The Hall Family

Mothers Day

2011-05-09T10:21:00.000-07:00

My Mothers Day Gifts!

Garret & Russ made me the pink card, if you notice the red hair girl, thats me! Russ & Garret are the flowers. So cute! And Brennen gave me the spanish card, it sings a lovely tune in spanish & I don't know what they are singing, he does though & thinks he is really funny!

This was what Garret made me at school! I love when they write such cute things! He also made me some lillies from his hands, they are in the pot behind the cards.

Makenna gave me a chalkboard jar to write notes to each other on that she made in Activity Days & Todd gave me cash, he couldn't decide what to get me because according to him I already have everything so now I can go buy whatever I want! He has gotten a bit of a hard time over it, but it works for me!!

I was lucky enough to have my mom come & stay for a few days & that was the best gift ever, I love my mom & am so thankful for her & the way she taught me how to be a mom. She is the greatest & I wish she lived closer so we could spend more time together. We did get to go for some watchlett shopping, lunch, & pedicures while she was here.

On Sunday afternoon Todd's parents, Katie & Brandon, & cousin Clay came out for dinner. We had steak, shrimp, potatoes, squash from Skeeters garden, salad, & bread. Dessert was dirt cups made by Katie! Was fun to have everyone over & Im so thankful for a fantastic mother in law! We have a great relationship & I know that can be rare, but so glad it is that way & not the opposite!

I love being a mom and am so thankful for the kids that my Heavenly F ather has blessed me with! They mean everything to me! Some days it can be overwhelming, but then I will get that random hug, or they say or do something funny & that makes all the difference!

And...I'm back!

2011-04-08T00:22:00.000-07:00

Can I get a woot woot! Ok so I'm gonna try the blogging again. Its been bothering me for months now that I haven't had time to get on here & post something. So its been almost a year since the last post. Let's just say there is no getting that year back & trying to repeat it, that would take another year. So lets just jump past & I'll give you an update on our life, then maybe we can all understand why I don't have much xtra time these days!

Todd-Since the last post he was put in the YM's presidency, then about 2 months later he was called to be the 2nd counselor in the Bishopric, yes you heard right, Todd in the bishopric! He is still on the school board, running 2 successful businesses, & coaching Garret in baseball. We occassionally see each other here & there & make the most of date nights these days! So proud of the great guy he is & all that he does for our family!

Me-A few changes here & there for me over the past year also! One of the biggest reasons for my lack of blog posts is that I was put in as the Primary President back in June and that took over my world for several months. I am still serving as the Primary President, there was some talk about being released when they put Todd in but I pretty much told the bishopric & Stake pres my thoughts on that, obviously they decided to leave the redhead alone & let her serve! I love every minute of Primary & being able to spend time with the kids in our ward. So other big change in my life that has consumed a large chunk is my obsession with jeans and finding the PERFECT career for myself (like I currently need a career!) Back in July I had a "jean party" for a friend, well my love for denim couldn't let me stop thinking about how awesome it would be to have jeans all the time, so I became a consultant for Vault Denim and I quickly became a Regional Coordinator for the company & now I am also on the Executive Leadership Council. It has been a non stop jean party since August for the Hall family! I love every minute of it & am so happy I decided to turn my passion for jeans in to making some moola! Gets me out of the house a few hours a week & allows me to work from home & still feel successful & like a contributor to our financial needs (aka..wants!). On top of these 2 changes I continue of course to run kids to & from everything imaginable. I got a brand new suburban back in July...it had about 6 miles on it, it already has over 25K on it, safe to say we live in the car these days!

Brennen-He is going to be 16 in June, yes its true, he will be old enough to drive! Over the weekend he did his Eagle Scout project, he taught a CPR class. He got first aid & CPR certified & then he passed the course to become a CPR instructor so he could teach others. He did a great job & we are so proud of him for finally getting it done. Brennen is as fantastic as always. I couldn't ask for a better oldest child (cleaner maybe!). Always a strong example to the younger kids and always keeps us laughing or annoyed (he is good at both!). He has been asked to talk in our Stake Conference in a few weeks, 10-15 minutes on strength of youth. He is involved in everything possible so Im not even gonna try to list everything. Overall he is just an oustanding kid (minus the clean part!).

Makenna-Is going to be 12 in June. She is turning in to quite the little lady these days. Sometimes it makes me happy, sometimes it makes me sad! She is the best big sister you could imagine. Always helping out with the little ones & being their 2nd mom (sometimes she is the 1st mom & I have to remind them all I'm the real mom!) She is a great helper all around! Back in the fall she played volleyball on the school team & did really well, she loves volleyball & you very seldom see her without one. She made the softball team at her school & this is really her first time ever playing, well since tball when she was 4. She has done pretty good so far! She was playing the piano but recently quit because she just doesn't like it. This bums me out, but hopefully someday she will decide to do it again. She will get to go girls camp in June, this doesn't seem like it could happen already, but it is! She is excited & I'm excited for her! Makenna is an amazing daughter!

Garret-He is back to playing baseball. His first year with a pitching machine. He is playing catcher on & off & so far doing well with it! Garret is an interesting little boy! He is full of it & can be very moody, we really have to tiptoe around the boy sometimes! He is 6 & in kindergarten. We held him back because he turned 5 on the first day of school last year. So he is the oldest in his class & I think he likes that! He is super smart & is doing amazing in school. His teacher is always pushing him to learn more & he is eating it all up. He likes to ride his quad that Gpa Terry fixed for him & he likes to ride his bike. He is a great big brother 80% of the time! Garret is a fun boy & Im so glad he is part of our family!

Russ-Oh my little Russy! What can I say about him?? Depends on what day it is, we have a LOVE/HATE relationship! Russ has a mind of his own & is very hard to change. We typically go a few battle rounds every day! He is super smart & loves more than anything to go to work with dad. He loves work, I can take him to Todd & his Papa & he just wants to work all day. But it is probably lots of kids dream to have bigger than life loaders & dump trucks running around! He loves anything to do with loaders & haul trucks. He is at that age that he doesn't shut up, constantly talking talking talking! I love most every minute with Russ!

My little Laynee Bug-she is almost 19th months old & is now in nursery with Russ. She jibber jabbers all day long, however we don't understand anything she says! Occassionally she throws out a real word, her dad thinks she has a speech problem..I think she is a 19th month old who is sassy & just wants to talk all the time & be heard! Laynee & Russ like to fight, but I can also tell they are probably going to be really close. They are finally starting to play & she follows him everywhere. She is still a sweet girl & fills my heart with joy every time I get to rock her. It is safe to say with the little attitude she is growing lately, she will run the Hall household!

Razzy-yes an update on the dog. Sadly our boxer Razz has a mass tumor. She is 9 yrs old now which is pretty old for a boxer. We have chosen to just give her pain meds when we can tell she is having a bad day. Overall she is in great health for now, so we will just keep spending time with her & let her finish out her life and when we notice she isn't doing so great we will have to make a decision. She is the best boxer you could imagine!

So there's a little update on the Halls. Im going to TRY to do better with updates, even if they are small & simple.

Laynee Jo @ 7 months old

2010-05-25T18:59:00.000-07:00

It has come to my attention that I haven't really posted any pictures of my sweet Laynee! So I took her outside & snapped a few pictures of her today. She is going for a well check on Friday so I will post her standings then! She is probably at least 18 lbs if not more. She is sitting up all by herself & has been for about 2 weeks. She also has 4 teeth now! She still has dark brown hair, I thought it would turn blonde or lighten up but so far she is pretty dark with dark eyebrows & eyelashes & pretty brown eyes! She loves to sit & play with toys already & she just laughs & smiles at everything & everyone. Her favorite person is Garret, she just thinks he is fabulous, in fact he is the reason for most of her great smiles in the pictures. She has several nicknames, Layneebug, Naneebug, Nanee Jo, LJ, and the favorite is Pretty, she will always respond to a huge smile when she hears Pretty! She sleeps 10-12 hours every night (I know...I'm so lucky!) and usually takes a good 2-3 hr nap during the day. She loves rice cereal and pears, so far she isn't a fan of any other baby food but she does love cereal puffs and crackers and of course her bottle! She loves to kick & yell in the bath tub, we always come out soaking wet! There really isn't anything she doesn't like, she is always content as long as someone is around her. Heavenly Father truely blessed us with a perfect last baby! I couldn't possibly love her any more than I do!

School is OUT!!

2010-05-21T01:15:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited that school is out & summer can begin! I think we got our summer off to the right start today! Mak & her friends got home we picked Brennen up & went to Peter Piper for lunch & to hang out with friends (me @ Peter Piper with 8 kids...lol!). Then it was back home for a water balloon fight & playing in the water. They had so much fun. I must say that to watch Brennen & his friend Cutter (they will both be 15 this summer) still "play" with their younger siblings was pretty awesome. It was almost as if they were all in grade school again. Is amazing to think my oldest child will be 15 in a month. I'm hoping our summer is filled with more fun & exciting things. I feel like I have been a slacker since we have moved to Buckeye with taking them to do anything, so that is my goal, to try & make some fun memories this summer! We are super excited for our trip that we will be taking in July back to Ohio to see Aunt Lindy & Uncle Adam, Lexi, Nan, & Clint! We leave on July 4th & come home on the 14th! We can't wait! That will be the highlight of our summer I'm sure! So here's to a fantastic 2010 Summer!

Santa Monica Vacation

2010-05-14T00:27:00.001-07:00

In April I was able to go on a girls only trip to Santa Monica! It was so much fun, I had a blast & wish I could do that once a month! I went with 3 other girls. Trisha, who I have been friends with since 8th grade, Amy I have known all my life, I remember going to her house when I was in kindergarten, and Kellie who I only met a few weeks before the trip & honestly it felt like I have known her my entire life! Our trip started on a Wednesday night, Todd dropped me off at the freeway to see me off with them! We arrived in Burbank around 1:30am and was off to bed because we needed our beauty sleep for a big day at the Ellen show! We got up the next morning, visited, then got ready, drove for some lunch (it was about noon by this time) we ate at a restaurant near the WB Studios then headed over to check in for the show! After we got our tickets squared away we were told that Jennifer Lopez would be on the show!! We were so excited that it would be someone we liked. I have to say I don't regularly watch Ellen but I was fully aware of the dancing, and let me tell you what...that is all we did for what seemed like hours! Once they finally seated us in the audience it was time to dance and dance and dance some more. By the time she comes out & it is time to really dance you are exhausted! Anyway we totally got lucky because Kellie just happened to be like 8 months pregnant & they told her to sit in the aisle seat, I was next to her, & of course Ellen immediately comes to our row & dances with Kellie & rubs her belly! So yes, I was on tv, for a split second! Jennifer Lopez was just as beautiful in person (well as in person as I will ever get with her!) as she is on the movies & tv. She was fun to watch. The other people on the show that day were Norah Jones, a guy who was voted off American Idol, and a little girl that was on a new movie, can't remember her name. Anyway it was a great show & an awesome time, I would totally do it again! So after the show it was off to Santa Monica to find our hotel. We took a nice long drive down Santa Monica Blvd and enjoyed all the interesting scenery! We stayed at the Sheraton Del Fina, we were in walking distance to the beach. We got settled in then took a walk down to the Santa Monica Pier. We at at the Mexican Food place at the end of the pier, I don't recommend the salad (poor Kellie), anyway it was freezing cold when we came out so we got hot cocoa & walked back to our hotel where we stayed up half the night talking & laughing like a bunch of school girls. The next day we went to the spa for a day of pampering. It was so nice just to go & relax & do what I wanted for a change instead of tending to everyone else's needs! That night we went for sushi and sat on the patio & got to see David & Victoria Beckham! They walked right past us in to the restaurant next door! So that was fun. Then we went & walked around the outdoor mall area & watched the street performers beg for money, then went to the movie & seen Date Night & laughed so hard I cried! Saturday we went to Malibu beach & ate lunch & hung out on the beach for awhile, then we went shopping for the rest of the afternoon. We ended up in some cupcake shop for like 3 hours talking, they probably thought we were nuts, I just think it was amazing I only ate 1 cupcake! Our last night we ate at The Lobster, I had some super yummy salmon & we just enjoyed our last night together. Next morning we had to get ready to head back home, always a bummer to have to leave a fun time, but our families were missing us & I think we were all starting to miss them...a little anyway! All in all it was an amazing trip & I'm so glad to have great friends & especially glad to have a husband who was more than willing to do whatever so I could go & enjoy myself for a few days & have some time off from being mom!

The Rattlesnake

2010-05-13T23:59:00.001-07:00

So a few Sundays ago we were driving home from feeding pigs & came upon a rattlesnake in the road. Todd deals with them pretty regularly so he decides to run it over a few times. We randomly had a mop bucket in the back of my yukon so they decide to take it home because it is pretty good size & has 11 buttons on it & that is like a trophy & needed to be cut off. So he gets some tire changing tool & picks the snake up & puts it in the mop bucket, the kids all gather around & he starts stabbing it just to make sure it is dead. I stayed in the car giving my mom a play by play because I happened to be talking to her when we came upon the snake. Todd puts the snake in the back of the car & we drive home. We get home & he dumps the snake out & much to his surprise the stupid thing was still alive and starts striking at him!! (For the record Todd kills rattlesnakes all the time, he isn't a total idiot & doesn't know anything about rattlesnakes, he really thought it was dead!) I'm a little freaked out that we drove home with a rattlesnake alive in the mop bucket, stupid! So he chops its head off & get it to do its last strike & throw the head away. In the meantime he lets the kids handle the snake because it is still moving all over the place headless, it was pretty nasty. All the kids held it including Russ. Garret wasn't going to but they finally talked him in to it. Makenna had the camera & took a bazillion pictures of the nasty thing. After playing with it forever they took it over the fence in to our bishops hay field & coiled it up by a fence post to look like it was alive. Was an eventful Sunday afternoon! The joys of living in the desert farm lands!

Gila Valley Temple Open House

2010-05-13T23:34:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend we were able to take the kids to Pima to go to the Gila Valley Temple Open House. It worked out nice that my brother Michael lives there & that we were able to make it a family gathering for the weekend! My parents and brother Pat & his family were all there. So the whole Powers family got to tour the temple together. It was such a neat experience. I had been hoping that my kids would be able to feel the spirit & know the importance of temples. They really enjoyed it, looking around at all the pictures, and the main thing they will probably always remember is the beautiful chandeliers, they just couldn't get over how huge they were & sparkly. I think it was neat for Mak to go in the brides room to see what it looks like. My brothers were teasing Brennen that this would be his only time to go in the brides room. They let just our family go in to the small sealing room & we were able to all look in the never ending mirrors as a family, it was pretty awesome! I'm glad that we were able to take our kids & share the experience & importance of temples with them, I hope it is something they will always remember! And no...I didn't get any pictures, bummer!

Unexpected Problem!

2010-05-06T01:06:00.000-07:00

This was after they got all the yucky stuff out.

This was our only huge unexpected problem that came up. Right before we closed on the house we noticed there was some paint that was wet & peeling above the back door. This was during the time we had some major rain storms so we knew immediately we had a leak. As soon as we closed on the house Todd started in on cutting the drywall in that area & we were shocked to find that the leak had been there awhile, the drywall & boards were all covered in mold, ick! So we had to take all of it out & redo the framing & drywall & of course fix the leak in the roof. Once they were done it was good as new!

Before - Family Room

2010-05-06T00:54:00.000-07:00

The main color of the house was green. The bead board was cream, my brain had a hard time with the cream & the white baseboards, so we had to change that!

The door that the pathway is leading to is a bathroom & then through the large entryway on the left is the office which is still not done or organized yet.

After - Family Room

2010-05-06T00:42:00.000-07:00

We painted the entire house, in the family room we kept the bead board because it went with the look & flow going in to the kitchen area & painted it a darker color for some contrast. We added the chandelier and had to rip out some drywall that wasn't smooth & was bumpy & looked really bad. I'm going to get new blinds eventually.

Kitchen - Before

2010-05-06T00:33:00.001-07:00

The wet bar area, the ice maker is now in the empty space there.

Had to say goodbye to that nice red fan!

As you can see changing the color from green to a neutral brown really changed the overall feel of the house. It now feels warm & inviting.

Kitchen - After Shots

2010-05-06T00:10:00.000-07:00

The banquet seating area

In the kitchen we didn't have to do a whole lot and I really love my kitchen. We took out the fan & replaced it with a light that I'm not totally in love with, but it works. We took out another fan in the eating area & put in a hanging light. We put the crown moulding on all the cabinets, which really made a difference. Todd put in the reverse osmosis & also hooked up the ice maker which is in a wetbar area between the kitchen & dining room for all our drinking needs! I am going to put in a backsplash, I have all the materials, it just hasn't happened yet and also replace the kitchen faucet. It has one of those huge farmhouse sinks. Everyone thinks it is so cool, I however am not in love with it all that much, I am finally getting used to it though, it looks cool if anything! There is a banquet seating area that I made cushions & pillows for. Some day we will put a table in there. It will have to be custom made though because the size you need is odd to fit the space & a regular table will be to wide & cut in to the walkway.

Makenna's Room

2010-05-05T23:25:00.000-07:00

Before - shrek green & turquoise blue

Makenna's new vanity. This is actually her side of a Jack n Jill bathroom, however she refuses to use the rest of it & share with Brennen.

Her new room consists of lots of zebra print

So I got creative & wallpapered the tops of her dresser & nightstand. I was shocked at how fabulous it turned out if I do say so myself!

No more shrek for this girl! She had to have the zebra & cheetah prints & the pinks & blacks. It really does look fantastic. So far every girl who has walked in there loves it!

Extra Bathroom Renovation

2010-05-05T23:07:00.000-07:00

Before

After

We redid the hall/extra bath. Took out all the flooring, ripped out the shower walls & put tile down. Put in new lighting. The tub was super nasty & we talked about putting a new tub in but Todd said no way, no new tub, once the tile was done in the shower I was totally bummed I didn't get a new tub, however when I was at Walmart I found the Mr. Clean Bathroom Eraser, what a miracle worker!! There was rust stains & just nastyness in the tub & all of it came off. Saved me quite a bit a money there, thanks Mr. Clean! I still need a nicer mirror. This bathroom is used mainly by Makenna & the little boys.

Laundry Room

2010-05-05T22:49:00.000-07:00

After
Before

We had to revamp the laundry room a bit. It was set up for the front loading washer/dryer. I don't have those because Todd refuses to buy them. There was a counter top that was over the top of the front loading, we had to take that counter top out & make a spot for my old school washer/dryer. It turned out nicer than I imagined! There is lots & lots of counter space & cabinets, the picture doesn't do it justice! We still need to get the laundry sink put in. We replaced all the tile in the laundry room too.

More Master Bath Photos

2010-05-05T22:34:00.000-07:00

This is the floor of the shower right after they were done grouting it.

This is after the tub was framed in.

This is a circle mosaic on our floor in the center of the bathroom.

This the doorway into the shower.

Master Bathroom - Our Biggest Renovation

2010-05-05T21:34:00.000-07:00

This is the shower, it is huge with a large bench inside and was wrapped in the glass blocks that I am not fond of. We ripped out the whole thing & basically started over.
Here is the inside now, no more plastic looking walls & stained bench.

Here is a good shot of what I called the eye soarer glass blocks. I know some people really like that look & it really is costly, but I just wasn't fond of it. If you look you can see that we ripped out all the tile flooring in the bathroom too. We also took out the fan that was in there & just replaced it with a nice updated light.

This is the after of the jetted tub we put in. We still need a cover for the motor in the corner. It looks super nice now that there is a tub there!

Here is the before picture of where the tub is. The previous owners never finished the plumbing or put a tub in. They had a freestanding tub sitting in the corner, but not hooked up, so this is what it looked like. I wasn't very fond of bead board in the bathroom either. The only thing we still have to do is order mirrors, right now we are just using the ones that were in the house when we bought it, but I want something more custom but haven't found anything I love yet. (sorry for the order the pics posted in, backwards of what I wanted!)

Garret and Tball

2010-05-05T12:04:00.000-07:00

Garret has been playing tball again, this is his first time to be in Little League. They are called the River Dogs. Todd & his papa Ken are his coaches again. He is an awesome player & is one of the best on the team. He really seems to enjoy playing. These pics are from opening day back in March.

Todd's new Peterbilt Trucks

2010-05-05T11:45:00.000-07:00

These are the newest additions to Trio Aggregate Haulers. They now have 4 trucks & trailers. Todd was born in to a trucking family, but he isn't a trucker, he doesn't have a CDL either, but now he owns some. These trucks are Russ's, the other 2 are Garret's, and you can bet that if my boys see them on the road they know it is their truck! Brainwashing starts at a young age in this family!

Finally, some pictures of the new house!

2010-05-05T10:28:00.000-07:00

This is the before picture.

This is the after picture!

This is my entryway chandelier, I found it at Lamps Plus, I went on their website & it seriously was the first one I saw, I loved it! We ended up buying 2 of them, 1 for the entry & 1 for the family room because we have like 20 ft ceilings. We still haven't finished the moulding around the front door, we have to put a window in above the door because on the outside above the door is a big empty framed in square for a window. That was on Todd's list, looks like I'm going to have to take charge to get it done!

Our View

2010-05-05T10:22:00.000-07:00

This is the beautiful view right off our back porch. We get to look at the mountains & the green hayfields all the time.

Field Trip to the Zoo

2010-05-04T03:31:00.000-07:00

Garret had his preschool field trip to the Wildlife World Zoo. Grandma Skeet came with us & we had a pretty good time. I had debated on whether to even go because last year Garret was such a pain & he didn't enjoy it at all & just wanted to leave. I finally decided to go ahead & take him. Again he didn't enjoy himself, he doesn't think animals are cool I guess, he suffered through! On the other hand Russ really seemed to like it, so at least it wasn't a total waste! We ate lunch at the restaurant there, we were able to sit out on the patio & watch the stinky flamingos. All in all it was a good day. Little miss Laynee was asleep for most of the trip, a great way for a baby to spend the day at the zoo!

Carnie time @ the fair

2010-05-04T03:18:00.001-07:00

We always spend Friday riding rides & letting the kids do all the carnival stuff. This is my least favorite day because of the nasty germ factor, but the kids love it. This year wasn't so bad though. Brennen spent time with us & the little boys riding rides. He is a big chicken for the big rides so I think hanging with us was his excuse to not have to look lame to his friends for not riding the big stuff! Garret & Russ had a great time. Mak was with her friends and ended up getting sick & had to go back to the trailer to lay down. She went back out after feeling better & later that evening she got sick again & puked, however this didn't stop her from riding more rides, crazy girl!

Garret & Russ Bull Riding

2010-05-04T03:09:00.001-07:00

We walked by this mechanical bull daily & the boys were always begging to ride it so finally Todd let them. Garret almost chickened out though. Russ was all about it, he climbed up on it & went to town. Once Garret seen that Russ was doing it & wasn't scared he decided to step it up & not be a chicken so he got on it. I'm thinking Russ may be the little bull rider Todd has always wanted!

2010 County Fair

2010-05-04T02:39:00.001-07:00

Mak showing Mustache & her bff Taylor with her pig
Brennen showing his hamp

Brennen got pinned during showmanship

Mak with Mustache again

This year the kids did pretty good at county fair. They each placed in the top 5 of their class in market & then they each were in the top 18 out of over 60 kids in showmanship. We were proud of how well they did. Everyone seemed to have a great time & I was glad to get back home after a week at the fairgrounds!

Hall Update

2010-04-05T13:22:00.000-07:00

So I have been trying to post pictures of the new house but blogger keeps freezing up my computer during the downloading & I just haven't had time to do it another way. So those will come when I get time, whatever that is! It's been so long since I did a post, we are still alive & kicking, here is what we are up to these days.

Todd-Busy, busy, busy! He is now running 2 companies, both of which seem to take up a lot more time than I like, but I try not to complain to much. He is also coaching Garret in Little League Tball. Between work, church calling, tball, & pigs I don't hardly see him! He is also starting on the dirtwork for the landscaping. We have irrigation so he has quite a bit of leveling off he has to do, he can't wait to get things really going & get the grass planted.

Me-I'm pretty busy myself, right now I have 12 real estate clients & I'm sure that everyone will find that perfect house all within the same week so I'm running around like a mad person! I've been slowly working on decorating the house, I burned myself out quickly in the beginning because I had to quickly get as much done as I could because I did a baby shower 1 week after moving in! So I have finally gotten excited about getting things finished. Next week I'm going on a girls only trip to Santa Monica! So excited for that, it is going to be so awesome to just relax for a few days! This week is county fair, & why I am blogging I don't know, I have so much to be getting ready, but I'm just not excited to get everything ready. We pack our 5th wheel up & spend the week at the Maricopa County Fairgrounds, I know, totally redneck thing to do, but the kids love it & 4H is so much fun for them! I spend most of my days cleaning up the same rooms over & over & over. Is amazing what a naughty little bored 2 year old is capable of, another reason why I can't blog much, Russ tears the house down!

Brennen-Same stuff for him. This will be his first year showing FFA instead of 4H @ county fair. He had his phone taken away for a month & a half for lousy grades, but he managed to get them back up, now where they stand right now I dunno! He had to get bottom braces back on because he isn't capable of wearing a retainer I guess, so after they are straight again he will be getting a permanent one in. He is growing like a weed & I'm pretty sure he is taller than me by an inch or so. His voice sounds more like his Dad's. In fact I'm having a hard time getting used to another man voice in the house, I'm always thinking Todd is home until I see Brennen.

Makenna-Had AIMS testing today, she was up at 5:30 ready to go, she is my early riser, crazy child! I hear her getting a bowl of cereal & was thinking why in the world is she up this early, well she did set her clock an hour early! She is super excited for county fair. She just got these shiny strips of "hair" put in her hair, I'm not sure what they are even called, honestly it looks like tinsel for the tree tied in her hair, it looks super cool though, I will have to take a pic of it. There is like 6 tiny strands of them, so when her hair moves you can see them, it is just enough to wonder what is in her hair, apparently this is all the rage...I dunno, I've never heard of it! She is growing up so quickly I just can't stand it, before long she will be headed out the door on her first date!

Garret-Just finishing up his last month of preschool. He has graduation on the 27th. I feel like he is so far ahead of all the other kids he is with, but he is a year older than most of them. Miss Pammy says he is more than ready for Kindergarten which we got him registered for last week, he is really excited for that. He is playing tball again & loves it so much. He calls himself the power hitter of the team. He is one of the better players that's for sure! He loves to play the WII, he spends most of the day playing it. I have to fight him for the WII Fit!

Russ-Causing commotion all over the place. Let's just say this boy is beyond the terrible 2's. He is the biggest crack up & is talking so good. If I could just keep him out of stuff that would be great! He loves to go go go. You can't get away with putting shoes on & him not immediately running to your side & say I wanna go with mom. He has been that way forever, now he can just be more vocal about it. We are just about ready to start potty training with him, I think we will take a stab at it in May.

Laynee-She is the most amazing precious little baby ever! I love her so much, she is just amazing to me, I can never get enough of her. She is happy ALL the time! Never cries, even when she tries to cry she really can't do it all that well. She is getting to be quite the chunk. She is 17 lbs, that was 2 weeks ago, she may be like 18 or 19 now! She wakes up every morning looking even fatter! She is starting to eat food now & really likes it. She also is close to sitting up. She grabs everything in sight & can roll over. Her brothers & sister love her so much, we all do, she is just the funnest thing around!

So there you have it a small update on our happenings around here. I will try to post pics when I have more time, which won't be for the next month at least!

15 Years & Counting!

2010-01-28T12:12:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrate 15 years of marriage!

It's amazing to me how quickly time has gone by but when I stop & really think about the past 15 years I realize we have been through a lot! I think of everything we have accomplished, all the good times, all the bad times, the births of our 5 kids, and all the different "lives" we have lived, and most importantly how much our love for each other & our eternal bond has increased in these past 15 years. How lucky I am to have such an amazing husband who works so hard to provide a good life for our family and to give us all the things we need to survive this life & for the strength & support he is to me. If I had it to do all over again...would I?! You bet your life I would. I believe we are who we are because of each other and we were meant to be together on this journey we call life and I wouldn't want to do it with anybody else!

The New House...FINALLY!!

2010-01-26T23:12:00.000-08:00

So after a long month of fighting with our lender we were finally able to sign papers & call the house our own! For a while we didn't think it was going to happen, we had several problems arise from the appraisal and the property location & comparable properties. We spent a lot of time on our knees over this one, and I guess it was meant to be, we just had to be patient!

We won't be moving in for a few weeks, we have painting, remodeling bathrooms, tile work, and lots of cleaning to get done before we can finally move in. I'm so excited & can't wait. I am going to try & take lots of pictures so I have some good before & afters to post. As you can see by the pictures it isn't your typical desert style home but we love the fact that it is different. It is surrounded by hay fields and is only about 1/2 a mile from where we currently live. We are so glad to be able to stay in our ward & stay in Palo Verde because we love it! The home is quite a bit larger than anything I have ever had before and cleaning is probably going to suck, but we need as much space as we can get these days! More than anything I am excited to finally have a place to call our own! It has been almost 3 years ago that we sold our house & moved to Buckeye & started renting, we did luck out in being patient because we feel like we got an amazing deal on the place and it is right where we want to be.

Russ's Wound

2010-01-13T13:56:00.001-08:00

This was during the freaking out stage because Garret was riding his motorcycle!
This was well after the incident right before blowing out his candles. It doesn't look to bad in the pictures but up close it was pretty nasty because it slit his skin & then white puffy skin was sticking out. He is all good today though, I'm sure he will have a nice scar, we probably should have just taken him for a few stitches!

Birthday #2 for Russ

2010-01-13T13:22:00.001-08:00

Russ before the party started, he is wearing Garret's old boots that are huge on him, but he doesn't care, that is all he wants to wear is boots these days!

Sitting with his #2 cake, that's as creative as I seem to get anymore!

His toy from Grandma & Papa a CAT haul truck that makes noise & goes on its own.

His present from Mom & Dad, a push motorcycle

Blowing out his candles. (Notice the slash on his eyebrow?!)

So for Russ's 2nd birthday we didn't do anything to exciting but it was fun. Papa & Grandma came over & brought pizza & wings for dinner. We ate, then opened presents, then we had cake & ice cream. Between the opening of presents & the cake we had a bit of an accident which brings us back to the slash on his eyebrow! He was going down the hallway on that new fancy motorcycle & lost his balance & toppled it over. Of course he can't just land on the tile, that would be to easy, his glasses hit the tile baseboard & the frame slashes his eyebrow open. I am so used to the boys getting hurt & screaming so we hear his scream & I just sit there on the couch like here we go...again. Gma Skeet races to the hallway to check on him & starts yelling there is blood to which me & Todd immediately hop up to the rescue. The poor guy was bleeding pretty good. We get him rested on the counter & are trying to clean him up & get the bleeding to stop, well he is just screaming, not because he is hurt but because we have taken him away from his new toy & now Garret is on it. We finally get him cleaned up & are contemplating whether to take him in for stitches or not, Todd finally decides that he is a boy & it is right in the middle of his eyebrow so he will be fine. In the mean time he is back on the motorcycle & could care less that he just slashed his eyebrow open & we can see white flesh sticking out! So then it is time for cake & ice cream, well we had taken the glasses off because they took a beating on that crash & one of the arms was all jacked up. He goes to blow his candles out & since he is farsighted, what does he do, he gets closer & closer & closer to the flames & finally it is hot enough on his lip that he jumps back & out goes the candle & he is thinking maybe that hurt & he should cry, but he didn't, he just sat there looking at it & Garret blew the other one out. Meanwhile Papa, Grandma, Todd & I, are laughing so hysterically that we can't say a word, Todd finally says are we stupid, poor kid can't see 2 inches in front of him & we put him in front of flames with no glasses & say blow them out! Duh! Anyway it was an eventful birthday night for Russ!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-05T11:34:00.001-08:00

This year was a pretty low key Christmas it seemed. At the beginning of the month we got together with my side of the family & had a Christmas party after our family pictures. We did it at Pat & Megan's house, I think it was a great way to start the month off! The kids had drawn names about a month before and they did a gift exchange, probably the cutest & sweetest thing was when Garret opened his present from Sara (they have always been super close & best friends) it was a box full of paper airplane making supplies, he was so excited, he jumped up & grabbed her in a huge hug, seriously it wanted to make me cry seeing them this way. So Garret had picked Sara's name & she opened her present from him & it was the same thing, just great big hugs to each other! I hope they stay this close because it just makes us all smile to watch them together! Us adults did a white elephant give exchange, can I just say I totally suck at buying white elephant gifts!! I didn't have a clue what to buy. The fancy gift I ended up getting was from Pat, just want to give a public thank you to him for the fantastic whoopee cushion. He splurged & got the self inflating one, you didn't even have to blow it up with your mouth it just automatically filled up on it's own, ready to fflllaaaarrrtt over & over. My little boys got the biggest kick out of that. The Snuggie was a big hit too, but the funniest thing was the Cuddlee, I bet nobody even knew there was a knock off of the Snuggie, my mom found it at the dollar store! So Michael & Clarice ended up with a Snuggie & a Cuddlee, the pictures were a crack up (to bad they got deleted!). Anyway it was a great time.

We had our ugly Christmas Sweater Party again this year. Our turn out was a little lame this year as I guess we were competing with other parties that were much be better than ours?! Like that's possible?! Anyway Todd went all out this year. The day of the party he went to the mexican clothes store in downtown Buckeye which will now become his fav store for his work shirts I am sure. Anyway he managed to find some light blue polyester Wranglers, of course he bought them on the tight side (nerd). His ugly sweater this year was purchased on ebay, it was a lovely royal blue with a Christmas tree on it, presents underneath & a fantastic cat that was batting at the presents. The best part was the shoulder pads, he looked so funny! To top off the outfit he had been growing his hair out for awhile & he shaved the top of his hair & left the sides & the back so it looked like he was bald with a receeding hair line, then he took hair gel & the blow dryer & fluffed it straight out. Holy cow!! Talk about a laugh, I couldn't even look at him without laughing. He also did some fancy shave job on his face, was a little on the creepy side. Before we ate he was thanking everyone for coming over & he is being all serious & we all just start laughing because we couldn't take him seriously. He ended up winning the grand prize, I must say he deserved it. What a crack up! I think Brennen took some pics with his phone, I will find them & add to the post because they are so stinking funny! Anyway the sweater party was a great time.

Christmas Eve we spent with the Hall's. It was so low key & quiet. Todd's sisters Lindy & Mattie decided that they should live across the country & have moved. Lindy to Ohio & Mattie to Missouri. So they weren't able to come. It was just Todd's parents, us, Katie & her boyfriend (hopefully fiance soon!) Brandon. We ate dinner, had Navajo tacos & chicken enchiladas, yummy. Then we opened gifts, they gave us a Wii, which we love & the kids play non stop. Afterwards Skeeter had bought this peppermint pig, can't remember what it is actually called but it comes with a metal hammer & a bag. Everybody takes a turn hitting the pig with the hammer and breaking it. Then everybody takes a piece of the broken candy & tells about their good fortune for the past year. Is supposed to help with bringing good luck for the new year. Everyone went around the room, Katie & Brennen were last & of course they made us all cry with what they had to say. It was a great night, quiet but great! We got home from there & cleaned house & got things ready for Santa's arrival. We had done a gift exchange within our family & decided to open them up before going to bed & saying 1 nice thing about the person they bought a gift for. This is the time when my camera took a dump & it really ruined the moment for me because I was so frustrated. Todd had Laynee & gave her some little toys, I had Mak and got her a new Tachikara Volleyball because she starts her vball league this week, Brennen had Russ & got him some CAT heavy equipment toys, Mak had me & she got me some photo albums (for the lost pictures!), Garret had Brennen & he got him the Micro Smores maker, Russ had Garret & got him Tony Hawk DS game, & Laynee had Todd & got him a male manicure set because he can never find clippers! By the time the kids went to bed it was midnight & we figured Santa was going to fly on over the Hall house!

Christmas Day started at 5am for us. Santa brought some great gifts for the Hall kids this year. Brennen got his first shot gun, Mak got an electric Razor scooter, Garret got a new bike, Russ got a powerwheels Jeep, Laynee got a few more toys. The kids were so excited they wanted to immediately open all the gifts, so we did at 5am. It was all said & done by 5:45 & me & Todd went back to bed until about 7:30. It was a fun morning. Later that day Todd's parents came over to see what the kids got & visit for awhile. Then around 6 my parents came & we had steak for dinner & Christmas again with them. They stayed for a few days afterwards. The kids had a great time & got plenty of stuff. I would have to say it was a fun Christmas having 5 kids! Next year will probably be even better with Laynee being older, I can't wait!

So that is our Christmas 2009 in a nutshell & a half...sadly with no pictures :(

Totally Bummed...

2010-01-05T11:29:00.000-08:00

So our camera died on Christmas Eve, how convenient is that?! The greatest part about the camera dieing is that all the pictures I had taken over the past few months...DELETED...I still don't understand how the files got deleted from the memory card, but they did and now my memories of Christmas 2009 are gone, not to mention Laynee's blessing pictures with her dad, our ugly sweater party pictures, pictures from our family party at Pat & Meg's house, Christmas Eve at Todd's parents house, horrible! So until I get a new camera, hopefully this week some time, I don't have any pictures to post :(

Laynee's 2 month check up

2009-12-17T06:30:00.001-08:00

Layneebug had her 2 month check up on Tuesday. She was 11 lbs 5 oz & 22 3/4 inches long. Poor thing had to get 3 shots & drink some nasty stuff. She did pretty good though. Saddest part was she was giving the "nice" nurse a huge smile & showing off her cute dimple & then the nurse had to stick her, it was horrible. I just can't handle watching them get shots, it is just so sad, but hopefully it will protect her from something worse, that is the only thing that gets me through!

A few things about her at 2 months:

She never cries unless she is hungry & even at that her cries are so small, she never seems to get overly frustrated if I don't get the bottle to her immediately.

She smiles all the time, especially when I call her my pretty girl. She is a very pretty girl and by the time she is 2 I'm sure she will be convinced she is the prettiest thing around because everyone calls her pretty.

She loves her swing, it is so great to have a baby who likes it. The last 2 boys hated it, they freaked out when I put them in it. She would swing 24/7 if everyone didn't love holding & loving on her so much!

She drinks about 5 oz every feeding which is about every 3-4 hours. She is such a calm bottle drinker. I was so used to fat Russ, at 2 months he was already 14 lbs & counting and he could suck down an 8 oz bottle at 2 months like he was never getting another one! She is just sweet & petite & takes her sweet time.

She loves bath time, she has never once cried during her bath, not even when we first brought her home. She just lays there & smiles.

Best of all she is sleeping through the night and has been for about 2 weeks now. She is doing 6-8 hr stretches, it is fantastic.

It is easy to brag on her because so far she has been the perfect baby! I am so glad I convinced her dad we had no choice but to give her life because she makes our life complete & she is so amazing to me!

Family Update

2009-12-14T00:02:00.000-08:00

I have been again...such a slacker with my blogging over the past few months! Here is a little of what's going on in our world!

Probably the most exciting news is that we found a house & will FINALLY be moving in to our own place!! We are scheduled to close Jan 11th. We have a few things to do to the place and will plan on moving in the end of Jan. I am so excited! It wasn't our original plan, we wanted to build, but that wasn't going to happen. And with home prices so low we couldn't pass up this house that came along. It is only about a mile south of where we are now, so we are really excited that we get to stay in the same area & be close to our friends and the school & work. I will post pictures of the place once it is finally ours. Probably do some before/after shots!

Todd-Working hard as usual, just started up company #2, Trio Aggregate Haulers, a trucking company, who starts up a new business in this economy...apparently my husband does, wish him luck with that...please!! He is still on school board, is the 11 yr old scout leader, and a dedicated dad to his 5 kids! It is also pig season now, so he will be spending lots of time with the kids at the pig barn.

Me-Busy trying to juggle the 5 kids schedules and doing quite a bit of real estate, trying to get some Christmas shopping done, and keeping up with everything around me that has to be done, I get tired of the never ending cycle of keeping up with the housework & laundry, it is never ending & consumes more of my life than it is worth! I am ready for a maid, I have told Todd I am getting one when we move, he says no way, but he would never know if I was doing the cleaning or someone else, so it looks like someone else will be, anyone know a good maid in Buckeye?! I suppose it is safe to say that being a mom has become my new hobby, some days not by choice, but most of the time it is! I am amazed at how quickly my days pass by & keep wondering where has the time gone & wishing I had more hours in the day to get stuff done.

Brennen-Living that freshman life! Spending time texting really lame things back & forth, student council, FFA, and whatever else he can get involved with that would make me have to drive to town 100 times a week! He had an amazing experience today, he went to stake conference (we did not) he was an usher. We got a new stake presidency today & it just so happened that who they put in as the 2nd counselor is in our ward & we are friends with them & he was the one who took Brennen to stake conference and was also bringing him home. They allowed Brennen to be in the room while they did the setting apart of the presidency! It was Quentin L. Cook that was here, what an awesome experience, he said the spirit was so amazing and he got to shake his hand twice. I was so glad he chose to go & was able to have that opportunity,what an amazing priesthood strengthening experience for him. Anyway he is a great kid who is trying his hardest to follow the straight & narrow!

Makenna-We just got her signed up for a volleyball team & the games start in a month. She is pretty excited. The girl is completely obsessed with volleyball, it is attached to her wherever she goes. You hardly recognize her if she isn't bumping a ball! I'm excited for her to start playing, I will be an assistant coach, it has been so long since I played, but I loved it almost as much as she does! It is pig season, so she goes to the pig barn several times a week to feed, and muck out the pens and she loves every minute of it, cracks me up! She scoops that pig poop into the wheel barrow & walks it out to the dump like nobodies business! She puts the boys to shame when it comes to hard work, she has a touch of her dad in her when it comes to that! She is doing super good in school, all A's. She is the biggest helper I have around here, without her my life would be 100 times harder! She is amazing with the boys & with Laynee, I can always count on her to get things done for me.

Garret-Tball is over and he is now obsessed with baseball and can't wait for Little League to start now that he will be old enough in the spring. He is in preschool & is doing great. I think it has been a little hard for him because he is already 5 & some of the kids are barely 4 so he feels like they are babies, his dad keeps trying to convince me holding him back will be the best for him. He loves to play his Nintendo DS & is really good at it. His new thing is riding bikes, his is just to small so he has been riding Mak's bike everywhere. I told him he should ask Santa for a new bike, he says, mom, I just can't do that to my bike, it would make him feel bad. So I try explaining the bike has no feelings, it will be fine. He wasn't convinced, so I told him it will be ok because Russ can have the bike, that made things ok, so now he wants a big bike! He is a crack up, we never know what the kid is going to say, not to mention he talks with a hick accent that people are always asking us about. Todd says it is a Hatch thing, I dunno bout that!

Russ- He finally got his glasses, talk about a pain, we keep losing them. We had to use the warranty in the first week of him wearing them. On the 2nd pair in a month! He is now doing really good with them & has learned to give them to someone if he doesn't want them on anymore. He looks so stinking cute with them on. He is talking so good now. I asked him if he wanted a hamburger to eat, he says no, chicken nugget. It was pretty funny cuz we weren't expecting anything but a yes or no. He is doing really good putting words together and figuring things out. He is obsessed with going on rides, you can't say the word ride or go, he freaks out & is to the door because he can't be left out. He loves to be on the go, if we are in the car going somewhere he is happy. He is a lot of fun and has adjusted to Nanee Jo (as he calls her) pretty good. He is almost 2 but it seems like he is 4 because he is pretty good size for his age & he just thinks he can do everything Garret does. He keeps me busy and on my toes all day, terrible 2's have arrived!

Laynee- Lately we call her Laynee Bug (like ladybug), she is the sweetest baby you could ever have! She hardly cries and sleeps through the night for the most part and she is the prettiest baby! I also call her mamma's pretty, and she always smiles when I call her that! She is growing so fast it makes me sad, since she is the last I just want her to stay little forever! We have her 2 month check up on Tuesday, I am guessing she is around 11 lbs or so. Her eyes keep changing, one day they look dark blue, the next they look brown, her hair is still dark dark & she hasn't lost any of it, not sure if she will or not! She is fabulous & I am so so thankful that we had her!

Well now we are semi up to date on our happenings! I still have so many other things I want to post, but just haven't had the time, it is 1:45am, this is the only time I have to accomplish anything in a quiet house, who needs sleep anyway, it is over rated!

Family Pictures

2009-12-13T23:54:00.001-08:00

It was a little chilly & Russ had to borrow Todd's coat, darn kid wouldn't smile,

but he sure is handsome isn't he!
The Powers Family 2009

My parents with the grandkids

Me & an "old gray haired guy" I picked up

This is us, complete! I love to look at pictures with all of us & know that

this is our finished family!

This is a photo shoot from last weekend. Again, my cousin Rinna, she is amazing, call her if you need pictures, she does such a great job, I love them all!

Laynee's Baby Blessing

2009-12-07T08:17:00.000-08:00

Our Laynee Jo on her special day! She was like a little angel in her blessing dress, she was so sweet! Is hard to believe today she is 8 weeks old already, where has the time gone?! She is smiling so much for us & has been our best baby so far. Her blessing dress is actually the same dress that I wore for my blessing & Makenna wore for hers, so it is 31 years old! Todd did a great job giving her a blessing. It was a perfect day! I will have more photos soon! (thanks Rinna!)

Hospital Pictures of Laynee

2009-10-17T14:43:00.001-07:00

My cousin Rinna took these fantastic pictures of Laynee at the hospital, I just had to post them, they are so great! This was a few hours after she was born.

Laynee is finally here!!

2009-10-15T10:50:00.000-07:00

The long awaited arrival of Laynee Jo is finally over!

She was born on Monday, October 12, 2009 at 6:42 pm,

She weighed 7 lbs 7.5 oz and was 18.75 inches long.

She is perfect in every way! She has really dark hair, which was shocking

to us all,she doesn't look like any of our other babies who had fuzzy reddish

blonde hair. She has a darker complexion than the other kids did, so I keep

looking at her & thinking is this really one of our babies?! So far

she has been fantastic! We got to come home from the hospital on Tuesday

night, we didn't arrive home until 9:30ish and the kids were going crazy because

they hadn't been able to see her yet because the hospital wouldn't let even siblings

in because of RSV & Swine flu. We were so excited to finally have her home. She

has slept super good, only waking up once during the night to eat & we have

only heard her sweet little cry a few times. I am so glad she is finally here & we can

now say our family circle is complete, fifth & final is what Todd tells everyone!

What's Missing?

2009-10-09T21:54:00.000-07:00

My bag is packed, dresser is full, diapers are stacked, crib is ready, carseat is awaiting something to sit in it, laundry done for a week, pantry & fridge stocked, house cleaned, arrangements made...hmmm...I am starting to wonder if she is ever going to make her appearance. I have never been more prepared to bring a baby home than this time!

I have to brag a little...I did make her crib bedding & I am very proud of it!

Russ Gets Glasses!

2009-10-09T21:38:00.000-07:00

So my sweet little Russ is now my sweet "special" Russ! We found out this week that his vision isn't so good. (Maybe the bruise on the forehead gives it away?!) For the past few months he has been having a hard time with his left eye & has been going cross eyed, not all the time, but more often than you would like to see your kid go cross eyed! We thought at first it was just a phase, however after a few months realized it had to be more than that. After a visit to the pediatrician we were sent to a Pediatric Eye Specialist who informed us that he is very much farsighted. We took him to another place to get his glasses. These are a pair he tried on, not the pair he will be getting, the bridge is way to dorky for my kid, (sorry if anyone out there has these ones!) We are still patiently waiting for the vision center to get in the frames we picked out so we can try them out & get his lenses ordered. Probably will be at least another week I suppose. He did really well trying them on & never yanked them off. It was kinda sad when Todd put the lenses up to his eyes that matched the prescription he needs because he looked right at me & reached out trying to touch me! Almost like hey thats what you look like! Anyway I think he is going to be the cutest little kid around once he gets his new glasses! Will post a new picture when he gets his new cool glasses!

Laynee's Baby Shower

2009-10-09T21:17:00.000-07:00

On Oct. 3rd some of my best friends gave me a baby shower, it was so much fun & I am so lucky to have such great caring friends & family! We got so many SUPER cute outfits, I can't wait to dress her up! We also got lots of handmade quilts & blankets that are adorable. It was strange to be opening up things for a baby girl, my brain has just been doing boy for so long & it has been over 10 years ago that I had Makenna. We are so excited for her to get here. Thanks to all my friends and family for all the love & continued support, even if you do think I am crazy for having 5 kids!! I love you all!

All the yummy food, we had chicken salad sandwiches, fruit, veggies, little pink cookies, brownies with strawberry cream cheese filling, cupcakes, and several other yummy things, it was fantastic!

Garret's First T-ball Game

2009-10-09T17:46:00.001-07:00

Playing catcher
Hitting the ball, he is a really good batter!

The day before Garret's first practice he told me he was having this weird feeling like he was going to be embarrassed to play tball because he didn't know anyone. I told him the feeling was nervousness & that he had nothing to worry about because his Dad & Papa are his coach so at least he would know them. After his first practice he loved it & had so much fun & now that is how he spends lots of his free time, practicing, throwing the ball in the air & catching it. Yesterday he was out front in the dirt and rolling grounders to himself, he would roll it, then run as fast as he could to catch it before it stopped, it was pretty funny. Of course he had to slide in the dirt & get as dirty as he possibly could while doing it, and Russ was right behind him chasing & falling as soon as Garret would. Boys will be boys!

Homecoming

2009-10-09T17:36:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was the Buckeye Hawks Homecoming. Since Brennen is in student council he had to help with making their Homecoming float. It turned out awesome. Their theme was something to do with Hollywood. They got 1st place, so they were pretty excited! (And yes, in case you are wondering if it is weird for me to have a freshman & pregnant at the same time, very weird!)

Baby Piglets are born

2009-10-09T17:20:00.000-07:00

Brennen would kill me if he seen this picture, it makes me laugh though!

They are almost a week old in this picture, they are huge already!

The night before giving birth...poor thing!

Todd artificially inseminated the kids 4H pigs with some "high dollar" specimen. Here is the first litter? born. We took some pictures of the mom to be the night before, she was huge & looked miserable (funny that I can relate & really felt sorry for her!). This pig is Lawnmower if you look back through old posts.

Crazy Hair Day

2009-10-09T17:04:00.000-07:00

This was Mak's crazy hair for crazy hair day! Not as fun as 2 years ago when I 90's styled her out, but it is still fun! By the time I picked her up from school she had changed things up a bit & pinned things down with clips.

The Baby's Name...

2009-08-16T12:35:00.000-07:00

Since you guys asked I will tell! Todd & I have never ever picked out names before having them here, we usually have a few names in mind, but nothing solid, I would say Garret was the only one we kind of knew would be Garret, but I refused to let anyone call him that until he was born & it was official just in case he got here & we didn't feel like it fit. Anyways, her name is solid, there will be no changing it, I have had enough experiences & confirmations that she has picked this name for herself! It is going to be...

Laynee Jo Hall

The kids were horrible about the name at first, but it is growing on them & they are a little more ok with it now that they know there isn't going to be any other names on the table to choose from! So we don't care if you like it or hate it....the name is here to stay!! :)

Our Sweet Baby Girl!

2009-08-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to the Dr for my appointment & asked if we could get a 3D ultrasound shot of her face, so here it is! She already has the chubbiest cheeks! I have now decided to just plan on that she will be every bit as big as Russ was (8lbs 4 oz, 22 in), that way if she is smaller I can be excited! To me she looks like the rest of the kids, has the same nose & it looks like she might have her daddy's full lips! We will schedule the induction at our next appointment in Sept. Looks like it will probably happen around the week of Oct 19th, unless she decides to make an appearance on her own with no help of medication! We are so excited & can't wait to get her here, if I could have her right his minute I gladly would because I am so excited for her arrival!

Short & Sweet

2009-07-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I have seriously neglected my blog this summer, I guess with the kids home all day & between Scout camp & Girls Camp, camping trips, volleyball camp, lots of birthday parties, showing homes to clients, growing a human being inside my belly, and visiting Taylor for a week I just haven't found the extra time or made the extra time to blog! The kids start school on Aug. 5th, so my goal is to get caught up on everything after they start. After looking back I realize I have to go clear back to Easter, I am WAY behind! The goal should be to have it completely updated by delivery day of the baby, so from now that is about 11 weeks, if I can't be up to date by then...maybe I should just give up!! It has been a short hot summer and I can't believe it is already coming to an end, time goes by way to fast anymore!

We will be adding....

2009-06-04T00:46:00.000-07:00

a sweet baby GIRL to our family! We are excited! We all piled in to Dr. Beck's office, he could barely get through the door. The kids were really excited, I was very anxious because I hadn't really felt one way or the other with this one, maybe because it didn't really matter what we got, I would be happy. Dr. Beck asks the kids who wanted what, of course Mak is the only one hoping for a girl, so he starts the ultrasound & she had her legs crossed, so after some poking & proding of my stomach she finally showed us what we had been waiting for. Dr. Beck looked at Mak & gave her a high 5 & said you win...it's a girl!! Mak was like what it is, oh my gosh, I'm gonna have a sister, finally! It was really cute & exciting for her. The boys were not as excited, or they were doing a good job pretending not to be! I am excited to now finally know what to start planning for and since it has been 10 years since we had a baby girl around here...we need everything girly now! On our way home we stopped at Babies R Us and picked out 3 outfits for her. I kinda forgot how fun shopping for baby girls can be! Everything looked perfectly normal on the ultrasound and everything is developing as it should be. We are almost to the half way point, so far it has gone by really fast, thankfully, cuz I am already starting to want my "normal" body back!

Hall Family Update

2009-05-19T10:56:00.000-07:00

So because I have been so busy lately and haven't had much time to do real blogging, I just thought I would give a little update on all of us over the past month!

Todd-He has a lot going on as usual, he tends to put lots of irons in the fire, he is working on a new venture to add to his company, heaven help me with this man, he can't stop, he is constantly jumping in to new things! He wants to get his pilots license, so he has been looking at airplanes now (I keep saying how about buying a house first?). I just shake my head & wish sometimes I had as much ambition as he does.

Me-Well what am I not doing right now?! It is the end of the school year so this week is filled with graduation, awards ceremonies, banquets, and all the stuff that comes with it! I have several real estate deals going on right now, (unfortunately none of our own yet!) which is keeping me busy & I love it. I miss the day to day work, but with having kids I do know it isn't something I could do full time yet, will have to wait till they are all in school! I am feeling really good, just getting tired pretty quickly. Last week I woke up to a bump and I told Todd um, I think I grew last night, he said oh you look about the same, however everyone I saw that day mentioned that I finally looked a little pregnant. So that night I mentioned it again to him, he says I was just trying to make you feel good...lol. We find out next Thursday what the baby is going to be, we are all pretty excited about that! I would say for the most part I am just busy being a mom & doing what mom's do, with a little extra thrown in here & there!

Brennen-He will be graduating from 8th grade on Thursday night. In Palo Verde 8th grade graduation is a big deal, they get all formally dressed and make a big night out of it. He is pretty excited. I dropped his suit off at the dry cleaners because he wants it to be perfect. Last week he went on his 8th grade trip to Disneyland, he left at 345am Thursday morning & got back Saturday night around 730. He had a really fun time, but he is a bit of a chicken when it comes to rides, so he hung out with a few girls who didn't like rides either...trying to claim he was waiting with them so they weren't alone, truth to be known he was a bigger chicken than them! On Saturday we went to Amazing Jakes for a bday party, he was playing miniature golf & hit the ball & it hit a rock & came back & hit him in the eye, then he tripped & fell about breaking his wrist, he is still babying it some. A few weeks ago he spent the night at his friends house & they had a fire & threw an Axe Body Spray aerosol bottle in the fire, well after so long it finally blew up & burned his leg, about a foot long burn, I had to end up taking him to the dr to have it checked out. I guess this is the kind of stuff you deal with when you combine being slightly clutsy with a teenager brain! Is hard to believe he will be a freshman already. The time has flown by. He is a good kid and we are proud of him.

Makenna-She spends most of her time hitting a volleyball these days. She takes it to school & plays with it non stop when she is home, I have got to find a volleyball camp for her to go to this summer. She is full of life all the time & helps me keep my sanity with all these boys we have around here. Some days we just can't stand being around them, all the yelling, burping, farting, fighting, drives us crazy. She puts up with a lot of teasing from them, I do remember those days of being the only girl, she does pretty good in holding her own though! She is really in to singing with her friends on the PS2 doing Country Sing Star, they are really good at it. She has been playing the piano and has done so well with it, I have been so impressed with how quickly she has picked up on it and she really loves to play. She is such a big help & I am so glad to have another female around here!

Garret-He is full of it most of the time. He is very strong willed and is fine to speak his mind. Of all the kids so far he has been the most difficult for me parent. He talks back, he yells, he throws fits without caring who is around, he can sometimes be a real pain in the butt! He is done with preschool & he did very well. He turns 5 on the first day of school, but we have decided to hold him back another year because Todd doesn't want him to be a young one. This is going to be a long year with him home, but in the end hopefully it will be worth it. He loves to play with Russ, most of the time he is really good with him, but he has his moments where he is not very nice. I know they will be the best of friends. Yesterday he was walking him across the road to the neighbors house & he was holding his hand and also had his other hand on his back helping him make it across the road without tripping, it was one of those moments where you watch them & get teary eyed because you know they have a connection & even though they might fight they are still brothers and care about each other! Garret is really in to telling stories, he is a big liar & we have to correct him all the time with his stories & remind him that really didn't happen. If you want a big story just talk to Garret for 5 minutes! He is a good kid & keeps me on my toes!

Russ-What can I say about our Russ, he has been a nightmare for the past month. Actually the past 8 months with Russ has been not very fun. He has dealt with getting all his teeth in, and it hasn't gone well, he has been so whiney & fussy that we changed his name to Fussy insteady of Russy! He was getting better until we went to fair in April & then we got home & he had been a nightmare for weeks, well he finally broke out in a rash & we knew he had caught the Fifth's Disease from Lindy's kids, which finally made sense. I had Clint for a few days the week before fair, which was the the time Clint was contagious, however we didnt know he was until well after. Anyway once he broke out in the rash everything made sense. We had a full week of a whiney horrible baby, I was ready to run away! Last week he finally started feeling better & we have had happy Russ, overly happy Russ, thank goodness. He is back laughing & smiling all the time. He is walking really good now, he is also talking pretty good and picking up on how to do everything. He loves to climb up everything & has really good balance. His favorite thing is to be outside, that is all he says all day is outside, we have to keep the doors locked or he gets out & explores. I am just glad that finally after months & months of him being not fun is fun again, thankfully! He doesn't look like any of the kids, he does resemble Mak a little bit when she was a baby, but for the most part he is completely different! Todd looks at him and says this kid doesn't look like anybody! He is awfully cute though & we love him, even during his Fussy Russy times!

The New Baby-according to what I have read the baby is about as big as an avocado this week. I have felt a few fluttering movements when I wake up in the morning & just lay there really still. I can't wait for the ultrasound so we can finally know if it is a boy or girl. We will be happy either way! I just hope for a continued easy pregnancy & a happy healthy baby at delivery!

So that is what is going on in our lives right now! We are excited for summer & hopefully will have some fun camping trips & reunions & swimming & movies!

My Mothers Day

2009-05-19T10:23:00.000-07:00

So I have to post this before it becomes old news and I forget to post it!

My Mothers Day was made pretty special by my husband & kids. They of course let me sleep in, not that it was hard because everyone slept in, if anyone knows me they know I stay up all night and would prefer to sleep in for a bit, but with the kids in school I don't get that opportunity as often as I would like (can't wait for summer & no school!). Anyway after getting up and while I was getting ready for the day they were cooking up breakfast, waffles, bacon, & eggs. It was really good as usual, Todd is our Sunday morning breakfast cooker, he is the best breakfast cooker, the kids just turn their nose up when they see me in the kitchen fixing breakfast! So after eating the kids couldn't handle it anymore they wanted me to open their gifts. I started with Garret & Makenna's, they both picked out a candle for me from Yankee, Garret got me the brown sugar vanilla and Makenna got the honeydew melon, both great choices! Then I opened Brennen's gift, which he could hardly stand having me wait, he had been to Disneyland & just got back the night before & that was all he kept talking about is the gift he got me, so I opened it up and he is such a thoughtful kid, it is a charm link bracelet & he bought mickey mouse birthstones to represent each one of us! Such a great idea, leave it to Brennen, I have always said he will make a great husband because he really puts thought in to his gifts! So then it was on to Todd's gift, this one I already knew because a little birdy named Garret told me a few days before, that's what happens when you take a 4 yr old shopping!! Todd didn't wrap it cuz he knew that I knew what it was. He got me a new Playstation 2...lol! It is a small passion I have when I have time (which anymore doesn't seem to happen) but I have a Guitar Hero problem, I love it, can't stop playing it when I start. Around my birthday we bought Guitar Hero World Tour and we also had Aerosmith and then a few months ago they just quit working. We thought it was something wrong with the games, but found out it wasn't, the PS2 was just worn out after years of playing it & the graphics from GH were just to much I guess. Anyway Todd knew that I was missing out on playing it with my best friend Rach, she comes over walking & we fix & eat dinner then play our Guitar Hero. It is seriously one of the only things I can do that will block out the fighting & yelling & screaming & crying that is going on around me!!! I was totally excited, however I have only gotten to play a few times since getting it, been way to busy to justify sitting down and playing it, I am having a hard time justifying blogging right now!!

And since Mother's Day isn't just about me, I had a wonderful conversation with my mom over the phone, she got to tell me about one of the most amazing experiences that happened to her in the temple the day before. She is such a strong example to me & I only hope I can be half the mom she is, if I can I will feel pretty accomplished with myself. She is always there for me & is the first person I go to with anything because I always know I can rely on her advice & most importantly the comfort I hear in the sound of her voice! I am so thankful to have her as my mom!

It was a fantastic day & I am thankful for my husband & kiddos trying to make it a special day for me!

Mak's Science Project

2009-05-11T09:31:00.000-07:00

Makenna and her friend Sierra did a science project together. It was about lung capacity. At first I was a little confused at how it actually worked, so after she took me to the website & explained things I was on board! So they tested things out & took some pictures while doing it, put their board together & then the day of the fair they were excited & ready to set up the project. I wasn't able to go see it the first day but when she got home from school she was so excited because they got 1st place!! So the next day after a dr appt Todd & I went to the school to see the project & took some pictures. On Saturday her project was taken to the West Valley Impact which was a science fair for all West Valley Elementary schools. We went to the high school to pick it up & they were given honorable mention. She was a little bummed that they didn't place, I was just impressed that they made it that far!! Good job Mak!

Zack's Blessing

2009-05-11T08:40:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was little Zack's blessing! He is my nephew, Pat & Megan's little guy. He looked so sweet in his little white outfit! He is growing so quickly & has changed so much. He looks just like his daddy! Since the live in Florence which is about as far to the other side of town as you can get we decided it was best to stay the night out their way because it was 9am church and a 2 hr drive for us! We stayed with Lindy & Adam because they only live a few minutes away. We had a fun weekend!

All of us!

Meg, Zack, Pat, Jordyn, & Maddy

Our Morning Visitor

2009-05-04T15:23:00.000-07:00

I love Todd's face in this picture, he can't say he isn't afraid!

So last Friday I was talking to my mom on the phone & look out the back window & see a HUGE long snake. It was in the grass so it was hard to tell if it was a rattlesnake or not, however Brennen & his friend Cutter had killed a baby rattler on Tuesday afternoon, so I wasn't taking any chances with this huge thing. I immediately hang up with mom & call Todd, of course no answer, so I keep calling till finally he answers & was like what do you need?! I tell him you have to come home now, he says what's going on, so I inform him of the huge snake sunbathing in our grass and I didn't really care what it was, it had to go. So he hurries home, thankfully only 4 miles away, but it did seem like it took him forever. By the time he got there the snake had moved on from the grass to the rock & was slithering away, I did realize at this point it wasn't a rattlesnake, so I went outside & followed it enough that I could see where it was so he could find it. He finally shows up (of course packing his 9mm ready to blow the snake to smitherins I suppose!) he looks at it & says that is a bull snake, he needs to just stay here, he will eat the rattlesnakes & the ground squirrels. I refuse this idea, I can't have a huge snake slithering around ready to take a bite out of my little boys while they play! Todd gets the broom & picks the snake up & puts it in an ice chest to take back to work to show it off as all little boys would do! He then brings the snake back home later that day to let it go, I was still unhappy with this, so he let it go behind our house quite a ways back. Anyway it was about 6 foot long and pretty fat. In the coiled up picture by the bricks half of its body is on the other side of the brick and it actually doesn't look that big in the ice chest, but you can tell it is huge when Todd is picking it up with the broom.

I suppose this is just how life is when you live in the middle of nowhere and there is farm fields & desert surrounding you!

And then there were 7...

2009-04-29T23:50:00.000-07:00

Yes, you guessed right, we will be adding another child to complete our family! We are excited to finally announce that I am pregnant. I am 13 weeks and due Nov. 2 (my moms birthday!) which means most likely it will be in October since I have had all of them weeks early. The kids are hoping for a girl, I am having mixed emotions about another girl, on one hand it would be fun, but I have nothing for a girl & everything for a boy, so the boy would be much more convenient & would fit right in with the other 2 little boys. Either way we are excited & know that whatever Heavenly Father sends us we will be grateful for! We will find out May 28th what it is. I am starting to feel a little overwhelmed with the thought of 5 kids and with Russ & this one being so close in age, they will be around 21 months apart. I have always had several years between all of them so this will be a new experience for me, one I guess I need the several months of pregnancy to prepare for!

Most of you know I am pretty lucky & never get sick and so far that has been the case. I have been exhausted, but I suppose that is to be expected! I can tell I have hit my 2nd trimester though because the tiredness is finally starting to wear off some. I finally feel like I have energy to update my blog!! I am so behind because we have been so busy with stuff this month. I will just have to post things as I have time to, they might be really behind, but for me as long as I post them and the memory is there that is all that matters!

Buckeye Ag Day 3/14/09

2009-03-23T17:00:00.000-07:00

On March 14th the kids had another pig show here in Buckeye. It was a lot of fun. I was a bit of a slacker & didn't take hardly any pictures, I wish I could have gotten one of both of them together in their 4H attire. My parents were able to surprise "me" by showing up Friday night to be there on Saturday. Everyone knew except for me that they were coming, so that was a fun surprise! Papa Kenny, Grandma Skeet, Uncle Deke, Aunt Mattie, Chadd, Tayler, Kenzi, Rachael & Charlie were also all there to support the kids. Brennen took 3rd place with Fat Mama & I think he got 5th with Lawn Mower, he didn't place in the showmanship. Makenna took 3rd place with Priscilla, 5th place with Wanda and then she took 3rd place in showmanship. They are both improving so much on their showing skills! We are excited to see how well they do when it is county fair time! Priscilla hurt her leg a few days before the show and they weren't planning on taking her because she couldn't even walk, Mak was pretty upset about it, I think she has taken a liking to Priscilla! Saturday morning she was walking better so Todd decided to go ahead and load her up in the trailer & take her & just see how she was doing, well she obviously did pretty good because she got 3rd place! If she hadn't had the slight limp she may have done even better. We are hoping she will be healed & walking normal for fair in April.

Garret's Field Trip 3/11/09

2009-03-23T16:11:00.000-07:00

Monkey of some sort

Garret, Todd, Russ

Garret at the giraffe feeding bridge

The white alligator

Garret with an alligator

Garret's first ever preschool field trip we went to the Wildlife World Zoo & Aquarium. It was our first time ever going there, so we were pretty excited. Todd was able to take the morning off to go with us. So it was Todd, Garret, Russ, and me. We got there just after 9 and waited for the teacher to get there with our admission passes and it was about 9:30 when we got in to the zoo. We first went to the new aquariums. It was pretty neat, reminded us of Sea World when you go inside all the different aquariums that are full of fish & other animals. They had the sting ray exhibit where you could touch them while they swam, however Garret was a huge wimp & wouldn't touch them! Then we walked around & looked at pretty much everything & then Garret was ready for something to eat, so we got some nachos and then finished looking at things. It was about 12:30 when we left. On the way home when I asked him what his favorite part of the morning was he said it was when Todd woke up the sleeping lion. We had seen the lion on one side and he was sleeping, then we walked around to the other side & it was still sleeping so Todd tells Garret that you just have to growl really loud like a lion & that will wake him up, Garret is like no thanks dad. So Todd does it, well...it really did wake the lion up! He got up & looked around to see what was going on. So now Garret thinks Todd has some kind of waking up the lion skills! Was pretty funny!

Sumo Wrestling

2009-03-09T09:46:00.000-07:00

This weekend we were invited to a friends 30th birthday party, it was a Luau. The food was excellent and the entertainment was the best! They had sumo suits and held a sumo wrestling tournament! It was so funny. Todd ended up taking 2nd place in the mens, I was able to capture video of a few of his fights. You have to watch them, they are so funny

This first video is short, but you have to listen closely as the guy falls he starts yelling OH NO! It is so funny, we have watched it over & over. Just to put things in to perspective the guy he was up against seriously outweighs him by about 175-200 lbs I am sure, so everyone thought Todd was toast, however I was awfully proud of my little sumo, he kicked butt!

This next video is a little longer, it is pretty low key until the end when Todd's opponent, Duane aka the birthday boy decides to do a kick in the air, so funny! Then Todd had to finish him off! (FYI the girl who jumped on Duane at the end is his wife...its all good!)

It was a great time, I am not sure I have laughed that hard in quite awhile, it was just so funny to see everyone hopping around in the sumo suits trying to fight each other! Happy 30th Birthday Duane, thanks for the good time!

Keep the Vacuum Away from the 4 year old!

2009-03-04T23:02:00.001-08:00

"Our little HICKEY LIPS"

Funny thing happened this week! Monday we were driving home, Garret had a bag of potato chips that he "accidentally" dumped out in the backseat. So we pull up in the garage & I turn on the central vac system in the garage and put him to work cleaning up the mess. Meanwhile I am putting things away from the car & getting Russ out. I get back out there check the situation he has sucked all the chips up, I turn the vacuum off and he yells to me hey I was just sucking my mouth. As a busy mom I just kind of laughed & finished on with my afternoon. That night we went to our neighbors house for dinner & FHE and he had a gatorade, well he kept licking his lips and Todd tells him you better stop doing that because you are going to get chapped, at this point the lips are really red & all around them is also red. (me still oblivious to what is happening just thinking it is Gatorade and some dryness!) Then before bed he brushes & uses that Agent Cool Blue Listerine mouthwash, he is downing the stuff, and it appears he has it all over his face, I am thinking he can't use that anymore if it is going to stain his mouth like that. So next morning when he wakes up his lips are purple and I am thinking how am I going to get that off his face, so I get a washcloth & soap, scrubbing his face like crazy & nothing is coming off. I finally start looking very close at the situation & realize...oh my gosh...YOU REALLY SUCKED YOUR MOUTH, DIDN'T YOU!! He starts to laugh a little. So I try explaining to him that we can't stick the hose on to our skin because it pulls the blood up to the surface, he is thinking this sounds pretty cool, so he says well how are we going to get it off, I tell him it has to go away on its own. So all day he keeps looking in the mirror and laughing at himself, it looked like he had dark purple lip liner on and then all the purple under his lip and the small area on his chin. The picture really doesn't do it justice, (I took it with my phone because my camera was dead.) Every time I looked at him I would just smile. So his new nickname for the week is hickey lips, thanks to his dad. He still isn't quite comprehending why the vacuum did that but I can almost guarantee it will happen again!

More Pics from Yuma Show

2009-03-04T22:52:00.001-08:00

Yuma Pig Show 2/28/09

2009-03-04T08:47:00.000-08:00

The kids were involved in yet another pig show that was in Yuma. We left on Friday around noon, stopped in Gila Bend at the McDonalds (I am not a McDonalds fan, but it is slim pickins in Gila Bend!) then it was off to Yuma. We got there & sat around & visited with all the other pig enthusiasts as we will call them! Todd was waiting for the sun to move before unloading the pigs because well...they get sunburned! So we waited around for awhile, then finally they weighed the pigs & got them settled in for the night. We left & checked in at our hotel, Holiday Inn Express which was very nice. We decided to hit Outback for dinner with our friends the Harts, the kids all decided to stay with Mamo Hart and swim, so we went from a party of 13 to just 6, that was nice! We ate our food, Todd was in heaven because he LOVES Outback. Then back to hotel to check on the kids. Brennen & his buddy Cutter were hanging out in the lobby drinking hot chocolate sitting on the couch watching tv, for some reason we found this so funny, they looked so silly just the 2 of them, so of course we had to give them a hard time about it! Anyway then it was time for bed which didn't go so well. Russ woke up around 1 & decided he didn't like the hotel crib, but he also doesn't like sleeping with anyone, he needs his space. He whined, cried, tossed & turned until about 3. Then Todd was up at 530 ironing his clothes to perfection...why, I don't know...it was a pig show where he wasn't showing & he was just going to end up covered in pig poop anyway. So of course Russ was back up again, Brennen & Todd finally leave & I get Russ back to sleep around 6. I get up & hurry to get ready for the day so I can get everyone else ready before Todd comes back to get us. It was a huge rush & was amazing how quickly 2 hours flew by when you are trying to wake cranky kids up and bathe them & curl hair to look pretty for the show ring. Anyway we survived the morning and made it to the fairgrounds.

Makenna was in the 2nd class for showmanship, she used Priscilla for show, she did so well, we were so proud of her since now it was her 2nd time to show. Priscilla is typically calm & easy going, however we found a new side to Priscilla while in Yuma! She was causing fights left & right. It was bad enough that we had to load her back in the pig trailer and take her to the hotel with us because she wouldn't quit fighting with the pigs in the pen next to her. So during the show we were a little worried about how she was going to be, she did cause a few smaller fights, but she didn't get completely out of control. Back to Makenna...she actually had improved quite a bit since the Casa Grande show & I think it helped that she was less nervous and she knew what to expect. She didn't place, but she still did a great job & looked so cute out there in the ring, and her pig cooperated quite well considering what a nightmare she had been the night before.

Brennen was in the 7th class for showmanship, he used Fat Mama. He did really good, he seemed a little more calm & not so ADD. We all crack up at him because he keeps his tongue out while he shows, apparently it helps him concentrate or it is a nervous thing, either way he is unaware he is doing it! Brennen didn't place, but the judge did give him kuddos for his handling when he first came out of the gate, so Brennen was excited that he was mentioned.

So it was on to the market show. Mak & Priscilla were first, she did great again, she ended up placing 5th with Priscilla! She was so excited, the smile on her face when they handed her an envelope was priceless, it didn't matter to her that it was only $5, she was just thrilled to have placed. Next was Brennen with Lawnmower, he did great and the pig placed 4th. So Brennen was given an envelope with $10.00, another excited kid! Next was Brennen with Fat Mama, I feel bad but for some reason I can't remember what he placed with her, maybe it was 6th. I don't think the judge liked Durocs! Then it was on to Mak & Wanda, she again placed 5th and was given that much sought after white envelope with another $5 in it! We were just excited that they placed, it wasn't much money, but the confidence that it gives them for the next show is really what we are looking for. It was a great time for all of us and again we were proud of them for doing such a great job. They also ended up with a few other prizes for participating.

So it was time to load up the pigs & head back to Buckeye, of course this wouldn't go without an incident involving police you know! We made it to Gila Bend, stopped for ice cream at the DQ, (funny thing, they had a list of everything they were out of...basically everything but ice cream, thank goodness, what good is a DQ with no ice cream?!) So we eat up our ice cream and get in the truck to head back to Buckeye, we traveled for awhile then notice the lovely red & blue lights and the siren, Todd is like oh crap I am gonna get pulled over. So he pulls over, the guy comes up to the window asks for all the info tells him he was going around 70. Well we can't find an insurance card (I will take fault for that one, it just renewed in Feb & I never gave him a new one, oddly he couldn't even find an old one though!) So in the mean time we are rumaging through everything, Todd happens to pull a box of 9mm shells out of the console, the cop immediately asks if he has a weapon in the vehicle, Todd says yeah I have a 9mm in the door, the cop says don't reach for it, (like he would!) the cop opens up the door to check the situation, within 2 seconds there are 2 more cops, one at my door, and one at Russ's door. I was starting to panic a little cuz I don't know the laws for carrying guns, so the main cop goes back to his car, I am freaking out a little bit (if you ask Todd I was freaking out a lot, I really wasn't though) then he informs me that he has never had the trailer registered in his name. So there were are, no insurance, no reg on trailer, gun in door, and Garret has no seat belt on. I am thinking we are so toasted on every level here. The cop comes back & says I am going to give you a break, just slow down...I was like are you kidding me?! Only Todd...he gets out of speeding tickets all the time not to mention this could have resulted in more than a speeding ticket. Geez, I guess I should just be thankful he was nice, but I just wish Todd's good luck with the cops would rub off on me some time! So we finally made it home, is always good to be back home. It was a fun weekend & I am so glad that we are able to spend time as a family hanging out & enjoying each other doing things that the kids really enjoy & being around good people.

4H Pig Show in Casa Grande

2009-02-16T13:45:00.000-08:00

Mak & Wanda - Brennen & Fat Mama Competing against each other!
Brennen & Fat Mama during Showmanship

Mak & Wanda

We spent our Valentines Day in Casa Grande at a 4H pig show. It was Makenna's first time to show her pigs ever, she was super super nervous! She gets pretty spun up and nervous about things, at one point she was so white, she looked as if she would vomit at any moment! Her first time out in the ring she did really good and tried her best. She didn't place, but we were just proud of how well she did for her first time, and she was in the ring with some really experienced kids. Then it was Brennen's turn to show, he was thinking he was all macho man cuz this is his second year of showing, however Fat Mama didn't want to cooperate, she just wanted to run around the ring and Brennen spent a little to much time trying to chase her down, he did a good job with what he had to work with! These first showings were for Showmanship, which is how well they are able to control their pig & stay in contact with the judge. Some kids like showmanship, some could care less, it is fun to watch the older kids who have been showing for a long time and are really good at it. Then it was time for lunch, we went to the cars & fixed sandwiches and pigged out. Then back to find out when the kids would show again for the market class, which is where they judge the pig itself. All the pigs were put in to weight categories. Mak's pig, Priscilla, which is a Yorkshire is the lightest weighing pig, so Mak showed her first, she got penned (which is a good thing) and ended up placing 6th and she got a ribbon. She was so excited. Next Brennen & Mak had to compete against each other with Brennen's Duroc, Fat Mama and Mak's Hampshire, Wanda. Unfortunately neither one of them placed, but there was some really nice pigs in that group...according to the pig experts! Then last to show was Brennen with his Crossbred, Lawn Mower, no deal with her either. We were proud of the kids because they did a great job and they seemed to have fun doing it! It was a great day!

I feel so blessed & lucky to have such amazing family support! The kids had a huge crowd there cheering them on! Grandpa & Grandma, Papa & Grandma, Aunt Lindy & Uncle Adam, Lexi, Bri, Clint, Uncle Pat, Aunt Meg, Jordyn, Maddy, and the new baby Zack were all there to show support! It is so nice to know that we have such great families that are continually there for us & our kids...thanks to you all for being there, it really meant alot to the kids & to Todd & I. You guys are great!

(I will have to get pics from my mom with the other 2 pigs, I guess I didn't get any of Priscilla & Lawn Mower because Russ was sleeping in my arms!)

I just have to add...who knew there was a pig world going on like this...seriously totally baffles me that huge groups of people get together & they PAY a judge to come in from out of state to tell you if you have a good pig or not, is funny what you are unaware of that can be going on right in your backyard, but until you become apart of it you have no idea it even exists! The kids enjoy it & I am hoping it is teaching them responsibility and gives them something to do & hopefully stay out of trouble!

My Nephew Has Arrived!!

2009-02-06T08:41:00.000-08:00

On Feb. 5th around 5:30pm the newest memeber to the Powers family made his appearance into the world! Zackary Jay Powers is his name. My brother Pat has wanted to name his son that since we were little kids (I think it is from watching to many episodes of Saved by the Bell) I love the name & it totally fits the little chubby guy! He weighed in at 8 lbs 2 oz and was 21 inches long. He is sooo cute and has the chubbiest little cheeks & a cute little roll under his chin & on the back of his neck. I was so glad we got to go to the hospital last night & see him. It is good to have him finally here and know that everyone is healthy & safe. Congrats to Pat & Megan for a job well done, I am glad my brothers are finally figuring out how to make boys, now they just need to each have a few more!

2009-02-04T07:47:00.001-08:00

I think I am now up to date on the Hall happenings....for now!! Enjoy!

Clint's Blessing

2009-02-04T07:38:00.000-08:00

Sunday Feb 1st we were able to go to Florence and support Lindy & Adam for little Clint's baby blessing. He is so cute & such a good little baby. You can't help but squeeze the little guy! It was a fun day and I am so glad we have such a great family that is always there for each other, we are so lucky to have such a great support system from our families!

MoNsTeR JaM!!!

2009-02-04T07:16:00.000-08:00

Todd was able to score some free
tickets to the Monster Jam on

Jan. 24th. We dropped Russ off with Gma & Papa, hit In N Out Burger & headed to Chase Field to enjoy some car crushing mind deafening noise! They all went last year, but since Russ was a newborn I skipped out, they all said this year was really lame compared to last year. There was a few good crashes, but nothing to intense. They seemed to have a great time and was something different & fun to do. Garret was in his usual form, as you can see by the picture. He was full of it that night. At one point the song "It's Gettin Hot in Here" came on, he starts busting a move like you wouldn't believe and making all kinds of noise, was a little on the verge of embarrassing, but hey, that is our Garret, he is either full of life or ticked off at the world, not a lot of in between with him! As you can see Mak is thrilled to be a part of this, she actually did have a good time, but she was wiped out & it was way past her bedtime!

Just Playing in the Snow

2009-02-04T07:04:00.000-08:00

Grandma Peg & Russy
The kids on the tube

Pat...styling in his snowsuit

While we were in Taylor over New Years weekend it snowed! My kids were so excited because sadly they haven't seen much snow. We weren't exactly prepared with the right snow gear, but with kids...they really don't care to much. My brother Pat busted out my dads snowsuit from the 80's I am assuming (check out the belt!!) I was cracking up, he was so proud wearing that thing, he didn't care what it looked like cuz he was keeping warm in it. They got out the 3 wheelers & pulled a tube behind it with the kids. They had so much fun. Is always such a good time at my parents house when we are all together as a family, I just wish it could happen more often.

2009-02-02T14:18:00.000-08:00

On January 28th we celebrated our 14th anniversary! Is hard to believe, but if I really sit & think about what we have done over our time together...I guess it makes sense! Oddly enough on our anniversary night we were at the Buckeye High School Future Freshman Night with Brennen....Ironic don't you think?!

We were married in 1995 at the Snowflake LDS Social Hall. I was only 16 & Todd was 18 (and we have survived this long for anyone who doubted our love!) We lived in Taylor for almost 3 years then we moved to Mesa December of 97. We had our first little home built, it was great to be out on our own...living on love! After a year of living there we decided it was time to sell and get a bigger house because baby #2 was on her way! We sold that house in Feb. 99 and started building another one a few miles away. While we were waiting for it to be built we lived in a rental...this was the most interesting place we ever lived, I will save myself the embarrassment of divulging any details of the magnificent trailer park we lived in!! In August we finally got to move in to our new home, thankfully. We lived there for 8 years and enjoyed most every minute of it. In June 2007 we moved to Buckeye to start our new adventure together which brings us to the present with 4 kids, a dog, & 4 pigs just living that dream of a small town country boy & a small town city girl!

Through our 14 years of marriage we have had many ups & a few downs, but through it all the love we have has only grown stronger. I am so lucky to have Todd for my husband. How proud I am to be called his wife. Here's to another great year with the man I love...love you babe!

Marley's Headstone

2009-01-29T16:11:00.001-08:00

On January 3rd we were in Snowflake to be there for the setting of my nephews gravestone. I was so glad that we were able to be there. Between the Powers family & the Christiansen family, & a few friends it was a full audience for the guys putting it in! For those of you that don't know my nephew passed away on Aug. 31 from a rare immune disorder. He was born on Feb. 25, 2008. After about a months long fight in the hospital & test after test his time here on earth was done, his mission accomplished and he was reunited with those he had so recently left only 6 months earlier. What a blessing to have a celestial child in our family. My brother Michael & his wife Clarice are amazing. It is safe to say they were chosen for this task and the strength that they have shown through losing their baby has been tremendous. This was the greatest testimony building experience I have ever had the opportunity to be apart of, how grateful I am to them everyday for letting us be involved with his last hours here on earth. He was a special baby, given to special parents who the Lord knew could handle giving him back after the small amount of time they were given with him. How thankful I am to know we have eternal families & will someday be reunited with him again!

Russ

2009-01-29T14:20:00.000-08:00

Our Russ is so much fun at 1! He isn't walking yet, but getting closer. He pulls himself up to everything & walks along, but has no desire to really walk. You would think he would be all about walking so he can get away from Garret! We like to call Russ our "inspector". He likes to inspect everything you give him to eat or play with, he will take it from you & look it over several times & then chow down if it is food or simply hold it until he figures out what else to do with it. He will also take the spoon or fork from you & pull it closer to look it over, once it passes his inspection he will gladly eat it! When you are holding him he will always turn his head & poke it out just enough to get your attention & then he will look you square in the eye & inspect your face for about 10 seconds, then it is like he gives you the ok. This is not with a new face, this happens several times a day with me, his own mom! It is pretty funny. He has a difficult time with lots of people. He really doesn't like being around crowds & especially doesn't like new people touching him. He pretty much freaks out. This is becoming an issue at church because everybody wants to talk to him because he looks like such a friendly little guy, but if you touch his hand or his arm...watch out, he screams. Is pretty funny. He doesn't really even like us touching his hands or feet while you hold him, or if you put your hand under his armpit while holding him, he pulls it away. Funny little guy, I guess he will not be a touchy feely kind of person! His favorite thing to do right now is eat, this has been his favorite thing since birth. He was about an hour old & drank a full little 2 oz hospital bottle like it was a snack & where is the real meal! The nurse got after me for letting him drink it & was counting down the seconds until he upchucked it, however a few hours later after he drank another one she apologized & just gave me warning that he was going to be a good eater...and that he is! It is fun to have a good eater because my other 3 hardly ate anything. He will eat just as much for breakfast as Garret does! He loves to play with the little hot wheels cars & any other kind of car or truck. He has figured out the noise making & scooting them along the floor, this would have to be from Garret driving cars over the top of him for the past year of his life. Garret can't wait for him to get bigger so they can really play. Russ has been so much fun for the whole family, he is so happy most of the time and we are so lucky to have his sweet smile & those big blue eyes to look at everyday! Hard to believe my baby is a year old!

Russ turns 1!

2009-01-21T15:05:00.000-08:00

On Jan. 12th Russ turned a year old! It is hard to believe that the year has gone by so quickly. On his birthday me & the kids sang Happy Birthday to him & he had his own little cake that he devoured. That is our fat Russ, he loves food & will eat whatever you put in front of him most of the time, especially if it is sweet! We had his birthday party on the 18th. Almost all of the family was here, from both sides and also some close friends. What a lucky little guy to have so many join him for his big day! We ate hamburgers & hot dogs, chips/dip, veggies, and beans. Then we opened presents. Russ has to be the best dressed kid in Buckeye this week, he got several great new shirts & jeans! Everyone was so generous with gifts for him. He got several fun barnyard & tractor toys & Gma & Gpa got him a Lightening McQueen ride on push car thing (which Garret just loves!) and probably Dad's favorite gift was the little bullriding vest, thanks Mollie & Jared (as the mom I really appreciate the encouragement, it is my dream to have a boy ride bulls...not! it is pretty stinking cute though!). Then after presents we sang to him sitting by his cake, he looked like he might start to cry with that many voices singing & looking at him, but he kept his composure! He didn't want anything to do with the piece of cake we gave him to eat, guess he ate to many beans! It was a fun night and a great 1st birthday celebration for him!

2009-01-13T23:38:00.000-08:00

That's all of us!

Deke, Mattie, Jody, Russ, Todd, Katie, Lindy, Adam, Clint

Brennen, Skeeter, Kenny, Lexi,

Garret, Kenzie, Tayler, Makenna, Brianna, Chadd

Hall Family Pictures

2009-01-13T23:24:00.000-08:00

We finally had a chance to do some new family photos with the Hall clan. We took them at Kenny & Skeeters house in Waddell. They all turned out so great!

Grandma & Papa with all of their grandkids!

Garret with his cheesy smile!

Just the granddaughters

And the grandsons!

Christmas 2008

2009-01-13T22:54:00.000-08:00

This year our Christmas was a little quieter than most. We had decided back in November that instead of the usual Christmas we wanted to do something different. So one night for FHE we talked to the kids about choosing a family in our ward that needed some extra help for Christmas and that we would use the money for them to have Christmas instead of ourselves. The kids agreed & were pretty excited, I had anticipated them to be a little upset, but I have amazing kids, and they could see this was a great idea. We spoke with our bishop & was given a family...a large family at that! So we enlisted the help of our neighbors because they also wanted to be a part of it. The kids were so excited, they helped pick out most of the gifts & then put some stockings together for them. We were able to secretly deliver everything to them & hopefully it was a neat thing for the family to be surprised. So for our kids this year they each got one gift from Todd & I, then we did a gift exchange between all of us by drawing names. So they only got 2 presents to open Christmas morning. Santa did come & give them a few more and thankfully Gma & Gpa were at our house for Christmas Eve & Christmas morning, that gave them a few more to open. We never heard the kids complain about not getting enough, even though I have wondered if they felt a little bad when they didn't get even half as much as some cousins & friends did, but I know they understood what we did was important & was done in the true spirit of Christmas. I am so thankful to have kids who are giving & understand that they don't need all the cool stuff to survive and that Christmas is really about our Savior and not how many presents are under the tree. We have decided this will probably be something we do regularly if we are able to. It was a great experience for us all to have a lesson on service & giving.

We spent Christmas Eve doing nothing much, just enjoying each other. The kids made a gingerbread house, I was quite impressed with their creation! We played some Guitar Hero World Tour, for the record...I am the champ in the Hall household! The kiddos went to bed around 10ish and were back up at 330 to see what Santa brought. We told them to get back in bed, it was way to early! They did go back to sleep, but not for long. At 530 they were back in our bedroom begging us to get up so we could open presents! So we finally gave in and got up. We opened presents and then had breakfast. We kind of cleaned things up & then my parents left to head to Pats house and we went to Todds parents house for Christmas Dinner. Gma Pat & Papa Tito were there from Bisbee & Aunt Katie. Uncle Kelly & Aunt Becky showed up after dinner to visit for awhile. Todds parents bought themselves a Wii for Christmas, so we spent most of the time playing wii. After dinner over there we came home & just enjoyed being together as a family. I would have to say it was one of our most quiet Christmas' that I can remember, it was good though. Next day the tree was out the door & all the Christmas stuff was boxed up & out the door! I had enough, I needed the clutter out!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party

2009-01-13T09:38:00.000-08:00

On the 20th of December we had a party, because we don't have enough of them at my house it seems! I love throwing parties & will come up with any lame excuse to have people come over. So this year our Christmas party was an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party! What a great time! Everyone had to wear the most hideous sweater they could find that was loaded with all the joys of Christmas. There were 10 couples including us. We ate ham, mashed red potatoes, rolls, veggies & dip, cheese ball & crackers, and Todd made up a meat tray that he was sooo proud of. I also made a Christmas punch that turned out great, I wished I had doubled it because we drank it up so quickly. After eating we did a gift exchange of "As Seen on TV" gifts, which was a riot! I wish I had taken more pics, but since I was the hostess, pictures didn't get done. Some of the gifts were the Perfect Push Up (still waiting to see Jared all buffed up!), Tater Mitts, which we had Tiffany demonstrate how they work, while she is scrubbing the potatoe like a mad person, someone in the distance is reading...boil potatoes for 5 minutes before peeling! (um I could probably have it all done by that time!), the Big City Slider Maker was a sought after item, we had 2 of those being passed around, I am still curious as to how well it works, the funniest thing was the onion glasses, I did get a great picture of that one, along with the onion keeper. I know that we had to of gotten the best, most useful gift, it was the Easy Open to help you open packages that are in the hard plastic, it also has a razor blade that slides out the bottom and a screw driver that pops out, let me tell you...very awesome for Christmas morning! Anyway there were more gifts but I can't think of them all, but everyone seemed to have a really great time. After the gift exchange we played Win Lose or Draw on TV, my friend Rachael brought the game, I had never seen it before, there is a drawing device that you hook to the tv, you can't actually see what you are drawing, but it shows up on tv for your team to see! It was pretty fun. The girls were in the lead, but choked in the last round and let the guys come back & win. It was so much fun! We are going to do it again next year....however...we will be having new rules for the Christmas Sweaters and there will be different categories to win.

Enjoy the fun pics from our party.

Couldn't resist...

2008-12-19T00:36:00.003-08:00

So this morning I had just gotten Russ out of the tub & got him lotioned up when the timer went off on my cookies, well I didn't want them to burn so I ran in to get them out. When I came back little Russy had opened his drawers & was pulling his clothes out like he was trying to figure out what to wear. I thought it was so funny because he was so serious when I got back to him almost like uh, mom, since you left me I decided I would get my own clothes. Is amazing how quickly they figure out routines & what happens next, he will be a year old in a few weeks. Makes me so sad that he has grown so quickly, he has been such a sweet baby! How could anyone resist a chubby face like this one!!

2008-12-19T00:30:00.000-08:00

Garret & his friend Tyler

Mary & Joseph & Jesus

Shepards & the Angels

Angels

Christmas Activities this week...I'm exhausted

2008-12-19T00:11:00.000-08:00

Brennen, I caught him as he was walking across the stage

Makenna & her best friend Brylee (you would think with that red hair she would be mine!)

Right before they started singing the song she hates!

On stage afterwards

Garret & Santa

This week was filled with Christmas stuff going on. We had 3 nights at the school this week for the Christmas programs. Tuesday night we went to see our neighbor & Makenna's best friend Brylee sing. Makenna's was on Wed. night and her grade sang 3 songs, I'm a bad mom because I don't remember them all, I do remember Joy to the World, and then there was December Nights, December Lights, she continually reminded me for the past week how much she hates that song! She was on the front row & looked so pretty, I was so proud of her! We were lucky to get front row seats. (Todd is on the school board, so we got reserved seating...spiffs of the position I guess!) Thursday night was the 8th grade's turn. They did a Nativity play/scene. Brennen was the big shot narrator who read the story of the birth of Jesus along with another girl in his class! He looked so handsome & grown up, my little boy is long gone now, he is morphing into a young man right before our eyes! He did a great job. It makes me happy to see that our school still carries on the traditions of singing Christmas songs & having the kids read the nativity story. In Mesa this wasn't an option, in fact it was getting to a point where they didn't celebrate any holidays in school for fear of upsetting those who didn't celebrate that particular holiday. Out here in Palo Verde/No man's land it is still good old fashioned Christmas songs & the birth of Jesus celebrated...and for that I am happy! :) Also this week was Garret's Preschool Christmas party where he got to sit on Santa's lap & get a toy, he was pretty happy to sit on his lap & open the present up. This is now the 3rd Santa he has sat on this year...and each one he points out cannot be the "real" Santa because they aren't wearing real black Santa boots, they are just black coverings, so any Santa's out there, you are gonna have to step it up & get some real black Santa boots cuz you ain't foolin the 4 year old!

Whatever...

2008-12-14T23:36:00.000-08:00

This is what kind of pictures with Santa I get when I leave the party for a good cause & give the camera to Todd in hopes of some great pictures with Santa...who the heck are they waving to & why are they waving? He took pictures of Mak, & G and then 4 other kids in our ward, they are all waving to the same person...whomever this may be...? I asked Todd who are they waving at, he says I don't know I just took the picture. Silly! I did get to take Garret & Russ to the Santa at Arrowhead Mall the other day, I happened to be in there & no line at all, I wasn't planning on doing it, but how can you pass up no line for Santa?! I will have to scan the photo & post it, so I have at least one good Santa photo for the year!

O Christmas Tree!

2008-12-14T23:18:00.000-08:00

Our finished product, I should have taken the pic in the dark, it is much prettier!

This would be what we typically see going on, body slamming, dog piles, all that good stuff!

My crazy kids, they really do love each other this much!

Russ hiding under the tree, he looks a bit scared

Before...

We got our tree on Dec. 1st. We set out for FHE to find a tree, at first it was to find a fake tree, so after going from store to store looking for the best deal (I can't imagine ever paying full price for anything) Todd decided that I should wait & get a tree after Christmas when they are clearanced off. All of the ones I loved were over $300 and well if the kids would rather the tree be their Christmas it wasn't really an option! So Todd talked me in to a real tree. We went to a tree lot near Indian School/Litchfield and found an 8 or so foot tall tree. I don't know what kind it is, just that it is bushy & green & smells Christmasy. We didn't get home with the tree until after 10, so we didn't get to decorate it until the next night. The kids had a blast as usual decorating the tree. When Brennen was a baby on his first Christmas I got him an ornament, so it has become tradition in the Hall home that every year the kids pick out 1 new ornament that they love, & the kids have so much fun every year going through & picking out all their ornaments and putting them up. So far this year we haven't even had time to go pick any new ones out, but Grandma Peg let them pick out ornaments that were Grandma Weeze's which is much more special for them anyway. Todd was watching tv while the Josh Groban Christmas CD was blaring & the kids are yelling & having a blast, (what a bum, not much of a tree decorating fan I guess, he did help out with the lights though). By the time we finally got it finished it was very late, the kids were still bouncing off the walls, but they had school the next day, so off to bed they went. It was a fun evening.

4H Pigs

2008-12-14T22:33:00.000-08:00

Brennen and Makenna are involved in the local 4H club, they will be showing pigs this next year. They got their pigs on Dec. 6th. Brennen bought a Duroc which is the red (looks brown in the pictures) colored pig, this will be his first experience with a Duroc, they are known to be a little feisty (must be the red hair!). Makenna got a Yorkshire and a Crossbred. They will be getting 3 more this week, but will only be keeping 1 of them for Brennen, just have to choose which of the 3 he wants to keep after a month of feeding. Anyhow this is Makenna's first year of pig showing and she seems to be really excited. I am not sure if the names have stuck, but last I heard Mak's York is Priscilla, and the Cross is Twinkie (Garret actually thinks Twinkie is his and we will continue to let him think that to keep the peace!) Brennen was undecided, he wanted to name it Red, however I didn't like that, it is my nickname, not a good name for the pig! We are excited for pig season, well I should say they all are, I just go along with it because I know they love it & Todd eats every minute of it up, he has built this pig barn that you would not believe, I just like that he spends time with the kids showing them how to be responsible.

Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T22:07:00.000-08:00

I have to start off by saying how thankful I am for the life I have been given. For the wonderful husband that I have who continually provides for me & our kids without complaining, for the amazing 4 kids that Heavenly Father has entrusted me with, for the spirits that they carry with them that continually make me want to be a better person. I am most thankful for the gospel in my life. Where would I be without it...who knows. To have the knowledge of my Savior and his sacrifice for me and for the plan of salvation, just to know that I can be with those who have passed on if I live my life worthily, what a blessing. I am so thankful for where we currently live, the ward we are in, and the amazing friends that we have been blessed with. Life is great and I have very little complaints, and the ones I do hardly matter! The Lord has indeed blessed me with a amazing life that I am thankful for each and every day. What a blessing it is to be alive at this time in the world, we are continually faced with new trials everyday, but knowing that we wouldn't be sent here at this time if we couldn't make it helps me get through my days! I hope this next year brings on many more things to be thankful for, even if that means trying times.

This year for Thanksgiving we went to my parents house in Taylor. It was so great to get away for a few days, was just to bad that the weather was rainy and cold. We got to my parents house around 7:30 Wed night. The drive up there was long & pretty boring. Todd does not like to talk while driving. So for almost 14 years whenever we drive we just don't talk, probably one reason we haven't taken any real road trips, that would be like a slow boring death for us. He informed me on our drive home that he has conversations with himself in his head, so there is no need for "real conversations" ummm can you say PSYCHO, having conversations with himself in his head, who does that, apparently the man I love does. Anyhow, so we get to my parents, of course my mom has the house all clean & perfect, ready for my kids to mess it up! She has most of the Thanksgiving dinner already prepared. She has some little smokey sausages in the crockpot for us when we got there, which the kids really seemed to enjoy. I have never made them because Todd got sick on them one Christmas Eve, but he ate about 30 of them, so of course he was going to get sick. We ate & laughed & visited, always great to be back home with my parents. This year my brothers didn't visit. Michael & Clarice stayed in Pima & had their own Thanksgiving with Nolan & Trisha. Pat had Thanksgiving with Megan's family. So it was pretty quiet. Thanksgiving Day we ate & ate, the food was delicious as usual, wouldn't expect nothing less from my mom! Then I worked on making a baby blanket for my new nephew, which turned out to be the blanket from heck. We decided it would be such a great idea to do a blanket with peekos on it (the little triangle things around the edge of the blanket) well I had never done it before, and neither had my mom. So that was an interesting task of figuring it all out, we did though. Then I decide to use my Gma's sewing machine...big mistake. We didn't get along well, not sure why but it was not working. So we busted out my moms & I used hers to finish it. Maybe I am just used to my own, but I had the worst time binding that blanket together. Anyhow it turned out so stinking cute, I loved it, almost kept it for myself. While the blanket making is going on my dad & Todd are watching the annoying TV. They had to have watched like every annoying show possible that afternoon/evening. My mom was going crazy listening to it and I was about sick of it myself. I am so used to Hannah Montana, Zack & Cody, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, anything Disney, very seldom is our TV not on Disney, so I am not used to the constant bleeping of words & wondering what people are going to say or do next...with my kids sitting there watching. Not saying everything I watch is wholesome, I have my share of TV smut that I like, however never would I watch it in the same room as my kids, I reserve those shows for my guilty pleasures! The kids at least stayed in the office & played Nintendo most of the time & Makenna played the piano, trying to teach herself primary songs, I was very impressed with her diligence in figuring them out. I believe we got all the leftovers out a few times that evening, then finally went to bed. We got up early Friday morning...not for the Black Friday sales, but to go to the Temple. We went to the 8am session. I was glad to be in the temple, but luck would have it that during the session my nose kept running like a faucet, so I have my kleenex constantly wiping the nose, then I happen to look at the kleenex and it is all bloody, so there I am sitting there wiping my nose which keeps dripping blood, I have to ask my mom for a new kleenex, because I am determined that I will make it through the session, I do not want to have to get up. Luckily it wasn't a full on bloody nose, I have been fighting a head cold for a week now, I am still not sure why this happened at this point in time, but it did. So my temple experience wasn't as I hoped because I spent the whole time being paranoid about my nose. After the temple we hit Sonic for some Blackberry Sprites, then back home to the kids & my dad who was not feeling well, to much food I guess! I then finished the blanket, finally. Then we went to Shevell's to see if we could get a few Christmas gifts. We ended up getting several things & of course had to get some of the fudge they now make & sell, wow, yummy stuff. After that we picked Todd & the kids up and went to the movie. First pick was Madagascar, we get there, sold out of course, and we were totally early! We settled for Bolt. It was fine, the kids liked it, I slept through like the last 20 minutes of it. Then a quick trip to Wal Mart & I mean quick, Todd was not having any part of being at Wal Mart on the day after Thanksgiving. Back to Taylor, we then did another baby blanket. Then mom decides to go through my Gma's Christmas decorations & sort through them. That was fun to reminise about stuff. She let the kids pick out a few ornaments that they wanted, they really enjoyed looking at everything. Also after the temple the kids & my parents put up the Christmas tree, I think my mom really liked doing this with the kids, they of course loved it. So while she was finishing up with her organizing of things I watched Rocky Balboa with Todd & my Dad, we had just watched Cinderella Man on Thanksgiving night, seriously...more boxing movies? And in the previous week at home we had already watched most of the Rocky movies and Million Dollar Baby, hello...totally sick of boxing movies. After the Rocky movie my parents went to bed & we stayed up with the kids & watched Bridge to Tarabithia. It was pretty good, they seemed to like it. Finally it was bed time, it was like 1am. We woke up Saturday morning & had to pack up for home. We had a baptism at 4pm that Todd had to give the Holy Ghost talk in for his nephew. Another stop at the book store, then we were on our way back home on the long drive to Buckeye. Seriously seems like days to get home. We hate travelling in the car. I told Todd he should work on getting his pilots license, could be his new goal! Would make seeing my parents much easier! I am such a complainer, it is not like it takes that long, but it does feel like forever when you have a baby screaming, the 13 & 9 year old wrestling in a small area, and then Garret asking every question imaginable, it turns in to one of those when is this going to end moments! Anyhow it was a great Thanksgiving, pretty low key, but was nice to get away and be with my parents. They are amazing people and I am so thankful for them!

Goodbye to my 20's...hello 30's :)

2008-11-30T21:13:00.000-08:00

So it finally happened...I am no longer in my 20's. What a sad day. I have been dreading that I would be 30 for the last 5 years. The fact that I am no longer in my 20's is hard to believe. Everyone says you are only as old as you feel, well sometimes I feel even older than 30, so thats not a great thing for me! I think having a 13 year old makes me feel older than I really am sometimes! I just hope that my 30's will be full of great times. When I ponder on my 20's I realize maybe they weren't as great as I thought they were. Definately some cherished moments, 3 of my kids were born in my 20's, but of course we all have moments that we are not proud of & I did have more than a few of those! So it is now time to let go & say goodbye to the 20's & hello to my 30's and embrace it & enjoy every minute of it to the fullest because I know how quickly time goes by and before I know it I will be even older with more knowledge & experience behind me...hopefully!

For my 30th birthday I honestly just wanted to be alone & away from everyone. I didn't need the constant happy birthday you are 30 reminder. So I scheduled a day at the spa. It was one of the greatest things I have done for myself all year! I told Todd it is something I want to do every year, it is a must! I went to Dolce Salon & Spa in Arrowhead. (www.dolcesalonspa.com) It was amazing, so pretty inside. It was just soothing looking at everything. My appt started at 10:30, I got there right on time (of course I wouldn't be late for this!) they immediately asked what I would like to drink & had me pick out what I wanted for lunch from the menu. I chose ice water to drink & then picked out a spinach & bacon salad. Then a girl came down the elevator & took me up the elevator to the locker room, gave me a lovely soft robe & a locker for my stuff. I changed in to the robe and put my things away, then she took me to the "relaxation room" which had such soothing music & waterfalls & windows, the view was of the 101, so not sure how relaxing that is to watch cars going 100 miles an hour, but it was peaceful. So the first "service" was a manicure. I can't even say when the last manicure I had was, like forever ago. I am a nail biter, so I was a little embarrassed at the shape my nails were in. I had even filed them the night before because they were looking pretty shabby. Anyhow I moved on to a spa pedicure, these I enjoy getting, however the last one I had was probably over the summer sometime...again can't even remember when. So after the mani & pedi it was back to the relaxation room, then the lady came & got me for my facial. I have had a facial done about a year ago and it was amazing, however this one was beyond amazing! It was so relaxing & soothing. The room was painted a really dark brown & then there was a huge crystal chandelier hanging above the table you lay on and she dimmed the lights really low, I was pretty close to falling asleep until she was finished & decided that it was time to work on my dirty pores problem...ouch...so much for relaxing, tears were flowing at this point! Then back to massaging the face, much better now! So after the facial they took me to the eating area for my lunch, which was one of the tastiest salads I have had in awhile, or I was just starving to death, I dunno. Anyway the lunch area was just as relaxing as the rest of the spa, except for the constant chomping of me devouring my salad. I seriously don't know why I was so hungry but I felt like I hadn't eaten in days or something! So after finishing my salad I went for my combination massage, it was amazing, I can't really think of another word to describe it! She first massaged with the stones which I had never had before, that was fabulous, then she moved on to doing the reflexology massaging. Lets just say I fell asleep, and the one thing that makes me realize I am old now is that I woke myself up because I was snoring. How embarrassing is that!! Anyway it was so great, I loved every minute of it. So after the massage it was time to get my hair done. I hadn't planned on getting it cut cuz I am trying to get a little more length on it, but she did thin it out for me & gave it more of a style, so that was great. After the hair it was on to getting my makeup done. It is always interesting to see what they are going to put on me since I have the red hair. I have only had a few make up sessions in my life...they all do the same thing that I have been doing since I started wearing make up in jr high, brown. It is the only thing that seems to look right. I have ventured out some to the greens, but usually go right back to the browns. After the makeup I was finished, all relaxed, and feeling the best I had felt since turning 30! By this time it was about 4:30, I had hoped to have time to go to Victoria's Secret to get a new bra which I badly need, but I totally forgot I was going to do that because I was on the phone with my Mom telling her about my amazing afternoon. So as I am half way home I am totally bummed because I forgot to stop there (and I have yet to go back for one, so i am still in desperate need of a new bra!) Anyway I got back home all relaxed with no worries or stresses. The original plan was to go out for Sushi which I love, but only get occassionally, however the kiddos were begging to go to dinner for my birthday and as a mom when the kids beg, you typically give in depending on the situation, so I gave in and there was no way were taking 4 kids out for Sushi, we would have to hit In N Out burger on the way there, I don't think they would enjoy it all that much. So I settled for...Cracker Barrell. We live in Buckeye...it is not like we have many dinner options & I didn't really want to drive further in to Litchfield for dinner with 4 kids. We went & ate then my kids who think they are sneaky of course had to tell our waitress that it was my birthday, so I got sang to & then we got a dessert. The kids loved it and for me, that made it all worth it. I still have not gotten that sushi birthday dinner, but someday it will happen. Todd did get me a Cheesecake, but everyone was to full from our brownie/ice cream from Cracker Barrell so we saved it for the next day. It was a great day, the spa was for sure something I needed to do. I think that as a mom I get so in to doing for everyone else that my needs or wants just go by the way side, because I am all about pleasing everyone & making sure everyone's needs are met and if mine aren't, well there is always tomorrow...or in 10 years! I highly recommend a day at the spa to any mom, it was well worth it! So as I enter the 30's phase of my life I am trying to have a greater appreciation for the things that I do have & for the experiences that are given to me each day. The task of being a good mom & wife are such a priority to me and serving others, not just my family is going to be one of my new goals. I feel like I have gone through the last few years just floating by without giving as much to myself to others as I should, I have been a little selfish & have kept my service to my family, however I have realized I need to venture out because there is so much need for service in the world today. So as I move on to my 30's I pray that I can be the person my Heavenly Father intended for me to be and do the things that would make Him happy and will make me a better person!

GOODBYE 20's, it was nice while I was there, but time has passed and a new phase has begun, so to that I say HELLO 30's!!

GRADUATION DAY!!

2008-11-10T10:51:00.000-08:00

Well it finally happened! Todd is a college graduate. After 8 years in the making it is finally done with. I think he is glad it is done, however Sunday morning when he woke up he said I am not sure what to do with myself, I am going to have to set some more personal goals. I am glad to be married to someone who has the desire to set goals and achieve them, however sometimes I would just like him to sit back, relax, and enjoy life instead of moving on to the next thing. Maybe a part of me is jealous because I am not that way. I know what I would like to do, but because my biggest goal is to raise successful kids, I put any "personal goals" I may have to the side so I can work on the important goal of my kiddos. Anyhow what a great day it was. We went to the University of Phoenix Stadium for the graduation. His parents, Grandma Pat & Papa Tito, Grandma Stell & Papa Junior and his sister Lindy came to support him. My parents were also there, and Brennen, Mak, & Garret. We opted to leave Russ with Tiffany (our fabulous neighbor & Russy's 2nd mom) because it was going to be a long time to have to sit with a 10 month old and he wasn't feeling very well either. Todd had lots of support from all of us! It seriously felt like some kind of a dream, seeing him down there in his cap & gown waiting for his name to be called. I was so proud of him, it is such an accomplishment. He is the first college graduate on his Mom's side of the family, and I believe the second on his Dad's side. So everyone is very proud of him for sticking it out and finishing it. Saturday night Garret told Todd I want to be a graduate just like you...that was great and I know that was a big part of why he finished, he had to show the kids how important it is to get a college degree & mostly to finish what you start...even if it takes a looooong time!

So after the graduation we came home & got ready for our big celebration. We had invited just over 100 people to come, and we had around 90 show up (including kids)! It was so much fun. We had worked so hard to make it a fun party. The house we are living in didn't have a back yard, we are just renting it, but we talked with the owners & they let us put in landscaping. So we started the project in August and finished it last week, with lots of help from great friends & neighbors! Anyway so we had landscaped the yard, and I had been decorating the inside of the house for months, just working hard so things would be nice.

A few weeks ago Todd bought a pig from a guy in our ward, he fed it & fattened it up, then he killed it on Wed, poor pig, his name was BB, short for BBQ since that was his sole purpose in life! With the help of a friend (since this was his first time to do this sort of thing) they cut the pig up. Todd had built a below ground pit to cook the pig in. So after cutting the pig up it rested over night (mind you it was up in the air in gunny sacks hanging from some equipment at work!) he was worried all night that it was going to break and then the coyotes would eat it & we would have no meat. Luckily the meat was fine when he got to work the next day. He brought it home & we seasoned it up really good, then he went back to start his fire because he needed 2 feet of coals to cook the meat in. So he finally put the meat in to cook, talk about a nervous wreck! I felt like I was going to go crazy inside until I knew the meat was going to be fine, trying to feed that many people was not going to be an easy task if something went wrong with BB! Meat came out & was delicious!! We were so excited. Another task completed! With the help of our great friends we shredded all the meat up and I could finally relax!

So Saturday evening came, time for the party! People started showing up and the food was ready, we blessed it & dung in! From what everyone said it was very good. I was to busy making the rounds talking to everyone and keeping the food going. At one point I did manage to snag a plate, however I was interrupted for something & handed my plate off & never seen it again! Later that night I found out Todd never ate either! It was just nice to have that many family & friends at our house visiting & enjoying each other. It was such a great time, I was so glad that we were able to do it and celebrate that Todd had finally graduated!

Fun times with Makenna!

2008-11-10T08:50:00.000-08:00

Me & Makenna

Kim, Me, & Tiff

Brylee, Taylor, & Mak

Brylee, Taylor, Marley, & Mak

On Friday night I took Makenna to the Carrie Underwood concert with some of our friends. It was a lot of fun to see how excited the girls were to go to the concert, it was the first concert for a few of them, so as you can imagine girls from the ages of 8-11...there was a lot of singing & screaming going on while we drove to the concert! I sat in the back with them, they taught me a new little song/chant they like to do...Whats that, a hat, a funky junky crazy hat, overslept, hair unsightly, trying to look like Kira Knightly, we've been there, we've done that, we see right through your funky hat. (I believe that is right!) Something from Wizards of Waverly Place. Anyhow they have body movements & the whole bit, you say it with lots of attitude. What a crack up! Totally takes me back to my days with my BFF Michelle, we would spend hours doing the different hand slapping chants, singing songs, like Going to the chapel and were gonna get married, that was one of the funnest summers of my life. We would sit in the motor home at Roosevelt Lake, it is like 120 degrees inside & we are playing a card game of Speed and listening to old tunes! Anyhow back to the concert, I will have to reminisce when I have more time! So we drove to the concert, got there took some pictures before we went in, then we found some food because we were all pretty hungry, got the girls all tshirts before so we didn't have to fight the crowds afterwards, found our seats, and the first act was Little Big Town. For those of you who know me you know I don't listen to much country music, I don't hate it or anything, I just prefer other stuff, so I honestly had no idea who they were. Turns out they weren't so bad, nothing fantastic, but they were pretty good. So when they finished it was time to wait for the big star of the evening to appear. We wait & wait, finally the 5 minute countdown begins, girls start screaming! We are down to the last minute, everyone starts to stand up, the girls are jumping up & down totally excited, we are having bets on if she comes out in a dress, pants, skirt, or what, well she pops out from the stage...and is wearing all black, dress/skirt, with black leggings, & sky high boots! Amazing! The girls are singing away, they know every word to every song. In fact on our drive to the concert we forgot the CD, however the girls said we don't need it & busted out singing All American Girl, not missing a beat or word! So cute! Anyway the concert was amazing, I would go see her anytime. The girls loved it. However Brylee, which is Makenna's BFF sacked out about 45 minutes in to the show, and if any of you know my Mak you will know she didn't make it either! LOL! I look at her & she has her head leaned to the side...eyes getting very heavy, she is singing the song, it is one of her favs she has been waiting to hear all night, next thing I know her eyes are closed...mouth still moving, then suddenly mouth stops moving & she is out!! How can anyone fall asleep at a concert?! The loud music the yelling & screaming, I was a little surprised, but it had been a long day with school & all and I am sure the anticipation of the event took up so much energy! So when it was over I woke her up & she was totally ok with falling asleep, she is a girl who needs her sleep, doesn't matter where she is or what she is doing, if she is tired, she will fall asleep, oddly enough her BFF is the exact same way, so it works out for them, they fall asleep while the rest of the girls are having a good time, but for them they don't feel like they are missing out because they have each other and they need their sleep! It was a fun time. I think I will wait a few more years before we do another night concert with her, or make sure it is on a Saturday where she can rest a bit before hand. It was a fun night & I am so glad I have a daughter that I can spend girl time with!

2008-11-04T06:26:00.000-08:00

Big one is Makenna's, which me & her whipped out in no time after she finally gutted it! The little carved one is Garret's, and the next one is Brennen's, apparently it is supposed to be a headless guy holding his head, if I look closely at the picture I can see headless, but I don't see where he is holding his head?! And then the little sad uncarved pumpkin of Russy! Usually the pumpkin carving is a bigger deal at our house, however this year was a little busy, so the boys did it one day & then I helped Mak right before we went trick or treating.

Halloween 2008

2008-11-03T23:46:00.000-08:00

This year for Halloween Brennen was some sort of scary ghoul, Mak was a 50's girl, Garret was an alligator, and Russ was a skeleton. We celebrated at our ward trunk or treat and then again on Halloween night. I missed out on the pumpkin carving of Bren & Garret so no pics of their fun, but did manage to sneak in a picture of Mak. Poor Russy, we didn't even have time to carve his, we were lucky to get Mak's done before heading out for candy! As usual they got more candy than was necessary! It was a fun time for them.

Brennen-My Oldest Child

2008-10-27T13:34:00.000-07:00

Brennen Tyler Hall was born on June 27, 1995. He came in to this world 8 weeks premature weighing in at 4 lbs 11 oz and only 15 inches long. Brennen has the most amazing spirit with him that he has carried since birth. As his mom I knew immediately that he was going to be a special child who was intelligent, complex, and very spiritual. After 2 weeks in the hospital he was finally released and we were able to bring him home. At the time we lived in Taylor, AZ and had only been married for 6 months and I was 16 and his dad was almost 19. It was a little scary to bring him home & not have a clue what I was doing, but mothering Brennen came fairly easy for me because he was such a good boy. Brennen is very smart, at about 8-9 months he could already say mom, dad, ball, & dog and knew what they were! Brennen has excelled in school and is usually at the top of his class, always thinking out of the box as some of his teachers have said. He is a great big brother to his siblings, he likes to tease them all the time, but he also watches over them & protects them. He is such an example to his entire family. It is so great to see his willingness to serve others & to be a spiritual strength to those around him. My hope for Brennen is that he will continue on the path he is on, that he will continue to have the desire to serve the Lord and to set personal goals that will reflect the love he has for his Heavenly Father. How blessed I am to be given such a choice spirit to raise in this day. I am proud to be his mom!

My Amazing Husband

2008-10-20T08:07:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to post a little something special about my husband. With 4 kids it seems that sometimes he gets lost and pushed to the back burner...you never hear him complain about it though! I am so proud of him for all of his accomplishments. He will be graduating from U of P in a few weeks and I know it has been a long road for him, but what an accomplishment, he is the first of his immediate family to graduate from a University, he is also one of the first to ever graduate within both sides of his extended family. I am still not sure if he really wanted to go to school, but he did it and finished, yes it took him almost 8 years (he gets reminded of that regularly!) but the important thing is he finished what he set out to do and nothing makes me more proud of him. During this time of going to school full time & trying to be a husband & father he managed to quit a very stressful job working for a huge corporation, which he had worked very hard for, (started as a loader operator and years later ended up being a plant manager) he managed to start up his own business doing what he loves...playing in the dirt all day. He started Western Aggregates almost 2 years ago, it is a sand and gravel business. He loves just about every minute of it and best of all one of his business partners is his best friend, his dad. How blessed I am to have such a hard working husband who is so willing to go the extra mile to provide for me & our kids. I am thankful to my Heavenly Father everyday for the blessing of Todd in my life. We have been together for 15 years now, married for almost 14. Because of getting married so young I have now been with Todd as long as I was with my parents! I can't imagine life any other way. He is my best friend, the one I think about all the time, the one I can't wait to walk in the door, even after this many years when I hear him pull up my heart beats fast because I know the other part of me is back home safe and without him I am not complete. I can't imagine spending eternity with any one else. He continually puts up with me and loves me for who I am. How grateful I am to him for the amazing life he has given to us and the amazing person he is, I love you babe!

Exciting News!

2008-10-13T17:21:00.000-07:00

On Sunday morning Lindy Todd's sister had a sweet baby boy! He was 6 lbs 9 oz and 19 inches long. He was a few weeks early and he seems so tiny! He looks just like his daddy! His name is Clinton Wayne. We are so excited for them & I think this completes their family because I can't imagine her going through another pregnancy after the great time she has had with this one! :) Welcome to the world little guy we are excited to have you in our family!

Weekend in Pima

2008-10-13T16:17:00.000-07:00

Brennen cutting the "perfect" pumpkin

Mak can barely carry hers

Garret and his long stemmed pumpkin, it took him forever to decide on this one!

Our hay ride from picking our pumpkins.

Me & my mom, she is amazing!

October 11, 2008

This past weekend we went to my brother Michaels house in Pima. We spent some time in the rain & the mud & it was a little cold at times, but it was a lot of fun. On Friday we went to the Fair Day parade in Safford, sorry for anyone from Safford, but the parade was a little lacking! The kiddos were totally bummed that they only got like 5 pieces of candy, and there were so many politicians, I honestly don't recall any actual parade floats. Best part of the parade was going to the tortilla factory & getting freshly made tortillas that were still steaming hot! After the parade we spent some time at Michaels house letting the kids ride their quads & the mule, they had so much fun. Saturday we woke up to 100 mile an hour winds (you would think we were in Snowflake or something!) and then the rain started in. After a little bit of rain we finally decided to make our way to Willcox to go to Apple Annies pumpkin patch. It rained on us the entire way, we figured it would be a complete mud hole, but to our surprise it was nice & dry! So we took a hay ride out to the pumpkin patch and all the kids picked their pumpkins, then we took a hay ride back to the entrance & paid for our pumpkins. Todd took Bren, Mak, & G through the corn maze while I took Russ & we got kettle corn & shaved ice and sat in the extreme wind that had started up. The kids had a great time and it was fun to spend some time with all the family. This year we had around 40 people all together! It has become a yearly thing for us to go to Pima on the 2nd weekend in October. Typically we go to the county fair, however with the weather this year...not an option! It was still a great time, another weekend of memories made!

It's about time!!

2008-10-13T12:08:00.000-07:00

I continually say I don't have time to do a blog, however after seeing so many neat blogs & knowing how many friends & family are out there blogging, I decided it was time to make time for my own blog. So for now I will post as often as I can and try to keep up to date with our life happenings. Thanks for the encouragement from everyone to start the blog up!