Last Day of School!

Our last day of school was on Wednesday. This is always a bitter sweet time for me and my children. We have been blessed to have great teachers at our school, Harmony Elementary, and we are sometimes sad to end the year. Some years we have really loved our teachers and this year was one of them. Both Mason and Brooklyn had fabulous teachers. They have both made great progress and are excited for their new teachers but sad to say goodbye to their current ones. On the last day of school they had a big assembly with the whole school and then went to their individual classrooms to say their goodbyes. This is Mason with his two teachers Mrs. Wright:

And Miss Hannah:

Brooklyn's teacher, Mr Schiewe, was awesome and we were both sad to say goodbye to him! She got really emotional when she had to leave her classroom for the last time. When I saw her I also started to cry:

Brinley also had her last day of preschool a week ago. She had a great teacher Miss Tracy that we loved !!!
It doesn't seem possible that my little 35 lb. girl can be going into Kindergarten next year! We had our official first day of summer yesterday. It was beautiful and 80 degrees! It was filled with sprinklers, water fights, friends, and lots of otter pops! I'm not so sure that big costco box is going to last all summer long! Happy Summer!

Super Stacey!

I wanted to thank my friend Stacey for running with me this morning. I told her last week that I needed to start running more miles. I was a little nervous because she's a great runner, biker, um a mean athlete! She planned a route for us that was fun, challenging, and beautiful. We went 9 miles, my longest EVER, in 90 minutes. I was so excited that I finished and I felt great. Thanks again for pushing me along to reach my goal of doing a half marathon in September!

Ten Days in Turkey

It has been ten days today that Jon has been on his business trip in Istanbul, Turkey! It has been busy with only me here to manage the troops and all their activities! At one time Jon and I considered me tagging along on this business trip with him. We decided against it because the airline tickets are very expensive and we didn't have anyone to watch the kids for two weeks! It is a good thing that I didn't go because I would have missed so many "end of the year" activities! These are all the Extra things that I've had over the past ten days!

Wednesday May28
A three hour track meet that Mason participated in with other Harmony Huskies. He competed in four events and received two third place finishes, a second place in their relay, and a fourth place.

Thursday May 29

Pride Night at the elementary school. Brooklyn's holding a story she wrote "The Very Clumsy Caterpillar"

Friday May 30

Another First Grade field trip to Lacamas Lake Park. Saturday May 31

Mason's basket ball game that ended in a nail bitter! I also participated in a 5K run with six other friends from my ward. It's called the Starlight Run which is associated with the annual Rose Festival in Portland. There is a run just before a big parade called the Starlight Parade which happens usually around 9pm. Many people dress up in costumes, so my friend Tamara had the idea of being bumble bees. It was great fun and we got lots of cheers as we buzzed by people!

Wednesday June 4
Morgan marched with her Dance Team in the Junior Rose Festival Parade. She also had an end of the year Banquet for Dance Team that evening. She got a certificate for Perfect Attendance and got "Dancer of the Month" given to her by her team leader for the month of March!

Thursday June 5

Brooklyn had a musical performance where she was a praying mantis in their play "Over the Garden". I also went to Mason's tennis class for the first time.

I did have to say "no" to some things these past few days . We did not attend Morgan's recognition assembly for the National Junior Honor Society. I skipped mutual once and I didn't attend Enrichment. Somethings I just couldn't do with everything else going on. It has been hard trying to juggle all these extras and the normal stuff all by myself. I have realized these past ten days just how much Jon helps me out! I never want to be a single parent and we are all counting down the days until he comes home! Just three more!!!

My only son!

Mason is the only boy amongst four sisters! He is such a good boy, brother, and son. He puts up with a lot of drama & whining, the color pink & hair bows, ballet recitals & dress ups, skirts & shoes, baby dolls & polly pockets! Just give Mason a basketball and he will be happy. Mason really wanted to have a brother, and was convinced that Maddie was going to be a boy! When we told him after my ultrasound that he was going to have another sister he started to bawl! It was so sad. Jon and I both started bawling with him. He has adjusted well with only having sisters, and takes great care of the three little girls. I feel blessed to have at least one son! For Mother's Day at school he made a card for me titled Mother:

M: other

O: f five children

T: rying to get all of her work done

H: as to work every second

E: very day trying to get a break

R: eally great

I just thought that this was hilarious! I laughed and cried at the same time. He has been helping me out tons lately by babysitting for me on Wednesday nights when Morgan, Jon, and I all have to go to Mutual. Yesterday I bought him this Kobe Bryant jersey for a reward for all the babysitting he has done!

Thanks for being such a great son, I love you Mason!

Maddie's Face Today!

Family Photos???

We were suppose to get family pictures taken today, but I postponed them due to Maddie's face plant!

I'm bummed because we now have to wait for three weeks to get them taken because Jon will be out of town! Mason and Jon are excited because they both hate taking pictures. Maddie actually looks worse today because her eye area is now black & blue! She didn't cry very long but I feel bad for her because it looks so bad! Hopefully no more spills in the next 3 weeks!

Eight is More Than Enough!

For the past few days I was watching the Lake Kiddos while their parents were in Utah! I have decided that eight is a lot of children and I'm glad that I only have five! They were great and everything went extremely well. A big thanks to Morgan, Mason, and good old Griffy for being my big helpers! Here's Mason and Griffin being silly one night before bed:

The little girls enjoyed laying out, jumping on our new Trampoline, running in the sprinklers, and eating Popsicles at the beach party on Friday. It was so warm last weekend that we broke two records! 95 degrees! Saturday was a little crazy with every one's schedule! A big thanks to Johnny boy for doing a lot of it by himself since I was a an Aerobic seminar in Portland. Now that I have finished my trade with Stacey, I now only need to do one more trade for my friend Karen who watched my other children during our cruise!

Field Trips!

It has been a busy week with lots of extra school activities! This week I went on the first grade field trip (Tuesday) to the Clark County Fair Grounds for a Dairy Exhibit. We learned all about different types of cows, how they are milked, what they eat/drink, and how the milk is transferred. The kids had a great time and even got an ice cream bar. The next day (Wednesday) I went to Morgan's Middle School for the honor roll assembly. She received her second 4.0 for another trimester!

Great Job Morgan! Since it was early release that day, we both went to get pedicures to celebrate.

That same morning Brinley had Kindergarten Roundup. This is where she gets to go to the Kindergarten class, meet the teachers, and do some activities. The parents go to another room to learn more about the Elementary school, the teachers, and about Kindergarten. I actually sent Jon to this event since I couldn't find a sub for my class. Brinley is very excited to go to Harmony and had fun with her friend's at Kindergarten!

My last school event of the week was Mason's fourth grade field trip (Friday). His class went to the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center. This is in Oregon City, OR at the end of the Oregon Trail. It was a pretty fun field trip. We learned about the pioneers that traveled on the Oregon Trail and many of the struggles they faced. The kids also visited a hands on Museum where they were able to load a wagon, dress-up in pioneer clothes, and play with pioneer children's toys.
This picture is of Mason and a friend Marissa from his class. Overall it has been a crazy school week, but I am grateful that I'm able to go on these field trips and support my children!

Magnificent Monique!

I just wanted to say thanks to my sister Monique for re-vamping my blog! Some of my friends have commented or asked me how I changed my page layout. And my answer is "I have no idea!" My little sis did it all and I love it! Check out her new cute layout, at the Always An Adventure link. She's well on her way to making the transition digital scrapbooking! Thanks! I love you tons!

Sixteen Years!

After 16 years of marriage, I can finally say that I don't mind when my husband barfs on me! Just kidding! I'm the one that is way more sensitive to motion sickness than him. This was just a funny picture that was taken on our trip. We were on a smaller boat that was "rockin and rollin!" Happy Anniversary Honey. Sixteen great years and many more to come!

Two More Months!
There is only two more months from today until all the kids get out of school! Some people might think that is so late, and yes it is! But I have gotten used to my children getting out later than the rest of the nation and I like it! I decided this week to get really serious about only having two more months to accomplish anything! I have made a goal to finish all my 2006 scrapbooking, and finish Maddie's book before the end of June! That's pushing it for me but I will finish! I then need to decide what I'm going to do with scrapping, Digital or not! O the dilemma! So I better get cracking! I am just finishing Mason's Baptism pages, yes he's now 10!

Sunny Saturday!

Last weekend was absolutely wonderful!!! The temperature on Saturday was probably around 78. You just can't beat a day like that here in the NW. The kids loved it and eventually put on their suits and ran through the sprinklers.

Jon and I were working of course working! I asked my class on Saturday morning what they were going to do. Some said yard work, golfing, biking, Saturday's market, and all I had to say is "we're working!" It seems like we always work on Saturdays! I guess when there's only one day a weekend to get things done, that's what you do! Hopefully we'll finish all of our projects and by the summer time we can play and maybe even take out our boat this year! Jon and I made our garden boxes, went to Home Depot twice, picked up three yards of dirt, and made one small detour to pick up a Diet DP. We were so excited to finish our project, and ready to plant that garden! This weekend will not be so nice, it's only suppose to be 48 degrees! What? That's considered unseasonably low!

Spring Break!

As this week is coming to an end I quickly wanted to recap what we've done for my journaling purposes. Day 1 Monday was spent preparing for my parents to arrive, hanging out with cousins, helping the Moses' move, and mopping my floor until 1 am. Day 2 Tuesday I woke up feeling miserable! I was sick with the 24 hour flu again for the 2nd time in three weeks. Jon had to pick up my parents at the airport and they then came to my house to entertain my children and take care of me! Thanks mom and dad! I laid in bed most of the day, didn't get out of my jammies, and wore my glasses the entire day! Welcome to my house mom! Day 3 Wednesday I woke up a new woman, Yeah! I taught my class and quickly showered so we could go to the Tulip Festival in Woodburn. The weather was beautiful and sunny! The kids enjoyed the tulips and tractor ride.

The big kids then wanted to jump on these trampolines with the harnesses. They talked grandpa into paying for them. They loved it and were actually a little scared! Morgan and Brooklyn both did back flips:

Mason was catching some big air:We didn't think Brinley was big enough to jump, but she did great and loved every minute, she also did a back flip:

Day 4 Thursday was spent preparing for our Silver Falls trip. Jon has wanted to go camping all winter/spring. He booked us some rustic cabins. It was basically camping without the tent. It was fun the first day, but we woke up to rain and snow on Friday. The kids had a blast sitting by the fire, eating smores and sleeping in the cabins!

We were bummed that we didn't get to go hiking to the falls. It was so cold, rainy, and snowy. The only falls we saw were from the distance!
I am still trying to finish all my camping laundry! I'm not so sure about winter camping. When we got home we got all cleaned up, went to Olive Garden for dinner and then played games. Day 6 Saturday was spent watching conference, going to a movie, and playing more games. What a fun week it has been especially because Mom and Dad are visiting! I'm looking forward to Monday when I can get some one on one time with mom to go shopping and out to lunch!

Best Christmas Present Ever!

Mason finally got to use his "best" Christmas present from last year! It was two tickets to a Blazers game. Mason decided to take me with him to the game last weekend since Jon already went to a game this year. We were both very excited for the game and counted down the days all week. We rode to the game with some friends that were also going to the game. On the way down Mason was telling Brother Zundel all his favorite NBA players. I think both Karen and JR were both pretty shocked at how many players he knew! It was very fun to be at the Rose Garden and see the game live! He loved every minute of it, including the Nachos and drink that we purchased at half time. The Blazers were ahead most of the game but ended up losing in the last four minutes! It was a great night and a big thanks to Santa (Big Guy) for sending us the tickets in the mail!!!

Easter Sunday!

This is all the kids in their Easter Outfits before church:

And this is them actually leaving for church:Winter coats, umbrella, and rain. I think it barley broke 50 degrees yesterday. Gotta love Easter in the NW! It's usually this way. I'm glad to see that some people got sun. (Monique, so jealous of your 88 degrees!)

Mason's Basketball

Mason had his end of the season bball party tonight. He has been playing on a league with several of his friends from school. He had a great season and improved a lot this year. The coach gave out the trophies, certificate, and a necklace to each of the boys. He compared each of the boys to different NBA players. Mason's name was: Mason "LaBron (King) James" Jackson. The look on Mason's face when coach was talking about him was PRICELESS!!! I would have given anything to have a picture of it! He was so dang excited to walk up and get his trophy. I was such a proud and excited parent right then. Coach didn't even know that Mason's favorite player is LaBron James. Mason's eats, sleeps, and breaths basketball. Jon and I love going to his games. Jon couldn't stop talking to his friend Alex Friday night about how great Mason did in his game earlier that evening. We look forward to many more of his games in the future. Way to go Mas!

What a Day!

Yesterday was a jam packed day in my life! These are the things that I accomplished:
made breakfast, lunch, dinner and cleaned up
vaccuumed my entire house
swept and mopped my floor on hands & knees
ran 3 miles and taught my weight class
watched a total of nine extra kids(4 morning/5 afternoon) including 2 babies! Baby Brody & Jaron
two loads of laundry
changed diapers and wipped bums
helped with homework
went to the school book fair
read books, scriptures and put everyone to bed by myself (Jon was at ward temple night)

I am trying to make up for last week. It took me a whole week to get back into the swing of things from my vacation. Part of this is due to the fact that I was out of commission for 24 hours with the flu. The only good that came from that is that I lost the weight that I gained on my cruise! I finished my jam packed day with 2 plus hours of reality TV: Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, and my favorite Biggest Looser!

Eastern Caribbean Cruise


I finally figured out how to do a slide show so I can now post about our cruise. We went with our friends the Dustins and the Moses'. The islands we went to were Tortola, Grand Turk, St. Thomas, and an island in the Bahamas. It was so fun and relaxing. My favorite day was when we were in Grand Turk and we went surfing and body surfing. There was hardly anyone at this beach that we went to and we just had a blast! Some other fun memories were snorkeling (I especially loved Allie's reaction when she spotted a Stingray), the beautiful water & sand, the swim up bar at Margaritaville, our fun taxi drivers, my favorite dessert the cappuccino bomb, dancing, the magacian, and my massage! What a fun way to celebrate Jon's 40th birthday! Thanks for the fun memories!!!

Cruise

Post Vacation Blues!

Being on vacation was absolutely great but coming back is hard! I feel like I need about three days until I am ready to tackle life again, but that doesn't happen. We were so excited to come home to see our kids on Saturday! They were all awake when we got home so we were able to snuggle and put them to bed. By the time we got to bed we were exhausted. Not only did we have a three hour time difference but we didn't realize until that evening that we were also Springing forward our clocks! Poor Jon who had to get up for early morning church meetings!!! I'm trying to get all the laundry caught up and bills paid today! My friend Karen had my house spotless when I came home! A big thank you to her!!! I will be posting about my cruise soon, I'm trying to figure out how to do a slide show??

Cruise Contest

Eight weeks ago I announced to one of my classes that I was going to be having contest until my cruise. This contest was to help motivate me to loose those holiday pounds I gained and get me ready for my trip. I initailly wanted to do it for all my classes but I decided that I was not quite as weathly as "NBC" and could only afford the $50 Target gift card. Thus, I picked my favorite class at Lacamas Swim/Sport. I gave my students one week to tell me what their goal was and told them that they had to honestly tell me if they completed it within the appropriate time. These goals ranged from fitness, weight loss, and some were just "getting there "4x per week. They also had to attend my class at least one time per week during the eight weeks. Well today was the big day that I gave away the prize. I told everyone that accomplished their goals to put their name & goal on a piece of paper and I would draw one lucky winner! I was thinking that I wanted to make the prize a little better than just a gift card so I decorated a paint can and included some of my favorite things:My favorites include a water bottle for working out, glue stick for scrapbooking, ribbon for bow making, chocolate kisses for eating, and the $50 gift card for shopping at my favorite store Target! There were seven people that made their goal, two girls lost 15 pounds! The lucky winner was Ruth Brown who lost 8 pounds! She told me that she probably would have never lost them without this contest. I love hearing that and I love making a difference in people's lives.

Congrats Pacific!

Morgan had her first dance competition with her middle school the Pacific Vikings. She was gone from 7:00 am until 8:00 pm. Their team performed in the afternoon after we had been there watching other schools for three hours. Brooklyn, Brinley and myself loved watching but Mason, Maddie and Jon got a little restless! Jon took them to the car for about an hour to give Maddie a nap. It was worth the wait because the girls did such an awesome job! It was so fun to watch Morgan and her team. They ended up getting first place for the middle schools and won best spirit award! She had a blast and I am very proud of her accomplishments! Way to go Morgan and Pacific!

Northwest Sun

Last week was incredibly beautiful here in WA! The sun was out all week which is huge for us. The funny thing about living in the NW is that when the sun's out so are people! You Arizonians(is that right?) would be wearing your winter coats but us in the NW just embrace the sunshine. The kids think that since the sun is out that it's summer time and time for the shorts! It was not quite that warm but in the mid to upper 50's. I took the girls and some of their friends to the park with Wendy's Frosty's. They had a ball running, throwing rocks in the pond, rolling down the grassy hill, and playing follow the leader. Here are some pictures of them enjoying the beautiful spring day:

The Big 4-0!

Jon 40th birthday was last Friday! We made him breakfast in bed and then he was off to work just like any other day. His dad took him out to lunch to their favorite restaurant, which I was glad that he took him since I was still running around trying to finish up party stuff! He had a great time at his party with family and several friends. We had all his favorite desserts, cake, and candy. His mom make his favorite German Chocolate Cake:

Everyone enjoyed the "tribute to Jon"that I displayed on the mantel for him. I got some great pictures from Margene. Many people commented on the resemblence between Jon and Mason:

I was very excited to give him his gift, the book that I made titled "The reasons we love Jon". I was thrilled at how it turned out and he loves it. He has thanked me repeatedly since then for all the hard work I put into this memorable gift! I had a few people read their entries and I also mine. These are my 25 things I love about Jon:

-He's always willing to do my honey-do list.

-He's a very hard worker.

-Jon's the best father to our children!

-He has a great sense of humor.

-He's my best friend.

-I can talk to him about anything!

-Jon is very dedicated to his church callings.

-He honors his priesthood.

-He's always willing to help everyone!

-He can fix anything.

-Because he's so cute and I love his brown eyes.

-He's willing to help me with carpooling, baths, and daily chores.

-Jon's the best at helping our children with homework.

-He is very positive and never talks bad about anyone.

-Jon makes me want to be a better person.

-He loves to make me happy.

-He's always concerned about me and our family.

-He loves to entertain and often wants to have a party.

-He love his parents and in-laws.

-He's the driving force behind our family scripture study.

-I love his laugh!

-He loves to play games and is very competitive.

-Because he is so low maintenance.

-He's a great cook and has taught me everything I know about cooking!

The kids each thought of three things they love about dad for a total of 40 things that we love about Jon! Happy Birthday JJ!

Those Stinkin Bows!

I just finished making some bows for a friend at the gym. I have made her several pairs and she buys them off of me. Sometimes I'm not sure if it's worth the money because they take so blasted long to make. Well I have been making a new version of the bow that doesn't take as long and is just as cute or cuter I think depending on the outfit. This is a pair that I made for Madelyn:

All you have to do is tie several different ribbons onto barretts. They are kind of wild and big but I've always loved big bows! This pair of bows that I made to match a gymboree line has got to be one of my favorites but took two hours to make!
This is why I am not going into the bow making business!!! I must now work on Jon's scrapbook that I am far from completeing. It will be a busy week with Valentines Day and his birthday bash the very next day. Everyone is sound asleep and this is my primetime work hours!

Pottery Barn Knock-Offs!

I have been eyeing the pottery barn teen & kids tile system for some time now. I have refused to pay the prices that they are charging for some of their items knowing that I could do it cheaper! So Jon, Morgan and Myself made this tile system for her room:I think it turned out way cute! It is a little smaller then PB and fits her room and desk area nicely! She was also able to pick exactly what colors, and designs she wanted. Jon made, painted, and assembled the system with Morgan one Saturday. I helped her find fun things to put on the boards. We all love it for a fraction of the cost the PB was charging. I also wanted something for Brooklyn's room since she loves to draw and is always wanting to display her art work. I did actually break down and buy the pink magnetic & chalkboard tins at PB and then Jon made the white peg boards.
Now they can both put anything they want on their boards without cluttering their walls or my fridge!