Gorgeous weather today!

Yes, they all have tights on their heads. Hazel did it by herself, but I thought it was hilarious so I grabbed some for the other kids.

Here is our crazy cantaloupe growing through the fence. Couldn't choose one side or the other, so it had to squish itself in the middle. Pretty sweet, eh? Not quite as cool as say, a two-headed cow, but pretty cool nonetheless.
Ethne was being ADORABLY funny tonight. She was a little overtired, so was hitting that delirious stage. Anyway, I was laying on the floor and she was laying on my tummy, and I opened my mouth really wide (initially to yawn, I believe) so she opened her mouth really wide and then gave me a big open-mouthed kiss!!! (yeah, I taught her everything I know. just kidding!) Anyway, then everybody laughed so hard, and she thought that was pretty cool, so she laughed and then did it again and again. Hee hee what a CUTIE sweethead.

And because Kami posted baby pictures of Leo and herself and it was so much fun, I will post some of me and Brett. So, does Ethne look like me?

Yes, Brett and I both have 'wearing Daddy's boots' pictures. We were totally meant for each other. (Brett's the one on the right. He's with his older brother Bryan.)

Brett with his lamb, Pokeeno (which I think sprang from Pinocchio).

Singing in the Rain (again)

Isn't it cool that you can see their reflections in the puddle?

It looks like she's saying, "Show me just what to do, Jethro."

So, what's going on at our house? Ethne's top tooth came through. I'm getting used to saying "We have to get to bed, it's a school night." I signed Jethro up for swimming lessons, and that night he was saying the blessing on the food and he said, "Please help me not to drown in the pool. And please help me to learn how to swim this time in swimming lessons...." Pretty funny. We played in the rain last night. It was pretty cool because it was still sunny but it was raining---first it was POURING. Good times.

Oh yeah--must tell you how proud I am. I have been meaning to make a weekly menu and a grocery list for that menu so that I only have to go to the grocery store one time pretty much since......I got married. But then, even more when I had Ethne. I thought, I have three kids now, I really need to be organized. But I never have. So I'm always having to run really quickly to the store for the one thing I forgot. Anyway, I FINALLY made menus, and a shopping list EVEN ordered in sections of the store so that I don't have to circle the store twenty times. When Brett got home I was very excited to tell him. When I told him that I made menus he was impressed, but when I told him that I made the shopping list all organized like that he put his hand on my forehead and said, "Are you feeling all right?" ha ha. Anyway, yay for me. I was so on top of things in school....why didn't it transfer to running a house? hmm.

Here's a little tag thingee I thought I would do and pass along for anyone else to do.

Jobs I've held...babysitter, vegetable farm worker, Dairy Queen worker, telemarketer, phonathon caller, cheese factory worker (that was only for a few days), receptionist for Early Head Start, secretary for a transcription company, teaching assistant for a speech pathology class, mom

Movies I can watch over and over... Willow, Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken, Two Weeks Notice

My guilty pleasures... reading, sleeping in, eating lots of chocolate and icecream (although I don't feel very guilty about that)

Places I've Lived...Cardston, Leavitt (both in Alberta), Provo, Kentucky, Layton, Willard, Ogden, Des Lacs and Minot North Dakota, Logan, West Lafayette and Lafayette Indiana

Shows I enjoy... the Cosby Show

What were the first things you thought of when you saw your significant other for the first time?... hmm, I thought he was boring. I asked Brett this question and he said, "She's cute, too bad she's weird." ha ha ha. Yeah, who's weirder--the weird one, or the one who married the weird one???

Places I've been on vacation... California, Canada, Utah

Favorite Foods... icecream, chocolate, bacon and tomato sandwiches, corn on the cob, gyros, pizza, fudge

Websites I visit daily... yahoo mail, myfamily.com, blogs

Body parts I have injured... hmm, I've had stitches before and black eyes. I once bit my tongue all the way through. It was my dad's fault, he hit me with his elbow, but it was an accident. The next day when I talked I sounded like I was retarded. Very funny. But I got to eat milkshakes for breakfast, lunch and dinner--woohoo!

Awards I have won... I won second in a county spelling bee in grade 8. A University Club Scholarship at USU. That was definitely cool--since I didn't have to pay for school, they paid me. Which I was excited about when they called me and told me when I was in highschool, but I didn't get just HOW cool it was until I was in school, married and had a baby. A Stucki Scholarship (except no money with that one, as they were out of funding that year. What a rip off.) Scholar of the Year in the Communicative Disorder department.

Nicknames I've been called... Kate, Kate the Great, Oh Divine Goddess of Coolness (just kidding, I made that one up)

And now if anyone is still reading, here's something I've noticed lately. There are a LOT of band names with a number in it. For example:

U2

Maroon 5

10,000 Maniacs

Vega 4 (who sing my current FAVORITE song--Life is Beautiful---go listen!)

Eve 6

3 Doors Down

Sixpence None the Richer

Five for Fighting

Blink 182

Matchbox 20

Nine-inch nails

Finger 11

3 Dog Night

Ben Folds 5

I thought of several of these, but then I looked it up and there were lists online with even more. I just picked the ones that I had heard of.

And then there are color bands:

Blue October

Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

Red Hot Chili Peppers

Plain White T's

Green Day

Maroon 5

Pink Floyd

So, it seems if you want your band to really be a hit, you should try to come up with a name that has a number or color in it. I guess Maroon 5 wins, cause it has both.

Five-year-old stories, pictures, and cake recipe

I love this picture, even though it's super blurry--but just look at Jethro's face! What a cute kid. He's all about being five. Takes it very seriously. One day he told me that he hadn't had breakfast with Brett, and then Hazel said that they had, so I got after him about telling the truth, and made him stand in the corner, and he said, "I'm not a five-year-old." I said, "What do you mean, you're not a five-year-old, you had your birthday," and he said, "But I wasn't honest." (Which reminds me of something else he said. While I was getting dressed he put Ethne on the couch and she fell off, and I really got after him because I've told him not to, anyway, he was sad and he said, "I wish I still lived in heaven," and I asked him why, and he said, "Cause I'm mean." ahhh--make me feel like an ogre mom! (p.s. I didn't tell him he was mean. I probably did say though that it's not nice to let your sister fall on her noggin.) He's kindof a sensitive guy.)
And yesterday Hazel was saying something about going to the library, cause Jethro had gone that day at school, and Jethro explained to her that she can't go to the library, cause she's not in kindergarten, and he is, cause he's five and she's three, and he's five and she's three, and he's five and she's only three (yes, it went on and on).
And yesterday I was having Jethro and Hazel fold the small rags and bibs from the laundry, and Jethro was showing Hazel how to do it (he'd done it before, but not Hazel). So he showed her carefully how to do it, and then he said, "Now, we'll start over and show you again until you know how to do it, so you can be kindof like a five-year-old."
Also, if I tell him he did a good job or was a good helper or a good brother, he says, "Yeah, cause I'm a five-year-old." It's quite the thing on his mind.

Oh, such very beautiful girls.
And this one's so funny and cute looking these days--I just can't get enough of her.









Thanks for all the well-wishes on my birthday. Here's the recipe for the cake. If you like Almond Joys, you're going to love it. Here's my try at a tantalizing picture. ;)






















Almond Joy Cake:
1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
2 1/2 cups white sugar
25 large marshmallows
14 oz. flaked coconut
1/2 cup butter
2 cups chocolate chips
3 oz. (or so) slivered almonds

This is for a 9X13 chocolate cake. I always make a devil's food cake, but feel free to make one from a box---it's not as if that's the important part anyway.
1. In saucepan combine half the can of milk (3/4 cup) and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Bring to rapid boil. Quickly remove from heat and add marshmallows. Stir until melted. Stir in coconut. Pour mixture over cake.
2. In saucepan combine remaining sugar (1 cup) and remaining milk. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add butter and chocolate chips. Stir until melted. Mix in almonds. Pour on top. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. (Or not. Because if you serve it sooner than that, it will be warm and gooey and delicious.)



Oh, and we went geocaching tonight (I wanted to go on my birthday but it was too late) and we found the cache totally because of Jethro! He said, we should look under the rock--and we turned it over, and lo and behold!

Guess who...

Guess who was born on this day 24 years ago.....

If you guessed me, you're right! I was born in Cardston, Alberta, weighed 5 pounds 12 ounces, and had red hair. I weigh quite a bit more than that now, but I still have red hair.

I made myself a cake--it's called an almond joy cake and it's the ooey-gooeyest, richest, most sugar-filled cake ever. I love it. Someone else loved it too.

What cute girls I have

You have to have good brushing habits

if you want a great smile like mine!

So the other day we were on a walk and Hazel said to me, "Day soy do dot a deen doy." Which, being interpreted, is of course, "They sure do got a green door." :) Ha ha, and it's even more funny in real life.

Ethne had a check-up the other day, and guess what percentile she was in for weight? 3.9 something. Not even 4%. Crazy teeny girl. Today she decided to become a teeny girl of mass destruction so she crawled all over the place finding all the drawers at her level and emtpying them of their contents. So, if you come over and there is stuff all over the place, I can honestly blame it all on her. Okay, not honestly, but I can definitely dishonestly blame it all on her.

Kindergarten

It's true. Jethro went to his first day of kindergarten yesterday. What a huge thing. For me and him. Sorta makes me wonder why I had kids so fast---then they just are grown up faster. ;) Actually, I took him to meet his teacher last Tuesday and she did a little testing and being in the classroom made me really excited for him to have a fun time. He says that he is going to kindergarten because he'll learn things that we (me and Brett) don't know.

Anyway, we started out the day with a crepe in the shape of a K (for kindergarten) with icecream and chocolate sauce on it. Then Brett walked him to school. He looked so big. Sniff.

When I first picked him up from school, he said he had a good day but didn't seem really excited, but then when he called Brett to tell him about it, he was much more enthusiastic.

It also came up at dinner time (I don't remember why) that he told his teacher that she shouldn't drink coffee. And he said that she told him she doesn't drink too much, just a little. So he was really confused and said, "So can you drink a little bit, or not?" Funny guy. So we had to explain about not everybody knowing that it's bad, etc.

Here is a picture he drew for me today. I had him explain. It is a picture of a princess in the water being chased by a shark (which there was no available room for on the paper) and the prince coming to save her with his sword, on his horse--a horse with nostrils (yes, he pointed them out) and reins, and the sky and the sun and it's raining. What a fabulous job.

Lighter Fluid

I have the privilege of being friends with a fantastic gal named Nicole. I am even lucky enough to have her as my visiting teacher. She is very kind and once came over in the middle of the night to watch my kids so that I could go to the hospital to have another kid. She once helped me get started painting my kitchen cupboards---who knows if I ever would have begun otherwise?

Sadly, I have just lately come to realize that she may be, well, a little......soft in the head. You see, we lent her our can of lighter fluid not thinking much of it. She used it and didn't get a chance to return it to us right away. No problem--we weren't in need of it. It continued to bother her, and soon every time she saw me her face would contort in shame and anxiety and she would say "I promise I will get your can of lighter fluid to you soon!" I tried to reassure her, but it was no use. I still did not fully realize the extent of her angst until I received this e-mail from her.

"Kayli,
Sorry to keep your can of lighter fluid for so long. Although, I think it's been enjoying itself here as evidenced by the candid pictures. "

It is no wonder this whole incident caused her such distress..... and here I thought people that treat their pets like children are weird. But at least our can of lighter fluid knows how to accessorize.

Indiana Dunes

We met up with Kami and Leo at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and camped. Kami and Leo hit Chicago rush hour traffic (poor poor Kami and Leo) and didn't get there until around 10:00 at night (supposed to be more like 5:30/6) and we didn't sleep very well--Ethne started coughing up a lung and Brett finally took her to the car and drove around and then just slept (or tried to sleep) in the car the rest of the night and I thought --now why did we think this was such a great idea? BUT.....we actually did have a *FANTASTIC* time, as you can plainly see, playing in the sand, jumping in the waves (just me and Brett...it was fairly cold outside (warmer in the water) and everybody else was too wimpy), rolling down the dunes, squishing our kids' faces (okay, just Leo did that to Elena), eating, and enjoying the beautiful dunes.

Doesn't Ethne look just like a sea turtle on the beach?

Except much cuter!!!!

Hazel's a care bear, and Jethro's Batman (can you see the symbols on their tummies?).

More pictures from the fabulous Heather.

Heather is a superstar photographer (you can find her here, if you're in the Logan-ish area DEFINITELY book her for all your portrait needs--you'll be SOOO happy you did! I can't praise her enough ) and we had a ton of fun letting her take our pictures. Here are some more for your viewing pleasure:

Everybody in my fam --minus one Leo, who had to work (we have a funny picture where all the couples are kissing but Kami is in the middle with a big pout on her face. Ha ha!). Including 23 grandchildren, 12 of whom are 3 and under.

The original family.
The men. I have to add again how atrocious Ethan's hair is. But strangely, I kinda like it here.
The girls and mom (in order).
The sisters. Sweet. I so love it.

And my and my cute honey.