Lights at the Temple

We went and saw the temple lights on Wednesday, the day after Christmas. Brooke had been asking to go for awhile. We went down with Dodd's parents, Eric, Shelsi, and my sister Emily and husband Mike and cousin Jesse. It was freezing cold and so windy. It didn't bother the kids much at all. This picture was taken by Dodd while trying to figure out our new camera. It looks like fireworks!

Christmas 2007

This Christmas was great! It is so fun to see the kids so excited and remember those feelings of being a child again. Both Brooke and Jake got bikes from Santa. They had to follow clues which Santa left to find them. One was hidden under Brooke's castle bed and the other was in the bathtub. Silly Santa. Brooke found Jake's clues first and was so excited when she found a bow on the tree that started her hunt.

Christmas pictures 2007

Boys for sale

Yesterday Brooke was eating breakfast and out of the blue she says
"Mom, Jesse (her female cousin) should live here and Jake should live at Tammy's. Then it would be sister, sister, sister."

Me- "Well our new baby is a boy, should he live at Tammy's too?

Her- "Yes"

(thinking Jake was hearing this and getting his feelings hurt)
Me- "No I don't think so. I love our boys, I think we should keep them".

Jake yelling- "No I want to go live with Tammy"!

So I guess it is decided the girls live here and the boys are gone!

Brooke's Birthday

Yesterday we had a birthday party for Brooke. I let her invite 11 kids and they all came. Plus my own 3 and a few younger siblings made around 17 kids!! We also invited all of her dog friends since it was a doggie party. Here they are all waiting patiently for their food.

We made a doggie obstacle course in the backyard that the kids loved!! They did it over and over for almost 45 minutes!

We also played a game of Doggie Doggie Where's Your Bone. One of Brooke's favorite games. This is Brooke really enjoying herself with all of her friends!

I made her a puppy ice cream cake. I think she has asked for ice cream cakes three years in a row now. I love this picture! I can't believe my baby is already 6!

Brooke got lots of great presents and several more dogs to add to her collection. Can you tell which one is the real dog?!

The Backyard is Finished!!

I had to post these pictures of Jake. These were taken the day before we put our sod in. Can you tell he really missed the grass!? Funny kid! We started the backyard in July and it has been a long road. Dodd hates to hire people to work at the house if he can do it himself. It takes longer but it is nice that he gets the experience and feels like he is saving money. I am so glad it is done!!!

Doggie Update

We brought our dog home on Wednesday and I have been so happily surprised by how good she is. We named her Maya from the TV show Heroes. She has dark cry marks by her eyes like the girl Maya on Heroes who cries black and kills everyone. She is a nice dog and the kids love her. We got her for Brooke's birthday but Jake has really taken to her. She was fixed on Tuesday so we can't bathe her for 10 days. I can't wait because she is stinky!!

My Dog Dilemma

(This is not our dog. This is the neighbors puppy that the kids love!!)
For more than a year now Brooke has been asking for a dog. When I was pregnant with Kelsey I would tell her no, that she was getting a sister. After Kelsey was born I told her after the baby could walk we could get one. I wasn't thinking we would be pregnant again!! My family isn't a dog family. I never remember having a dog. I think they stink and are gross. However, I did have many cats and a few hamsters. I loved my animals and I do think it is important for kids to have pets. Brooke loves dogs. She has clothes with dogs on them, she has a crate full of stuffed dogs and leashes. Last year we got her a remote control dog. She makes her brother play dog all the time and puts a leash around his waist and calls him "Shocky". She is having a dog birthday party. She can't get enough dogs!! So I finally gave in and agreed to a small dog. We went to the animal shelter today and picked out a small Chihuahua. The dog was great with all the kids and even let Kelsey smother it. We are picking it up on Wednesday and the kids are so happy. I hope this all works out... if not there is a 14 day return policy!!!

It's a Boy!!!

We had our ultrasound today and it is a boy!!! We are so happy and feel so lucky to have 2 and 2. Isn't he a cutie!!

Family Time

Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!So I decided our family could use some dancing lessons and look what happened!!

Happy Thanksgiving

I know Thanksgiving was yesterday, but we had more Thanksgiving today, so it just isn't over yet. We went to Dodd's parent's yesterday and had lots of fun visiting with everyone. Brooke loved playing with her cousin Milana, and Jake loved his uncle Eric's video games!! Today we went to my parent's house and got to see Ben's and Tammy's families. We had a wild game of Bingo and played in the big hole in the backyard where Grandpa took the pool out. Brooke helped me make the cute fruit turkey. We ate too much, visited lots and had a great Thanksgiving. Hope all of yours was great too!!

I've been tagged!!

I was tagged by Larissa. This one is a little different from the other one I did so I will be sharing more info for those who want to know.

Here's how it works:

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player lists 6 little-known facts/habits about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1. I have really horrible initials!!! My name is Amy Suzanne. Isn't that great! So I use my initials for nothing!!! Dodd's are LDS, so unfair! So when Dodd and I first got married my sister told me I should make a big poster for our new apartment that says LDS loves ASS. I also had no problem giving my daughter the initials of BS because I have it worse!

2. I am the worst speller in the world!!! And on top of that I have really bad handwriting. I would be so screwed if it weren't for computers where everything is typed and spell checked!!!

3. I worked at the Ojai Valley Inn for a while as a hostess (with the mostest) in the restaurant and got to seat Oprah and Bill Paxton (not together).

4. I don't like complainers! I think of myself as a highly capable person in most situations. I am busy, I have lots of kids and I can handle it! My mother-in-law likes to call me a pioneer which I don't think completely fits, since I love modern conveniences, had epidurals with all 3 kids and drive an SUV not a horse. I just don't want to be a wimp and complain! I get this from my mom (another highly capable woman).

5. I have a degree from Cal State Northridge. It is in Liberal Studies because I was going to be an elementary school teacher. Maybe someday!

6. I hate airplanes!! If I never go on one again that would be just fine with me! There is something not right about flying through the sky in a metal tube!!

So I guess I get to tag more people. If Rachel, Tammy, Emily, Leslie, Teresa, and Valerie want to that would be fine. No pressure!

Moranda Park

Yesterday I took the kids and Jesse to this cool park in Port Hueneme. I saw it on Tara's blog and had to take my kids to feed the ducks. There is a playground, but the ducks were the best. Jake loved it when the ducks would fight over his bread and would laugh hysterically at them. Kelsey's favorite thing was chasing all of the ducks. I am lucky she didn't end up in the yucky water!! We did look for a geocache at the park but couldn't find it!! That really makes me mad! Over all is was a very nice trip and I am sure we will be back!

Our Trip to Disneyland

Last Thursday we took the kids to Disneyland. We had so much fun! Dodd's parents went with us which was nice because Grandpa was our own personal photographer the whole day. I don't think I used my camera at all!! The drive down was so slow due to all the traffic. Then Brooke got sick so we had to pull over to help her. We were so happy to finally make it there!! The kids were so brave and went on everything. I was surprised they even liked the Matterhorn! They loved it and are still talking about it.

Happy Halloween!

We had a great time last night for Halloween. We all dressed as a cave family except for Brooke who wanted to be a witch! Dodd really enjoyed dragging me around by my hair!! What a caveman!! Jake had a Dash costume from the Incredibles but changed his mind last minute when he saw us and Kelsey all dirty. Our neighborhood goes crazy for Halloween. There were literally hundreds of kids. My neighbor said she stopped counting last year at 350 kids. I am sure I spent more than $60 just on candy, and we had to turn off lights and tell people we were out at 9:00. Dodd's parents and brother, my sister Tammy and her family and one family from our ward came over for the fun. It was great and I can't wait for next year!!

Fall Break

Last week my kids had the week off of school for Fall Break. We did lots of fun stuff like going to the Santa Barbara Zoo, and to a really fun pumpkin patch in Moorpark, and playing in the sprinklers since it was 100 degrees!! Here are some pictures.

Backyard project

Yesterday morning we got the cement done in the backyard!!! Dodd and his brother Eric worked really hard on the forms and the re-bar, then hauling all the cement to the back with help from his dad and friend Chad. It turned out really good and I can't wait for the sprinklers and grass to go in. Good job guys!!

Brooke's day at the pumpkin patch

Brooke's Kindergarten class went to the Pumpkin Patch on Thursday. It was so much fun. I got the ride the bus with her and see her interact with her friends. Getting off the bus one little boy said, "Hey Brooke, he wants to marry you"! I turned around and yelled "Her Mommy said no"! She loves her friends and has become quite a social girl.

Halloween Fun

These are pictures of my sweet baby hugging our Halloween decorations. I put up the yard stakes and she walked up and down the sidewalk giving all of them hugs and playing with their noses and buttons. She was so cute!

Last year a week after Halloween we were at K-mart and all of the Halloween stuff was on sale. So Dodd picked some things out. Can you guess which ones are mine and which are his? I tried to keep all the creepy stuff outside. That stuff scares me!!

Jake's trip to the pumpkin patch

Today was Jake's preschool pumpkin patch field trip. Dodd had the day off work so he went with Jake and took these really cute pictures. Jake was so happy that his Daddy was going with him.

Baby Sara

This is Ben and Leslie's new baby Sara. Tammy, my Dad and I went up for the weekend. It was a fast trip but I loved seeing the baby and the boys. She is so pretty! Leslie wins the biggest baby in the family award. Sara was a whopping 9lbs 9oz. Congratulations guys!!!

Day at Grandma's

Today we went to Grandma and Grandpa Ashby's. They have Ben and Leslie's two boys for a couple days so we went to go play with the cousins. Jake and Curtis can not get enough of each other. Grandpa bought a huge set of Play-Doh with every color so the kids made us dinner. They made so much cute stuff. This is only a little of it. They took it apart before I got a picture of everything finished. Jesse thought we should let it dry and sell it on e-bay. Always thinking of a way to make a buck, just like her daddy.

After the Play-Doh they all had a burst of energy and acted out The Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. They would sing it and take turns jumping off the couch. My friend Rachel also stopped by with baby Aidan and Kelsey and him got to visit. He is a cutie!!

OREO

How messy could one cookie be? For a 1 year old, very messy!!! I thought I could buy some time to clean the kitchen by giving Kelsey a cookie in her highchair. She finished it in a minute and then I had to stop what I was doing to give her a little bath. I hate when things backfire! I got some good pictures though. This one is of her looking confused because she lost her cookie on her head.

Our Trip!

Well Dodd had to drag me on the boat, but I ended up having a really good time!! We dropped the kids off with no crying... except from me. They did so good and really surprised us! When we got back Jake said he didn't even miss us.

The boat was quite the party ship!! We didn't really fit in with all of the crazy drunks, but we enjoyed sitting on the deck watching all of them. They had a cool rock wall that Dodd did several times. And then there was my favorite... sleeping!! Dodd was surprised by how much I can sleep!

Our only stop was in Ensenada Mexico where we got off and walked around and bought a few things for the kids. Kelsey got a marionette, Jake a Spiderman costume and Brooke, of course, dogs! It was a great trip and it was really nice to spend time just Dodd and I. Thanks Honey!!