Christmas 2007

I can't believe Christmas has come and gone already. This year sure has gone by quickly. Christmas for us was really great. Thanks to Meg and Jeremy coming to visit. We had so much fun. The kids loved doing the gingerbread houses, especially eating the candy. Trayton and Kade both got a transformer for Christmas and love them. The four kids had so much fun playing with each other and all of the toys. It was all a little chaotic but so much fun. Meg, we miss you guys already. Merry Christmas everyone and a happy new year!!

IT'S A.....!!!!!

Okay, so here's our story. A day or two after I found out I was pregnant and before I told Trayton about it he came to me and said, "Mom, I love my sister!" "What sister?" I asked. Trayton looked a little perplexed and said, "I don't know. BUT I love her!!" Well, apparently he knew something we didn't. It's a girl!! Jonathan is shocked. Kade is indifferent. Trayton's glad everyone else finally knows its a girl. And Mandi, well, she is tickled pink!!! We couldn't be happier.

Homeowners Fiasco

We had our first homeowners fiasco this weekend. To make a long and nasty story short the roots from the gorgeous tree in our front yard penetrated our pipes and clogged our drains. Anytime we washed our clothes, or ran our dishwasher, or even flushed the toilet the water would drain into the tub. NOT GOOD!! Fortunately I'm married to a plumber who has connections. Rich, from the shop, brought out some heavy equipment and helped Jonathan clean the pipes. Bad news is they made a pregnant lady go a day and a half without a working bathroom. Good news is they fixed the problem and with proper maintenance it shouldn't be a problem. The picture is of Rich where my toilet should be and the big ball of roots that they just pulled out of the pipes.

"Energy Conservation"

Until we get our first utility bill and figure out what our expenses are exactly we are trying to be very careful and conserve energy. Jonathan is adamant that the thermastat not be higher than 65 degrees. The other night Trayton complained that he was cold. Instead of turning the heater up Jonathan made the boys do exercises to warm up. They did jumping jacks, sit ups, and push ups. The boys thought it was so much fun. Now anytime any one comments on the weather being cold Trayton is quick to teach them how to exercise and warm up.

Happy Halloween!

The boys have been loving firetrucks lately. When we saw these costumes we couldn't tell them no. They were the hottest fire fighters ever. Kade ran around pretending to put out fires all day long. Trayton prefers to just drive his imaginary firetruck around. The boys had a really great time at the ward party. They were so excited to see so much candy. Trayton couldn't believe that people kept giving him candy. It was a little boys dream come true.

Pumpkin Carving!!

A couple of days before Halloween we carved a pumpkin with the boys. Trayton was so excited....until he pulled the lid of the pumpkin off. He refused to help pull out the insides. Kade, however, dived right in. He had a grand time getting messy. He even took a few bites of the insides and said it tasted good.

ALS Graduate!!

Jonathan Graduated from ALS this week. ALS stands for Airman Leadership School and is a big step towards his next promotion. To make a long story short ALS is 6 weeks of immense stress. It is really rough. I asked Jonathan how he did the morning before his graduation. His answer was, "I passed, but was only mediocre." Mediocre, HAH! Jonathan walked away with 2 out of 4 awards. He won the Leadership Award for demonstrating outstanding leadership skills and the Distinguished Graduate Award for overall outstanding performance. I'm really proud of him! I love you the most Jonathan!

We Bought A House!!

Today we closed on this lovely little home. It needs a lot of love but we are excited to be homeowners. It's a little scary to make such a large purchase on something we have never seen. But we had a great realtor and felt like this home had a lot of potential. We hope you will all come visit us!!

First Snow

The boys were so excited to wake up and see snow on the ground. We couldn't resist going outside and playing. Winter is officially here in Alaska. Dad taught Trayton how to throw snowballs at Mom. Kade preferred to just eat the snow. We all had a great time playing outside. But BRRRRR!! It was cold.

The boys have loved playing outside this summer. We will miss these Alaska summers. Trayton's favorite outside toy is a stick. You hardly ever see him without a stick. Kade on the other hand always has a fist full of dirt or mud. Atleast they are having fun, right!?

Jonathan tested for staff in May and found out that he made it in August. I'm so proud of him. This is how he broke the good news to me. He put a staff Sgnt. patch in with my favorite rose. He will get to sew on the promotion some time next year. It is very impressive that he made staff so quickly in his Air Force career. Go Jonathan!!