Going to the Zoo, Zoo, Zoo...

We go to the zoo about once a year. Every year (except one, I'm so upset!!), we take a picture by the monkey villiage sign. I thought it would be fun to see how the boys have grown over the years: Benjamin and Jackson in 2006.

Ben and Jackson in 2007.

The same trip in '07, the three little monkeys, what fun friends.

With our cousins in January 2008.

Fun times with Cameron in December of 2008. Hallie started school this year, we missed her!

With Ava and Ella in March 2010.

The sign is getting a little worn. I can't believe how big the boys are. I hope we get to go to the zoo with these cute girls again! These pictures make us miss our fun friends we don't see as much anymore. Thanks for all the great memories.

New Things For Spring

I love spring in Arizona. The weather is fantastic and spring break couldn't come at a better time. We have spent the last two weeks enjoying our little family and learning new things. This is a picture of Lukey down by our "grassy area" as the boys call it. I heard him saying "Leonardo, Donatello are you there?" He is getting so big and just keeps getting cuter!

Jeffey's new adventure is hockey. He loves it. He is doing a free camp with the Coyotes and has improved so much over the last three weeks.

Here he is sitting on his bucket that he used to push around the first week. Now he can skate by himself, get up when he falls and shoot the puck into the net. He loved when Grandma and Papa came to watch and is having fun being the first one to try a new sport to our family.

He loves how big he looks in all his gear.

I love that I can barely see him when he has his helmet on. I think its adorable. Im glad one of the boys appreciates their Canadian roots!

Ben's new adventure is learning to ride his bike. Daddy ran a couple miles the last two weeks beside him, but now he can do it himself.

Thanks to cousin Noah for loaning us the handle till he got the hang of it.

Ben got to be Star of the Week at school the last week before spring break and loved telling everyone about his 24 cousins and fun things he does with his family. He brought Luke and Henry as his special people to interview in class.

Lukey finished his preschool program with the city this month. At the little ceremony he was adorable as he led me around. He found us a spot to sit on the steps and eat our treats (which was his favorite thing!). He said in his cute little way "here's a good spot mommy". I can't get enough of him right now. I love this little age. He is my little buddy and is always ready to give me a hug and kiss. He is such a big boy in his tiny body!

With Ms. Alex. She said he was always good in class and participated. He did a great job singing at the presentation and is learning to write quite a few letters. He is a great little artist and loves to color and draw. He is a joy in our family, and keeps up laughing all the time.

Henry is also learning all sorts of new tricks. At five months he weighs what Jeff did at a year, wears the same size diaper Lukey wore when he potty-trained at two and is a great sleeper. He is rolling all over the place and babbling and smiling. The boys love him and he is constantly smothered with attention.

What a fun little family.

Super Mario Turns Six

My baby is six! These treat bags for his party pretty much sum up his interests at present. Everything is about Mario these days. Ben loves the Wii and Legos. He has grown up soooo much this year. Ben is an accomplished reader, great student and enjoys school. He loves his buddies the most and plays ball with them at recess. He is a great big brother to our crew. He is extremely obedient and very helpful. He gets up happy each morning and ready to start the day. Benjamin is especiallly tender with little Henry. I find him some mornings standing next to the baby's crib talking to him, while we get up. He is getting really good at drawing and loves to make pictures. He just gave a very grown up talk in church with confidence. We love watching him grow and mature into a handsome boy. He is a great example to his brothers and friends.

He enjoyed all his lego gifts from friends and family.

Our traditional trip to Toys R' Us. Wearing the crown is still cool!

Blowing out the candles at our family party with cousins. We also had a Star Wars cake at Grandpa and Grandma Jones' house. Birthday week is great.

My miserable attempt at a Mario cake in an hour. Ben wrote his name and helped me. He loved it, which is what matters in the end.

We had our friends over for a little party and played baseball at the end of our street in the "grassy area" with daddy. Ben loves his friends.

Everyone got to decorate their own cupcake with candies.

Some of our favorite friends. (Lukey's face is classic!)

Happy Birthday to my sweet boy. We love you bud.

Words to Survive By....

People ask me often how it is to have four children. It is hard. Harder than I could have imagined. I'm not in a deep dark depression, but days are very long and I never seem to have enough time and energy to get even the basics done. At any given time there is someone who needs something. It has been a balancing act to get everyone the attention and time they need, especially poor Brian who never complains! He has spent two of the last three weeks out of commission with appendix surgery and complications. I feel like if my life was a marathon, this would be the uphill portion. This is the part of the race that makes or breaks you.
I have spent the last week trying to get my home more organized so that keeping it tidy is easier. There is such a peace that resides when the counters are clear and the laundry is folded. I do feel like I am learning great things that will make me a better person. So if my dear, neglected husband can hang in there and my boys look past the mood swings, I think we will come out the other side a strong family. My sister found this quote the other day and it has become my words to live by:

"Recognize that they joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction."

Elder M. Russell Ballard

So here are a few of my moments this month:

Laundry is way more fun when it isn't folded, especially when it is four loads at a time! The boys constantly remind me to enjoy the journey, even if everything is perfect or the way I planned.

The flowers my boys got me for Valentines. I love that Brian is already teaching them this very important skill.

I loved this morning. Ben and Jeffey waiting for my sister to pick them up for school. I'm so glad they have eachother. They are all such good friends. They think having brothers is great.

The two "Waynes". Jeff and Papa doing yard work. I really wouldn't make if far without family. One of the best memories of the week.

There are some days when I wonder if our kids are too close together, if they get enough individual attention, and enough of me. Then I come out of my bedroom from getting ready and find this. The boys had made forts with the couch cusions. One for Ben, one for Jeff, one for Luke and the little red one is for Baby Henry. Yep, I got a little teary eyed. It made me realize that is isn't as much about me as I think sometimes. They have eachother and we were able to give that to them. My joy comes from watching them take care of their brothers wherever we go. In these moments, I wouldn't change a thing.

Crochet Weight Loss Program

I got fat sitting on a couch eating junk late at night when I was pregnant, uncomfortable with insomnia. So, I'm getting skinny sitting on the same couch exhausted from taking care of a new baby and a lot of other kids with a crochet hook in my hand. I can't put food in my mouth and I am thrilled with what YouTube has taught me! Here are the latest products of my weight loss program:
Good thing I have an adorable niece with a cute little bald head that needs a hat. (even though you know I tried it on Henry!)

I love this "Slinky Flower" pattern. It is so full.

This scalloped edge was from a dishcloth tutorial, it took about ten minutes to finish. Seriously try these.

Here is the reason for the weight gain wearing a beanie with a visor. I also found some ninja turtle patterns, you know Lukey will be all over those.

So, while the temperature rises I continue to make knit hats, praying for a few more rainy days.

Ten pounds down, seventeen more to go!

When I'm not cleaning up messes..

I'm making them! As many of my patient family will tell you, Ihave yet to find the perfect balance between work and play. When life gets a little overwhelming, instead of simplifying I usually add something else to do, something fun. This week I made all the treats for YW New Beginnings. I am blogging instead of cleaning up the mess in my kitchen right now, but I will remember the treats and not the mess, right? Cherry chocolate with rich chocolate buttercream and chocolate covered tart cherries. Red velvet with cream cheese butter frosting...yummy.

Lukey is always my baking pal.

These are the mini cherry cheesecakes that my mom used to make. Soooo tasty!

This is my fridge, a WW nightmare. However, I stayed strong and just had one of each.

I also learned how to crochet this week. I went in search of a beanie like this one for Henry and came up with nothing. Etsy had some for $30, but that is money that can go towards a lot of other fun things, so I decided to learn. Four bucks for the needle, 2.99 for the yarn, a pattern on someone's blog and here it is. It is too big for Henry (hence the Bear model), but I know where I went wrong and as soon as my house is clean, I will finish the next one. I also made some flowers for my niece out of cream and pink yarn, so adorable! Come to think of it, the house cleaning can wait.

Traditions

We have started going on a "hike" on the days that Brian has off work. Our crew is finally mobile, including Mommy and it is fun to get out, get some fresh air and hang out with friends. New Years found us at Papago with family, and this MLK day we went to Lost Duchman's Park with the Britts, Taits and Brian's brother Darrell and his family. Eating lunch after the hike, we had some hungry, mungry kiddos!

The hike proved a little challenging for Luke, here he is pleading to go back to the van.

Kings of the mountain (Henry's hidden underneath several layers of blankets in the Bjorn)

Popsicle Jeffey, it got "a little nippy going through the pass"

Life is getting more and more fun with these boys!

Ben was a champ, he made it to the top first and lead the way with Jaimie on the way down.

I got a little nervous at all the places the boys, especially Jeff wanted to explore. Broken bones are expensive!

Our chilly little family. The pictures with all six of us are still amazing to me! Thanks to everyone who came and made the day so much fun. We ended with a rocket blast off and ice cream at the Ghost Town. Fun times.