God Bless America!

Maddie's 2nd grade patriotic program called, "Hats off to America!" was today. She was soooo cute! She's been singing all of her songs around the house for months now. They sang the state song, the National Anthem, God Bless America, 40 hr. week, Lady Liberty & about 6 or 7 more. They did a little tribute to the service men and women in the audience, that had everyone in tears. Mad's speaking part was about how the Liberty Bell cracked and how the city of Philadelphia celebrates the bell's first ring every year. Funny because we had just read all about it in the books Grandma Lisa brought back from Pennsylvania earlier this year, so she is an expert. She even chose that topic for one of her tell-n-teach days.

After the program all the parents went back to the classroom to view the students' animal projects. Maddie's porcupine got rave reviews from the whole crowd. Mrs. Hansen (her teacher who we love) even asked if Mad will retire her model to the school. She thought it would be a great example of what is expected for years to come. It was really life-like (dad gets some of the credit too - he has been obsessed with that thing)! Whenever it was sitting on the counter (a work in progress), I would see it out of the corner of my eye and I kept thinking it was our cat. The thing freaked me out a little when I was home alone.

Last Saturday she took some aptitude tests for the district to see if she is capable of handling their gifted and talented track (we know she is gifted enough but whether or not she is motivated or not is the question). She is really interested in the program. So far we haven't heard great things about it but she tested just in case we have a change of heart. She felt really good about how the test went and said it was easy. I guess we'll have to wait and see. In second grade, if you thought it was really easy, it means you either did really good or you bombed. Her teacher, Mrs. Hansen really pressed us to check into it and apply, and the district sent us another application based on her 1st grade end of level test scores. We also decided to apply to some of the charter schools in the area. We don't know what we are doing but it can't hurt to check it out???

Our girl is wicked smart!!

(From Good Will Hunting) -(Sorry if this sounds like a bit of bragging - this is a where journal blogging gets difficult - this information is for posterity and so Mad knows how proud we are that she is ours! So please don't feel inferior, stupid or nervous to be around her. She's just a regular everyday mini-me!! JK)

Are we ready for some snow or what?

Thanks Uncle Clint!! Even though we are ready for spring, we want to have one last hoorah in the snow in our new gear. Uncle Clint outfitted the whole family in Rossignol gear. Even though Brig was the only one we got a picture of, half of the kids slept in their stuff. Clint tells us what is "sick" and what isn't. We love our new "sick" stuff & can't wait to try it out! Snow ball fight anyone?

P.S. Mason is okay in the above picture. He just wasn't cooperating so I was trying to hold him out of the picture so we could hurry and take it because we were all sweating like pigs. Notice that perfectly round, " I never get layed down" head of his??? Hmmmm.

Ode to Steven

I got this from my friend Bobbidee and it looked like fun. I don't know if Steve and I will ever have a traditional romantic Valentines day because of the flood of birthdays that we have at the same time but I do want him to know how much I love him even though we kind of skipped over Valentines day again this year.

1. Where did you meet your husband?
We got set up on a blind date by our friend Liz at Utah State.
2. How long did you date before you got married?
We met in April 1997 & got married March 1998
3. How long have you been married?
Almost 11 years!! Yikes!
4. What does he do that surprises you?
Not much after 11 years. He's a pretty sure and steady guy, but he does keep taking up new and different hobbies like restoring old wood-working tools.
5. What is your favorite feature of his?
His sense of humor, his work ethic and his smile!
6. What is his best quality?
His never-ending quest for knowledge!
7. What is his nickname for you?
He doesn't have one for me which is weird because he is the king of nicknames.
8. What is his favorite food?
Any food! The man loves to eat. No seriously, I can't even narrow it down. Everything except spaghetti (one of my fav's). I think it's a mental thing because his dad doesn't like it either.
9. What is his favorite sport?
Basketball/Fishing/Golf - although he never gets to do any of them
10. When and Where was your first kiss..
I kissed him on the Aggie A the day I met him and then he proceeded to kiss my roommate. What can I say? We were young.
11. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple?
It definitely depends on who you ask. I like to play games. He likes to .... do other things. We like to ... seriously anything together is great!
12. Do you have any children?
Yes. 3 girls & 2 boys
13. Does he have any hidden talents?
He likes to sing and play the guitar & he can remember certain things (I say certain because he can't remember some things I ask him to do to save his life) forever.
14. How old is he?
He is 34.
15. Who said I love you first?
Knowing me, it had to be Steve.
16. What is his favorite music?
He likes all kinds of music but he probably likes folk music the best. At least that's what he picked for the one pre-set station I let him have in the suburban. I know that makes him sound seriously un-cool but those who know him love him for those weird little quirks.
17. What do you admire most about him?
He is the world's best Husband. He tries really hard to be considerate and kind. He is a really good dad and a very dedicated worker.
18. What is his favorite color?
Yellow
19. Will he read this?
Yes

I can't believe that it has been 11 years already! Even more shocking is that 12 years ago you asked me for my "digits" and I actually gave them to you (he really said that word). We always have a good time when we're together. You are one crazy guy and I love it most when we laugh together. I really, really, really love you Steve. Thanks for being you.
*Notice the song I put at the top of my playlist to go along with this post. He thinks she wrote it for him but she spelled his name wrong.

Em's party was a big success!

Today Em had 8 little girls over for a birthday party. One girl was in Cali. and another was sick. We had a really good time (way less stressful than brig and brins). She really ate up all the attention. This was the first friend birthday party that she has ever had by herself, and the only birthday party she remembers. She had a good time thinking of who to invite and what we should eat and do. She helped plan the whole thing. We played a find the puzzle pieces game (because mo loves puzzles), we made shrinky-dink necklaces (the girls loved this!), we played pin-the-crown on the princess (I made crowns out of glittery paper and used a blown-up pic of Em to stick them to), we had mini cupcakes and bubble gum ice cream, played musical presents to decide who's gift to open first, and then we had a race to see who could find the 3 pieces of bubble gum in a pile of whipped cream. No hands! Emilee won that one hands down. We finished the bash with a good old fish pond, that everyone loved! Fun, fun! It was really fun having a special day just for her. She LOVED all of her presents and did a really good job of thanking everyone and making them feel that their present was the most special of all. She was really sad that everyone had to go home and all she could say was, "but we didn't even get to play." So now we are 3 birthday celebrations down and one to go. Yeehaw!

Emilee turns 5!!!

Happy Birthday Mo!

Until recently Emilee has been the baby of our family but now she is oh-so-big! She turned 5 today and we are so excited to get to celebrate with her. She chose to have mac-n-cheese for her birthday dinner and all day long she kept asking, "Can I do (insert whatever) because I'm the birthday girl?" She's really learning how special this day is, and that you need to milk it while you can. Em's had a rough year, what with not being the center of mom and dad's attention anymore. She loves her little brother and probably mauls him (in a good way?? )more than anyone else. She doesn't realize that just because we don't have quite as much spare time anymore, doesn't mean anyone can replace our Mo. She has always been the little apple of her daddy's eye. She can get him to do the darnedest things. 5 out of 7 nights a week he camps out on her floor while she is going to bed and the other two she is in bed with us. Emilee is a work horse. If you want someone to do a difficult task and do it without crying, Mo is the one to ask. If you are wondering where in the world she got a nickname like Mo, she got it from herself. When she was little she used to pronounce her name Em- mo- lee. So over time it just got shortened to Mo. We love Em's smiley face and how she tries to be the youngest and just as old as the others at the same time. She's a smart, brave, and kind little girl who (usually) tries to do what is right. Today when a little boy, who comes over before school, was wandering around saying, "Oh my ***!" She wandered right up to him and said, "Issac you shouldn't say that, it hurts Heavenly Father's feelings." What a good little girl. She teaches me things every day. We love you big girl. We hope you had a good day. Stay tuned for footage of Mo's party. The bash is taking place this friday.

President's Day Weekend at the Cabin

This weekend we rode 4 hrs. in the burb both ways to have some fun at the cabin in Island Park. Grandma Lisa came with us so that was really fun. We did some sledding, wii playing, ping-ponging, dodge-balling, movie watching, good food eating, up-catching, cake eating, baby holding and laughing. The cabin is always a fun place to be. We are thankful we have a place like that to hang out with our family and now it is even more special to us. We got to bless Mason there. Grandpa Maughan, Uncle Todd, Uncle Jon, Uncle Bret, Uncle Nate, Uncle Eric and Dad stood in the circle and gave him a name and a blessing. It was really neat to be able to share that special day with a lot of the people we love most.

Mad getting ready for her big day!

Maddie is going to be baptized on March 7th. We have been looking for dresses and getting some ideas about what she wants for her big day. She is getting so big and we are so proud of her for taking this important step in her life. We love you Mad!

Birthday Party Central

For those of you who don't already know, we have a surplus of birthdays at this time of year.

Brig and Brins - feb. 16th, Em's - feb. 17th, Mad's - mar. 1st We decided to have friend birthday parties this year and we are off to a smashing start. Brig and Brin's party was last friday and we had 16 kids here. Fun fun! We did the usual party things like games, pinata, cake and ice cream, presents (of course) and decorations. I hope they had a good time because it might be the only birthday party they get to have together for a while.

Bon Appetit?

These cute cooks whipped up some seriously good chocolate chocolate chip cookies and Mud soup! We just got the recipe off the internet for the cookies and it's a keeper. Brin found the soup recipe in the back of a book called Mud Soup and it was good too. They fashioned those chef hats out of grocery bags and posterboard. When they get a little bigger I might just hang up my apron for good. They are way better in the kitchen than I am any day. Thanks for the soup & cookies girls I want another batch today!

Chocolate chocolate chip cookies

2 1/4 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

2 sticks butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

1 tbls. vanilla

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa

2 cups chocolate chips

1 cup chopped walnuts (optional & I didn't use these)

Mix dry ingredients minus cocoa. Beat together butter, both sugars, eggs, vanilla and cocoa. Combine two mixes and add chocolate chips and nuts. Cook 20-25 min. in 375 degree oven on a greased cookie sheet. Yum!

Happy Birthday Brig & Brin!

The twins turn 6 today!!!

Wow! What a big boy I have. Brig is my kind hearted little boy who is turning 6 today. I'm writing this entry first because he came out first. He's older than Brin by two minutes. Brig is my very best helper when it comes to anything manly. He brings in the milk from the fridge in the garage, hauls things down to the storage room for me, and always gets the mail when it's too cold for mom to go outside. One morning all of the kids hit the cereal cabinet at the same time (my kids are desperate to eat in the morning as soon as they open their eyes) and brig ended up at the front of the line. He opened the cabinet and stood to the side and said ladies first and proceeded to let his sisters pick out their cereal before him. Now that is a serious sacrifice for a six year old boy. Whenever he gets to go shopping one-on-one with grandma he always remembers to pick up something for Brinlee if not all of the girls. He is so sweet and we are so pleased with how well he is doing is school. He loves to read things he sees in the car, and add up random numbers. His first passion, like most little boys, is video games. He's really good at super mario bros. but he still thinks his mom is the best (which makes me really cool). He was sooo excited to have a little brother and he always says, "My wish came true!" Well, he is our wish come true. No one could ask for a nicer, kinder, sweeter, funnier little boy and we are thankful that he is ours.

Brinlee is so fun because she is sooo different from the other two girls and myself. Although in some ways she's more like me than any of the others. She is really going to be an adventure in her teenage years. She has a hilarious sense of humor. She likes to play twenty questions while she is getting her hair done. She fills me in on her and brig's school day because he won't take the time to tell me about it. She gets embarrassed soooo easily. She has been a singer since she came out of the womb. We were remembering a long road trip we took when she was only 3 or 4 months old and she did this scream-sing thing all the way to Reno. She wasn't sad or anything she just wanted to hear the sound of her own voice. It was pretty funny (and loud)! She didn't used to like to move very much. She didn't walk until she was 16 months old and she never wanted to go on family walks or bike rides. We would always have to pull her behind in a wagon if we could even get her to do that. We thought that she was going to be as big as a two ton truck (because she was a pretty chubby baby) , but now we can't keep that giggly bum still! She loves her long beautiful hair but she has decided to give it to Locks of love when summer time rolls around. She is so kind and loving. She mothers Brig just a little bit at school but she is very considerate of him too. She is always trying to get him to act like Prince Charming (waltzing and reciting poetry). Good luck Brin! She likes to giggle and we love to hear it. We are so thankful she is ours.

Six years ago today the doctor handed me two little babies and I wondered what we were going to do with ourselves. It has been sooo much fun to have twins. I have probably blocked out the uglier parts but over-all (now that they are a little bigger) they sure are fun. They are the "yin" to each others "yang" and great friends ta-boot. When I separately asked them who they wanted to invite to their birthday party, the first person both of them picked was the other. It was kind of a given that the other would be there, but it warms my heart that they are each others best friend. I also love that they picked to have their birthday parties together (it was a tender idea but we might not ever do it again). Their kindergarten teacher had to give a little lesson on how it was ok for Brig and Brin to sit by each other all the time and say that they loved each other & how even though they are a boy and a girl they can still be twins because their classmates were confused as to what their relationship really was. They thought that they were boyfriend and girlfriend. Brig and Brin have taken turns being the sweetest one, the fattest one, the stinker-est one, the smartest one, the most active one, the most shy one, the most friendly one, the most creative one, the sickest one, the healthiest one, the loudest one, the silliest one but they always share one very special thing because they are twins and I can't imagine how cool that is or what our lives would be like without them. So...

Happy Birthday Brigham and Brinlee!

We love you more than you could ever imagine. Thanks for being the special kids that you are. Our family is so much better because you are a part of it. OXOX Mom

* I wish that I had more pics of when they were little but I have to scan them because they are pre-digital camera for us. Another day, another project! Adios!