Guess who's coming.....

Yep, that's right, baby number four is expected this summer.

The ultrasound said Aug 2 is the due date, but I'm guessing the little munchkin will be late.  Daniel's ultrasound said April 18 and he was born on the 26th, so whatever.

Dustin swears up and down that he's SURE the baby is a boy.  But at 12 1/2 weeks you almost never can see, and it's not like the technician said anything.

However, I get the feeling the baby will be a boy too, but maybe that's just because that's all I've ever know.

Well, they didn't take the best of photos from the ultrasound, but here's the first glimpse....

Maxwell's quotes for age 6

It's that time again.  My "little" boy is now SEVEN!  How did that happen?  And we have kept up the tradition of writing down throughout the year the best quotes of Maxwell:

"Please bless my daddy will get rich so he won't have to work for money anymore."

"This is good that they are getting married cause now we'll see how a kiss works."

"Guess who told me that…myself."

"I love you as big as the whole earth.  That's how much Jesus wants us to love."

(Hiding daddy's binoculars behind his back) "I'm just putting my hands behind my back for fun."

"I know why the ocean is green, because of all the fish's tinkle.  Really... I know fish tinkle."

Me "Maxwell, did you eat all the cookies?" Maxwell "Yes, next time you should hide them higher."

(Daddy is holding the door open while the boys walk under his arm) "It's a good thing we have a short family"

"I know because  I have a smart head."

"People wonder what they do. That's why they're called 'The Wonderpets.'"

Maxwell-"Are all the Dinosaurs going to be resurrected when Jesus comes again?"

Me-"Umm well, I guess they are. But they won't eat people, they'll eat grass like the lion will." 

Maxwell-"Does that mean I could ride them?" 

Me-"yep" 

Maxwell-"AWESOME!"

"If you say no, then I'll continue crying, but if you say yes, I'll stop, so you'll want to say yes."

"I went raspberries picking, except I got strawberries."

"Did you know that when I was three I could fly? and I know it wasn't a dream because it was morning time and my mom saw me.  I flew off my bed and out the window.  I could fly cause I was so light.  Wanna know how heavy I was?  heavy as a bird."

Maxwell-"Can I have some of those hot dog breaded things on a stick?"
Dustin-"No, those are corn dogs, and they're bad for you. We'll make it at home so it will be healthy...ground up fish covered in oatmeal"
Maxwell-"But will it have a stick..."

"I think the twinnies and I have had enough separation."

"It smells yummy like skunk or bear."

"That's what the secret ingredient to prayer is; you need to really believe."

"Can I lick the chocolate off your fingers?"

"We should get overflow money….we get so much money that we have to give it away."

"I know magic isn't real.  My mumma knows because it's not in the bible.  But Hell is real."

"I'll give you a kiss if you give me a balloon…a hug I mean….well, I'll give you a hug AND a kiss if you promise to actually give me a balloon."

"Mumma Darling, I'm not trying to manipulate you, but I was wondering...can I have a cookie?"

"I'm so excited about the ice cream for my birthday so don't tell Daddy about it or he'll eat it all."

Stay tuned in June for Hyrum's best quotes of the year :)

A Homeschool Success Story

I went to my niece's wedding this Christmas break.  This is Rachael.  I met her when she was about 11.  She's a big part of the reason I homeschool.

I never thought I would homeschool my kids before moving to British Columbia as newlyweds even though I knew that all of Dustin's nieces and nephews were homeschooled.  Dustin told me it was my choice how to educate our children.

Then I met Rachael and her family.

Rachael did go to kindergarten and I think she went to first and maybe even part of second grade.  She was shy, and her mom was worried about her socially, and thought about homeschooling.  Then when they moved to a tiny island in the west coast that was VERY liberal, it was clear to Rachael's mom that homeschooling was the right thing for their family.

Rachael was homeschooled on an island that didn't offer any support. Although her shyness disappeared, she only had about two close friends (one LDS and one not LDS) for most of her preteen years, because that's all that was on the island.

And yet, as she went through her teenage years, awkward was NOT a word anyone would have used to describe her. She is proof that most homeschool stereotypes are false.

Even though I'm over ten years older then her, I've always admired her.

Rachael could run her whole house hold complete with dishes, meals, diapers, laundry, and all other motherly/housework tasks by the time she was 12. She had FIVE younger siblings at the time.  All without begrudging anyone.

Rachael had a love of learning like no one I had met before.  If I was doing a project, she wanted to do it too.  I made a home made scripture case, she made a home made scripture case.  I wrote and illustrated a children's book, she wrote and illustrated a children's book.

The whole family's motto was "If someone else can do it, then we can do it too, and why not do it now for fun."

Her goals and values as a teenager were so inspiring.  She knew who she was, who she wanted to be, and would not compromise.  And all the guys for miles around knew where she stood too.

As a teenager she went with her family to a remote island in the south pacific, and she helped her dad be the only doctor on the entire island.  She was a midwife and nurse, and loved the whole thing.

When she went off to school at BYU Hawaii, she was homesick for only a couple of days, although she called home almost daily, because her mom and her sister were still her best friends.

She got straight "A"s and didn't feel like it was a hard transition.

And now she just got married in the temple to the boy next door.

I know that not all homeschool stories are successful.  I'm not that naive, but when I saw Rachael and her family, I hoped that my future family could be like them...and so I homeschool too.

All I Want for Christmas

It was perfect timing when they all lost their teeth.

A "Three Wise Men" Christmas

I'm really not into the commercialization of Christmas.  I don't correct Maxwell when he tells his brothers about how Santa is real, but I certainly don't encourage Santa in our house. It really helps not to have a TV when it comes to Santa.

I've always told my boys that Christmas is Jesus' birthday (we even have balloons and sometimes cake and ice cream...sometimes we even sing happy birthday), and that since the wise men gave presents, we give presents too, but Christmas morning still hasn't had that meaning that I've wanted it to have.

Then I found out what my amazing sister, Heidi, has been doing with her family for the past few years, and I got inspired.

Christmas is ALL about the wise men and baby Jesus. Here's the plan. Each of the wise men represent different gifts, and with each gift represented you both get a gift, and GIVE a gift:


-Frankincense- The wise man who brought frankincense represents the gift of knowledge. The gift that you give is to write a LITTLE essay about what you've learned this year that can build up the kingdom of God. The gift you get is an educational toy/kit/instrument/etc. This is the first wise man so you can get the writing part done first thing.

-Myrrh-The wise man who brought myrrh represents the gift of clothing the needy.  The gift that you give is going through all your cloths and finding slightly used clothes to give away to the needy. The gift you get is a gift of clothing/apparel.

-Gold-The wise man who brought gold represents the gift of joy.  The gift you give is going through all your toys/stuff and finding things to give away to the needy. The gift you get is some fun toy or whatever.


What I like about this plan is that it's not about getting more STUFF. You clean out more then you get :) The kids know they are only getting three gifts (plus a very full stocking and presents from grandma and others) they know why they are only getting three, and we are starting at such a young age, that they are okay with it.  It's not about Santa, it's about the wise men, and with each gift they are reminded of their blessings and how others are not quite so fortunate.

My sister has a script that goes along with this, but she is in the process of moving, so I'm not sure if we'll be able to have that this year, but we'll start the tradition none-the-less, and hopefully it will be a way of bringing Christ into Christmas.

Halloween!!!

We had a blast this Halloween! My kids have been wearing costumes on a regular basis for weeks. My sister and her family are here to add to the fun.

We went to a few parties this season. We went to one party where the adults played "werewolf" while all the kids went down stairs and had a blast.

We also went to a Masquerade Ball. WOW! My sister-in-laws organized this....oh, I mean their kids organized it...and it was amazing! Everyone looked so incredible and the music was great, and you should have seen the refreshments!

My sister-in-law Becky and her family were the real force behind this marvellous night.

My Friends Kate and her husband.

My beautiful niece, Talia

Me and Dustin....not quite as elegant I know.

My niece Briana who is staying with us for a few weeks all ready for the ball.

We had so much fun carving pumpkins. 

Hyrum was SOOO proud of his "happy pumpkin" he wanted to sleep with it.

Daniel didn't get into it as much...

Maxwell carved FOUR faces into his pumpkin!  I took this photo without a flash, but Maxwell moved, making him look like a ghost!  Very fitting, I think.

Even though we had a snow storm in the morning, Halloween day was perfect.  We spent a while at the park. 

This photo was taken a couple of weeks ago.  Hyrum LOVED being a knight at would put on his costume any chance he got.  I asked him "Do you want to be the dragon or the knight?"  He said "Maxwell can be the dragon and I want to be the knight.  Then I can kill Maxwell."......yah....

We went trick or treating at the mall....much better then trunk or treating!

My sister's family minus iron man since he was out trick-or-treating with Maxwell already.  Her daughter was kiss'n Kate Barlow from "Holes."  I thought this was quite clever, especially since her name is actually Kaylee Barlow.

Of course not all of us got much trick-or-treating in.....

 And I just have to share my embarrassing story...we had planned on passing out glow sticks for halloween, but when we got ready for the trick-or-teaters, none of them worked!!!  We only let our kids have six candies total anyway, so we took their Mall candies to give out, and Dustin went out with the kids trick-or-treating to get more,  (since the trick-or-treating is the fun part, and I don't actually want them to have the candy anyway) But before they got back, I was afraid I would run out of candy, so I was giving each kid like one dinky sucker each.  They would stand there confused like "seriously?.....is that it?"  Well, it's better then nothing!!!


Happy Halloween!

Missionaries in the Making

When my parents left on their mission a couple of years ago I had a realization: There would be a cousin or grandparent out on their mission from now until my own boys go on their missions. I wanted to really point out these wonderful examples in my boy's lives. I am a visual person, and so I thought of a mission board. I made one awhile ago. Here is the result:

I got a map and embellished it in photoshop. I put photos of missionaries, scriptures, moroni, and of course Christ throughout the world. I also put "Now behold a marvellous work is about to come forth among the children of men..." on the map, and at the top it says "We'll bring the world His truth."

On one side, it says "Those serving in the field" and has photos of cousins that are serving as missionaries right now (currently Steven Smith and Reuben Leavitt.)

On the other side, it says "Missionaries in the Making" and has photos of when each of our boys were about 2 1/2 dressed up as missionaries. I just recently took Daniel's photo. Isn't he Cute?

And then on the bottom it says "behold a royal army" and under this are lots of photos of everyone of my boy's grandparents, aunties, uncles, or cousins that have served a mission with their name and where they served printed on the side.

I told one of my friends about my mission board, and she was a little worried about me forcing decisions onto my boys, but I don't see it that way. I feel that all children grow up to make their own decisions, but as parents it is our duty and purpose to teach and inspire our children to be smarter, wiser, and better then we are. That means we need to be diligent in everything we do.

I know I was changed for the better by my mission. It was an incredible experience that helped make me who I am today. Of course I want this coming-of-age experience for my children, to help them be the best versions of themselves.

And of course, service is part of our family motto. I recently found out that a family I taught and saw baptized on my mission is still active. "How sweet shall be joy within...." I literally started crying for joy. How I love those people in Virginia and North Carolina. I believe I was meant to serve them and besides, I was serving the Lord at least.

I think our Mission board has been effective so far. The boys often will mention Steven and Reuben in their prayers without any coaxing, and they know what being a missionary is about. So for the next 13 years, until the missionary life really effects our little family, the examples of those around us will be enough to inspire our boys to be missionaries in the making.