Sigh...

Ok. I suck at blogging on here.
To catch up..... I am almost done with my 2nd to last term in school. In February I graduate with my bachelor's degree in Nutrition Science with a minor in Health and Wellness. I am so VERY excited about it. One of my classes this term required me to blog weekly. SO, that is where my efforts have been in the blogging world. I can't wait to graduate.

Justice just had surgery. Our good friend is his ENT. Anytime you can become friends with your doctor, I recommend doing it. Awesome is all I can say about that. So Justice, of course had fluid in his ears. Surprise... surprise... We also found out that he has a pretty good amount of hearing loss in his right ear because of it. His ear drum in that ear is pretty much dead. But, his cochlea works which is a good thing. Justice's ENT, Mark, suggested he have his adenoids and tonsils removed. He also wanted to put permanent ear tubes in his ears and flush out his maxillary sinuses.
It has been 2 weeks now since the surgery and my sanity has been seen. Justice has been in a lot of pain and crying a lot. The only thing that can make him stop crying is to have David give him a Priesthood blessing.  I really hope the little guy feels better soon and that his ears stop giving him trouble.

Justice is Reading!

Justice read his first few words tonight. He is so excited about reading all of a sudden. He is always asking me to help him read. It is so cute. The book he was reading from was One Foot, Two Foot, Red Foot, Blue Foot. (He loves Dr. Suess.) Well, I started reading all of it and he reaked out saying, "I want to read some!"

And so, it begins....
Just a matter of time before my baby can read fluently.
I am so proud.

A Place to Call Home

So, David and I are getting pretty tired of living in this 3 bedroom condo with 5 kids, 2 cats and a dog. While I am extremely grateful that we have a place to live, it is cramped and just doesn't feel like "home". Know what I mean? A home just has a feeling about it.
Well, I was out the other night with some really fun girl friends I have made here. There was nothing to do in this town. And, since we are all new in town we decided to drive around and look at houses. We drove by one that I thought looked awesome. So, I took a picture of it and sent it to David. The next day we talked to a realtor and David and I went to go look at it.
We LOVED the house! We walked in and immediately it just seemed to fit. It felt like home. Both David and I got pretty excited about the house. This was the 1st and only house we have looked at since we got to Minot. We have never had such good feelings about a house on the 1st look either. We just walked in looked around and said, "OK. We'll take it!" Maybe it is our lack of a home for 5 months that has made us feel that way.... But, I don't know. I think this is OUR home...
The only catch is that we don't have a down payment yet. So, we put in an offer to rent for 6 months until we had a down payment together.
Unfortunately the owners were less than enthused about that idea.
So, now we are in the works to get a down payment together another way. Hopefully, we can figure something out soon! Hopefully, we get the house. I'll keep ya posted.

Our humble little condo

The Home we're trying to buy

Words to Live By

Brace Face!

Well, Faith finally has braces. She has been waiting and waiting forever to have her teeth lined in metal. Little did she know what braces would actually be like! Last Friday she went into the dentist to have a tooth removed so her teeth would line up better. Immediately following that appointment she crossed the hall to the orthodontist so he could put on her braces. The whole process took about 2 hours and $6500. Ouch!
She stayed home from school because she had bloody gauze hanging out her mouth. She was also in a lot of pain. Excedrin became her best friend over the weekend. In the end, she decided having braces wasn't all it was cracked up to be in her mind.

Thank Heaven for Little Girls!

Is there anything cuter than little girls in dance class? They are so sweet and full of innocence and joy. The giggles. The smiles. The energy. Watching my sweet Hope in dance just melts my heart. I adore her.

Blogging, Blogging all day Long!

I know that I have not been the best at blogging in this blog. I am working at it, though. Lately, I have been so inundated with full-time school work! I feel completely overwhelmed.

I actually do blog almost daily!

One of my classes actually requires me to blog. I like that. Blogging is a release for me. Go figure.... journaling as a release....
I also started a blog for my Dad. He is a gifted poet. I have been nagging him to get his poems published for years. But, he hasn't. Someday I will get his poems published for him. Until then they can be read on his blog that I run for him. It is also a slow process, because I am busy with life and school.
But, I do what I can.
Here are all my blogs to date. Some have nothing in them yet..... But, it'll happen... eventually. Check 'em out!!!

In the Fullness of Time

The Beautiful Mind

The Enlightened Poet

In the Blink of a Lens

Making Love in the Kitchen

Sunday Morning

Today is General Conference, so naturally we are staying home to watch the conference on our TV. Well, some of us are.... Other members of our family are making Kesha "Blow" videos. 
Ahhh.... I feel the spirit.

It Was An Accident!

So today was the first time that my kids have ever been in a car accident. On our way to Hip Hop class for the kids, we hit a bump in the road... Well, a pick-up truck in the road. We were driving down the road in the right lane  headed north when all of a sudden a huge, blue pick-up truck heading south turned left about 5 feet in front of me. There was literally no time to react. No screeching of tires or anything. We slammed right into it going about 35 miles an hour. The kids and I were driving the beat-up, little, old Buick. Of course, I was driving. Faith was in the passenger front. Courage was in the front middle seat. Honour was behind Faith. Justice was behind me. Hope was sitting in the middle back seat.
Right before we hit, I heard the kids scream and saw them brace themselves for the impact. Then, after the impact Honour began his scream/cry.
In somewhat of a stupor, not really grasping what just happened, I searched the kids for injuries. Luckily, they were only scared. No one got hurt! Thank Heaven for asking for protection this morning in our family prayer! We were certainly protected.  The front airbags didn't even release. I am glad, because I didn't want them or the chemicals in them hitting my two oldest kids in their faces.
My poor dad.... I was on the phone with him when we hit. All he could do was listen to all my kids scream, a huge crash, me asking everyone if they were OK, and then dial tone. That would have been terrifying to hear as a parent and not know what was happening. I did call him back after few minutes. I had to call 911 first to report the accident. After I called my Dad back, I called David to let him know what happened because he was expecting us at the dance studio.
Here is how our conversation went:

Me: Hey David, we were just in an accident.

David: Who's fault was it, yours or the other guy?

Me: The other guy. He turned right in front of us.

David: Was the car damaged?

Me: Not really... The head light was busted. The fender and hood were crunched a little....

We're fine too! Thanks for asking!

Seriously!? First 2 questions out of his mouth were about a piece of crap car! He insists that he knew we were all fine. Yeah... yeah... yeah....

Later on in the evening I talked about what happened with Justice, because out of complete silence on the way home from swim lessons (Yes, we are busy..) he asked me which seat belts are the safest - the shoulder belt or the lap belt. I told him the most safe was the 5 point harness that Honour has. Next safest was his shoulder belt. And, the next safest was the lap belt. Then, I told him wearing no seat belt was the worst. He agreed then told me the shoulder belt "hurt his shoulder in the accident, but he'll be alright." I love my tough little guy! He said he was scared more than he got hurt. I told him there is no need to be scared if were are doing what we are suppose to be doing, like wearing seat belts and also when we ask for safety throughout our day in our morning prayers. It was a good talk on a nice drive home.
We are really blessed!

Look Who's 5!

Justice turned 5 on the 21st of this month. That was last Wednesday. I can't believe it was 5 years ago that he was born. They grow so fast! He had an awesome day. It was a preschool day, so for his snack, he wanted to take Slim Jims for a birthday treat. That is so "classic Justice". He had a birthday breakfast with Dad at McD's. He wanted chicken nuggets, but had to wait until I took him there for lunch. Yes... I know we are horrible parents for subjecting our son to McDonald's twice in one day, but he loved it. And.... It was only one day! When we were there we sat next to 3 old men who loved visiting with us. I think I got three dates out of the visit. And, Justice snatched a few bucks from the men once they found out it was his birthday. He was so excited.
Later he went to school and had a great time. When I picked him up I heard several of the kids telling their parents they had meat sticks or flap jacks for a birthday treat. The parents didn't seem to believe their kids. Haha....!
After school Justice got to open his presents. What is the greatest gift ever for our little man? A 3ds.  He freaked out when he opened it. It was awesome. We also had a yummy cake decorated just perfectly. To finish the night, he  went to his favorite class, hip hop then swimming. He thanked me over and over for his awesome birthday as I tucked him into bed and let him stay up (in bed) to play his 3ds. I love that little guy.
Then Saturday we celebrated Justice's birthday by spending the day at the local hotel water park.
The kids loved it because there were no life guards on duty, so they could do all kinds of crazy things down the slides. AND...... JUSTICE LEARNED HOW TO SWIM! He is so big and so stinkin' cute!
I am so proud of him and forever grateful to be his mom...

Below is a video of him swimming for the first time without his life vest or any help. Such a wiggly fish! I love it!

(For the full effect of the slide show...

 Scroll over the movie & then click the "Mute Button")

"Jibber Jabber" Honour

Honour is growing up so fast! He is walking like a champ. He knows tons of baby signs. And, now he is exercising his vocals. Pretty soon we will be able to understand what he says. I really would love to know what he says! Although, I want him to slow down. He is growing up too fast! In this video he has a lot to say. He is very serious about it too. You can tell by how deep his voice is. And he is very intent on pointing that gun. He is very observant! His big brothers play with those guns all the time. So, Honour knows what to do with them.

Honour the Stinker

This is what a 14 month old baby looks like after he keeps you up ALL night because he felt the need to climb all over you and nurse all night long. Needless to say, he is adorable and I am exhausted. I swear that the cuteness of babies is their only defense. And, man, is it ever a good one!

Worst Mom EVER!

It is the end of the school year and so the kids are having their end of school year programs. They include singing, dancing and art to display.
Well, Hope was very excited about this. She even made me a personalized invitation to her program. It was so cute. She colored in crayon "Come to my show" " I love you Mom" "Thursday at 2:00".
Well, Thursday at 2:00 came and went. I forgot..... I FORGOT! I am such a jerk!
So, when she got home and I saw her, I instantly remembered. I felt HORRIBLE! She did too. I gave her tons of hugs and kissed with tons of "I am sorry"s . I asked how it went and what I missed... She said she sang and danced. She told me she played the xylophone. SHe also told me she missed me and REALLY wanted me there. She said. "I looked all over for you and I couldn't find you." My heart sank and broke for her.... Upon hearing our conversation Courage said, "Mom, my program is tomorrow at 2:00." And then Hope said, "Well, at least you can make it to see Courage's show..." Ugh... My heart was breaking even more. THen she ended it with "I should have told Justice (her 4yr old brother, mind you...) to remind you about my show so you wouldn't forget." I felt think a giant piece of crap!
So I took her shopping with me and bought her a donut.
The next day, I pulled her out of her class to watch Courage in his program. I had Hope sit on my lap for the hour. She told all about her program.... where she sat, what she sang, which instrument she played, and what her art looked like.
I wish I could take that day back and redo it........
Here are Courage's program pics:

Here We Go Again!

Skip the chipped teeth and look at those tonsils! Poor kid's tonsils are so swollen that they are touching. So I took Justice to the pediatrician today to get an antibiotic. But in the exam, low and behold we find out he has double ear infections too!!! Here is the theory.... His adenoids and tonsils become enflamed frequently. They cause fluid build up in his eustation tubes. That causes the ear infection and problems for his ear drums. Therefore, I am checking with ENT next Thursday to see if we can get Justice's tonsils taken out. Hopefully that will put an end to his life-long ear infections, snoring, congestion, and swollen glands. I just want him to feel better and have healthy ears!

Our Preschool Grad

One of the funniest things I have ever seen happened at Justice's preschool graduation. Of course when preschool children graduate they always put on a show of singing and dancing. Well, every child at the concert was so enthusiastic about the songs and dances they were performing.... That is every child except Justice. He stood stiff as a board. Motionless. Expressionless. It was absolutely hilarious! He was severely tortured up on the stage in the center of singing and dancing children. The thought sin his head were probably, "I hate this!" "Get me outta here NOW!" "Why are they torturing me?!"

It was priceless.

1st year of preschool... done.

One more year of preschool.... In Minot!

AHHHH!!!

Justice and his BF, Sarah Cannon

Zombie....

Even Daddy got to come!

We love Mrs. Woodard

Mmmmm... Refreshments! Look at all those cookies!

Faith's Orchestra Concert

Last night Faith had her last concert of the school year. It was really nice. I am actually surprised how well these string beginners do at playing their instruments. I remember when I was a kid listening to the beginner orchestra students at my school. They sucked.
I watched Faith on stage thinking how beautiful she is. She is such a special girl. And, she is growing up too fast, becoming a beautiful young woman. I am so proud of her. She does so well in school. She chooses awesome friends. She is so smart. I have always said, "God gave her to me so I could keep my sanity. She is my gift."

Orchestra teacher Ms. Heffner

After Concert Treat

Decisions... Decisions...

Beautiful

Good Thoughts

I have been thinking a lot about life lately and how blessed I am. I have decided it all comes down to these few quotes. These are words I live by....

“If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you would never think a negative thought.” Pilgim Peace

"One person can make a difference and every person should try" John Fitzgerald Kennedy

"Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated, thus, everyone's task is unique as his specific opportunity to implement it." Viktor E. Frankl

"Your place in life is not determined by destiny or outside forces, but by choices you have made. Make wise choices." Tera Amsbury

"Family isn't always blood. It's the people in your life who want you in theirs. The ones who accept you for who you are. The ones who would do anything to see you smile, and who love you no matter what" Anonymous

David's 36th Birthday

David had a fun birthday - fun for all of us... He started it out with a 5k run. You can check out that in the Dart Frog Dash post. Then we went out to breakfast as a family and with some great friends to IHOP. We enjoyed great conversation and even got to listen to the IHOP employees sing a birthday song to David followed by a pat on the head as if he was a toddler. That was priceless!
Is there anything funner than a game night with friends?

We LOVE game nights!!!

I hope when we move to Minot we can make some friends that enjoy getting together for game night. Anyway, we laughed ALL night. The game played is called "What is yours like?" Hilarious.... I highly recommend it. In the game you are suppose to describe something that is yours without giving away the answer to what is being talked about. One person has to guess what the "it" word is based on the answers of what each person's is like. Get it?
The best (and most risque) "what is yours like" answers that happened to go together coincidentally....

David's answer: "Mine is hairy."

 Tera's answer: "Mine sometimes smells like tuna."

 "Ours like to play together." 

Can you guess what the answer is?

Our PETS!

 You are so disgusting.

14 Fabulous Years Together!

David and I just celebrated our 14th anniversary. That is like an eternity in Hollywood years. I can't even imagine life without David now. We have come a long. long way. We have been dirt poor, rich in life, and very, very blessed. I don't know what we did right to get this far and be so happy... But, here we are.

May 17, 1997

To celebrate we went out to PF Chang's for dinner. We love that restaurant. The last time we went there was when we lived in Arizona about 11 years ago. We talked about all our years together...
The time we lived in Florida and watched the storms together from our apartment window... The nonstop drive cross country.... Our five babies and how much they have grown.... Our future living in Minot.... Our love for each other.... Our life is perfect.
I look forward to many more years on this earth with him.

Fishing at Olander

The best part of my day was fishing with my sweet, sweet little man Justice. On the spur of the moment we decided to gather together some cookies and fishing gear and head down to the lake. It was am absolutely gorgeous day for it, too! The weather was perfect. We spent 2 hours out there. We had to avoid the crazy geese who were guarding their nests. One even started to chase me down until it realized I just wanted to get into my car. But, overall it was a very peaceful and awesome time to just sit at the water's edge visiting with my baby as we casted and reeled our fishing lines in and out of the water. That is the stuff that memories are made of....