It's Great to be Eight!

Douglas was baptized and confirmed Sat. May 31, 2008 by his daddy.

So last year Cheyenne was baptized and Sam was born all in one weekend. It was an emotional roller coaster, but one that was of joy! I didn't think I would be as emotional with Doug, but Heavenly Father proved me wrong. As I stood in the book store looking at the scriptures I was going to get him, I was overwhelmed with the spirit. Doug is my first son, he will be the first to receive the Priesthood from his father, he will be the first to serve our Heavenly Father by going on a mission. I was overjoyed by these thoughts. I then had a dilemma, should I buy the quad or the separate scriptures, which would be best for his mission. Well, I decided on the separate ones and then had his name engraved on them. The day of his baptism I was a bit stressed. Not only was it a big day for him, but it was also Abby's b-day party. I was trying to fit everything in with Mom and Dad Hall, and my Mom in town.
We had so many friends and their families come to the baptism, and also had family come from Oregon for that I am truly thankful.
In true Dougie fashion the whole experience was no biggie, he's so laid back like his daddy!
I am truly grateful for all the tremendous blessings we have been given. I pray that as life goes on I will be able to raise my sons in righteousness so that they will be ready and willing to serve the Lord when that time comes. I'm grateful for my little brother and the huge example he is setting for my boys by serving a mission. I'm so happy that Doug was completely surrounded by such strong Priesthood holders as he was confirmed. Thanks to everyone for showing so much love towards our family.

Ponderosa

This past weekend Joe's parents came in town for Doug's baptism. Friday after Joe got off of work he picked up the kids early from school and we all drove to McCall. It's a beautiful 2 hour drive through the mountains, if we could make a decent living there I would love to move, but we may just have to settle for a summer home there.
We went to the Ponderosa Park and took a mile hike through the woods to the top view point. There was still snow on the ground which the kids and Joe took advantage of. The view was beautiful and the kids enjoyed nature. We were able to see 4 deer very close up. Kenny was pretending he was hunting them and had his imaginary shot gun ready for the kill. Doug decided that hunting for bigger animals would be fun.
On the way back down we decided to take the bike trail back to the cars. This proved to be a test of our faith. The trail had not been cleaned up yet, so there were alot of fallen trees and a lot of snow. We lost the trail a couple of times, but Joe and the boys were in the lead and secure in their ability to lead us. Well the rest of were lacking and we kept attacking Joe and doubting his leading abilities. He called us Laman and Lemuel and said he knew exactly where he was going. He also told us to pucker up because he was going to find the way. So you know how the story ends, he found the trail marker which told us we were on the right trail and I missed an opportune picture. He was bent over the sign waiting for us to kiss it. It was super funny! We had a great time and I was really impressed with Doug, he really loves the outdoors, he can't wait for scouting trips!

Sleeping Baby

The other day Sam was really tired and cranky. I was busy cleaning the kitchen and he wanted me to hold him. He' s not one to throw huge fits or cry alot, but today was different. He first cried at my side, then threw himself on the floor. I put him on the couch and this is how I found him after I turned the vacuum off. He so cute!

Picture Day

This past Saturday we had our family pics done. I traded services with a photographer. I made 350 cupcakes plus a 2 tier cake for their wedding. Crazy! Pics should be ready in a couple of weeks.
Anyway, it was 90 outside and Sam was not happy. I do hope we got a good shot! After it was all done, I was reminded why I never did family pics when the kids were really young! I was ready to put Sam to sleep and just have sleeping pics of him! So as soon as get the pics I'll post them.

Cub Scout

I think it was two weeks before Doug's birthday and I got a call from our friend, who is also the Cub Master, and said he wanted to drop some info and a pinewood derby kit by for Douglas. So he came over talked to Doug and gave him the kit. Doug was so excited! He wanted to start on the project right away. Of course that didn't happen because he has parents who procrastinate. So May 6th comes, race is on the 8th, and Joe frantically says we need to get this car built. That night they went to Home Depot to get some supplies and hours later they applied the paint (after midnight). Joe and Doug woke up around 6am and put another coat of paint on and then laid down to get a few more hours of sleep. Doug did not wake for school so I let him stay home and we went to the Scout store to buy his shirt, book and some extra wheels because we lost one (which I found later!). So you have to know before the boys started, Joe told Doug that this was just for fun, it didn't matter if they won only that they had fun. So on wed. when Joe was helping Doug put the tires on, Joe said they needed to make sure everything was perfect so they would have a better chance at winning and Doug looked at him and said, "Dad, I thought you said it didn't matter if we won, it just mattered that we had fun?" Joe being put in his place, put the car down and told him he was right and left the car alone.
Pinewood Derby Day I put Doug's shirt together with some awesome sticker adhesive specifically for scout shirts and he put his shirt and belt on. I told him he had to tuck in his shirt and that' s when all the excitement ended! "What? I have to tuck in my shirt?!" "Yes Doug, you need to be respectful and look nice." "I don't want to tuck in my shirt!" "All the other boys will have their shirt tucked in, you'll see." "I DON'T WANT TO DO SCOUTS ANYMORE!" "Let's calm down and you will see when we get there that all the boys have their shirts tucked in."
So off we went to the church building, early because I got the time wrong, but hey we were on time! Guess what? No shirts tucked in! Doug's shirt flew out of his pants and doing scout's became fun again.
The cub scouts welcomed Doug and another friend and they did some other business. After that the races began. Doug had a lot of fun and ended up with 5th place overall. Not bad for his first year. I definitely think the dad's need to do their own race!
Doug's car is the blue with white decor and silver weights on top. There is a smiley face on the back with it's tongue sticking out.

Doug's 8th B-day

So Doug's birthday was super last minute. His birthday was in the back of my mind, but I would get busy and forget and then bam! it was his birthday and no party! I felt like crap, but redeemed myself the next day with his party. I called some friends and they all came together and made his birthday great.
Doug has grown up so much and it makes me sad to think he won't always be my little boy who comes and gives me hugs and kisses just because he feels like it. I struggle with his attitude and temper, but besides that he is wonderful. He is a great help with Sam and also with Kenny. He will play with Sam if I need a few minutes to get a chore or dinner done and he will sit down with Kenny and let him read a story to him so Ken can get his practice reading in. He is my little man and I love him very much.

He is so much fun!

Sam is growing so fast! He walks all over the place and does his own thing. He is definitely a little love bug. I can't get enough smooches from this kid!

Update

So I really haven't taken any pics since Sam's b-day. Nothing extraordinary has happened and if it has I forgot my camera! We have been trucking along with life and to be honest I needed a change or I was going to continue to go crazy. I have taken the kids out of their extra curricular activities for a few months so we aren't driving all over and we can actually let the kids be kids and we can also be a family. I am so burnt out and Doug was way burnt out!
On the upside to that, we have actually had time for FHE and that is a huge blessing. Evenings are a bit happier because we are not rushed to get things done. Joe has been able to restart the training of his dogs since it is lighter later, so he is enjoying that. The kids stay out and play until 8 almost every night and I enjoy that!
I did receive some wonderful news from family. My little brother, Bobby, is reporting to the MTC in July and will serve his mission in the Buenos Aires, Argentina Mission. I was so touched to hear him read his mission call over the phone when he received it. It was wonderful to share in that experience with him. Two of my sisters will be getting married this summer and so my prayers of them finding love were answered. They will both be getting married back home so my search for an airlines job is on! Maybe we'll have to switch our yearly visit to July-Aug instead of Nov.? Joe's little sister will be moving in with us in a few weeks and so we are definitely excited to have family with us. Anyone with brothers who have already served missions are welcome to come over and hang out!!
So I guess that's about it. OH!!!!!!!! How could I forget! Douglas is turning 8 on May 4th and he will be getting baptized on May 31st. Our FHE will focus on baptism until then so we can prepare as much as possible.
I hope all is well with everyone. We love y'all so much and thank you for the continued prayers and encouragement!

Sam's 1st Birthday!!

Spring Break

So Spring Break was the last week of March and the last week of the kids track break. I was so ready for them to go back to school! We went to the Discovery Center which is the small equivilant to the Children's Museum in Houston. We had a big group from church go, so the kids had a blast. Luckily the rain let up and we were able to have a picnic at the park.