Introducing... Chubs!

Yesterday, it was pretty windy outside while Chris and I were busily getting all of the children ready for school. Chris quickly stepped out to feed the dogs and came across quite a big discovery... A HUGE catapillar had fallen out of the apple tree in our back yard, and landed on the cement out there. I have never seen a catapillar this size before. I totally looks like something you would come across in some place like South America in the Amazon or something - it's pretty weird.

So, Chris likes to think he is pretty funny... so he scooped the catapillar up on one of the little toy shovels the kids have outside, and quietly, ever so quietly, snuck into the house and quietly walked up to me and then quickly put the shovel right up into my face!! Ok, I am not a very weak person when it comes to squeamish things -- but bugs and spiders -- there are chills running up and down my spine as we speak... uuugh. Not as bad as Miriam (my sister who makes her 2 and 4-year-old children kill spiders for her) -- I can kill a spider when I see it, I just like to be warned of the situation and have control... Spiders quickly being pushed in may face.... uuugh. Needless to say... Chris definately got the reaction he was looking for! I know it looks totally harmless, but DID YOU CHECK THE SIZE OF THAT BAD BOY!?! At first glance (and knowing a little about Chris and his sense of humor) before I knew what it was - what was I supposed to think?

Once I was able to gather my witts about me once again, we all took a closer look. Of course, the kids thought it was one of the coolest things they had ever seen -- and now they have a new pet to add to their collection of creepy-crawlies. The big guy was granted the name of "Chubs" for obviouse reasons. ( I personally thought the kids should have called it "Duece" -- you should see the size of little steamers this big dude can lay down - I thought Chris had put little pine cones in the jar when I first saw them, who'd have thought the guy was just lookin' for some releif... If you look close you can see them on the bottom of the jar.)

As for Chris and the whole mammoth catapillar in the face joke, ha ha lets see how high Rachel will jump, ha ha watch her run away stunt-- I have dedicated a little song to Chris. It is located below. Just wait Dude... :)

The First Day Of School!

Kindergarten has officially started for Ryan and Jonathan. And yes, I did remember to take along my trusty side kick, the ever present digital camera.
The big adventure started with Kidergarten orientation for the students and parents on Thursday. I remained in the class room with the teacher and other parents while all the new kindergarteners were taken on a tour of the school which ended at the playground. And anybody who allows Ryan and Jonathan to play on any type of a play ground is instantly elevated to "God-Like" status in their eyes, so of course their teacher and the playground aide have immeadiatly become immortal beings as far as Ryan and Jonathan are concerned. (I guess it would be safe to say this relationship obviously got started on the right foot.) As soon as the kids were all in the van, I was not suprised to hear Ryan's enthousiastic reaction which was - "Mom, kindergarten is going to be SO fun!"

Chris (the sweet and sentimental father he will never admit that he is) took the morning off, and helped get the boys off on their big day. They were excited to have Chris along, and he was glad he was able to be there as well.

And so yes, to no avail, here is the fun movie of their first day of kindergarten!! I wasn't able to get a lot of clips, and the clips I did get are pretty shaky because I was usually holding Ethan who was excitedly kicking and graping at the camera -- Sorry, but you will still get the idea.

The Kid's Pics

Once again, it was time to update the kid's pictures. Coincidentally, Miriam (My Sister) was wanting to update her family pictures as well. So, Miriam and I took our families out to a nature park on the south end of Pocatello, and got to work. We are certainly not photographers - I think the word we are looking for here would be more like CHEAPOS. Thank heavens for digital cameras and Photoshop. Once we got to the park, we let the kids run and play and just started snapping away. Seriously, it is a good thing we could look back at the pictures we had already taken, there was a lot of on the spot deleting goin' on. The kids handled it pretty well, and, amazingly, with alot of cropping and some editing, Miriam and I were able to walk away with what we were looking for. The real challenge will be when we get around to actually taking photos of the whole family together - that will be an organized sport of it's own...
And so, as a result of our latest adventure, we now have the new blog header. These are a few of the pictures I was able to take. All in all, not too bad, and the kids had fun playing with some of their cousins - a win-win for everyone! :)

Jo - Here's Hopin'...

So, Joanna's baby is due TODAY! And we are all feeling some pain for her - the poor girl! But we are all also super excited to see this little girl when she finally gets out, and wish she would just get a move on already! So Jo, here is hoping there is no more of a delay, and we can finally meet your new little one!

And while were anxiously awaiting any signs of regular contractions, we all gathered for an impromptu BBQ at Debbi's house. (All the sisters and our families- minus Miriam and her family). The kids had a great time takin' a dip in Debbi's hot

tub, while we all ate and just hung out for the evening. ( I know I wasn't the only one who was secretly hoping Joanna's water would break - or something exciting would get going..... Oh, well.)

My Little Boy Just Aged By 6 Months...

Today was "Hair Cutting Day". The boys were getting hair cuts to get ready for school to start next week, so I thought I might as well get the rest of them all done since I was going to be making a hair mess anyway - really no sense in having to clean the mess up twice. So, the "Salon Al La Rachel" doors opened early in order to accomidate all of the kids. I just lined them all up, and away we went. The boys just got the normal hair cuts and Sarah just got a trim. The cutest cuts of the day belonged to Little Ethan and Addie Grace. Yep, Ethan got his first hair cut today, and now he looks about 6 months older. That first haircut always takes so much of the baby look away - but he is still

super cute. :) And then for Little Miss Addie Grace - She got the good ole' A-line bob again. She is such a darn cute short hair kind of girl!

The pictures are a before and after of Ethan, and then an after of Addison - So Cute!

For Dear Joanna - Has That Baby Come Yet?

This little selection is dedicated to you Joanna - my poor sister who is awaiting the arrival of her sweet little girl ANY DAY NOW! And since we have all experienced our own levels of crazy insanity while playing the "Waiting Game" as child birth slowly creeps closer - ever so slowly - it always feels like coma induced snails would make faster time traveling from here to China (Watch the AWESOME Micheal Phelps win all of his gold medals at the olympics) and then return home before the last few days of pregnancy finally come to an end... So sorry Jo, glad I am done being in your shoes. :)

So, for any of you who have not heard of Brian Regan - here is your intro. Chris and his family all love this guy, and Chris and I get a kick out of watchinig him on YouTube. (Yes, here we are on YouTube once again... ). In this two part act, he is laughing about the ER and what it takes for a poor injured person to get some assistance. I thought this was fitting for you Jo, and thought you might enjoy a laugh amid the tears/anger/fury/sleepiness/exhaustion/pull your hair out "Please just get here!!" insanity you and Deryk now have to endure - Chris is glad he is no longer in Deryk's shoes as well. :) And then you will forget all of that before you know it, and be ready for another go-'round... :) And thus ensues the "Circle of Life" - or in Chris's words - "The Cycle of Habitual Self-Inflicted Torture and Eventual Selective Amnesia"... Love you Jo!

The Time Has Come -- The Big "5" Has Arrived!!

The countdown that began long ago - about the time the boys figured out just how cool it was to be 5 years old - well, the time has finally arrived! The boys have finally turned 5 (Finally is the boys choice of words in this case - they thought it would never happen. ) That is right, the boys have officially been invited to cross over to the "Cool" side of the playground fence, and now have permission to leave the pre-school toddlers with their moms, as they embark on the incredibly awesome world of a 5 year old. They are in the driver's seat now. Kindergarten is just a couple of weeks away, and they are practicing up on their "Hey Mom, It's All Good" strut, gearing up for the moment they will be able to enter their new classroom with ease and confidence, assuring me that they have got this puppy under control. We'll see how it goes - they do have the added benefit of being in the same class as their twin brother/life-long best bud/comrad in arms (so to speak), so that will make this a lot easier.

So, as I warned you earlier about now having to view incredibly mundane films about my family because it is fun for me -- here is their birthday video!!! We all had a lot of fun - except by the end of the afternoon, Ryan did have to make a quick trip to the urgent care to get some antibiotics for an ear infection - but he was quick to recover once he found that there was more birthday stuff in store for the rest of the evening. Well, sit back and enjoy -- I did. :)

My Amazing Grandmother!

Check out these BEAUTIFUL afgans my amazing grandma made for our children. Grandma always made each of us an afgan when we were all little, and my sisters and I wanted to carry on that tradition. So I purchased the yarn to match their rooms, and Grandma did all the hard work -- and aren't they absolutely beautiful!?! Seriously, the picture does not do them justice. I was absolutely blown away when I saw them all finished. I am so excited to give them to the children for Christmas. I can't say it enough - Grandma is simply amazing, and I am very touched that our children will have these from her.

In The Sticks With The Hortons

This weekend we enjoyed a nice camping trip with the Horton family. First we all met up at Scout Mountain - a nice camp ground near Pocatello - where the kids all played with their Horton cousins. Jonathan has decided he is now a big boy, and would bravely walk to the bathrooms "All By Himself". I tried to follow at a distance - just to be sure... - and when I was discovered Jonathan was quick to remind me of his mission. :)

In the morning, we all packed up and caravaned back into Pocatello for a day of swimming at Ross Park. Ross Park, by the way, is a totally kid-friendly pool with lots of toys and fun stuff for the kids to enjoy --- and they check the chemical balance of the pools every two hours, which always makes us feel better about hangin' with our kids in the kiddie pool - if you know what I mean...

So I had a lot of fun with the good 'ole camcorder this weekend, and made a little movie-montage of the weekend. I actually totally loved doing it, and have decided that these clips of film will make a regular appearance on this blog for future events and fun stuff...... Hope ya'll like it!