Trip to Flagstaff

Last weekend we ventured on down to Flagstaff to see Ben's sister, Juli. It was her birthday and this past year she has gone through the fight against Breast Cancer. It was really good to see her and Kalianna. We went fishing and the Juli caught a fish for us for dinner. We also had a BBQ. It was very fun and relaxing. The drive is a killer. It's about 5 hours one way of nothing but desert and Indian Reservation. On the way home I got so bored I started taking picture out the window of clouds on my phone. I was just trying out different settings.

The kids with Juli's fish

 Caleb LOVED the doggie door. That is how he would get in and out of the house. Notice JJ (the dog). I don't know what he thought of all this.

 Here is one of my cloud pictures. I had about 20. Ben got a laugh out of me.

Coleman 8 months

Coleman turned 8 months on the 16th. The same day his cousin, Carson, was born. Coleman has mastered crawling around and sitting up. He can also pull himself up to standing.His front bottom teeth have come in and his front top teeth are just breaking through. Most days he takes two naps. He eats baby food about 2-3 times a day and loves crackers. Since we have moved his sleeping through the night has been a joke. He gets up at least once. He was a really good sleeper before so it's been frustrating. I would just let him cry it out, but he shares the room with Kaelynn. I need to get it figured out, because I am bone tired of it. Overall Coleman is a happy baby that loves to observe his surroundings.

 The older kids and I made block houses and pretended Coleman lived in one. They thought it was so funny.

Easter Egg's in the park

When we were in S.G. we coloring Easter eggs and hid them at the park. We had a fun picnic with fried chicken and potato salad.

Tyler's favorite egg

Kaelynn's favorite egg

Splash Pad in April

For Spring Break I took the kids to St. George. We went the splash pad on Wednesday. It was 80 degrees out. Such a perfect day. When we came back to Panguitch we had to wear sweaters.

Since we've moved...

So far Panguitch seems to be a good fit. The kids are in school and seem to be doing well. They have also made a few friends in the neighborhood. There are a few things that I have noticed that are a little different then what I am used to. For example I think I am the only mini van driver in town. There is also a large population of people that drive around with their dog in the back of their trucks. It seems like every time I go to the post office I am greeted by a dog in the back of the truck next to me. I guess I am going to have to buck up and learn how to drive our truck.

Here we are at Panguitch Lake. There was still a thin layer of ice on it. It will be a fun place to go in the summer.

Kaelynn made Easter eggs at school. Kaelynn and Tyler have done some really fun projects in school.
I decided to make a new sheet for Coleman's crib. After 3 boys (and 1 girl) the crib sheet were kind of thin and gross. It never occurred to me that it would be so easy to make my own sheets. I had to use my mom's sewing machine because mine was still packed.
Coleman - He has started to crawl and can sit up from crawling position. He is also a very happy baby. Since we have moved he has had a hard time sleeping, but I think he is getting better.
I have also read a few books and just kept up with the kids. Today we are listening to conference. It had been very uplifting. This week is Spring Break for the kids and we are planning on going to St. George for a few days to get a little warmer.

We Made It!!!

We made it to Panguitch. Here is my take on the town so far.
Pros:
The people - very friendly and welcoming
The school- the schedule is from 8-3 for everyone and Friday is from 8-noon. Tyler is afternoon kinder and he goes from noon-3 and every other Friday morning.
Space - we have a bigger backyard and there is so much open space to ride bikes.

Cons:
Cell phones- they don't work good at our house but work great in town and in our driveway.
Shopping - Small grocery store. Have to go far for any major shopping.

So far we have felt welcome. We still miss our old home and friends but I know this is going to be good for us.

A Quick Update

So far I have packed a few boxes. It's been really hard. It's like packing up an old friend. As I am packing I ask, "WHY are we doing this?" But I have felt peace and know Heavenly Father 's hand is in my life.

We have rented out our house to some people that used to be in our ward. We have a good feeling about it.

This weekend we plan to go down and look at some houses. We talked to some people and have a good feeling about a few places. So if all goes well we will be moving in a few weeks.

I am going to miss all my dear friends. I will just have to plan trips up here and they will have to plan trips down there.

By the Way: Happy Leap Year

Here is a poem from my mom:

Thirty days hath September,
April, June and November;
All the rest have thirty-one
Save February, she alone
Hath eight days and a score
Til leap year gives her one day more.

Moving

It's true, we are moving. Ben has been trying for a few years at a Sergeant spot. We always thought he would get a promotion somewhere close and we wouldn't have to move. But we are so happy with the way things turned out. We will be moving back to Southern Utah to be closer to family. We will only be an hour away from my parents. It's going to be a bitter/sweet move. We have lived here for 8 years and have truly grown to LOVE the people and area. The kids seem to be doing OK with the idea of moving. Kaelynn has been writing "goodbye" notes to her friends (sad). She also wrote this note to Ben.

Can you tell where will be moving? She needs to work on her spelling.

Coleman 6 months

The more kids I have the faster time goes. Coleman turned 6 months old on the 16th. We didn't do anything exciting except take him to the Dr. He is doing great by the way. Here are a few things to remember:

-Rolls around. Both sides, front to back.

-Can sit up for a short period of time

- Likes to be held (Not so fun for me)

-Started eating rice cereal, apples and bananas.

- Favorite toy is paper

-Sleeps about 8-9 hours at night

-Takes 3-4 naps a day

-No teeth

I am going to try squash out this week. I hope Coleman likes squash, because I made a ton. Right now he usually only eats once cube at a time. I still have bananas in the freezer too. I probably won't have to make another batch of squash.

Valentines Day 2012

Happy Valentine's Day everyone. We had a fun day. Kaelynn and Tyler had school parties. I went to Tyler's party and it was a lot of fun. Ben had the day off and worked on the truck. It was a great day!

Valentine Dinner. This was so good. I cooked lobster tail for the first time and it turned out delish! We also had steak, potatoes and cheesy biscuits. O man my tummy is full.
Helping with Tyler's Class party!

Valentine's from Grandma. We love Valentines from grandma. She even made homemade sugar cookies. YUM!

Coleman 5 months

Coleman is 5 months old. He sleeps through the night half the time. The other half he gets up about 4am, eats, and sleeps until 7. He loves to play with toys and laughs at everything. Coleman has also started to roll over little bit. He can go both ways, but doesn't do it very often. Only when he is mad or wants a toy. The other day Tyler was holding Coleman on the floor when Caleb came up and pushed him off Tyler's lap onto the wood landing by our door. That is where the bruise in the picture comes from. I was not happy, but Coleman only cried for a short while and then seemed fine. Coleman is a good baby. We sure love him.

Bowling for FHE

Last Monday we went to the bowling ally for Family Night. It was really fun. I haven't been bowling for 4 years (the Wii doesn't count) and I was bad. I only got 55 points. Ben got 150, Kaelynn got 86, Tyler got 77 and Caleb got 81. The kids did have bumpers so that explains their scores. Next time I might sign up for the bumpers. Coleman was a good baby and just sat in his car seat and smiled. After bowling we went to JCW's for dinner. It was a great night.