Another School Year Begins

Well we have gone through the summer. Junior Golf kept all of us pretty busy on a weekly basis. Zach and myself became pretty involved with the whole association. Well worth it. I have learned to really love that sport and what it has to offer. The picture on the left is of the Moose we drove all the way through Teton National park to find just out side of Jackson Wyoming this summer.

Mackenzie is a 7th grader and is currently playing Volleyball. She loves it tons. She recently received contacts and it was worth it since her depth perception was pretty poor with out glasses on. Volleyball is not a sport to play with glasses. It has been a lot of fun watching her play. It has got her mothers juices going to get out and play once a week. She is still playing the trumphet and seems to still enjoy this. She is still my forgetful child, but so be it.

Kathryn is now in middle school. She had a pleasant surprise this year, when her very good friend from Caldwell started out in Middleton this year. What fun it is. She is playing the Saxaphone and I am so glad I have a music room with doors that shut. Too many horns tooting at our house. Anyhow, she looks forward to basketball starting up. I am not sure I am.

Davis is now a third grader. She is all by herself this year. She loves her teachers and loves her social life. Even though her mother puts a large damper on it. She to will be starting up basketball soon.

James is four going on 21. He is a silly boy with a coy smile. I can not decide if I should hug him or tie him up. He has recently taken a liking to golf. He even went for a morning with his dad to the Alberstons open in Boise. He was excited because a golfer gave him a golf ball.

Lily is growing way to fast. She is almost two and half. she most recently cut her head open today, playing in the car. Nice fun for mommy. No stitches though. She was a pretty brave sport. She is talking up a storm and I just love her.

We have enlarged our patio and it was well worth it. We are very close to planting grass. The sprinklers are done. Life is good. We are so blessed with the good, bad and ugly. Just keep swimming!

Too Long

I have to see how long it has been. The house was finished and it has been a lot of fun. We got a lot of family and friends in for a little celebration of Davis getting Baptized. I think a whole school year has been almost completed since I last blogged.

I am trying to not be a slacker so here it goes. I was sad to change wards once again, but it has been fun to get know people throughout the Stake. I do love our new ward and have been involved with Mackenzie's age group and it has been fun. I work with some great people and I just love the girls. I have been working on lifestyle changes. I discovered that I was allergic to cats and dogs in the last couple of months. The house we resided in before this one, was not pet dander free. I think I lost some of my pep in that house. I am feeling much better and am trying to get my behind back into shape. So the kitty that joined us in not allowed in the house.

Zach is trudging along. He is hoping we can get the yard in tack soon. We have had so many things going on, we have to keep postponing. He did take James to Fathers and sons and they had a good time. He is helping Bill Hurst with his campaign for County Clerk, we will be glad when that ordeal is over.

Mackenzie who is half way to teenageness is blossoming into a great young women. She just finished participating in track and really enjoyed it. I was proud of her for doing it. She even picked up a few friends along the way. She now wears glasses and I feel bad. She told me for a while she couldn't see the board. I didn't believe her because all of her friends were getting glasses. So I just dismissed it. Shame on me! She tried out playing the Trombone. That was a hoot.

Kathryn played AAU again and had a blast. It was very time consuming for her parents. Pretty much a whole Saturday was gone. However, it was fun to watch. She is getting ready for Middle school and all the fun that comes with that. She was excited to play Volleyball also. Now we are gearing up for GOLF.

Davis turned eight and was baptized this last Saturday on Her little sisters birthday. She is so fun and growing so quickly. She keeps informing me she is not in a sport and her sisters are. I just laugh and say soon enough. Then I will be running all over the planet.

James is four and becoming quite shy. Amazingly he has started being a chicken about things. He was never that way. I suppose it is a stage. As you can see above. He fell in love with Uncle Shem's truck.

Lily is two now and I can't believe it. Now if we can conquer potty training life will be good. She loves to go outside and throws quite the fit if she cannot. So she is entering terrible twos.

Life is good and keeps on moving. Hopefully, I will get better at this. Really glad to have all the family and some good friends out to celebrate Davis's big day!

Well 3 to 4 more weeks. This is some updated pictures. Front of the house and a view from inside the house of the front door. This has been a good experience for Zach and I. Everyone always has said it is a strain on your marriage. I have not felt that at all. I don't really care about too many things, and Zach likes to shop for the lights, appliances, etc. Everyone we have dealt with has been great. We are all ready to get on with life.

Meet Zoey

Meet a crazy cat. She is pretty good. Tolerates the little kids pretty well, however, she does run for cover. Needless to say, Zach can't stand her. He is outnumbered 6 to 1.

House

The clock is ticking. Tons of dirt to make a basement. Yikes! Hopefully I will have more pics soon. It is all framed now.

Little Changes

School is still there and I am already sick of driving the 6 miles to Purple Sage. I don't know how my charter school friends like it. I now remember why we didn't wait the rest of the year out in Caldwell. Oh well, it does give me an excuse to drive by our house two times a day. I am sure the workers wonder who the crazy person is. Oh well.
We did make a slight addition to our family. We now have 6 girls and 2 boys in our house. We have a little girl kitten named "Zoe". They wanted to name her Tuffin after one of my childhood cats. However, I told them their was only one Tuffin. She is proving to be quite a fun kitten. She has started sleeping in the girls room. She paws to get in there while they are at school. She likes to be where we are at. Last night, we were all downstairs, except Lily who was in bed and we heard Lily cry. Well miss Zoe was trying to snuggle up to Lily in bed and Lily didn't really appreciate that. So you know, we have one more girl. She is really a silly little cat, but she is great with the kids and seems to love people. I am very glad that the Bodily's broke her in for us.
They did a great job!
We are hoping to be moving by Thanksgiving. We are both very ready. I am feeling very antsy to organize and don't feel much desire to become organized in someone else's house.

Little Changes

SCHOOL DAZE!@#$%@#%^#$%*

School are daze are here again. I cannot believe summer is over. However, with a three year old who needs some serious calm in his life, I can say that I glad to be back on schedule.
Mackenzie started Middle school this year and wow. It was nice to go to her school and see where she would be. This helps my anxiety levels. She also has a really good friend in all her classes with her. I am very glad for this. She is branching out and playing the trumphet. No orchestra out in Middleton, so she wants to give band a try. I am glad she is going for it.
Kathryn and Davis got to once again try out a new Elementary school. The first day was rough. However, by the end of the week everyone has found new friends and it is good. They really love the principal. He seems to be like a Grandpa to all of the children. I will be glad once our house is done, so I don't have to keep driving back and forth twice a day.
James and Lily are loving the mommy time. It has been nice to slow down and catch up on some things that I neglect during the summer. However, now I have to motivate myself to pack. HMMMMMM. Only well. It looks like Thanksgiving time is our finish point. Let us hope that comes quickly. I am ready to be organized and not weed someone else's flower beds. Anyhow, life is crazy, but good. We will soon be having a new addition to our house. No, not a baby, yikes! But, I might rather have Bleu Cheese come back from the dead. (He was our pet fish and he lived for almost 18 months. ) We will become cat owners pretty soon. Hopefully the cat won't run away after living with James and Lily chasing it all day! It will be a great adventure. Anyhow, hopefully now that things have slowed down I can be more diligent!

It seems like forever!!!!

,
Well, I can say without shame, that I am a complete slacker. Wow! two whole months. Anyhow, this first picture describes the middle of May for the Wagoners. Aunt "Eilly" got married. It was really fun to spend time with our children on the Temple Grounds. Lily didn't seem to mind. It was a nice day. Shem is a good man and we are glad to add him to our family.

We were glad to have school be finished for the year. I cannot believe I have a graduated 5th grader. I even had to attend Middle School Orientation. YIKES!!!! So life goes on. We were sad since this is the last year the girls will be going to Mill Creek. They will be attending Purple Sage Elementary in the fall.

We have finally pursued a house for our family. We are actually going to build one. It is sometimes overwhelming at how quickly things change for the better. I can always look back and see divine hands molding my life. We love Middleton, but we visit Caldwell well often. So we are going for the best of both worlds. We will have a Caldwell address, but live in the Middleton School District. It has been a blessing to get to know everyone on this side of the valley and now we shall visit the other side. We are even going to live on Bogey lane. Yes, Bogey as in a golf term. What else for the golf family.

Speaking of golf, the girls are once again doing Junior Golf. They love it and I actually went with them the other day and it was fun. I had some slightly competitive girls who were losing their tempers. Wow, things to work on.

Summer is moving along, we have visited a few parks and caught a few flicks. We had a great fourth of July. Hope all is well for everyone else!

So Lily has turned one. It is truly amazing how quickly one year goes by. She has been a very wonderful addition to our family. She is so happy to be alive! Since she is girl number four, she got really exciting things for her birthday! Baby food, bibs, cups, books, etc. She didn't seem to mind. She had a frog on a "Lily Pad" birthday cake. She loved it. We were quite lazy about letting her dig in for her birthday. It has been a fun year, the older girls have really honed in on their mothering skills. They all fight over who is going to hold her at church. They all love to play with her.
April was a good month. We had plenty of basketball and volleyball games to keep us busy. We even threw in some field trips, a fishing derby, visited a chicken coop, played in the water w/the hose, and a little golf.
Zach coached Davis's basketball team and I coached the older girls VB team. It was crazy, but a lot of fun. James now has a pair of BSU shorts that he puts on and asks if myself or his father will be his coach. Then he says we need to get in the car and go to practice.
Mackenzie is almost done with the 5th grade and will be traveling to middle school next year. This is quit a leap, for both parents and daughter. I can't believe I will have a twelve year old and the end of this calendar year. It has been fun to watch her grow and change.
Anyhow, life is good. Busy but good. I look forward to summer break and Junior Golf. It is really fun! We will get to see the Downs every week and I know the girls will like that! It will be nice this year. We won't be waiting until noon for anybody. Davis still only golfs three holes. So as the older girls finish up, Davis will be half done!
Happy Mothers day to all you mothers out there. I would encourage you to celebrate your families, they are our most prized possessions.
ps. this is our newest family member. His name is Rocky!

Well another month come and gone. However, time flies when you are having fun. Valentines day was great! It was the longest weekend ever. All seven of us got sick out both ends. Nice long weekend! After recovering we have been enjoying each others company. Lily has joined Diva School and apparently James would like to join also. We have been acquiring pink and brown attire for Easter/ Aunt Reilly and Uncle Shem's wedding. James thought his tie was not enough. So after church he wanted to be a princess. Silly Boy. We are excited to all be matching, however only with colors. I am almost done finding clothes. It is like a treasure hunt. Anyhow, life is good we had a great get together with the Blacker side of things. We even played human fuse ball. This was fun except, after five children I had to visit the man about a horse syndrome affected me. Spring break has officially started and we are so glad. We are doing a little of this and that. I would really like to get to Idaho Falls. Anyhow, life is busy and so I am pretty lame about my blog. I must do better.

Basketball is Almost Over and we now have a Three Year Old!

Well I can honestly say that I am going to be glad to have a break from basketball for a few weeks at least. Mackenzie has her last game this saturday and Kathryn will be starting Tourney next week. Then we will have like two or three weeks then Davis will start. However, Davis's will be less involved. It has been a lot of fun watching the girls. They are growing up so fast. It is amazing to see the personalities that are being developed. I love to that they enjoy things their parents do also. I really have forgotten how much I like to watch a good game. I know Zach does, but we both don't like the challenge of little ones. So we have missed out for a while.
In the middle of all of this James has become a three year old. He had to have his candles lit about 7 times to blow them out. We had all of the Grandma and Grandpas out, including Grandma Lily for his birthday celebration slash the Super Bowl. It was a lot of fun. He was very excited about his present. He picked it out about two weeks ago at Toys R Us and well Mom pretended to forget it at the store. He was so sad, he said Daddy has to go get it. Well when I brought his present out wrapped he knew what it was and about jumped off the walls. We told him he had to wait for Grandma's and Grandpa's and well he did, then when they got there he was pursuing it again. His present was the tube of sea life. He loves ocean creatures. Anyhow, it was loads of fun. Zach was concerned that his real birthday was a drab, but I said he will remember the party not the day at this point. If he even remembers anything. Which, with this kid I am sure he will. He did like all his birthday calls on his birthday. He wouldn't talk to one call because he was to busy playing Zoo Tycoon. So sorry Grandma.
Anyhow, overall life is good and busy. I suppose I wouldn't have it any other way!

Happy New Year

Hello Everyone,
I know it has been one month. Yikes!!! We survived the Holidays. It was a great Christmas! We spent time with family and friends. It was great fun. We even got to see family we haven't seen for a while. We spent one week with a sick baby and all are doing much better now. Thank goodness. I forgot what a good nights sleep is. I am so thankful for sleep. Now that school has once again begun, life can start fast forwarding. I am surprised how quickly time flies. Mackenzie and Kathryn are playing Basketball and it keeps us all hopping. Davis will be playing a little later. I can not believe how old my children are getting. I am now starting to understand my oldest sisters life. Running older children all over and draggin little ones to boot. At least, everything is close so I don't have to go to far. Church is good now that we have it at nine AM. YEAH!!!! Now when we get up we are not getting ready for church all morning. Lily seems to do ok, even though morning is her prime napping time. James loves nursery. So the run down. We are all doing well. Mackenzie is glad to have her teacher back from maternity leave. She is discovering new friends, still reading "Warriors", playing computer and so forth. I took her shopping for clothes and she hated it the whole time. She is too much like her mother. She is playing Basketball with some of the girls in our ward and her grade. It is a great experience for her. Kathryn is playing AAU ball and she loves it. She is loving fourth grade and has suddenly become interested in reading again. She is great with Lily. She loves to go shopping with her mother, but thanks Santa for taking care of that shopping trip. Davis is are toothless first grader. Slowly those front teeth are coming in. She is a silly girl. She loves school and all her friends at school. She has already started talking birthday party. I told her that she wasn't allowed to ask me about it until March 1st. She is getting better at remembering to obey things like that. We will see. As you can see in the picture James and Davis have great fun together. James loves his sisters. He goes crazy boy when they come home. We are trying to convince him the potty is the place, but he doesn't seem to think so. Lily is loving baby food and is thinking about moving. I am doing great. I am grateful to have the holidays over. I didn't send Christmas cards until after new years, but oh well. I feel like I have my brain back. I do know I function better when I am busy. So why I keep saying yes, I will never understand. Anyhow, I hope everyone's new year is going well. I am very thankful for all the many blessings we have been given.

Barbie Shepards, Roaring Lions and Nativities

Well another crazy week has gone by. We decided to have a play day on Saturday. The church next to the temple was having a Nativity display. We went to see what it was and to our surprise we found a pink Barbie Shepard and we were even related to her. It was fun to see Aunt Reilly and all the different Nativity sets. Then off to the zoo. It was free, so we went. It was a little chilly, but not too bad. It was fun to see the new giraffes and Lions. The male lion actually roared for us. If you have ever heard a lion roar it can be quite shocking. James and Zach had moved on, but when James heard this he came running back. He loves the animals. It was nice to get out of the house. It was nice to see all the parents, who it was obvious would not take them because of cost, bring their children. Anyhow, it was fun! Home to the warmth and Forgotten Carols and Polar Express. Two great Christmas shows. Bedtime came way to late. However, Sunday was a bizarre day for Lily. She pretty much fussed all during church. She never does that. I think she could feel her mother's stress. However, the Christmas Devotional was great. I am thinking bowls of oatmeal for Christmas and a little Samuel the Lamanite might be joyous fun. Monday we went to Grandma Lily's and this is always a treat. The kids had fun finding costumes to perform the Nativity for Grandma. James, who was Joseph stole the baby Jesus from Davis(Mary). This was great humor for us all. Then we decorated Grandma's tree. James did his Chicken impersonation for Grandma and of course we all had ice cream! What a fun night. We stopped by Zach's parents for a quick visit and home again to bed. Tuesday was enrichment night and I am so glad it is over. I did get to see some golden friends earlier that day and it was pleasant. Then to new friends that night. Even more pleasant. I just love people. I just love getting chores done also. Enrichment was a good success. Today is Market day for Kathryn. She will be selling her picture cubes. She is very excited and I think the whole school is humming about this adventure. The fourth graders will run a market that the rest of the school can purchase items. No more than fifty cents. It was funny to hear Kathryn discuss what people were selling. Some were smoothies, bubble gum, sling shots, home made Idaho spud bars, etc. She is selling a craft out of wood that you can put a picture on. I wish I could attend, however, crazy two year olds are not permitted. So Zach will attend. I hope everyone is doing well. I will be grateful when it is December 24. Then I will have completed all major tasks. Happy HOlidays!

Crazy Days are Here Again

Happy Holidays everyone. The time to reflect and think of the true spirit of Christmas. Or perhaps, glancing at ones calendar often and hoping that you don't forget something. Crazy, crazy, crazy days. I suppose I just have to buck up and go forward. Everyone is well, Thanksgiving was good. I hope everyone keeps a level head this season. Goodluck to you! I don't know what kind of blogging I will get done this month. We have family parties, ward parties, pianos to play, projects at school, cookies for school, work parties, yikes. I know that everyone can relate at some point in their life. What a crazy way to celebrate Christmas, however, it is fun creating and giving to others. So the haste in it is muted somewhat by the end result. So remember smile while you are baking your 500th cookie and changing your 6 millionth dirty diaper. All is well when we smile!

Happy Thanksgiving

Well I suppose since it is Thanksgiving that I should list a few things I am thankful for. I am thankful that eleven years ago to the day we were blessed with a child. I can not believe it has been that long. I am also thankful that in the last eleven years we have been blessed with four more children. It is hard to imagine life without any of them. I find myself wondering what I ever did before them came to our family. I am so grateful to be a mother and wife. I am so grateful for a husband who works hard for our family, in all aspects of life. I am grateful for turkey, potatoes, pumpkin pie. I am grateful for relatives, all of them. I am grateful for blogs, because it is the only scrap booking I am getting done. I am grateful for eternal truths. I am grateful for sleeping family members. Every mother needs a little quiet now and then. It is as if our brains need the radio stations (children, husbands, phones, etc.) turned off for a while to refocus. Anyhow, I guess it donned on me how many things we take for granted as I was putting a belligerent 2 year old to bed. I was trying to side track him by saying all the things we are thankful for. I could go on and on. He didn't not seem to be thankful for going to bed. I was thankful for him for him going to bed. Anyhow, I hope everyone has a wonderful day and stops to ponder all that we have been given. Gratitude is an incredibly satisfying tool. It reminds us we are never ever alone. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

November 20, EEEK

Well it has been almost twenty, well it has been twenty days since my last post. Since this is the only form of Journaling and Scrapbooking I have been endevouring. (I know my spelling stinks) The last 20 days have flown by with out evening feeling like I blinked. It is almost 6AM and I can't sleep. I am thinking long and hard about getting on the treadmill. I am grateful for blogs. They help me to recall events I am not sure I would, plus I can see how everyone else is doing without being too intrusive. Anyhow, back to the last 20 days.
Zach has been busy at work, getting the Treasurer in line to send out Tax bills. We both wonder when we will go to bed before 11PM. We are back to crazy Sundays, but I suppose that is just the way it is. Probably won't be so bad when Lily is not nursing and James is not so wild. The older girls are great help, so I can't complain. You just feel like a whirlwind hit the house. I don't think it matters how much you prepare your house the day before. Tornados strike our house every Sunday. It probably is good because I can't stand it and get up and clean up, then I don't just crash for the sake of my children.
Mackenzie loves school. She is going to play Y Ball (REC) this year with the 5th and 6th graders. We think she will have a lot of fun. She has a friend playing on the team with her from our new ward. We had her try out for AAU out here. She made it, however, this friend from the ward convinced us to do the other instead. We hope she builds lasting friendships. She can't wait for her birthday, even though she knows what she is getting. She picked it out in October. It is inconcievable to believe it is a Breyer Horse. I can't believe she will be Eleven. She is growing up and it James's Mackenzaroo.
Kathryn loves school also. Right now we are working on an Idaho Indian Tribe Report. She too will play Basketball, but she will be playingn AAU. I guess we will see just how crazy it can be. She was funny the other day because we let her ride the bus home with a friend for her birthday. So we were saying things we were thankful for and she was thankful for the bus on several occasions. I guess I didn't realize I was depriving my children by not letting them ride the bus. This friend is sweet however, she lives 45 minutes away to Kathryn. (probably only half that) That is just crazy! They have a farm clear in the boonies. Anyhow, she is still my crazy Kathryn, but a wonderful helper with Lily!
Davis has made that transition into 1st grade. She is cutting a little more of Mom's apron strings. She will be getting two front teeth for Christmas. I love it. She was out on the tramp with James and Mackenzie and I was on the phone with a ward member. She came in with tooth in hand and the look of injustice. Well, I was trying to listen to the ward member and she was trying to motion to me, that Mackenzie had done her wrong. Well, I saw the tooth and gave her the thumbs up. She wanted more sympathy. After we convinced her that she wouldn't die because her tooth was knocked out. I still think Grandma Lily has the worst story about letting Uncle Ross take a nail and hammer to her tooth. Anyow, Zach and I laugh because DAvis is Ms. Social. We think she know more people than we do.
James is little wild man. Lately he has become a negotiater. He told me the other night NO Thank you to going to bed. After 100 repetitions of saying We say Please, no thank you, thank you, sorry, yes. Some, a small fraction is being retained. The other day he asked for a drink. He said please, I said yes, just a minute and 30 seconds later he is leaning over the chair and says, Well, do I get a drink. I instantly knew which sister he learned that from. He loves all his sisters and which ever parent isn't taking him to bed.
Lily is growing and sitting up and trying to move around on the floor. Still no teeth and I am glad for that. She is so even tempered it is a joy to have her around. She just hangs out. She is still pretty bald so we will be covering up for the head this winter. I got industrius and made her some homemade baby food. She tried it and was doing well and gagged it all up. I don't think her reflexes are quite there yet. We will keep plugging away at it. Speaking of her I hear her in her bed. Better run. There is a 20 day update. All is well. Happy Turkey Day!

Happy Halloween

Well I cannot believe that it is October 31. This is James third Halloween and the poor boy is sick as a dog. I guess he can actually go trick or treating on his fourth halloween. Oh well, thanks to a very generous grandma the girls had reprief from their boredom. She took them to the Canyon County courthouse for trick or treating. It was going to be an extremely action packed day and most of the plans are out. What a bummer, we had a party planned with some good old friends and our children today. I am very sad about that. Perhaps, this is why I don't care if much gets done today. Oh well, the girls were bummed out also. Not much you can do with vomit. Anyhow, at least the little guy is sleeping. We had a fun family party last saturday with the Blacker side and it was good. At least the kids had that. we did a few games and cookie frosting with Grandma. Hopefully, James feels better as we have a family baptism tomorrow! Mackenzie is a Horse Jockey this year, thanks to Grandma Wagoner. Kathryn is a BSU fan and DAvis is my little witch. They were excited and a little crazy for the day to finally come. Lily has somewhat of congestion herself. So I am relieved to not put her into the cold. Zach is extremely busy working in the Elections office. Since, he works under the Clerk and the clerk is in charge of the elections office. We will be glad when it is November 5. Hopefully he will get that day off! The girls have finished one quarter of school and I cannot believe it. They are all doing well in school and we love their teachers. It is almost surreal to be where we are. Life is very good, not always easy, but we are grateful for everything we have. Now if we could just find a house. I hope everyone has a wonderful Halloween with their children. What a fun, fun day!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Make a Smilebox scrapbook