Gerhauser Happenings

Zak's Solar System Fair

2012-02-25T06:54:00.002-08:00

Zak has been learning about the solar system at school. He was able to choose a plant and research about it all month long. He chose Mercury to research. He read, studied, typed information and made posters with his findings. He did it all on his own. We were invited to his school to for a fair to learn from the students. He was so cute and so proud. This is him at his table telling about his planet and giving treats. John and Lindsey got to come too.

What a great kid! It is so fun to watch him grow up.

Karlee's first bath in a bowl

2012-02-25T06:50:00.002-08:00

Time to document all the firsts! Of course we have to show pictures of Karlee's first bath. It was a family affair and a funny one at that. We couldn't find our baby bathtub anywhere so she got to have her first bath in a bowl. She didn't seem to mind one bit!

Don't worry we bought a new bathtub so she no longer has to have them in a bowl!

Karlee's home

2012-02-22T10:19:00.005-08:00

We made it home after 3 days to find this waiting for us!

All of my kids got sick the day after we got home from the hospital, and they are still trying to get over sickness. John brought these masks home from school so the kids could at least hold the baby once in a while. It's no fun to have a new sister and not be able to go by her.

Makelle the ballerina

2012-02-22T10:02:00.010-08:00

Makelle has asked to take dance lessons for years. She has been dieing to be a real ballerina. For Christmas we decided to get her 8 wks of dance lessons. She has been counting down the days for it to start. She loves it and wishes it was everyday for an entire day instead of only half an hour. She wants this for every birthday and every Christmas. She is so cute in her little outfit and she does a great job. She is shy but she goes in by herself and listens to the teacher. She was excited to show her lessons to Grandma and Lindsey while they were here.

Makelle and her teacher.

Makelle in her outfit waiting to go for the first time!

Sure love this girl! She is very good and fun to watch. This might become a regular part of our life....what were we thinking!!

It's a GIRL!!!

2012-02-22T10:02:00.006-08:00

After waiting for lots of weeks we were excited to finally meet our baby. We were scheduled to have her on the 15th but my contractions were close together all night so early Monday morning we headed to the hospital hoping they would get this baby OUT!!! After waiting for several hours ( we were baby #7 that morning and the 5th C-section) we had our turn. Everything was great and we were shocked when they told us it was a girl. We thought it would probably be a boy but we were wrong! That just made the naming a little bit more difficult but once again we were able to agree on one. Thank goodness! We are so glad she is here and that she is PERFECT.

Here is the proud Grandma. She came Saturday night just in time to help us out. We couldn't have done it without her.
Here are the proud siblings!
Happy John is glad his baby is here and he gets to miss school!
Makelle couldn't be more happy to have the baby be a girl!
Finally a little sister, I don't know how our house will handle two girls.
The newest big brother.
Just hanging out together.
Beautiful little girl!
Love these kids ALL FOUR!!

Karlee Pearl Gerhauser
6 lbs. 6 oz. 19 in.
February 13, 2012
12:18 pm

Lantz turned 3

2012-02-22T10:00:00.004-08:00

My little boy had been counting down the days until his Birthday. He couldn't wait to turn 3. He requested a brown puppy cake.....it took a few days until we got around to making it and singing, but he finally got it.

He doesn't look too excited to me.

He blew the candles all by himself!
He got his own knight set so he could play with Zak.

He also got a rocket.

He chose Burger King for dinner and he got to take his balloons in with him. I also took him and Makelle to the zoo for the day. Then on the weekend we went to a motel here in town and went swimming and had a pizza party and slept at a motel. It was a great birthday for several days! He likes to tell people that it isn't his birthday anymore but he is still 3! I sure love that boy!

Christmas Break

2012-01-10T06:12:00.000-08:00

To say we enjoyed Christmas break would be an understatement. Our lives slowed way down and we were all happy to be home and to be together. We made the most of it. The kids wanted to have a fancy party while Lindsey was in town. They are quite the parties with great food, dancing, costumes, singing, and lots of silliness.

We had another party planned by Zak to bring in the New Year! These were some of the hats made.
We got our first snow. A skiff but the kids just had to get out and play. It was first thing in the morning in their pajamas.

We built lots of legos and train tracks during the break. LOTS!

We also had some really nice days we had to take advantage of.

Lots of long days, wears a princess out.

This is the kids on the way to take Lindsey home. They sure look excited!

We had a great break, and now back to real life for all of us.

Christmas 2012

2012-01-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

This is how our day started...
Lots of everyone's favorite candy from Santa.

Santa brought dress up clothes for Makelle.

Zak's favorite gift, the only thing he played with on Christmas.

Santa brought Lantz lots of puzzles, his favorite thing!

Every sister loves dressing up her younger brother to play dress up. Makelle is no exception and Lantz is finally willing to play along.

The kids got lots of games and we played them over and over and over again.

We had a FANTASTIC Christmas this year. I would say the best ever. We took time to do things that really matter. We tried to think of others and that is what made it the best Christmas ever! We worked hard on memory books for all of the grandparents and we did the 12 days of Christmas for a couple in our branch. Between those two things we had the spirit of Christmas all month long. It was wonderful. My kids especially loved the 1 hour car ride as we would take the 12 days of Christmas. We sang and told Christmas stories and just talked it was wonderful. The kids looked forward to it every night. They thought they were so sneaky. It wouldn't be Christmas without Lindsey. We were lucky to have her for the 3rd Christmas in a row. We had a fantastic visit with her and we all were sad when she had to leave.

December Fun

2012-01-05T10:14:00.000-08:00

Lantz and Makelle with Santa. Makelle was shy and didn't go up until after Lantz. Lantz patiently waited his turn and then took himself up to set on Santa's lap. He wanted a candy cane. Lantz asked for toys and Makelle didn't say anything. Santa asked if she wanted an art set and her face lit up and she said YES! That is just what she got. He is a smart guy!

Lantz's story time class.
Our annual carriage ride around the lights at the Charlestown square. It is cheap, fun, and cold. The kids love it it and look forward to it every year.

Crazy boys on the carriage ride.
The more normal bunch of the group.
Our annual gingerbread house night.

Painting our homemade ornaments.
Makelle lost her 2nd tooth!!

Christmas Day!

Merry Christmas from Zak, Lantz, and Makelle.

Acting out our nativity.

November

2011-11-22T09:27:00.001-08:00

November started off busy with visits from both sets of Grandparents. We were so excited to see all of them. The weekend they came to visit was also the primary program. Zak read a scripture by himself and they both did good on their parts. Makelle was a little crazy because she had super curly hair and she had gotten to open some of her Birthday presents early. She had on a new dress and new shoes. She was all smiles and in her own world as she was sitting up front. They were fun to watch. During class time Makelle also pulled out her first tooth!

After church she got to open her presents from us and her brothers. She was pleased with the new table and tea set.

She is showing off her new stuff.

While Zak was at school on her birthday we had a tea party. Makelle made the entire meal and served us and shared her table. She made scrambled eggs, toast, sausage, and hashbrowns!

Showing off her new fancy coat.
Grandma Valynn helped to make Makelles castle cake. Makelle did the final decorating of it!

The day after her birthday I talked her into a fancy party instead of a friend party. We all dressed up fancy and John served her dinner. We had her favorite, tacos (super fancy). She got us all glasses and made us name tags. We had flowers, fancy cups, sparkling cider, fancy mints and all sorts of yummy treats. We had music playing in the background and ate by candlelight.

I think this Grandpa loves fancy parties!
Makelle in her "Fancy" clothes.
Zak didn't want in the fancy photo but here are the rest of the participants.

After dinner we all joined in dancing.

We had a fantastic time celebrating Makelle's birthday and having company for the weekend. The kids love when grandparents come because it means lots of goodies and quality time.

September and October quick update

2011-11-22T09:26:00.000-08:00

Zak on his first day of school. Crazy that I have a first grader that is gone ALL day. He loves school, he loves his teacher and he loves playing with his friends. It has been a great year so far. He can read chapter books on his own and finally loves to read to himself and others. His favorite subject is math and he thinks it is easy. He still wants to be a biologist and he loves having a pet chinchilla in his class. It feels like he is seriously gone the whole day but he loves it so that is good.
We got leashes for our bunnies and the kids loved to PULL them around.

Random pictures of the kids posing.

Zak on his first field trip and first bus ride. I got to go with him and we rode the bus to the Falls of the Ohio and looked and learned about fossils.

We love fall because we get to have some free entertainment at Montgomery farms. We love going on tractor rides, feeding and petting the animals, swinging in the loft and picking out pumpkins.

Zak in his Peter Pan Halloween costume. The batteries died before I could get all of the kids pictures. Even though there isn't pictures to prove it the kids had a fantastic time trick or treating for the first time. We only went around the block but they got tons of goodies.

last week

2011-08-18T23:10:00.005-07:00

I'm finally up to my last week of Indiana. My mom came to visit for my last week, and then we both flew back to Utah. I was happy to see my mom since it had been a couple of months, but I was also so sad because I knew that I had to leave when she left. I had such a great summer with my niece and nephews (and John and Ashley) and I am so lucky that I have had the summers off to spend with them.

While waiting for Grandma we played at the park. Her flight got delayed a few hours, so we had lots of time to get excited!
Since it was my mom's birthday when she arrived, we made her a minion cake (Despicable Me is her favorite). Makelle helped me make the cake, Zak helped John frost it, then Lantz stuck his fingers in it while we made the minions. Zak was responsible for the cutting of the cake a little later.

We took a trip to the zoo and saw the new baby giraffe and went to the sea lion show. It wasn't quite Sea World, but we still got a show (right Ash!?).
One of the mornings we played at the park. We were having a great time playing on the spider web, until Makelle and I were both climbing out and I stepped on her "favorite finger". She cried and cried and told me "you want to know the worst part? The part when you were stepping on my finger". I felt so bad, luckily she forgave me!
We had a very exciting trip to the Science Museum. We had been there for maybe 45 minutes when the fire alarm went off and we all had to evacuate in the middle of a huge rain storm. We were soaked through by the time we got to the car. Before we had to leave we were playing at the water station, and Zak turned the PVC pipe the wrong way a couple of times and looked like he had an accident. Luckily after going out in the rain the rest of his clothes were just as wet! We also had a sleepover movie party in the living room, made a family mural, and read tons of books.

At the park we found a fort that someone had built. I tried to get Zak to say he built it, but he told me that was dishonest because he didn't make the whole thing! They did make some improvements however, and Makelle swept all of the surrounding dirt so that it looked nice.

For our last day we played at home. We tried to fit everything in one last time. Zak and Makelle painted my nails, we played lego's, did tricks, played with play dough, colored and just spent the day together.

One day we watched Charlotte's Web and we all loved Templeton the rat. Lantz loved him so much that he made up a song for him!

Zak climbing a tree at the park. He is getting so tall and can do everything on his own!

No trip is complete without a game of Hopscotch, and Makelle is a pro!

Well that is the end of my summer in Indiana, so now I will finally turn the blog back over to Ashley. I had a wonderful summer and miss the family all terribly. Hopefully I will be able to get to Indiana again soon!

Virginia

2011-08-18T23:10:00.003-07:00

I know it has been over a month since I left, but I still have things that I haven't posted that are awesome and need to be seen! A couple of weeks before I left, we took a trip to Virginia to see Ashley's dad and Joan. We had a great time. We went swimming, ate great food, went to the Little Debbie store, swam some more, ate some more, ate some more, and did some more swimming!

We had so much fun in Joan's pool. It was stallow enough at one end to play in, and deep enough at the other to practice our dives. Plus she has a million pool toys. We spent a lot of time "just sitting on our noodles minding our own business"!
When we weren't swimming, we were eating. sometimes we didn't even get up from the table between meals, we would eat lunch, snack and chat, and then eat dinner! There was also a never ending supply of Little Debbie snacks, and homemade salsa from John.

Here is a video compilation of Lantz singing. They were all so hilarious and adorable that I couldn't decide which one to put on the blog, so put them all. Enjoy!

Thanks for the great trip Richard and Joan! and thanks to John, Ash, and Kiddo's for taking their trip while I was there so I could join them!

more summer

2011-08-18T23:10:00.001-07:00

Here are some more pictures of our summer. Most are just us at home, but they are my favorite part of visiting John's family. The pictures are pretty random, but mostly in order. Hopefully the descriptions aren't too confusing.

We had the chance to go to the Mullin's house and Zak and his cousins rode their horses in their pond. I am terrified of horses, but did pet one (mostly so it wouldn't get any closer to me). The horses were really good, and even let the kids jump off of them into the pond. Zak had a great time.
Playing at the Science Museum and in the water. John and Ashley were at Youth Conference when we went to the museum, so LaDonna took Ashley's pass and ID because they look a lot alike. The guy at the museum asked her to see her ID three times before telling her the pass was expired (I handed her the wrong one). Oh well, makes for a funny story.
For the activity for Family Home Evening one night, we played the flour game. The purpose of the game is to cut away at the packed flour without having the penny fall of of the top. If the penny falls off of the flour on your turn, you have to dig it out with your mouth. Naturally I was the first to make it fall (in my defense, it was my first time playing). We all took a turn digging out the penny, except for John, so Ashley decided to just put flour in his face. It didn't turn out so well for her, and Lantz was just disgusted!
We went to a new lake (well the lake isn't new, but it was my first time going), called Hardy Lake. It was beautiful and not too hot, and we had the beach pretty much to ourselves for a couple of hours.
We went to the Fair one night to look at the animals, and Zak and Makelle wore their cowboy boots. They looked too stinking cute! Lantz fell while playing by the window and smacked his eye on the window sill. He got a nice goose egg and a little black eye. Have I mentioned that he is a nut?!
There are always silly pictures in forts when I come for a visit. Some of these pictures truly terrify me, I went into the fort with my niece and nephews, and somehow got pictures of three little monsters!
One day while the older kids were watching a movie, Lantz and I built a "tall tall tower". He told me what face we should make in each picture. I love this kid!
For the 24th of July, my mom sent the girls Pioneer bonnets (and Makelle a matching apron). Makelle wore hers to church, and Ash and I wore ours to dinner at a friends house. Makelle looked adorable. Ashley and I looked a little ridiculous, but we had fun. John and Lantz love chips and salsa! Ashley and the kids reading a book on the computer. Ashley will be mad that I put that picture on, but I think it is funny! Before doing our nails one day, the kids had to organize all of Makelle's nail polish. I don't think we ever actually go to the painting part!
More fort fun. This was our most amazing fort, we could all lay down comfortably in it and we watched Madagascar 2 while we were in there.
Lantz eating yogurt is almost as messy as Zak eating yogurt. Makelle's church smile. She is super shy at church, and won't smile or talk to anyone one, so we came up with the church smile. She has no trouble showing that off to people! Zak, Makelle, and I went on a date to see Ramona and Beezus and out to lunch. Makelle accidentally bit her finger while eating her french fries, so Zak bit his so that she wouldn't feel bad. What a good big brother!

Summer 2011

2011-08-07T18:32:00.000-07:00

We've had a great summer with lots and nothing to do. It has been great! We spent the week of the fourth with Ashley's sister, LaDonna, and family and stayed pretty busy the whole week. Here are three of those days (more to follow).

For the 4th of July, we went to the Sellersburg Parade and then went to Waterfront Park for activities for the kids and fireworks over the river. Kentucky puts on a great firework show! The Old Navy flag shirts were courtesy of my mom. The entire Gerhauser family had them. It was a real "Somewhere Out There" kind of day!
It was a super hot day at the zoo, but there were mist sprayers every so often and lots of people to carry kids or push the stroller (thank you Austin and Brayden), so it was a fun day!

We went to the bat museum and while the Madsen's went on the factory tour, Ashley, the kids and I hung out by the giant glove and in the little batting cages. I took probably 50 pictures of the kids posing on the glove. They had a great time and were hilarious!

Later we had our own firework show. The Madsens went a little crazy at the firework store! We started the fireworks at about 8:30 and were done by 10. After they set off the first two (of many) big fireworks, one of the neighbors came out and angrily asked how many more fireworks we had! I think someone eventually answered with "um, a few"!

science and a game

2011-07-21T14:51:00.000-07:00

While Ashley was at girls camp, John and the kids took me (Lindsey) to the science museum and a Bats game.

There is a new exhibit at the science museum that takes your picture and then uses age progression to show what you look like in 20, 40, and 60 years. Unfortunately the 20 year screen wasn't working, but here are Zak and Makelle now and a ways in the future. There was a super long line the entire day so we only had time for Zak and Makelle to try it out before closing, they pretty much had to kick us out!

Zak went first and I'm pretty sure that his 20 year picture would have looked exactly like John, and I think we are seeing how John will look in the not too distant future! Zak's not sure he wants to look just like his dad when he gets old.
Makelle was not too thrilled about how her pictures turned out. She said that when she is old she is going to look like a freak and she will be a fat old lady. I made sure it was okay with her to put the pictures on the blog. She cracks me up!

The Bat's game was fun. We had seats on the second row on the left field line. We didn't know we would be so close or we would have taken our gloves. There was one foul ball that came pretty close to us and the left fielder picked it up and tossed it right to me. So we came away with a ball. We had a super fun day!

Tennessee

2011-07-13T09:03:00.001-07:00

So this is Lindsey writing. I am back to Indiana for the summer and have once again taken over the blog. I have been here for about a month and it has been crazy busy. John, Ashley and family came to Utah for Anna's wedding, then I drove back to Indiana with them. The week we got back, Ashley had girls camp, so I got to play mom for the week. The next week we went on vacation to Tennessee, then the next week Ashley's sister and her family came to visit.

I am blogging about the Tennessee trip first, then I will try to catch up on other things. We went to a time share in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, near the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Thank you Richard and Joan, we had a great time! We had high hopes going into it, panicked a little when we were almost there, then were relieved and pleasantly surprised when we arrived. We left Indiana at about 4 pm Sunday afternoon and arrived at our hotel at around 9 pm.

As we got closer to our hotel, we passed by Dollywood and a million signs for what could be some really cool places. About every other billboard had something about Dolly Parton on it. Then Mapquest sent us up a dark, small, winding, partially paved road. There was a house every now and again, and we were afraid that we would be kidnapped by hillbillies. We thought we were going to a resort, but it wasn't looking good. As we were discussing just going home if this place turned out to be super scary, we turned onto a larger road and found the check in office to the Sunrise Ridge Resort.

It was just a small building with nothing around it. John checked us in, came out with a map, and we drove up another road. All of the sudden there was a huge resort hidden away in the mountains. It was awesome. We had our own little three bedroom house with a full kitchen. The kids slept most of the way and were super tired and grumpy when we got there. At first Zak and Makelle were ticked that we weren't staying in the normal hotel part of the resort. Then once they realized that what we had was much better, they were angry that they didn't have their own fireplace in their room!

Quotes:

Lindsey: "What do you think they have a Dollywood?"
John: "All kinds of wood"
Zak: "Um, chicken tenders and underwear."

John: "Thanks for hanging in there when we thought we were going to get taken over by hillbillies and made to do things we didn't want to do."

The next morning we got up and went swimming. There were also complimentary doughnuts and orange juice at the indoor pool (that somehow I missed, but that is another story). There was a big pool, a little pool (just for Lantz) and a hot tub. John slept through the entire thing. We found out later that he woke up with allergies and took some allergy medicine (then slept pretty much the rest of the day). After nap time for everyone, Ashley and I went to the outlet stores, then the whole family went for a drive through Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, and Gatlinburg. There were a ton of crazy things to see, like the giant replica of the titanic, the upside down building, and more pancake houses than you can count. All was very touristy, but very cool.

The next day was John's birthday and he decided that for his birthday he wanted to go hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains. Lantz was up sick through the night, so Ashley stayed home with him while the rest of us headed out. We drove all over the place, got lost twice, and went on a couple of really cool, long hikes. The first trail we went on was more of a nature walk, but it was really pretty

Next we drove to North Carolina (not that far away) to hike to Clingmans Dome. The hike is a paved trail that was about .5 miles and pretty steep, then ends with a ramp to a tower. By the end of the hike, Makelle was on my shoulders and Zak was on John's. We were all exhausted and had to sit at the bottom of the tower to rest for a while.

Apparently we stayed at the bottom for too long because by the time we got to the top it was super foggy. From the top of the tower you can see (on a clear day) the mountains in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia. We couldn't see much of anything, but we had fun.

The kids were more than ready to be done hiking for the day, and after much complaining John said we could go home after a short detour. The detour turned out to be another hike, this one was almost three miles long. The hike went to Groto Falls, which was a hike that went under a waterfall. It was a normal dirt trail and the kids had a blast. Zak walked the whole thing by himself, and Makelle walked over half of it! The fog had cooled down the temperature quite a bit and it was a great hike.

The next day we started off the day at the Red Rooster Pancake House. John made me choose which one to go to since I had pointed out every one on the drive through town. It was delicious! We also swam and played at the playground. Zak, Makelle and Lantz are all very good at tricks. John, not so much! Then we went to the boot store where they had a buy one get two free sale. The kids boots were a good price, so Zak, Makelle, and Lantz all got new cowboy boots. We also went to Hillbilly village, not that impressive. There were no hillbillies in sight!

For our last full day of vacation we decided to go hiking again, this time Ashley and Lantz got to come. We decided to go to another waterfall, Laural Falls. It said it was an easy hike. Makelle and Lantz didn't think it was that easy. Zak did great and did the whole thing by himself. Makelle got stung by a bee and Zak was such a great big brother and found her a dandelion to help the sting go away.

After the hike to Laurel Falls we decided to go back to Groto Falls. The kids were excited, until we got there and it ended up being much hotter than the first time. They still did great and getting to the waterfall was totally worth the hike. The kids stuck their feet in the water and threw rocks. While we were driving out of the park we saw a black bear with thee tiny cubs. They were just off of the road walking around. The pictures aren't great, but the experience was! After we were all done hiking, we figured we had hiked about ten miles. The kids did most of that themselves. What good kids!

We ended the day with more swimming and went to Bennet's BBQ for dinner. It was AMAZING! Ashley and I weren't thrilled that John wanted BBQ for his birthday dinner, but it was great. The waitress thought it was hilarious how much Zak ate, but he and John were in heaven!

We slept there one more night and drove back on Friday. We went back out the way we had come in, and it turns out the rode we had been so scared of, wasn't scary at all. What we thought were hillbilly houses turned out to be small, nice houses. We were nervous for nothing! Our drive home took two hours longer than the drive there because of traffic, but we had a great trip and I am so glad that I got to go with them.

Zak turned 6

2011-05-07T09:59:00.000-07:00

Zak has been counting down for his birthday for months. His grandma and grandpa came earlier to visit so they wouldn't be here so he wanted to have a friend party. He wanted a carnival party again and he had it all planned out. We invited everyone only to cancel the day of the party because Makelle had woken up early throwing up. It wasn't quite the Birthday he had planned but what do you do?! It started at 4 with his sister throwing up on his bed. Then he opened a few presents from us since Dad would be leaving for school soon. He got to have a birthday celebration at school. He got to tell something about each year of his life, then they sang and he passed out a cookie to each kid. He made his own poster for school with pictures from his life. That afternoon all three of my kids took a nap, (I guess I should wake everyone up at 4 if I want them to nap). One of Zak's friends showed up for the party, I had forgotten to call them and cancel. Imagine how terrible I felt, especially since they live pretty far away. They came in and played and it made Zak's day. We were able to end on a good note playing with him and sharing a pizza party with them!! Most of Zak's presents from family came in the mail the next day and he was able to enjoy them and then a party later in the week. It lasted all week long. What a lucky boy! We did all the traditional carnival games. Bobbing for apples, knock the juice box over, ball toss, doughnuts on a string, an otter pop walk, face painting, penny toss, and candle squirting! We ended with hotdogs and cake and ice cream. Zak decorated his entire cake by himself and we were all very impressed with it. Then they jumped on the tramp and played red rover. It was a great time. He loved playing with friends and getting presents!

SPRING

2011-05-02T02:22:00.003-07:00

After lots of tornado warnings and tons of flooding, the weather was finally nice again. We took advantage on Saturday and went to a state park to go hiking. The weather was perfect and it was beautiful. With all of the warmth and rain everything got green and it is such a pretty time of the year. We had a fantastic day enjoying each other, the sunshine, and all the pretty things around us. It was a great hike and the kids did well, mostly they loved to stop and play in the water!

Easter

2011-05-02T02:22:00.001-07:00

Here's the kids with their eggs! Easter was fantastic!!! I always think it is going to be so hard to be away from my family for Easter but we seem to enjoy ourselves. We started the day with a baptism at our new church building. Then we had a picnic and egg hunt with lots of friends from our branch. It was perfect.

Pet owners

2011-04-07T09:35:00.003-07:00

Well it finally happened, the thing I have always dreaded...owning a pet. Well, we did have a turtle for a few days and the pet scorpion!!! Now we have real pets and 2 of them. CRAZY. My kids go out to the garage at 6:30 in the morning and they only come in to use the bathroom and sleep. Otherwise they are outside enjoying the fantastic weather and their "cute, fluffy, soft" bunnies! How long will it last?? I don't know but I will enjoy it while it does. Zak's is the white one and it is named "Snowball". Makelle's is the tiny gray one named "Daisy". Seriously between the weather and the joy of my kids this has been the best day ever!

y

Sunny Days

2011-03-01T18:26:00.000-08:00

The last few weeks we have had some sunny days off and on. On this particular day we got close to 70 degrees and the kids got in their swim clothes to play and wash the car. It was a much needed sunny day. I think Heavenly Father knew every mother in the world needed the sun to come out for at least the day. The kids were sick for the first day and Lantz could only sit on my lap because he was miserable but it was still nice to just go outside and enjoy the warmth of the sun. It is amazing how wonderful it was to feel the sun and how it brightened our day and life couldn't be better. As I was outside enjoying the day it made me think of how Christ is the Son and he gives comfort and peace and that all things are better because of him and his light. I am grateful for the sun and the Son. Together they make my life the happiest.

During this time we also got a trampoline. My friend found us one for free and has been storing it at her house all winter. We were going to give it to the kids for Christmas but not having a truck we weren't able to get. We finally got it and it was perfect timing because of the nice weather. I wasn't sure how much the kids would jump on it because they are always scared to jump when others jump and they fall down. Well, let's just say they have played on it for 2 weeks straight every day. They LOVE it!
Zak loves to have John bounce him high.
Lantz enjoying the swings.
Of course their favorite time on the tramp is when Dad is playing.

I LOVE Makelle's hair!

We love you sunshine and we can't wait for SPRING!!!

Lantz

2011-02-19T12:57:00.001-08:00

No more snoring at our house!!! It has been 2 weeks and Lantz is officially back to himself, minus the snoring. It is amazing how QUIET our house is and it has never been quiet before. John and I have to check in his room to make sure he is alive because it is so quiet. He only took about a week and half to recover so we were glad about that. We are glad that part of our lives is over.
Here he is right before we leave the hospital.Our friend, Kirk, was nice enough to babysit for a couple of hours so John could come see us at the hospital. He got to read Lantz some books. While John was away Makelle threw up and Kirk got to deal with the mess. That is a true friend, although I don't think he will be volunteering that again! I felt horrible. Oh well it was nice to see John and get a break while he was there. It was a Valentines to remember!

Getting his first ice cream after surgery!
He did great but we were glad to come home. John was able to miss two days of school to watch the kids. It was good he already planned for that because the Zak and Makelle were sick for an entire week. We both had fun week of ornery miserable kids. It makes me glad my life isn't usually like that and that my kids are usually up feeling good and making messes. Sure makes me appreciate the messes.

**Details for me to remember
The week before surgery when they had to to lab work he did awesome. He held very still for his blood to be drawn and when he got poked his eyes teared and his lip trembled but he didn't cry and he held very still while they got all of the vials of blood. I was SO proud.
They gave him some silly juice before surgery and it made him all smiley and he couldn't hold his head up. He would just lay in my arms and gaze at me with a smiley face.
Surgery was about 1 hour and he did great. The Dr. said his tonsils weren't big they were HUGE and so were his adenoids he was glad to get them out. After surgery Lantz was having a hard time breathing so they had to give him breathing treatments in recovery for the next hour before I got to see him. They sent me to his room to wait for him and we were in a shared room. We got to share with a noisy family on the other side. I was in the room for 2 minutes when I called John to tell him about surgery and I said this is going to be the longest day of my life because I have to share a room. I was looking forward to a nice quiet day just holding Lantz. The room had the bathroom and entrance on my side and the sink on their side. Every nurse or visitor for them had to come in my room and they had to come on my side to use the bathroom and I had to go on their side to wash my hands. Their son kept coming on our side and touching Lantz let's just say it was a LONG day! Lantz did good all day except when he would go to sleep he would have respiratory distress and his alarms would go off. A nurse would come re position him and he would be ok for a few minutes until he would not breath good again. We went to sleep for the night when at about 10:45 we get a knock on the door saying they were coming to clean the other side to get it ready for a patient in the morning. I was thinking what time is it. I thought this can't be for real. They have had 6 hours to clean and they are coming now. I sat up and read for the next half hour while they banged beds, mopped and cleaned the room. Luckily Lantz hadn't got to sleep all day so he slept thru it. The rest of the night he was once again in respiratory distress and the alarms were going off. I stopped calling the nurses because they would just wake him up reposition him and it would all start over. So I spent the night with alarms going off constantly. At one time a nurse heard the alarms down the hall and came in. She had a look of horror on her face as she saw the numbers on the machine. She looked over at me on the couch doing nothing and said this monitor must not be working because his oxygen should not be that low. I said it is working but we can't get him to breath good on his own. That nurse immediately put him on oxygen while I got a lecture about how bad it was to let his oxygen get so low. He stayed on oxygen the whole time while we were there when he was sleeping. He never could get his levels up on his own. After keeping us for an additional day the Dr decided as long as I wasn't worried they would let him go because he was probably used to not having high levels of oxygen. We were glad to finally be released. Lantz was excited to eat some food. The first day we were there they forgot to feed him lunch. When they finally brought him some they brought someone else's food with Fried chicken and mac n cheese. Lantz was crying and begging for the chicken which of course he couldn't have. It was delightful. Two hours later they brought dinner which he wasn't hungry for yet. When they were bringing dinner they asked if he would rather have chicken or a hamburger, REALLY he just got out of surgery? Let's just say they didn't quite have a clue what was going on. Then the next day when he could eat food they brought him Jello and only jello all day. Of course he didn't want to eat that because the day before he had real food. It was a bit of a joke!!!! When we got home he ate many helpings of spaghetti and pudding!

Sickness and SNORING

2011-02-11T18:54:00.000-08:00

I spoke to soon about the winter blues, Spring please hurry so we can leave our house, play at the park, not be sick and see other people!!!! I know every other mother with young kids feels the same way too (and we miss our husbands)! Life is good but it seems like this is the LONGEST time of the year when it is sickness, sickness, and more sickness. We go from crazy busy one day to cancel everything because we can't leave the house. It sure make me grateful for sunny days, healthy children and everything else good in life, like these kiddos. The one good thing is they SLOW down a bit and they even let me CUDDLE them. Which almost never happens. Here are the sick boys cuddling each other.

Lantz gets to have his tonsils and adenoids out on Monday so I had to capture his snoring one last time. His breathing has been getting worse and worse and now he doesn't eat well because he chokes a lot. He sounds like he is snoring when he is just sitting next to you. The Doctor could hear his breathing before he even checked his tonsils. Now that is sad! I start to feel bad that we are having him have surgery just so he doesn't snore but then I go listen to him in bed and watch him and I feel so bad he hasn't ever had a good nights sleep. Only a few more nights and then hopefully good nights are ahead!

It's hard to hear in this video because of the background noise but at the end you can hear his breathing! I don't expect everyone to watch it, I just want to have it recorded so that I always have it. My little guy is going to be a completely different person. Not really but his loud breathing and snoring is a HUGE part of who he is. Poor guy, better days are ahead.

Tender Mercies

2011-02-05T05:47:00.000-08:00

I think I am officially over the winter blues for a while anyways. Man, winter is sure a depressing time of the year! It seems like life is sickness, sickness, and more sickness!

On to better things. John and I have been talking a lot lately about how blessed our family is. We are blessed in many many ways. We have had the opportunity to see several missionaries from our branch leave on missions lately. Our branch now has five missionaries out, AMAZING! We also have super AMAZING youth here that influence our lives so much. My kids have great examples and there are certain young men that Zak tries to dress like every Sunday and he stays after church to help them with their cleaning duties. The same goes for Makelle. We were with one of the girl missionaries when she opened her call. It was a great experience. That night on the way home Makelle said. I know I said I didn't want to go on a mission because I was too scared, but now I want to go on a mission but I am still a little scared. She then started to tear up. She came home and in her prayers she prayed that she wouldn't be scared to go on a mission. I am so grateful for good examples in the lives of my children. I love that they have people that they look up to that are making good choices. They want to be just like them and I have no problem with that. We think of it as a huge blessing that we are here in Indiana at this time when some of our family is struggling with making good choices. Our kids look up to these people that they love so much and when they make wrong choices they are so confused. We are grateful that Heavenly Father has provided good examples for our children and put us here where our children can look to their example. He truly loves us. My children have grown by leaps and bounds spirtually lately. Makelle got a new temple calendar and she was so excited to find her birthday on it. She then said look mom I only have to go up these three steps (squares) to get to the temple and be married. She was so excited and it was so easy for her. John then talked to her about what those steps to get to the temple would be. Then a few days ago she was sick and she walked into our room after going to bed and quietly said, "Dad, I need a blessing". John was able to lift her onto the bed and give her a blessing. She went to bed, stopped coughing and woke up better the next day. How grateful I am to have a husband who honors his priesthood who can be called upon at any time. I am grateful that my children realize the power of the priesthood and that they can call upon their dad for anything. In scripture reading Zak has been reading his own scriptures all by himself (he is such a great reader, so exciting). John talked to him about praying each night to know if the things he is reading are true. He talked about how other books are pretend and some books have educational things that are true or that sometimes change. Then he bore his testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. Zak does that every night now. How amazing that I have a husband who taught Zak at young age to pray and know the truth of every single page of scripture he reads. Heavenly Father loves us and he blesses us. I am so grateful for my knowledge and testimony of the gospel and for a husband who constantly humbles me. I am grateful to be a mother to these great kids who are tomorrows future. Life is good. So even though I may have days of the winter blues I quickly get over it when I realize how blessed I am.

Lantz's Birthday

2011-02-03T10:10:00.000-08:00

I can't believe this guy is 2!!! He is so big and it is weird to not have a baby around! He was so excited for his birthday. He would talk about his Elmo cake and blowing out candles. He practiced blowing them out for a week. He got some presents in the mail a few days before his birthday and while I was in the attic he took advantage and started to open them. He knew good stuff had to be inside. For his birthday while we waited for Zak at school we went birthday shopping and to Chuck-E-Cheese to pretend ride the toys. Good thing my kids are content with sitting on them without them moving. They think it is great.

Then we picked Zak up and we all went to lunch at McDonalds and got ice cream cones. All of the kids were in heaven. All of the customers looked at me like I was crazy with four little kids alone at McDonalds. Then we came home and the kids helped me make the cake for Lantz. Then we decorated the house and got it ready for when Lantz woke up from his nap.
It's Elmo in case you can't tell!

Then it was party time!

Zak got him GUM and I think he was most excited about it!

He had his candles blown out before we even stopped singing. He had been practicing so much. Zak and Makelle were so mad about him doing it so soon. He was just so excited to finally get to do it.
Licking the candles.
Showing everyone his ELMO!

Cute messy girl.
A close up of the messy.
Happy Birthday Lantz!

Snow Fun

2011-02-03T10:05:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we got enough snow to play in. The first day I was a little plow horse and hooked a laundry basket and 2 tubes to a rope. Then I put it around my stomach and pulled 4 kids on it. I asked John if I would get mother of the year award for all of my hard work. He said he was sure I would get redneck mother of the year award!!! After that I let him try it out. He only had to pull Zak most of the time so he didn't get the same experience. Although he did feel like he was going to die after.

I love this picture of Zak and John!
This is when John is about to die.
He's up an at it again.
Lantz got on for a minute but he gets too cold.

One Lucky Girl!

2011-01-18T16:15:00.000-08:00

I don't usually like to post about my birthday and make it a big deal but my family was so cute I have to share. My birthday wasn't until Monday but Zak had school so John decided to celebrate on Saturday. We woke up Saturday morning and John told me I had to stay in bed for a while. I got up and stayed in my room while I was listening to all sorts of commotion in the rest of the house. I opened the door to find this!

Party hats, whistles, shakers and lots of streamers! Everything you need for a party.

Each of my kids gave me a kid puzzle for my gift and then we went and put them together.
The best party throwers ever.
I got to hear these guys all day!
And all night!
Makelle also gave me a manicure and pedicure, a birthday must!
Lantz did not want to be excluded.
It doesn't get much better than that! It was well worth getting one year older. I can't wait for next year! I had a great weekend spending time with my favorite people.

Oh what do you do in the Winter time?

2011-01-18T13:22:00.000-08:00

We get out all the Halloween costumes and play dress up because we are sick of being stuck inside!

Two cute little bugs.

Cute and silly!

Isn't she darling with her apron and long hair?
Zak made his own tie, I've never seen a soccer player wear one before.

Jasmine/Little Red Riding Hood
SCARY!

That's what we do in the winter time when all the world is cold and we are going CRAZY!

Holding on Tight and Sound Asleep

2011-01-05T18:34:00.000-08:00

I went into Lantz's room to get something the other night and I was surprised to find him like this. How can he pull that off? He is barely on the bed! He was snoring loud and I had to capture the moment! Funny Kid!

I think I might try this position too, since he seemed to be enjoying it. I think I could dangle my feet over my bed and they wouldn't touch the ground either!!! All of the perks of having food storage under the bed!

Christmas break with Anna and Lindsey

2010-12-31T08:29:00.002-08:00

We enjoyed having two of John's sisters here from Christmas to New Year's Eve. My kids were way more excited for them to come than Santa. We all had a great time and it was very literally a "break" from real life for all of us. It was nice to slow down and just enjoy home and family. I am grateful for these two sisters and their love for my kids. They don't come to be entertained or to see the sights, they simply want to play with my kids, and play they do! Thanks Lindsey and Anna for making our Christmas one of the best! We love and appreciate you and your example for all of us!

Here is what we did while they were here.
We played in cabins!Built huts!
Took pictures!
Played games!
Checked our tonsils!
Took more pictures!

Made John uncomfortable!
Played more games!
And even more games!
Built huts and had sword fights!
Played legos!

And more legos!

Played outside!

Did hair and nails!
Cuddled!
Watched movies!
Dressed up!
Had rides!
Played in more tents and tunnels!
Went to the zoo!

Opened lots of presents!

Most of all we we had a fun and CRAY time!
Happy Holidays!

Christmas

2010-12-31T08:29:00.001-08:00

We had a fantastic Christmas this year. We all agree it is at the top of the list for great Christmases.

We had our usual Christmas eve of sloppy joes, root beer floats and spreading reindeer food! We read the Christmas story and watched it on a movie. Then we wrote notes to Santa and left him some homemade banana muffins and egg nog! Then the kids each opened a present which were games so we played them for the rest of the evening. This year for Christmas Zak and Lantz both got trains from Santa and Makelle got girl legos! They were very excited with their presents. We had a great morning just hanging out!

Here is how the morning ended with Zak and Dad working to build a cabin for real!

The kids each got a homemade pieced blanket from LaDonna and her kids.
Lantz mostly enjoyed candy.

It was a Merry Christmas indeed!

Getting Ready for Christmas

2010-12-28T08:33:00.001-08:00

We had a fun filled December as we prepared for Christmas. My memory card in my camera wasn't work, and then my batteries were dead, so that's why the long delay in blog updating! Here are a few of the fun things I captured.

Christmas Eve we always have to put reindeer food on the roof and grass for all of Santa's reindeer!

John was off from school and was missing the gym so this is how his exercise looked.
All of the kids got letters from Santa and they were thrilled. They were all excited to hear they had made the nice list. Santa gave them some good advice and told them he knew of the great things they had done throughout the year.

We made one gingerbread house together this year and it was TASTY and beautiful!

Lantz was in heaven because he LOVES candy!

In December we did our branch's annual "Joy To The World" . I had to play the part of Mary the sister of Martha and tell first hand about Christ's power to raise my brother from the dead. The whole evening was very powerful as we had people from Christ's life tell of him. My testimony was strengthened that he is the master potter and if I put him as the center he can make me who is nothing into something amazing. I just have to put him at the center and allow him to shape my life. I was also reminded that he is the living water and that if I drink of his water I shall thirst no more. He has all power he can heal and he has compassion. He also has power over death and can restore life. He was born, He lived, and He died for me because He loves me. For that knowledge, I am very grateful. This night of Joy To The World was a great kickoff for our Christmas season. Zak and Makelle were asked to be Mary and Joseph both nights. They had to sit quietly while people experienced the life of Christ. It was a long time and I was proud that they did such a great job! Zak also was a great example of a missionary as he invited several friends and teachers to come to this program. We also enjoyed a carriage ride around the park as we enjoyed Christmas lights. We visited an elderly woman we didn't know and took her a care basket and my kids got to experience the joy of serving others even when it might not sound fun at first. We had some snow so we played in it and the kids took advantage of the ice storm and tried to skate around on it. We did lots of fun things but most of all we spent time together and tried to remember the reason for the season!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-30T04:32:00.000-08:00

We had such a nice relaxing Thanksgiving. It is always nice when everyone is home for a few days and we aren't all running different directions. We didn't do anything special or accomplish much but we had tons of family time. We went to the Fielding's again for Thanksgiving and had a wonderful day. It is nice to have friends that fill in the gap of being with family. Once again it was surprisingly one of the best holidays ever. It was probably because of all of the butter!!! John got to play in the branch Turkey Bowl which consisted of lots of people falling down in the mud. It rained for two days straight so it was quite the game! The night before Thanksgiving we went to an underground cave and drove around to look at Christmas lights. It reminded me of Utah and doing that with family. We missed having family but it was super cool to be driving under Louisville. We had a great time. After Thanksgiving we also went to Charlestown and looked at lights and went for a horse and carriage ride. It was freezing but the kids had fun. It is almost December and I am ready for the Christmas festivities to continue!!!

I love this time of year and the opportunity to ponder on the many things to be grateful for. When I start to think of all of my blessings I am overwhelmed by the love of my Father in Heaven. I ask myself all of the time why am I so blessed? I don't fully know why Heavenly Father placed me on the earth at this time in this land with my family and a knowledge of the gospel. I am grateful he did. Those blessings and that of a healthy family come to me simply because he saw fit to bless me with them. When I think of other blessings I enjoy I can directly see that it was because I obeyed a commandment. The Lord truly does bless us when we do what he asks. I am grateful for a loving Heavenly Father that directs my life. He is mindful of me. He wants me to be happy and he shows me the way. I am grateful for my Savior. He is real. He died for me so that I can experience peace, happiness and eternal life. I too have been born of goodly parents. I don't know why I was so blessed but I will be eternally grateful for their example, influence and teachings. I am blessed with a worthy priesthood holder who presides in our home. He is thoughtful and kind and is always teaching our kids gospel truths. I am amazed and humbled to have found such a man to spend eternity with. I have three healthy happy kids who call me mom. This blessing is one I don't take lightly as I know it truly is a privilege, one I am grateful for. I am grateful for freedoms and opportunities that I have had in my life. I am grateful to be on this journey here in Indiana with my family. To live near a temple, to meet with other saints, and to have friends I consider family who help me and make me want to be better. I have extended family that continues to inspire and amaze me by there testimonies and examples. I am blessed. When I think of my life the resounding theme is this "Where much is given, must is expected". I know that in my life much has been given and I need to be one that Lord can expect much from. My life is rich and I am humbled to be so blessed.

Makelle is 4

2010-11-20T19:10:00.002-08:00

It is crazy to think that it has been four years since we got this girlie girl in the family. She makes us laugh and smile everyday and she is starting to get so big!!! Here are some photo's of her big day. She had Granpa David and Grandma Valynn here to celebrate and that made the day perfect. She got to do lots of shopping which is her favorite thing!

She loves her sparkly light up sneakers from Lindsey!

She bought new princess sheets with her money from Gramps and Granny. She also got a new bedspread with money from Becca!

Emily got her this stylish hat and she loves it and actually wears it lots! She is sporting a new fancy dress from David and Valynn. Her birthday was the primary program so she got to wear all of her new stuff minus the hat and sneakers!

John did Makelle's cake this year. She wanted a girl frog with ear rings and nail polish. I was going to do it but at the last minute he pulled thru and we got this fabulous cake!!! It sure is great that kids are easy to impress!We love you pretty girl!

Picture Time

2010-11-04T12:07:00.000-07:00

Our talented friend, Amanda, was nice enough to take some family pictures. It was a bad day and I was about to cancel but at the last minute everyone put on their happy face and we threw some clothes together. It turned out to be super quick , easy and very successful. Thanks, Amanda! To the rest of you, Enjoy!

That is it! As you can see Makelle had to have at least one wardrobe change!

OCTOBER

2010-10-13T18:04:00.000-07:00

It's Halloween time! We started the month off by going to a farm with a petting zoo and a hayride to pick our own pumpkins. John has started a new thing called "studying". He even started doing it on Saturdays so on this Saturday it was just me and the kiddos. We were the first ones there and the kind owner took pity on me and gave us a free cow train ride. After that we spent time enjoying the farm. Then we got a wagon ride to the pumpkin patch. We had a great time. The kids wasted no time carving the pumpkins. Here's the proof off all the fun, Enjoy!

Just this morning the sun looked like this so I had to take a picture. It was so bright and it looked like a pumpkin!Lantz loves pumpkins!

Lantz was not shy or grossed out at all. He was quite the helper, especially when Zak was gagging from the pumpkin guts.
All three kids did it all on there own. The cleaning and the designing!
Lantz with the pumpkin he chose.
Leaving the pumpkin patch with the pumpkins.
The pumpkin is almost as big as him.
We were too cheap to buy the food so the kids started picking up fallen food to feed.
Lantz is always ready to "cheese".
They had a barn swing which Zak loved.
The pregnant pony was everyone's favorite.

We are excited to go back again and again and hopefully John can come too. We also have to buy more pumpkins because we left a huge candle in them overnight and practically burned the pumpkins. Woops!

Things about the kids

2010-10-02T18:14:00.000-07:00

Things about Zak these days
*He is the lady's man at school. He gets mad if you tease him and he doesn't let the girls hug him he just walks away. But he loves talking and playing with them.
*He can sound words out phonetically . He even wrote planned my meals and wrote my shopping list this week.
*He is a great help around the house and an awesome babysitter.
*He is learning to write his phone number and address.

Things about Makelle
*She can recite the first four articles of faith!
*She loves yard sales.
*She caught a huge fish for her first time with her new barbie fishing pole.
*She will finally ride her bike on the street and in the driveway instead of just in the garage!
*She is no longer scared of the vacuum!!! I made her vacuum last week while she was clinging to me and crying but it seems to have gotten her over it.
*She loves having school with Mommy in the mornings, and she is getting super smart! She is learning sequencing and rhyming
*She does hand stand all the time and she is very good at it.

Things about Lantz
*He is a STINKER
*He is a MENACE
*His name should be Lantz "Richard"
*In one week he learned how to open the outside doors and let him and my babysitting kid outside.He also learned how to push a chair to the counter to reach stuff.He learned how to climb up on the counter.He learned how to get into the top cuboards.He learned how to open the outside doors with the child proof doorknobs on!!!
*He hasn't played in the toilet this week but he still plays in the trash and dumps out cereal.
*He has been in his big boy bed for one month and has only gotten out once!
*He knows all of the actions to several songs like "Popcorn popping" and he loves to sing.
*His favorite things are to eat candy, play outside, read books and be naughty!
*He is so dang fun and cute!

Things about John
*He still loves to eat!
*He actually studies this semester. He went to the library for the first time on a Saturday!
*

Things about Ashley
*Is flunking Economics!
*Loves being in Young Women's and watching my ladies become leaders!
*Is glad that most days I am perfectlly content with my life. The bad times are only just "moments".
*Has the best friends who help me to be better. They also watch my kids and that is WONDERFUL!
*Was super excited to go to the ball. I felt like a princess for the night, at least until I got to the PARTY!!!

2010-10-02T17:54:00.000-07:00

I think the most repeated sentence in my life is "Life is Crazy" or maybe "Lantz is a menace". I think the latter may be the reason for the first statement! Life is Crazy for our family but mostly in a very good way. Here are some highlights for last month.

John took both of the boys to the Father's and Son's camp out. John was willing to take Lantz, and Zak wanted him along so it worked out great. They had a fun time sleeping in the tent and drinking homemade root beer. Zak loved widdling with his pocket knife and then he lost it there somewhere. I guess I don't have to stress about it anymore! Makelle and I had a fun evening hanging out at a dental school picnic by ourselves, then grocery shopping and we ended with a McDonald's ice cream and a sleepover on the bean bag. Then next day we had a great time yard sale-ing and found some great stuff we didn't need but it was way to cheap to pass up. Makelle bought herself a Barbie fishing pole and she was in heaven. I realized it is really fun and relaxing to have just one child and even shopping is enjoyable!

Last month John and I decided we needed to start having family councils with the kids. We weren't sure what to expect from the kids but they LOVED it. It has been so fun to have them with the kids. They get so excited to have a meeting with Mom and Dad. They are so used to us going to meetings that they feel so cool to have one with us. They get their pens and clipboards and start drawing pictures and writing things down. We each take an uninterrupted minute to talk about things we want to have happen in our family. The first week Zak wanted us to all do better picking up our clothes. Makelle gave a big long talk about how God loves us and how he helps the world. It was great! Last week Zak decided they needed to help more around the house. This week I had dishwasher and laundry helpers all week. I love the things they come up with. It gives us one more night to take time to be as a family to sing and work together to make our family better.

Another big thing for September was the "Ball on the Bell". It will get its own post later!

Now for the latest pictures of the crazy crazy kids!

Makelle loves to do hand stands anywhere and anytime even in the car!

Makelle is just pullin Lantz around.
Lantz wanting to be like Makelle. Of course Zak knew he would get in trouble so he didn't paint his nails, just his brother's.
Stinker!

Lantz loves to put things in his ears. Before I get mad at him I first have to take a picture. It is a little funny and dangerous!

Silly kids!

2010-09-14T07:36:00.000-07:00

Here are some random pictures I uploaded a while ago and forgot to post!
Zak was proud to be matching his dad.

A stinking cute cowboy!
Cute kids ready for church.

We had homemade doughnuts for Family Home Evening and they were MESSY!

Did I mention they were MESSY?!

Too Big!!

2010-09-14T04:05:00.000-07:00

Goodbye Crib, Hello Big Boy Bed!! Crazy I know especially considering what a stink he is. He kept getting his legs caught in the crib. So despite thinking it was a bad idea I took the crib down. So far he is on his 6th day in his bed and NO problems! Wahoo!!!
Silly boy posing for the camera!!

HAIRCUTS

2010-09-07T03:41:00.001-07:00

After a fun filled day yesterday we ALL came home for haircuts. Of course John was the barber! Makelle didn't want to be left out so she decided she wanted to look like Mom. She said it will just grow again so she wanted it cut off.

I was shocked to walk into the garage and see locks of Makelle's hair on the ground. She got 8 inches cut off! She looks darn cute! She asked all to call her by her middle name, Ashlyn, since she looks just like me! She wants us to do our hair together the same everyday! She loves it, loves it! Don't they all look so big and cute? Seriously John needs to make a career change. I had two more people stop me last month and ask who cuts my hair. Funny stuff!

Zak's love note

2010-09-05T10:42:00.000-07:00

Zak is liking school more. He loved it at first then started to not like it. He is one shy boy in big groups. The have observation window were you can watch the classroom without them knowing. It is so sad to seem him playing by himself or reading by himself. Outside at playtime he was doing the same thing. It is a sad thing because you want your kids to be happy but it has to be their choice. Happiness and success have to come from within. We would talk everyday about maybe why he didn't like it or he was bored. I would give him ideas. I am happy to report he thinks it is great again and he has several buddies he talks to and plays with outside. He still isn't himself in the classroom yet but I am hoping for great things! He has been learning about living things and the food chain. He loves when he comes home and can teach me and Makelle new things. One day he came home with a picture. Makelle asked what he drew. He said I didn't draw it a girl did and gave it to me. I asked him about it and he said a girl he never talked to drew this for him. Here it is!

WAY TO GO ZAK!!! He gets so mad when we tease him!

Every night we do a fun activity with the kids after they get their charts done. On this night I chose the activity and I was practicing a game for my YW activity. Now it one of the favorites and they beg for it every night.

John chose the egg game and they love it now too! What silly kids. Our neighbors probably wonder about us in the backyard every night carrying eggs with spoons!

Makelle was excited to start Joy school with me but it looks like it will just be us instead. She wishes she was five and in Kindergarten. The first few days of school I was really missing Zak's help around here. Now Makelle is learning to be a great help. She says everyday she is practicing to be a mom!

Lantz is a stink!!!! My days are endlessly filled with cleaning up his messes. He plays in the trash, dumps the cereal, plays with the toilet paper, the toilet, and his favorite is dumping cups of water. SERIOUSLY he is a STINK!!! Good thing he is so dang cute and fun or I would call it quits lots of days. He is learning songs now and his vocabulary includes lots of words. He loves sitting on my lap and reading books.

I started school, seriously what was I thinking? Life is crazy busy and I am going to school!! No, it is crazy but I am actually liking my classes. It is fun to learn more stuff and actually have something to talk about with John! He has never seen me get excited about learning stuff before so he likes it. As strange as it may sound I get lots more done when I have lots to do.

John and I went boating with the youth on Saturday. We had a great time although now I feel like I got whiplash. Oh the things we do for fun!

New Pictures

2010-09-01T14:46:00.000-07:00

I have wanted pictures taken for a long time but just haven't gotten to it. LaDonna was nice enough to let use her camera for some photos of the kids! Here ya go!

They are some crazy kids! As you can see we had some success on the individual ones but with all three of them it is IMPOSSIBLE.

2nd year, 8 years, 1st Day, 1st TIme, and 2nd Pet!!!

2010-08-15T15:50:00.000-07:00

What?

2nd Year of Dental School
John officially started his second year of dental school and he is a sophomore. The first couple of days were frustrating but by the end of the week he was getting excited for his classes. This is supposed to be the toughest year so we'll prepare for the worst and hope for the best! Crazy that next year he will be in the clinic working on patients again! He has missed working with and on patients so he is excited.

8 Years of Marriage
It has been 8 great years that John and I have been married!! We actually had one of our best anniversaries ever and neither one of us bought anything or planned anything! I spent the morning getting some tomatoes ready to can. After we got done friend offered to watch my older kids while I took the younger kids home for naps. I got three hours of quiet all to myself. As if that wasn't great enough she also had planned a date for us not even knowing it was our anniversary! We went to the temple ate at our favorite restaurant and got to spend a great evening out with friends. The babysitter was also provided and dropped off at my house. I was feeling spoiled and it was fabulous!

1st Day of Kindergadrten
Zak had his first day of Kindergarten, CRAZY!!! He was not excited and very nervous. We had a family home evening about education and then he got a father's blessing. His attitude did an immediate 180. He was so excited! We went to his school to meet his teachers and look around. He was excited to learn that his class pet would be a Guinea pig named Rosie. He walked into school on his first day and waited by his door all by himself. He came out of school and said, "Mom, why didn't you sign me up for all day Kindergarten, this place is great, and I want to stay all day!" How wonderful was that to hear?! It was a great day and I never even thought about crying. Someone asked if it had been a hard day and I realized maybe it should have been, but it wasn't. I don't know if I am detached emotionally or if I am just excited for Zak to be growing up! It did hit me a couple of months ago that I was getting old, he was getting old, and he would be leaving my safe home and be vulnerable to the world. But all is well and we are excited for this new adventure!

1st Time in Nursery
Lantz is in nursery!!!! Eighteen months is one of my favorite ages, (ok it is my favorite) because of NURSERY!!!! YAY!!!! He does ok as long as he has his blanket, snacks, and books! He is also officially done with his pacifier so we can call him a big boy!!!!!!! Can you tell I am excited for nursery?

2nd Family Pet
The other exciting news for us our latest pet. We went to the lake again yesterday and on the ride home we found a baby turtle. John picked it up and we brought it home. We took care of it for one whole day. This afternoon the kids were disappointed to see that it found its way out of the box and ran away. At least now we can say we've had two pets, a scorpion and a turtle. Both of them were free and we didn't have to keep them long! That is my kind of pet!

One more visit

2010-08-10T11:56:00.000-07:00

We ended our trip in Colorado with my grandma then we pulled an all nighter and arrived home the next evening. Our kids did great and they only got out of the car TWICE in that whole drive! We had an amazing time and we were sad to leave! We were also ready to be HOME! We had a great welcoming our grass was dead, the dishwasher broken, the washing machine leaking, and church callings waiting for us! We only lasted a week and we were off again for one final visit this summer. It was a super quick trip but well worth it. We went to Virgina to see my dad and Joan. We had a great visit and we did lots of swimming!
Makelle is so brave now she jumps into the deep and swims all by herself! It is amazing how much kids change in just one year.
Lantz loved it too and he tries so hard to swim. I think it might be closer than I think and I will have three kids that can swim in the pool. It is sooooo nice to have them independent at the pool.

Zak is super great at diving and hand stands he can even dive and retrieve things!
Lantz liked throwing the rocks in the pool. Grandma had to get him his own bucket of water to fill with rocks.
The kids loved reading with Grandma and Grandpa
Zak was super proud of his driving skills. He drove around for about half an hour all by himself.
this is the look Zak got as soon as we got home to the humidity. He got shaved and so did John! It's a good thing he is still cute with no hair, John on the other hand is another story.

WE LOVE GRANDPARENTS

2010-08-02T17:58:00.000-07:00

We were super excited to get in a visit with all of the living great grandparents! We had lots of fun and built memories to last a lifetime!

Lantz with Grandma Trujillo.
He hasn't ever met her before but it didn't take long for him to warm up.

My Grandpa Trujillo is remembered for playing is accordion. I have fond memories of it and I wanted to share that with my kids. They each were able to take a turn holding and playing the accordion. This is the first time it has been touched since he died so it was a special time. I am grateful for such a great heritage and I am glad my kids got a little glimpse of the man I loved so much.

A visit with Layne

2010-08-02T17:47:00.002-07:00

We had a great trip to Utah and we were able to see all of our friends and family. We spent an afternoon with my brother and my kids loved riding the horse, playing catch with Joe (the dog), and holding the puppies.
Makelle liked acting like she didn't like it but she did!!Do you see that my kids are actually touching the dog!!

Makelle finally admitting she likes it!

Lantz cheesing extra big for this fun ride with Ciera1
The biggest boy of all! Zak rode all by himself and he was very proud!

Monroe

2010-08-02T17:46:00.003-07:00

We had a great trip to Monroe. We started off with a weekend with the Gerhauser/Day families. We went four-wheeling Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. We had an exciting trip thanks to the Day's! Between broken four-wheelers, lost cousins, and a couple of crashes, we stayed on our toes.
One of the days we stopped by Hoover's for dinner after riding through the mountains. There was plenty of time to take goofy pictures while we waited for our food for forever. In Makelle's words, "HELLO, I want my water now!" It's probably the only restaurant that would let us all in looking the way we did.
After going home for a day, I (this is Lindsey again) got to go back down to Monroe with my parents and play for a couple more days. We played at the park, went bowling, had ice cream, and played outside in the trailer. We had tons of fun and I am so glad that I got to spend a little more time with the kiddo's and John and Ash.

The kids were great bowlers. All three beat Ashley and Grandpa!

We wish we could have stayed down there longer and that John's family lived closer! I had a great couple of months with them and hope that I can do it again.

We spent the last weekend in Monroe with the Bagley clan! We got to spend time doing one of our childhood favorites of going down the canal behind our house. The kids called it the lazy river and they liked it some of the time! We also went to some natural hot springs that are down the street. It makes me miss living in good old Monroe!

We also got some more good rides in this time with no broken four-wheelers and no crashes! The first day my nephews kept all of the little ones so it was only the adults! The next day we sisters stayed home with the babies and the dad's took the kids for a ride. We had an awesome time together as sister making cards! We also spent one afternoon at lunch together and getting pedicures, I could get used to that kind of a life!
Of course when we weren't riding trails we were playing games! We also got to hit the 24th BBQ and fill up on my favorite beef and we got to see the parade and fireworks for the 24th. I love the hometown feel during the 24th and getting to see everyone who ever lived there! We also got to go to church in Monroe a few times and it was great to see everyone. One of our favorite things was a huge 200 ft slip n slide down a huge hill. My sister rented it for our family and it was probably one of the favorites for all of us, even John. It just might get us back to Utah again. We don't have any pictures for now. Just take my word it was great!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE having my kids play with their cousins and I love love love being with my family! It was like we were never apart.

We had a wonderful trip to Utah! We made tons of memories, did all of our favorites and got to see most of our family. We will miss you all but we look forward to more great times in the future!

Grandma and Grandpa's

2010-08-02T17:46:00.001-07:00

So here are pictures of the trip to Utah, finally! It has taken me (Lindsey) forever to get them put together. I'm a little embarrassed that it took me so long, I don't know how people do it, especially when they have other things to do everyday.
The trip started out in Springville at Grandma and Grandpa's house. We had a blast playing with toys and outside on the new swing set. We made chocolate covered pretzels and had picnics outside. Zak and Makelle had fun playing with their buddy Logan.
One day we went swimming at Emily's pool. We were there forever and the kids were so cute and big. They had races and Makelle and Lantz both practiced their diving. Zak and Makelle even helped Logan learn how to swim under water.

Before heading to Monroe, we went up Payson Canyon to the Grotto with LaDonna and some of the cousins. LaDonna took all of the pictures and the older boys took off, so they aren't in any of the pictures!. It was a good and easy hike up to a really pretty waterfall. The kiddos did great and hiked up most of it themselves. We had a great time playing in the water at the bottom of the waterfall. We even went close to the waterfall so we could touch the water.
Lantz loved collecting the rocks, and didn't care that his rear end was soaked by the end!
Makelle collected the prettiest rocks and didn't want to smile for any pictures, so we had to trick her into it!
Zak is getting too big and did everything by himself. He loved playing with Kimberlyn all day.

I love this picture of the kiddos, so I had to put it on by itself!

The hike had a few creek crossings and steep parts that made the hike a lot more exciting.
My family had so much fun while John's family was here. We miss them tons and wish they didn't live so far away. It was great to have the whole family together and I wish it happened more often.

Nauvoo

2010-07-22T15:10:00.001-07:00

Before coming to Utah we spent a couple of days in Nauvoo. It was really cool to be able to learn and see where and how the early saints lived and also learn about them leaving Nauvoo. There were so many places to visit that there was no way we could see it all in two days, but we definitely had a ton of fun and had some favorites. We started with a wagon ride through Historic Nauvoo.

The Mississippi River. I was surprised at how huge it was. John and I each threw a rock into the river just to say that we had.

The kiddo's didn't love going through the old buildings, except for the bakery. Lantz loved it because the missionary gave him probably five cookies, while everyone else only got one or two! There was a place with dress-ups and pioneer toys that all three loved. Since Ashley had already been to Nauvoo, she stayed with the kids while John and I walked down Parley St. and tried to visit a few of the buildings. We went to the Seventies Hall (the first MTC) and the missionaries made us take pictures of each other making a speech. We also went to the blacksmith shop and decided it was so cool that we had to take everyone else there the next day. Here are some pictures of the crazies playing like the pioneers did!

All Makelle talked about wanting to see was Carthage Jail. She told us all about how Joseph Smith was killed there. The pictures show the room where Joseph Smith was shot, and the window that he fell through.

After a long day of walking around, the kids were ready for swimming at the hotel, dinner, and an early bedtime. John stayed with them and Ashley and I went to a show put on by the young performing missionaries and the senior missionaries called "Sunset on the Mississippi". It was a variety show with singing and jokes and was great. That was followed by a performance from Vocal Point, a BYU acapella group, and we were so impressed with each that we decided the whole family was staying up late and coming the next night.

The second day in Nauvoo was much like the first, we went to the Blacksmith shop where we watched a demonstration of a horseshoe being made (Zak got to keep it) and we each got a horseshoe nail ring. We also went on an oxen ride and got to touch the oxen.

The boys are always up for a picture, Makelle wasn't so sure!

The kids played some more at the play area and then we finished the afternoon at the brick shop where we learned how to make bricks and got a souvenir Nauvoo brick to bring home.

While the kids and Ashley were swimming again, John and I went on the Joseph Smith Sites tour. It is the part of Nauvoo that belongs to the Community of Christ church instead of the LDS church. The experience was a lot different than the rest of the trip, but very cool. They wouldn't allow any picture taking inside of the buildings, but I did get a picture of where Joseph, Emma, and Hyrum Smith are buried.

We went to three shows in the evening, the first was a play about the pioneers called "High Hopes and River Boats". Zak took his sweatshirt in for a pillow, just in case he was bored! As long as the whale crackers were being passed around the kids did great. We also went back for "Sunset on the Mississippi" and Vocal point. John enjoyed them so much that he was tempted to stay for another day just to see them again!

On the way to the shows, we stopped at the temple for some pictures. The Nauvoo temple is beautiful. It is amazing that people can build something like that now not to mention a hundred years ago. It is easy to see that the Lord had a hand in building the temple, twice.

We had a great time in Nauvoo and wished that we could have stayed for longer. I also wish that I would have taken more pictures. I am so glad that John and Ashley decided to add it onto the beginning of the trip so that I could go with them!

Summer Fun

2010-06-29T19:03:00.001-07:00

It's been about a year since I updated the blog, this is Lindsey writing, and I got to spend a couple of weeks in Indiana while Ashley went to girls camp, then we went to Nauvoo, and then I got to bring them all back to Utah with me. I can't believe how much the kids have changed since I saw them at Christmas. Lantz is like a different kid, he is hilarious, Makelle is very cute and very stubborn, but still a "tiny big girl", and Zak is now way (instead of only a little) smarter than me. I had a great time playing with them and am so sad that our time is already over. I told Ashley that I would blog about my/our trip since I have all of the pictures, so here it is!

Definitely three of the silliest kids ever!

The day after I got to Indiana, there was a hot air balloon race and glow. It was pretty cool although we never actually saw a balloon get in the air, and the kids were nervous that the balloons were going to fall on them (mostly Zak and Makelle). They were much happier watching from the car.

We had tons of fun playing together. Being an aunt is the best, especially when you are in the same state as your niece and nephews! One of our favorite things to do together is to build things with couch cushions. We built an obstacle course, although I'm not sure Ashley was thrilled when the kids told her we put all of the cushions and pillows on the floor and jumped on them! We also built a cushion hammock and a jeep for a safari.

We built a great wolf den. It came with two rooms and a trick door in case something tried to come in and eat us. Makelle is the one person demolition crew!

When Lantz did this...

...we did this!We also like to play dress ups. Zak likes layers, while Makelle likes to wear tutu's on her head!

Makelle being a bug. John also looked cute in them, unfortunately we didn't get a picture!

Since I didn't get any pictures at swimming lessons, the kids were showing me how they float on the water.

Zak did amazing at swimming lessons, he could swim across the pool with no help from anyone and can float like you wouldn't believe. He also learned how to dive, from his feet and his knee, and can go down the giant slide by himself and then swim to the other side of the pool to the ladder. He is an amazing kid!

Makelle also did pretty well during the lessons, and would negotiate her way around doing anything she didn't want to do. I heard the words "I have a good idea, how about we do ______ (insert almost anything besides swimming) instead then have a break" quite a few times. She was getting the hang of her arm strokes as long as someone was holding her. After swimming lessons were over however, she decided that she could swim on her own and you can imagine John's surprise when she put her head under the water and really swam using the things she had learned from her teachers. When Ashley came home from camp Makelle told her that she could swim all by herself, but Ashley didn't believe it till she saw it herself!

The kids had a great time playing on the Slip 'n Slide. Lantz didn't care that he wasn't wearing a swimming suit, he loved it!

The kiddos each have a chart with things to do before bed. They read scriptures, say prayers, brush teeth, and etc. They have 15 minutes to complete their charts and if they do, the first person done gets to choose an activity to do before they have to go to sleep. Tag and Hide and Seek were favorites. I think that John and I were the most excited to play (though I think Ashley secretly loved it too), and we tried our hardest to think of great places to hide. One particular time, John decided to hide on the wall between the kitchen and living room. So he climbed on top of the fridge and laid on the wall. Makelle was counting and as soon as she got done she looked up and said "Dad, what are you doing up there?!". He was the first one found after all of that effort, then he couldn't get down and we had to get the ladder to rescue him!

I always have so much fun when I get to spend time with my brother and his family, hopefully it won't be too long before I get to see them again.

1 Year Anniversary

2010-06-09T10:20:00.000-07:00

Last month we celebrated one year since we bought our house! Oh, how are lives have changed in just one short year! John and I were saying how hard it is going to be to leave in just three years. When we moved here we left tons of family who we love but who we will see again and again. When we leave Indiana we leave lots of friends that we love as family, but that we will probably never see again. Before coming here we didn't need friends because we had family, family, and more family. It is a whole different experience to rely wholly on our friends. They are the greatest and they have helped to make this one of the greatest years for the Gerhauser family.

Life for us is absolutely wonderful these days. John started summer school but he his home lots so we can't complain. We love having him home and we are taking full advantage. Sophomore year of dental school is supposed to be miserable so we are enjoying this time of having him to ourselves.

This is what we do these days, the zoo, the science museum, the pool, the lake and beach, play dates, the slip n slide, the park and then we just do it all over again. WE LOVE SUMMER!!!! But we are always out and about and I keep my camera away from sand and water, so not many pictures. For the past month we had rain, then we had super hot humid days, then warm days, then rain. It is true what they say here. If you don't like the weather just wait a few minutes!!

Our garden this year is doing great, especially when you consider we couldn't grow anything last year. John has done a great job and the kids love picking the peas to eat each day! We are sad to leave it during our vacation but hopefully there will still be something to enjoy when we get back!

We were excited to see some of my family last week. We didn't get to see them for long but it was still good to see them. It is crazy how kids change in one year. My kids were so excited to see there cousins and they played as if they had just played together yesterday.

Zak-Wasn't sure if he could remember how to swim but he does!!! He is hardly afraid this year and he swims so good. He is very good at addition and he is counting down the days for Utah and then for Kindergarten.

Makelle-Swims very good with her life jacket on and can put her head all under the water and walk around. She is very proud!!

Lantz-Is a stinker!!! He keeps me going. Without fail he will finish his meal then get down from the table and go to the cereal cupboard! GRRRRRR!! It drives me crazy. He is fascinated with shoes, the outside, and waving to everyone. He doesn't talk much but he managed to say Grandpa this week!

John-school, sleep, gym, garden, and meetings! Same old same old!

Ashley-is getting ready for girls camp in next week! Yeah to Lindsey for coming to watch my kids! They won't even know I am gone! I also registered for classes to take online from Utah State. I will be able to finish my bachelors all online so I am super excited about that (minus the fact that I will probably have to take a ton of math classes again, grrrr). It won't be quick but at least I will be working on it. Thanks to a great friend for encouraging me!!!

Fun Packed School Break

2010-05-09T18:56:00.000-07:00

John is done with his Freshmen year of school!!! Wahooo!! He got to have a week off before his summer session started and we took advantage!! We spent the first part of the week with John's parents celebrating Zak's birthday! We spent a fantastic day at the zoo with perfect weather and very entertaining animals (spring was in the air)!!! We went to the lake and the beach one day. We had a great time playing in the sand and building sand castles. The water was nice so the kids did some swimming too and then we had a BBQ. After John's parents left we spent a day at the children's science museum where the kids had a great time playing pretend. Then we spent a day playing and camping at the lake. The weather was perfect and the kids were so excited to go camping. It felt like the mountains so we all had a great time and we can't wait to do it again. (Well John can wait, but he did like the fishing!) We filled the break with as much as we could and we had a great time together!

Lantz loves the scooter and the car. He is getting so darn big!
Just posing for me. It was raining but he insisted on playing outside. I love his little smirk!
One day rainy the next day sunny and nice!

Mr. Mailman Zak at the Science Center.
Blurry picture but I had to document this once in a lifetime experience of first class seating on an airplane!
Lantz taking a ride on the bus!
Dr. Makelle giving Lantz a check up. Everything was good.
Running some tests!
The Dr. suggesting Lantz start using a walker!
Makelle following in Grandma Donna's footsteps of being a bus driver!
The kids LOVE the water part.
Hard at work.
Driving a big load!
Silly guy.
Still working hard.
One huge building!
Doing the shopping.
Here is our only camping picture!

The boys fishing or fishing pole watching, whatever you want to call it!

Funnies~
Zak was playing missionary and he was trying to tell me why we say in the name of Jesus Christ at the end of the prayer. John was helping him to answer the question by saying Jesus is the Mediator. So Zak said, "We say that because Jesus is the meateater!"

When we were at the zoo Makelle lost one of her flip flops in the flamingo cage and John held her over into the cage to grab her flip flop. She was crying and the flamingos flew away but she got her flip flop back. Good thing it wasn't a lion or bear cave!!

When we went camping we had to take our car in to the shop to get the AC fixed so here is our white trash story. We loaded up our beach and camping gear and headed to the lake. We chose a camping spot and dumped off all of our bags and camping stuff. Then we hurried down to the beach and unloaded us with our beach stuff. John then hurried to the mechanic shop where a friend was waiting to give him a ride home. He then brought the little gray car to the beach where we were waiting for him. We loaded up again and went to our campsite. We pulled in to find a huge trailer in our spot. Our stuff was still under the tree so we had to haul it to a different spot. Apparently our original spot had been reserved by someone else. We had a great time and then the next morning we had to have another friend come pick some of us up since we all couldn't fit in the car. Is that white trash camping or what?!

Lantz is the friendliest guy around. When we go outside he waves to everyone in cars or walking and says "Hi". When we go into a store he waves to everyone. He also has the best fake laugh ever. I don't know how he learned it but he can fake laugh or courtesy laugh better than anyone I know.

The dollar store here sells hanky panky. What, who names candy hanky panky?!? Do you want some Hanky Panky? I hear it is really good!!!!

Lantz and Makelle were having a bath together. I first heard Lantz cry followed by Makelle. She was just trying to shave him and his ear off. What a helper she is. Lantz's ear was covered in blood but he was fine. She felt so bad ! We didn't notice until Sunday that he had three big bald spots on his head. He sure looks cute! I don't think Makelle will do that again.

Makelle reads her scriptures really good. She knows every verse starts with "And it came to pass" then she makes something up!

When we went camping I told Zak he could use his knife to widdle a stick. When we got home he said I shouldn't have made him woodle a stick because he cut himself five times on his arms, fingers and legs! Oh dear!!! First of all I didn't "make" him "woodle" anything!

We did some school yesterday and when we were done Zak and his friend both said "Are we done with school? We didn't even learn anything." Thanks kids, it is hard to teach them anything when they already know it all. If I have school seem like teaching then it isnt' fun, but if we have minimal teaching and do crafts and such then it isn't enough. I guess I will have to boost it up a notch! I can't wait until they tell their Kindergarten teachers "I didn't learn anything today!"

ZAK is FIVE!!

2010-05-09T18:52:00.000-07:00

It is crazy to think that we became parents five years ago!! Are we really old enough to have a five year old? Our lives changed forever that day and we are so happy for Zak in our family. He makes us laugh everyday and helps us to be better everyday! He is naturally caring and kind and I love his spiritual nature. I am proud and humbled to be this kids mom!! Happy Birthday Buddy!

Only three more months until Kindergarten! He is a little excited and a little nervous!

Maybe one day we will get updated pictures for everyone, but don't hold your breath!!

Zak had a great Birthday! The best present was that Grandpa David and Grandma Valynn came to visit. He was so excited for all of his presents he got lots of animal stuff and safari gear! John was excited to get him a pocket knife like he got when he was five! (Thanks Gerhauser's for starting that tradition at a young age!)He wanted a pirate ship cake and the whole family took part in decorating it! He was spoiled with presents from aunts and grandparents and he got to play so that was all he wanted!

Candy and Crafts

2010-04-22T12:39:00.000-07:00

The kids got a package from Grandma Valynn and Grandpa David with some new sandals and some candy. Let's just say Lantz LOVED the candy. He is so cute he grabs all he can and stuffs it into his mouth. He loved having the candy necklace around his neck the whole day.

This is our newest excitement. A robin built her nest in our hose at the side of the house. It is down low so the kids can see it great. They check on it daily, very exciting!
We found a great thing to use as a table outside. It's very convenient for craft and painting projects and I don't have a lot of cleanup! These kids love stuff like this. We made pictures with flowers and leaves and painting with flowers and leaves! Don't you just love Makelle's bonnet?!

That's it for now!

2010-04-06T10:40:00.000-07:00

Here is a real update with words and pictures!

I was anxious to brag about our nice weather to all of you Utah folks on April Fool's Day. The excitement was short lived as that night I was too hot! Luckily there has been a breeze and the humidity hasn't been bad so the eighties feel nice once again! Of course we had to go and enjoy the nice weather while we had John home over the weekend. I like to go to the Zoo when he is around to help!
Grandma Valynn sent the kids these Easter clothes. They had to change into them immediately and in three days they had already worn them twice. I think they are their new favorite clothes. Sorry about the great picture. I had to finally give up on a good picture with all three of them.
This is the kids after they got their Easter package from Grandma and Grandpa. Lantz was just trying to grab as much candy as he could, because he knew I was coming to take it.
Does this little guy look happy or what? I didn't put his swimsuit on because I didn't think it would be warm enough for him to play in the water. Apparently I was wrong! This day was probably his best day in life. He wore shorts for the first time this season and he was so excited he started doing circles around the couch and laughing. He didn't like the grass on his legs so he started doing the butt up in the air crawl. And because of that he has finally mastered the getting to the standing position from the ground. He loves it outside and here is the proof!

This was a few weeks ago in the rain on a Sunday afternoon. What crazy silly kids!

So what has been going on with us?

ZAK CAN READ!! He has been learning his letter sounds so I decided to work on reading and he read a new book all by himself. He is very proud and excited! The kids also started doing morning and evening charts with all of the stuff they need to do each day. I asked Zak what he wanted on his chart and he added making his bed. He can make his bed all by himself and he does everyday! Zak loves reading the scriptures. We have these big illustrated ones and he could read chapters and chapters everyday. He loves them. He also got new scriptures for Easter from Granny and Gramps and he is sooo excited to take them to church.

Makelle loves to get out of the house. If anyone needs to run an errand or go to a store she has her shoes on and she is out the door. She is the opposite of Zak who I have to beg to leave the house. Last week she and I went to a park and she had a great time putting her feet in the stream and throwing rocks. She loves to go on dates with mom and look at pretty dresses, hats, shoes and nail stuff at the store. She would buy a new pair of shoes at every store if she could.

Lantz has decided that most days walking is pretty sweet although he still doesn't do it all the time, especially outside or around lots of action. He loves the outdoors and he loves animals. He can swing and teeter totter all by himself! He has two more bottom teeth and he has a scar on his face from his skin infection last month.

I am loving the warm weather and playing outside all day! I also just got another haircut by my stylist John Gerhauser and I get lots of compliments. Just today a lady at Club Mom asked who cuts my hair. Seriously, maybe we should just quit dental school and have him be a stylist! My babysitting job is going great although it doubles my amount of diapers and I am exhausted at the end of the day but then again I already was so I might as well get paid for it.

What do I say about John, still the same old for him. He loves life and he is thriving here with all that he does. He continues to amaze me. If only I could be more like that guy he truly is one of a kind!

We had a great Easter! We had breakfast and an Easter egg hunt in the rain on Saturday and then went home to sunny skies! Sunday we watched conference and then had dinner with some friends. I was so excited to see that they had deviled eggs! Conference was great and we had a great weekend together! Last month I was really missing my mom and my family and feeling sad about missing Easter. Luckily Heavenly Father gave me a tender mercy in allowing me to enjoy my holiday and not be sad about missing my family!!! This time of year is always a bitter sweet for me. I love spring and the green and the flowers, I love having my windows open with the sound of birds coming in. I love this time of year but it makes me think of and miss my Mom. It is a little crazy that Good Friday is the day my mom died. How grateful I am for such an amazing mom! Instead of feeling sad at not being able to chat with her or get her hugs, I can feel gratitude for her example. I owe her so much for all she taught to me. If only I can be half of what she was then I have got it made. My testimony of Christ and his resurrection grows stronger every year, as does my gratitude for him. Because of HIM I will see her again!

Last night we went to the lake about ten minutes from our house. It was a humid day so we went to play in the sand and water. We played and then had a BBQ for Family Home Evening. Sorry, no pictures I learned my lesson about cameras and sand. We also went for some hikes. Mann, do I love this time of year here! While we were playing at the lake together I was just thinking this is the life! I smile every time I go outside it is so pretty! We have already mowed our lawn twice and can I just say it looks great . We also planted our garden and it is GROWING!!!! We are so excited to see many of you in the next couple of months! We can't wait to show you all that Kentuckiana has to offer!!!!!!

Happy April Fool's Day!!

2010-04-01T08:57:00.000-07:00

We are loving spring and there is no joke about it!

Smiles and Sunshine

2010-03-28T16:43:00.000-07:00