Eight is Enough

Happy 2012!

2012-01-03T15:00:00.001-08:00

What a wonderful time of year. Fresh from the holidays, eating too much, playing games and spending lots of family time. It was fun, but I'm so glad to get back to the routine. No more birthdays for a while, no more stressing about gifts, parties, hosting, making food etc. whew! Our Christmas was nice, simple but good. My favorite moment was when I looked over amidst the wrapping paper mess to see Gabriel and Spencer laying together on their new pillow pet knock-offs sucking their thumbs and looking as if they wanted nothing else in life. It was sweet. The ward choir put on a really beautiful program about Christ that made me really appreciate the true meaning of Christmas, away from all the presents and stuff. Chris is still working hard at his calling as bishop, and I'm still the gospel doctrine teacher. I guess no one has gotten too offended by my teaching- yet. Life is good.

Excuses, but good ones!

2011-11-21T19:19:00.001-08:00

I forgot I even had a blog this fall! First part of September, Chris was called as bishop of the Grand Junction 6th ward. Needless to say, we feel blessed and definitely cherish every moment he's home. He's still traveling for work quite often as well. At the end of September, I had major surgery. I was amazingly lucky to have two of my amazing sisters come and be me for a few days. They cooked 28 freezer meals and kept things on track while I couldn't. I took ten days off of school and went right back. It's been hard, but I feel *almost* normal now- just tired. So...life has been crazy, but we are plugging along! We've celebrated three birthdays- Chris turned 36 9-11, and Conner became a teenager on 10-10-11. Bryce turned 9 last week. We have Alex and Benson's 5th birthday next Sunday- so hard to believe! Susanna is turning 7 in December. So, I just have those birthdays, finals, and Christmas to survive in the next month. Then I might be able to update more.

And we're back!

2011-08-31T19:07:00.000-07:00

Um, is it really August 31? I am still in shock. Summer is over, school has been back in for over a week now and time is really no longer my own. Really. I had a few extra minutes tonight (I am sure I am neglecting something, just can't remember what) and decided to blog a bit. I am taking 12 credits this semester, applying to the BSN program that starts in January, canning like crazy, (see above photo- I picked all that YESTERDAY from our garden.) homeschooling Conner and Jackson with the help of K12, and trying to be a good mommy to all eight kids in the process. It is hard. For the first time in my life, I truly understand why people sometimes wish for more time in the day. I just don't have enough to get it ALL done. Every time I sit down, my mind is flooded with 10 things I could/should be doing at the moment. Overscheduled? Nah. Just call me every once in a while so I remember my name, ok?

Fun summer pictures

2011-06-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

I haven't had my big camera out in a while (although I do love my iphone for quick, spontaneous snaps!) so I got it out tonight. I didn't change clothes on the kids, no energy for that. This is just a snapshot of a summer evening in my yard. I love it. Oh, and Alex and Benson were swimming at a friends house so they aren't in any of these.

Gabriel

2011-06-21T21:05:00.000-07:00

My baby Gabie, he is on the go so much lately! When I took them out for pictures tonight, these are the best ones I could get because he does not hold still now that he is walking all over the place! I can't believe I got this many, actually! What a cutie though, a few months we wondered if he might be retarded because he was so calm and easy going. Now, he is full of personality and life! It is amazing to watch them grow into little people from tiny babies.

The many faces of Spencer

2011-06-21T20:57:00.000-07:00

He will be 16 months old on the 25th. Sniff sniff, my babies are growing up really at the speed of light.

Catching up

2011-05-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

Things are going well for us, Chris still has a job, (unlike so many good people these days) we still have a home to live in, and no one has died or gotten seriously hurt. We are great! The babies are getting very mobile. Climbing stairs, playing in toilets, etc. Love this shot, Gabe crawled under the cupboard and got stuck. Spencer was just munching on raw potatoes. That's healthy, right?

Among the highlights lately:

Benson has learned how to write his name, almost.

Susanna has graduated from Kindergarten. I have never seen any of my kids so excited about anything! The other morning she missed the bus, and instead of being like all of her brothers and saying "oh well, can I stay home and play Wii now?" She bawled for half an hour because she didn't want to miss school. Some days I wish I could give her away because she has so much attitude and spunk, and other days I wish I could clone her because she is so amazingly smart and everyone loves her.

Gabriel is starting to take steps, and is doing pretty well. Never mind that they are 15 months old now. I have heard that crawling for longer means that they will be smarter. I must have little Einsteins on my hands then! All of my kids were late walkers though, so I am not too worried- yet. Spencer refuses to even stand up when I want him to walk, mr. jello legs. I know he can though, he does it when he is playing with something and forgets I am watching. Stinker just wants to stay the baby.

We got our garden planted a bit earlier this year, hopefully that is a good thing. We have had some wild weather with tons of rain and even hail at times. Thankfully no freezes so all the plants seem to be doing well still. Chris is excited to have me can all the produce I am able. Me, not so much. I do like eating it though, and it is a good thing to learn.

Conner, Jackson and Bryce are all doing great and will be in 7th, 6th, and 3rd grades respectively. Alex and Benson have "graduated" preschool but aren't old enough to be in Kindergarten next fall so will repeat it. Benson will be bummed because he told me today: "Tomorrow I am going to Kindergarten!" They are definitely smart enough, Alex will be teaching the class next year. Hehe

Everything else is just as usual. We are getting ready for some lazier days and less time spent in "double big" driving back and forth to school. Hope to make some fun trips and spend a lot more time at home enjoying one another.

Conner

2011-05-18T08:37:00.000-07:00

I have to brag for a minute about my eldest son, Conner. He seems to be in the background often, and I don't talk about him much in my blog because he doesn't like his picture taken- he has entered "that" stage. He is truly amzing. He is the ultimate big brother to all of his siblings, he is kind and patient and loves to play with them. He cooks, he loves to try new recipes and is actually pretty good at it. He is smart, he got a 4.0 this year in 6th grade with 3 honors courses and also learned how to play the trumpet. He is oh so thoughtful, on Mother's day he brought me breakfast in bed, cooked by him--pink german pancakes shaped like a heart. He also got Jackson to learn to sing "Mother I love You" while he played it on the trumpet. It was supposed to be a secret, but I could hear him practicing the whole weekend before he did it. Still made my heart full to hear him do it for me. I have been so very blessed to have Conner as my son. This past week they had an awards ceremony at schol, and he recieved one of two academic achievement awards for the year. What a kid! Love him.

Rear-view mirror

2011-05-03T20:15:00.000-07:00

Driving home from school one night I was looking in the rear view mirror and noticed the most amazing sunset. It was dark pink, almost red. It made me want to turn around and just watch it but I knew that I couldn't very well drive that way so I thought I would just look at it when I got home. I was in a hurry to get on with whatever I had to do-- as usual. As I progressed toward home, (driving East) I noticed that the colors were getting more and more intense and I was dying to watch it. I managed to snap a few photos with my phone at a stoplight, but couldn't do it justice. Just a few minutes from home the sun was almost down and the sunset had dissipated. When I pulled into the driveway, I also realized that due to positioning of our home, we don't have a great view of the sunsets. Too many trees and homes in the way. I felt a little let down as I walked inside.

It occurred to me as I was looking through photos and saw this one, that my life is like that sunset. If I am not careful, I will miss the beautiful, special; poignant moments that happen because I am in such a hurry to move on to something else. My life is especially busy with the mundane day to day tasks of living in a house with 9 other humans. BUT it is also rich and full of wonderful moments that if I don't stop and recognize them for what they are, I will miss them. Looking through my rear-view mirror was only a glimpse of what that amazing sunset was like, and if I had only stopped for a few moments to appreciate it fully, I would have the full memory, instead of just a glimpse. I feel like this past year has been like that sunset. I gave birth to my sweet babies over 14 months ago, and yet it feels like only a moment ago. I hope that I don't get so wrapped up in the day to day necessities and distractions that I forget to stop and enjoy the moments. That is all our lives really are, a whole bunch of moments and it is up to us to stop and take the time to really appreciate and learn from them.

Frustrations

2011-04-26T09:31:00.000-07:00

I need to vent. First, let me clarify that I LOVE being a mom. I love my kids with all my heart and then some. Hence the reason they are still around.

DISCLAIMER: I realize this post may sound very dramatic, especially in light of much more serious frustrations such as health issues, money problems etc. I am blessed right now to not be dealing with many of those bigger issues. I do have many daily struggles that do not include the below mentioned, but are more personal or topics for another post.

Ok, now for the venting. I was driving home from dropping the oldest 6 at school this morning, reflecting on being a mom of 8 gorgeous, smart, talented kids who bring us a lot of joy. They also bring us- (ME) a lot of intense frustration. This morning I spent at least 20 frantic minutes looking for missing shoes. Alex and Benson have probably 8 pairs of shoes between them and I found a total of 2 this morning. I found about 6 lone shoes whose mates have been abducted, I think. I searched high and low, in the back yard, in the garage even! *Scratching head* I haven't a clue what those kids do with their shoes. Bury them probably.

Which brings me to my next frustration, socks. Why can't they invent socks that are attracted to their mates, so they never get lost? We have a HUGE tub full of socks. I mate them about 2 times a year and for a month or so we all get to enjoy pulling mated socks out to wear each day. Then, unfortunately the joy ends and we all have to find our own mates again. So, that is usually what I am doing in the mornings- either finding mates for Alex and Benson, or picking up spilled socks from the tub. Joy. (Hence the picture above of Spencer, surrounded by socks just before church.)

More of my frustrations: finding dirty dishes anywhere BUT the kitchen. Especially if it is a rotten bottle that tends to explode when touched. Ewww. My kids love to take food to the backyard and enjoy the weather, but forget to bring their dishes back. Cleaning up spilled anything is just not fun for me, and usually occurs on a daily basis. I also loathe cleaning off marker or pen off of the walls. Benson recently decided not to color on the walls, but take a xacto knife to them. Still working on fixing that mess. Painting while children are around is a whole 'nother story.

Summer vacation is coming up, plenty of time for wearing sandals and bare feet and forgetting about socks and shoes all together! It will sure be nice not having to drag kids out of bed every morning to start the hunt all over again. Doesn't solve all of my problems, but you know as soon as they are all grown I will have grand kids around, so I just give up on having anything nice.

Puddles

2011-04-21T12:18:00.000-07:00

I took my boys to the doctor today for their 1 year checkup. Yeah, we are a bit behind. Not really my fault though, scheduling has set us back that much. Anyway, the babies are doing well. Spencer is 20 lbs 10 oz. and in the 7th percentile for weight. Ha. Never had a kid so small, I guess you could say he is the runt of the litter! Gabriel is 22 lbs 15 oz and in the 60th percentile for weight. Go figure. They are both adorable as ever though, and getting into things as I type. Oh, and leaving puddles of drool wherever they go. Literally.

5 Minutes before Church

2011-04-13T09:15:00.000-07:00

Sunday mornings are a bit chaotic for me. Chris is gone by 6:00 am and I am left to fend for myself and get us all to church before 9. Some Sundays, it is all I can do to get there on time only to find I have forgotten some important items like bottles for the babies. Other Sundays, I must be pushed along by unseen angels and find that I have enough time left over to snap a quick picture of my sweet kids before we herd into the bus.

Last Sunday, it was a beautiful day and I wanted to get a picture of my kids in their church duds. This is what I got after 5 minutes of cajoling and making funny faces. Yeah, it is far from perfect with the sun in their eyes and Alex refusing to smile and the babies trying to crawl away. That's ok. I love it, because it is them. It is a moment in time that I can hold on to when most days time seems to be slipping through my fingers.

We did make it to church on time, but I still forgot the bottles. I survived.

The many faces of Alex

2011-03-30T08:42:00.000-07:00

(the above photos were taken by Alex himself. Dirty face and all, I think they are cute.)

Alex and I were having a converstation about how smart he is this morning. He amazes me daily with how much he knows, and he is only 4. I told him he needed to do something really cool, because not very many people are that smart. He said he wants to be a doctor. I said "that's really neat! You will be a great doctor taking care of people." Then I asked him what kind of doctor he wants to be. He thought for a minute and after some suggestions from me said he wants to deliver babies. I said "Ohh, that will be so much fun! I will be your nurse." Then he said: "I want a blue truck to deliver babies." Gave me a good chuckle. He is such a good kid. I can't wait to see what he will do with his big 'ol brain.

My little artist

2011-03-25T15:49:00.000-07:00

Benson has been a handful lately...ok, his whole life. So, we have gotten used to him and know when to cut him off at the pass- usually. I try to put up all the magic markers, and that works until the older kids get them down to label something and don't put them away. I have a padlock on the fridge in the garage to try and keep from eating 8 yogurts or a 12 pack of soda before anyone else gets any. In any case, he is pretty clever and has managed to get into things even with my preventative measures.

So last night, when I got home from school at about 9:30 pm (way pas the 8 pm bedtime) all was quiet and I assumed that everyone was in bed asleep. That's what I get for assuming. Benson came waltzing down while I was talking to Chris, completely naked and his face was decorated with purple marker. I tried to supress my laughter while asking him what he was doing. His reply was the usual: "I don't know." So, I took him by the hand and led him up to his room to get dressed for bed. I was kind of wondering what else the marker had gone, knowing Benson is an all or nothing kind of kid. I was asking him where else he had colored, noting the bookshelf was decorated. Then I saw Alex, asleep in bed and Benson looking very sheepish.

What is a twin for if you can't color his face when he is sleeping?

2011-03-25T15:00:00.000-07:00

I saw this: and couldn't stop laughing. I had to go downstairs and drag Chris up to see it too. Poor Alex didn't have a clue. I can't believe he didn't wake up when Benson was coloring all over his face and hands, but he didn't! He even had some on his eyelids and lashes. He was encouraged when he noticed I was laughing and not upset. I did give him a swat on the bum and told him to get on his bed to go to sleep. Benson sure makes my life interesting, if not hectic.

Big boy fun

2011-03-25T14:58:00.000-07:00

Conner and Bryce both have bb guns. They convinced me to be the adult supervision the other night so they could get them out of the gun cabinet and shoot at some cans. All of the kids were very enthralled with the whole thing. Cheap entertainment!

Just my sweet Spencer

2011-03-25T14:57:00.000-07:00

I love babies, especially when they are sleeping. Spencer sleeps with his index finger in his mouth, it is cute.

Can you guess?

2011-03-25T14:55:00.000-07:00

Who's mouth shape that is, in bruise form on poor Spencer's leg? Yup, it is Gabriel. That kid should have been a vampire, he loves to bite everything that comes near his mouth. He has bit everyone in the family at least once, you have to be quick with him! I was feeding him the other day and he leaned over and started gnawing on the chair next to his. Hmmm, maybe I need to spring for a bone to chew on for him?

Fun in the bathroom

2011-03-25T14:52:00.000-07:00

I know this looks gross, but they didn't actually go IN the toilet. Thankfully I caught them just unrolling the toilet paper and laughing histerically. I am thankful for my Iphone, as is usually in my pocket or nearby so I can capture moments like these with the kids.

Missing in action

2011-03-20T19:01:00.000-07:00

Susanna and Alex have become best buds lately. Alex even tried to put all his clothes into her drawers and "move" into her room! He slept on her floor on a foam pad for a week or so too. It was so adorable. I caught them playing like this one day and had to take a picture. Just a disclaimer about my pictures lately, the only thing I have with me almost constantly is my phone, so they aren't the best quality but at least I have them!

So anyway, if you are wondering where I have been lately...here is the short story!

I have had the craziest 2 months ever in my life. I thought the holidays with a baptism and 5 birthdays thrown in there were were nuts. That was relaxing compared to now- seriously. I am taking Anatomy and Physiology classes 4 days a week on campus, and a Statistics class ONLINE. That means I have no teacher really, just a lot of stuff I get to teach to myself. Then take the tests on campus by proctor. Fun. So, when I am not in class, studying or tearing my hair out because I don't get stats- I am cleaning up a mess, giving the babies a bath, loading the dishwasher, driving my kids to or from school, or the million and one other things I have to do to take care of a house full of 10 people. I am hoping to apply to the BSN program this fall after my anatomy II class and start next spring. I know, I am nuts. I really am.

2011-02-27T19:21:00.000-08:00

Holy moly look who's turned ONE!

2011-02-27T19:19:00.000-08:00

Yup, I actually survived the first year with eight kids. It went oh-so-quickly. I guess that is what happens when you are unbelieveably busy. I can't believe how much I have grown to love these two little spirits who we have been blessed with. Spencer is a little firecracker, he learns things very quickly and has led the way in pulling up, crawling and all the other large motor skills. Gabriel is our little angel, who is patient to a fault and sucks his thumb constantly. He is very sweet, but also very grabby and you had better watch it because he is quick to pull a full glass of juice or bowl of cereal off the table. They both light up my day when I go to get them out of bed in the mornings, they smile at me like they won the lotto. I love it!

Twin love

2011-02-08T11:14:00.000-08:00

I just love these boys. They are growing oh so quickly and the days seem to blur by. They are usually fighting, but when they aren't, they are best buds. I love to see them chat like best friends and play together. The other night they both decided to come down to our room to sleep at about 4 am. They brought their pillow pets, blankets and snuggled in together to sleep. Not before they had to whisper back and forth to each other for about 30 minutes. It drove me nuts, but was so cute at the same time.

Busy babies

2011-01-11T12:59:00.000-08:00

I had to get the camera out and snap a few pictures today, even though the babies were dirty from lunch and not dressed. They are so busy lately, especially Spencer! I couldn't get him to hold still for 2 seconds for a picture. I love the more and more every day, they keep me on my toes but warm my heart and soul.

christmas lights at temple square

2011-01-06T14:32:00.000-08:00

How lucky am I?

2010-12-15T13:03:00.000-08:00

Our 15 foot, Charlie Brown tree

2010-12-06T11:18:00.000-08:00

We decided since we can, we were going out to chop down our own tree this year. Armed with an 8$ permit from the forest service we drove an hour up the mesa to find one. (I dropped the babies off with my friend Katie, since I knew I couldn't haul them and a tree.)

There was no snow in the valley, but probably a couple of feet up where we went. We parked in a snow mobile parking lot and hiked back along a snowmoblile trail. If we stayed on the trail, then the going was easy. If we went off the trail, then we were up to our hips, or knees in snow- depending on who you were talking about. Alex and Benson kept diving into the snow and eventually Benson decided he was cold and cried all the way back to the car. Alex stuck it out like a trooper and didn't complain once! The older kids were great too, they loved the whole experience.

We finally decided on one. We wanted a tall one, but without a tape measure the actual height just had to be estimated. Boy did we estimate! We thought it would be tall, but not THAT tall! We picked a handsome fir that is kind of sparse, but I liked it that way. It also has two trunks, a "twin" tree! I thought it gave it some character and originality. Who wants a perfect tree anyway?

We dragged it back to the suburban, tied it to the top and headed home. It sat in a bucket of water in our front yard all weekend, since our friend Julie was visiting and is allergic to them. We brought it in Sunday night and got out the super duty ladder to decorate it. I was afraid for my life a few times trying to put lights up at the top, but it was all worth it. I even had Chris anchor it to the wall in fear one of the kids would pull it down, but so far (knock on wood) it has been fine. Even the babies have little interest in it, besides the stand full of water it is just another thing in the living room.

Chris counted the rings on the trunk and estimated it to be around 60 years old. He says he feels bad for cutting it down, but I don't. What a way to end your life in glory than draped in lights and ornaments and admired for a month straight? The kids think it is pretty neat, and so do I.

We think it is the most handsome Charlie Brown tree around!

A and B at one year

2010-12-03T09:30:00.000-08:00

Oh my, just found this picture and it gave me mommy pangs! I can't believe how big they are now. My BABIES Spencer and Gabriel are almost this size and I just had them. Sniff, why does it all go so quickly?

Birthday boy

2010-12-03T08:58:00.000-08:00

My babies are FOUR!

2010-12-03T08:56:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Alex and Benson's fourth birthday on Saturday. They couldn't wait to rip into their presents, and they turned out to be perfect. Alex got a Cars scooter and Benson got a Spiderman one. Then they both got a new pillow pet. Grandpa and Julie also brought other goodies for them, and Alex kept asking "what's next?" Ha ha. Whenever we talk about Christmas now Benson says "It's OVER, we already did it!" I guess that means I did a good job picking his presents. We also took all the birthday kids and Bryce out to Red Robin after the baptism. The waiters all sang to them and they loved it.

I love these two boys so much, they bring a lot of joy into our home. Alex is so serious, he is the little mini adult. He is always asking us lately when he is going to grow up and be a dad. Benson is a jokester and loves to make people laugh. He is very curious and won't take no for an answer. They both are very smart and amaze me with how much they learn and grow daily. They are doing wonderfully in preschool, and love to go. It is a great blessing for me as well, since I usually run errands or do homework while they are gone. Makes my life just a little bit easier.

Happy birthday baby boys! I can't believe it has been four years, seriously.

2010-12-03T08:42:00.000-08:00

We didn't do the birthday cakes until late that night, they had been playing in the hot tub and were watching Toy Story 3 when we decided we'd better do it before they fell asleep!

Baptism day

2010-11-30T10:16:00.000-08:00

Chris baptised our third son, Bryce Jacobs on Saturday the 27th of November 2010. It was a wonderfully crazy day since I scheduled the baptism on Alex and Benson's birthday thinking it would be great for family who wanted to come celebrate both at the same time. Not thinking about the fact that it was 2 days post Thanksgiving. In spite of all of the crazy cooking, cleaning and entertaining we did-- it all worked out great. We even squeezed in black friday shopping at 5 am and a trip up the mountain to chop down a Christmas tree! We had Chris' dad and Julie come, along with his sister Amy and her family. It was wonderful to have everyone here to celebrate it all together!

We had the baptism at 11 am, and Chris had to fill the font since he was conducting as well as doing the baptizing. You would never know it if he was stressed having to do it all, he did a great job. Chris' dad, Cliff gave a talk that really helped bring the spirit into the room. I had tears in my eyes thinking of the choices that Bryce was making and how sweet and pure he is and always has been. From the minute he arrived here on earth and was placed into my arms, that boy has been a miracle and a joy to have in our family. He helped to heal my heart after 2 terrible miscarriages, and I will always have a special place in my heart for my Bryce.

Sunshine boy

2010-11-30T10:04:00.000-08:00

I love this kid. He makes me smile on a daily basis.

Twin A making Twin A laugh

2010-11-17T07:34:00.000-08:00

2010-11-17T07:27:00.001-08:00

Pumpkin muffins

2010-11-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

Spencer had his first pumpkin muffin. This kid has loved food since he knew how to ask for it. Widening his eyes, whining and reaching out for whatever he sees me eating! I gave in to those beautiful blue begging eyes today, and was not disappointed with the results.

One day he's going to thank me...

2010-11-07T17:34:00.000-08:00

For getting him to adulthood safely. My little Benson is such a fun loving kid, but oh boy is he busy. This picture was taken back in August, but I just came across it tonight and had to post it because it really shows how busy he is. We had just come home from the cabin, at about 9 pm and everyone was dirty and tired. Benson got into the freezer and got out the cool whip. I told him no, put it back and went to tend to the babies. When I came back, this is what I found. Benson, asleep under the table (hiding from me no doubt) caught red handed! That kid brings so much laughter into our home, it is what keeps us from hurting him when he does really frustrating things.

My Happy

2010-11-01T09:52:00.000-07:00

Isn't he cute?

My crew

2010-11-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

Chris holding Gabe, he was Dopey. Conner holding Spencer as Happy. Then Bryce looking like a deer in the headlights was supposed to be sleepy. He also lost his had so he is wearing one of the babies jammies on his head. Jack is looking like himself- Grumpy. Then Benson is looking away, but he did a great Sneezy, his fake sneeze was hilarious. Susanna was the princess, as usual. Alex was Bashful, and oh so cute! This year I made all of their costumes, it was fun but probably won't happen again for a long time.

My little diva

2010-11-01T09:47:00.000-07:00

Susanna as Snow White. She was in heaven, the dress, the jewlery and the makeup especially made her happy! I dread the day when she doesn't want to be a princess anymore.

Ahhh, fall

2010-10-23T18:58:00.000-07:00

I LOVE fall. I cannt express how much I adore this season. Especially here in Grand Junction, it seems to be especially perfect. The weather is getting cooler, with some days being even gloomy and grey and I just breathe in the cool, crisp air and smile. I love everything about it, canning season, the beautiful colors on the trees, back to school (oh yeah) getting ready for the holidays and all the birthdays...I love it all. I have been running around like crazy taking kids to school, running errands, messing up my kitchen canning apple pie filling and RoTel tomatoes etc. This weekend everything slowed down though, and I have had some time to just sit and enjoy it all. My kitchen finally got cleaned, and then I made soup and sugar cooies. The kids were out of school for parent teacher conferences and Chris was actually HOME. We have had rain for the past few days and it has been lovely sitting in our cozy little house enjoying each other. The boys watched Harry Potter and Chris and I were able to enjoy the hot tub. It couldn't be more perfect!

My main man

2010-10-13T11:58:00.000-07:00

Since I missed posting about Chris' birthday, and since he just left town today (and I already miss him) I thought I would post about him.

Who he is:
~a worthy priesthood holder.
~a great dad to seven boys and one princess.
~a funny man who loves to laugh.
~a newly turned 35 year old.
~a hunter, fisherman, athlete, and eagle scout.
~someone who doesn't do diapers, but does do laundry and oil changes and garbage/recycling duty and yard duty...etc.
~the first counsellor in the bishopric of our ward.
~a handsome guy with green eyes and red hair.
~an adventurer, not afraid to try new things.
~a big brother to 2 sisters and 2 brothers.
~a gardener.
~someone with lightning fast reflexes- no joke!
~an environmental scientist for SM Stoller.

Best of all?
~My eternal companion and the love of my life.

Fall outfits

2010-10-08T19:33:00.000-07:00

Gabe the ever so patient baby, and Spencer about to melt down. I pulled out some fall clothes since the weather is cooling off (LOVE fall) and thought these were too cute to not take pictures of. Too bad they didn't feel like cooperating. They are 7 months old now, and 17 and 16 lbs each respectively. They are army crawling and rolling everywhere. Spencer loves all food and non food items that he can get into his mouth, Gabe loves his thumb and has discovered how to stick out his tongue. I just love these little guys, they make my day every morning when I go and get them from their cribs!

Goofy Benson

2010-09-29T09:32:00.001-07:00

That's my boy!

2010-09-29T09:32:00.000-07:00

Benson thinks this is hilarious. It actually is! At least, it makes me laugh!

Double bubble

2010-09-24T09:52:00.000-07:00

The boys dumped baby soap into their bath...and then turned on the jets. They thought it was hilarious! Cleaning up was fun, at least it was soap and not something worse.

Random

2010-09-19T17:59:00.000-07:00

This is a bunch of random photos taken by some child of mine during the last month or so. I thought some of them were actually quite artistic, and had fun making a little collage for you to enjoy. So...enjoy.

Cucumber necklace

2010-09-16T12:54:00.000-07:00

The twins were oh so good about not picking the produce out of the garden all summer, except twice. This time they decided there were so many cucumbers that they needed to accessorize and make a necklace out of them with some weed wacker line. I thought it was cute enough that I couldn't be angry about the wasted produce.

Double big and black canyon

2010-09-08T19:43:00.000-07:00

Our "new" 15 passenger van, Alex has dubbed "Double Big" and all the kids voted to keep the name. We took it on our first real family outing to visit Black Canyon. It was a fun day trip for Labor day and just long enough to break our new van.

Funny boy

2010-09-08T19:34:00.000-07:00

Should I be scared?

2010-09-08T19:33:00.000-07:00

Benson came to me like this one afternoon. He was trying on my makeup, and actually did a pretty good job with it. I caught this picture and his look just cracked me up! Blackmail material? Hopefully.

Good Gabe

2010-09-08T19:30:00.000-07:00

My "baby Gabey" never complains. He will fall asleep waiting for me to pay attention to him. Poor eighth child of mine.

Not so little anymore

2010-09-01T19:22:00.000-07:00

Seriously, didn't I just deliver those two? Hard to believe they are off to preschool, and I am sad to say I am not that sad...should I be? I am sad that the time has passed so quickly, but as for right now I am SO THRILLED that I can actually make a trip to the grocery store without these two ripping into packages, begging for everything, throwing odd items into my cart and throwing temper tantrums in the checkout so that I have to carry a screaming 3 year old, drag the other one, and pull the loaded cart full of groceries and babies out the door. Whew. I might actually get something accomplished in the near future...if the babies will cooperate that is.

Too cool for school

2010-09-01T19:15:00.000-07:00

Jackson and Bryce started 5th grade and 2nd grade last week. They are already tired of school and ask me if they can stay home. No way jose, canning season has just begun and I think I am busier than when all my kids were home!

Anxiously awaiting

2010-09-01T19:14:00.000-07:00

Susanna's first day of kindergarten. Her teacher is Mrs. Woytek and so far she loves it. She wasn't scared a bit, even when the bus driver thought her name was Jenna and didn't drop her off but took her back to the school to figure out who she was. It mystified me, especially since Susanna knows her name, and was wearing a name tag with her address and phone number on it. Hmmm.

Alex enjoying a S'More

2010-08-24T14:12:00.000-07:00

I think his shirt says it all! The twins had a blast up at the cabin, getting dirty and eating all day long. I had fun, I enjoyed the peacefulness of the outdoors and the clean, crisp air. It really was nice to just sit and enjoy the quiet, no tv, no computer, no music just us. Sitting up in the cabin with all the afghans and other "grandma" type decor reminded me of my grandma Lula's house. In the afternoons, we would have rest time and her house was so peaceful and quiet. It was balm for my soul, and not really as stressful as I thought it would be with the babies. They slept great and I brought the baby monitor so I could hear them upstairs while I worked in the kitchen. I was sure greatful to have an indoor kitchen and bathrooms! It made the trip so nice. The only thing better would have been to have a washer and dryer! We came home with about 6 trash bags full of dirty clothes plus bedding. Not fun. Now we are back home, trying to get into a routine for back to school and life. All the kids will be in school except for the babies! My house might be clean and organized sometime this year, if I am lucky...

Bryce

2010-08-24T14:03:00.000-07:00

Fun in the creek

2010-08-24T14:01:00.000-07:00

We went to a creek near the cabin to play in for a while. It was ICE COLD. Of course the kids took their father's dares and were dunking their heads and laying down in it by the end. Kids are so resilient, aren't they?

Random picture by Alex

2010-08-24T13:59:00.000-07:00

Fishing

2010-08-24T13:58:00.000-07:00

One of the favorite past times among the boys, they caught several but threw them all back.

2010-08-24T13:57:00.000-07:00

My cute boys

2010-08-24T13:55:00.000-07:00

2010-08-24T13:52:00.000-07:00

Susanna and Sarah posing. It was so beautiful up there!

2010-08-24T13:50:00.000-07:00

Conner and Jack, they thought they were too big for the swings. Why do kids grow up so quickly these days?

Princess or tomboy?

2010-08-24T13:49:00.000-07:00

Probably a little of both! This is Suanna and Jessy, my girl isn't afraid of the dirt that is for sure!

Leaving for home

2010-08-24T13:44:00.000-07:00

This was taken right after a crazy lightning and rain storm up at Ragged Mountain. We were cleaning up the cabin trying to get ready to go when the sky let loose. It was fun to watch, for us anyway. Alex has started to freak out when it comes to wind and rain storms. Lots of fun I tell ya! He thinks things are going to blow away...like the trampoline and won't settle down for anything until the wind stops. Anyway, we were filthy dirty and ready to go home but I am glad Chris had the idea to take a picture. The week was crazy for me, I didn't take many pictures at all.

Late nap

2010-08-24T13:38:00.000-07:00

Getting ready to leave for a high priest social one night when Alex declared to me "I am tired." So I told him to lay down and he did. Then Benson was playing next to him (notice the hot pad on his foot) and fell asleep too. We had to wake them up to leave, but I had take a photo first. Aren't they sweet? I love watching Benson sleep, probably more because he is such a tornado when awake.

Conner's new glasses

2010-08-05T12:47:00.000-07:00

Conner inherited his parents bad eyesight. Poor kid. He looks pretty cute with glasses on though, and thanks to Amy and Matt we found Zenni.com and ordered them from there for only 28$! Not bad!

Yum! Toes!

2010-08-05T12:44:00.000-07:00

I was stripping the babies down to change them when I ran to get some diapers. I came back to find Gabe trying his hardest to get Spencer's toes into his mouth. It was so funny to watch because Spencer didn't seem to care much, but he would kick every now and then so Gabe would lose grip and have to start all over.

quilt frame fun

2010-08-05T12:41:00.000-07:00

I have a PVC pipe quilt frame that the kids discovered the other night. They took it outside and made a water toy out of it! They were wet, muddy and having a blast with different configurations. I figured the pipe wasn't going to get hurt by being wet so I let them do it and ran for the camera. Cheap fun!

Our first fruits

2010-08-05T12:38:00.000-07:00

We harvested a couple of cucumbers a few weeks ago, they were delicious! Since then I have had enough to make 8 quarts of pickles and have MANY more on the vines! Having a garden is so cool!

Spencer

2010-08-05T12:34:00.000-07:00

He is a sweet baby, but he definitely keeps me on my toes! He is a pound lighter than Gabe, but he moves more and eats less so I know why! He has those stunning blue eyes that Jackson, Susanna and Alex all have- so beautiful!

Sweet baby Gabe

2010-08-05T12:33:00.000-07:00

I just love this little guy. He is very sweet and so huggable lovable that I don't want to put him down most days!

Colorado National monument

2010-08-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

We took a picnic up here with uncle Matt last week. It was fun, would have been funner without screaming Spencer in the van but oh well!

My little thumb suckers

2010-08-05T12:30:00.000-07:00

Uh oh is right! They both love to suck their thumb! Actually Spencer isn't very particular, he will suck his fingers too- or his brothers toes if they are available.

My snuggle bugs

2010-08-05T12:29:00.000-07:00

It takes a village...

2010-07-30T19:55:00.000-07:00

If it takes a village to raise a child...then what does it take for eight children? I have wondered that quite often lately. I know I don't have what it takes alone, hopefully combined with many wonderful friends, family and church leaders we will make it.

After a rough few weeks with 6 bored, restless children-- I decided I needed a time out. Chris was planning a trip to the temple with his brother Matt and I wanted to go too. I didn't know how exactly it would happen, since the temple is over 4 hours away and doesn't allow kids. After phoning a couple of my good friends here, it was set! Katie took Jack, Bryce and Alex. Andrea took Conner, Susanna and Benson. My sister in law came down from fort Collins to watch my babies. On the way back, I was struck by how really ridiculous it is to arrange my life enough so I can be absent for even just one day! I am so grateful to those who sacrificed so that I could be at the temple yesterday. It has been over a year since Chris and I were able to do a session together. I know my life won't be like this forever- as nice as "freedom" sounds right now, I know I am going to miss the craziness and the little ones who cause it.

Along with the temple, we were also able to go to the Nature and Science museum there in Denver and some fun outlet malls on the way back in Silverthorn. Lots of fun in a short 30 hours or so. We are back to the grind now, only I am somewhat refreshed and replenished. Hopefully it lasts me a while, since there is still about 3 weeks until school starts!

This was a gorgeous full double rainbow we saw a few Sundays ago. It was by far the darkest and best one I have ever seen in real life! Too bad the pictures don't do it justice.

2010-07-30T19:22:00.001-07:00

Happy birthday to me

2010-07-19T21:48:00.000-07:00

I celebrated my 29th (ahem, again) birthday on the 4th of July weekend with my family. It was a planned reunion held at my mom's house in Draper Utah. It was short, but so nice to see all but one of my siblings. We sat and talked and watched the kids play and interact. I was sad to see it end. On the 4th I attended my nieces baby blessing and then we spent a nice evening with Chris' family with fireworks and birthday cake. It was a fun weekend and a great birthday! We were so glad to get home though, the twins did not travel well. Spencer hated being in the car and screamed most of the 4 hour ride to and from Utah. Thankfully we only live 4 hours away, because it took us probably 8 hours to make the trip. I think we will be staying home for a while now. Hopefully.

2010-07-19T21:43:00.000-07:00

My twins were constantly being held, it was so nice! They loved it too, I am sure. I wanted to bring my little nieces home with me!

Cute girls

2010-07-19T21:41:00.000-07:00

Two of my nieces, Kate and Kietra. Kate sat for about an hour and strung her fruit loop necklace, she was so thrilled with it!

Outtakes

2010-07-19T21:39:00.000-07:00

They were pretty much all outtakes. With 35 or so kids in the picture can you blame me??

Not all of them but...

2010-07-19T21:38:00.000-07:00

We tried to get a "grandkid" picture, and then realized that we missed some of the teenagers who were actually there and my babies who were napping. Oh well, it includes a lot of the 47 or so grandkids on my side!

The year 2000 babies

2010-07-19T21:35:00.000-07:00

There were 7 cousins born in the year 2000, the most of any other year so far, and probably will be. Left to right, Sam, Ryan, Madelyn, Ethan, Ben and Jackson. How fun it must be to have that many cousins your same age! Abigail is not pictured, they couldn't make it.

Brothers

2010-07-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

5 out of my 6 brothers here sharing a laugh.

Jack riding the range

2010-07-19T21:31:00.000-07:00

Reunion

2010-07-19T21:30:00.000-07:00

The theme to our Whitehead family reunion was western, and my mom made this cute sign to go along with it. She spent a lot of time and money making things fun for the kids. She made a new sandbox and hid coins all over in it, along with cars and trucks. She made a horse to take pictures on, bought bubbles and various outdoor activities for all ages. We had awesome food all day long and basically just sat and talked while the kids played. 11 out of 12 kids made it there, it was really nice!

Story time

2010-07-19T21:27:00.000-07:00

My mom spent some time at the reunion telling the grand kids stories about their parents. They LOVED hearing about the trouble that we got into as kids, hopefully they didn't get too many "good" ideas.

Alex

2010-07-19T21:25:00.000-07:00

His orthopedic doc thinks he looks like the blonde guy on M*A*S*H, I think he is just plain cute.

Finally!

2010-06-29T07:39:00.000-07:00

I decided as I woke up Sunday morning, that I was going to hurry and get everyone ready a bit early so that I could take a quick picture of all the kids together. I love photography, but taking a picture of ALL of my kids together is a huge endeavor. It involves making sure everyone is clean, in clean nice clothes and smiling- all at the same time. So...luck was smiling on me Sunday morning. About 10 minutes before we had to leave I herded everyone to the stairs and said we were going to take a picture. I didn't even take the time to get out out my nice camera, just the little one for a quick shot. After some moans and groans I mentioned a dollar for the best smile. They practically tripped over each other to get up the stairs. 2 minutes later I had this picture, and to me it is priceless! You can't get much better smiles out of 8 kids all at the same time, no photoshop needed!

Instant buds

2010-06-21T15:30:00.000-07:00

I am bummed this is such a terrible picture. All I had handy was my phone when I walked by the twins crib and noticed them both looking, smiling and cooing at each other! They are nearly 4 months old now and have finally noticed that they have a buddy along for the ride. Spencer was trying to touch Gabe's face, it was so heartwarming and just darn CUTE.

They are getting so big now, both almost 12 lbs- I think. The cookie sheet and postal scale combo isn't so reliable anymore because they are so wobbly on it.

Personality wise, Spencer is the fussier of the two, he definitely lets you know when he isn't happy. Gabe, on the other hand is such a mellow soul. He is so patient and just sits and listens to Spencer throw a holy fit. I just love them both so much more every day! They have been a huge challenge to feed and keep myself and the other kids sane in the process, but I guess that is what helps you bond to them. The older kids like them more now that they are starting to "talk" and interact more. I kind of wish for the tiny days back, it is amazing how quickly they fly by when you are just trying to survive them.

The big day

2010-06-21T15:19:00.000-07:00

The long awaited day arrived last Friday, when Alex finally got his cast off! He wanted it off within hours of putting it on, so the month it took was like a year to him. He was very happy to have it off, until he had to walk. He didn't like the weakness of it and wouldn't walk for a few hours. Then he decided he wanted to go where and when he wanted to go there without waiting for me- and took off. He still limps a bit, but is much better. His poor skin took a beating from the dirt and sand he got up in the cast, and the parts along his toes where the padding rubbed off. My mom and I spent days and a lot of money on bandages and wraps to try and get the sores to heal. Thankfully, they did and the cast came off before he had a chance to wear in some new ones. A huge sigh of relief! No more carrying him to the potty, no more listening to his excuses of "I can't go to bed mom, my leg hurts." He still tries it with me, but it doesn't carry nearly as much weight anymore!

Baby toys

2010-06-16T19:12:00.000-07:00

So I was a mom tester for Ebeanstalk.com. They have great baby toys available for moms like me who don't necessarily want to drag 8 kids to the store- especially to the toy isle. They sent me 2 toys to try with my babies. One was a great quiet type book that was soft for babies and has little interactive things to do on each page. I can't say they love it, since it is a bit beyond them at this stage but my older kids sure liked it! I will definitely keep that one in the church bag to help keep some 3 year olds quiet.

The other toy was some socks that have rattles in them. They are soft and sweet and don't make too much noise. What is not to love? They also fit their little feet well with room to grow. For learning toys or toddler toys ebeanstalk.com is a good place to go. They are well organized and everything was easy to find by age, gender etc. The shipping was super nice and fast too!

Our garden

2010-06-16T08:43:00.000-07:00

For the first time in our 12+ years of marriage we have our own spot for a garden. (Well, unless you count the time we had a tiny plot in a community garden in Reno, and the animals ate all our produce...) Chris and I were very excited to start this project, even if it meant digging up a large plot of crab grass and spending over 300 dollars on fill dirt. I am not sure we really knew what we were getting into, it took us over 4 hours to empty out the trailer of 10 cubic yards of mulch, and it didn't help that we picked the windiest day in history to get it. We kept telling the kids that we didn't care what we got out of this garden, we are doing it to teach them how to work! Hopefully it works.

We planted lots of zuchini, squash, peppers, onions and cucumbers. We have over 20 tomato plants in planter boxes around our house since there wasn't room left in the main plot. I think next year Chris wants to dig up the rest of the nasty crab grass and plant the whole yard into a garden. Ha ha just kidding- I think. I am glad I married a man who loves this kind of stuff, because as exciting as it is to watch the plants grow- to me the fun part is the harvest. I get to can and freeze it all in the fall, yay me.

Hopefully it all comes together, because right now our yard is a mess. It would help if Chris had the time to fix the lawn mower, or go buy a weed wacker. Or even come home for dinner! Poor guy has been out of town for work, or doing church stuff lately. The kids aren't sure who their father is anymore! Hopefully things slow down soon...ha!

the crew

2010-06-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

Just pretend that my kids are all in nice matching clothes...and that they don't have red eye from the flashy camera...and that I don't have ugly rainbow carpet but rather nice hardwood floors. Just look past all of that and see my eight beautiful kids, and know that this is the first picture I have of ALL of them together in 3 months. Yeah, it took me that long to get the idea and the energy to get them all together for 5 minutes. It might take 3 more to actually get a decent one, but for now this is just fine! At least they can never say I didn't try. Ha ha

De Ja Vou

2010-05-23T20:39:00.001-07:00

Remember this? This was Benson one year ago when we first got our trampoline. This last week Susanna jumped on Alex's right leg and broke the tibia, just below the knee. Same bone that Benson broke.

When the kids brought him in spouting "Alex broke his leg!" I thought they were joking, especially since Alex has a tendency to be the more dramatic kid when he gets hurt. So, I laid him on the bed and propped up his knee with a pillow and gave him some ice. I couldn't see anything visibly wrong, maybe a tiny bit of redness on his knee area. I waited about 2 hours and he cried for most of it until he fell asleep. An athletic trainer who happens to be in our ward came over to see if he could find something wrong before I waisted the night away in the ER. He didn't think anything was wrong, maybe a bone bruise.

Alex woke up and started crying again after he left though, so I decided to make the trip to an urgent care. As soon as we got in the car (about an hour after a dose of Motrin) he was cheerful and very talkative. I watched him swing his leg around and doubted myself but went in anyway. The doc examined him and since Alex didn't make a peep he looked at me and said he woudn't even bother to x-ray him. Then he asked him to get up and walk. He about fell on his face trying! So off to x-ray we went. It came back in just a few minutes and the doc said it looked totally normal, but if he continued to hurt to bring him back because sometimes fractures don't show up right away.

So, 24 hours later and a miserable day spent with a 3 year old crying on the couch because he "tan't walk" I took him to the ER. 5 hours and a heavy splint later we discovered it actually was broken, a tibial plateau fracture- same as Benson's. After a very late night, we had to get up at 6 am to get back to the bone doctors and get a real cast on. He chose light blue. The other kids are very jealous, he wanted it off within a few hours. Poor kid. Poor ME. He is potty trained, so I get to carry him there every time he needs to go. He is also kind of needy anyway and with a cast doubly so. Did I mention Chris is still out of town? Yup, I am on the verge of a nervous break down. I need my mommy.

Are we crazy to keep the trampoline? They just have so much fun on it, as long as the weather is decent they are out there daily. I am still debating the issue with myself, but in the meantime, Alex is laid up for the next month in a thigh high light blue cast. With 7 boys though, I have a nasty little feeling this isn't the last I will see of the ortho doc.

Photo by Alex

2010-05-17T13:16:00.000-07:00

Alex insisted on being a part of this photo shoot, as did Susanna. Haha

Spencer

2010-05-17T13:15:00.000-07:00

Smiley Spencer. He is so easy to get to smile these days, I LOVE it! Little reward for feeding him at all hours of the night for the past 2.5 months.

2010-05-17T13:13:00.001-07:00

S on left

2010-05-17T13:13:00.000-07:00

g on left