Life at The Williamson's

Misc - May

2012-01-12T14:58:00.000-07:00

May 2011

Here are some pictures I found on the camera of some things we did this month.

Moose Grandparents (Williamson) came for a visit. They were in the process of selling their house in Challis and moving back to Nampa. Lily cozied up to Grandpa right away.

Mason giving Grandma a cuddle too.

Just playing around. Look at that messy face! She sure seems happy about it *smile*

What Mom *smile*

See mom i got Zachary (which she pronounces rakary *smile*)

Moose Grandpa reading a story to Lily.

Fingernail painting

And toenail painting too.....I think it was a bit ticklish for Lily.

And what do my wondering eyes see??? Is that Daddy's toenails too?? *smile*

Good times!!

Awards at Year End

2012-01-12T14:48:00.000-07:00

May 2011

Zachary was honored at two different assemblies this year. He was awarded for the highest ISAT scores and he was also awarded items for completing his Classics and Honors reading for Accelerated Reader (AR).

AR reading awards, chatting with friends.

Here's Parker....'Hi Mom' *smile*

Hey they called my name.....I KNEW IT!

Showing us the 'shaka' sign, yep he's happy!

YES!! I got a gift card to Hastings! I knew all that reading would pay off *smile*

I was even awarded a pretty flower for coming in and helping in the classroom, how sweet of them *smile*

Here is Zachary with Parker and Parker's teacher Mrs. Gregston. She is such an amazing teacher, I think she is one of those remarkable ones you'll never forget. Zachary would help out in their class throughout the year too.

Here is Parker with his year end project completed. They were studying about Dinosaurs, so they made a model of the habitat and made a volcano, which they can make erupt at home (I'm so excited)

We are very proud of these boys and their accomplishments! Now bring on SUMMER! *smile*

Zachary's 5th Grade Graduation

2012-01-12T14:26:00.000-07:00

May 2011

Well Zachary has finally completed elementary school! He is sooo excited to be going to middle school next year. So by way of tradition the school had a Graduation Ceremony for them. It was fun to watch Zach sing and sit with his classmates awaiting his name to be called to come and receive his diploma.

Here he is waiting with his classmates for the program to start.

Now the singing, I think Zach was relieved he didn't have to look at us during the songs. We always smile and dance in our seats and it embarrasses him. But we still love you and we'll do it for the rest of your life buddy! *smile*

Now waiting for his name to be called. He wasn't too anxious at first because of course they went in alphabetical order, but check out his face as it was getting closer *smile*

See mom and dad I got it....hurry up and take the picture so I can sit down will ya....oh and by the way I don't want everyone to see me smile so I'll give you a hurry fast smile!

SERIOUSLY mom and dad! You already took a picture! Yah but we want to remember this cute adorable face! *smile*

Zachary graduated with High Honors and was signed up to participate in the Gifted and Talented program at the middle school for next year. He made Honor Roll every week, which we and he was very proud of. He is very excited to go to middle school and meet up with all of his old friends from Parkridge. I have to say I'm excited for him too, but a little nervous because well....it's middle school!

Ahhhhh there's that no pressure smile we know so well!

I was really impressed with the diplomas they gave them, it was very official looking, something we'll treasure always. Zach looked so handsome in his cap and gown picture! Great Job Zachary we love you !

Parker's Picnic

2012-01-12T14:08:00.000-07:00

May 2011

In honor of the end of school the 2nd grade class had a Picnic with Parents activity planned. We were invited to come have lunch with him and stay for some games and just play. Parker was really excited about it, especially since he got to have hotdogs, chips, and watermelon for lunch.

I was excited to go and spend some time with him too, until we woke up that morning to a VERY chilly windy day! I took Mason and Lily and we braved the weather for a little bit.

I loved seeing the HUGE smile on Parker's face and it was fun to watch Mason get right up and play with those big 2nd graders.

Of course Lily did not want to be left out either.

We stayed until our teeth were chattering and our hands and ears were cold as ice. We had a really fun time! *smile* Thanks for the invite Parker!

Mason Preschool Graduation

2012-01-12T13:52:00.000-07:00

May 2011

Mason has LOVED preschool this year for two reasons: 1) It is the last year he is going (because of a late birthday), and 2) Because he has been learning his letters, numbers, and writing his name! We were apart of a preschool co-op again this year.

Here he is with his classmates, Brennan Andrews, Collin Pett, Ella Roetto, Lily Ashby, and Cole Baumgartner.

Saying the Pledge of Allegiance.

Singing some songs

Lily wanted to participate too *smile*

He is so ready for kindergarten! We're so proud of him.

Zachary's State Report

2012-01-11T15:40:00.000-07:00

May 2011

Zachary had to complete a state report for his 5th grade class, he was excited he was able to choose his own state, he chose Utah! I was curious why, but he had some great ideas so I was happy to see him so motivated.

They had 2 months to work on the project but had weekly goals to complete. At first it was mostly reports and paper work type assignments. The big one was the 3D model that represented the state. So here are some photos of the prep work.

Here is the mountain slope that will be a ski run. First the shape and then paper mache...

Done with paper mache, now letting it dry....

Now for the snow, using of all things fake snow *smile*

This is the arch, once again some more paper mache....

Once it was dry he added modeling clay, to give it a rough rock look.....

When the clay dried he painted it....

He made the Salt Lake City Temple out of legos..

The model also had a roller coaster representing Lagoon, The 'Great Salt Lake', a model of a beehive since it's the 'beehive state', the Bonneville Speedway, and pictures representing sports, and green jello.

Their goal of the project was to convince President Obama to relocate to their state. He had to give an oral report in front of a teacher from Columbia High School to present his state and convince him it was a great place to relocate. Only 6 kids could compete at this level, Zachary was one of them. The other competing states were Massachusetts, Indiana, Idaho, Montana, and Hawaii. He did such an amazing job he won first place!

Here he is with his teacher Mrs. Wang,

This is his prize...

And showing his awards.

This one is a classic!!

He did an amazing job! We are very proud of him, even though there was a couple of late nights, it all paid off! Congrats Zachary *smile*

Oscar's Track Season 2011

2011-06-26T16:10:00.000-06:00

April - May 2011

This was the first year Oscar was on the Track team, he wishes he would have discovered his love of running much earlier. However, he worked hard and had a great season. He competed in four events, the 1600 meter run (mile), the 800 meter run (1/2 mile), the 4 x 400 relay, and the high jump. The first meet of the season was on Oscar's birthday, and it was COLD! Most of his track meets were not warm, except for District's and it was HOT that day! He also had the opportunity to run the mile in the YMCA Invitational where he ran a 5 minutes 40 seconds. His PR's (personal record) this year were for the mile 5:36, the 800m 2:30, his time in the 4x400m 1:08, and the high jump 4'5"

Here are some pictures of him.

He had a great season and is already looking forward to next year in high school. Way to go Oscar! *smile*

Pinewood Derby

2011-06-26T15:21:00.000-06:00

April 5, 2011

Tonight was Parker's 1st Pinewood Derby competition. He had a great time getting his car ready. He had it all pictured out in his mind what he wanted it to look like. He was able to use the tools from Brother Spencer to shape his car, then he had to sand it, then he had to paint it. When it came down to the details he wanted to use the stickers he had in his Star Wars Book. I think it turned out really good. The last thing that needed to be added was weight, which daddy did right before the race.

He was able to race his car four times, and placed as following 4th, 2nd, 4th, 1st. Here is the race where he came in 4th, he was a little bummed but was a happy camper about it.

This is the race he placed 2nd. A very happy camper *smile*

After awhile Mason a Lily decided you had a better view laying down by the finish line *smile*

We learned a bit more about this race again, even after having two boys go through it, mostly if you don't do ALL the tips you're offered your car won't do as well as you would like. And somehow Dad's involvement needs to be limited. Through all of it though Parker was very happy for his friend Haken Stewart who placed 1st! Until next time.......

General Conference

2011-06-26T15:07:00.000-06:00

April 2-3, 2011

It was time to listen to our prophet, Thomas S. Monson, and the church leaders speak to us during General Conference. It has become a tradition to have packets for each of the kids to complete while listening to conference, and to have treats to snack on. This year since it was close to Easter we had jellybeans and chocolate eggs. Even with all our preparation someone eventually gets bored, or falls asleep, or trys to sneak off, or starts goofing off! So I thought I would capture some of these moments *smile*

Daddy was the first to fall victim to the sleep bug (as usual) so he was the first to get picked on! He is currently modeling the 'jellybean in the ear' look *smile*

The boys thought it was funny to keep making Lily go into the tent and watch her hair stick straight up, full of static electricity

And Zachary.................well we're not quite sure what he was thinking! HAHAHA

We were also able to capture a cute/serious side of conference too. Lily had to stand up front by the TV for each prayer.

And she loved to sing and dance each time the choir sang.

Can't wait to see what October brings *smile*

Hanging Out INDOORS

2011-06-17T15:49:00.000-06:00

March 2011

Sometimes even though you're tired of being inside, you don't have much choice. AND soooo here are a few things we did to entertain ourselves.

Mason and Lily liked watching movies in the laundry basket *smile*

Lily has really LOVED playing with her dolly's lately.

Ahhhhh how cute!

Mason and Parker were sooo bored they decided to shake things up a bit and change their sleeping arrangements. Parker decided his bed was too comfortable and the floor was much too enticing! He must be going through hot flashes too, since he is sleeping on the blanket instead of under it. *smile* Mason must be having the same hot flashes (explains the sudden moodyness too), but he also thought it would be fun/comfortable to sleep with his chairs on his bed *wink*

Here is another night of sleeping! I am still giggling just looking at this picture! I can't possibly imagine what Mason was thinking here. It does appear that his eyes are open, but that is only gravity's doing. Trust me he was SOUND asleep!

This is Zachary's attempt at either looking like Santa or......ummmm......maybe waisting time doing the dishes?? I know he's trying to see what dish soap tastes like! hahahaha *smile

COLD and Air Soft Wars

2011-06-17T15:35:00.000-06:00

March 2011

We have been cooped up inside for toooo long, and the older boys (Oscar and Zachary) had enough. They rounded up all their guns, gear, and ammunition to have an airsoft war. It was FREEZING and raining outside, but they still went out there and had a blast! I must admit I was having fun standing at the window giggling at them, watching all their quorky antics!

Ahhhh I love my boys! *smile*

SNOW

2011-06-17T15:16:00.000-06:00

March 2011

Well I guess it is safe to say we got our fair share of snow and COLD this year. We always seemed to take advantage of the opportunities to play in the stuff too.

If you look really close you can see really neat shapes to the snow flakes! Some of them actually look like the ones we make ourselves for decorations.

Here we are looking at what mother nature left us overnight *smile*

Mason wanted to eat some snow, I think he just got cold feet! *smile*

Once we got him all dressed for the weather, he went out to help shovel the stuff. I'm pretty sure he enjoyed himself very much. *smile*

Now that he was completely soaked and freezing, it was time for hot chocolate!

Oscar III Eagle Project

2011-06-17T14:57:00.000-06:00

March 5, 2011

Oscar, aka Otown, aka Lil O, decided for his Eagle Project to make Child Identification Cards. The cards would have a picture of the child, fingerprints, height, weight, hair and eye color, and a place for other pertinent information. His goal was to have these made for parents to have on hand for 72 hour kits and in case of an emergency. He worked hard to get the word out to all those family's in our stake, and he ended up having a good turnout.

He is an example of one of the ways he got word out. He made these and put them in the foyer on each side of the chapels in our stake. He also connected via email all the Relief Society presidents and Elder's Quorum presidents to announce in their wards.

Here is Oscar with our friend Josh Tuft the night before the project. Josh was so helpful with the technology side of things. He got him set up with WebCams, a color printer, and he agreed to come help out the day of. Here he is showing him how everything is going to work, THANK YOU JOSH!!!

This is the morning of getting everything set up before everyone arrives *smile*

Oscar was able to get some local companies to donate to his Eagle Project and made a poster displaying those companies. (Forsgren Associates, Legacy Lending, and Washington Trust Bank)

Here Oscar is showing some of the volunteers how to run the program set up to take the pictures of the children and enter the necessary information before printing.

Using the webcam to take their pictures. This is our friend The Warrick's daughter, she did great!

Fingerprinting station....

Measuring station for height and weight.

Here parents filled out the individual information about each of their children, like eye and hair color etc.

Waiting to have picture taken and information entered into the computer.

Fingerprinting....

This is how Oscar had the baby's fingerprints taken, very messy, but effective *smile*

More data entry..

This is the laminating and cutting station.

He even had a place for the children to wait and watch a movie.

I was very pleased with the way he had things organized and how it all came together. He did an AMAZING job! His goal has always been to complete his Eagle Project while 13 years old. He had his board of view April 6th the day before his 14th birthday! He is now and Eagle Scout! Great Job Oscar! We are all so very proud of you! *smile*

Valentine's Day 2011

2011-06-17T14:07:00.000-06:00

It has become a family tradition each year on this day, to have a heart shaped pizza from Papa Murphy's. We decorate in pink and red, make name places, and have food that is either pink or red or heart shaped for dinner.

We had a fun time together at dinner, laughing as we always do to daddy's antics! Which by the way the boys seem to be following in their father's footsteps *smile*

Such a handsome group of boys! And one gorgeous princess! *smile*

Happy Valentine's Day!

Parker's Baptism

2011-02-21T08:30:00.000-07:00

February 5, 2011

Today my wonderful son Parker Dean was baptised by his own Daddy! What an AWESOME experience! I was smiling the whole time and so was Parker. He looked so handsome in his black suite and his red backpack full of the things he would need. Just before he went to the church he opened a gift from the primary it was a white towel embroidered with 'Parker 2011'. What a great gift.

We had to be there a little bit early so Parker and Daddy could get ready in their whites.

Boy do I love this little man, and of course the big man standing right beside him. There is just something about being dressed in white that gives me the goosebumps and a peaceful/loving feeling at the same time.

While we were waiting we walked the halls a little bit with Lily and here are some shots I got.

Oscar and Zachary are such comedians, I'm glad I got some goofy pictures of them. *smile*

My FAVORITE!!

During the the baptism I was anxious and peaceful at the same time. I was so happy to see Oscar standing in the water baptising Parker (his first), and of course Parker was still all smiles. I felt the spirit and was reminded what is the most important things in this life. During the confirmation I felt those same feelings of peace and love and the spirit witnessing to us the importance of this day for Parker.

Afterwards we had invited friends and family to a small dinner in honor of my little man.

The kids ate mostly the dessert, but we enjoyed having people together to celebrate. Thanks to all of you who came.

At home Parker was finally able to open a gift from all of us, his very own scriptures. They are blue with silver pages with his name engraved on the front. He even has his own scripture case for them too. Grandma Bullock also got him a special card, a bookmark, and a cute tie tack. It's a soccer ball with 'CTR' across the top.

He LOVES his scriptures! He carried them around everywhere. He kept opening them, reading a few versus here and there, and just holding them close to him. I loved watching him. He was a little sad later to learn his name had been misspelled and Grandma was going to have to take them and get it fixed. But Grandma is such a wonderful lady she had them back to him sooo fast, he hardly had time to miss them, thank you Grandma!

This is how I find him when he has his scriptures.

He was even reading them during sacrament! He made my heart melt all over again. Congratulations Parker! We Love You!

Bowling

2011-02-21T07:57:00.000-07:00

2/5/11

My mom and sister came down to visit this weekend so we took advantage of the opportunity and had a night out. Oscar and I double dated with my sister and Oscar's friend Josh. We went to dinner first, my favorite place Olive Garden, and had some yummy food and funny conversations. My sister was picture happy tonight so.....Warning: Lots of pictures!

At dinner......

I should also mention that for some of us it was very hard to take a serious picture! However, I'm not naming names *smile*

Then onto bowling. I bowl like I always do, my best game is first and then I go downhill from there. It was a blast! I haven't went to cosmic bowling in a LONG time, it was super fun.

Oscar and I are showcasing our FABULOUS shoes, oh wait I think Oscar is showcasing something else!

Here we are showing off our excellent bowling skills *smile* Oscar.....

Vicki.....

Teresa....

Josh....

Oscar trying to distract Vicki.....

And Josh again....

When we weren't bowling we were snapping pictures, here are just a few *wink*

Josh and Oscar CRACK me up!! There were lots to choose from so I just added my favorites! HAHAHA

Here we go again.....*smile*

Teresa was a fan of hiding behind my hair....hehehehe

This is my absolute FAVORITE of the night!

Thanks for the fun evening!

Watching American Idol

2011-02-16T14:23:00.000-07:00

January 2011

I have been watching American Idol since it's 2nd season. I usually end up watching by myself as the season goes on because Oscar just likes watching the audition episodes. He LOVES the people who can't sing, look hideous, and have attitude! While I will admit a lot of them are funny, it is soooo hard for me to watch the ones who stink! I get so embarrassed for them I can barely watch sometimes. Oscar always makes fun of me, so one night he grabbed the camera and started capturing my different reactions to the show...

I am SUPER embarrassed for whoever is singing!

Laughing at those weirdos.....

embarrassed again....

'What in the World!'.....

Ahhhhhh this must be one of the sappy stories and then they sing and they are AMAZING!!

Lily was feeling left out...

Yep, this is one of the stories that make you cry! What can I say I'm a crybaby!

Hi Lily....

I am not the only one who reacts this way, but I was the only one with pictures. If you look closely at the first picture Zach is not to sure about the person singing... *smile*

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2011-02-16T14:03:00.000-07:00

1/28/2011

Today was daddy's birthday, and the boys wanted to do something for him even if he wasn't going to be home for long. He was heading up to the Young Men's retreat, so we had a quick little celebration before he left.

He is not much of a cake person so we made him brownies instead. This time instead of plain brownies we made them with oreo pieces inside, then frosted them and put more oreo cookies on top! Yummy!

Lily wanted to be on daddy's lap the whole time! She wasn't sure about blowing the candle out though. *smile*

He was sooo surprised he got some Diet Pepsi........*wink*

A Happy Birthday Smooch! Mason was almost as excited as his daddy *smile*

This picture is HILARIOUS!!!!!!!!!! He was getting the car packed up for the retreat when he accidently kicked himself in a sensitive area! hahahahaha

Yah I know I'm not being considerate about this but it was too funny to miss out on that face. He was trying to hold onto everything when the pillow started slipping. He went to boost that up and forgot he had boots in his hands! OOPS!!

hahhahaha I'm still laughing! Well at least he recovered quickly and was headed out the door, but I will always remember this. Even he couldn't decide to laugh or to cry *smile*

WHAT!!! My Boy is Shaving?!

2011-02-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

January 2011

Yes it is true! My baby boy is growing into a man! He had his first real shave tonight! I don't know how to feel about this? However, his brothers thought it was funny and his dad was so proud he was walking around with his chest puffed out! (good grief)

Here he is before, but you can barely see anything on his upper lip. (Okay so maybe I'm trying to justify it, but then it takes all the fun and growing up part of it out for Oscar so I guess I'll be quiet)

He started shaving on the couch.....

But his dad made him go to the mirror so he could see what he was doing.

Congrats Oscar?! I'm still having a hard time with this, but I love you anyway *smile*

What Do You Do When It's Cold Outside?

2011-02-16T13:42:00.000-07:00

January 2011

It has been sooo cold outside we haven't wanted to brave the cold, so instead we stay indoors and try not to get on each others nerves more than 50 times a day *wink* Just kidding, we really do like each other, we are just READY for spring!

We spend a lot of our time chasing Lily out of things/places she doesn't belong or laughing at her antics. Here are a few memories we 'captured' on film...

It's hard to tell if she is acting cool or if she is offended because her brother's butt is in her face! hahaha

Hey Mommy look I'm wearing your shoes!

Lily loves to put on hats (and shoes for that matter). Lately she has come to believe that underware are hats! HAHAHA Thank goodness she only finds the clean ones from the laundry basket!

We have been watching movies too! This is one part in the movie where all the boys groaned 'Ewwww' cuz the guy kisses the girl. All the boys covered their eyes (not by mom and dad's prompting mind you), or so we thought. We discovered Mason doing this....HAHAHAHA

One weekend O Town went with the youth on a sledding activity. Apparently it wears you out! This is how I found him when he was not responding to my calls to him.......

FAST ASLEEP! Does that look comfortable??

One evening O Town was showing Zachary how to tie some knots and Mom and Dad quickly got in on it too. I was proud of myself for tieing the 'tater tot knot' (I think the real name is the taut line??)

Yeah!!! Okay so spring has got to come quickly we are suffering from Cabin Fever!

Parker Turns 8!

2011-01-25T17:00:00.000-07:00

January 10, 2011

WHAT!! Where did the time go?! I remember vividly bringing you home for the first time and what a good baby you were. You do not seem like you should be 8 yet! I'm having small moments of anxiety off and on, he still seems little to me!

Okay, okay, breathe.....

So time has apparently sped forward and Parker is now 8. This year we had a little trouble deciding what to do for his birthday but we finally came up with a lego theme party. Once we decided on that everything came together nicely.

We gathered up all the legos we had and decided to have a building party. The boys were given 30 seconds to grab a pile of legos out of the container and then had 15 minutes to build their ships.

Even Grandma Bullock wanted to play this game *smile*

Zachary and Mason worked together on a very cool ship.

Parker's creation.

Grandma was so proud of her ship *smile

And of course you can't play/build with legos without Oscar being to far away..

They played a balloon popping game, where the balloon is tied to your ankle and you are trying to pop someone else's balloon but protect your own.

He had a great time opening gifts, he is now SET with legos for the next year!

He also got some practical gifts from us too.

Yep that's a scout shirt! Here we go again *smile*

Then of course it's time for cake! Here is the cake, and our smiling 8 year old *smile* The colors of the blocks/bricks were inspired by the Halo lego sets. I wish I could have found a darker purple, but oh well the kids didn't notice. My hands were dyed maroon for a couple of days afterwards and it looked like a had dirt under my fingernails even though it was green food coloring! Geeshh the things we'll endure for our kiddos *smile*

We sang 'Happy Birthday' and didn't sound like the dead, and he was able to blow out the candles in one big breath!

He had a GREAT party and after all his guests left he dug into all those legos! It kept him and his brothers busy for a couple of hours. We still have them set out on the shelves in the living room, Lily hasn't managed to destroy all of them yet *wink*

Happy Birthday buddy! We love you soooo much, you just need to SLOW down in the growing department *smile*

Zach's 1st Hunting Trip

2011-01-25T16:33:00.000-07:00

January 1, 2011

What an excellent way to bring in the new year in a household nearly full of hunters! Dad, OTown and Zach went out to the Owyhee's to hunt rabbits and coyotes, they had a blast!

Here is OTown 'scouting'

Zach scouting.....

They spotted more coyotes but couldn't get one, then Zach was able to get his first animal, a rabbit.

When he brought it home he forgot that mom does NOT like to see the results of their hunts! But the little kids all quickly came to see though. They all thought it was cute until they realized it was dead and Zach had killed it. Jaxson said 'Why did you kill the rabbit?' and Raegan asked 'Hey Zach, where did the kitty go?' uhhh oops sorry sis

Zach was happy for days afterwards so I would say it was successful. Great job Zach. *smile*

We Have Visitors!

2011-01-25T16:21:00.000-07:00

December 2010

We were so excited to have Aunt Teresa and the cousins come to town for a visit! They all had a great time playing games and watching movies together. Too bad is was soooooo cold outside, they wanted to play out there too, but when we sent them out there they could only stand it for 20 minutes!

Jaxson fell in love with a new wii game! He plays just like his momma.....everytime he needed to jump in the game he would really jump with the controller! hahaha

Kennedy and Mason loved playing whatever they could think of, they even tried packing backpacks to leave on an adventure. They got as far as the door before that idea was vetoed *smile*

Raegan was a ball of energy the whole weekend and full of sass! WOW, but we all loved her just the same. She was even kind enough to share her purple tutu with Lily.

The kids had sooo much energy this week they had to get it out of their system somehow, and when I heard daddy laughing and coughing and the same time I turned around and found this....

HAHAHAHA......love it!

I really LOVED having my sister here! We had long chats into the the night, we went shopping, went to a hockey game, celebrated new years together, and then all of a sudden it was time for her to go home....BOOOO! She helped me when I started bawling over the broken washer, and the broken oven cuz I thought 'there goes my new mattress'! She sympathized with me and then my wonderful husband bears hugs me and says 'I'm gonna go get a mattress I'll be back in a bit'. *smile* You're my best Sister, sis....LOVE you! Thanks for coming up to see us, we can't wait to see you again soon *smile*

New Years Eve 2010

2011-01-18T14:31:00.000-07:00

12/31/2010

To start the night out we were invited to spend the evening with our family at a hockey game with some friends of ours. My sister had come up for a visit so we brought her along too. We had a suite to watch the game from, it was a good view, but so high I was always nervous about my kids falling to their deaths! ugggg The kids had a great time watching the game at first, but became bored and just ran around the suite.

Can you see Lily right in the middle???

Parker and Mason....

Mom and Lily....

Afterwards we took the kids home and tucked them into bed. The adults then met over at Neil and Sara's for the remainder of the evening (thanks for letting us invade your home)

(p.s. since I once again forgot my camera had to rely on the camera phone, and I 'borrowed' some pictures from Sara...thanks for that too)

Happy New Year!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-18T14:16:00.000-07:00

December 25, 2010

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

We were all so happy on this day, I wish all of our family time could be this sweet! A very special thank you to our sweet grandparents who not only made this day possible, but also helped cheer up a depressed daughter, WE LOVE YOU!

Warning: LOTS of pictures! *smile*

Before the kids were up and the opening began....

Here is the little nativity set we had for Lily to play with. We were constantly finding pieces all over the house, but she loved to play with them and pack them around in the little snowman christmas box.

Lily taking a peak in her stocking...

The crew anxiously awaiting....

Hey look I got some stuff! I LOVE how the stocking is almost as big as she is *smile*

Mason digging in...

Parker taking 'stock' of what's in his stocking....

Lily is so happy she got forks in her stocking! She carried them EVERYWHERE! She even tried opening her presents with it!

Look a Moooovvvvieeeee! *smile*

Parker celebrating the Halo lego set he has been wanting....I think he's just a little happy about it *wink*

Too bad you can't see his face. Zach got a Notre Dame hoodie sweatshirt, he was super excited!

OTown is so THRILLED with us because we got him underwear for Christmas! HAHAHAHA, but.....

he forgot to look at the bottom of the box because it was a picture of a magazine and a rifle! He will be featured on the cover of Trophy Hunters in the May issue and because of that he gets a new Browning Rifle! Now do you see the smile on his face! *wink* I think he was in the middle of saying 'Serious?!'

Yeah!!! We're so happy!

Lily trying to open her present with her FORK! hahaha

I LOVE this picture! Mason is trying to figure out what it is. It is a tool bench with more tools and foam wood pieces to build with. Once it was put together he was in HEAVEN!

Lily got a super cute hat from daddy......'Camo Princess'...

Tah Dah!!!

I don't think she was thrilled she couldn't just start cooking....

It was a pain to put together, but we put ourselves through it for our kiddos.

I even had OTown's help. Do you see all the boys wearing their new beanies from Washington DC? Thanks Aunt Karen, they are a huge hit. We have two FBI's, a CIA, an two Washington DC hats! *smile*

Now we're in business....

This was my present this year and is totally my FAVORITE!! It is sooo soft and is absolutely off limits except for me (sorry a little bit selfish I know, but they'll get over it...hahaha)

Mason and Parker got matching tents, sleeping bags, flashlights, compass kits. They were so excited they had to be set up right away! They slept there for a whole week. They can't wait until summer when they can sleep outside with them. *smile*

We had such a wonderful day! We relaxed, ate great food, played with new toys, and watched new movies. The biggest hit of all was the Wii, but I don't have any pictures of it (darn). We got some great games, thanks to a good friend, and they played every chance they got! The most popular were the Cabelas and Harry Potter lego, even Avatar was a hit. *smile*

Merry Christmas!!

Lunar Eclipse!

2011-01-18T13:33:00.000-07:00

12/21/2010

I had been hearing about this for a couple of weeks and really wanted to witness such an amazing event. It's a good thing OTown remembered that evening at about 11 at night! We read up on it some and realized the best time to see it would be between 1:00-3:00am! So we planned to set the alarm clock and get up later to see it. Before we went to bed though OTown had to test out the camera lense to see if he could get a good picture.

Before........

During.......

Even though the picture is blurry, we at least got it! It took us a little bit to find the moon at first. We went out the front door where we were at 11:30 taking pictures, but couldn't find it, so we went in the back. It still took us a couple of minutes to find it, I was expecting something bigger I guess. But once we found it I was content to just look at how orange/red it looked. OTown was busy trying to get a picture of it, while I kept thinking I wonder if this is what the moon will look like before the 2nd coming?? I was proud of myself not getting all worked up about it, since I knew so many other things had to take place before this amazing event will take place. OTown and I tried to wake Zachary too, but he was OUT! I'm glad we were able to share this moment of history together, even if we froze and the rest of the family slept. Thanks OTown!

December Fun

2011-01-09T17:50:00.000-07:00

2010

Here are some of the other fun things we have done this month.

Here is Zachary's gingerbread house he made in school. They used small milk cartons to support the graham crackers, wish I would have thought of that brilliant idea years ago! *smile*

One morning we made waffles for breakfast. Dad had the great idea to get the whipping cream out too. However after putting it on the waffles it somehow ended up on the end of Mason's nose! hahahaha

Lily's new favorite place to read is right by the fireplace, it has a perfect seat for her. Good thing it is never on so she can enjoy her books *wink* This time she was reading one of the boys papers and singing in her own words...hahahaha

*smile*

Ward Christmas Party 2010

2011-01-09T17:31:00.001-07:00

December 2010

We went to the ward Christmas dinner/party tonight. The food was yummy and the entertainment was FANTASTIC!

Oscar and OTown were part of a Flash Mob Dance. Here is what Oscar looked like before we left the house.

He was told the night before to come in an ugly sweater, and since we didn't own one, he made his own! *smile* He put silver Christmas ornaments on his shirt, sewed sequence on the shirt, made a tinsel necklace, pinned tinsel to his pants and stuffed an elf hat with newspaper to stand up! AWESOME!

Oscar and OTown had been practicing for a couple of times each week for the past couple of weeks. They were so excited to finally get to perform. It was a surprise so they weren't suppose to tell anyone, but I knew and I was so NERVOUS for the both of them....hahahaha I think they did a GREAT job! To see the video click the link below...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvdM6RtWm4Q

After dinner and our entertainment we had a short program put on by the youth, and sang a couple of Christmas Carols. We also had one of Santa's helpers come to visit. Here is Lily waiting for her turn...

Parker seems very excited!

Mason is excited and a little nervous, so he's holding onto Lily for moral support *wink*.....hahaha

Oscar is directing traffic to Santa...

Zachary really wanted to take one of his non member friends (Joey) with him to the party. After reassuring his mom and dad they finally allowed him to come along. They had a BLAST!

Lily did NOT like Santa this year, she has a death grip on me and is screaming!

ahhhhh.....poor baby, maybe next year she'll be happy.

We always have such a fun time with our ward!

Having Fun With Lily's Hair

2011-01-09T17:09:00.000-07:00

December 2010

Since Lily's hair has been getting longer and thicker I have been experimenting with different styles. Some she will hold still for, or be distracted by toys for long enough, other times I should just give up. *smile*

Here is a ponytail pulled all the way in back. This time she held still long enough to even take a picture.

I wanted to see if I could french braid her hair. This one I should have just quit while I was ahead! She would jerk her head around and I would have to start over. It wasn't the best job, but I did it!

I love this picture! This is the aftermath of having side pony's in all day, AND wearing your dinner *wink*

hahahaha

More Snow!

2011-01-09T17:00:00.000-07:00

December 2010

We FINALLY got some decent Snow!! We got so much school was even closed! We all had a blast playing outside for hours and then coming in to warm up with coco only to head out again!

Lily wanted to taste the snow.....

Making snow forts for a snowball fight later.....

Lily's favorite part was being pulled around in the sled.

Mason is trying to do a handstand/summersalt in the snow....hahaha

This is my favorite part about winter, when the snow sticks to the branches of the trees! *smile*

They played so hard all day that when bedtime came there was no arguing, and they were asleep seconds after their heads hit the pillows. *smile*

Helping Out and Hangin Out

2010-12-29T20:27:00.000-07:00

December 2010

I finally had Oscar take a moment and finish up some 'honey do's' for me today and fixing the kitchen faucet happened to be one of them. It should have been a quick fix, but it didn't turn out that way.

This was taken about the 2 hour mark, I took it far away so you couldn't see the frustration in Oscar's eyes. Good thing we didn't have video cuz there were 'some' choice words uttered *wink*

But...I finally got the new nicer faucet! Thanks honey! Oscar had Zachary start cleaning up all the tools he pulled out to fix it, and Lily was right there with her 'helping' hands. *wink*

What a cutie...

Cheese.....

Lily LOVED these cheeseballs! They were Parker and Mason's reward for keeping their room clean for a whole week, but Lily thought they belonged JUST to her. Can you see one stuffed in her mouth? *smile*

This one is hilarious! Zachary woke up one morning and found himself in this position.....

How in the world can you sleep like that! I made him re-create the scene, too funny!

1st Snow

2010-12-29T20:09:00.000-07:00

December 2010

We finally received some white stuff!! We have to enjoy it whenever it comes so here are the boys playing in it before bed *smile*

So they really didn't 'play' in the snow, they just made a few quick snowballs and I took their picture *smile*

They next day I got Mason and Lily dressed up to play in it. There wasn't a lot of snow and it was frozen, but like I said we have to take every opportunity we can. *smile* This was Lily's 1st official time in the snow! Thanks Aunt Teresa for the winter gear *smile*

The classic snow angel.....

Later when the rest of the boys came home from school they all went out again for some more fun.

MOM! *eyeroll*

Parker had a rough start, he was upset at his gloves or hat or something, but he perked up after a few minutes and was out playing in the white stuff.

We all LOVE the snow!

Oscar's Hunts

2010-12-28T11:48:00.000-07:00

September through November 2010

So OTown has had a busy hunting season this year. It all started back in July when he found out that he drew on some AMAZING tags! One was the coveted Owyhees Buck Tag! I had NO clue how good it was, but after watching Dad's reaction and all his friends I knew it must be something FANTASTIC! He also drew an antelope tag and had a general season elk tag.

September is when he went on his antelope hunt which only took one outing to be successful. His tag was for doe or fawn which was hard for him because he saw a huge buck in the group he was hunting. But he was still happy with his results.....

Next he started in October with a scouting trip to the Owyhees to spot some bucks before his hunt opened the next week. The scouting trip was so so but they were way excited to get to hunt with Oscar's good friend Bryce DeForest. Once again OTown was successful on the 1st trip. That wasn't the most amazing part about the hunt it was the size of the buck!

Shortly after the buck was down I got a phone call from (Oscar) dad (literally 1 minute after). My phone was kinda cutting out and Oscar was talking so fast that I thought somebody had been SHOT!! After we both calmed down he was able to tell me 'You need to congratulate your son'. He had just shot a MONSTER buck, way bigger than anything thing his dad had gotten, let alone seen! I could tell Dad was way more excited than OTown, since he (OTown) only had one word answers to my questions, and his dad was almost hyperventilating! I don't think it really had sunk in yet. It was a 8 x 10 buck, 29", and scored 209" AWESOME!

Then later in the same week he went elk hunting with his dad. They met up with some friends Warren and his son Austin Stewart. The day before Warren got his elk so they were all heading back in to help him pack it out. As they were hiking in Austin spotted an elk and got his, and a short while later OTown spotted a 4 point raghorn and got it! Lucky for him since it was close to a 500 yard shot! It's that Williamson luck again *wink*

Amazing!! He sure had a very SUCCESSFUL year I'd say *smile*

Having Fun

2010-12-27T11:18:00.000-07:00

November 2010

Here are the results of another successful hide-n-seek game with the family! I am always amazed at the places they can get themselves into.

Can you see Oscar behind the love seat? He's got himself all scrunched up into a backwards ball!!

I woke up one morning to the sounds of someone in the laundry room. I thought it was just one of the older boys getting something. When I kept hearing the dryer open and close I got out of bed. To my surprise I found this...

Good Grief Mason!! What are you doing in there? He said he wanted to sit on his warm blanky! Of course *wink*

Daddy has always liked his pop cold! He will put them in the freezer to get them to cool down fast, but most of the time forgets they are there and then has to wait for it to thaw out a bit. I never understand this, why not just put ice cubes in the glass and pour? Anyway... this time the pop was just in the outside fridge when he went out to get one we found this...

The top of the can blew completly OFF!! Boy did he have a fun time cleaning up that mess *smile*

Playing in the Leaves

2010-12-27T10:47:00.000-07:00

Nov 2010

Today was such a beautiful day Parker and Mason wanted to rake up some leaves. It was lots of fun watching them work and play. Some of those leaves were bigger than their faces!!

We only got one bag full, we left the rest for daddy or mother nature to take of *smile*

Birthday Present

2010-12-27T10:42:00.000-07:00

11/3/2010

Today is my birthday (Vicki aka Mom) and this is what I got...

They are sooo pretty, and smell beautiful! The picture doesn't do it justice, the flowers are bigger than my hand!! Thanks babe, LOVE you!

Halloween 2010

2010-12-27T10:39:00.000-07:00

October 30, 2010

This year we celebrated Halloween at the ward Trunk or Treat. They all got lots of candy and had a fun time. At the last minute we borrowed a cute little princess witch costume for Lily, she was so adorable! (thanks Alyce!)

Mason - Ninja Turtle, Lily - princess witch, Parker - Soccer Player...

They got to be in the Halloween Costume Parade....

Zachary the grim reaper (all in black)...

Parker and Mason...

and miss Lily (she didn't want to keep the hat on and was a little nervous with all those people staring at her)...

Here is what our trunk looked like...

Mason, Parker, and Lily all started out together to get some yummy candy, but Lily was a little slower so her brother's left her in the dust. Good thing mommy was with her. She was hilarious though. Instead of saying Trick or Treat and holding up her basket, she would walk up to the person and throw her bucket towards them. hahahaha too cute!!

Crazy Hair Day

2010-12-27T10:27:00.000-07:00

October 2010

This week at the kids school they were celebrating Red Ribbon Week, each day was some new activity. On crazy hair day we spray painted the boys hair, and Mason didn't want to be left out either. So what do you think?

The next day was Red, White, Blue day so we painted their hair red. Parker and Mason's scalp's stayed red for at least a week!

*smile*

Mom can u take 9 pictures of me?

2010-12-27T10:22:00.000-07:00

October 2010

Mason has been watching us snap pictures of all sorts of things/events that last little while, and I guess he was feeling left out, or maybe he wanted to be the center of attention (go figure *wink*). He walks up to me and says "Mom can you take 9 pictures of me?" haha

So here are the results, some of the pictures were twice of the same pose so I just posted one each *smile*

Gotta LOVE this kiddo!

What A Cutie!

2010-11-19T14:10:00.000-07:00

Over the last month Lily has been a little cutie, a little stinker, and everything in between! I try to grab the camera when she is doing something silly or cute, so I thought I would share with you some of those moments.

Lily likes to climb into anything she can find/manage, usually it's the laundry baskets, but not this time. I was taking the diapers out of the box to put on her change table and she just took off with the box. She climbed in and pretty much whined/grunted until someone would pull her around in it. hahaha

Mason had a bug birthday party theme this year, and she absolutely LOVED the plastic bugs. I think she may have liked them even more than Mason. She would laugh the hardest when I would take one and pretend to 'get' her with it. She would then take one and try to get me or whoever else was by her. When I showed her daddy what she was up to he thought it was a picture of Mason! WHAT! She doesn't look like a BOY! But then I calmed down and I noticed the similarities, good grief they are related Vicki *smile* I'm okay now I just make sure I do something with her hair each day *wink*

Ahhhhh I LOVE those chocolate chip brown eyes! The permanent mohawk on her head is hilarious too. *smile*

She wanted to help me do some cooking, but wouldn't let me have the cupcake holders, geesh!

This is what we call Lily's $500 toy! Amazingly it will calm her right down with any tantrum she may be in. YEP she throws fits and they are definitely girl fits! hahaha I blame it on her dad cuz there is NO way I would ever act like that *smile*

Here she is cute as a button sportin her double pony style! LOVE her!

One day she was throwing a fit over something and I just happened to say 'You want to do your hair?' WOW!! She shot off like a cannon to the bathroom and immediately stopped crying! I couldn't believe it! So we stayed in the bathroom and played with our different hair accessories. We both had a lot of fun *smile

Her hair is getting long enough to make two little pig tails in the back. I call them pig tails instead of pony tails because her hair curls just like a pigtail, it's soo cute!

Here are a couple of pictures of her acting like her dad. 1st she has bedhead, 2nd she's sticking her tongue wayyyy out there saying 'blahhh', 3rd she's talking/playing with the phone. Spittin image hahaha

This is one of my favorites! This is the look I see 90% of the time. She is trying to get something she wants. She reaches her hand out and say 'Peaze' which is suppose to be please, but sometimes sounds like 'psst'. Plus this little one looks very pretty in orange.

We went to her well baby checkup a couple of weeks ago and her doctor said she's doing great. She told me to try and take her off her bottle (NOT likely since that's how she goes to sleep), and to try and give her toddler formula. Lily REFUSES to drink cow milk and she wont even touch formula unless it is in her bottle and she is ready to go to sleep! Oh well she eats everything else so I'm not gonna complain. *smile* She is still our little 'skinny minny', she weighs 22 lbs 13 oz (50%) and stands 31 inches tall (75%). Her head measured 18 1/4" (75%). She has slowed down a bit but continuing to grow healthy and strong. She had to get some shots which of course she didn't like, but she calmed right down and later at home ripped the bandaids right off. Our whole family absolutely adores her, even when she's a little stinker! But what I have come to realise lately is that she wont stay little and I have to treasure these moments and all the other wonderful moments with my older children now while they are happening. I am truly a blessed woman with an absolutely fantastic husband, four outstanding sons, and a beautiful daughter. What more could I ask for? Maybe eternity? Oh yeah we have that now too!!! Life is Great!

Parker's 2nd Grade Music Program

2010-10-27T15:19:00.000-06:00

10/13/2010

"Howdy, partner, and welcome to our program. Now you know, there are certain things a cowboy needs, like....a horse, and .....a hat....and, well, listen real close, and we'll sing it for you." said Parker for the opening to his 'Partner Round-up" program.

He was VERY excited for this day. He had practiced his line and practiced all the songs, we bought a copy of the CD so he could, everyday for the past couple of weeks. Here he is waiting with his class to go into the program area, doesn't he look so excited and happy?

In the gym waiting now...

I LOVE watching at this age. They are enthusiastic about everything, not too shy, don't really care what everybody else thinks of them, and sing with all their heart and souls! Well at least my Parker was/is like that. I had a smile on my face the whole time.

Here he is speaking the opening line, he NAILED it!

They also had the privilege of doing some dancing...

Parker definitely was NOT shy in the dancing department, he let loose out there on the dance floor! He is just like his daddy. We had such a great time watching the program. Parker did an amazing job! I remember leaning over to Oscar and saying, look he's actually singing and enjoying himself! Our first two sons didn't have that much enthusiasm. GREAT job Parker, we love you. *smile*

A Cute Cousin

2010-10-27T10:48:00.000-06:00

10/11/2010

My brother Michael and his cute wife Krysten came to Boise to attend a wedding and we were able to visit with them for a bit before they had to head home. Of course their precious bundle of joy came with them, Conor. I love getting to see him whenever I can, it's hard sometimes to be far away from your family. We took the opportunity to take a couple of pictures of Lily and Conor together.

Conor wasn't too interested in the pictures and he kept looking at his daddy like 'What you want, I want to play with these toys'

Conor and Lily were so fun to watch play together. Neither one of them have had the opportunity to share their stuff, so they both took turns grabbing toys from each other while watching the other one cry. Baby's are just too cute sometimes. Thanks for coming and visiting us!!

Oscar's District Cross Country Meet

2010-10-27T10:40:00.000-06:00

10/6/2010

Today was the last crosscountry meet of the season, it was with all the schools they have competed against these past 5 weeks. LOTS of kids! WOW. Thank goodness the weather was cooperating, not too hot (which they always had to suffer through) and not too cold. They were back at West Middle School competing.

On your mark, Get set, GO!

Halfway there, running with his buddy Austin

Coming into the finish

All done, catching his breath

It's done!

Parker, Mason and Lily were all excited and proud of their oldest brother

Oscar did a GREAT job!!! His goal of the season was to get his time under 10 minutes, which he did today 9:55! Whoot Whoot!! He worked hard all season and really enjoyed himself. We are so proud of you son! *smile*

Mason Turns 5

2010-10-18T15:17:00.000-06:00

10/3/2010

FINALLY!! That's what Mason feels like. He has been counting down the days to his birthday and his party for the last month! It has been fun watching him get all excited and seeing the light dance in his eyes. The Sunday following his party he plain as day asked me, 'so when do I start kindergarten, I'm done with preschool, I'm 5 now'. WOW! It took a lot of mighty fine convincing this one why he had to wait another whole year. I was nervous come the first day back to preschool though, cuz boy did he fight me those days prior. He ended up going and coming home from preschool just happy as could be, WHEW!

This year Mason decided he wanted to have a bug birthday. This didn't surprise me one bit, since both him and Parker have been fasinated with bugs the last few months. They will point out a grasshopper or rolly polly to anyone willing to look and listen. So of course we run with it. Here is how his cake turned out, I was NOT allowed to decorate it without him being right by my side because 'he was the boss of his cake' I think it turned out great.

We played some bug games, like 'hot potato bug'. Had to pass the bug around while the music is playing, but when the music goes off you don't want to be holding it, or your OUT!

Our winner! He got to keep the bug too. *smile*

Bug Hunt...

Musical dead bug. Dance around like your favorite bug while the music is playing, when the music stops you play dead. hahaha the last one to play dead is OUT!

Find the bug in the balloon. You had to stomp on the balloons to see what your bug would be. Lily didn't like all the noise during this one, and some were afraid to pop them.

Mason LOVED all his fun presents...

But, his goodies he said were the best!

We had 'wiggly worm' dogs..

with dirt pudding....

and of course cake and ice cream! Their drinks even had frozen bugs in them.

Here is Mason's group of friends that came and enjoyed his special day with him.

He had such a GREAT time, he was smiling for days afterwards! Happy Birthday Mason, we love you so much. You make us laugh, and sometimes shake our heads, but we love it too!

Your Lucky You're So Cute!

2010-09-24T13:09:00.000-06:00

9/18/2010

This morning I got up real early so I could go to Time Out For Woman in Boise with a good friend of mine, Tendra Andrews. I had to leave a sick little girl with her daddy for the whole day. Oscar said it would be fine and I left them while he was sitting in the rocking chair with Lily, both of them were asleep. Once I had been in Boise for awhile I started getting text messages from home. Keep in mind Lily has been sick for the past couple of nights throwing up, whining, running a fever, not sleeping good at all, we had just gotten her back to sleep.....

Oscar : "Asleep on lap on couch......"
Oscar: "Back up, I mason will die......."
Vicki: "What happened, did he wake up Lily?"
Oscar: 'Ya think? "HEY DAD I CAUGHT, A BUTTERFLY"....shhhhhhhh. "WHAT".... go to your room......"PARKER I HAVE A BUTTERFLY".
Vicki: 'I'm so sorry! Been there done that. It's easy for me to say this cuz I'm here, but remember he's 4 and very excited about his butterfly. Put on facebook n have a laugh take a nap later when lily does. Try turning on the tv'
Oscar: 'Dad we should go outside and pick one po'natoe'...ok, I'll let him live today. Have fun see u tonight.
Vicki: 'hahahahaha!! Yesterday we had to pick red raspberries
Oscar: 'That is after breakfasts and a bide ride he says.
Vicki: 'haha cute! Wow he must love you! He's got your whole day planned!'

We love you Mason! FYI a "po'natoe" is tomatoe *smile*

Our Eternal Family

2010-09-20T13:11:00.001-06:00

September 11, 2010 (A Day Never To Be Forgotten)

ETERNITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After 13 plus years of praying, wishing, hoping, trusting, having faith, also times of doubting, and not thinking this day would ever come, it finally DID!! Our family was sealed for Time And All Eternity on Saturday, September 11, 2010, in the Boise Idaho Temple! Words are hard to come by when describing how I feel inside! Every time I think back on this day the spirit witnesses to me again that this is real and it was the best choice we made.

I remember the week leading up to this day and it seemed like I was so busy, and I kept forgetting about things. I was getting a little frustrated. I decided to make a list of all the things I needed to get done and one with the things that could wait. I realized then that Satan was trying to get me so busy I wouldn't be able to focus on our very special day. No way was I gonna let that happen. I just had to step back and say 'It will all work out', and amazingly it did.

My mother came up from Pocatello to help me with our children and get them to the temple on time. (Thank you so much mom I love you!!) Oscar and I went earlier because Oscar was taking out his endowments the same day as the sealing. I remember walking into the temple with my HUSBAND, and the smiling and peace were instantly there. I was smiling all day, it wouldn't go away. When I saw Oscar dressed all in white, I thought he looked so handsome! He was smiling too, he looked very happy, not nervous or scared, but happy! I even had the matron tell me I was 'glowing', and I know I was on the inside. I have been waiting for this day for so long, it was so wonderful, it felt so much better than I could possibly have imagined!

During our sealing ceremony the spirit was so strong and I was so happy, I looked up into Oscar's eyes and he still looked so happy. After that I started crying (happy tears) I tried not to because I wanted to listen to the sealer but I just couldn't hold it in. When I saw my children come in all in white, I was filled with such strong Love for each of them. The boys looked so handsome and Lily looked nervous but beautiful, she clung to Lil O and sucked her thumb. *smile* My boys told me later that the first thing they noticed was all the girls were crying and even Kip, that made me laugh. I felt a little piece of what heaven/eternity would feel like that day in the temple standing with my family looking into the mirrors.

We were able to go out on the temple grounds and have our pictures taken in our white clothes, I was very excited about that. My great friend Sara Adams took pictures for us, although I haven't seen them all yet, I know she did a fantastic job!

Afterwards we went back to Nampa to our ward building and had dinner. April Dittrich got together with our friends and planned the whole thing. We are so blessed to have so many dear friends who truly care about our family. I love the ward we are in, I love my friends, and most of all I LOVE my ETERNAL FAMILY!

Thanks to all who helped make this day come to pass and help it to be a day never to be forgotten!

Zachary's Soccer Season

2010-09-20T12:15:00.000-06:00

This year Zachary tried out for a Select soccer team and made it. He has been so excited! He has really enjoyed the practices and is learning a lot, although he comes home very tired! He has been practicing as a goalie and as a defender. Their team has been doing great playing as a team, it has been neat to watch.

Here are some pictures from his first game, Zach is in bright green #10.

Lily was trying to support Zach and cheer him on, but she was more interested in the grass and running around. It was a little chilly that day *wink* This little one has such chubby feet it was hard to find a pair of warm shoes to put on her. We finally found a pair of boots a size bigger, so she wasn't walking as fast, and found herself on the ground a lot. What a cutie pie *smile*

They have won all their games so far this season, and at least Zachary hasn't let it go to his head. Their coaches encourage good sportsmanship too, what a blessing. Way to go Zach!

Running Cross Country

2010-09-16T11:56:00.001-06:00

9/2/2010 & 9/9/2010

Otown has been looking forward to running cross country this year for East Valley. He really has gotten the running bug over the summer, just like someone else we know *wink* He has been enjoying himself, running with his friends, and improving on his time too. The only drawback is, his knees have started to give him a little trouble. A good friend of ours Kip Dribnak gave him some stretches to try and some kind of wrap stuff to put around his knees while running. This seems to be working.

His first meet was at West Valley Middle School. Oscar is with one of his best friends Austin Hansen.

Parker, Mason and Lily were more entertained by a grasshopper than the running. It was okay since it kept them out of trouble.

Starting... Oscar is one of the fastest on his team, so he and three other team members get to start in the front. Oscar is the one in the middle with the pink looking string wrapped around his knees.

Halfway done with the 1 1/2 mile run. Oscar is showing his shocka sign and smiling even though he doesn't feel like smiling. He is running with his buddies Eric, and Austin. It really helps running with a friend, if one of you wants to stop the others are there encouraging you on!

Here comes Oscar headed toward the finish, his buddy Austin is in front just 5 seconds ahead of him.

Finish! Oscar placed 3rd from East Valley, 5th overall! AWESOME job mister! *smile*

Afterwards. I do not understand how the scoring works but each team accumulates points and the team with the lowest wins the match. East Valley boys placed first with 28 points. The other teams were Syringa with 143 points, West with 77 points, and Mountain Home with 51 points.

Here is Oscar with his buddies, Caleb, Eric, and Austin.

The next meet was held at South Middle School. There were a lot more kids participating this time, but still only four schools, East, Kuna, Lonestar, and South Middle School.

Start, right in the middle again.

Halfway through and showing us his shocka smile. GO OSCAR!

Finish: This time Oscar placed 2nd on his team, but 9th overall. I think he did FANTASTIC!

I'm not sure on the offical points, but this time East Valley boys placed 3rd. They were not happy about that so they plan on working hard during the week and do better at their next meet.

I'm still a proud Mama!! GO OSCAR, GO EAST VALLEY!!

Lily's New Discoveries

2010-09-15T09:15:00.000-06:00

This little one CRACKS me up. She is going to be a well balanced girl. One minute she is cuddling a baby doll, pushing her little stroller, trying on shoes, brushing her hair, and then.....she's digging in the dirt, laying in a muddy puddle, yellin just as loud as the boys, pushin and shovin, and even this.......

Yep video games with her older brothers

Yes she is in the garage even 'helping' out *wink*

What a cutie pie!! We sure do love her *smile*

New Look

2010-09-15T09:10:00.000-06:00

8/14/2010

Well it has finally happened! I was told I'm not good enough! WHAT! Apparently I cut hair 'stupid' according to my 11 and 13 year olds! WOW I didn't think I would hear that quite so soon. (I had Zach's done at another friends and I don't have any pictures, but it turned out great!) So I called a friend who does hair to help out (Janae). She cut Oscar's hair and showed me some tips how to do it myself next time and make it 'cool'.

I sure hope I can figure it out because she moves 2000 miles away! I think it turned out very nice. The huge trick was using thinning shears, because his hair is sooooo thick and wavy! Thank you Janae, you're a life saver!

Just a side note; this is what happens a few weeks after wrecking on your bike and smashing your finger!

Gross!!!!

Drive Inn

2010-09-06T10:14:00.000-06:00

8/12/2010

Tonight we went to the drive inn in Caldwell with a bunch of friends. Neil and Sara Adams, Kip and Jessica Dribnak, Tendra and Carter Andrews, and Alyce and Kelby Dribnak.

The first show was Sorcerers Apprentice which was okay but seemed too short to me. The late show was Despicable Me which was Hilarious! I was sooo tired in the last show that I did dose off for a bit and Lily finally fell asleep half way through the first movie. All the boys amazingly stayed awake for both movies. We had so many snacks we hardly even touched them! I went to the store with my oldest and I was hungry so we came away with a bunch more than needed *smile*

We had a GREAT time. Thanks Sara for the pictures *smile*

Zachary's Birthday Party

2010-09-06T09:54:00.000-06:00

8/14/2010

Zachary had his 'Boot Camp' birthday party today! He had drills, an obstacle course, tug-of-war, and land mine games. All the kids had an awesome time.

Drill Time! Sargent Says, if you messed up you had to 'drop and give-um 5' HILARIOUS!

Obstacle course. They had to run through the course while getting sprayed by the hose and being timed as well!

Tug-of-War

Land Mines. They had to walk across the field blindfolded and not step on a mine (water balloon)

At the end they all ganged up on Zachary! It was funny, but some of the balloons didn't break and he got a little sore.

Time for cake and ice cream! Here is the cake I made for him.

Zachary enjoyed the singing!

Presents

This present was AWESOME! His older brother Oscar is such a comedian! He arranged to have Zach open up a 'gag' gift which was BARBIES!! hahahahahaha When he looked in the bag he wouldn't pull them out and would only say 'I hate you' over and over again. His friends were laughing! I made him pose with the Barbies anyway!

Then he got his real present from his brother, which he LOVED!

Zach had a great time with all his buddies. I'd say it was a very Happy Birthday!

Water Fun

2010-09-06T09:34:00.000-06:00

8/12/2010

Today while Aunt Teresa was here with the cousins and her boyfriend Sean, they had some fun out in the water. Sean was out there the whole time with all these kiddos! The slide idea he came up with was a HUGE success!

Mason was more excited about the rollie pollies *smile*

Lots of splashin going on!

Lily saw what everyone was doing and wanted to try it out too, but she was going about it the wrong way! *smile*

Hi Guys!

Sean finally got his turn!

That sure did burn off a lot of energy for the kids! They all slept like champs that night! *smile*

Birthday Fun at Wahooz!

2010-09-06T09:25:00.000-06:00

8/10/2010

Happy Birthday Zach!! Today he turns 11 WOW! He's grownin up so fast! This year he REALLY wanted to go to Wahooz for his birthday, since you get in free on your actual birthday. He brought a friend along with him, and they had a BLAST!

Minigolf

Arcade

Bumper Boats

They played laser tag a couple of times and also rode the gocarts too. They even had to play the games to get 'tickets' and redemm them for prizes *smile*

He had lots of fun and the day just flew by!! We also let him open a couple of presents too, he was sooo excited!

His Aunt Teresa came the next day and he got to open up some more presents! He got candy specifically 'mentos' he was already anticipating a sugar high *smile*

He had a little trouble pronouncing the 'green apple' ones! hahahahaha He was reading the spanish side! We told him to turn it over and he started laughing!!

What a great time of year to celebrate your birthday! Happy Birthday handsome, we all LOVE you!

O-Town's 1st Triathalon

2010-08-31T09:44:00.000-06:00

8/5/2010

Tonight Oscar aka O-Town ran in his 1st triathalon! He has been watching his dad train and compete in some for the past couple of years and it sparked his interest. He was really motivated to do one after he saw his dad compete in the Boise Ironman, and the YMCA 'Why Not Tri' was perfect for him. It was a 1/4 mile swim, 6 mile bike ride, and 1 mile run. He convinced a friend, Christian Sedrick, to compete too.

Here he is getting all his things ready in his first transition. This looks VERY familar, he couldn't possibly be related to his dad or anything. *wink*

Otown and Christian showing us their 'guns' *smile*

Getting ready to get into the water. He's in the middle with black wetsuit and green stripe on the side

Starting the swim, he's in the middle with the black wetsuit, with a green stripe down the side

Getting out of the water

Transition #1 He wasn't as fast as he wanted to be here. His shirt didn't want to go on right, it was hard to get socks on wet feet, and tieing his shoes was a challenge *wink* I thought he was doing GREAT!

Takin off on the bike, Go OSCAR!! Wooooo whoooooo! I was the only one cheering, Oscar was takin pictures and Parker and Mason were too chicken to say anything. I didn't care I was gonna cheer the loudest for my boy!!

It was sooooo HOT that day! I felt sorry for all the athletes! Mason found a good way to cool off though *smile*

The end of the bike part.

Headed out for the run.

Finish Line! He finished the race in 45 minutes 12 seconds! Wow! GREAT job Oscar!

We didn't know until he was all down that he CRASHED on his bike! What the heck?! He said the kid he was trying to pass swerved into his path and caused him to crash! Thankfully there were some bushes to cushion his fall, but not save him from scratches and bumps and bruises! The chain came off and he had to fix that before he could continue the race. (he was so glad dad showed him how to fix the chain just the night before) OUCH!

Having some water NOT sucking his thumb! hehehehehe

Christian and Oscar

Otown and Dad (Mason had to sneak in too *smile*)

The family (except Zachary who had to be at soccer practice, which I thought was CRAP! But that's a different blog)

We were so happy to watch Oscar participate in this event, he did a FANTASTIC job! He is already planning on doing it again next year. He really wants to compete in the Rush next year too, but we shall see about that.

Education Week 2010

2010-08-30T10:57:00.000-06:00

7/28/10 -7/31/10

I was able to go with a great group of girls down to Rexburg Idaho for Education Week this year. Last year these girls went right after I had Lily. When they came back they had nothing to say but excellent things, and I planned on going with them this year. I had an awesome time!! I felt like I was so spiritual uplifted and I could accomplish anything after listening to these marvelous teachers. I will be making this annual event I believe.

Here are the classes I took:
Understanding the Principles of Personal Revelation by Ron Bartholomew (loved!)
Who Is the Woman I See in the Mirror? by Carleen Tanner (loved!)
Teaching Children About Sexuality and Chastity by Brad Wilcox (loved!)
Your Family Legal System: Family Laws and Consequences That Work by Saren Eyre Loosli (okay)
Was It a Prompting, or Was It Just Me by Kevin Hinckley (okay)
From Surving to thriving - Personalizing the Lords' Blueprint for Your Home by Angelle Anderson (so so)
Look Up, Reach Out, Hold On by Brent Top (loved!)
Events Leadin Up to the Millennium by Bruce Satterfield (okay)
Six Functions of the Holy Ghost by Bruce Satterfield (okay)
I also attended a devotional where Elder David A. Bednar came and spoke to us.

On the last day Sara brought her camera and we walked around the gardens on campus and took some pictures. It seems like in most of the pictures I was the one who was always being the dork! What the Heck? Anyway here are some of those shots.

laughing...

I love this one of Sara..

We were trying to do our sexy pose, but.......

How'd you like the trick photography? *wink* (Yes I am a dork!)

Here is the house we stayed at in Blackfoot. Jessica's wonderful Aunt Suzie let us have her basement to sleep in. She is such a sweet lady, Thanks! Can you see me in the picture being the dork again? *wink*

This was the last night we spent in Blackfoot. Tendra is getting ready for the movie. You can see me holding a lamp and covering my eyes, because I wasn't allowed to look anymore. You see there was a HUGE spider on the wall any everytime Tendra almost got it I would scream and scare her, so I was assigned this job. hahhaha

Thanks Jessica, Sara, Tendra, and Aunt Suzie! I had a great time. Alyce we missed you!

Happy Anniversay

2010-08-30T09:51:00.000-06:00

7/27/2010

Oscar and I were married 16 years ago on July 23rd. It doesn't seem that long ago, and I really don't feel that much older (except for when I try anything athletic). We were married in his parent's big back yard, during a break in the rain. It hadn't rained all summer long until the morning of our marriage. I was told don't worry it's all gonna be alright, and besides rain on a wedding day is sign of good luck. Everything did work out and no one got drenched and 16 years later we're still together and madly in love (probably even more so).

Oscar was at boy scout camp on our actual anniversary so we couldn't celebrate the day of, but he did manage to have a very pretty bouquet of 2 dozen pink roses delivered with a 'cute' card. He had Read Young tell his wife Angie to be the delivery person, boy was I surprised and confused to see her on my front porch with flowers! I soon figured it out though. I sure do love this guy!

When he got back from camp he made it up to me though. He called and told me we had reservations at 'The Mona Lisa' which is a fondue restaurant. I was reluctant to go because I was in a bad mood, the kids were driving me crazy, and I wanted to go to zumba that evening without a full stomach. Well, after dragging my feet, venting, and having a fit I agreed to go. I am sooooo glad I did!

The Mona Lisa was excellent! We will definitely be going back. It was very quiet and relaxing and we were given a little cubby to sit in.

We had the four course meal (salad, fondue, meat & veggies, and dessert) For the main dish they bring a grill to your table so you cook your own meat. I thought it was strange at first but it turned out to be fun. All the food was excellent, maybe the setting helped out too. I was scared about the fondue because my first experience with it didn't go so well, but we chose a pesto one and it was very yummy! It was hard to choose a dessert one, we ended up with the vanilla carmel one. They bring you out a tray of fruits and sweets and you dip it in the melted carmel. It was very tasty, but I was thinking halfway through that we should have gotten the chocolate one (next time)

He surprised me during dinner by saying 'Hey I got something for you'. I thought how nice, but I didn't get you anything. He started to get up from the table and I thought he was getting something out of his pocket. He got what he was after but instead of sitting back down he came around the table to me, then he got down on one knee! I thought 'What the Heck'. When he pulled out a little box I was really starting to wonder. Then he said this "I know you already married me once, but will you marry me again for time and all Eternity?" WOW!!!!!!!!! So what was my first response, 'are you serious?' Oscar - 'Yes' Me -'YES'!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wanted to jump up and down and scream, but instead I jumped out to hug him and almost knocked us both over. I was so excited, I couldn't believe it! It came out of the blue, just like when he told me he had decided to get baptized! I asked if I could do a happy dance, i don't remember his response, I did one anyway, but just in my seat. I don't think the smile has left my face yet!!

Here is a picture of the ring, it's sitting on top of the Salt Lake Temple knick knack I have.

Happy Anniversary! I will remember this anniversary FOREVER!!

Lily 1st Birthday Party

2010-08-27T10:05:00.000-06:00

7/10/2010

Today we celebrated Lily's 1st birthday with family and friends. We had the party in the afternoon so she would be happy after her nap. She liked her nap so much that she slept longer than I thought she would. I had so much fun watching her look at all the faces surrounding her, she would smile and bury her face in my shoulder. She was just barely walking but prefered to be held or she would just stand in one spot. What a cutie *smile*

View of the party scene. It was soooo fun to decorate in pink and purple!

Here are the cakes I made for her, this was LOTS of fun too! Thanks Sara for all the tips! This first one is the main one.

This is her very own mini version

This is what all the kiddos who came to the party had

We started with singing and then cake and ice cream. Here she is waiting, doing her shy face again.

This was her reaction to us singing 'Happy Birthday' to her. *smile*

Here she is testing the frosting.

She decided it tasted pretty good!

She managed to stay pretty clean, except for the time she reached up to take her ponytail out and got frosting in her hair. Can you see it sticking straight up? hahahaha

Present time. Most of these pictures crack me up because of what the party guest are doing. Here is Otown flashing the 'williamson' sign.

She got some fingernail polish, pretty glittery kind, thanks Grandma Bullock!

We caught Zachary admiring the fingernail polish!! hahahahaha

Hey mom don't I look awesome?

We opened this one later after the party guests left. She got a baby doll from us. She wasn't too sure about it then, but now she sometimes plays with it. I should have gotten her a swimming pool, cuz she LOVES the water, oh well.

After the party my sister and I were talking with Otown. He was laying down on the seat of the picnic table and we splashed him with some water, since he was soo hot *wink*

He sure was happy with us! He felt so much cooler *smile*

We had such a great time! Thanks for all those who came, we love you all (even those who couldn't make it). For journaling purposes here is who was there Grandma Bullock, Aunt Teresa w/cousins, The Adams, The Andrews, The Dittrichs, The Kelby Dribanks, and The Stewarts.

Happy Birthday my little sweetheart.

Pretty Dress

2010-08-26T09:37:00.000-06:00

7/8/2010

Today is Lily's 1st birthday!! I can not believe how this year how gone by so FAST! She is such a blessing and gift to us. We love her to pieces!

Lily received her 1st frilly fun dress from her Aunt Karen days after being born. I have wanted to take her picture in it a number of times but it hasn't worked out. So today I thought would be a good day to dress her up and have fun with the camera.

Thanks Aunt Karen for the dress. We had lots of fun today, isn't she just a sweetie pie?

Camping for 4th of July

2010-08-22T19:18:00.000-06:00

7/2/2010-7/5/2010

We went camping for the holiday weekend!! It has been years since we last went so all the boys were really excited to go. Our good friends Neil and Sara Adams convinced us to go with them to their favorite spot, and I'm so glad they did. I didn't take any pictures so Sara took a bunch for us, what an AWESOME friend! Thanks Sara for the pictures and the great weekend.

WARNING, lots of pictures coming your way.

We did alot of eating.....

Mason tried trout caught right from the river and cooked in the fire. He liked it so much he ate 3/4 of one.

Tried to kiss a frog to see if it would turn into a princess...

Played some games. when I would play with my boys and was happy with what I did I would do my 'happy dance' and apparently it's embarrassing to my boys. Oh well that's not stopping me.

Lily seemed to be enjoying herself too. I was surprised how chilly it was up there, but she was a trooper.

While we were up there we were able to go into McCall for the fireworks. Lily was in ahh at first and then during the middle of them she fell asleep!! WOW!

Made a bridge...

Went on a hike to a fishing spot where there is a beautiful waterfall. I was a HUGE chicken to cross, but Oscar helped me across. Lily seemed to enjoy her ride over too.

The return trip daddy hauled us all back across again, and he even got a thank you/love you kiss too. *smile

Just hanging out..

Here are the kids who stared in the production of "Hansel and Gretel, the remix" *smile*

We had a really great time, even if I was freezing the whole time and grouchy at times too. I only packed one pair of tennis shoes for my boys, and 3 out of 4 of them fell in the river!! Zachary slipped in while he was fishing, Parker went face first trying to cast his fishing pole, and Mason slipped in while trying to wash his hands. All of these made me pretty angry at the time, but now as I look back on it I laugh and shake my head. I'm glad we went and gained some great memories.

Cute Things Lily is Doing

2010-08-22T17:48:00.000-06:00

June/July 2010

Lily has been busy this month getting to know our new home and figuring out this thing called 'walking'. I've found her in more than one cupboard but here are a couple I got on film.

She has also become a little monkey too. This is her favorite chair to climb up on. She is always so proud of herself too, can't you tell? *smile*

She likes to play dress up too, but this time she thought mommy's slip would be fun.

She has been refusing to eat baby food and always wants to eat what we are having. I couldn't believe when I looked over and saw her eating an apple.

A week before her 1st birthday she took her first couple of steps! I was so excited to watch her, but then I started thinking how she is growing up soooo fast! I shed a tear.

Within a few days she was becoming a pro.

If you look closely you'll notice she has a werid mohawk at times. That is because she is always taking out her ponytail! I was so excited when I found out I was having a girl because I could dress her up and do her hair. But the little stinker is not cooperating with the hair part! I am NOT giving up though *smile*

June

2010-08-18T13:14:00.000-06:00

June 2010

Here's what we've been up to at our house this month.

We loved going on Thursday nights and watching daddy play church softball. Okay so me and the older boys would watch, Parker and Mason would run wild all over. There was a farmers field with a water ditch that they were always playing by, they always left filthy! This is when they lost a ball and all the kids decided to get it. Nice Teamwork!!

Here is daddy playing. They went on to play in the championship but lost because time was up. I guess you can only play until 10 pm. They were a bit bummed, had a few injuries, were sore for weeks afterwards, but had a great time.

We found a baby bird in our backyard, we think it was a robin. At first we thought it was injured because it wouldn't fly when we got close. When it did fly it wouldn't get very far and wouldn't go high either. Daddy was able to pick it up and put it back by the willow tree, which is where we thought the nest was. What was really cool was we saw the momma flying around trying to 'talk' to her baby. We put the baby bird by the tree and then left into the house.

Here is our Mason.

I'm not sure the story behind these pictures, but I'm sure it went something like this. Hey Mason what are you doing? Me, nothin! Why do you have your apron on with no clothes? ummmmmm??? Dad probably said turn around let me get a picture and then the modeling diva was set loose!! hahahaha And apparently our kitchen table is a perfect runway!

Parker this month lost a total of 4 teeth! My goodness, I wonder how he eats his food now. *smile*

One night after Oscar and I had come home from a date, we found this in the bathroom.

Mason was ticked off that we discovered a mess in the bathroom, that he was there for about an hour, and that Lily put his shirt and toilet paper in the toilet!! Good grief people you were suppose to be watching a movie. So where was the responsible teenager through all this? Watching a movie *smile* Gotta love um!

Father's Day

2010-08-16T11:19:00.000-06:00

6/20/2010

Happy Father's Day!!

We tried to surprise daddy with a yummy breakfast before church, but he smelled us cooking and woke up! He has a nose for bacon *smile*

We made him a bacon cheese burger, with chips, a diet pepsi, and of course a chocolate shake! Breakfast of champions he would say!

Here is the guest of honor and his little mini me's *wink*

I think he LOVES his breakfast!!

I made muffins and eggs for the rest of us. *smile*

We love you and are so blessed you are our daddy!