Baseball and Basketball

Ivan just ended his season of winter baseball. He had fun and it was good for him to get used to the kid pitch ball. He has always played with coach pitch and there is a big difference. He had alot of fun and now that the nights are getting cold I'm glad it's over.
Ammon has started basketball and just seems to be a natural, he made 5 baskets last game and seems to understand the flow of the game really well. He is having lots of fun too!
I need to remember to bring my camera with me more often. As you can see we haven't taken any pictures of Ivan or Ammon in their sports this fall. Oh well life goes on.

Halloween

Grace actually looks more like she could be my child in this picture!!
We have a Power Ranger, Ninja, Executioner, Pocahontas, Daddy and Pumpkin. How random is that.

"Oh Bradford"

I've heard that I will really miss this kind of thing someday so I thought I'd better make a record of it. Notice that's a Sharpie permanent marker, good thing we have extra paint. Life with five kids can get kinda chaotic but I really wouldn't have it any other way!!

First Tooth

For the past month I've been telling people that Abigail is almost 5 months then I discovered that she was actually almost 4 months. So for the record she is now four months old. Time really has been flying but not as fast as I originally thought. But I'm posting today because this morning I discovered Abigail has her 1st tooth, a momentous occasion. I love Abby so much and am enjoying her immensely. She has such a good temperament and puts up with so much, with all the touching and tugging and slobbery kisses she gets from her siblings. Not to mention the constant getting woken up from naps. My sweet little angel!!

Rain, Rain

Well the song rain, rain go away comes to mind but when it rained last friday the kids were so excited and wanted to go out and play and of course we did. I love the smell of rain and am so excited that the weather is getting cooler. Here is a picture of Grace in her rain gear that she got from her Aunt Erin, fun stuff!!

Sundays

Here is a good idea I got off someones blog, (wish I could take credit) I thought it was a great idea. In no way do I think I will be perfect at it, but it's always fun to try new things and if it helps me feel like I'm a good mom well, I'll give it a shot.
The idea is to have theme Sundays. For instance..

1st Sunday of the month- Fast and testimony
This Sunday of course you fast but you have your own little testimony meeting at home. We often don't get the chance to tell our family how we feel about the Savior and His gospel but we should and this is a sure way to be able to do this. Also a testimony is gained in the bearing of it so it's a good time for the kids to do it too without the pressure of a huge audience. You could also talk about what a testimony is and what is appropriate to say, etc. Plus talk about fasting.

2nd Sunday of the month- Service
This is a good time for Dad to make home teaching appointments and Mom visit teaching. Not only do you get it done early in the month but you can talk about service and even make cookies with the kids to take around or whatever to serve others Action speaks louder than words in most cases.

3rd Sunday of the month - Family History
This is a good time to tell stories about relatives or "when I was a kid". It is also a great time for journal writing and scrap booking if you do that. What a great week to invite family over too. You could also get on the Internet and do some actual genealogy.

4th Sunday of the month- Missionary
Invite someone to church. Have the missionaries for dinner, write letters to missionaries. Tell mission stories from your mission and get out pictures, eat food from where you served. Pray about who your family could invite to hear the discussions.

5th Sunday (if there is one)- P.P.I.- Personal parent interview
This is the time dad or mom or both can give interviews to their kids. A time they can vent, work out problems or just talk. I like the idea of dad doing it because my dad did it when I was little and well, there is just something nice about getting to sit down and talk with dad instead of mom, maybe because moms are usually around more.

I thought this idea of theme Sundays was great! I'm going to try it and I'm sure there will be those Sundays when it just doesn't happen. I love how it covers the 3 fold mission of the church to proclaim the gospel, redeem the dead and perfect the saints. It is definitely better than coming home and watching football the whole sabbath and maybe if we can do some family stuff I won't feel so frustrated when the TV gets clicked on!!

We love Aunt Barbara

This is Aunt Barbara. She is the kids Grandpa's sister. She lives a mile or so away from us and has been a heaven send for me. She picks the boys up from school everyday so I don't have to interrupt naps or load up the kids in the middle of the day. She is always willing to babysit even at the last minute and when I was feeling sick a week ago she brought over dinner and helped me a ton. I can't even begin to express how grateful I am for her. The best thing is I can tell she really loves us and that makes it wonderful to have her around, who doesn't like to feel loved, right! I know Aunt Barbara will be reading this, so thank you and we love you!!