Some New Years Resolutions are fun to keep

It has been so long since I have updated I thought I should put down a few of the latest happenings in our crazy life. When setting my New Years Resolutions I had very good intentions with all of them and added one last one more as a wish/hope than a resolution but it turns out that is the one that has stuck and one of the few that last all year. I put down that I needed to find a husband, and guess what...I found the best one out there :). DJ proposed on June 26, 2009 and of course I said and enthusiastic yes. With my whole family and a good portion of his down in Moroni for the Mormon Miracle Pageant, we had a family party that turned into and engagement party. I could not have been more surprised! As we had discussed things over the preceding weeks he had assured me that if I was patient I would have a ring by July of NEXT YEAR! That seemed like a long time to wait to me but I knew he was worth waiting for and so I was shocked and joyfully surprised when he gathered the fam around and got down on one knee. I think that ranks in the top ten best moments of my entire life. I must have done something right somewhere along the way to deserve someone as great as my sweet DJ. He makes me laugh and my hearts smiles everytime I think of him. The kids love him more each day and are almost as excited as I am about us getting married. Now we are just trying to figure out all the details of where to live. We are hoping to get married on New Years Eve since that is the anniversary of the day we met (aaaawwwww). Some dreams really do come true :) <3

It was a bouncy ball after all!!!!!

The parable of the clogged toilet.....So Collin got a boucy ball from school for some reason I dont remember. Later that day I hear he and Jaxon playin with it in the upstairs bathroom cuz it will bounce ALL over the room and in the tub and everything. They were havin so much fun and the suddenly the fun stops. Hhhmmm I thought to myself, odd that they would stop playin so abruptly but it must be that they are such sweet angels that my shouting "stop bouncing that stupid ball or I will go insane!!!" must have finally sunk in. Well not too long after that someone yells from the bathroom that the toilet is plugged. This is not an unusual occurance after Hunter has been in there so I grabbbed the plunger that is usually on hand for just such occasions. When this didnt work, I set it aside cuz we had somewhere to be (as ususal). The next day someone not knowing the problem used the facilities AGAIN and then we had a real problem! This is when it started to go down hill. I started thinking back to what the problem could be and remembered the boucy ball. I called Coll and Max in and asked them if they flushed the bouncy ball and Collin said "no, well it wasnt really us that did it....but I didnt see the bouncy ball go in" Well I asked where the bouncy ball was now and after they looked at each other they both just shrugged thier shoulders looking very innocent but with eyes as purple as pansies! (If you dont know, my kids think that when they lie thier eyes turn purple :) lol ). Well I started asking around and I asked my home teacher, the elders quorum pres, my neighbors, and various family members who shall remain nameless (but you know who you are!). EVERYONE told me "no- it cant be a bouncy ball....bouncy balls wouldnt cause the problem. Some tried to snake it, others tried to plung it, most just said I was gonna have to call a plumber. Finally I just turned the water off and duct taped the lid closed so no one would use it. So we had a perfectly good bathroom that could not be used. Well it wasnt perfectly good cuz the bathtub didnt drain either. :( But it became a completely wasted room in my home for the past 3 months.

Enter the hero of our saga.....DJ aka - superman :D. We were talkin about what we could do over the weekend since I would not have any kids around. I told him I knew a really fun game we could play...it went something like this "Hey Deej, I have a great game we could play called 'fix my toilet" "Well uh Marilyn, that sounds like a lot of fun but I was thinkin of a movie or something, but since you are so adorable and just that much fun to be around I would play whatever game you want, and maybe when we are finished with the bathroom I can clean your house and do the laundry too, while you eat bon bons and watch movies then after I will peel you some grapes and rub ur temples!" Well - Ok maybe the conversation didnt quite to like that but the end result was the same. DJ came up this weekend and after running all over town finding what we needed to fix everything (cuz being a girl I have no tools) he set to work on not just one but TWO toilets. Ya see the toilet in the master bath had its own set of issues mainly involving tremendous amounts of water and swooshing noises every 30 seconds or so. After fixing my bathroom he was then able to pull the toilet off and try to figure out what was causeing the problem. Well he didnt really believe me that it was a bouncy ball either but guess what!!! In the end everyone should have just listend to me!!!! IT WAS THE BOUNCY BALL! Second only to my feeling of vindication was my joy and relief that the bathroom was once again usable.

Although he doesnt wear glasses like Clark Kent, I am pretty sure there is an S on his chest somewhere cuz in my book he is totally Superman. Maybe if I ever catch him with his shirt off (after we were married of course :P) I will see the S and under his pant he is wearin tights....hhmmm ok that would just be wierd. I cannot tell ya how happy Iam that he is just that handy and awesome! That isnt even all he did this weekend but if I listed ALL the things he showed me he was good at this weekend all the other girls would be jealous and might try to steal him away :), so I will just leave it as THAT BOY HAS SKILLS!

Thanks a bunch Deej - ur the best.....if you keep spoiling me like this you will end up stuck with me for good, so watch out! <3

What a ride!

The past month has been one adventure after another. As a family we have gone to the Draper temple open house, Bear Lake, Chucky Cheese, and while the kids are with Josh I have been down to Moroni a few times. At the temple open house I realized exactly why they dont let kids into the temple! WOW what an experience. It was a little crazy tryin to keep track of 7 kids without talking and trying to keep them from talking too. DJ and I loved seeing the different rooms of the temple, it is prob the only time I will get to see the mens dressing room and the only time guys get to see the Bridal room and womens dressing room :). The Celestial room was especially touching and brought tears to my eyes as did the sealing room. The kids however thought the cookie room was the best of all! Try explaining to Collin and Jaxon that when you go to the temple they dont really have a cookie room at the end of the session. I guess it is just that much more incentive for them to actually get there someday if they think there are treats. Especially Jaxon who STILL wants to go back to nursery where they have toys and snacks! (hhhmmmm cant say as I blame him, sounds pretty good to me!) After the temple we all went up to Bear Lake for the weekend where DJ's sister had a timeshare she let us use (Thank you Mary!) That was quite the experience. I am not really sure how to put it into words. Hunter spend most of the weekend trying to find someone to argue with. At the end he tells me with exasperation "What is wrong with these people, no one ever gets mad and no one will argue with me!!!" Miranda had an ear infection all weekend and finally DJ and his bro in law gave her a blessing. Turned out her ear drum was continually rupturing and healing every 8 or 9 hours. Collin did NOT enjoy the one bite rule and is now officially opposed to oranges:) Tanner however, ate several new foods and with the right incentive we realized he will eat most everything. Savannah was somehow attached to Austin like a shadow and they had a great time sledding and swimming. Jaxon and Coll had a ton of fun swimming and a tubing. Overall it was a lot of fun but a somewhat exhausting weekend. The good news is that even after the kids were at their finest DJ still came back! What a trooper! DJ came up here this weekend because I ended up with the kids again, and we had a much better weekend. We went to Chucky Cheese and OMGosh! That place is a ZOO! The kids had a blast playin game after game. For a mere $60 we were able to take home 3 slinkys, 15 suckers, a big beattle, a squishy ball (already broken) and several other items that are each worth about 15cents. The pizza was awful and the prizes worthless so Im not sure it was the best deal economically but we did all have a great time. DJ came to church with us and introduced himself as my bf in preisthood so I guess the gossip is probably makin the rounds lol. The kids said that someone already has asked them if we are getting married! How news travels (and morphs) fast! After dinner, horsey rides for the kids, and a little extra sugar, DJ left for home :-(, but next weekend hopefully will come soon. Its Valentines day this weekend and it will be nice to have a valentine this year - especially one who is so great to me and the kids. HHHMMM I wonder what I should get him???? Maybe a bridal catalog and ring advertisements?....nah dont wanna freak him out. Kinda wanna keep this one around, so we'll give him some more time to adjust and absorb the chaos that is my life! :D

After the trial of your faith comes the blessing - I love blessings

Since I knew that news travels fast, and I took him up to meet mom and dad, I figured I would throw something out here about the goings on in my life. If anyone has talked to mom or any of my kids (or me for that matter) you probably know by now that I am dating someone who is pretty amazing. His name is DJ and he lives in Moroni - ya its past Nephi and out there a ways. I met him on NYE at a dance that I totally wasnt going to go to, but got talked into attending. He works in IT and also a firefighter and EMT down there. He is amazing with my kids and has even gotten Tan to try a few new foods (WOW!). We have so much in common it is a little scary. He is #6 of 10 same as I am, and there are 6 boys and 4 girls in his fam, his son Austin and Hunter share a birthday Nov 19 and are both 15, we both love to camp and travel, photography, and the list goes on and on. He is so incredibly good to me it is amazing - even brings me diet coke and Krispy Kremes...he definitely found the way to my heart! The best part is that I think he kinda likes me too!:D We have only known each other for 20 days now but it has been possibly the best 20 days I have had in years. If it is all just a dream then please dont pinch me and wake me up...just let me enjoy it for now lol. I dont know what all the future holds but time always tells, and I am sure it will in this case as well. DJ ur awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our New Years Resolutions

Hunter - Ummmm well Hunter is now in bed cuz he just kinda sleeps a lot. Maybe we will pick his goal for him to be 1) Attend FHE with the rest of us 2) Keep a clean room 4) Make freinds with Miranda 5) Finish basement and move down there. Now if he wants to renegotiate we will amend at that point :)

Tanner - find my phone (ok that one could take at least a year if it is in the toy room so let pick one that is actually attainable!)... 1) Get a job to earn money 2) Finish a book 3) Make a video and post on Youtube. 4) Get one report card with straight A's 5) Help finish the basement and move down there

Miranda - 1) complete one task in each value in YW personal progress 2)Get at least 2 report cards with all 4's 3) Start research on writing a book

Savannah - 1) Read the entire Book of Mormon 2) Read the Twilight series 3) Start collecting something

Collin - 1) Join Jr. Jazz and learn to play basket ball 2) play on a soccer team 3) learn to swim 4) Stay up on New Years Eve till midnight 2010

Jaxon ok well all Max would come up with is to work at a Pizza store and then just do nothing hhhmmmm maybe we will try more later with some ice cream incentive lol.

So those are the goals for 2009...I guess we will see how far we get huh? So far though this New Year has been the best for a really really long time. New Years Eve was surprisingly great with an unexpectedly wonderful beginning to a new year. I guess we will see what the rest of the year brings...the test of time always tells. So for now I just keep hopin that it all really is the beginning of a great year or maybe a great beginning of the rest of my life.

Some fun pics of snow day

New Years Resolutions

I have been thinking for a while now about new years resolutions. I didnt set any last year cuz well last year totally sucked in so many ways. Anyone who really knows me knows why...that would be you Scott and Aly ;). So this year I want to set some that I can actually reach and feel good about. So here goes:
Financially - keep track of my spending and keep a check book register balencing it once a month at least. Also get $1000 in savings by the end of the year.

Physically - start taking a yoga class. At least try it out and see if it is something I want to continue with. Try it for 2 months

Spiritually - Read Book of Mormon AND D&C. Use study guide with D&C

Professionally - Finish my Masters (or at least be on track to finish by Feb 2010).

Family - Have FHE 90% of the weeks which is at least 46 out of 52 weeks this year. Also have Fam Scrip study 85% of the time ( 310 days) and family prayer 95% of the time (2 prayers a day x 365 days / .95 = 694 prayers WOW )

also - one family activity a month and one family vacation this year

Kids - establish a regular routine of spending individual time with each child on a regular basis.

Misc - Finish the basement and get boys moved down there
- Find a Husband (ok well we have to throw one in there for fun....I guess it is just for me anyway, its not like anyone else ever reads this LOL)

Gonna talk to the kids about thier goals and post them too just so we have somewhere that it is all written down and we can see it next year!

Sunday again :(

Well it is Sunday once again and once again I feel like total crap. Sunday used to be my favorite day of the week and I absolutely loved goin to church. I loved the feeling of belonging, and the company and learning about our Lord and Savior. I loved the way I felt. But ever since the divorce and subsequent events, it has gotten harder and harder to wanna get out of bed on Sundays. It was one of the more bizzarre experiences of my life to attend church after getting a divorce. I all of the sudden did not belong. It was not anything anyone did or said. I guess it was what wasnt said and what wasnt done. Dont get me wrong- the people in my ward are AMAZING! Some of the best people you will ever meet, and the ward as a whole is incredible. I could not ask for more support or kindness than has been shown in my ward. It just became very awkward. I think no one knew what to say. No one wanted to say anything about it. I really wanted to talk about it - and sometimes still do, but I think it just makes everyone feel so uncomfortable. Maybe they dont know whether to say congratualations or condolences. I have tried to just make light of my situation, hoping that if others see that I am comfortable with everything they will be too, but it seems to just make everyone more uncomfortable. So now I just dont say anything.

The lessons are great. But everything in the church is geared towards families - and it should be. That is the way things SHOULD be. But for me they are not. The most difficult are the lessons on marriage and how to make relationships work. They ALWAYS bring up how horrible it is to get a divorce. When they do I want to scream that they dont understand! I know that it is not directed at me. I know that if I was talking to them one on one they would never condemn me for my situation (well most wouldnt although I wonder about some). At the same time however I wish that they would realize NOBODY wants to be divorced. No person I have met wants to be in this situation. I do agree that divorce is all to often a solution that is to readily available, and most divorces can and should be avoided. I think if a couple could experience life as a single person for a month they would try a little harder. The only thing in this world I can imagine being more difficult than a single parent, it being married to someone who didnt realize he was married. As difficult as it is at times I am still happier than I was at most points in my 15 years of marriage.

I just keep hoping that someday Sundays will be what they used to be. That on Sundays I will be able to find refuge from the world. As it is now I find refuge from Sunday during the week. Why do I still go??? Well I guess it is because at the end of it all the Gospel is still true and we are commanded to attend our meetings. I go to show my dedication to the Gospel, to keep my covenants, and to sacrifice three hours of my week in worshiping my Savior no matter how difficult it may be. Life is hard sometimes, especially on Sundays.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT - FINALLY!

Well we finally made it through Christmas -whew! Hunter and I stayed up until 4am wrapping presents and watchin Eagle Eye. I mostly wrapped and Hunter mostly watched the movie. Hunter did put Jaxon's bike together and most all of it stayed together once Max started riding it :). Only the seat continues to fall off. Not bad considering he did it all w/out a wrench. As we finally started to head upstairs about 4am, who should we meet but Tanner on his way down! I told him I didnt care if he stayed up but I was going to sleep for a while. Finally about 5:30 they came in and woke me up so I went down and we opened presents. It must have been the year of gratitude (for some other family). Jaxon cried cuz he wanted a red car not a gold one, and it just wasnt fair that Savannah got a movie and no one else did. Oh but wait....Savannah kept asking why oh why she got Indiana Jones???? In the end though, after everything was opened, all the kids were happy with what they got and was playing happily. Coll and Max had a great time makin new Ben Ten monsters and riding thier bikes all over the house. Tanner has had his headphones in constantly listing to music on his new mp3 player. Miranda is still experimenting with make up (she looks older every day). Savannah's baby keeps on singing and asking to go potty. Hunter - well he took his box of twinkies (the only present he asked for) and went back to bed.

I finally got back up around 2:30 and didnt do much but try and wade through what looked like a bomb had gone off in Santa's workshop. We finally found everyone in the mess and went up to Grandma and Grandpa's. Hunter refused to put the soap in Grandma's bathroom even though EVERYONE asked him to ;) After hangin around there for a while we braved the worst storm of the year and headed home. We drove 25 mph all the way home on the freeway cuz the roads were so bad! We finally got home and decided to watch Twilight. Everyone fell asleep within about 30 min. Coll was the first to go with a candy cane still in his mouth! After all was said and done it was a great Christmas.

The kindness and generosity of our ward memebers is amazing! Someone left a basket on our doorstep with gift certificates galore! We are going to go bowling, swimming, and so many other things. It was all I could do not to sit and cry. It has been so long since we have been able to go do fun things as a family, and this kindness is heaven sent. Who ever the Christmas Angel was - THANK YOU! It has renewed my determination to finish school and be able to return the favor, helping other.

It seems like when it rains it pours. It is really quiet right now cuz the kids are finally with Josh. It is kinda bitter sweet when they are gone. One one hand it is nice to have some peace and quiet and be able to catch up on so many things that I need to get done. On the other hand I miss em
so much.

Jaxon had his Christmas program this week at day care and although it only lasted 15 min he was adorable. It is so fun to watch him sing "I'm gettin nuthin for Christmas". The girls also had a chior concert that was great. They are both growin up so fast. I tell em all the time that I need uglier daughters. I had one of the ladies in the ward come up to me at enrichment night and tell me how amazinly beautiful Savannah was when she was singing.





















Christmas is goin to come and go to fast this year. There is so much going on that it seems we havent had time to really enjoy it much this year. I am hopin to spend this next week and the time before Christmas just chillin and tryin to get some more holiday spirit around here. Things need to slow down a bit I think. Hopefully we will have enough snow for our annual snow day on monday:)!

The basement is actually getting done and Tan is doin great work! wooo hoooo

Pics from carving pumpkins

Freedom coming to an end

Well my first break of track is coming to an end an I didnt get hardly any of the things done that I was hoping. I did get a lot of stuff done for the kids that needed to be done though. We got Tanner into the dr before the school booted him out cuz he didnt have immunizations. That was a fun visit with Dr.Gabe! I just kept thinking "I only wanted to get his immunizations" but we left with perscriptions and orders for a high calorie diet, a bone age scan, and referals to specialist that are gonna be more fun than I know what to do with. Oh ya and realizing that Hunter's blood pressure reading on the little machines at Sams club are not as normal as I hoped...apperently teenagers are not supposed to have higher blood pressure than adults! But in the end I am grateful that we are able to identify problems before they are critical.

On a brighter note - my wonderful ward has been helpin me finish the basement so Hunter doesnt have to share a room with Coll and Max anymore and Tanner and Hunter will be able to do thier own laundry. We are hoping within the next month to have them moved down to the basement complete with a full bath and laundry, wooo hooo!

Now for the play by play update:
Hunter: actually getting good grades this time and only one teacher who wishes Hunter was someone elses problem. I have only had to visit the Jr Hi once so far this year, and it wasnt even his fault. So far this year is going a lot better! Hunter loves to play the Hot or Not game with about every girl he sees, and he is countin the days till he can get his permit and drive and he is already lookin forward to dating - ugh :O

Tanner- Everyone of Tan's teachers thinks he is the best student they have! Going to a different Jr Hi has been one of the better moves we have made for Tan. He played basketball (ya you read that right) and football (I know, I know....but it was flag football and he did great!). Tan is having a blast in Jr Hi and he may just figure out the homework issues and be able to pass his classes. The most memorable so far is makin a 3D model of Einstienium, complete with 92 protons, 92 electrons, and 152 neutrons (I think thats what it was). I didnt even know Einstienium was real (I thought it was a joke) but it is real and now we can tell ya all about it!

Miranda - just completed her first short story for the reflections contest. WOW - she did an amazing job. After many hours typing her little heart out, she completed it 12 pages long! She is of course the teachers pet and the all star student. The only problem is that she is growing up and more beautiful everyday. I am not sure I am ready for this but thank heavens she has 2 big brothers to scare off any boys who get to close (and we all know Hunter is good at running people off - even freinds and families)

Savannah - Little Miss popular and boy crazy as ever! I tell her and Miranda all the time I need uglier daughters! It sure would make my life easier! Not only is she as sweet as ever but every boy in her class is in love with ther (who can blame em). She is also Jaxons new mother. Somehow I have been replaced and half the time Max wants her to tuck him in and walk him in to daycare. I still get the special mommy hugs and kisses though so I am just appriciateing the help and that he loves her so much! They are two little adorable peas in a pod

Collin - Just like a little stick of dynamite! He is reading better than everyone in his class and has more energy than the entire class put together. He plays with freinds almost every day and I have a hard time gettin him home for dinner. According to him dinner usually tastes like dog food unless we are having manwich or spagetti. He is Jaxons bestest buddy and the greatest big brother a boy could have.

Jaxon - Max is beginning to adjust to daycare, but still says it takes too long. Talk about breakin a mom's heart! But we do what we have to do right? He is still sweet and as close to an angel as a little boy can get. He and Coll are my sweet angels. His kindergarten teacher is gonna need somethin special next year cuz he is already readin all the stuff I bring home from my first grade class. Collin taught him to read over the summer and wow - he is smart!

Me - I am just workin through my schoolwork and trying to get everything taken care of to be able to teach first graders all they need to know. Trying to juggle all six of em and work while goin to school has been more of a challenge than I had anticipated. It has been very difficult at times but I have been very blessed with friends and neighbors who have really stepped up and eased the burden. I guess the Lord gives us what we need when we need it.

We made it through the first term of school - whew! Miranda was a little dissapointed that she didnt have all 4's...sadly she got one 3.75 (dontcha just feel bad for her!). Miranda has a crush on at least 1/2 the boys in her class and I tell her and Savannah often that I need uglier daughters! Savannah has finally realized that all the boys in her class think she is hot (mostly cuz they told her!) but she did great at SEP conferences too! Her teacher had all good things to say about her. She is one of the best studnets in her class! Collin is also at the top of his class doing great in the top reading group. Tanners teachers all raved about how great it is to have him in class. One of his great achievements is his 3D model of Einstienium. Ya I thought it was a joke too but apperenlty there really is an element on the periodic table called Einstienium and now Tanner can tell ya all about it! Tan is also playing basket ball (ya you read that right... Tanner is on the basket ball team) and he is doing great. He is also on the flag football team and does a great job snappin the ball and runnin like crazy! Jaxon is starting to adjust to daycare and doenst even get as angry when I drop him off in the morning. He still complains that it takes too long but he is always happy when we pick him up. And last but not least Hunters teachers are all adjusting too:) Only one teacher is wondering a year can really last lso long. Sadly the teacher marked him down on the one project that I helped him do. So either I did a crappy job or the teacher just has issues with Hunter knowing more about Geography and current events than he does. I am gonna go with he is an insecure teacher cuz me ego cant take the fact that I cant pass 9th grade geography :).

I am finally off track too and sadly have ended up substituting for the past few days that I have been off. Hopefully I will get a chance to take a day or two off before its time to go back. If nothing else I am hopin to get caught up on my homework.

We are all lookin forward to some fun for Halloween.

Its been a wild ride!

What a time it has been the past few months! We finally made it through the first term of school and everyone is still standing. There have been some very long nights and kids fending for themselves but with the help of amazing friends we have pulled through. My friend Aly has been amazing to come and help me with the kids even though she has 3 of her own. My friend Scott has been one of a kind in helping me cope with everything and keeping me on the right track. I also said goodbye to another really great friend who has helped me through a lot of difficult times. He is getting married and I am very happy for him... goodbye Brice, Iwill miss you.