Monday, June 29, 2009

John's 4 Month Check Up

John has grown well! He is 15.7 pounds and 27 inches. He got three immunizations, one by mouth and two shots. I thought he was able to roll over, but now I think one of the kids must have helped him as he has not rolled over since. We are a bit worried about him because he does not bear weight on his legs and doesn't pull up with his little arms. The doctor said that 90% of kids his age could. So, we are working with him and hopefully his muscles will get stronger.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Happy Birthday Uncle Steve!

Happy Birthday Stephen! We're sorry that we can't be with you today. This picture was taken in August of 1981, when I was 3 and Steve was 2 months. This is one of my favorite pictures. I keep it on the counter in my bathroom to remind me of him everyday. I love you Steve-arino!

Snake River and the John Sack Cabin

This is Parker and Macky in the Snake River. It looks so big and ominous, but is actually very shallow all the way across. We took the kids there for some canoeing. They swam too, despite the cold.We also took the kids to see the John Sack cabin. He was a short man who built this cabin where the water for the Snake River comes from the side of a mountain. It was a really neat little cabin. The guy really new how to take care of himself!
This is Mac and Ryan in front of the spring that heads up the Snake River. You are not allowed to swim or fish or anything in this water, so it is perfect. The fish are enormous!
These boys are so happy to be together!
Here is the launch of the canoe. It was difficult to navigate because the water was so shallow, they really had to watch out for sand bars. They all had a great time!

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

The Men Arrive!

Before the men arrived, there was much talk of an ambush. Matt and Brandon were planning to lurk in corners and surprise the men with an all out assault. It didn't end up being quite so devious, but they did get in some good wrestling. It's what Spencer does best!I only brought one picture book with us, Go Dogs Go. All of the kids loved it. I think Ryan has it memorized now.
Parker got a ranger hat from the gift shop and let Ryan wear it. Ryan loved it. This is how Ryan's face looked most of the vacation. He was in heaven!
Old Faithful was one of my favorite stops. I couldn't believe all of the shops bordering the geyser. It was crazy. We got there about 15 minutes or so before the next eruption. That was plenty of time for people to notice our large brood of children. Between us there were 16 kids. People just didn't know what to do. It was awesome!
This is Maddie in front of one of the many hot springs. You could walk all around and through them on these little wooden platforms. You couldn't touch the water, but you could get really close. The steam was really warm on our faces. The springs were full of interesting colors...and smells!
This is Laura and me before our outing. She's the best!
This is Jeff teaching the kids about fishing. He and Spencer took them fishing in the pond and later took them fly fishing. Spencer really liked learning to fly fish. Most of the kids loved to fish, but not too many were willing to clean their catch. Macky loved eating the fish - that kid is crazy for anything from the water!
This is Parker and Ashley with a catch from the kid's pond.

Vacation Day 4 - Sickness

So, it had to happen. Sixteen children altogether, someone had to get sick. Well, it started with us I'm sorry to say. We did it. Maddie and Ryan got it. Ryan was the worst. I missed many photos that day, but I did get this one. This my attempt to keep him away from the healthy. He sat and watched videos on my laptop.

Vacation Day 3 - First Full Day at the Hill Cabin

Very near to the cabin there are several ponds, swings, and even a see saw. The kids loved it! Matt was super and sat on one end and let the younger girls all sit together on the other. I came outside to see what all of the giggling was about and this is what I saw!

After a trip to the store, they came back with popsicles. The kids were so happy. It's funny how great the little things are.
After a full week of fun and new sites, we asked Macky what his favorite part was. He said, "playing cards." These kids played game after game. It is hilarious to hear them trash talk eachother. My favorite card moment was when I was playing Go Fish with Sam and Ryan. Sam won. He then said (while pointing), "Do you know who the losers are? You and you." I said to him, "You are a Whitehead." It was classic! We laughed about it all weekend!!

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House - Vacation Day 2




Last Monday we went with our good friends to the open house for the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. The night before our visit, Moroni was struck by lightning! When we arrived we went into these nice white tents. They showed a little video about temples in there. Then we got to walk through the entire temple. It is one of the smaller ones, but just gorgeous inside. The kids and I really enjoyed seeing the whole building at once. The artwork was amazing. The kids spent the most time looking at the chandeliers. I think that was their favorite part. After there were cookies and artwork to look at in another white tent. Our kids were ready to go, so we hurried to take a couple of pictures.

Sam the Horse - Vacation Day 1


Saturday, June 13th the kids and I drove to Utah! My fantastic niece Danielle flew out to help me make the trek. She is so awesome! We made it in decent time and had a great sleepover with cousins. After church on Sunday, we went to check out Sam the horse. Our niece Katie has been saving up money for years and finally, two months ago bought Sam. He is a great first horse. He is 9 years old, and Maddie loves him. Maddie and Ryan had a great time feeding the horses apples and special horse cookies. Macky, however, did not enjoy himself. He hated the smell and just wanted to leave! Maddie even got a ride. We offered Ryan the chance too, but he did not want to. He was happy just to brush him and feed him.

Happy Birthday 7th Maddie!


After a fantastic family vacation to Yellowstone Park (more to come), it was time to drive home. It was also Maddie's birthday. Our cute niece Katie painted on our car to make the day festive! What a fun surprise for Maddie. She felt very special on her birthday, even though the whole day was spent in the car.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

John Rolls Over

This morning when Spencer went in to get John, he found John laying on his back. I told him that I had put John on his stomach after his early morning feeding. I've been watching him all day hoping to catch him rolling over again, but so far nothing. He folds over to his side from his back often, so I'm sure rolling will come with ease soon. He's growing so quickly...

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

2008-2009 School Year Artwork

Here is a slideshow of work from the kids. Some of them seem like repeats, but that is just because both Mac and Maddie did some of the same artwork with Mrs. O, the fine arts teacher at school. The picture with the red ribbon is Maddie's. She entered it into the fair and got second place!

Fun Family Night

Spencer and our older kids went out waterskiing last night. They went out on the Stephens' boat with the Woods. Spencer had a fantastic time. He loves to wakeboard! Both Mac and Maddie were able to go out behind the boat on the tube. I think this is Maddie's first time! She's been on a boat lots of times, but she was always too afraid to try before. Spencer and Dave gave it a try together as well. Spencer said Dave Stephens really whipped them around! When Spencer finally let go he rolled over on Dave and then skipped across the lake. Hilarious!


Thanks for the pictures Alison!

Monday, June 8, 2009

Lake Almanor in June

I took the kids up to our family's cabin up on Lake Almanor this weekend. It was our big summer vacation kick off! We worked it out so that we could go up with my grandparents and my Uncle Jim's family. It was a total blast and I hope to make it a tradition. Are you in Cindy? This first photo is of my grandma holding her newest great grandchild - what precious moments!The kids could not wait to make s'mores. Unfortunately, the first night we tried to do them, the gas grill was without gas. The kids were so disappointed. Uncle Jim to the rescue! The next night, Jim went out and got some gas and we had a s'mores party!
Keaton was so sweet with John. I tried to get a shot with both boys looking at me, but it was not to be. John just moves too much! I was so impressed with Keaton's attention to John. He was so nice and gentle.
Maddie LOVES her cousin Kelsey. Maddie followed her around all weekend. Kelsey was such a fantastic sport! Kelsey did hair, painted nails, tickled, watched movies, etc. It was amazing. Kelsey has a seriously devoted follower!
This is our favorite pass time at the lake. Although it was cold, the kids still went down to play in the sand. Kelsey and Maddie built a magnificent sand castle - perhaps the best I've seen on this beach!
Mac and I had fun playing catch while the girls were digging in the sand.
This weekend was so super great because of Aunt Cindy. Every time I turned around she was helping me do something. I never had to ask, she just jumped in there and helped. I think John got very comfy with her!
With a vacation that started with rain and no Spencer, it turned out to be lots of fun.

Piano Recital 2009


Macky performed two pieces for his recital this spring. He was so cool about it. He was reading his book while the other children performed. I tapped him and told him, he was next. He got up, played, came back and began to read again. He was not nervous at all. The whole thing was no big deal. He performed well. He had great family support as well. It was really awesome to see Church friends there as well, with their own children.

Smith Brothers

We caught Macky reading to John. I think they will one day be best buddies!

Game Ball


Macky earned the game ball! He made the last run of this game and the fifth run of the inning! It was incredible. All of the boys were cheering for him and having a great time. It's so nice that they have this way of encouraging and highlighting the boys. So often in sports, everyone gets a trophy. Mac only got one game ball during this season and so it meant alot to him to earn it. Thanks Coach B!

Chico Second Ward Talent Show

Macky performed in our church talent show. He played a piece from Star Wars, and one from Indiana Jones. I wasn't able to watch it, but I heard it from the hall (I was nursing John). The crowd went wild at the end of his songs, it was fantastic. He is super excited to perform again! Thanks Chico 2nd!

Neptune

Macky has really enjoyed the astronomy section at school this term. The planet he chose to do a project on was Neptune. He made a 3-D model of Neptune and it's moons. This picture is of him working on it in the backyard. We had a great time doing it. The next week his teacher had a root beer float party where we got to go and see the project in the classroom along with the many other reports Macky and his classmates had done on outer space. I was very impressed with Macky's power point presentation on Neptune. He drew lots of pictures, scanned them in, typed up facts, loaded some sound and ended up with a neat presentation. He and Lizzie sang a song that they made up about Neptune as well. It was a crack up! I hope that they spend time in outer space every year!