Temple Square Picture Day!!

Remember December, 2013.  When I had my gall bladder out & left Casey in charge of the 3 olders??  Remember when Casey thought he was channeling a hair dresser and did this to my baby girl's hair?  It had 4 months to grow and...

before picture day could happen, I had to do this.  I had Rylee's hair cut like Taylor's.  My identical girlies had to look identical again, right??  They look pretty dang adorable.

Oh. My. Goodness.  What a day!!  Car #1 = Kim, Brittni, Taylor, Rylee, Luke and Alexa.  Car #2 = Angela, Ashley, Grandma Babe and Eva.  Car #3 - Sandra & Amber.  Just for the record - Car #1 was the first one on the scene.  Just sayin people.  Rylee went into complete panic mode as we pulled into the parking garage.  She thought we were in a car wash.  I wonder if she will end up being claustrophobic?

 

Temple square in the springtime is breathtaking!!!  I can't recall going any other time than winter to see the Christmas lights.  I recommend spring.  My cousin yet again captured some adorable pictures of my littles.  Luke & Alexa's pictures were for their 6 month milestone & Taylor & Rylee's were for their 3 year mark!

 

This little girl has my heart.  She is so delicate & so feisty at the same time.  If you try to make her smile & she doesn't want to - she flat out won't.  It's almost like she knew she was coming into a crazy family & wasn't about to take crap from anyone.  She also loves to suck her thumb!!!!  She prefers to eat her veggie baby food over the fruits.  So far at 6 months - she is tooth free and loves to sleep on her belly.  She still wakes up 2-3 times each night.  I am ready for that routine to cease.

Seriously - can you see what a stud this little chunk is going to be?!?!  He has the sweetest smile and adorable laugh.  He his cutting his first two teeth on the bottom & neither he nor I are enjoying it much.  He is a much better sleeper than his sister.  Usually he will sleep all night long or just get up once.  He loves to eat!!  Baby food or bottle - he will have it!

Luke

Weight - 15.11 lbs - 17 percentile

Height - 26 1/8" - 38 percentile

Head Circ. - 44.6 - 69 percentile

 

Alexa

Weight - 13.4 lbs - 5th percentile

Height - 26 1/8" - 56 percentile

Head Circ. - 42 - 34 percentile

 These girls....I don't even know what to say.  They are a complete joy.  They have such different personalities.  I love watching them grow into little ladies.

I don't think that my Grandma knew what she was getting into.  I think that if she could go back in time - she would have NEVER gotten into Ashley's car.  It was a day filled with a whole bunch of crazy & cuteness.  She bought all of the little kids a water bottle at the Disney store.  I love that my Grandma is still up for these types of adventures.

 Eva is hilarious.  When she sees that the whole group is getting together she literally squeals with excitement.  She freaking loves each and every one of us!!  She had fun picking the flowers and drenching herself in every drop of water that she could possibly find.  I don't know how her mom keeps up!!

 

After a tasty lunch at the Blue Lemon (BEST sugar cookies ever) we did a little bit of shopping and then headed home.  By the end of the day this is how we rolled.  Needless to say - I got a few looks.

 



Really SUCKY Virus

Really Sucky Virus.  The abbreviation is RSV.  Okay....it really stands for Respiratory Syncytial Virus.  Caleb started feeling sick on Monday, May 12th.  He missed school on May 13th, 14th, 20th, 21st, and 22nd.  For some reason this year the Kindergarten classes got out a week early so he missed the last 3 days of school.  He was so sad.  He took a pink rose to his teacher, Mrs. Barker, and told her that he was going to really miss her.  It was adorable.

Over the weekend of May 16th - Luke & Alexa started acting sick.  So Monday afternoon I took them to see Dr Dawson.  He swabbed their noses & they tested positive for RSV.  I was MAD.  I kept these little darlings at home & around family only for the 7 months of cold (Oct - May) and they still got this stupid virus!  I am grateful that they didn't contract it when they were 2 months old & more fragile.  But it was still REALLY scary!  AND - Taylor & Rylee had both started coughing.  My mother was a brave soul and yet again my saving grace.  She took the girls for 3 whole nights so that I could care for Caleb & the babies.  Casey works a swing shift - so I don't have help at nights.  Which consist of dinner, baths, teeth brushings, story time, and just trying to keep everyone happy.  I am so glad for her help!!  Total bummer though - today she isn't feeling the greatest.

 

Luke has been a tough little fart.  He was pretty bad for a couple of days and now he just has a super disgusting snotty nose.  Caleb has slept so much this past week!  One day he was coughing so hard that he was throwing up.  Poor kid laid on the bathroom floor for about 15 minutes hacking his poor lungs out.

Alexa got the short straw of this whole deal.  Not only did she get diagnosed with RSV on Monday - we found out on Friday that she also had a double ear infection.  They gave her a shot of antibiotics right then and there.  Thanks goodness!!  We were in the hospital a total of 5 times getting her some fluid.  She is NOT interested in drinking her bottles!  She fights me so hard with trying to get any motrin or cough syrup in her.  It always ends up with me having to change her clothes.  But - she does love here breathing treatments.  She almost always stops sucking her thumb and just breathes it all in.  I have 5 different lists hanging on my fridge with different columns.  One for each child.  With a column for motrin, cough suppressant and the nebulizer.  My brain can't handle keeping track of who had what when.

When we went in for fluids the guy that was sticking her with the needle tried to poke it in a vein in her head about 3 times.  I wanted to stick a needle in his eye!!  She was so sad!  He then tried her foot & was in on his first try.  Why didn't he start with that?!?!?  They wrapped up the needle and it stayed in for 3 days.  Then we had to get a new one in her hand.  She loves her hands.  The one that had the needle in it usually goes behind her head.  At least they didn't stick her thumb sucking hand!  One week later - she is finally starting to feel better!!

These two hams haven't been to bad.  Rylee gets some pretty goobery eyes and wakes up with a fever.  Once the motrin kicks in she feels much better.  Taylor has a hacking cough - but she sure has her spirits high.  She's been cracking me up lately.

Here is Rylee one morning BEFORE the meds kicked in.  Both of these girls are medicine junkies!  Taylor gets so sad when Rylee gets medicine and she doesn't.  They love the stuff.

So excited for this next week.  I'm going to disinfect this germ infested place and hope that everyone is feeling MUCH better!  Fingers crossed that Casey or I don't get sick!!

February Favorites

My little Lukester loves to bath.  I will place him in the tub & he starts kicking like crazy before I even turn on the water.

Caleb was pretty excited for Valentine's Day this year.  Thanks to pinterest I had a few awesome options for him to pick from for his Valentine's.  He picked the option with a glow stick attached of course!

 

Lexi and I stayed up late one night to bake some Red Velvet Whoopie (I believe should be spelled whoopee) Pies.  They were tasty!

I bought everyone a little gift and made lunch that totally BOMBED.  But hey - I still made it with love.

Either myself or Casey or one of the kids would be dead without this woman.  My mom has been such a great help to me since the NEW twins were born.  She has been a cook, a therapist, a maid, a personal shopper, and in this case, a jungle gym.  These kids LOVE their Grammy! 

Alexa got a new kitten from Grammy one day.  She loved it!

These 3 had to have a night on the hide-a-bed after  a movie.  They slept great!!  I don't know how they did though - that mattress looked so uncomfortable!  I think kids are able to sleep just about anywhere.

Caleb thought he had invented the neatest trick.  I told him to hold it while I got the camera.  When he checked out the image of himself, he cracked up!  True talent in this one.  Nothing but true talent.

Best helpers ever!  They love to do the dishes.  At this stage it is usually a disaster & I end up getting my "mopping" done for the month.  Yes - I said month.  They don't like to get their sleeves wet so they take their shirts off to wash.  In this case...pants followed.  Taylor decided to take it one step further.  Funny girl.  I wonder why she left her socks on?

Easter Sunday

The girls & the babies weren't feeling well on Easter Sunday so Casey & Caleb are the only ones that went to church.  Runny noses & coughs are not fun at all when you times it by 4!

After church the kids went into the backyard to see if the Easter Bunny had left them anything fun.  The fabulous rabbit did!!  Each of the kids got a new scooter and a basket full of fabulous things!

 Luke & Alexa even got a few things.  Lucky kids!

 Caleb had 4 peeps in his basket.  I think he consumed all four in record time.  Smart boy.  They are so delicious!

The Easter Bunny had a wrapped present for the family.  It was a stomp rocket!  The rockets even glow in the dark.  Caleb was so excited!

 Taylor & Rylee found bubble guns in their basket.  They loved them!  They only worked for about 3 days though. 

We headed to the park for some kite flying and to play with the stomp rocket.  The kids had a blast.

 Here is proof of these little darlings on Easter.



Easter at the Prom

This day is one of my favorites!!  At least it is when the weather cooperates and this year the weather was PERFECTION! 

 

Ahhh....Griffy poo.  I freaking love this kid.  The fences out west are a tad hard to shut if you aren't bursting with upper body strength.  Luckily - Griffen has the strength, but I guess only with his one side.  He was so proud of himself for getting this gate shut, but he shut it and ended up on the wrong side of the gate!!!  So - he just crawled under it.

 Blake brought a fabulous toy.  A stomp rocket.  My kids LOVED it!!  Here is all of my older kids with Grammy figuring it out.

 Lunch was delicious!!

 This picture is sweet.  If you force teenagers to hold babies - I think that they actually like it.

For reasons unknown to man, my dad (and Casey) don't enjoy eating peeps.  My dad was enjoying a cupcake and gave Taylor his bunny peep. CHEERS!  Is there anyone out there who doesn't eat the ears first??

The Easter egg hunt was fun to watch.  My video camera quit working right when it started, so that sucks.  But luckily for me we had 4 cameras snapping and we ended up with plenty of darling pictures of everyone!

Right when the hunt started Alexa started to have a major meltdown.  I have never heard the darling cry so hard!  I think she was just tired and she loves to sleep on her side or belly and that just wasn't an option.  She eventually fell asleep though.  I'm so grateful that I have such wonderful siblings and husband!  Casey helped Caleb, Jordon helped Rylee and Angela helped Taylor.  It was adorable to watch.

Eva Evil Knievel.  It is going to be so much fun to watch this ball of energy grow up!  She is always going, going, going!!

Caleb and Casey caught a lizard!!  His name was Faaayusht Rhip (Fast Rip).  I'm not sure where his name came from, but the way he said it was hilarious.  He loved that lizard and was pretty sad when we couldn't take it home.  His new picture pose is rock and roll hands.  I love it.

 There were so many tumbleweeds this year!!  My little (ha ha) family had already left, but everyone else did their best to not set the place on fire while burning them.

 I have found my go-to cupcake.  It is a Twinkie cupcake.  It is delicious.  Not to mention that the Easter version turned out adorable!  I just used a regular yellow cake mix, but I used my secret PERFECT cake recipe to make them moist and delicious.  (Filling & frosting recipe below)

These two cuties (and Dylan!!) enjoyed the 2014 picnic. 

  The end!

 Filling
adapted from Our Best Bites

3 tablespoons flour
1/2 c whole milk
1/2 c butter
1/2 c granulated sugar
1 t vanilla extract

Whisk together the flour and the milk. Heat in a small sauce pan on medium heat. Whisk continuously until it starts to thicken. Let it cook, while stirring with a rubber spatula, until you can start to see the bottom of the pan. Continue to cook until the mixture has the consistency of thick pudding or paste.

Put  mixture in the fridge and let it cool completely, it’s fine if it stays in there long enough to get chilly, you just don’t want it warm at all. As it’s cooling, feel free to stir it occasionally to speed up the process and keep it from forming a crust on top.

It an electric stand mixer, beat the butter and the sugar using the whisk attachment for a minute or two until well combined and fluffy. While beating, add in the thickened milk mixture and the vanilla. Beat to combine and then scrape down the sides. Mixture will separate and look messy, keep beating!  Continue beating until mixture comes together and is light and fluffy (about 7-8 minutes).

Frosting
adapted from Bakingdom

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup marshmallow spread
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, beat the butter and marshmallow until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the sugar, beating until just combined. Stir in 1 tablespoon of cream and the vanilla, then beat on high speed for 4 minutes. If the frosting is too thick, add more cream, up to 1 tablespoon. 

Easter Eggs!

Angela and her boys came over one night before Easter & we dyed eggs.  My dad was also in town & he came by for a bit also.  Blake picked out an awesome monster egg kit at the store.  It was sweet!  We made some of the cutest eggs that I have ever seen!

Angela mentioned that you can't crack a UNCOOKED egg in your hand if you hold it the long way & try to crush it. Griffen tried so hard!  He was squeezing the egg so hard that he was turning red.  Then my dad tried.  Leave it to the power of Zeus to get er done.  After a bit of a struggle he cracked that egg open.  From across the counter raw egg hit me in my face, went all over my cupboard and window also.  It was funny.  Just yesterday I noticed some egg white streaked down my kitchen wall.  If you want to try it - I think it is an outdoor activity :)