin No Comments

school is out? summer is here? the Hancock’s stayed with us for a week?

Cali and Mia

Cali finished Preschool! She will not be old enough for kindergarten so she will be going to the same preschool again with Mia. She knows most of her letters and counts to 50ish. She watches her brothers and wants to read and write like them. I think she’ll be doing both very soon. She loved her teachers and had a great end of the year party.

Packer and Luca

The boys had the end of the year dance festival! and they had field day! and Packer got to go to Cabela’s and we went to kindergarten graduation! The boys were great students and good examples in their classes. We are proud of them.

proud sisters

Packer LOVED his teacher

Erica and her kids came and stayed with us that last week of school and last week in our house. We had lots of last sleepovers in the most awesome play room. We tried to keep the house clean while people came to see if they wanted to rent it! We played at the park. Erica babysat my kids MANY times while we had our final walk through and drove to SLC to close on the new house and … it was fun having them. It’s always amazing how much fun our kids have together and how they just know that they have to be friends 🙂

at the park

these 2 have very similar personalities

breakfast

Categories: Benji, Cali, General, Packer, Rose

Cute Cali

May 20, 2013 admin No Comments

Cali is almost done with her first year of preschool. She brought home her picture and information from her first week of school back in August and then a recent picture and info from this week. She has grown up a ton. She has only grown an inch and gained 2 pounds but she is my big girl. Sometimes I forget that she is only 4. I ask her to help with the house and the kids and then I realize that in some families she would still be considered a baby. I feel bad for a bit but she is really good at being the big sister, the helper, and the little mom. A couple times a month she throws a terrible tantrum and reminds me that she is still little and hard to reason with but then she is back to happy and helping. She loves to play girl things and play with girls and be a girl and do hair and makeup and nails. Here’s some of her girly pics:

Cali couldn’t see her hair in the back so we had to take a picture so she could decide if she liked it.

Karlee showed Cali how to do Braids and Ponies so she (with my help) did one of each for school that week 🙂

Posing at the park – sometimes she loves to be a girly girl.

Categories: Cali