My Red Kitchen

So I have been wanting to paint my kitchen red for several months now. After seeing my sister's red kitchen on my trip to Utah I finally decided to do it. It was a very tense morning as I remained convinced that it would look good despite Moss' and his mother's doubt. Charlotte worked all morning and into the afternoon with me to finish it. When it was all said and done, the common consensus was "I can't believe how good it looks. I would never had believed it." I really do love it and was relieved that it turned out as well as I'd hoped.

Easter Egg Fun

All I can say is that I am glad this only happens one time each year. Some how it just isn't as fun for me as it was when I was a kid.

This is right up Brooke's alley. Eggs, dye, and cups.

In the end we had a lot of beautiful eggs and happy kids.

The Annual Easter Egg Hunt

Every year since we have been here we have had an Easter egg hunt with all our friends. Unfortunately with Easter being so early, it turned out to be rather cold. Of course the kids were undeterred and were anxious to find the hidden treasures that awaited them. You would think that my children had been deprived of candy in their entire lives! Once it came down to only finding the specified number of eggs it all went down hill. Never-the-less, it was a good time with friends and a wonderful memory!

Grandma and Grandpa's house

There are a few things that must be a part of every trip to Grandpa and Grandma's house. On the way home from church before we left I overheard Anna saying to Mary, "Four-wheeler, Jacuzzi, Cousins, Cabin, Horses. And all this time I thought we were going to plain ol' grandma's house." While we didn't get to do everything on the list, we did do a lot.

Fun in the Sun, part II

We spent all day saturday outside in the beautiful weather having a great time with Aunts and Uncles and cousins. We played frisbee, and bocce ball, and flew kites. The kids had a great time just being with everyone.

Fun in the Sun

Sledding Arizona Style

They couldn't get enough. They rolled and rolled, and rolled, and they they all got a bath!

Thank you to Autumn for the delicious ice cream, and bubble gum.
FUN, FUN, AND MORE FUN.

Enlightening Conversation

My sister and I had a good laugh at this conversation. It is amazing what kids catch on to, and understand at such a young age. I am still not sure when Mary picked up on this.

Mary: When you grow up you are going to have to take care of everbody.
Christopher: Yeah, I will have to work like 24 hours a day. Well, maybe 12 or 11.45hrs.
Mary: Well, at least you won't have to go through the pain of giving birth!

Reminiscing...

On our way from Phoenix to my parents home in Southern Utah, we passed by the small town I grew up in. Its population is only about 7,ooo, and the town is 16 sq. miles. The nearest city is about 150 miles away. I loved growing up there. My childhood was bliss, and I thought all families were as happy as mine. I realize now that my parents worked very hard to give me that experience. I grew up in a home that was on the edge of the mesa and faced out over the canyons in the picture. I used to just sit on our front steps and watch the sunset. It is so beautiful, and to drive through there this past week brought back a lot of wonderful memories. Something many don't know about me is that I worked at the local scenic airport fueling the small planes like the one in the picutre. It was a great job, and nice to be outside. I would drive the big fuel truck up, pull off the ladder, put on the big gloves, and fill them up. I did get to go on a few tours over the lake and the Grand Canyon while I worked there.
This is a picture of slot canyon. we always called it the skinny caves. It has become a tourist site now and very regulated, but when we were kids we could just drive out to it and hang out. We would build big bon fires at night and have a great time walking through trying to scare each other. It actually took a lot of skill to avoid taking off your head on the ledges.

This is another scenic sight outside of page a few miles. It is called the horseshoe. If you floated down the river you would end up in the Grand Canyon. You can see why I might like to move back to this part of the country. Despite the lack of greenery, it is so beautiful. Maybe if I fill my house with pictures like this, it will grow on Moss too...

Tribute to Friendship

Autumn and I became "best friends" in the 5th grade. We honestly grew up together. We spent every possible night at each other's homes, and shared everything like sisters. There were times when we would return trash bags full of borrowed clothes. We only lived a few blocks from each other and spent our days and nights roaming the neighborhood and the desert. Growing up in a very small, isolated town meant very creative entertainment. When it would rain we would get on old denim shorts and head out to the edge of the mesa and make waterslides down the cliffs. It was not a pain free experience, but worth the trade off. We both ran cross country, track, and played tennis. High School, in a lot of ways, was bliss for us. I was allowed to take our family boat out on Lake Powell at 17 after passing "the test" with my dad. We would go out as often as possible to ski and swim. We were fortunate to have a great group of girl friends, and we all still stay in touch. Of all the things I am grateful for in my life are the many wonderful friends I have been blessed with, both then and now.

Hiking in Arizona

After a very late flight we got up early to take a hike with family and friends in the White Tank mountains. It was a beautiful day and we were very excited to wear shorts and enjoy the sunny weather. I was just excited that the stress of traveling was over!

It was a sad farewell to Dad as we headed off on our vacation. Mary was not happy that I scheduled a trip that her dad could not go on. I didn't realize that Jacob did not remember his previous experiences on airplanes. So he was very excited and exclaimed,"Mom, this is my first time on an airplane!"

Since our flight left at 8:30pm it was not a full flight, thankfully. After drinks and a snack all the kids passed out. I knew it would be a late night, but well worth the peace of sleeping children on a 3 1/2 hour flight. I was very grateful that it turned out as planned. It potentially could have turned into a nightmare with Brooke. She is not much for sitting still, and with no carseat it would have been a challenge!

Latest Crafts

Well, after being inspired by my very capable friend Lisa, I decided it was time to finish a few crafts that have been on hold for too long. So here are a few of them. Still more to go, but I have made a good start. It has been so fun to get back into it. It seems like I am barely recovering from Christmas, and it is nearly Easter. (Not that the weather would let you think spring was nearing.)

We love Aunts and Uncles

There are a few things that our kids really love. Two of them include getting packages and going to Bonkers. This past week they were thrilled to experience both of them thanks to their aunts and uncles.


They got a sweet package for Valentine's Day from Mike and Steph which was full of yummy treats. Jacob had stuffed all his kisses in his pocket and when I warned him they would melt he said, "I will just eat them all now." I proceeded to tell him they would make him sick, he said, "that's o.k. I'm already sick." What else could I say?
One of the treats was a push pop with a cupid on the lid. So, after learning the purpose of the cupid from his sisters, Jacob then slyly asked me, "Mom, do you know what a cupid does?" I answered, "No, what?". "They shoot people with their arrows and make them loooove". He felt so mischievious just saying it.


After many weeks of wondering when we were going to take them Bonkers, we finally went on Saturday for their Christmas gift from Uncle Jason and Aunt Debbie. The kids had a blast running and climbing through all the tunnels and going down the slides. It really is a fun place, but Moss and I didn't last long before we both felt a little nautious. I also understand a little better now why we are counseled not to gamble. When we took the kids to the upper level to play arcade games, they went crazy trying to get as many tickets as possible so they could buy a prize. Forget all the fun games, all they cared about were tickets, tickets, tickets. They went straight for the big jackpots in hopes of winning it big. Luckily they did win it big a few times, and they were able to pick out one of those amazing prizes.

A Crappy Moment

I have to admit that I love to watch when this happens. It seems that each of our kids has had this same experience of freely pooing in the bath, and then being horrified by it. I love how they call out for help as the floater is moving toward them. So, of course I had to document it. I have a clip just like this of Jake trying desperately to get away.


(Dedicated to Aunt Steph!)

Valentine's Day Dinner

So I totally stole this idea from my very clever and creative friend Sarah. She was telling about their tradition of having a family restaurant where they serve the kids (many of you have already read about it on her blog). I knew it would be a big hit with the kids. So we decided to give it a go. Moss was the waiter and I was the cook (of course). The girls loved having a menu and sitting at the table alone, and then to be served by a dramatic waitor was very entertaining. Poor Jacob missed it all. He fell asleep on the way home from decorating Moss' truck.

Happy Valentine's Day!

We had a very nice day. I ended up being in charge of Mary's class party and never even took one picture it was so busy. I was just glad it went off without a hitch. After school we went and decorated Moss' truck in the parking garage. The kids had a great time tieing balloons onto it and putting Valentine stick-ons on the windows. (I have to give Lisa credit for that idea.) How is it that after a whole day focused on the kids they ask "Is there a Kids' Day?" It stems from the fact that there are holidays officially titled "Mother's Day" and "Father's Day".

The Answer

Well, I found the answer to my question posed in the previous entry, Dinner time or Torture? I went to our church leadership broadcast yesterday, and Elder Oaks repeated something he had taught in his most recent General Conference address, Good, Better, Best. I had to include it since I imagine many young Mom's face very similar battles when it comes to dinner.

The number of those who report that their “whole family usually eats dinner together” has declined 33 percent. This is most concerning because the time a family spends together “eating meals at home [is] the strongest predictor of children’s academic achievement and psychological adjustment.”3 Family mealtimes have also been shown to be a strong bulwark against children’s smoking, drinking, or using drugs.4 There is inspired wisdom in this advice to parents: what your children really want for dinner is you.
http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=f318118dd536c010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=5ce926cb31cf5110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&hideNav=1

After having read this I decided the benefits of having dinner far out-weigh the negatives. So I guess I will keep making it. Some how gagging, crying, spills, wasted food, and dishes pale in comparison the possibility of smoking, drugs, and drinking. If you are trying to decide which battles to fight, this might be one you want to win!

Dinner Time or Torture?

It is amazing the time and energy I put into food, all the while thinking that I am truly blessing my family. Well some how over the past 8 years I totally missed the reality that I am actually torturing my children! How is it that of all my responsibilities as a mom, my least favorite task is making dinner and cleaning it up, and the kids least favorite thing is to have to eat it, yet I keep doing it night after night????

Mary is trying to finish her dinner without gagging in order to get some ice cream. Very motivated!

The Annual Pine Wood Derby

This is the second year a pinewood derby has been hosted by the Elders Quorum in our ward (much thanks to our friend Matt Webb). Some how it comes up so much faster than we anticipate and Moss runs out of time to perfect his car. Unfortunately we underestimated the hopes of the kids for winning the race. Needless to say, our car did not perform to expectations. Mary was devastated. We will definitely have to take it more seriously in the future! Thanks to the Hill's, we did manage one victory for which Jacob was very proud! He is still carrying, the now 3-wheeled, car all around. He loves it despite its failings.

Here they all are having a good time in the cold garage the night before the big race. It's all about the experience, right?

Busy, Busy, Capable Brooke

This girl is going to wear me out! She is a chair pushin', counter-climbing, brother-wackin' girl. She being so adorable does not help. Her sisters protect her ferociously from her brother, who is usually the victim of an aggressive attack. This is her after a climb on the counter to find a bag of thawed mixed berries. The picture below is her 30 seconds after I left the kitchen. You'll notice the bar stool on the counter. I accidentally left one down when I ate lunch. She took full advantage of my neglect! She was so proud.