Arrow of Light

One of Zach's favorite things to do is going to Cub Scouts. What is better than being with all your friends, doing fun things. I am sure one of he reasons he likes scouts so much is because it gives him a chance to get away from the girls and just be a boy. Zach wanted to get his Arrow of Light since he started scouts and he has worked hard to accomplish this goal.

He recieved his Arrow of Light with his friend Andrue. Now he is excited to move up to boy scouts and start working on his eagle. He has already asked me what he has to do to get it and how old does he have to be? Of course...since he is my first and only boy I do not know the answers to these questions. I am sure that I will find out quickly....the sad thing is that he is my only boy so by the time I have this scout thing down he will be out.

CONGRATULATIONS ZACH!

Smile Please

I decided that it was time for a new family picture....just in time for Christmas Cards. So I got everyone dressed up in sweaters and headed for the park. It was great place to take pictures. I just set up my camera on the tripod and used the timer to get the picture.

This picture I just had to take. I was setting up the camera and had everyone postitioned where I wanted. So can you tell who was liking the picture taking and who wasn't?

This was one of my favorite pictures and the one I got blown up to hang on my wall. The funny thing was this was the very first picture that I took....it was downhill from here.

Is it possible to smile with a broken arm?

On Monday I was finally feeling okay to get out and take some pictures. I wanted some of the kids showing their excitement for their dad graduating from Utah State. The hardest part was to get a look from Anna that wasn't total boredom or the look of "she is way better than this."

I will cut her some slack and say that she did break her arm on Saturday and has not been in good spirits since. She actually fell off her scooter coming down a hill by our house. Her story is that Zach hit her with a shovel. I do think that she is a little proud that she is the first one in our family to break a bone....(not counting when Craig cracked his cheekbone with a water ski.) She is also amazed that she broke a bone before Zach. Zach is the daredevil in our family so he is falling all the time. As I explained to her, Zach knows how to fall. He always rolls so when he gets injured it is usually scrapes on his shoulders or back. Anyway Anna got a beautiful purple cast put on yesterday.

We did manage a few good pictures. The kids thought I was funny because I made them wear the T-shirts backwards because it says I am proud of My Aggie on the back. I thought it looked cute.

Fall Photoshoot

Today the kids were bored so I took them out on a fall photoshoot. I need some new pictures of the kids any way. Here are some of my favoites.

Braces on, Braces Off

After 22 months of torture, pain, lots of crying, not being able to eat carmel, corn on the cob or apples, cankers, headgear, rubberbands, did I mention crying....Anna finally is braces free. So here I have the before and after pictures.


On the way home I stopped by a store so she could buy a box of Milk Duds. After much thought and consideration she came up with Milk Duds as the first thing she wanted to eat.

I can only hope that the painful memory of braces will be enough motivation to wear her retainer so that we don't have to go through this again!!! (Up next: Zach in Feb.)

Halloween

Much to my delight we have made it through another Halloween. This is my least favorite holiday (and really why is it called a holiday?) I would much rather go and buy each of my kids a couple of bags of candy and call it good. Unfortunately that approach to Halloween just doesn't fly with the kids. So once again we manage to come up with costumes that the kids were happy with. I will say that it was nice to have good weather for a change....that made it almost bareable.

Before the kids went trick or treating we stopped by my mom and dad's house so that they could see the kids costumes. My sister and her kids were their also...so I took a group picture.

Fall Soccer

Another soccer season has come and gone. This was Amanda's first time playing soccer and she was really good at chasing behind the pack that was chasing the ball. She always acted very tired at the end of the game.....I think that maybe she should look into acting. I believe that playing soccer was all about the treats, the trophy and goofing around on the side lines. She did love her coaches and I know she had a good time playing.

Kayla is starting to come together as a soccer player. She runs even when she is tired and really gets into the game. She did get a goal this season and that made the whole season worth it. Finally she had figured out position and her team is starting to play as a team and not just a bunch of kids chasing the ball.

Zach loves soccer....this is his game. He usually plays center midfield and occasionally he is a forward but his heart is midfield. He is on the small side for his age but there are few kids who can keep up with him. There have been games when he is the energy of the team and he doesn't give up. His games are so fun to watch. He has been on this same team with the same coach since he was in preschool....having played together for so long...they are pretty good. This season was a bit of a challenge and they did lose a couple of games but they also won a few games that we did think they would win. They were playing 5th and 6th grade teams and their team is 4th and 5th graders. They were also on the full size fields this year. Zach would go out and run everyday so he wouldn't get tired during the game. It was an awesome season and I can't wait for spring.

I will admit that it is nice to have a free night again where we don't have to be somewhere. Soccer added 3 different practices and 3 games to my already overloaded schedule.....and it is always a relief when it is over and we aren't eating fastfood every night. But I always look forward to the next season because I love to watch them play.....maybe it is the competitive side of me.