So for the past few weeks I have been debating on when to post some great, exciting news. Well, since I am home with sick kids today and have so much to do and clean I figured I would put that off and write on the blog.

So, #5 is on the way!!! We are expecting a little girl sometime in July. As of right now my due date is the 12th, but the baby is already measuring a week early and that would mean the 5th. Who knows!!! Kip would like the baby to arrive on the 4th of July. I hope the baby arrives sometime towards the end of June!

Also, the second big announcement is we are moving! Now don’t panic for all of those who live close…we are only moving to Lindon. We found a great house at a great price and love the area and we are totally excited. I will post pictures soon since we are going there tonight to look at it again and decide on a few things. It looks like we will be moving some time around the first or second week of April. I have a ton to get done before them so I better get moving!!

Well, It has been a while since I have update my log. I wish I had some good excuse like no pictures, nothing happening, or I am just way too busy, but I don’t have an excuse like this. I have just been a little lazy. Keeping a log updated takes time and since I have time right now I guess I will update.

Let’s start with Halloween. The kids had a ton of fun on Halloween and the weather was great!!! Sage was a ballerina, Braxton was Captain America, Jayden was Snow White, and Caleb was a dinosaur/dragon thing.

Then there was Thanksgiving. We stayed home and had a quiet dinner by ourselves. If my memory serves me right…we also had sick kids again this year. They didn’t eat anything, but Kip tried some new recipes that we delicious.

Next came December. Kip’s company Christmas Party started it off and we won a great gift again this year. Who wouldn’t want to win a Wii although we already have one. They also had a great dinner and it was a lot of fun to go out without kids!

Then we did all the December stuff you normally do like put up the tree and decorations which we didn’t take any pictures of. The kids made gingerbread houses which is always a hit!! This year we made ours with graham crackers.

We drove around to see Christmas lights a couple of times. We made peanut butter cookies for Santa since we heard they were his favorite. Also, we can’t forget the visit to Santa at the mall, writing our Christmas letters to him, and also Santa’s visit to our house early Christmas eve. The kids really got into Christmas this year and when one kid was being bad the other kids would remind them Santa wouldn’t like it and neither would Jesus. We also started a new tradition this year where I wrapped up 25 Christmas books and each night we would open one and read it. The kids really liked this and loved the books about the birth of Jesus. Jayden still to this day talks about it in her prayers each night.

The one traditions we have always had is the kids opening a new pair of pajamas and a new blanket on Christmas eve and the curling up in their new blankets to watch a movie. The kids really wanted me to make their blankets this year so on Black Friday my mom and I went and stood in line at JoAnn’s Fabric Store so I could get a great deal on material for their blankets. It saved me over $100 dollars and the kids love their blankets so it was well worth getting up early!

New Year’s was a blast this year. We kept our same tradition and had friends over to play games until after 1 am. We also had tons of yummy food!!! Don’t worry, the kids did not stay up. They went to bed like normal!!! I can’t stand keeping my kids up to run around the house and be hyper well after bedtime.

The kids have had a busy January. School was back in session and I was glad!!! Having the kids home is fun, but being on a schedule and having certain things we have to do really helps keep me and the kids in better moods and everything running smoothly!!! My mom has had a few weeks off so we have been doing lots of stuff. We are now working on some new skirts for the girls. They still insist on wearing a dress or skirt every day although I don’t let them. The kids have also been out to play in the new snow we woke up to this weekend. We have made a great snowman and Sage made her own miniature one! Caleb didn’t get to play in the snow this time since he was down for his nap.

Caleb has learned a few new things these past few months. He is talking up a storm all day long. He calls the kids by name and lets me know when they are “being mean” to him. He has started singing the ABC’s although most of the letters are “C”. He knows his name starts with a “C”. He also likes to yell “I’m Hungry!!” in the middle of church. He has yet to go to nursery since I am afraid he would bring home too many sicknesses and germs. I know, I am a little paranoid! He is also obsessed with coloring. We have to watch him closely so he doesn’t color on anything other than paper although I have found a few places where he used a pen on doors and tile. He also plays make believe eating and drinking with the tea set and he makes sure Kip and I get plenty of samples! He is still into balls, planes, helicopters, and taking baths. He also enjoys sucking on his toes!

So there you have it. Life for the past three months. I plan to try and update more, but you never know what life will bring!

My baby is 18 months old today!! Time has sure flown by this past year and a half. Caleb is such a joy and delight although he sure has his moments!!

Things Caleb loves to do:

Eat! Eat! Eat! Carry a stool around to stand on. Follow Mommy or Daddy around. Act like the older kids. Play chase. Be outside. Scream. Pick out his own jammies. Carry his blanket around. Put food in his hair. Throw food all over the kitchen. Climb on everything. Touch things he is not suppose to. Drink out of every ones cups. Make a mess. Open and close the toilet. Talk on the phone. Go to bed (he asks around 7 for his milk and blanket). Drink out of drinking fountains. Sit in Sage’s car seat. Climb in the dish washer. Brush his teeth. Take a bath. Play hide and seek. Play with balls. Ride a scooter with help. Be tickled. Jump off the couch(how he broke is arm.), Playing in water, Crawl around and act like a dog, Playing copycat.

Things Caleb can say:

Mommy, Daddy(started calling Kip daddy on October 31st. Before that he would call me Mom and Kip was Mommy), I want more., drink, hot, bite, outside, go, bye-bye, hi, Papa, Sage, kids, baby, blankie, bup(pacifier), up, no, yes, shoes, socks, candy, eat, cookie, I fall., pup, my…, cracker, plate, spoon, fork, mine, Kip, bath, and I am sure there are more words that I can’t remember.

Body Parts Caleb knows:

hands, fingers, tongue, mouth, teeth, ears, hair, head, nose, belly, bum, toes, feet, eyes(although most times he still points to his ears).

Caleb is always making us laugh and he laughs a lot also. He is almost always happy and easy to please. Caleb is an easy toddler right now as long as he is supervised. Caleb also manages to get into trouble often. He doesn’t like to be told “no” and often cries for the other parent if he gets in trouble with one. We love having Caleb in our family!!!

Caleb currently weighs 24.5 pounds, has 8 teeth, and is wearing 2T clothes.

What have we done this fall??? Well, for starters we went to Gardner Village and say the “Witches”. We filled out papers for the witch hunt and all the kids got a cookie for 25 cents for finding them all. Caleb did not like the witches and would cry if I put him near one. The other kids all thought the Witch using the bathroom was the best.

We went to a Pumpkin patch to go through a corn maze, play on climbing toys, and pick out pumpkins. It was so fun to watch Sage try to find the perfect pumpkin. She would pick it up and look at it and then set it down to look at it and then tell me what was wrong with it. This happened to about 5 or so pumpkins until she found the perfect one and put it in the wagon. After all the kids found their pumpkins she ended up putting hers back and just picking one up and saying it was good. I got a good laugh out of this!

Playing in leaves is one of the kids favorite things to do!! One night, I raked what leaves had fallen off the tree the the kids played in them. This was when Jayden was a the hospital. Soon more leaves fell and we raked them in. A few days before Halloween, Kip raked lots of leaves and the kids played in them and then we stuffed them into pumpkin bags for decoration. What a great activity to help clean up the yard and the kids were more than willing to help.

On October 29th, I decided it was time to paint pumpkins and carve pumpkins. The kids agreed and we had a great time. All the kids painted their own “baby pumpkin” and decorated them with shiny confetti. After dinner, I opened each of their big pumpkins and they started digging them out. They did a pretty good job for how young they are. When each pumpkin was clean I would ask them what shape of eyes and nose they would want and what they want their mouth to look like. Here are the finished results from left to right: Braxton, Jayden, Caleb and Sage.

On October 14th, Jayden was admitted to Primary Children’s Medical Center for a Cystic Fibrosis Clean Out. Many of you probably just went “What is that?”. Well, this means Jayden getting a PICC Line in her arm and two different kinds of heavy antibiotics put through her system. Also, having 4 breathing treatments a day each taking at least 45 minutes. So, she arrived at 1:00 pm and was put under a small amount of anathesia to get the pick line in. The team tried for 45 minutes without success and Jayden was screaming at the top of her lungs the entire time. Since getting the PICC Line didn’t work on Wednesday she went to a special team on Thursday where she was given more anathesia and they had her line in and everything done in a matter of 15 minutes. Jayden didn’t even scream once. Later, that day she had to get her IV in her hand taken out which for a four year old was very tramatic. While Jayden stayed at the hospital, Kip, my mom and I would take turns staying with her over night. We just couldn’t stand the thought of her being by herself. On Monday the 19th, I picked Jayden up under her arms and she screamed that it hurt. I had to take her down to ultra sound so they could look at her PICC Line and see if there was a clot. After having her lay still for 45 minutes (which made us all crazy) everything seemed fine. Her and I went to the gift store for a balloon since she was really good. On Tuesday and Wednesday my mom stayed with her and most things went okay. She had a great nurse named Brian who she loved and he would give her prizes for doing a good job at things. On Thursday the 22nd, Jayden’s PICC Line wasn’t working anymore and was determined to have a clot in it. She had to get some special medicine in the line to dissolve and move the clot, but it didn’t seem to be working after 4 hours. Kip was with her and was told she would need an IV placed and a new PICC line put in on Friday. Later that night her PICC line started working again and the Nurse was able to pull the blood clot out. Still the doctors thought the line would fail again and so they still wanted her to get a new line. Friday morning Jayden was scheduled for nose surgery at 9:15 although she didn’t get in until 11:00. On our way down to surgery we ran into her CF doctor who said if the surgery went well Jayden could be discharged on Saturday. Great news!! This meant, no new PICC line and we would only have one more night to sleep at the hospital. Surgery went well. Jayden slept most of Friday and was discharged on Saturday. Besides those issues, other things Jayden did while at the hospital:

Breathing treatments at 7:30 am, 11:30 am, 3:30 pm, and 7:30 pm every day.

Played in the toy room a lot

Rode a Little Tykes Police Car everywhere all the time!!!

Enjoyed the warm days outside

Learned to like masks since she couldn’t leave her room without one.

Did lots of crafts

Played with play dough a lot!

Loved it when the therapy dogs came to visit.

and Enjoyed all the attention (for the most part).

We hope to not have to go back for a long stay for a long time! It was hard on Kip and I without sleep since getting a good night sleep in a hospital is impossible!

WOW!!! Do I have a cute family or what!!?? Kip and I decided to try our hand at taking our own family photos. They didn’t all turn out perfect and maybe not every ones style, but I LOVE them! We went to Thanksgiving Point Gardens and spent two hours taking pictures and riding around in a golf cart. The kids had a great time and a cart ride was a great bribe to get a good smile.

Here are some photos of our favorite summer foods that we will truly miss until next year. I know some of you will say I can buy it frozen, still eat them just not grilled unless you are willing to grill in the snow, but truly it is not the same.

Braxton enjoying some fresh watermelon which I would sit and share with him often.

Sage loves grilled hotdogs (and so do I) on a bun, even if it is a hamburger bun.

Caleb loves grilled corn on the cob along with the rest of us.

Jayden’s favorite food, if you can call it that. She will eat butter anytime, anywhere. No need to worry about how bad it might be for most of us. For a child with CF it is really good as long as they take enzymes to digest it. She will still be enjoying this all winter long. Just to let you know, this photo was not staged. I left the kitchen for a minute and came back and say her with the large tub in her lap. Too cute!

Okay, so like all the other updates, this one is way late. Here are the kids on their first day of school. The twins started preschool on Wednesday the 19th of August and Sage started Kindergarten on Wednesday the 26th of August. All the kids were so excited and they still all love school.

Back in August the twins turned 4. We had a Bug themed party for them. At the party we made caterpillars, played games like: pin the dot on the lady bug, hot potato, bug race, and make the bugs fly. We ate bug gut cupcakes and ice cream. The only thing Jayden could think about was opening presents. The twins had so much fun! I am glad I had a party for them even though it was a week after their birthday.

While Abbi was visiting this past summer we had fun playing in the sprinklers and on a slip and slide. The kids spent lots of time in swimming pools, water, sprinklers, and more.

One fun trip Abbi, Kip and I did with the kids was taking them out to eat. Now keep in mind there are seven kids between the two of us: 1- five year old, 3 – three year olds, 1 – two year old, 1 – one year old, and 1- 11 month old. We went to Denny’s since they have a great kids menu and kids also eat free on Tuesdays and Saturdays. It was fun and loud and something we never want to do again.

Another fun summer time was spent in Provo Canyon with Grandma and Papa. G and P have an RV trailer they park in the canyon every year and the kids love to spend time there. We went up on Sunday night and had a BBQ and then let the kids play in the freezing cold water. Just for memory, Treagan was Kip’s little buddy and would follow him everywhere. She missed he daddy so much that Kip was her next best thing. It was so cute.

While Abbi was in Utah my mom wanted to get pictures of all the grandkids together. This always makes me laugh because there are 10 grandkids and the oldest was 6 and the youngest was almost one at the time. Since Abbi and I didn’t think a studio was a good place the 10 kids 6 and under we took some ourselves in a beautiful yard by the house. There were lots of pictures taken and many of them turned out great. The large group photos of the grandkids had us laughing while we looked at them. Not all the kids in the picture are perfect, smiling, or even looking, but at least they we are in the picture. My Caleb would escape often.

At the end of July and beginning of August we took a family vacation to Bear Lake (if you have never been here and live close you need to go!). Kip’s siblings and mom joined us there for a reunion for a few days. While they were there we spent a lot of time at North Beach playing in the sand and water. The kids had fun playing with cousins. His siblings all stayed at the KOA campground where we would visit often and even went swimming there. Due to medical needs for Jayden we rented a Condo for a week. The Condo had two bedrooms, a balcony over looking the lake, a kitchen, family room, two bathrooms, a washer and dryer, and plenty of room for us. The kids loved the condo and I loved getting all the laundry done before coming home. After Kip’s family left we had some friends come up and stay for a few days. We had tons of fun at the beach and playing games late into the night. Our stay also happened to be over Raspberry Days. The town had a parade, craft show, and some other things going on. The last few days we were there Caleb wouldn’t sleep good. One night he cried for three hours until I gave in and gave him Children’s Motrin and he crashed. Another morning he got up super early and cried and cried until I started putting flowers in his hair. It was so funny to see his entire head covered. When I took them out he started crying again so I put all the flowers back in. After getting home we found out he had major ear infections. No wonder the poor kid wouldn’t sleep.

On August 5th, Caleb was standing on the couch next to me, Kip was sitting on the floor in front of the couch with the other kids. Caleb fell off the couch and got hurt. We watch him for a few minutes and determined he hurt his arm. Kip took him to the InstaCare since they have an X-ray machine in their building and found out Caleb’s arm had a “buckle fracture”. He wore a splint for two days and then we had it cast in green on the 7th at the pediatricians office. One week later, with the help of his siblings, his cast came off. We then went back to the doctor’s office and had it cast in blue which he wore for two weeks. When he had it cut off he didn’t even cry. He actually thought it was pretty cool. And just to let you know, our insurance would not pay to have his arm in a cast. I know sounds crazy since it was broke, but they said it wasn’t covered in our policy.

Two Dollar Tuesdays at Thanksgiving Point was so much fun for the kids. I took them to the Discovery Children’s Garden at the end of August. It was rainy for the first little bit, but then the sun came out and we had tons of fun. It was very crowded so we didn’t stay too long, but long enough to get tired and ready for lunch.

What would the summer be if you didnt’ take a trip to the zoo. The kids had so much fun and Kip and I enjoyed ourselves. We went on a day that was just perfect weather, not crowded at all, and just tons of fun for the kids. We hope to go back again if the weather will be nice for a day or two. The kids want to see how big the baby giraffe is now and also see the new baby elephant.

This post concludes our summer fun! Stay tuned for more posts coming soon!