By the way

By the way... Why is Cinammon Toast Crunch Cereal better dry? I've learned less milk is the key with this particular cereal, otherwise you lose all of the cinammon and sugar to the milk. Am I the only one that loves cereal at night? I could eat it every night! Ok, who am I kidding I could eat cereal ALL DAY!

Service FHE and Puppies

A few weeks ago, our friends, the Despains, had a great idea to do a neighborhood service project. They had a family night and invited a bunch of friends over to run around the neighborhood dropping off flyers and bags with a letter asking people to donate items to a local charity. All they had to do was leave the bags out on their doorstep the following Monday night and we would come back around and pick up the bags. It was a ton of fun. We had 4 or 5 trucks, the second night, driving with all of the kids in the backs of them and they would hop out whenever they saw a bag on a porch and grab it and throw it in the truck. At first, while we were walking around it didn't seem like there was that many bags on porches, but by the time we unloaded all of the bags into their dining room I was amazed at how much we had collected. Allof it was donated to a local charity and I'm sure they were so excited to receive it all. It was really a great idea. Thanks Despains!


Our friends, Rachel and Maya, were dogsitting for Rachel's parents a bit ago. They had these 5 week old puppies that were soooo cute. For days after playing with them, Kennedy would pull up the picture on my phone and say..."puppy" She LOVED them. I wish I wanted a dog because they were so cute!

Pumpkin Patch

We made our Annual Trip to the Country Mercantile Pumpkin Patch last week. Landon's preschool went so we pulled Ky out of school to go with us. They always have so much fun. It's funny, its the same year after year, you think they'd grow tired of it, but the still love it, even after 6 years.

Landon and his friend Brennan...

Kids looking at the baby chicks...

Kennedy (the marshmellow girl:))



Landon with his perfect pumpkin.... (after much searching. I'm pretty sure he was looking for one that was mud free and nice and clean, no such luck, but we finally found one.)

Ky with his pumpkin...

KEnnedy with her pumpkin...

Jacob and the kids...

Boys doing the hay maze...

In case you haven't noticed it was cold. This was probably the coldest its been when we've gone. It was raining pretty hard as we were driving out there and I kept thinking, "this is going to suck!" but by the time we got there it was sprinkling lightly off and on, so it really wasn't that bad. It was kind of nice because it made for a pretty quick trip.

Crafting!!! I LOVE Crafting and have been crafting like crazy lately! Here are some of the things we have done.
There is a lady who will cut out these blocks in any size shape letter you want... I went to a craft store a year or so ago and we made the family ones. I have become addicted to them I think. I've now done, Fall, Harvest, Boo, Joy, Believe, Love, Be Mine... I think thats it. But they are so fun! I totally remember Rosie ODonnell talking about DecoPauging... is this what she was talking about? I've been missing out for all these years? It's so easy and so fun.



Then, I did these little blocks.... One set of 6 has one word on the front and then you flip it over and it has a different set on the back side...





I also did our Super Saturday... Oooh, I should do pics of some of those things. Super cute Ideas. I've cut vinyl out for 5 different wards' Super Saturday activities. I am about vinyled out! Not really. It's pretty fun. But glad those are about over with! My poor vinyl cutter has been worked this month! I am missing that we aren't doing a craft exchange this year. Maybe I'll throw one together. The last couple of years we've done that and its been super fun. I love seeing what everyone comes up with. I'm not sure when I became crafty. Actually I think it was the Super Saturday that we first did vinyl lettering. What a world that has opened up for me! LOVE IT!

Soccer Season

We've been at it again, but this time, DOUBLE DUTY! Soccer season is in full swing. Luckily, this has been a great season weather wise. Last spring it was sooo COLD! This fall has been great. There was one really cold game day and theres been one practice where we stayed in the car and watched, but for the most part, the weather has cooperated. Which is a huge blessing when you are sitting outside all day on a Saturday. This is Ky's 3rd year playing and Landon's first year. Landon's first practice was a little iffy... He was pretty shy and was pretty sure he did not want to play. But the next week, Stacey came and took him, and when I was out of the picture he went right out and played. And hasn't had a problem since. He is quite the player too, for his first year. His first game he went out and scored 2 goals right off the bat. He is fast! His coach always says, "Landon, Who's the fastest kid out there?" To which Landon replys, "ME!" and he may be... he can run. And I love the look on his face while he is chasing the ball. He has such a look of determination. He has really picked up the concept quickly. It seems like it took a little longer when Ky started. Although, he started a year earlier, he was only 4 when he started.

Speaking of Ky... He has gotten really good this year. He's not the fastest, but he is always the biggest. I know those parents across the field are thinking, "There is no way that kid is 7!" He just towers over all of them. He had 5 goals 2 weeks ago and at least 2 last week. (I only saw half the game becuase his and Landon's games overlapped) He has really gotten it this year. The coach's wife last week was telling me how his coach said he loves to watch him play. He says he can see the wheels turning in his head processing where to go with the ball or pass it or the best shot. They have a good team and it has been a lot of fun to watch. We as parents are really starting to get into it. (It's taken a couple years... At Landon's age alot of them lose interest halfway through and it just isn't all that EXCITING, ya know? Do I sound mean? Not trying to, its just amazing the difference in the ages this year. I'm excited for future seasons. I've decided soccer is a fun sport to watch. When the weather cooperates! I never played soccer growing up so I am just starting to get it all myself. I love how active it makes them be! What a great way to build endurance. They just run up and down the field, A LOT!






Now we get a break until Basketball starts in January!

Carving Pumpkins

Tonight we carved pumpkins for FHE... The kids did a great job of cleaning out there own pumpkins. As were were separating the seeds Jacob had the bright idea to soak them in water, because they float to the top. Less digging through the pumpkin guts. It was a great idea! After carving and lighting we had the kids FAVORITE treat, hot chocolate and we roasted pumpkin seeds to go with it! YUMMY! Everyone loved the pumpkin seeds!

House Changes

Where is everyone?! Not that I have been a devout blogger myself, but it seems like blogging is becoming... I don't know... I have a few friends who are devout bloggers, almost on a daily basis. I struggle with 1- time, like everyone I'm sure, and 2- I just don't think I'm witty enough to blog sometimes. It's not that I think I need to have pictures all of the time or something SPECTACULAR to blog about or anything like that, but I want people to enjoy reading my blog. And I just haven't felt like I've done anything blog worthy these days. If you ask me whats up I couldn't tell you, however, I know I'm busy, it just seems like every day is the same as the previous day. Is this how anyone else's life is? Does it make me boring? Cuz I feel like I am L-A-M-E-OH!

When I actually started thinking about some of the things we've been doing I realized I do have a few things I could share...

First, my living room... I repainted the living room earlier in the summer. We've just had the walls the original color they were painted when the house was built. Just a light greyish plain color. So this summer I decided to paint some walls. I did most of the living room a light tanish beige kind of color and then did a DARK Chocolate Brown Wall. Which I loved. I took the lighter color and pretty much repainted the whole downstairs. Kitchen, hallways, dining room, etc. Well, then I went looking for drapes. Not easy when walls are already painted. I've always had drapes first, I LOVE drapes, and then do everything else around my drapes. So I ran into some drape dilemas... I finally found some fabric that I liked OK. So I made drapes and matching pillows.

Then I put my pictures up... I made these two frames, they started out as a piece of 4x8 plywood, we REALLY made them, put some pictures in them, repaited this window frame and threw pictures in that... and heres what I ended up with....

I put up these pics....


and then I moved on to my bedroom... did the same colors in here, found bedding that I liked. I needed drapes to match, again... GOOD LUCK! I could not match the blue/grey/metallic color in the bedding. I ended up finding the same bedding set and decided I could make my own drapes. I cut up the comforter and sewed drapes to hang and ended up with a complete bedroom. It worked out well because if you can tell the pattern on the drapes is reversed. When I cut up the comforter I realized one side was the same as the comforter I have on the bed and the other side was exactly the same but reversed. I thought that was awesome.
Here's how that ended up...


Then I moved onto the bathroom. I decided to do a RED wall. I repainted the rest of the walls the same beigey color and then did the big wall behind the mirror and tub in a dark red! I put it up and loved it. I'd thought about doing my room red but then found the other bed set that was pretty and affordable. I'm not good at waiting and shopping around. I will probably end up changing it out sooner, because I don't TOTALLY love it, but for now it works. So I finish painting the bathrooms, and I'm looking at the red thinking to my self... "Hmmmmm, self, this red would TOTALLY match my drapes in my living room!" So.... yep you guessed it...


I wish I would've done a before, before-before, and now an after! Now I have a red wall, a repainted fireplace mantel and the archway going into the dining room is now the really dark brown too. I like it all so much better.

I moved the shelf we'd made with the pictures, that used to be in the living room, into the office. I love this shelf and these pictures so much!


So you'd think that'd be it, right? Nope! I redid a bed for Kennedy... It was pretty cute before... I think its funny... I bought a head board, ok, actually my friend Kareen gave it to me! TOTAL SCORE! I Love it! Anyway, so I get a head board and footboard that are a little worn, so I repaint it white, and then I scuff it all up and sand it to make it look distressed. Couldn't I have just left it the way it was??? What's up with that? Kind of funny! Then I put these little sticker embellishements on it... Aren't they so cute? I LOVE the way it turned out!



Sooo... I get this totally cute bed all done, I know I still need bedding, just haven't wanted to spend the money yet, she hasn't noticed!, and she starts climbing into bed with Landon every night. We decide that we ought to just put her bed in the boys room if she's going to do that every night. We put the boys in bunk beds, I forgot how much I hate bunkbeds... changing sheets, making the bed, trying to give Loves to the kid in the top bed.... anyway, they are in bunkbeds, and her bed is now in there. We put all of the dressers in her room, which is all cute by the way... Oh well. She's happy in there and they like having her in there. I figure we should enjoy it while we can, that they want to all be in the same room.

Now we are thinking about moving all of them with beds and dressers into the toy room so they would acually have some room. But then we would have 3 spare bedrooms so I don't really know what the point of that would be. Any thoughts for me? How long do kids like to share? Are they going to grow out of it soon do you think? I have to redo everything and then have to change it all back, ya know?

This has turned into the LONGEST POST EVER! SORRY!!! I hope you've enjoyed seeing what I've done. I've been crafting like crazy too. Next post will be pictures of some of the cute things we've done.

Olympic Titanium Man Triathalon 2009

This was the weekend!!! We've been gearing up for the Triathalon for some time now, well, some of us have. Amanda, Sonja & I decided to do it 2 weeks ago, then Sun had some stuff come up and wasn't able to train over the last couple of weeks, but then at the last minute, SERIOUSLY, the NIGHT before decided she was in... I think the guys all knew they were going to do it most of the summer and trained accordingly. Except Jacob, who kept saying he was going to do it, but who has apparently decided he going to become "Jacob NO TRAIN Rose", instead of "Big Draft" since there was no drafting allowed. (OK- So I'm not quite as witty as you guys are, but I'm trying...:))

We were all pretty stoked for it Friday night as we met outside of Kimos to pick up our race packets. I don't know about anybody else, but I could NOT sleep! I kept thinking about the transitions and timing and hoping I would get under the 3 hour mark... Without recapping the whole thing, everyone did AWESOME! It was so fun to have so many friends out there doing it together. Although, the whole time I was running and they were all passing by me heading back to the finish I was wishing I was one of them. Amanda and I rode together over the last couple of weeks and looking at our times we were pretty similar. She kicked my butt out of the water, by like 8 minutes! (I gotta swim this year!) Unfortunately, my transition time out of the water was not good. 4 1/2 minutes, UGH! Technical difficulties with my outfit. (Note to self: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CHANGE SHIRTS IN FUTURE!!!)I was hoping to catch her on the bike but although I gained 4 minutes she still had a few minutes on me. Which was a bummer cuz we were hoping to run together. Our runs were only 1 minute apart, we were just had 5 minutes between us... I think we both would've done better had we been with each other. I was so ready to be DONE during that run. It would've been so much better to be with someone.

The guys all caught up to each other there at the end... apparently Billy the "Lightning Bolt" made up some serious time on the run! Jared, Billy and Eric all finished with in a minute of each other, right around 2:30. Cory came in about 20 minutes later, then Terry. Jacob could've done better and finished for sure in under 3 hours, but waited for me at the bottom of the last 1/4 mile to the finish so we could finish together. What a STUD! I was so happy to see him there! Terry finished even though a few weeks ago he pulled a muscle and hasn't been running much. It was giving him a lot of trouble for almost the whole run. I don't know how he was able to even keep going and finish, but he did. Way to go Terry. I know you are disappointed with your time, so am I (with mine, I mean, not yours) but next year, RIGHT?
I can't believe Sun finished, with the least training of all. She rocked it!
Next year... I will do much better. I will actually swim, more than once, and run... I just didn't want to do either of those things to train. It was so fun and so hard. Thanks to all the support, other family members, friends, Rach and Maya for taking the kids along to cheer. It was so fun to see them out on the ride!

Here are the pics we have! Enjoy!
I'm pretty sure this is Jared coming out of the water... Hard to tell as everyone pretty much looks the same with there goggles and orange caps on. If not, sorry Jared...

Cory on bike...


Jacob and Annette...

Jared...

Mark...


Jacob and Annette transition to run...



Sun... finishing bike ride and starting run....

Sonja finishing...

Terry finishing...

Jared Finishing...(sorry, you kind of got cut off...)

Jacob and Annette finishing...

Cory coming upto finish line...

Eric coming up to finish line...

Billy coming up to the finish line...

Amanda coming up to the finish line...

Lowe's at the finish line...

Roses at the finish line....

Liley, Gabbi and Kennedy playing at the finish line! How cute are they!

Good job everyone!