Paul and Robyn Fox Family

Three bears in the bed, and the little one said, "roll over. I'm crouded."

2011-10-28T04:59:00.000-07:00

Gus, Max, and Cash sleep in the same king sized bed, and that arrangement poses its difficulties at times. This particular night, they seemed to make quite a fuss as they were going to bed. When it finally got quiet, I went in to kiss them all goodnight, and I found that Cash, the littlest, had booted the other boys out of bed, and was all sprawled out sleeping like a king. I guess we know who's boss.

Gustafson Halloween Party

2011-10-28T04:40:00.000-07:00

Here is Dot in our Despicable Me minion goggles. They are so funny, and my kids love to play with them. Max even wanted to be a minion for Halloween, so we bought a yellow hoodie and some overalls from Goodwill, and we were set to go. The only problem is that the goggles are nowhere to be found. We have been looking for the last 3 weeks. Grrrr!

Here are some of my beautiful nieces and nephews with their carved Jack'o'lanterns. I'm not really sure how that word is punctuated, but I did my best.

We did donuts on a string, which is always very fun to watch. Gus wanted to be a mime this year: I think because of the mime on the movie Tangled.

My nephew Nik was, by far, the most fun to watch in this particular activity. It took that kid a long time to get his donut off the string.

Max, on the other hand, made quick work of his.

From Left to right: Gus, Nik holding Dot, Ally holding Grayson, Brody, Max, Tyler with a paper in his face, and Cash. (Sorry Tyler)

Here they are again displaying their carved pumpkins. I know, Cash does not have a pumpkin...don't judge.

Here is Gus digging out his pumpkin guts.

Max and I worked together.

Messy, messy. There is nothing better than a pile of slimy pumpkin guts. I love Halloween. So much fun!

Come listen to a prophet's voice...and have a little fun too!

2011-10-27T07:23:00.000-07:00

So we had the opportunity to go to General Conference this October and enjoy the spirit, the weather, and fun times with family.

Here are Paul and the boys in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building standing in front of the statue of the prophet Joseph Smith.

Paul took this picture of the boys, and I thought it was a really fun perspective.

I wish I could say the kids were purely interested in sitting and listening to the words of the prophet, but they were actually more interested in doing things like this.

Dot was looking angelic all dressed in white.

The boys in the visitors center

Here's a nicer version of the earlier picture, except Cash still thinks he is supposed to be silly.

Here are my kids in front of the Christ statue in the visitors center. It was beautiful. I don't know the random little boy in the picture. His parents just let him hang out up there by the statue, so I think that he is probably in about 10 different people's family pictures. Super cute kid!

This was on BYU's campus. While Paul and Max were at the football game, we hung out and played on the grass. I love this picture because the way these girls are looking at eachother. Adalyn and Alise are like, "what the heck is wrong with that girl?"

beautiful little girls!

Cosmo made an appearance at the restaurant we were eating at. Jana was in seventh heaven. She gave him a huge hug. My kids were in such a bad mood from fighting aweful traffic for the past 2 hours, just to get from Salt Lake to Provo, that they did not want anything to do with Cosmo. Let's just say the construction everywhere was less than helpfull during our stay. Overall, conference weekend is always a whirlwind, especially trying to split time between Paul's family and mine (sorry Kary, we didn't take any pictures with you and your girls), but we love it, and we especially love the wonderful spirit that we feel when we gather to listen to a prophet of the Lord!

Silly boys

2011-10-19T08:58:00.001-07:00

Gus and Max were complaining on a hot summer day that their heads hurt and they were tired, so they rolled out the yoga mats, and I put cool wet towels over their faces. I'm not sure I have ever seen them lay still and relax for that long except for when they are sleeping. Silly boys!

Cash always grabs this tupperware and puts it on his head in this fashion. He will seriously wear it like that for and hour. He thinks it is pretty cool!

We just got a super powerful blender, and our house has been enjoying a daily smoothie. With smoothies, comes smoothie mustaches...much messier than the milk kind.

For those of you who were worried that my boys sleep in the closet, I thought I would put those rumors to rest and show you their actual sleeping arrangement. We are living in my parents' house while they are on their mission in Nauvoo. They left all of their furniture for us to use, so my boys sleep in their guest bedroom in a king sized bed. It is like a big slumber party every night. On this night, my nephew was sleeping over, and of course, the more the merrier!

2011-10-15T07:38:00.000-07:00

This video is a little sad, but I found it so cute and funny that every time I told dotty "No," her little heart would break and it would induce her to cry. We caught it on video, just so we could remember, because now, when we tell her no, she laughs at us. We'd better get used to it!

Sir

2011-10-15T07:23:00.000-07:00

Max came out in this get up the other day, and I said, "Hey Max, cool outfit!" He continued to tell me that his name was not Max, that he was Sir. So, I asked him where Max was and he shrugged his shoulders and smiled. You see, Sir is a man of few words. He would run into his room, change back into Max, then come talk to me again, and then he would change back into Sir. He thought it was great. Later, Paul got to meet Sir, and we both enjoyed having him visit us throughout the day. Pretty soon, I guess he decided that he had fooled us long enough, and Max revealed to us that he and Sir are in fact one and the same. Needless to say, we were shocked!

urban cowboy

2011-10-15T07:15:00.001-07:00

I think it is fairly hard to get my boys to wear clothes. Even if I get them to put them on at the start of the day, they seem to end up in a wad on the floor at some point. This particular day, Cash decided to go for a bike ride, and thought, "I need shoes," but didn't seem to think that clothes were necessary. Yet again, something only a kid could pull off. Can you imagine your 40-year-old neighbor doing this?

Dotty's one!

2011-10-14T10:08:00.001-07:00

So, here is Dotty Lou and her beautiful cousin Adalyn. Kellianne got both of them these ballerina bathing suits for their birthdays. I think she may wear it everyday! So adorable!

Also, we always try to give our kids a box full of tissue on their first birthday. It is the best present in the world for a one-year-old. They are simply amazed that each time they pull one out, another one pops up. It's cheap, amusing, and when they are done, we just shove the tissues back in the box and use them for boogery noses. By the way, this idea was also compliments of Kellianne. Trust me; all my good ideas are stolen.

For the cake, we made Grandma Brown's famous chocolate marshmallow filled angel food cake: a Fox family favorite. Dot dove right in like it was old hat. I'm sure she has had a lot more cake than Gus had at her age. That's just the way things happen.

Now that she is one, she has taken up a few bad habbits, like unrolling the toilet paper, drinking baby shampoo, climbing on the table and the kitchen counter, and opening the doors. She just started walking, and I always forget how cute that is!

And she spends all day texting on the new cell phone that we got her for her birthday. I swear, kids just seem to grow up faster these days. Pretty soon, we'll be shopping for prom dresses!

New sleeping arrangements

2011-10-13T10:38:00.001-07:00

So in an effort to make more space for my things, I changed up my households' sleeping arrangements. I have always wanted a sewing room, a work-out room, a craft room, and an office, but those pesky children of mine always seem to be in the way. Now, we have a solution! They get the linen closet and anything they can fit in it, but nothing more. I know, I am a genius. You too can stuff your kids in the closet and double, or even triple your space! Maybe I'll even write a book about it.
(I just wanted to add a disclaimer. For those of you who don't really know me that well, I do not actually recommend locking your children in the closet...most of the time)

Foul Mood!

2011-10-07T16:01:00.000-07:00

Do any of you ever feel like you are drowning, and there just isn't enough time to accomplish everything on your to-do list. In fact, you keep adding to that list much faster than you can cross things off. Sigh! Today has been a day! I am in such a foul mood that I thought I'd better sit down and rant so that I can look back and laugh later.
So, my day started fairly well. I got up really early to go running. When I got home, the house was asleep still, so I paid bills. Off to a good start right. Then, Gus off to school, Paul off to work, I planted our winter garden with Cash and Max. That wasn't done particularly gracefully, but I felt like it was a success. Now is when the good stuff starts. So, I get kids all ready and loaded into the car, and I rush to meet Paul for lunch because we have a Groupon to Fatburger. So, first we stop at Alpine Valley Bread to get their 1 dollar loaves at 1:00 on Friday. People line up to get bread cheap. It was a Mad House. We waited forever in a crowded little store. Struggling to keep Dot on my hip and hold 5 loaves of bread and keep the rest of my children out of everyone's way did not bring me much joy. At the check out I realized I left my wallet by the computer where I paid bills this morning, but luckily Paul was there with his wallet. After leaving, I looked at those 5 loaves of bread and wondered if it was worth it. No worries though, because now I get to sink my teeth into a juicy fatburger. So, we get to Fatburger, I go in and order while Paul plays with the kids outside. When the woman tells me the price I say, "Oh, I have a groupon to cover that." I reach into my purse to find that not only did I leave my wallet, but I left the groupon too. Well, I was not about to spend $30 on burgers and fries, so I told them to please stop making our food that we would not be dining there today. I felt like a total moron, and I was starving, but 30 bucks is 30 bucks. (That place is a bit of a rip off I think!) Well, I told Paul and the kids the bad news, and Paul was fine, but Gus was crying instantly, "I just really wanted to have lunch with dad, boo hoo hoo!" So I tell them that we can stop at good old McDonalds on the way home, but Dad has to rush back to work. At least at McDonalds all the kids can eat for $1. Ok, so there's still a plan and it's a good one. Well after we get to McDonalds and my kids are happily playing on the jungle gym, I realize that even $1 per person is too much when you don't have your wallet. Grrrr! I was so annoyed with myself I could spit! I scrounged up enough loose change in my purse to buy 1 mcdouble that we split, and the kids were happy enough to play for a little while and go home to get more food. So, I sat to watch the kids play, and I was perking up a bit only to hear Cash yell from the top of the jungle gym, "I just Peed!!!" Are you serious? Just shoot me please. Could he at least come and tell me quietly so that every person in the store doesn't hear it! Well, we got out of there pretty fast, and now I am back at home trying to cross a couple more things off my to-do list while 4 little people are busilly making more messes that I am going to have to force them to clean up. This is just one of those afternoons where I wish I had a fairy God mother, but not all of us are as lucky as Cinderella. I guess I am actually luckier than her because I didn't have a wicked step mother or evil step sisters...and my dad didn't die when I was little, and my friends aren't mice. Ok, I guess I have it pretty good. I just wish someone would come clean my house. Ok, now I feel better, I think I will get back to work now!

Lake Louise Family pictures

2011-08-07T22:08:00.000-07:00

Before we went to Canada, we asked my sister-in-law Jocelyn if she would take some family pictures of us while we were there. On the day we went to Banff, we thought it was just so amazing, that we had to take our pictures there. This way we figured that even though we looked a little rough around the edges, nobody would notice because they would be looking at the beauty around us. Anyway, we got some cute ones, thanks to Jocelyn.

The ones of the kids are my favorite.

This was seriously one of the prettiest places I have ever been. The earth really is amazing!

Christmas family pictures

2011-08-07T22:01:00.000-07:00

Paul's family is really good about taking lots and lots of pictures. In the moment, some times it annoys me. I hate posing, and smiling, and trying to make the children look at the camera, but in the end I am grateful, because we have a lot of good pictures. My dear sister-in-law Jocelyn took these of us last Christmas. For some reason, Gus looks like he has braces. Maybe he just ate an oreo or something. My favorite thing about these is that they are taken on the fish bench that is on my in-laws front porch. I love this bench. Their home would just not be the same with out it.

Cash's Birthday

2011-07-21T11:22:00.001-07:00

Cash turned 2 last November which means that he is actually almost 3 now, and I have not realized how much he has grown until just looking at these pictures. On his birthday, we had his little friend Booker over and had cake and presents. Everyone that knows Cash knows also that he loves balls, thus every present that he got was some type of ball. He was in heaven!

This is the first time that I have actually seen him open presents with interest.

These 3 boys could not wait to eat the oranges

Here he is, ball in hand, ready to blow out the candles.

I must not have taken any pictures of his breakfast in bed, but I'm sure it was adorable too!

Gus and Paul's Birthday Extravaganza

2011-07-21T11:01:00.001-07:00

This year Gus turned 6 and Paul turned 30. They have the same birthday. Gus was a honeymoon baby, so I was really big and pregnant the first time we celebrated Paul's birthday as a married couple. The night before his birthday, I went to Savers and got him a bowling ball and a shirt that said, "world's greatest Dad" since I knew he was going to be a father soon. Well, on Paul's birthday, I woke up early, gave him his gifts, and then asked him to take me to the hospital. He put on his world's greatest dad shirt before we left, and he was wearing it when I gave birth to our first son. It was quite a day, and now they get to share it every year. This is Gus with his best friend Owen. Gus and Owen met in Mountainaire and had the same kindergarten teacher, and they were inseparable. They are enjoying the alien cup cakes that Gus and his brothers decorated themselves.

Paul got his own cake too.

Here is Gus and his beautiful cousin Kenzie digging in to the cupcakes

Their birthday is on February 12 so usually it is celebrated indoors, but this year it was the most beautiful day we could have imagined. Seriously, sunny, warm and a real treat in the middle of February.

Max is a killer when it comes to pinatas. Most of the time we are trying to get him to be more soft. This is the one time when he can let loose.

Here are the kids having lunch. Because Paul and Gus share the same birthday, it is usually a bigger affair because whole families come.

Here are Paul and Gus sharing their breakfast in bed together...with a little help from Max. Paul got these awesome one-piece pajamas from his sister Alison for Christmas. He looks totally hot in them. OW OW!

Max's birthday

2011-07-21T10:45:00.001-07:00

These are pictures from way back in January, but I thought I would go through and blog each of my kids' birthdays this last year. For no particular reason, I decided to start with Max. We don't get to fancy with birthday parties around here, but we have a lot of fun. Max loves to help me in the kitchen. For some reason he has had a lot of interest in this area. It may be because he absolutely loves food. He always has. So, I decided to make him an apron for his birthday, then Grandpa Fox filled it with kitchen gadgets that Max couldn't wait to use.

Here are some of our friends that came. Owen, Macey and Booker. We love these little Mountainaire friends, and we have been missing them!

Here is Max trying to enjoy his personal breakfast in bed while his brother's beg for him to share.

This is the cake he wanted to make. It had real cars on it, so he had fun racing them carefully around the track.

There's nothing better than breakfast in bed!

You Scream! I Scream! We all scream for ice-cream!

2011-07-18T21:32:00.000-07:00

My kids have been pining after some toys at the store, and I keep telling them that they have to save up their own money to buy toys. Well, it is pretty hard for a 6-year-old and a 4-year old to figure out a way to make money. So, we came up with a little summer business experiment where they helped me make home-made ice-cream sandwiches, and they sold them to the neighbors. The reason I wanted to make these ice-cream sandwiches was because I had a memory of a family in my neighborhood growing up who made home-made ice-cream sandwiches and sold them. Every time I would get an extra dollar, I would immediately take it to their house to buy one. It was the greatest summer treat I could think of. my dad would send me over to buy him one. I have been wanting to do this for a long time with my kids just because I have such fond memories of it. Over all, it was a success and my kids are $45 richer. They have now spent that money on a huge set of legos that we found on craigslist. Money well spent.

A beautiful girl

2011-07-14T16:23:00.001-07:00

I just want to tell you a little bit about my fabulous little sister Jana. She is actually my sister-in-law, but she calls me her sister and I feel like that makes me pretty lucky. Jana participates in a lot of special olympics events that we attend throughout the year, but my personal favorite is the Cheerleading. Here is Jana with her mom. I just love her smile in this picture!

Here she is with her friends

This is Jana with her twin brother Kevin. I just love Kevin! He graduated from high school this year and will be heading off to college and a mission. I made him promise me that he will still be my friend even though he is going to be off to bigger and better things.

Jana is such a ham. She just loves posing for these kinds of pictures. But seriously, being around these people is really such a blessing. During the opportunities I have had to be in Jana's classroom, I have learned a lot about just loving people without holding back or judging. Those kids know a lot more about it than we do. I feel like we are all so guarded, always worrying about what we look like or what people think of us. These kids just are who they are, and they love you for who you are.

I am really glad that my kids have their aunt Jana

Dot

2011-07-14T16:05:00.001-07:00

I just really don't feel like I've done Dot justice on this blog of mine. Here she is, almost a year old, and there is hardly a thing about her. Well, I just want to say, that when she was born, I used to jokingly say that she was our favorite child. Well, now that she has been around a while I just have to say that she is definitely our favorite child! I mean doesn't she just melt your heart?

O.K. in all honesty, I love all my children the same, but can I at least say that she is my favorite one to dress up?

Dot has a cousin named Adalyn that is a couple of weeks older than her, and it has been so fun to see them grow together. I just think they are both such beautiful babies! It was also a lot of fun being pregnant with Kelianne because we lived so close. I like to think that they were friends in heaven wishing eachother off as they came down. Here are the girls camping together last Easter

Only a Child...

2011-07-14T15:59:00.001-07:00

I decided to start collecting pictures of children doing things that only a child could do...I mean the kinds of things that make you giggle when you see, but if you saw an adult doing the exact same thing, you would be really scared!

Picture 1
Cash eating an ice cream cone, swinging on a swing...with no pants on

3,542 miles of smiles

2011-07-11T13:57:00.000-07:00

Here is our family just after embarking on a 3,542 mile road trip. Here's how it went:
stop one: SLC Utah
Stop two: Kalispell Montana
Stop three: Calgary Canada
Stop four: Grand Junction Colorado
Stop Five: Flagstaff Arizona
Stop Six: Phoenix
It took almost 3 weeks, and we loved every minute!

Our first stop was in Salt Lake City Utah where we visited my sister Kary and her family. I was lame and forgot to take a lot of pictures there. We also got together with my whole Jeppson side of the family and the Gustafson side of the family. We took a lot of picutres on this day when we went to Lagoon. I used to go to Lagoon all the time when I was little , so it was amazing taking my kids there. It was magical all over again. As you can see, Dot loved it.

Here are my little men enjoying a ride together.

Obviously, the little kids got very tuckered out. This is my niece Aleah at about 4 o'clock.

Here are my beautiful nieces Linsdey, Lauren and Abby with our beautiful cousin Sierra all about to ride the egg drop!

I though Cash and Aleah looked so cute together in this little car...like they were on a date

I love rides, even if they are the ones that usually make people sick. I don't seem to have that problem. So Paul made me go on the twisty rides, and I didn't mind a bit!

I totally did not know that Les was in this picture

Cash was so tired, he just crashed on the couch. Looks comfortable right?

On our way up to Montana we stopped at a dairy in Idaho Falls called Reed's Dairy. We had heard several times of a delicious concoction they make called a brown cow. This is where they take their unbelievably rich chocolate milk and pour it over their insanely creamy ice-cream like a root bear float...but much much better. We ate them there, and then we packed their ice cream in a cooler with some dry ice accompanied by 4 half-gallons of chocolate milk, and we took brown cows to Montana and Canada where we proceeded to eat them every night of our trip.

Here are the kids in front of the dairy cows

that same day, we went to the outer edge of Yellowstone park and visited Cave Falls where we were able to get out and do a little hike. We did our best not to be eaten by misquitos

There was only one other person there, and we got him to take our picture

BRRRRRR!

After we bought the shaggin wagon, the upholstery started to hang down off the cieling, so we bought this funky fabric, and reupholstered it with the help of our neighbor, who knows how to do those kinds of things. We love it, and I even made some throw pillows to match, which really came in handy on the road!

Here we are at the Neilson's cabin at Ashley lake...one of my favorite places on earth. The water was freezing, so Paul and I were the only ones that went wake boarding or wake surfing. So that meant we got as much time as we wanted!

But afterward, we got to sit in the hot tub

The kids absolutely loved the tube rides. I have never seen them smile so big!

Gus, Max and Holli went by themselves

I asked Holli to give me a pouty face, and this is what I got. Love it!

Here is Paul looking all studly in his wet suit

Max, Gus, Cash and Holli all did this easy ski. I can't believe how big these kids are gettting. It is so fun watching them do these things

Gus loved playing dress up with his cousin Holli...they have girls, we have boys and this is what happens when they come together
Here is Dot crawling under the chairs at Jeff and Jocelyn's house. I think she looks adorable

3,542 miles of smiles: Part 2

2011-07-11T13:06:00.000-07:00

Our final destination point on this trip was Calgary Canada, where Paul's brother Jeff lives. We made it, and I think we did it with style. One of our first points of business when we arived was to go 5 pin bowling. As you can see, it was a hit! Paul's dream, while we were in Canada was to go curling, but turns out, there is nowhere to go curling in June. It's just a winter sport. I saw some real tears when we found this out. I'm not sure if we would have even gone to Canada had we know that before hand, but we made the best of it anyway

I love Holli's hair!

The little kids used the ramp

Even Dottie had a blast

Here is the whole Crew. We had the bowling alley all to ourselves. I guess that's how it is when you go bowling at 10 AM

Another day, Jeff and Jocelyn borrowed bikes and trailers so we could go on a bike ride/wiener roast in Fish Creek Park.

Cash did not want to get out of the trailer

This is the day we went to Banff. This is the beautiful Lake Louise. It took my breath away!

Gus took this picture. He is an artistic genius!

Here are the beautiful people who we went to visit: Paul's brother Jeff, his wife Jocelyn and their two girls, Holli and Alise. Love these people!

We had a picnic lunch by lake Moraine

Lake Moraine

Isn't the color of that water amazing!

This was a common sight along the way

Here is a picture of us on the back patio of the Banff springs resort. You can stay there for a small fortune...maybe some day

Here is another day at the neighborhood lake. A lot of the communities in Calgary have these lakes with beaches to play on in the summer, and in the winter, they use them for ice skating.

The kids had fun making rivers. Here is Cash relaxing in the hot tub they made

Paul and Jeff told the kids that if they let the dad's throw them in that they could have ice-cream when we went home. They all did it, but Holli really didn't want to. She wanted the ice-cream so bad that she suffered through being thrown into the water. What a brave girl. I also would do just about anything for a bit of ice cream

Later, we buried the kids in the sand. As you can see, it was not Alise's favorite form of recreation. Even her soothie couldn't make her happy

these little kiddos looked so funny all stuck in the sand. I think some people thought we were a little mean burying the screaming babies, but we needed this picture, and it was well worth it!

Holli and Max were the pioneers

same day, same lake

Here is Dot at a park in Helena Montana on our way back from Canada

We stopped in Salt Lake again on our way back from Canada so we could take pictures with my Grandma Gustafson. I saw my Grandma 4 times the week before but kept forgetting to take pictures. My grandma is 92 years old, and has lived in the same house in Down town Salt Lake City since she was 2 years old.

I love this smile on her face. She is really the best grandma. She made some really great childhood memories for me and my cousins.

Then we were off to Grand Junction Colorado to do some ranching with Uncle Andy and Aunt Andrea. Andy and Andrea just got married a couple of months ago, and my kids think he is awesome because he is a cow boy.

They all took their turn riding a horse

This is our attempt at getting a picture of all of them together. Pretty good I think

Gus and Max sitting with Uncle Andy down by the creek

Cash playing with aunt Andrea

Here we are when we arrived back in Flagstaff on the 4th of July. A bit of a sorry looking bunch. We definately wore the markings of being on the road for almost 3 weeks.

Our 1987 Buick Century Wagon got us safely there...and back. She was a gem the whole way. The boys are holding the throw pillows that I made to match the roof of the wagon. This was such a memorable trip for me. Everything a long the way was even more fun than we imagined and we were all sad to come home to hot Phoenix Arizona.

Sugar and Spice and Everything nice

2010-10-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

Baby Dot got blessed and we just feel so blessed to have her as a part of our family. What a little miracle she is! Here we are outside of the church building on her blessing day.

Here is her first cook out in the woods. She just loved roasting marshmallows!

As I before mentioned. I love to get this girl dressed. I feel like I had my first child all over again because I remember doing the same thing with Gus. I dress her up in her cutest outfits, and then I feel like I need to take a picture to capture how adorable she looks. Poor Cash never changed out of his pajamas, and sometimes would wear them for 2-3 days if he didn't spit up or poop on them. Dot is definately a fashionista

Here she is all in white on her blessing day. Loved this dress. It was a hand me down for a 2 year old, and I just took in the kneck and it made a perfect blessing dress!

I just love this picture because she has her finger on her temple as though she is contemplating something. Maybe she is thinking about something. Maybe she is remembering where she came from, or maybe she is just dreaming about milk!

Dorothy Louise Fox (Dot, Dotty, Dotty Lou which ever you prefer)

2010-09-09T09:56:00.000-07:00

Hey all, the glorious day arrived that our beautiful baby girl transitioned safely from inside to oustide of my uterus, and let me tell you... she is perfect! A sweet little bundle for a mother to cuddle. Everything went great! My boys haven't successfully killed her yet, so I would say we are doing pretty well. She was born on September 5th which also happens to be my brother Simon's b-day, so happy birthday to you Simon! She was 6 lb 14 oz and 20 in long. I just love to dress her in the frilliest, girliest things possible. It is really quite strange. I didn't know I would be this way, but I think I am just binging now that my pink frilly fast is over. I will post some pictures soon. Oh happy day!

Lost in the Woods

2010-07-21T08:29:00.001-07:00

Max is my little middle man, in between Gus and Cash, and I feel like some times he might get the shaft because he is in the middle and the other two demand so much attention. Well recently, Max has made sure that he gets the attention he needs. On the 5th of July, Paul had the day off work, so he decided to take the boys fishing at the cow pond in the forest about 3/4 of a mile from our house. While they were fishing, I went running on some trails with my brother and sister in law, Kevin and Alison. So we dropped Paul and the boys off at the cow pond and left on our run. We were gone for about an hour and when we returned to the cow pond, Paul and the boys had already left, so we headed home. When we caught up with Paul, he only had Gus and Cash with him, and he proceeded to tell us that Max was nowhere to be found and he had not seen him for a half-an-hour. I panicked initially, but then Paul and I said a prayer, and I was able to think rationally. Everyone split up in different directions looking for Max, and I ran home on the trail thinking maybe he went that way. I grabbed our cell phones when I got back to the house and then ran back out to that cow pond where I figured they would have found him by now, but they hadn't. By then, he had been missing for at least 45 minutes, so I called 911 thinking they would have to get search and rescue out there to look for him. When I got ahold of the dispatcher, I said that we were in the forest by Mountainaire and one of our children had wandered off. She immediately asked me if it was a 3 year old boy and a flood of relief washed over me. She said that he had been walking on the trail, and some hikers found him and took him back into the neighborhood. They said when they found him, he was just crying and walking, and when they got closer, he just layed on the ground and cried. I am so glad they told me this, because when I met them to go get Max, he didn't even seem like he was even slightly scared. He was all smiles, and when I cried and gave him a hug, he just looked at me like I was crazy. Then, when we tried to tell him that he needed to stay with the family, he kept saying that he didn't want to stay with dad. He was being such a stinker, so I was glad to hear that he was actually scared, because I don't want him to make a habit out of this. It is really funny though because now he knows how terrified we would be if we ever lost him and he uses it against us. When he is really mad at me he tells me that he is going to run away and never come back. I expected my kids to threaten me with this at some point, just not when they were 3 years old. I just love this kid so much, and I can't imagine what life would be like with out him. I am so grateful Heavenly Father trusts me to raise these little children who were his before they were mine. Sometimes I feel so inadequate.

Here is a funny picture of Max with a bug catching net over his face. We just could not stop laughing about how ridiculous he looked. He looks just like an old lady!

This is pretty much what he looks like after any project. He is definitely my messiest kid. I think Cash is cleaner and better at eating with a spoon and he is two years younger. Also, Max still drools which is quite comical at times.
This is a picture of Max after we went on a night hike this winter in the woods with the boys new head lamps. We kept trying to pull the head lamp up higher, but he would just pull it right back down over his eyes again. Gotta love this kid. We're so glad he's a part of our family

On a separate note. I am now 7 and a half months along in this pregnancy and we are all getting excited to have a new little girl in the family, although I am a little nervous since we can't even keep track of the children that we already have!

Baby Bliss!

2010-05-01T07:39:00.000-07:00

So I had my main ultrasound yesterday and the baby is totally healthy, and developing normally, but there is one part that was different than my other babies that kind of scared me. There were 3 little lines on the screen where the penis usually is. You guessed it...It's a girl! Finally, some balance may be achieved in my household. I am so outnumbered here. It will be nice to have a little bit more estrogen in the house. The boys are super excited too. They have been working on coming up with lots of beautiful girl names like poo head and Darthy (compliments of Darth Vader). I have to say, Paul is probably the most excited. I just don't know what this is going to be like, but I am already collecting girl hand-me-downs and I think she will be set for about the first 6 months. I just love baby hand-me-downs because they are all still in perfect condition because babies grow out of them so fast, and they don't crawl or walk or do anything that is very detrimental to clothing (we won't talk about the pooping or spitting up). Anyway, we are excited! I feel like we are embarking on a whole new adventure, and I'm sure I will discover that it's not that much different than the one we are already having. Wish us luck!

Little artists

2010-04-28T14:46:00.000-07:00

So my kids have been drawing a ton lately, and I am constantly amazed at the talent that comes out of those little fingers. I just love it! Here are a couple of examples:

this is a picture Gus drew of himself running in the trees. I love that he has boots on.

This is the first face that Max ever drew about 2 months ago. You should see his pictures now!
Again, turn your head sideways!

This is a picture of Gus fighting bad guys. They are all wearing helmets for protection

Here is how Gus chose to display all of his pictures...all over my bed, but if you click on it so you can view it larger, it is really fun to see.

My 5 year old man

2010-04-28T14:29:00.000-07:00

So Gus turned 5 back in February, and I always thought moms with 5 year olds were old. What the heck? I'm not old, but I do have a five year old son. I just keep thinking. I am already 1/4 of the way done with the time I have to be responsible for him. Anyway, we had a kickin party, complete with pulling off my couch cushions and jumping on them. I really didn't plan much, so the kids made their own fun.

Here is Gus eating breakfast in bed. Him and his dad ate in bed together because they share a birthday. Isn't that cool that our oldest son was born on Paul's birthday, and he is named after him (Gus's full name is Paul Augustus Fox)
Here are some of the super fun kids at the party. I love all these kids. What a great day!

Dead Wrong

2010-04-28T14:07:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I said Gus had no natural ability in the area of bike riding, and I think he has officially proved me wrong. All I had to do is let go. I thought that I should hold on to his shirt until I could feel that he had his balance. Apparently, the only way he could learn to balance on his own was to be riding on his own. So all I had to do was give him a big push and let go, and he figured the rest out all by himself. All the frustration of trying to explain things to him was worthless. He just had to do it. Being a mom really rocks my world. It is so amazing to watch these little people grow and learn. I don't even want to think about teaching him how to drive a stick shift. Oh, please Lord, grant me patience! Here is a video of day two without training wheels. Rock on Gus!

Impatience!

2010-04-27T13:36:00.000-07:00

I tried to teach Gus how to ride a bike with out training wheels today, and I had to keep fighting the urge not to push his bike over and yell at him. I can't believe how frustrated I was getting with it. He has no natural ability in this area. Give him a hammer and nails or a pen and a paper and he will whip out something amazing, but put him on a bike and he has a very short attention span. Of course, when I am frustrated, it makes him have no fun at all, and then he just gets worse and worse, and then I just get more and more frustrated. I think it is just like a catch 22. Nobody wins! Anyway, I think this is something I may have to delegate to his father. Gosh I hope the neighbors didn't witness my pitiful teaching attempt today!

Max "the crack" turns 3

2010-02-18T12:23:00.001-08:00

On Janary 10, Maxer turned 3 . We started off the day with breakfast in bed, followed by church, a little dinner at Aaron and Kellianne's house, of course a pinata, and lastly cake. This kid makes me laugh every day. I threw in this last picture because it demonstrates what a ham he is!

Cash's first hair cut

2009-12-15T08:00:00.000-08:00

Here Cash is enjoying his first slice of cake after his hair cut

Here he is washing the hair off

there the hair goes, dropping off onto the floor

This was my baby before he became a little boy!

I always wait one year before I give my baby's hair cuts, and Cash turned a year last month. I am always so excited to give them their first hair cut, but then I am always so sad afterward because they no longer look like babies, but like little boys.

Can't Sleep

2009-11-24T02:23:00.000-08:00

Well, we are moving tomorrow, and I just cannot go to sleep. I was sleeping perfectly sound when I had to wake up and feed my baby around 1:00 AM and now I can not go back to sleep. I just keep thinking about all the things I need to do. We are not moving far, actually just down the street. I am so glad that we get to stay in Mountainaire. I love the community out here. I have truly made some great friends. We are really excited to be selling our house. The rental house we are moving into is a cute little 700 Sq foot cabin: 2 beds, one bath, and the washer and dryer are right in the middle of the kitchen. No joke, they actually block access to some of the cabinets, but I am so excited. I love keeping things simple. We have thoroughly de-junked! I can't wait to spend Christmas in our cozy little house together. Also, I am excited not to be home owner for a little while. I could do with out the responsibility right now. It's nice to know that if something breaks, some one else has to fix it instead of me. Anyway, in leau of Thanksgiving I want to say that I am so blessed. When it comes to the things that really matter in life, I couldn't ask for more. I am so grateful to have a wonderful husband who supports me in everything I do, and three strapping young boys who are so healthy and fun. Most of all I am grateful to know that Jesus Christ lives, and that I am a daughter of my Heavenly Father. What more could I ask for?

I'm Popeye the Sailor Man!

2009-11-12T12:45:00.001-08:00

Cash was Swea' Pea, the orphan that got dropped on Popeye's porch

Paul was Wimpy, Popeye's best friend (I'll pay you tomorrow for a hamburger today)

Gus was the man himself: Popeye

Max was the villainous Bluto, always trying to get the girl

and here we all are at the trunk or treat. I never got a picture of Olive Oil by herself. It was very nice of her to come along. I must say, she was much more stunning in person.

So here is the end result of our Halloween Costumes for this year. We were the clan from Popeye which worked out great because what other theme costume can you think of with all boys and only one girl (The only other one I could think of was the smurfs...maybe next year). Anyway, we had a tootin good time trunk-or-treating on Friday night, and then trick-or-treating around the neighborhood on Saturday. Halloween is such a fun holiday. What a blast! Now if I could only stop eating the Halloween candy.

Toot Toot

2009-10-28T15:05:00.000-07:00

I can not wait for Halloween. We have been cooking up costumes for quite some time, and it has been a lot of fun. Just thought I would give a little glimpse of Gus's costume. He loves Popeye, and can't wait to show off his big muscles on Halloween!

I just have one problem. He keeps singing the Popeye song, and the only version he knows goes as follows:
I'm popeye the sailor man,
I live in a garbage can,
I never go swimmin with bare naked women,
I'm popeye the sailor man.

I keep trying to get him to say bull legged women, but now he just says bull-naked women. Thanks to his uncle Simon for teaching him this. I've been trying to make up another one, but my creativity seems to be having a drought. If anyone can think of one, let me know.

A little of this and a little of that!

2009-10-28T14:45:00.001-07:00

Cash had pink-eye. I think he looks like the monster guy on the goonies "Hey you guys!"

So I think Max might need braces

I don't know what these boys would do with out each other.

Back in the saddle again. We went horse back riding with some cute girls from our ward. It was quite a treat!

Gus was a natural!

Boys will be boys. This was pretty much how ever day went this summer. You should have seen the bath water!

My sweet angel baby! The only one that I don't ever have to send to time-out.

Just thought this was sweet

Just a little something we cooked up for the family talent show!

Freak!

Goodbye house!

2009-10-22T20:14:00.000-07:00

So, we are actually selling our house. I thought this day would never come, and now that it is here. I don't know whether to be excited or devastated. I never planned on staying here longer than a few months, and I never planned on making any friends, but now that we have lived here over 2 years, I don't know if I can tear myself away from mountainaire. I love being in the woods in less than five minutes (on foot). I love the tree huggers that live all around me. I love the trees. I love all my book club friends, and running partners. Life just seems a lot more slow paced. Anyway, I am excited to figure out where we will live in less than a month. I really have no idea, but it will be fun to live in some little dumpy place with cheap rent for a while. It will be nice not to have the responsibility of owning a house. It has been a good little house, and I hope the new family loves it as much as we have. Things have not worked out the way we planned, but the Lord has blessed us in so many ways. Isn't it amazing how he knows us better than we know ourselves. Good times.

Ashley Lake Montana

2009-09-10T08:00:00.000-07:00

Well, here we all are. The beautiful Fox family, minus Carrie because she is serving the Lord in Phillie. We all went up to Montana this summer to enjoy the scenic Ashley Lake. What a blast. Paul's brother, Jeff, married well! His inlaws own this cabin right on the edge of this beautiful lake. They let us stay there and even drove us around on their boat...all day, every day! It was honestly the most relaxing, fun-filled vacations I have been on in a long time! Gus kept asking us when we were going to go to Hannah Montana. He has no idea who she is, he just has heard it around, so when we said we were going to Montana, he thought we were going to Hannah Montana.

Here we are testing out the water for the first time!

Here is part of the group getting ready to go out on the boat. Every cabin on the lake has their own dock for their boat. Pretty cool huh!

We went to Glacier National Park. Seriously one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. You drive up the road called the high way to the sun, and I wonder how people can question whether there is a God when they see something as amazing as that!

As you can see, we had all the necessities! (yes, that is ice cream)

Here we are roasting hot dogs and s'mores for lunch one day.

There was this Robin's nest by their front door. The bird had abandoned the nest a few weeks earlier. Look at how perfect those little eggs look, and so bright blue. Robin's sure know how to lay eggs in style!

Just a little something we cooked up for the family talent show! It was funny because Gus had no idea what a chip n dale was so he thought it was some kind of super hero like Spider man. He kept doing all kinds of kicks and punches and telling everyone he was a chip n dale. He was so proud. If only he knew...

Here are all the grand kids with Jana. They made some super fun glasses with Granny!

My boys loved this tube. I wish you could have seen how hard they laughed when we played bumper tubes. Gus's laugh was almost sinister!

here's me just chillin with my little Cashew.

Daddy and Max tested out the water. Max would not let us let go of him.

I thought this picture was hilarious. This is me falling after I had learned how to wake surf. Very glamourous!

This is what it is supposed to look like. For those of you who have not done this, it is the funnest thing ever. You actually surf on the wake! You use the rope to get up, and once you find the right place in the wake, you can throw the rope into the boat and just surf on the wake. What a blast! I loved trying a whole bunch of new things behind this boat. I even got a lot better at wake boarding. I can get a little bit of air now. It is only a matter of time before I am doing flips and 360's.

There were no life jackets quite small enough for Cash. Poor guy.

Here is Gus holding a big toad that we found. I tried kissing it, but nothing happened, so I guess I am still stuck with Paul.

I got to take this Robin egg home with me as a keep sake. All in all, a great vacation. A whole week without cell phone service shared with all of my awesome family! What more could I ask for?

What Happens in Vegas, doesn't necessarily stay in Vegas

2009-06-08T07:07:00.001-07:00

So, for Spring break, Paul's parents used their time share at a little condo in Vegas. ( That wasn't their first choice. Anyway, they had the condo for a whole week, but only stayed there until Wednesday, so we went and stayed there for the weekend. It was a blast! We stayed at the condo a lot because they had a fun swimming pool, and there was a kitchen where we cooked our own food. We did venture to the strip once, and it was fun, but not ideal hauling 3 kids. I don't even know what you would do if one of them got lost.

Here is Paul and Max in front of New York New York

We made a special stop to the M&M store. Yum

Believe it or not, there are even some pretty places in Vegas. Here are the boys at the Red Rock National Park. They had a blast climbing on all the rocks. Gus is a little climber man. He was scaring me a little bit!

What cute kids!

Oh Boy! I've got Joy!

2009-06-03T07:24:00.001-07:00

So has anyone ever heard of Joy School before? It is a preschool-type program that you can do with your preschool age kids. You just get a group of moms who want to do it. You buy the curriculum and each mom takes a turn teaching for a 2 week period, and then you just pray that you don't mess up anyone else's children. Anyway, we did Joy School this year with Gus, and he absolutely loved it. Here is a picture with him and his Joy School pals. We love these kids so much! One of the Joy School songs that they always sing is " Oh boy! I've got Joy! I do. I do. It starts in my heart, and goes to my head in a minute or two!" I know cheesy right, but the kids eat it up. I has really been a lot of fun!

Wigwam living

2009-05-26T08:20:00.000-07:00

For our anniversary, we decided to go to the Snowflake temple, and then stay over night in a hotel. Luckily for us, the Wigwam hotel is in Holbrook, in between Flagstaff and Snow flake. We always said we wanted to stay in these. I must admit they were pretty old, and not very nice, but you can't beat spending your anniversary in a tee pee.

They have a bunch of old cars parked throughout the whole parking lot. It really reminds me of the movie Cars. Here are some modeling pictures of Paul and I.

This was our fifth anniversary, and I must say, the longer we are married, the more I realize that we haven't even been married that long. There was a couple working in the temple who had been married 55 years...only 50 years longer than us. Here's to another 50 years!

Fathers and Sons

2009-05-20T21:29:00.001-07:00

So last weekend was father's and sons, and I am considering having all boys so that I can have one weekend all to myself for the rest of my life. Oh how delightful. Of course, this time, Paul did not take the baby, but Gus and Max were out of my hair for the night. They did, however, come home much to early the next morning. I had all of these visions of going garage selling the next morning and getting my house completely spotless before they returned, but I realized one night is just not enough time for all the things I want to do when I am not dragging kids along. Any way, here are some pictures. By the way, the bath tub water was completely brown when I bathed these boys the next day. Dirty, Dirty, Dirty!

2009-04-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

Max still loves binkies when he is taking naps, but the other day, we were at grandma's house, and he got put to bed without a binky. When I went in to check on him after he was asleep, this is what I found. He made a make-shift binky out of a badminton birdie. Very creative if I do say so myself. He slept like a baby!

Miles of smiles

2009-02-27T05:50:00.001-08:00

Some of you have been wondering about how baby Cash is developing. Well, here he is. He is such a smiley guy. I hope he stays that way. Max was always such a smiley baby. Gus was a little harder to amuse, but the one thing we appreciate in our family is a good laugh, so Cash is going to fit right in!

Paul likes to play this game with the boys where he will wrap them all up like babies and then see if they can escape or not. It is also fun to grab one end of the blanket and fling them out as fast as you can. Good times!

Happy Birthday Gus!

2009-02-26T06:38:00.001-08:00

Here is Gus enjoying a delectable breakfast in bed, complete with Spider man sunglasses. It is our tradition to serve breakfast in bed on anyone's birthday!

Here is Gus helping me put the finishing touches on our pirate pinata.

RRRRR matey, shiver me timbers, there's our pirate now!

Here is our pirate cake, It turned out good at first, but then the gold mad the end a little to heavy and it ended up splitting right down the middle. I guess they got ship wrecked!

And here is the man of the hour. Yeah presents!

Here is Max taking a swing at the pirate. It was also Paul's birthday. Gus was born on Paul's b'day, but Paul's birthday festivities were not quite as exciting. What a fun day! Gus is such a joy in my life! All of my boys are!

House for Sale!

2009-02-26T06:34:00.000-08:00

We just re listed our house with a new agent, and these are the new pictures of it online. I think they turned out at least a 1000 times better than the ones our first Realtor took. Click on the link below!

http://www.villagelandshoppe.com/557_cherokee.html

Also, if any of you are looking for a second home in the pines, this would be perfect! Hah!

Confusing

2009-02-02T07:51:00.000-08:00

Does anyone else have a facebook page, because lately I am beginning to see the world of information available on facebook. So many of my family and friends are on there. The only problem is that I have no idea how to navigate it. I always get thoroughly confused and lost when I am on it, and I don't know how to get to certain pages and things that I want to see. This is why I much prefer blogging. It is so simple. All I have to do is go to someone's page and read what they wrote. No clicking here or there, or adding different applications, or getting lost. I really need simplicity in my life. On another note we had an awesome weekend with family this weekend down in the Valley. I just love my family so much. I couldn't be more blessed!

A good Work Out!

2009-01-18T13:36:00.000-08:00

One day, I walked into our office to find my kids doing this. I thought it was hillarious. I realize that most moms would probably discourage this, but I just think it is too cute, and Gus is really good at controlling the speed on the treadmill.

Finally!

2009-01-17T04:54:00.000-08:00

Well, things have been a little weird around here lately. Not exactly the usual ho-hum, so I just really have not gotten around to posting until now. I mean, that is a really lame excuse, I guess I just didn't really want to sit down and post. My free time has seemed better used as a nap or something. Anyway, it's good to be back in business. I guess I will try to sum up the happenings of the last month.

1. My grandma Jeppson passed away early in December. It was a beautiful funeral. She was such and elegant and charitable woman. It was neat that she was able to go be with my grandpa. I love her and will miss her.

2. Paul graduated from NAU with his business management degree. What a man! I am so proud of him. I will get the pictures and post them later.

3. Christmas came and went. It was a lot of fun, and my boys love it more and more each year.

If you were wondering, Santa is my dad. My grandpa Gustafson used to be Santa every Christmas Eve. The tradition continues!

4. Paul's brother and his wife and daughter came to visit from Canada, so we had a Fox family filled week. Hooray! We really love them and it was so fun to see them.

5. Cash was blessed at the beginning of January, and we were supposed to have a luncheon at our house, but it was snowing, and no one was able to make it up the hill to our house. Our cars just kept sliding down the hill. We got slightly crunched by another sliding car. All in all, it didn't go exactly as planned, but we had the bishop take us to our house in his 4 wheel drive suburban; we told everyone else just to head home because of the weather, and we enjoyed delicious tacos with a nice cup of hot chocolate and took a nap. Because of all of the hullaballoo, we didn't get any pictures of the occasion. Booo!

6. Max had a birthday. We had a little party with family and some friends. It was also our good friend Lois Price's birthday. He turned 2 and she turned 82.

This is the pinata we made. A monkey for my monkey!

7. Cash got RSV, and has been in the hospital all week. Of course I have been with him the whole time, and he is doing really well. I have had all of my babies right in the middle of RSV season, so it was bound to get us at least once. I'm just glad it was with my third and not my first. I think it would have been a lot harder as a first-time mom. He is out of the hospital right now, and he is doing better. We are not completely out of the clear, but he is doing great.

8. School started this week. Luckily I am only taking 2 classes: My CNA class and Anatomy and Physiology 2. Paul came to the hospital and stayed with the baby while I went to class. I don't know what he did with Gus and Max. Probably just let them run amuck! (not really) I think my classes will be fun, and I am applying for the nursing program next month. Wish me luck. I am not very confident that I will get in the first semester, but I have time.

Well, that is it! Good times. I hope everyone is doing swell!

Happy Halloween...a little late!

2008-12-03T11:33:00.001-08:00

I thought I would post some of our Halloween pictures since I did not take the time to do it before. Here is Max, my little monkey. This costume was a bit too small for him, so it made it even funnier. He is such a chunk!

When I planned our Halloween costumes, we were in Flagstaff where it is cold, so Gus's costume was very warm. The only problem is we went trick or treating in Mesa, and this was what Gus looked like when we were done. The poor kid was sweating to death under his helmet!

Here is Gus in full costume at his joy school Halloween party. He loves joy school. Every time I come to pick him up he tells me to go away because he doesn't want to go home. Ouch! Pretty soon he won't need me for anything.

Here are the boys carving pumpkins. We always sneak candy in the pumpkins so when the kids open them up, there is candy inside. We call them magic pumpkins!

I am not usually one to dress up my dog, but I thought this costume was hillarious. Boo did not really love the hat, but he made the coolest little black and white horse I have ever seen.

Welcome Cash!

2008-11-25T18:18:00.001-08:00

Okay, I know it's been a while, but finally, here is our new baby boy Cash. He is seriously the rockiness baby ever. He already just fits right in with the family. I love the peace that he brings into our home.

Here he is in my favorite little jammies (because I don't have to button them, and he poops like 12 times a day).

Paul has been really busy this last week, so he gets his cuddle time at night when he is home. I love this!

Here is our new happy little family. 3 boys. Who would have thought? It is a good thing we are planning on having 12 kids. There has to be a girl in there somewhere.

I know, these right after birth pictures aren't really cute, but fun regardless. You may notice that the whole top of his head is purple. That is because he was stuck for so long in the birth canal while I was pushing. What a coincidence that my smallest baby was the hardest one to push out. I was dilated to a 10 when we got to the hospital, and the doctors and nurses all just expected him to pop right out. After pushing for 2 hours and feeling that he was not moving at all, I thought I was going to go crazy. The doctor said that his head was turned transverse, so at that point, they gave me an epideral, had me turn and lay in different positions to try to get the baby to turn. After about an hour of that, I pushed again, and Cash popped right out like nothin. That's the way it was supposed to be the first time I pushed! I sure was glad he was there, and the funny thing is, it has only been a week, and I can't even remember what it was like being pregnant or being in labor. I guess that is a gift from God! Anyway, he is healthy and happy, and my boys love their new baby. Gus was a little sad that we didn't name him Jimmy Neutron, but other than that, we are great. I was so lucky to have my mom here with me all last week. I loved it! Last time I had a baby, she was on her mission, so it was nice to have her with me to enjoy the new little life.

Also, check out professional pictures of Cash at this link

http://www.pattersonpics.com/proofs/cash/

It's a Boy.....again!

2008-11-16T20:02:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody. Had a baby yesterday. Things went great. He is really small 6 lbs 10 oz. I hope I don't break him. Anyway, he's healthy. Things are great, and we are just so glad to have him home. His name is Cash Clifford Fox. I'll try to get some pics on soon.

Crazy, Crazy

2008-11-12T18:44:00.000-08:00

I have been wanting to post for a while, but I am too lazy to upload the pictures from my camera. Trust me, when I do, it will be awesome. Paul and I are both suffering from that crazy time at school right before Thanksgiving when all of your big assignments are due. That would be dominating my thoughts if it weren't for the fact that I keep having killer contractions, but I am not going into labor. I am not one to usually be very anxious at the end of my pregnancy. I usually just go with the flow, but I am having a really hard time concentrating. I just want the baby out for me to love and hold, and then contractions and labor won't be the only thing I can think about anymore. It is really hard studying about the nervous system when my mind is on the baby. Also, I am excited to see if we will have a little boy or girl. Anyway, life is good. We went on a hike for veterans day, got our first snow storm, and went to boyscout night at Sizzler. What more could a girl ask for?

Halloween Humor

2008-10-29T12:50:00.000-07:00

Today, I was trying to teach Gus a Halloween joke that he could tell people. So this is how the joke goes: Why didn't the skeleton cross the road?....... because he didn't have any guts. So I told it to him a few times, and then I asked him, "why didn't the skeleton cross the road?" and Gus replied, "because he didn't have any nuts." OK, that also works! Hillarious. I almost died laughing. He now recites the joke correctly, but it is not nearly as funny as his first version.

farm boys

2008-10-23T14:13:00.000-07:00

The Young Women's president in our ward is a photographer, and I wanted her to take some pictures of my boys in front of this cool old, rusty truck. She took so many awesome pictures. I am used to going to a lousy studio at JC penney or something, so I am not used to having to choose between so many good ones. Go check them out at this link

Kid's say the darndest things

2008-10-20T19:35:00.000-07:00

Is any one else amazed at the things that come out of their kids mouths. I swear, when they start reasoning for themselves, they really come to some of the funniest conclusions. I love it! Today, Gus got done going to the bathroom. Sometimes he sits, and sometimes he stands. Today he decided to stand. When he was done, he walked out of the bathroom and said, "Mom, you will never be as strong as me, because you can't stand up when you go pee." Okay, where did that come from? I must admit, he is right. Boys do have the advantage of standing when they pee. It doesn't seem like an advantage until you have to go while your camping, running, or doing anything where a toilet is not readily available. I guess Gus already understands the leverage he has over the female population. He's a genius!

On a separate note, Max is really testing me lately. It seems like every time he is either in the bath tub, or just getting out, he decides that it is a good time to go to the bathroom (number 2, and he is not potty trained). I'll just leave it at that and spare you the gory details!

My baby is due in a month and a half, and when it is safe, I am going to start doing squats and lunges to help speed up the process. I am more ancy than usual to get this baby on the outside of my stomach. Oh and by the way, Happy Halloween to everyone!

Autumn is in the air

2008-10-19T07:04:00.001-07:00

This is the Time that the leaves change every year in Flagstaff. Up here, we don't usually get a huge display of different colors, but we do get a glorious display of gold leaves on our aspen trees. We usually try to go hike up by the peaks every year at this time to see the dome of gold. It is really breath taking. This year it wasn't quite as pretty as in years past, but it was still amazing. We found the perfect hike that is not too long for kids, but is still long enough for and enjoyable hike. It went right through a whole lot of aspens. The weather has miraculously warmed up again, and we are no longer freezing! Hooray! I love living here. It is such a beautiful place to be!

There were huge rocks everywhere, and Gus took great pride in his rock climbing ability. It was hard to go very fast on the hike, because he kept insisting on climbing to the top of every big rock he saw.
Max, as usual, was just happy to be there! This is an old cabin that is just off the trail. It was very short. I am so glad I don't have to live there! We took our dog, Boo, with us, and when he gets too far away, we whistle to call him back. Max thought he knew how to whistle too. He kept saying "woo" "woo", and then he would yell Boo's name. It was the funniest.

Just below is Gus performing one of his amazing rock-climbing acts. I was really impressed with some of the rocks he climbed up. He was really having a ball.
Eventually, Gus ended up on Dad's shoulders. After climbing all those rocks, you would be tired too!

Coconino County Fair

2008-10-19T06:46:00.000-07:00

We love going to the Coconino County fair. I must say, there is not really much to it. Our favorite part every year is looking at the animals. There are pigs, goats, cows, chickens, rabbits, you name it. Max especially loved that part. This year, we let Gus ride a couple of the carnival rides, and after that everything else was a bore. We should have waited until the very end to let him ride, it would have made the rest of our time at the fair a lot more enjoyable. He just kept begging to ride more rides, and telling us that the baked goods competition, the plant competition, and the gems and minerals were "stupid" and "boring." The nerve! Paul's brother Kevin entered his Dahlias into the competition (Dhalias are really beautiful flowers that are usually very large. They are usually purple with white-tipped petals). He won first place (most entrees win a prize, that's the benefit of a small fair). Anyway, it was good times for all. We loved it!

This was the first ride Gus got to go on. This was what ruined him. At least Max was easy to please. He could have looked at the animals all day and been happy. Of course he calls all animals "Boo" because that is the name of our dog. He is definitely my animal lover. I am glad because he reminds me of myself. Gus doesn't care as much for animals. He likes them, but he doesn't have a natural instinct to love them. Max tries to hug every animal he sees.

This was ride number two. It was the most jerky rollercoaster ever, but he didn't mind.

shiver!

2008-10-14T14:50:00.000-07:00

OK, I have not been posting lately because I have not been taking pictures, and I figure most of the time, it is the pictures that people care about, but I just had to let everyone know that we are freezing up here in Flagstaff. It got cold overnight. We can't seem to warm up! The one thing I have always said about Flagstaff is that it is very deceptive. You look outside and say to yourself, " looks like a warm, sunny day." But when you go out there, the brutal wind chills you to the bone! Last night, we went for our annual Fox family fall cookout. We go out in the woods where we can see all the pretty leaves changing color, and we eat home made soup and biscuits. Last night was the least enjoyable fall cookout so far. Nobody dared step away from the fire. The kids were all bundled in their winter clothes, and still complained that they were cold. The weather changed from warm to cold so fast that the leaves did not even get the chance to fully change. They all just froze and died in a couple of days. Despite the harsh conditions, we still managed to have a blast, but hopefully, it will be a little warmer next year!

Our lives

2008-09-17T16:03:00.000-07:00

Hey all, just checking in. The last few weeks have been just great. Nothing unusual has happened. I am really just enjoying myself. I am in my 4th week of school now, and it has been really refreshing to be back. I think I am looking at it differently now. The first time I went to college, it was like an extension of high school. I never had a break, and I was completely burnt out. I also am a little bit anal about getting good grades, so I always killed myself in order to get them. The problem was, I was more worried about my grades than what I was about learning. This time around, I am really soaking it all in and enjoying the learning process a lot more. It amazes me how much there is to learn in the world. I could go to school full time for the rest of my life, and still have a lot to learn. It really makes me realize the greatness of our Heavenly Father. He knows everything there is to know, and when I think that I have the potential to be like him, it boggles my mind. I can't imagine ever knowing all the things he knows. I am especially enjoying my anatomy and physiology class. The human body it a fine-tuned machine!

Gus is also going to school now...sort of. We are participating in Joy School. It is like a preschool co-op, where you buy the curriculum and then the mom's rotate teaching. He loves it. Mostly, I think he is just so social that he has been dying to get out and interact with other kids on a regular basis. Ever since he got a taste of preschool when I taught it last year, he yearns for that activity with other kids his age. He is a bit of a class clown, although the jokes he makes don't make sense all of the time, the other kids laugh anyway. I just love kids that age.

Paul is really working hard at school. This is his last semester and he has 21 credits. Luckily he got a great scholarship (good job sugar), so he doesn't have to work this semester. What a great guy. I am so proud of him for sticking with it.

Max is not in school, but he is starting to say a lot of words, and he makes the most hillarious faces these days. My favorite thing to do is just watch him when he doesn't know it. He does the funniest things. He loves dogs, and anytime he sees one he says "boo" because that is the name of our dog. Love that kid.

Well adios, hope everyone is doing well!

Splish splash I'm Takin a Bath

2008-08-26T16:49:00.001-07:00

The last few days we have been having problems with our septic tank, so we have not been able to let any water drain from our house, which eliminates, showers, baths, laundry, dish washing, flushing the toilet, washing hands, etc. Well, our boys get really dirty because they play outside in the dirt every day. Not to mention, it has been raining a lot, so they get muddy too. So we can get water from our sink, as long as we don't let it drain. Paul had the ingenius idea to bathe them in the cooler out back. We could have just bathed them at Paul's parents house the next day when we were going to shower and get ready for church, but Gus and Max had so much fun with it, I think we may bathe like this from now on (not really). As you can tell, they were a little squished.

1st day of school

2008-08-25T12:23:00.000-07:00

Today is Paul's first day of school for his very last semester of college. He has got a crazy schedule, but he handles being busy very well. He never seems to get too stressed unless there is something really wrong. I decided a couple of weeks ago that I was going to go back to school, and thus today was also my first day of school. I have had really mixed emotions about going back. I am so excited, but for some reason, being out of school for 4 years makes me really nervous to go back. I will have to develop good study habits again, and I won't just be able to take off with my kids and do whatever I want. I am going to nursing school. Luckily, because of my previous degree, I have a lot of the prerequisites done, and I don't have to take any Bull crap humanities classes. I think it will be hard to work it in between my kids, but now is as good a time as any. I'm only going to have more kids, and life is only going to get more crazy. One thing that my Mary Kay business taught me is that I will be able to make the time for anything I want to do, as long as it is important to me. My family will always come first, but that doesn't mean I can't do anything for myself. Well, I just wanted to get some of those feelings off my chest. Like I said, I am a bit nervous.

Pet detective

2008-08-23T16:29:00.000-07:00

This week, the most amazing thing happened. Our dog turned up missing (that's not the amazing thing), and He was gone for a couple of days. I went to the Humane Society and made sure he wasn't there. We drove all around Mountainaire looking for him, and I was getting ready to make signs. It was really strange, because I thought he must have gotten run over because, if he was just wandering, he would have found his way home. He is not a runaway-type dog. He always stays close by. Well, after a couple of days, I figured that we would probably never find him, and I was feeling a bit melancholy. As I was laying in bed that night, I was listening, through our open window, to the dogs barking and howling around the neighborhood, and I could faintly hear a dog whining. It was about 10:00 PM. I thought to myself, if someone had Boo, and they weren't letting him sleep in their house, he would be outside whining. I listened a bit more, and decided I had to know if it was him. I got out of bed, and pulled Paul with me of course, and we trecked up and down the streets of town trying to single out the house where the whine was coming from. Paul thought I was totally crazy, and that we were on a wild goose chase for sure. Finally, I said, "the whine is coming from that back yard." So I snuck along the side of their house and looked over their fence, and I could barely make out Boo's black and white spots in the moonlight. It was him! I could see that the people were still awake, so I knocked on their door, and told them they had our dog in their backyard. They said they found him, and didn't just want to let him go without knowing he got home safely. I couldn't believe it. To be honest, I didn't really think I was going to find him. I just couldn't sleep until I found out if that was him whining. It could have been any dog whining, I just felt like it was Boo. I am now officially a pet detective. So if any of you need some work done, I charge $50 per hour to help you find your beloved pets!

blackberries...yum

2008-08-22T19:48:00.001-07:00

Last week, my friend April took me to a spot on Oak Creek to pick wild blackberries. It was a blast. The kids just played in the water while we picked. They also helped eat a lot of them! In just an hour, we got 2 ice cream buckets full. They were so good. We made cobbler that night, and jam the next day. The cobbler was so delicious. I am really gaining weight fast with this pregnancy. Probably because I eat dessert almost every day now that I am not sick anymore. I swear, during the first 3 months, I thought I would never like dessert again, and now I can't get enough of it. Anyway, we had a great time picking blackberries with April and her kids Ryker and Ivy. Here are some pics.

2008-08-16T07:15:00.001-07:00

Dun da da da! And now the moment you have all been waiting for (well at least the one I've been waiting for): OUR FINISHED HOUSE! I did them in a sequence of before and after pictures, so you can all see the transformation.

Before...

and after! (Just keep going, I'm not going to keep typing before... and after)

I'm back in business

2008-08-12T05:59:00.000-07:00

Guess what! Our computer is finally fixed. I really didn't mind not having it except it was very inconvenient for Paul because he had a couple of internet classes this summer. Turns out, we finally got our computer fixed a few days after he was done with them. Let's just say he spent a lot of time at school and at his parents' house. Things are fabulous for us. Our house is done. I mean really done. Last Saturday, we just woke up and sat around, ran some errands and did whatever we wanted. It was great! I did get some ants in my pants though. It is kind of hard to just sit when you are so used to moving all the time. Last night, since we didn't have anything to work on at our house, we went and helped Paul's brother Aaron at his house for family home evening. So many of Paul's family have helped us so much. I was beginning to feel selfish. It felt good to try to do something the help them back.

There has been a lot of family stuff going on lately. First, Paul's sister Andrea got home from her mission about a month ago, so we're having a great time with her. Then, Paul's brother Jeff and his wife Jocelyn came down from Canada with their beautiful baby girl Holly. Then, Paul and I took our kids and went up to Utah for a week for my Grandma's 90th birthday. She is the most feisty 90 year old I know. It was so fun to see all my cousins. All of my brothers and sisters, with their husbands, wives, and kids, crammed into my sister Kary's new house. It was a blast. I stayed up late every night just to take in as much as I could. I really miss my family. I still see them a lot, but I miss being so close to them. When we got home, more family stuff with Paul's family because his sister Carrie is leaving on her mission to go to Philadelphia this Wednesday. She is going to be awesome. It is pretty neat to look at the missionary legacy in Paul's family. Carrie is the 7th missionary to go out. All of the children in his family have served missions except for Kevin and Jana because they are only 16. They are all good kids!

I discovered a few new things that I love. First of all, the game rock band on the WI is a blast to play with your family or friends. I can finally realize my dreams of jamming out with a rock band. Second of all, I am just about to finish the last book in the Twilight series, and I find it very surprising and satisfying so far. I swear, I am trying to put it off because I am going to be so depressed when it is over. I don't mean that I don't think I am going to like the ending, I just will be sad that I can't ever read the books again for the first time. Well toodaloo!

yep, I'm a lame blogger

2008-07-18T10:27:00.000-07:00

Well, as you all can tell by now, blogging is not my strength, but I do have some excuses. Our computer broke about a week ago, and we are seeing if we can get it fixed. I can't wait to post some new pictures because our house is basically done except for a few loose ends, and for those of you who have been following my posts, you will hardly even recognize it. That is basically all I do is eat, sleep, take care of my kids and work on my house. Soon, we will have normal lives again where we can do fun things on weekends, and relax at night. I am becoming a pro caulker and painter though. You should see me go. Gus is a hoot, he says some of the most ridiculous things, and he is very social. He loves to talk to everyone he sees. The other night, we were over at my in-laws house and my sister in law, Kelliane was changing her little baby boy's diaper. Gus walked over and watched over her shoulder. Then he said, "Kelliane, your baby has such a cute weenie." We were rolling with laughter. I knew he just wanted to give her a compliment on her baby, but didn't realize what he was saying was a little bit off. Anyway, every day he says funny stuff. I need to be better at writing it down. Max is a dancer these days, but he usually just taps one leg. There's not much movement in the upper body. It is hillarious. Any time he hears any kind of music, he rocks out to it. My pregnancy is going great. I am not sick any more. I am 20 weeks along now, and I am still not really showing. I just feel like my stomach has more rolls, but I swear, that baby is pushing all my organs around, because it feels like it is just jammed in there. I already have to pee all the time. Well, hopefully we can get our computer working and I will post some pics.

Little sisters

2008-06-02T11:37:00.001-07:00

Just a little update on what's going on with us. This last few weeks we have really been pushing on our house. We hope to have it done this month! ( I am so sick of it, I won't even be sad to sell it!) I am still feeling pretty pukey with this baby stuff, but I think I will feel great pretty soon. When we talk to Gus about the baby, he insists it is a girl. He does not want another little brother. He told us he wants to name his baby sister, Cherry. We just found out that my brother and his wife are having their third girl in a row. They have one boy that is the oldest, and he is pretty bummed because he wanted a baby brother. When we told Gus this, he just perked up and said, "I'll just give Caden my brother (referring to Max), and we can have Caden's baby sister." I asked him, "wouldn't you miss Max?" He said, " no, I don't like Max. I want a sister!" If I ever even say something like, "what if we have a boy?", or "what would you want to name the baby if it is a boy," he just throws a huge fit and says, "I don't want another brother, I want a sister!" So, for both of our sakes, I am hoping for a girl. We are not going to find out what the baby is, so it will be a suspenseful 9 months!

School-end camping trip

2008-05-14T10:10:00.000-07:00

Hey all, I know a lot of you are celebrating being out of school right now. Paul's last final got over last Tuesday, and he decided that to celebrate, we were going camping! Well, it rained Tuesday, so we went Thursday night instead. It is a good thing we weren't going to go yesterday because we got 6 inches of snow yesterday. That's what we get for living in the mountains. In the 20 years Paul's parents have lived here, they have seen snow in every month but August. Anyway, here are some pictures of our camping trip to Beaver Creek.

Paul found a huge spider here on the rock. It was massive, so he played with it for a while. Gus decided he was Tarzan and just climbed all over the place. There was a little waterfall that he kept climbing up. Paul went over and found him and said, "Wow, I can't believe you climbed up here all by yourself!" and Gus said, "Yeah, your so proud of me huh dad!"

After Max got in the water, he was not very happy any more. It was a bit cold. Here is Paul consoling him, and next to that is Gus crossing the creek by himself, again, very proud of his task.

Here we all are at our camp ground. Paul cooked us the most delicious dinner in the dutch oven, and for breakfast, we forgot to bring eggs for our breakfast burritos, so we had sausage, bacon, and potato burritos, very greasy. We topped each meal off with a s'more. Yum!

Sleeping was a little interesting. We wound up with both boys in our sleeping bags, but Gus slept in for a long time, so we finally sent Max in there to wake him up. Pleasant surprise.

Double picture

2008-05-03T06:38:00.000-07:00

Sorry about posting Gus's makeup picture twice. I really have always had a bad memory!

2008-05-03T06:25:00.000-07:00

OK , everyone. I just realized I am a total dork, and I didn't know that people could post comments on my blog. I went through today and read all the comments that anyone has been posting. How fun to hear from everyone. I read comments from like 6 months ago that I didn't even know were there.

Things have been going great lately. I have been so hungry. I have been eating like a cow. That is the only time I feel good is when I am eating. Before and after I eat, I am in a constant state of nausia.

Preschool is almost over. I love my kids, but I am really tired, so it will be nice to have a breather for a couple of months. I am really excited about show-and-tell day, and our big pizza party.

I found this picture, where I think Max totally looks like Donald Trump, but Paul didn't agree with me, so tell me what you guys think.

Things are going really great on our house. We have a swing on our front porch now! I am so excited. The weather is so nice now. In a month, it will even be nice at night time.

OK, so Max is 15 months and still not walking. Oh, but don't let him fool you, He knows how to walk, he just doesn't care. The kid is so content with life as it is. He is by far the happiest, funniest baby I know, but please walk Max, because I am really sick of throwing away all your pants because they have holes in the knees, and when we are camping, I would love to be able to put you on the ground without you turning into a complete dust ball. Everyone keeps telling me, oh, when he walks, he will get into everything. He already does! At this point, it would really be a ton easier if he would just stand up and go his own way! I love the kid!

2008-04-23T09:32:00.000-07:00

I am very sad these days! Our digital camera broke. I feel like I don't want to blog until I have something new to show everyone, but alas, we have no new pictures. Things have been going great though. For those of you who don't know. We live with my brother in law Brad. The other day we were all sitting eating breakfast together and Gus turned to Brad and said "Brad, you should get married in the temple." This was quite funny because Brad is almost 30 and gets this from a lot of people, just usually not 3 year olds. Brad said "why?" and Gus said, "So my mom can do your makeup. We all had a good laugh. Gus likes to play with my makeup at times, so one day I decided to really do him up. Yesterday, we were playing at a friends house, and Gus and his little girl friend Ivy were parading around in princess dresses. It is a good thing he is comfortable with himself.

insight

2008-04-14T19:05:00.000-07:00

Hey all, I have been reading a lot of people's blogs lately and have realized they are all a lot more personal than mine. I have really enjoyed learning more about my friends and family and what they are going through right now. I feel like it keeps me in touch, even though I am not living by them anymore. I must say, it does not feel like I have made close friends as quickly as I usually do. Part of it is because we are a little bit more busy. Another reason is that we don't have a house that we feel comfortable inviting people to. Lastly, I do not have a running partner yet. Nothing makes someone a better friend than running with them every day, and just talking about what is going on in each others' lives. That is really therapeutic for me. Running by myself is also a release, but I really would love some companionship.

Aside from that, I am really learning that the Lord is mindful of each of us. He is really teaching me faith right now. I know that he will take care of our family as long as we are doing what he would have us do. This last 8 months has really made Paul and I reach way deep inside of ourselves to see what we are really made of. It has been a lot of fun too. For those of you who thought I was laid back before, you should see me now. I have to be very laid back in order to survive in our current situation, because nothing ever goes the way we plan, and nothing is ever done when we think it will be, and every month we have to create a new way to pay our bills, but it always works out. Which takes me back to my point that Heavenly Father will take care of us as long as we pay our tithing and live righteously. I have really felt that confirmed to me in the last few months.

My kids have truly been a dream through all of this. For Christmas, we got Gus a tool set and he is always right along side his dad while he is working on stuff. I can't say those are the times that Paul gets very much done. Actually I have found that he gets the most done when we leave town. Max is just always contagiously happy. He makes everyone around him feel good.

Life's happenings

2008-04-10T19:42:00.001-07:00

Life is really great Here in Flagstaff. Paul is working like crazy in school, and good news: he will be graduating next December! I am so proud of him. He really plugs away. I am busy running a small preschool up here. I love it to death. Sometimes I wish we could all be more like little kids. I swear they have so much confidence with who they are at that age. They don't even worry about trying to fit in. They are so happy with just being themselves! I want to know how to raise my kids in a way that they will keep that quality as they grow older. If any of you have any answers, let me know. Anyway, I posted a bunch of pictures, a lot of them are of our house, but hey, that is what we are working on all the time, so if it bores you, you don't have to look. Enjoy! Oh and by the way, little Fox #3 is on the way. That's right, I am great with child!

This is a picture of my dear friend Allison and her husband Adam. I just wanted to give props to her for just recently giving birth to twin boys!
Congrats, and hope you get some sleep!

This is in Utah, I have no idea what Max put in his mouth, but this was the result.

Here are some pictures of when our back patio caved in a few months ago. We had so much snow this year. It has been one crazy winter. Paul and I were standing right by our sliding glass door when it fell, and it was really amazing how much power it came crashing down with. It completely crushed our grill that was sitting underneath, but at least it didn't crush our kids or something!

This is what our kitchen looked like a few weeks ago.

Here is Paul, building our cabinets in our front room, which is being used as a workshop at the moment

Here is the kitchen partly done. At least now the sink is installed!

Gus and Max love living in a house under construction. Here they are playing in the unfinished cabinets

Here is what our kitchen is looking like now. We don't have countertops and we still need a few doors and drawers, but you get the gist of it.

Here is our ceiling in our living room that I spent hours caulking and painting. I'm pretty proud of it.

Here is our hallway bathroom that is mostly done now. Last time I posted a picture of this bathroom was when people were standing in a hole in the floor of it. Looks a lot different now!

BOO!

2008-03-30T06:27:00.000-07:00

This is our dog. We have had him for a while now, but I thought I would introduce him. Gus named him Boo the first day we got him, and it just stuck (Gus had never seen the movie Monster's INC.) Gus likes Boo and really enjoys making him do tricks and giving him treats, but he doesn't "love" Boo, at least not the way Max does. If Boo decides to lie down and relax, Max is right there on top of him. He loves to nuzzle his head into him, and sometimes bite him (Yes, I'm still talking about Max). But that is just what he does when he really loves you. He does it to me all the time. Boo gets a little annoyed but never bites. He is such a good dog for our kids. Also, he sits, stays, and shakes.

2008-03-05T13:30:00.001-08:00

Max was not quite as enthusiastic about having his very own birthday cake as I had hoped. I can't understand why. He is very enthusiastic about food in general.

Gus and I made a cookie monster pinata for his and Paul's birthday on February 12. It was a lot of fun, and it took a good beating too before it fell apart!

Here is Gus eating breakfast in bed on his birthday.

Gus has been very interested when I put on my makeup lately, so I dolled him up a bit. Paul just about killed me, but it was worth it. He looked so funny. What do you think? Would he be a pretty girl?

2008-02-13T09:34:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of sledding with the Sutherlands. The boys love to go sledding, as long as they are really bundled up!

haircut

2008-02-13T08:59:00.000-08:00

Max turned one year old, so we gave him his first haircut. We decided it would be easier if we just buzzed it because he did not want to sit still! We went ahead and did Gus's too. It was very sad to see Max's hair go. He is no longer my little baby!

our house is getting a little better!

2008-01-02T20:48:00.000-08:00

OK everyone here are some recent pictures of our house remodel. If you didn't know what it looked like before, go back and look at the post labeled "our project." Then you will see that we actually have made some progress! It is coming along!

Max has really been a key factor in the remodel of our house. I don't know if we could do it without him.
Here is our bedroom. Don't pay attention to the mess on the bed. That is just junk from our closets, but look at the nice paint job! For those of you who saw it before, you know that this is much better than the custom paint job that was there before!
Here is our guest bathroom. We are working on putting in a new tub and we have to connect it from underneath. Thus the hole in the floor. Needless to say, we keep that door closed!
Here is Paul working on shelves in our linen closet.
we stripped our bedroom closet to build new shelves
Susan helped us to take our decorations off our tree.
For those of you who looked at the previous pictures, you can probably tell that this room has improved a lot. We finally finished mudding, taping, and texturing, so we were able to paint it.
Here is Kelianne in our kitchen. Hopefully Paul will build our new cabinets soon.

Here is our kitchen and our dining room. It isn't usually this messy, but we are in the process of building new shelves in our pantry and closets, so all of our stuff is on the counter.
Here are the boys working on the siding

Here is the outside of our house now. It is really coming along. Paul's Dad and brother Aaron are working on puting up new siding, and Paul and Brad just got finished building that new eve over the front door.

more family photos

2007-12-08T09:16:00.001-08:00

Two naked boys
Gus likes to wear his uncle kevin's football pads!
Here's Max with the hog!
Here's Gus with a goat at the Coconino County fair

Family album

2007-12-08T09:04:00.000-08:00

Max is always happy to eat!
This is the outside of our house.

Look at that full moon! ax Fox.
Here is Gus watching a tarantula that we found in Grandma's yard. Yuk!

family news

2007-12-08T08:55:00.001-08:00

Here is Gus fishing at Oak Creek with his grandpa fox.

This is Gus playing in our back yard with our new dog Boo. They both get very muddy!

This is me with my new car that I earned with Mary Kay. I picked it up 2 days ago, and it has onstar!

Our project

2007-12-08T08:06:00.000-08:00

Many of you know that we are remodeling a house. This is a picture of my brother in law, Brad, and Gus. They are finishing up the mudding and taping in the living room. There used to be dark wood paneling on the walls.

This is the bathroom in the hallway. Obviously we tore the whole thing out. We are starting from scratch in there, but we will do this one first and then tear out the master bathroom.
This is our beautiful master bathroom. There used to be carpet on top of those 3 layers of linoleum on the floor.
This is our bedroom. I don't know if you can see it, but there is a beautiful custom paint job!

This is Gus and Max's room. All the white spots on the wall are from spackled holes.

Here is our dining area. It is usually not that messy, but we have a lot of the stuff that is supposed to be in the living room in the kitchen right now.
This is our lovely kitchen! We tore out the upper cabinets already, and we are leaving in the lower ones until we redo the kitchen. They are really strange cabinets, but they work for now.
This is our front room, and that door is our front door. Right now this is where we are storing most of the tools and junk that we are using to remodel the house. This is the biggest room, and it is going to be really nice when we are done.
This is our purple room. This is my Mary Kay office/computer room/storage room for all of the boxes we won't unpack until the house is closer to done. It looks a little smaller here than it actually is!

Now just turn your head to the side because I don't want to take the time to figure out how to flip this. This is our laundry room. That is the washer and dryer that we found on the side of the road. We now know why they were free: because the washer doesn't drain. The good news is that the dryer works! That is our new dog, Boo.

Hello Everyone

2007-12-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

Well, There are a lot of our family and friends who have not had the chance to visit us in Flagstaff, so I created this blog to show you how our lives are coming a long here. I hope you enjoy!