"Thinkin' and wishin', Hopin' and prayin'

So the temperature decided to send us a heat wave and it actually got above 32 degrees today. Plus, I have to give it that, it is considerably much better than the negative degrees it has been, still... I find myself longing for warmth....warmth from the sun!

I have been thinking about the ups and downs. I am not normally a negative person, in fact I ususally don't have time to dwell on things I can't change or that cause me grief, it's not my thing, but I just have to say that I have been analyzing the ups and downs of living in Montana lately. The weather is definately a downer at the moment. I miss the tulips,daffodiles and anenomes that should pop up right now. I miss that I can't plant my peas, carrots, beets and lettuce right now, in fact, I still have to wait two months before I do. At the present my garden is still frozen solid and under snow. I miss spring walks about this time of year, I am stir crazy to get out and breathe warm fresh air. Not that there aren't good things like.....well I can't think of any at the moment, but that doesn't mean I won't try really hard to find them. You know focus on the positive... but that will have to be a diffrent day right now I am longing for this....

{this is for you hun!} Why don't I live here, right on top of this bluff! Right in that patch of sun. I would never go inside! I would stay outside digging in the dirt all year long, can't you just see a herd of goats a few cows and chickens grazing there? I can!

And every night I would stroll along the beach with my family. In the warmth. With no shoes.
and eat the coconuts and mangos, pineapples and avocados, crab and fish that just wildly grow all around. I am pretty sure I could just live off the land and that would be totally cool! After all civilization is way overrated, don't you think?
So here's to memories, cause that's all I get at the moment, but I will take them!

{Fin, Noggin', Dude!}

How cute is this? Caleb taught Emma this at breakfast this morning! She adores him, and he her! {FIN}

{NOGGIN"}

{DUDE}

So many people ask me how I can handle six kids and how I could possibly want to have another. Honestly, The things they teach each other amazes me. The love they have for each other makes them totally blessed. I feel sorry for the first ones I had who only had me and Ryan to love on them all day. Look at Emma. She is loved immensely by 5 siblings! as well as her parents! Who could be luckier? They all are so blessed to be able to have each other.
The highlight of my life is seeing them make each other laugh, and tease each other, and beat the tar out of each other and then laugh it off and build a fort together!
Life Is Bliss!
Why would I not want to add another to the mix?
Life is already insane...and I am pretty sure in English class I learned that there is no such word as {INSANER}

{29 Weeks}

Not really sure how time is flying by so fast! I can't believe that I am so close to having another baby. It seems surreal. I have laid out for the kids all the landmarks of what has to happen before the baby comes;...Christmas{gone}, Caleb's Birthday{long gone }, Emma's birthday {So long}, Valentine's Day {blink of an eye}, Mara's birthday {over} trip to Utah, Easter, grandma and grandpa coming home from their mission. As you can see the list is dwindling. Not much left before the big day! I am feeling great though, as long as I keep myself zoned, and drink my green drink to keep the leg cramps away. We are getting so excited. Emma who has insisted from the beginning that this is a boy baby coming brought me a headband the other day and told me it was for the baby to wear. When I told her that boy babies didn't wear headbands she was not so happy. Later when someone asked her what gender the baby was going to be she said "well, I changed my mind! It's a girl 'cause boys can't wear headbands."

Had the ultrasound and all looks great! The baby had big feet pressed up to my belly and they were perfect. It is laying sideways right now, but there is still plenty of time for it to get it's navigational bearings right. So we just wait, and try to keep warm since the cold spell is dragging on and keeping Great Falls in it's clutches. I long for warmth and being able to get out of my driveway without 4-wheel drive. -20 is just not right when March is just days away.

{Carousel in Helena}

For Mara's birthday she wanted to ride the carousel in Helena, so Saturday, we headed out even though it was snowing!"Look Mom, No hands!"

I think we have a daredevil on our hands!
It was so much fun!

Even Sam enjoyed riding his mountain goat! :)

Max, of course, had to pick the "knight horse"!

It had a sword on it, naturally.

Caleb picked the wolf!

Noah is always hiding from the camera, So naturally, I made him as embarrassed as possible, not only a picture of him, but one of his mother hugging him!

Love you NOAH!

Sam got me and Ryan!

After we ate homemade icecream at the little icecream parlor attached to the carousel.

It was so good! I had Hot Chocolate(with cayenne pepper) and prailenes and Cream

the best was "Nerdy Purple cow" that Noah and Caleb got.

Loved it!

After we went to Target so Mara could pick out a present with the money Grandma gave her for her birthday. She chose...a play ironing board, so she could iron her baby's clothes...she is all girl!

{Ice Skating}

We have been trying to go iceskating for a long time and we finally made it.

Max was pretty hesitant to go...but he rollerblades really well, so we finally convinced him.

And guess what!!! He loved it of course.Can't you see that grin!

He used a chair for a little while, but pretty soon was on his own!
They even had skates small enough for Mara and Emma!
The boys mostly just pushed them around on chairs, they loved it!
It was all fun and games until....

I ended up on my bahookey! ?Yep 7 months pregnant and landed flat on my tailbone!

After telling my family (all 7 of them) to back off because I was so embarassed, and they were making a scene, I managed to get to a chair on the side where I had to catch my breath.

It hurt so bad I really thought I was going to throw up.Thank goodness I didn't

That ended our night unfortunately, but we had a great time and hope to go back soon!

Mara's {5}

It is hard to imagine that at one point in my life I thought I would never get a little girl! And now here she is FIVE years old!

She is amazing! We love her so much and cannot imagine what our family would be like if she hadn't joined us.

She is always thinking of others, she is always smiling, she is patient, she is so loving and quite the little mother to her dolls, sister and brothers! She is a take charge woman(I wonder who she gets that from?) and she will instruct the boys what to do...funny thing is that even though they are older, they listen to her. I love watching her grow and learn and discover new things! It is the highlight of my life!

She is learning to read and insists everday on sitting down and doing her "schoolwork" She is quite the reader and writer already. She loves to sit and color for long times, something her brothers never did. The best part of my day is when she lays on my lap and falls asleep during scriptures! We love this lady! She is a whole hand!!!

Look at all those presents!

Loving the pillow pet from Yiaya and Papou


" My Little Pony" Cake

"Happy Birthday to you!"

We love you MUCHER!

{Pink Spongy}

A moment of this!
A head full of this!

Valentine's Day Thank you's!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Just had to add this "lovey" lady's new sunglasses!

She loves them !

I am lucky enough to have three of the most amazing teachers for my boys at the elementary.

They all LOVE their teachers, so when I suggested we get them something for Valentines, they were so excited!

I found Valentine's Day mugs at Michael's for .....

$0.79
I had seen such a cute cookie bouquet on my friends food blog

www.snowdelicious.blogspot.com

So yesterday we spent the day making these!

The kids are so excited to give them to their teachers!
I love Valentines Day!

I also am going to have an ultrasound today.

I like to wait until after 26 weeks, I will be 28 weeks on thurday.

I am excited to see this little one kicking in there. It is so active! I also am anxious to see which way it is laying in there! I am almost positive it is not head down, which I why I can't breathe when I bend down to pick things up off the floor, or when I eat.

We will not however, be finding out boy or girl!

A girl has so few surprises in her life! Gotta take the ones we can get.

{Princess for a Day} Emma's 3rd

Happy Birthday to my Em's

Immediately after the bath she put on her Cinderella gown and wore it the rest of the day!

I love this lady! She is so spunky and talks like she is 5. She has been so excited for her Birthday! and since she has been telling everyone she is 6, 3 is getting closer to it.

She is so fun to have! I love her little personality!Love the hip thrust! She is all girl!
She wanted a "Fancy Nancy" tea party...with friends of course,
So Evalee, Kayani, and Lacey came all dolled up!

We had food on frilly toothpicks of course.

fruit and meat and cheese, really fancy since it was on a frilly toothpick!

They even made their butterfly placemats themselves!

Then we painted nails!

And ate cake!

{Have to say I was so excited that I actually made a cake that

looked like what I was going for!}

Em's wanted a cake that was Strawberry Shortcake's house!

{Thank you bundt pan and scrapbook paper!}

Em's holding up her fingers to show she is 3!

Love how she holds the middle one down with her thumb!

Then present time!

We only opened the ones her friends gave her, the rest we saved for later!

She was surprisingly fine with that!

Thanks for coming girls! It was a great tea party birthday!

Later she opened her other presents,

Then we ate Little Ceasar's pizza for dinner!

What a great birthday!

Surprise! We've Got Baby Goats!

We didn't think we would have baby goats this spring....We didn't have a billy goat(you know the male counterpart to the whole birds and the bees thing)! Apparently, a baby boy has no problem getting the whole herd pregnant!

Are you sicked out? I am. He was still nursing! Come on!

I just have to chock this up to you live and learn!

So last night Noah and Sam headed out to feed the goats and came in with a cry of...

"We have babies...."

Try explaining that one!

It was so cold though, and they were just freezing and getting trampled by the other big goats. Good thing we found them when we did, especially since we weren't looking for them.

We had to put them in our coats to warm them up.

"Mango", the mama.

Caleb keeping the little girl warm....
I think we will name her "Rosy" jury is still out though.

Me keeping the little boy warm.

Great! another boy!

We did casterate all them except the one that we were going to sell to a lady.

When it was time to sell him, she informed us she had gotten one from someone else....Thanks for that!

Sorry little man, but you will be de-throned! If you know what I mean.

Now looking at the other goats, We think they are pregnant as well....guess I will get to milk this year anywhoo!