Hot Summer Day...

The kids wanted to do a lemonade stand today, so Erin helped them mix some up and make some signs. I remember doing this several times as a kid, and even if you don't make any money, (other than from your own parents and siblings), it's still a lot of fun. Josh wanted to charge $1.00 a cup--but I talked him down to a quarter. (Inflation...wow!) They got into their swimming suits and played in the sprinklers, and drank about a gallon of lemonade all by themselves--it is 115 outside today after all! Wouldn't it be nice to be a kid again! No worries, no stress, just fun all day long! But then we would have to go through junior high and high school all over again, and can I just say a big "NO THANKS" to that one! I will stay where I am thank you! I had grand plans for my children this summer. I was going to make them read, and practice piano every day, and do chores, and keep their rooms clean. Somehow though, it gives me much more satisfaction to see them enjoy the lazy days of summer, hanging out with their friends with not a care in the world. There will be plenty of time for them to stress out later. After all, you only have a little while to be a kid!

Missing my Girl....

Man, Emie's been gone too long!! It's only a few more days, but I sure miss her! I even miss those sarcastic teenage comments she makes--she always makes me laugh. Emie doesn't miss us I'm sure...she is such a great go-with-the-flow type kid. I'm sure she's having a blast with her cousins and Grandparents, and doesn't think much about home. But home is sure not the same without her sweet freckled face, and that great smile, and her awesome sense of humor. I sure love that girl! I miss you Em--Hurry Home!!!

Happy Birthday Abby!

8 YEARS OLD!!

Today was Abby's birthday, so of course we started the day with Krispy Kreme's! Yeah! Tonight we had a party with a few friends and had a great time at the movies, eating pizza, and swimming. After it was over, she was in so much pain from the ear infection that she has that she pretty much collapsed on the couch. Poor thing--earaches are so painful. I can't believe my Abby is 8 years old! She is such a sweetheart--so loving and caring. She has always been a piece of cake to raise. I remember when Abby was a toddler, she used to come and tell me "Mom, I'm tired, can I go take my nap?". She was a mother's dream! Abby, I want you to know what a blessing you are to our family. We love you so much, and we are so excited for you to be baptized next month. You have a strong testimony, and a strong sense of what is right and wrong. I know you have prepared yourself well for that day! Happy Birthday!

PRESENT TIME!!Cupcake cutie!Attack of the killer Webkinz!Ear Infection--poor baby!

Life's Not Fair...

I have been thinking a lot this week about someone who I love very dearly, who is going through probably one of the hardest times in her life. It seems as though even though her heart is in the right place, and she is trying to do the right things, everyone is against her, and her world seems to be crashing in around her. I wish I could tell her that it was all going to be okay, that things would work out, that everything would be different. Somehow, it's not that easy. For some reason, sometimes people suffer, and it's because of other people. It makes me sad, and I feel like it isn't fair--that sometimes we suffer because of other people's free agency. It makes the Lord sad too, I'm sure. To see someone, his child, struggle, and cry, and hurt because of something she can't control.

The fact is, God watched as his Son was hurt by people, again and again The only comfort that we have sometimes is to know that He does know our struggle and He knows our pain. Sometimes that is all we have to hold on to. I have never known the suffering, and the struggles that this person is going through. I hope I never will. But I want her to know that I am praying for her. I am also praying for those that are hurting her, that their hearts will be softened, that they will change their hurtful ways. I wish I could do more, I wish I could take the pain away, I wish I could explain why these things happen, but I can't. All I can do is pray, pray that she will be able to hold on to her faith, and hold on to the hope that with God, nothing is impossible. He can heal the hurt that you feel, he can take your pain away, he understands you, and he loves you more than you will ever know. Put your trust in him, and pray to him, and you will feel his love for you, I know you will.

My parents used to always tell me that life wasn't fair. It wasn't until I grew up that I realized what they really meant. Life really isn't fair. We never know what is going to hit us, what trials we will be called on to face, or what trials our children will face. For someone like me, who is a control freak, I have such a hard time putting my trust in someone else. I want to be in complete control of my life, of my circumstances. But then I wouldn't need God, would I? The truth is, He sees the bigger picture. He sees the end result. He sees that trials make my faith stronger. He sees that in the end I will be a better person because of the things I have gone through in this life, even the hard things. Especially the hard things.

Hang in there--Hold on--and know that you are never alone, even though sometimes it seems that way. I love you.

Beach Pics...

Jack's First time at the Beach!!Surfer Dude!! Stosh on the Boogie Board--He wasn't impressed!
Night Surfing...
Lainey & Kristy
Grandma & Grandpa catching a wave!
Beach Babe's!
Todd, me & Emie
Me and my Girls...
Out to catch some waves!
Kody's first ride...
Almost ready for the real surfboard...
Kade didn't mind the sand!
Allie, Josh, Ashlie & Lainey

Digging for Sandcrabs!
Found 'em--these things still creep me out!
Allie wasn't afraid of sandcrabs--she even brought them up to the hot tub with us--they were dead of course, but she insisted they were "just resting"! So cute...
Kody with the pier in the background... I love this picture.

Back to Life...

Our Last California Sunset!
Well we're back to life, and jumping in head first! My sister is coming to visit tomorrow along with my parents, so we didn't have the luxury of throwing all the stuff on the floor and laying around the rest of today. I am kind of glad though, it gave me a reason to actually get the laundry all done and put away, and my house into shape so I don't have to do it all day tomorrow! Look at the time--what a day! I wanted to post some of my favorite pics from the beach so you could see them. Emie is leaving tomorrow for a 10 day backpacking trip with 3 of her cousins and Todd's parents. They will be horseback riding, camping, and fishing in the Canadian Rockies, probably one of the most beautiful places in the world. I am soooooo jealous! What an opportunity! She is bringing a camera, so hopefully we will have some pictures to post of that trip as well. She is one busy girl--she gets back from this trip in time to spend the 4th of July at the cabin, then we are off to Aspen Grove for 9 days, then she gets home and goes to Girls Camp the next day. She is so lucky--I don't think my kids know how good they have it. What a blessed life we have--I hope I can instill in them a sense of gratitude for all that we've been blessed with. I hope also to help them realize that the most important things in life are not things...it's relationships, and family. I am so grateful for my family, and the time we spend together, and the memories we've made. They are my greatest treasure!

Beautiful Day...

So I'm sitting here too early in the morning on our balcony, watching the surfers because Jack went to bed last night at 8 and woke up at 6:30 this morning. I can't complain about that now can I? He was wide awake this morning, and Ashlie was in our bed, (which is only a queen size bed), and there are kids strewn about our room everywhere crashed and I didn't want to wake them up. So I came out here to nurse him. What a beautiful day! I can see why people like to get up early, it's quiet and peaceful, the sun is shining, and it's probably about 75 degrees. I heard that it's supposed to be 115 in Mesa today. I'm not looking forward to that! Every year when we come home from the beach and step out of the car in Indio or Blythe we're like "UUUGH, HOT!" You would think that as an Arizona native, I wouldn't mind it, or at least I'd be used to it, but I still hate that icky, sticky, sweaty summer weather. Yes, it's a dry heat, but it's still HOT! Thank goodness for our pool, I forget what we used to do without one! One more day of fun, and we will be on the road tomorrow. Vacation always goes too fast!

Life's a Beach...

We're having a great time at the beach! We started the day with a great breakfast burrito at Johnny Mananas--the best little mexican food place in Oceanside! The kids were in the ocean all day yesterday and today. It's amazing how much energy they have! The older girls are great on the boogie boards. Todd and I went out together to boogie board today. Thanks to the diet, my board shorts are a little loose on me and when I caught my first wave, OOPS--the ocean almost took off my shorts! Needless to say, I let go of the board and caught my shorts as they were almost down to my knees, then got tumbled by the wave and struggled to pull up my pants before anyone saw more of me than they wanted to see! So then I pulled my drawstring tight and away we went to catch some more waves! It was tons of fun! I wish I could post some pics, but this laptop doesn't have a spot for a memory card and my camera cord to my computer is at home, so I will post them when I get home, which will be too soon--the week is going too fast!

On Our Way...

We were able to go to the temple this afternoon with my parents, and it was so great to slow down and relax for a few hours! The bad part was I kept falling asleep, because I'm not used to all that peace and quiet! Now it's after 1 a.m. and I am just barely finishing getting packed for this trip. My house, which was fairly clean this morning, is a disaster area--BEWARE! I am glad I am getting out of cleaning house for the week. We will just have a 400 sq. foot room to keep semi-clean, HOORAY! The worst part of vacation is the packing and loading--especially with 6 kids, (the second worst part is the unpacking and laundry!). The older girls packed their own stuff--hope they remembered everything cuz I don't feel like going through their stuff. I got done packing my stuff and then it dawned on me that HELLO--I forgot my swimsuit! It's been a long day--and tomorrow traveling will be longer! See you next week!

What Time is It? Party Time...

Erin and Abby had their Summer Music Workshop this past two weeks at Jeanne's School of Dance. It's a fun workshop and they put on a fabulous show with solos for each of the girls and everything! Their cousins did it too, and we had a sleepover tonight to celebrate! We also got Krispy Kreme's because we had to celebrate the special occasion--(any special occasion will do!).

They also made flip flops because we had so much fun doing it with Emie's friends. It was a fun night--and now it's time for bed. Jack isn't feeling well--just in time for our vacation. He's such a sweetheart though, he just slept alot today and looked like he was so worn out. I need to stay home tomorrow and just baby him, I feel like I just dragged him around all day today! Such is his life as the 6th child! Well, have to get some sleep--packing tomorrow, then we're OUTA HERE!

Ashlie at the Beach...

This is one of my favorite pictures from the beach the last time we went in 2006. I just love how small you feel when you look out at the huge ocean. It leaves me in awe when I think about how Heavenly Father created this huge earth, and all of us--and how he cares for each of us individually. It is so amazing to me! I am so excited to get the heck out of this desert! It's getting too HOT!
--3 more days... --

Let's GO!

Southern California Beach Club!

I'm so ready to get out of town and get on vacation--you don't even know! It seems like forever since we've been on vacation. I missed spring break in Mexico because Jack was born 2 weeks before spring break, so it's been since before Christmas that I've been on a vacation. That vacation was our ski vacation, which turned out to be not much fun since I fell off the lift (7 months preggo) and killed my tailbone and could barely get around! So I can't wait for the BEACH! We stay in this little timeshare place in Oceanside called the Southern California Beach Club, and it's right on the beach. It's by far one of my favorite places in the world. Todd's parents have been going there over 15 years now. Emie took her first steps there, and there are so many memories with each of my children there. There have been times when we have fit up to 15-20 people in one of the rooms! It's certainly not a luxurious place, it's old, and the rooms are small, but my kids love it. The best part is that we hardly ever leave. We go to the beach all day, every day, and the kids have a blast! It's so relaxing for me and we don't have to walk around a theme park and spend alot of money for them to have fun. We are leaving Sunday--and I have a mountain of laundry to do to get packed before we go, but I'm SO excited! I hear the ocean calling......LET'S GO!!

Don't Blink...

http://www.cmt.com/videos/kenny-chesney/169571/dont-blink.jhtml

If nothing else, I have watched some great videos on the treadmill on CMT this last month. Here's another one I saw today with a good message...Kenny Chesney's "Don't Blink". I guess I am just in this kind of mood lately. It started with Emie's 6th grade graduation ceremony, they had this movie showing all of the kids as babies, then their picture today. I started to cry when I saw hers and realized how fast these last 12 years have gone, and how it seems we only have a little time left. I'm trying to take the advice Elder Ballard in conference and "treasure the doing a little bit more, and the getting it done a little bit less." If you haven't read this talk, or even if you have, take the time to read it again. It's so wonderful! Now I have to go and actually get some things done--(I treasured the doing yesterday, and my house is a mess...)!

http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-851-37,00.html

Haircut day...

Aunt Karin came over today for a haircut extravaganza!!! We all got new cuts for summer, and the girls look so cute. Of course I had to get out the camera--the kids are all getting used to me taking pictures for the blog. I didn't take one of me because I had to get up at 5:30 a.m. for primary kickball this morning--(why can' t Mormons do things at a normal hour???), and I never got a shower, so you'll have to wait and see me later when I have make-up on!

Binge Weekend...

Okay, so the binge started yesterday--with Barro's pizza. I said I would just have one piece--which is impossible if you've had Barro's pizza. I should've known I couldn't do that! So 3 pieces later I thought wings sounded good too, then later when we made cookies for the girls, well I'd already blown it so why not?? Then today started out okay, but then we went out to lunch with some of Todd's family and went to Pei Wei--(another one of my favorites), which is right next to Paradise Bakery--(more cookies), and well, I may have gained all my weight back in one weekend! It's so hard to be good when there's so much good food all around me! I guess I will have to hang out with my friend the treadmill all week this week--and you already know how I feel about that! Watch out, I may be grumpy this week, but I sure enjoyed my binge!

Late Night Party...

Emie and her friends came over tonight for a late night. They had pizza and swam, and made these cute flip flops that I saw on several blogs. They were really easy and fun to make. I think they all turned out cute! Emie has such a good group of friends--they are all such good girls, and she needs good friends goin into junior high. That has been my favorite part about living in this ward, and our neighborhood, all of my kids have made good friends! We have good neighbors as well that look out for us--when Ashlie escapes, or Josh is nowhere to be found. We all try to pitch in and help each other. That's what a neighborhood is supposed to be! We're glad we found this one!

Fun with Cousins...

Saturday, my sister came down with her 8 kids to go to the temple. The kids had tons of fun in the freezing cold pool (I won't even get all the way in yet--what a pansy!). My kids always have so much fun with their cousins. Our house is like a madhouse with noisy kids pretty much everywhere--but we wouldn't have it any other way! When I was growing up, I would see my cousins maybe once a year or so, but we certainly didn't get to know them very well. My kids are so lucky to be surrounded by their aunts, uncles and tons of fun cousins! I am grateful when my family comes to visit especially--as my other two sisters, Wendy and Shelly live in different states, and Kimbie in Payson. At least she's closer--but I miss having my sisters around! Family is so great, we love having them to share our lives with!