Back in Black

Merry Christmas from the Blacks

2011-12-02T15:42:00.001-08:00

This may be as close as we get to a Christmas card this year .... I messed around with the camera this afternoon in prep for a photo shoot I am doing tonight, so I thought that I would try and get a few shots of the kids and myself for practice. I'm sure that Jared will be upset that he missed the whole event. Don't worry. I have a good pic of Jared in mind to post soon! Have a great Christmas if I don't post again on this blog until after the holidays are done!

New Pics of Jared and Kor

2011-08-08T08:21:00.000-07:00

Jared, I know that you love it when I post pictures of you on the blog, but I thought that this one of you turned out great.

Alright Dad, here's the new pics of Koria for your wall. Sorry you didn't like the ones from before ... actually I like these better too. I just can't get enough of that red hair! She's a babe. Here you go!

More Fam Pics

2011-07-13T14:35:00.000-07:00

This time around, we have a shot of Shanell's group with Cade's arm down. I like the other one better, but thought that I would include both for you just in case. Becky, I can't remember which direction you wanted the one of us as sisters, so I edited a couple both ways.

Family Shots

2011-07-13T14:29:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not taking shots at my family. Just shots of you. There's a difference. Here's the promised individual family shots, minus ours, Derek, and Becky. Why is it that our family can never take a good picture all together? Curse of the 2 sets of twins, I guess. Same as before ... you should be able to get the files right from this blog. Any problems? Call me and I'll send them to you via email.

Mom and Dad

2011-07-11T13:47:00.001-07:00

Mom and Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, Sharon and Michael ... it's all the same. I think you two look better than ever. I'm proud to be your daughter. Just look what a wonderful family is following in your footsteps. That's pretty amazing, don't you think? I love you both very much.

Ashlyn

2011-07-11T13:44:00.000-07:00

Ashlyn, one of these days, you are going to let the rest of us enjoy you other than just your parents. In the meantime, thanks for giving me some smiles for the pics.

Layne

2011-07-11T13:42:00.001-07:00

Layne, I know that I'm a bit one-sided on this debate, but I think you are extra special. That deep growly laugh gets me every time. I had to through in an extra shot of you because they were too hard to chose from.

Luke

2011-07-11T13:39:00.000-07:00

Luke Buke, you are one funny boy. I love your laugh, your smile, your tender side ... just not the early terrible two phase you've just begun. I knew what that red hair meant the day you were born.

Dorrin

2011-07-11T13:35:00.000-07:00

Dorrin, aka Smiley Pants ... I think that you and Landon should have a smile-off contest. Don't know who would win, but it would be a pretty tight race for first.

Landon

2011-07-11T13:01:00.000-07:00

Landon, your "smile" makes me smile. Thanks for giving up the hat for the shots too.

Kimball

2011-07-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

Kimball, if you had an indian name, it would be "Boy With Boundless Energy." Love ya man. Keep the super smooches coming my way, buddy.

Koria

2011-07-11T12:56:00.001-07:00

Korker, you're a nut. Don't even know where to start, and as I already cover a high majority of you in our other blog from day to day, I'll keep this short. I love ya.

Kedryn

2011-07-11T12:54:00.001-07:00

Kedryn, you fit right in with your family. I don't think that there is any mistaking that you belong with your parents and siblings. Keep keeping them in line, dude.

Cade

2011-07-11T12:52:00.000-07:00

Cade, you truly are one of Kimball's best buddies. Thanks for taking off the hat for me to get some pictures of you. I owe you one.

Nicole

2011-07-11T12:48:00.000-07:00

Nicole! Babe-a-lish! What out world, here comes Coli, the 7-year-old bomb-shell. You look stunning.

Elise in Photoshop

2011-07-11T12:43:00.000-07:00

Elise, Luke went nuts today when he came into the room and saw me editing your picture! I think you are one of his favorite. Love your spunk, kid! You look more like your mom all the time too. Just don't adopt her punching abilities ... I'll tell you about it sometime ... just not when she's around. I'll even show you some scars on my biceps to prove it.

Kaitlyn

2011-07-11T12:36:00.000-07:00

Kaitlyn, you look older all the time. I guess that's redundant. I think you are going to pass me up height-wise any day now too.

Micah

2011-07-11T12:32:00.001-07:00

Micah, you vixen, you! I could have edited a lot more pics, but I figured that this was enough. You look gorgeous. Love that red hair!

Tyler

2011-07-11T12:29:00.000-07:00

Here's a look at Tyler. I added on extra of Mariah too. Who needs professional senior photos when you've got Aunt Keni?

Tyler was laughing so much that I had a hard time getting a picture of him with his eyes open.

Mariah

2011-07-11T12:25:00.000-07:00

(my fav)

Time for the annual Bates Family grandkids photos. Here they are, listed from oldest (Mariah) to youngest (Ashlyn). I will post them over multiple posts. I tried to edit at least 3 photos for each child so that you have options to chose from (for those who want the files). Let me know what you think. Hope you like.

So without further comment, on with my nieces and nephews!!!

Last of the Cali pics

2011-03-21T13:21:00.000-07:00

Like I said before, for the details on the trip, refer to our other blog. Gotta run.

More shots from Cali

2011-03-21T13:18:00.000-07:00

Few Pics From Cali Trip

2011-03-21T12:43:00.000-07:00

Just a few pics from our trip to California March 8-13th. All the details are on our other blog, and since I have neither the time or the sanity to type up all the details again, you will just have to refer to it if you want to know more about these shots. Let's just say we had a great time, came home exhausted, and are happy it so well. Love ya Cook. You made it all possible and worth it!

2011-02-03T20:39:00.000-08:00

Luke has started imitating faces really well. This is an imitation of Jared's that he likes to do. Sometimes he'll hold it for several seconds, which is awesome!

The Black Kids

2011-01-23T18:44:00.000-08:00

Koria

Kimball

Luke

Layne

One of the advantages of the digital age is that you can take as many pics of your kids as you want. My most-photographed subjects are always our children. When we returned home from Stake Conference today, I thought I'd take a couple pictures of each one and noticed how old they look. Time's going by too fast. Here's a look at the Black kids, as of today.

Same Area, Different Seasons

2011-01-22T13:55:00.000-08:00

That's a good summary for both our lives right now, and also the look of land. We're still in Huntington, Utah, still trying to keep up with craziness.

I took the last three photos this past fall, but I just took the top one on Thursday. Same area, lots of change. I posted several other photos from the day on our other blog, but just thought that I'd hurry and post this one here for a comparison on how things look, depending on what time of the year it is.

Best Shot of the Season

2011-01-07T13:15:00.000-08:00

Happy (late) Holidays from us.

The Next Great Movie Duo

2010-10-31T09:53:00.000-07:00

I just might make this our scene saver.

The Big Night

2010-10-31T09:27:00.000-07:00

Today is officially Halloween, but for us, we celebrated all things creepy last night. In the #2 spot as his favorite holiday (bested only by Christmas, and that's by a very small margin), Jared went all out in his attempts to make a spook alley for the kids in the back of the house. They helped by making their own pictures of ghosts, witched, jack-o-lanterns, and other various ghouls for the wall decor. We bought some pumpkins, but ran out of time to carve them. Koria got to dress up in her fifth costume of the week, and we all enjoyed the trunk-or-treat put on by our ward, which turned into a church foyer-or-treat as it started pouring rain just as the outside festivities were to begin. We dished out two gigantic bowls of Halloween goods, with only a few left to spare, and received the same amount back in what Koria and Kimball were given. Princess Leia and Darth Vader were the ultimate Halloween couple, although the Skunk Boy and Dragon Girl tied for first place. I got to drive in to Walmart and buy a new battery for the car (yeah!) and cold medicine (although I still can't breath), which was treat enough for me, and we all enjoyed driving to some neighbors and friends' homes for some traditional trick-or-treating adventures. One of our neighbors, the Thomsons, get really into Halloween. They have a whole array of mechanical people and horrors set up in their yard. Their latest addition this year was a moving redheaded girl that screams and moans. It was so lifelike that we thought she was real until we approached her (they happen to be redheads themselves). Ed asked if we "liked his new redhead." Awesome! One things for sure, ours DID NOT. The kids get so scared that Jared has to carry them to-and-from the door. Jared eats it all up. He's actually in awe of the Thomsons. Koria and Kimball have been telling me since last night that they are "never going to the creepy house again." We'll see next year. I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking, and include a few other pics from the night in another post.

Layne

The Loot

Leia and Vader

Luke

Just the Beginning ... Or The Middle

2010-10-28T12:33:00.000-07:00

The title refers to the fact that we are now officially done with our third Halloween Party of the week, with a couple more to go. Today marked Koria and Kimball's preschool Halloween Party/Parade. Jared was kind enough to stay with Luke and Layne while I went with the older two to help them out. After a stunning parade around town, we visited some local businesses for Trick-Or-Treating, then followed that up with passing out treats to each other, a few songs and activities back at the preschool, and finished up with Koria and Kimball detailing to me the enormous bags of loot they'd scored to top it all off. Here's the three of us right before we headed over to the festivities this morning. And for those of you thinking, "How long is Kendra going to go as the seventies hippies chick, the answer can be explained by the following:

Jared returned home late last night after his latest business conference in St. George to find me in the middle of entertaining Koria and Kimball with games of "Red Witch, Green Witch," "Witchy-Witch May I?" and any other variations of a game turned-Halloweenish you can think of (I'd promised them that they could stay up and see their dad). 70 piles of Halloween treats needing to be put into bags lay atop the cupboards (I'm going to need to get used to doing double duty on snacks for the rest of my life). Koria insisted on wearing her third costume of the week (this time a witch) for the party the next morning. I'd realized the night before that Layne had an appointment with her occupational therapist an hour before the Preschool Halloween Party was to begin ... and that's when I reread the note K&K's teacher sent home from school requesting that all parents come dressed up in a costume themselves, as it would "make it funner for the kids."

"Aaaaaahhhhhhhh" ..... that's me groaning.

Well, this year, funner equals the old seventies outfit.

Sooooooo .... this morning, after getting four kids under four ready for the day, two complete with costumes and suitable hairdos, and one therapy session underway, Jared showed up to let me have the chance to go with my older set of twins while he watched the younger two. I have to say, Layne's therapists liked the outfit. They liked my New York smoker accent. They didn't seem to mind that it's a five-year repeat.

Moral of the story is, get used to the girl from the Bronx. She's gonna be around for the next several years -- at least as far as I can see.

Chillin' before the parade began

This is one of Kimball's and Koria's good friends, Cassidy. She invited them to her dance class Halloween party on Tuesday right before school. That marked Koria's second outfit in a week's time period. Kimball, thankfully, has been just great with being Darth Vader, "as long as it scares the girls and makes them scream," according to him. Did I mention that I've been jump starting the car for the last week because our battery has been having issues and it just happened to die on me at the dance studio when I went to pick them up? Yeah, Cassidy's dad helped me jump it again. The kids were only ten minutes late for school. Maybe I should have dressed up that day too, and the teacher would have been more entertained by our tardiness.

I thought this shot was great from the parade. I loved their costumes. I know the mom of these two little ones, and she's expecting again. She told me that it was only appropriate that she play the part of Rizzo. If you don't get that, just rent a copy of "Grease" for the night. You'll laugh.

And when I said loot to describe the kids' Halloween treats from the day, I really should have termed them as being "a haul," because they were. I didn't know if they would be able to even carry their treats out of the school! Things sure have changed since the time I was in preschool .... WAIT .... I never was.

I was robbed.

Oh well, I'm not in the mood for a repeat. Guess the kids will just have to share with me. To tell you the truth, I don't think they'll notice if I just slip a few myself.

Can't wait to see how much more we'll end up with by Saturday night.

Fog 2

2010-10-19T08:32:00.000-07:00

Fog 2

2010-10-19T08:24:00.000-07:00

Koria and Kimball headed off early this morning on their way to a fieldtrip to the dentist's office. They assured me that they would not touch anything. We'll see how much our bill is after they return. When we drove over the the preschool, we found ourselves in the middle of a thick fog, and with the early morning sun coming up, I had to run back to the house and grab the camera to capture some of it. Nature is magical.

I found some other great scenes on the way, so here's a few more from Luke, Layne, and my drive this morning.

Alright, here's the other blog again

2010-10-18T19:20:00.001-07:00

For those of you who don't remember the other blog, as has been noticed per email, Facebook, this blog, I'll give it to you again. It's as follows:

http://knowhowtopicem.blogspot.com

I update that one at least a few times a week. Later yo.

Fall Break 2010

2010-10-17T20:41:00.000-07:00

I'm finding it hard to keep up to both blogs these days, so as always, if you're curious at a more up-to-date look into our lives, just check out our other blog. On to other things, here's just a few pictures that I took while we were up in Sugar City for the past few days for Fall Break. All but the first picture were taken at the cabin last Thursday. Becky and the kids and I decided to head up to the cabin and the beautiful October weather that we're all enjoying.

And this first pic? Well, I'll just sum it up by saying that Luke has two great loves in his life:

One being his Aunt Becky (I'm only #1 when she's not in sight), and the other being food. He really enjoyed the whipped cream used for strawberry shortcake last Friday night.

Ash Berries in Fall

The Aspens

Old Yellow Screamer

The Tetons from a field on the far west end of the valley (I'm loving figuring out my zoom lense!)

Grandkids

2010-09-09T14:58:00.000-07:00

While up at the cabin this past weekend for both labor Day and in support of my dad, who just found out a couple of weeks ago that he has stage IV Melanoma, I volunteered to take pictures for my parents of all of their grandchildren for their wall of fame in their home in Sugar City. I thought it only appropriate to start off the lineup with the two who started it all -- sure glad you did, Mom and Dad. I owe you the world! They're pictured in order, from youngest to oldest. Hope I didn't mess up .... I'm sure I'll hear about it if I did.

Ashlyn

(sorry for no picture here, kid. I understand you'll be arriving into the family any minute. Hope all goes well, Lance and Katrina!)

Layne

Luke

Dorrin

Landon

Grandkids (cont)

2010-09-09T14:51:00.000-07:00

Kimball

Koria

Kedryn

Cade

Nicole

Grandkids (cont)

2010-09-09T14:45:00.000-07:00

Elise

Kaitlyn

Micah

Tyler

Mariah

Good-Things-to-Come

2010-08-29T19:43:00.000-07:00

Good-Things-to-Come

This is a short video from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the church to which we belong, that gave me a lot to both think about .... and cry about today. I hope that you view it and enjoy it as much as I did, especially if you've ever lived in or around Kannaraville, as we have. There are many more like it that you can view for yourself on the Church's official site at:

www.lds.org

Just Us ... Just Today.

2010-08-28T19:22:00.000-07:00

Jared and Becky introduces K&K to "Star Wars" while I was in the hospital with Layne, and let me tell ya, it's a hit. They have been begging and begging to watch the series, so Jared let them watch episode one today (whatever it's named -- I'm not too big on the new ones). Following our cleaning out of the garage (refer to our other blog as to why Koria correlates it to the Lord trying His people's "patience and faith"), they talked their dad into letting them watch "A New Hope," per request of Kimball. He gets a kick out of the fact that Princess Leah gets captured in that one. This is a pic of the punks, mid-movie.

Meanwhile, Luke and Layne were waking up from a nap, rolling around and bouncing up and down in their cribs. Layne's learned a new skill the last few days -- hamming it up for the camera. Put a lense in front of that little girl's face, and she wips out the mega-cheeser.

Luke's still working on those molars, clearing off the finish on the side rails of his crib in his downtime, as seen in the background. Makes me cringe just thinking about it. He doesn't seem to mind though. He's still happy as ever, as long as I'm within sight. He's taken a liking to biting my clothes too, especially my pants. It's been so hot here this month that I've hesitated to even wear them, but I learned my lesson when Luke got ahold of one of my legs the other day and gave me quite a surprise. Hence, I'm dealing with heat, not bite marks.

And that's just us ... just today.

And the last pics that I'll post from Tuesday ....

2010-08-26T10:57:00.000-07:00

All right, I'll exercise some self-restraint and not post any more pictures from the day. There's just so many I love. Anyway, here's the last of this four-part post.

Chillin' at the "I Am A Child of God" Exhibit for Children in the Church History Museum of Art (which I recommend taking your kids to if you live close by)

Kimball moving the cars through the maze by magnet

Koria playing the part of Mary

Small in comparison

The Black Family on the Square

More pictures from Tuesday

2010-08-26T10:40:00.000-07:00

Refer to the last couple of posts for explaination as to where we were at and what we did on Tuesday. Yeah, I'm just excited to post anything.

Dad and Layne

Koria in front of the Salt Lake Temple (with the ten plus stickers she managed to get from the nurse at Primary Children's)

Kimball in front of the temple

Here's some quotes from the last few minutes as he watches me type:

When I told him that he could go have some fun playing in his room with Koria, "Mom, fun's just too fun for me. Koria just likes to throw me around and spin me up in circles."

When he asked me if he could play the Wii and I told him that there are a lot more exciting and good things to use his time doing in life, "But I have done other things today, Mom. I ate breakfast and stuff."

When saying the prayer this morning, "Heavenly Father, I thank thee that Mom's so brilliant." I love that kid.

When on the couch, waiting for the fifth snack of the day, "Mom, my tummy's exhausted. It just needs more food."

And from Koria regarding the same issue, "Waiting ..... waiting ..... waiting....." in a singing voice, over and over, and over ......

Joseph and Emma

More of Jared (he's gonna kill me)

Pictures from Tuesday, August 24th

2010-08-26T10:33:00.000-07:00

Like I mentioned in the post below, we maximized the day after Layne's doctor's appointment with a few different activities. The next few blogs will highlight a few of those, mostly in picture.

Lion's Head at the Lion House

L&L swinging at the Orem City Park

Nap time on Temple Square (notice what Layne loves to do during naptime)

Luke enjoying the shade

Scenes from the reflection pool

Kleefstra Syndrome

2010-08-26T09:57:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, we received a call from a geneticist that looked at Layne while she was admitted to Primary Children's Hospital. We had been concerned about her development and abilities already, but he decided to do some genetic testing after several questions and physical exams where done. To sum up the results of that genetic testing, Layne's just been diagnosed with a very rare genetic disorder called "Kleefstra Syndrome," a problem with the 9th chromosome. It has only been discovered over the last three to five years due to advances in the way chromosomes can be examined and studied, and because of that, Layne is one of only a small number of people to be diagnosed in the world, the first seen at Primary Children's. There are some specific issues that result from this, which you can read up on more fully, if interested, by doing a search for Kleefstra Syndrome on the internet. That'll save me a lot of time a detailed explanation, but what it all comes down to is that, from what is known, she will be facing some physical and mental disabilities throughout her life, which we feel blessed to know about and encouraged to help her with. Some of the feature of this disability include:

Developmental delay

Learning difficulty or disability

Recognisable facial appearance

Low muscle tone

Possible heart conditions

Sleep difficulties

Seizures

Behavior difficulties (similar to those with Autism)

Strabismus (the syptoms she has already shown with her eye sight)

Slightly unusual hands or feet

Hearing impairment

Kidney anomalies (which we have already ruled out for her)

Connective tissue disorder

Patches of lighter skin colouring

Dental anomalies

Possibly, overweight

Layne fits a lot of the symptoms, and not so much the others, but she will be needing extra help from professionals, and family alike. We were quite relieved to find out that there is help for her, what the condition is, and that this is managable, at least from what is know to date. She's one special girl, and we value her and all of our children. We have hope for the future, and know that she's come to us the way that our Father in Heaven meant her to, that with His help, all things are possible.

We found all of this out early on Friday morning, and then decided to make the most of the day by wandering around Temple Square with the kids, enjoying some Mongolian BBQ and all-you-can-eat ice cream (especially Luke!), and an afternoon at the Orem City Park. Since Koria and Kimball zonked out on the trip home, we treated them to a late-night movie of "The Empire Strikes Back." They are now convinced that they are Han Solo and Princess Leah. I caught them pretending to call each other on make-believe phones yesterday while they were playing outside, using the names Han Solo and "Princess," as Koria prefers to be called. They really have an imagination. They've decided that Star Wars characters will be a good theme for all of us this year for Halloween. We'll be sure to take pictures.

Thanks for all of the prayers and support on our behalf. We've found peace over the last couple of weeks, due to our own prayers and many of yours, the temple, scriptures, and the gospel in general. I have a new theme for life. I messed up some wording while offering a prayer this past week, and accidentally said, "I have faith in life before death," instead of "after," but caught myself and started to think, "It's as much about having faith in life here and now as it is having hope of a perfect life to come. We're going to try and live each day to the fullest, enjoying each step in the journey. Hard to say when five loads of laundry still need to be folded, kids fed, changed, etc., but each day offers some spark of happiness if we'll let it. Hope you join us on the journey.

2010-08-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

Uh, so things change fast. Like overnight. Last Thursday when Layne woke up, I picked her up and look at her eye only to notice that she had developed a massive pocket of infection on white of her right eye. I called her opthamologist in SLC, rushed her in only to have it burst and drain all over the place in the doctor's office, spent the night in a hotel with her while giving her eye drops every hour on the hour all through the day and night, and followed up that next morning (her first birthday) with an 8:00 a.m. appointment to find out that she needed to be admitted to Primary Children's Hospital to have another emergency surgery on her eye done that day.

To make a long four days a lot more short, and due to lack of time right now to type up the details, Layne and I arrived home again on Sunday night around 9:00 p.m. I'm giving her antibiotic treatments a couple times a day at home through a picc line that was put in on Saturday in the hospital, which yesterday she managed to yank on and made me freak out at the sight of all the blood that came out of her picc line sight. Not fun. The home health nurse rushed over to change the dressing, and other than a high fever she's started to run today, she's doing better. Hope that the fever drops or we may have a chance of being admitted tomorrow again when I drive her back up to the doctor's for a follow-up appointment. Her eye is definitely looking better through. She's one tough little girl. She hardly complained at all through the whole process. Her doctor mentioned to me that she's one of his favorite patients of all time. So good natured. She's my little hero. Keep her in your prayers for me. Thanks, Kendra

Layne's Eye Muscle Surgeries

2010-08-10T09:24:00.000-07:00

Layne just underwent a double eye muscle surgery at Primary Children's Hospital on August 3rd, one week ago today. I haven't had a chance to post any pics as of yet, but here's a few from the hours following the procedures and also the last few days. We are hoping that the procedures will help in correcting her eyesight so that she'll be able to focus her eyes and start to catch up with her developmental skills. She did great through the whole procedure and is now fighting off infection in her eyes. Her fever has dropped off and we are hoping that that is a good sign. Her optometrist who performed the surgery said that it will be a full three weeks until we are able to tell if it has been effective or not. IF not, we will go back in and have the surgeries repeated. We're hoping for the best.

This was taken in the recovery room. The staff told us to expect her to sleep most of the day due to the effects of anesthesia. She slept for about two hours and wanted to party with me all that night. That's my girl!

We tried to entertain her with a pacifier, which she didn't want to suck on, just play with. That's usually the case in our family.

She screamed off and on until we either fed her, or until we put her in her car seat to head for home. I caught her smiling and laughing as we started to pull out from the hospital. It was hilarious.

This picture was taken on Thursday morning. Layne had been running a fever for a couple of days and I finally just let the kid tough it out in her diaper. I also gave her her first haircut. Stylin', isn't it?

And here's the bug this past Saturday. Looks miserable. I think that both she and I are catching a bit of a summer cold. Oh well, she's doing great. Thanks for all the prayers on her behalf, and all of the calls to see how she's progressing. I'll try to keep you up.

Aviles Family

2010-08-09T10:43:00.000-07:00

I left from being with the ladies in Park City and headed for the Provo Temple, where some friends of ours, the Aviles Family, were going to be sealed to each other and their children. It was a special day for not only for them, but for those of us who were blessed to share in the experience. This young family, new members of only one year, are just pure in their love for one another, and it was evident in the way they treated each other. The brother who performed the sealing was fluent in Spanish, the Aviles Family's native language, so most of the event was done in Spanish. Even though I could not understand all of the words spoken, I could feel them. I was literally brought to tears as their three beautiful daughters, Stephanie (age 8) and their twin girls Chanelle and Rashelle (around 18 months) were brought in to the room and this family knelt together around the alter and were blessed to be made an eternal family. I thought of my own family, which didn't help my crying at all, and how much they mean to me. The sealer made a comment that taught me a profound truth, "This isn't just the room where you are sealed to one another; this is the place where our Father in Heaven brings His children back home to Him." That comment has been racing through my head since I heard him say it. That's what we are all here for, to become the individuals that our loving Father knows us to be, and to make and keep sacred covenants that allow us to be brought back to our heavenly home.

This beautiful family just radiated the love and peace to be found in the gospel and the temple. Jared was talking with Hector, the husband afterward, and asked him if his experiences of that day were what he had expected they would be. Hector's response was something like this, "Oh, Brother Black, they were so much more. There's such a peace here." Jared and I felt that too. I have a feeling we'll be saying that when we hopefully are brought to our Heavenly Father and His Son, into Their eternal presence. It will be "so much more" than any of us can describe.

Weekend with the Ladies

2010-08-09T10:30:00.000-07:00

I mentioned on our other blog that on July 30-31st, I was able to meet up with a few old roommates and college friends from my days at Utah State. Here's a picture of us, from the top right: Carrie, me, Heather

bottom right: Jessica, Emily holding four-month-old Katie, and Amelia

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, with true friends, it doesn't matter the space of distance between contacts, you just get to pick up where you left off. It was wonderful to join up together for the night and unload on each other what life has taught us over the last few years and just have a chance to laugh at it all anyway.

Emily just had her fourth little nugget of joy, pictured here with her. Katie may have peeped once that I noticed, but this little girl is as good as gold. Guess it's in her genes.

Amelia was the only one daring enough to let me take an up-close shot. Thanks. You're a babe, and it shows! Thanks for letting me crash with you in the same room, too.

Parade in Panguitch and Night of the 24th

2010-08-08T16:05:00.000-07:00

I mentioned on our other blog a few of the events that happened over our weekend in Panguitch for the 24th of July, and I've also posted a few of the shots that I took during our stay as well. Here's just a few more.

Jared brilliantly came up with the idea to entertain the grandkids outside on the front lawn with the games we used to play as kids (that makes me sound old, doesn't it?). None of them included electrical devices or batteries and the kids still enjoyed the whole night ... up until the sparklers, but that's another blog entry. We played "Red Light, Green Light," "Eenie-I-Over," and "Mother, May I?" Grandma also dared to teach the kids "Duck, Duck, Goose," which she participated it. Bless you, Evelyn. Those were moves I didn't know you had in you! I was impressed.

This is a shot looking up in the old barn back out behind the house. Jared has told me before that that was his heaven growing up -- what young boy wouldn't love turning an old barn into a land of pirates, or cowboys and indians ... or a spook alley, as was his favorite. Is it any wonder he still loves Halloween?

Becky said it best earlier this summer when she stated, "We all know that the real reason everyone goes to a parade is for the candy." That was definately the case for the Black family. Here's the lineup, each holding his or her own bag of stash.

This one is just a reflection in the window of Henrie's Drive-in, THE place in Panguitch for soft-serve. Jared used to work there as a teenager. This is where he learned the art of flipping burgers and deep-frying anything you can imagine. Thankfully, that art does not live on in our house still. Soft-serve still does. Who is really living life to the fullest that doesn't indulge in the creamy, cold goodness of sweet milk as it melts down your chin and throat? Not me. I'd take it any day over candy throw from strangers on crepe-paper floats and tractors, which, in reality is what Jared and I did. In the words of Kimball, "Oh yeah, baby!"

Taste of Sugar

2010-08-08T15:49:00.000-07:00

I have to say, Koria and Kimball didn't get all the good stuff that Luke and Layne manage to get, at least by way of food. The older set were strangers to sugar for the first year of their lives.

Luke and Layne? They know all about it. Here's a couple shots of Layne both before and after tasting her first popsicle. You be the judge as to which is which. I think my work's done here.

Pictures from Father's Day

2010-08-06T15:45:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh, just what every father dreams of for Father's Day .... screaming children, a little sun, and some nice scenery. This is my extra-brief recap of our celebration this past June. (By the way, all of these events were per Jared's request.)

We all played outside on the yard and decided to let Luke and Layne try the slip-n-slide for the first time. Layne loved the cool water. Luke ... well, refer to the above picture for your answer.

Since we are just a couple hours north of Capital Reef National Park, we decided to head out for a day of adventure. We even managed to sneak a few of the rocks home for the flower beds.

We had lunch in a beautiful picnic area full of giant mulberry trees that were ripe and falling all over the ground. This shot of the deer was not taken with a zoom lense either. Apparently, deer are very friendly to this campground, as we spotted several warning signs to let us know that it was harmful to feed them. One of these signs was actually a drawing from a six-year-old that had fed one, complete with a letter at the bottom of the drawing explaining that the unfortunate animal bit the dust after it was fed by the youngster. Yeah, made me cringe too. ANYHOOO, we enjoyed seeing the dear upclose. Kimball really wanted to pet one, but we thought that we'd err on the side of caution. We didn't know if the deer we also into mauling children, but thought it better to be on the safe side.

And there's Dad, being choked by one of his children, holding another two who obviously were not fed enough at lunch and were turning on each other as a source of nourishment. Really, Dad was just a prop in the photo op of Koria and her ad for bottled water. I think it was Dasani, if they're interested in purchasing rights to this photo.

All in all, it was a fun weekend. We saw some scenery that we never had before, discovered that grass makes a great babysitter for Luke, and that Dad's a pretty great dad.

Old Wheels and Weeds

2010-07-29T20:09:00.000-07:00

I took this shot in Panguitch a couple days ago in the grandparents' backyard. I love that place. Endless photo possibilities. More to come later.

Back At Mesa Verde

2010-07-29T19:02:00.000-07:00

Alright, back to my trying to catch up on what the Black Family's been up to. I really wish these would just be printable and work for my journal, but at least I'll still have the pictures.

Around the second week of June, we headed off for Southern Colorado to explore Mesa Verde and the La Plata Mountain Range. In the hope of keeping it short and sweet, here's a few shots from the trip.

Grandma and Grandpa Black endured the four-day excursion amazingly well, between screaming babies and pouring rain. Layne zonked out on the last hike of the day in Mesa Verde. That's about how we all felt I think.

This is the cabin that we rented (for a "scorchin' deal" as Jared would say) for our stay. It was beautiful and we enjoyed being there just as much as we did the surrounding area. I made the mistake of forgetting Luke's blankie, one that I hope to NEVER repeat for fear of losing my sanity. The kid loves that thing like it's an extremity.

We drove through Durango, up to Silverton, and on to a small town called Ouray, which we still have no clue how to pronounce correctly, even after I asked a local at the Box Canyon Waterfall site. This tiny town is known as the Little Switzerland of America, and rightly so. It was inspiring, complete with multiple waterfalls, a natural hot springs water resort, and beautiful surrounding mountains covered in green. Maybe Kimball got it right when he asked us if we were in "Avacado yet?"

Kimball also decided to give all of the sights in Mesa verde more meaningful names, like this one formerly known as the Cliff Palace. He's renamed it the Crystal Palace -- must be some place on Super Mario Galaxy. He also made sure to spice up the eternally long tour guided info from this site with his own comments. He entertained family and strangers alike with his answers to retorical questions posed by the world's most obnoxiously long-winded park ranger.

And this is a scene from the Long House, another sight in Mesa Verde where Layne conveniently decided to override anything that the park ranger tried to say with her spitting attacks. I had drool covering my hands and arms from the fallout. Needless to say, we attracted a lot of attention. A grandma asked if she could take pics of Koria, to which the redhead graciously agreed. And Luke? Well, lets just say that any female over the age of 18 had to come and talk to the kid -- not the rest of us -- just him. He's a chick magnet, I tell ya. Happens wherever we go. We left the trip very happy with the outcome. Who wouldn't love a free gondola ride up and down the side of an aspen-covered mountain in Telluride in the pouring rain, a standing ovation as two very tired parents scaled wooden ladders with twin babies strapped to their chests, or hot chocolate around the campfire as deer hover 30 feet away? Sounds like a dream, doesn't it? Feels like one too. It passed much too quickly. What a great way to see part of the world we've never explored before.

Hello Photoshop

2010-07-18T20:29:00.000-07:00

Steph just showed me a few tricks with Photoshop to try out, so I'm making my first attempts at photo editing. I can already tell ya, this is going to get pretty addicting. I took this pic of Koria while we were in Colorado a month ago. Koria's really in to wildflowers, so she picked me "buckets," as she would call them, of flowers.

Down The River

2010-07-18T18:25:00.000-07:00

My sister-in-law, Steph, took these photos, along with a bunch of other great ones, yesterday as Jana's family, Steph's family, and ours were all out playing in the Buckhorn draw area.

We were all excited to find some shade and some water to play in under the Swinging Bridge.

Koria dove right in, and spared no attitude.

Kimball? He made friends with the rocks and the riverbed.

And that's life hangin' with my peeps.

Dreaming of Sleep

2010-07-15T19:45:00.000-07:00

Aaaahhh, wish we could all sleep so well.

Daily Pics Blog

2010-07-12T15:28:00.000-07:00

For any of you out there interested, we've started a second blog. Scott, my bro-in-law, came up with the idea that we should each take a new pic everyday, then post it. If you ever want to check it out, go to:

www.knowhowtopicem.blogspot.com

Green Shirt Day

2010-07-12T12:55:00.000-07:00

Wow, good thing I just noticed a typo I made in the title there, although the typo may have been an appropriate description of today's events too .... I'll leave it at that. After I finished dressing Luke and Layne, I realized that they were both wearing bright green shirts, so today we're doing all things green. Weeding, all natural foods, recycling -- but just for today. Tomorrow we'll go back to being ourselves and piling up disposable diapers to clog landfills around the country. This morning I had the audacity to put Luke in the back room, which has a baby gate up to keep him from getting into trouble, while I left to feed and dress the other three kids. You would have thought he was in jail. Thought this shot was nice.

Layne, on the other hand, could care less about the baby gate. Probably because she can't see it well enough, but whatever. I'll take a content-to-be-left-alone-for-a-few-minutes kid. She's working on her crawling right now and enjoying the freedoms of more mobility.

Other than his time in jail, Luke's been a happy kid today. Can't complain. He doesn't care if his sandwich isn't cut in large or small triangles or squares, or any other shape for that matter. Leftover crumbs off of the floor work just fine for him. And Layne? She doesn't care if her fingernail polish doesn't match her outfit or if her waffle doesn't have butter in every single square. They don't care if there's spit-up all over the floor. Just another toy to them. Koria and Kimball on the other hand? Let me remind you of what could have been the title for today's entry. Enough said. Just pray the older two are alive by the end of Green Shirt Day.

Recap of Memorial Day Reunion

2010-07-11T13:46:00.000-07:00

In my efforts to keep up with all of our traveling and family events, I'm now on Memorial Day Weekend, the designated Bates Family Reunion. All of my siblings and their spouses and children, as well as my parents, crash at the cabin for the weekend. Amazingly, we still like each other by the time it's all said and done. That's saying a lot considering the sleeping arrangements are for 26 people, one of whom is pregnant. The kids would love it if we just let them run wild (who's to say we don't). Cousins are great that way. You don't need your personal space as much until you hit puberty. We better enjoy the next few reunion while we can.

We maximized the number of females under nine years of age that you should sanely drive with on one four-wheeler. I'm not included in the under nine category, or the sane part either.

Even Luke and Layne got to enjoy the great outdoors for a while.

Becky's theme this year was "Indiana Jones." Kimball's demonstrating the whip challenge in this shot.

We had a great time, and as always, I took way too many pics to post. Don't worry, Scott. I have some great ones of you with your peacock feathers that I will use as blackmail at some future date (imagine evil laughter in the background).

AAAH, Summer

2010-06-24T14:13:00.000-07:00

Summer's always been my favorite time of the year. You get to live your life outside, go without socks and shoes, drink from a hose. The list could go on and on. I pulled out the slip-n-slide for Koria and Kimball yesterday, and as always, it takes more time to set it up than they actually spend playing on it, but whatever. I'll take ten minutes of kid entertainment.

I just remembered a few shots my sister sent us a few years ago. I'm the the baby sitting on this slip-n-slide with my older brother and a couple of my older sisters. I love the fact that Shanell's hosing me down in the first shot. I must not have minded too badly because I'm soaking myself in the second one. I'm telling ya, there's just something about summer...

Koria's and Kimball's Preschool Program

2010-06-21T19:21:00.000-07:00

K&K enjoyed a "stunning" (as Koria likes to say) first year of preschool. They ended the year with a program with songs and an exciting rendition of "Three Billy Goats Gruff". Kimball was chosen as narrator, probably because of his love for talking and due to the fact that he enunciates better than a lot of adults that live in the area. Koria was in heaven towering high above all of the other kids as the sunshine, on a platform. Could they have been cast any more appropriately? Only if Koria could have worn heels and prom dress I guess. Don't know where her girly side comes from ....

I'm including this picture as an easy way of explaining how talk K&K are. All the other kids there in the lineup are at least one year older. Notice the height difference? Story of a giant's life. They might as well get used to it.

They sang a variety of songs, but they told us that their favorite was definately "the one that rocked." We found out that was a literal statement when we watched them sing.

No need to tell you that 2 monkeys are usually jumping on a bed somewhere in our house.

It was a great year and now that the summer's here, I'm trying to be creative with all of our time. Did I mention I'm exhausted? I think I'm the monkey that fell of and broke her head.

The "B" Word

2010-06-17T09:01:00.000-07:00

My mom used to have a rule in the summer when we used the "B" word, meaning "bored." She used to make us go out into the garden and weed. It was very effective. Unfortunately, my kids actually like to weed, but they don't really know what the difference is between what they should pull and what they should leave, which equals more work in the long run for me. Cleaning their room, on the other hand, works great. Koria and Kimball have been working on theirs for about three hours now, with only 3 escapes outside (that I've noticed) in between. The moral of the story is, I still don't use the "B" word. Just doesn't happen. Especially in the summer. Here's a few pics of the punks that make me appreciate why that's the case.

The Swell

2010-06-16T09:43:00.000-07:00

A few days after returning from the trip to Alaska, we decided to go on a family outing to Buckhorn Draw, an area about twenty minutes away from our home. It's part of the San Rafael Swell and has some great spots for the kids to just get out and run. We saw some freaky singing hippies, that "were NOT MODEST" as Kimball pointed out at the petroglyph panels, got smoked out by some other hippy chick that was either high or drunk, saw Butch Cassidy's old stomping grounds, met a couple photographers/reporters for the Salt Lake Tribune, and enjoyed some sunshine and warm weather.

We stopped by the Swinging Bridge (the only suspension bridge in Utah, if anyone cares) and enjoyed climbing over, under, and around it. Jared, Koria, and Kimball had a rock-skipping contest that I didn't join in. I stuck to keeping K&K out of the river.

Jared did his best to keep Luke and Layne happy too.

In complete contrast to the scenery that I'd just been surrounded by a few days prior to in Alaska, I enjoyed the fact the beauty can be found anywhere you are at ...

... especially with family. (That's a dinosaur track, BTW, not just K&K throwing their hips out of place.)

A few last pics

2010-06-15T10:18:00.000-07:00

Totem Poles of Ketchikan

Becky, Dad, Mom, and me

Mendenhall Glacier (where I found dandelions, for Koria)

Contemplating

More of Skagway

More Alaska

2010-06-15T09:48:00.000-07:00

Me and some of the Sibs: Derek, Wendy, Becky, Kendra

On the docks of Ketchikan

Flowers in the park

The Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show

The sign the could make me a millionaire

Waiting for the show to begin

The Chilkat Mountain Range (maybe ...)

Smuggler's Cove

The ONLY Alaskan road sign we saw

The tracks of Doom

More shots from Alaska

2010-06-15T09:28:00.000-07:00

The most enjoyable part of the trip to Alaska for me, other than being with the family, was the opportunity to take as many photos as I wanted. It might take me a few posts to cover some of the highlights, but here's a quick look at some of what we saw and experienced.

On the hike to Yukatania Point, Skagway, AK

The White Pass Railway

Port of Skagway

Mendenhall Glacier

Most common view of Uncle Scotty throughout the trip

So I forgot to mention my Alaskan cruise ... and a lot of other things in between

2010-06-14T13:29:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, I have forgotten to blog about my cruise to Alaska with Becky, Derek, Mom and Dad, and Wendy and Scott. Jared, the super-human that he is, volunteered to stay behind and watch all the kids, with some help from Grandma and Grandpa Black. It was great. Missed the fam, but it was a once in a lifetime trip. Same as the post before: more pics to come at a later date. Gotta run ... again.

The Port of Juneau at night

Hiking to Yukatania Point

Life aboard ship

Skagway, AK

Mesa Verde Trip

2010-06-14T13:10:00.000-07:00

We just returned last night from a great trip to Mesa Verde and the mountains of Southern Colorado which is an amazingly beautiful area. Kimball asked us a while into the trip if we were in "Avocado" yet. Nice. Wish I had more time to put more pics up, but life is seriously busy these days. I just got a minute this afternoon (or took a minute....) to check my email (over 300 + unchecked messages from the last time I checked it) and Facebook (first time in 3 years -- literally), but no promises. The babies are crying to be fed, K&K want snacks, I'm covered in mosquito repellant from yard work and entertaining Kor and Kimb on the tramp .... yeah. Gotta go. Here's a couple pics from the trip. Hopefully more to come.

"...then there's us."

2010-04-07T09:54:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, Koria was talking to Jared and I in the kitchen when she made a profound comment that I think we'll just adopt as the theme for our family.

"There's little tiny people. Then there's us. We're giants."

Never said better, babe.

Steph's photo shoot

2010-04-07T09:49:00.000-07:00

I can't take credit for the pics, but I can take credit for the kids. Thanks, Steph for lending us your talents.

Kimball

Koria

Layne

Luke

Kendra's US Passport Photoshoot--Subtitled "And We Wonder Where The Kids Get It From"--Subtitled "Herbal Essences Girl"

2010-03-17T20:03:00.001-07:00

Model in the Making

2010-03-12T13:28:00.000-08:00

I never did post our pics from our Christmas Eve Nativity. Koria, of course, took over responsibility of the costuming department and theatrics. We were shocked to discover that Mary owned a pink boa headband. It's actually a scarf that Koria has become fond of wearing whenever we have to be in public. Kimball made a great Joseph, Luke played the part of the baby in swaddling clothes, but shed to swaddle thirty seconds in the play, and Layne represented all of the animals present. In a picture that I am sure Jared would appreciate me not posting, he took the role of the wise men (he looks great in my aqua robe by the way), and I was the shephards/inn keeper/photographer/fight-breaker-upper. Koria let us all know where our places where and what we should be doing, especially Kimball.

Koria told me yesterday morning that she needed me to make her look "cute" for school, then reported to me that her preschool teacher told her that she "LOVED" her skirt and wanted one just like it, as well as her scarf. All I help do is coordinate the colors, people. Koria does the posing herself. I like to blame it all on the red hair. Yesterday she turned to me while I was making them lunch and said, "Mom, you're a good dress." I asked her what that meant and she said it again. I tried to clarify by saying, "Oh, you think I'm a good waitress?" I was feeding them lunch, after all. "NO, MOM, YOU LOOK STYLIN. You know, you are a good dress." Then I got it. "Oh, you think I'm a good dresser!" Nice to think my three year old thinks so anyway.

All Booked Up

2010-03-12T13:19:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, Jared was in SLC for about three or four days on a business trip. One night while he was gone, we had a Relief Society presidency meeting here at the house. Koria and Kimball were supposed to be sleeping, or at least going to sleep when all this happened. Yep. That's every single book they could pull out of their shelves before I came in to check up on them and see what all of the loud banging was. I'd like to tell you that this just happened that night, but they treated me to it four times during Jared's stay away. I finally just gave up putting the books back in any kind of order. Actually, I finally just gave up putting the books away at all. I'm not going to show the rest of the room.

Mood swings.

2010-02-25T14:56:00.000-08:00

The other day Kimball asked me if he could play the Wii and when I told him I'd think about it (we all know what that means), he responded, "But MOM, last time you turned off the Wii, I didn't throw a whine-a-thon!" Here's a classic example of Kimball at his finest. Shots taken over a three minute period ...

Doesn't it make you tired just looking at them?

2010-02-22T10:15:00.000-08:00

2010-02-22T10:05:00.001-08:00

And a few more ....

2010-02-22T09:49:00.000-08:00

Yeah, no matter what, I'm destined to NOT keep up our blog. Sorry. Not with four under four, two with RSV, three with nebulizer treatments, a week and a half long visit to the hospital with Layne, ....where do I start .... SOOOOOOOO, here's a few pics from the last several months. That's about as good as it's gonna get.

Kendra's Halloween Fun

2009-11-01T19:42:00.000-08:00

Frightmares

2009-09-30T10:01:00.000-07:00

Jared took Kor and Kimball to Frightmares on Saturday and they had a great time. He'll have to fill in the details on the trip, but here are a few pics he took while they were there.

Words of Wisdom from K&K

2009-09-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

Koria and Kimball don't have preschool on Mondays, so while Luke and Layne where down for a morning nap, I told Kimball that I'd play a game with him. He picked out Diego Chutes and Ladders, which I highly recommend (it doesn't take much energy or brain power). I was trying to explain to him how to move and that he couldn't skip spaces or he would not be playing by the rules. In the meantime, Koria was coloring by us at the kitchen counter when she interupted our game, turned around, and said to me in her most authoritative voice, "Mom, when you're cheating, you're not winning!"

Earlier that morning as I was busy with the babies, I heard Koria screaming in her bedroom and when I went to check it out, I found Kimball rolling Koria into the carpet with all his body weight, laughing his head off. I told him that he couldn't do that and that he needed to stop beating up his sister when he replied, "A guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do." You're three, buddy. Where'd you pick that one up? I think my kids watch too much Scooby Doo. Aunt Jana gave K&K a new Scooby-Doo sports DVD when L&L where born and we noticed that one section is all about the cartoon version of WWE. Next time they watch it, I'm going to listen and see if Shaggy pulls that line out as he's in the ring with Hulk Hogan's ring buddies. Ahhh, the memories. I used to make my younger brother, Derek, pretend to be a WWF wrestler with me on Saturday nights growing up. I'd make him stand across from me in the living room, with a newly washed towel tied around either of our necks, and I'd proceed to have him run into the middle of the room where I'd take him down to the ground and pelt him with just-folded laundry that still had not been put away. Guess I shouldn't wonder where Koria and Kimball get their ideas afterall ...

Right before lunch that same day, I noticed Koria standing by the back window that was slightly open to let in the fresh air. I heard her say, "Hello? Is there anybody out there?" I've often had that thought, but as far as I can remember, I don't think I've verbalized it. So to all of you out there reading this, remember that when you're cheating your not winning, a guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do, and I KNOW your out there. I just may show up one of these Saturday nights in a cape and tights, ready to destroy your freshly folded laundry. Don't be surprised if it's at your house, Derek. Sometimes a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

Ode to Mom

2009-09-26T07:32:00.000-07:00

I was looking through some old photos the other day and came across this one taken of my mom and I in Yellowstone when I was around L&L's age and I started thinking about daily life right now. Luke's had colic for the last three or four weeks now ... I've lost track of time ... and Layne's convieniently fussy for about two or three hours each night at the same time as her brother. Guess she doesn't want to be shown up. I've been thinking a lot about how my parents survived 6 kids the last month or so, and when I asked my mom about it the other day, she replied, "Kendra, we had no choice. We just did the best we could, and there were a lot of days I wasn't that great of a parent, and you all survived, didn't you?" Mom, this goes out to you -- and all the other parents of screamers out there! Wait, this is all just payback, isn't it?

2009-09-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

We had just as much fun as the kids, between emergency potty breaks that didn't end well, to feeding two newborns in a public park, to stealing fake pink cell phones from three-year-old-girls, to batting practice. One thing we learned for sure, don't mess with a redhead and her phone.

Layne

2009-09-22T13:32:00.000-07:00

Layne's our baby bird. She's growing fast, but is still tiny in comparison to the rest of the kids, including Luke. She's also gettig more and more fiesty each day. Runs in the females of the family ... and I can say that because I am one.

Luke

2009-09-22T13:13:00.000-07:00

Koria let me know a couple days ago that Luke told her that he was her "Chubba Cheeks" and that he's "just a stinker." I guess both apply.

Koria

2009-09-22T09:19:00.000-07:00

Koria's a teenager, trapped in a 3-year-old's body. She's been obsessed lately with her princess cell phone, and we catch her having fake conversations with her cousin, Micah (yet another redhead) daily. The shot taken on the park bench was not approved by her in any way whatsoever. Makes it that much better.

Kimball

2009-09-22T09:06:00.001-07:00

Yeah, the picture blogs are definately the way to go for me. I took some shots of the kids this weekend as we were out for a picnic in the park and on a drive up to Joe's Valley. This entry's all about Kimball. Jared told him to keep his eye on the ball when he was pitching it to him, and he started to give the ball the stare down, as seen in the shot of him at bat.

New pics

2009-09-20T14:39:00.000-07:00

Since I'm the queen of posting on our blog, I thought that I would keep this simple and just put a few recent pics up. Gotta run. A baby's crying.

Announcing Luke & Layne

2009-08-14T20:02:00.000-07:00

Born on August 13th, Luke at 7:50 am and Layne at 7:51. Luke weighed 7.10 and Layne 5.3

We're happy, excited and tired!

Thanks Steph

2009-07-09T20:05:00.001-07:00

Great pics taken by Steph. They grow up fast!

Yeah, It's Been Awhile!!

2009-07-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

It's looking like August the 13th is the likely day of delivery for our next set of twins. Due to the extreme pressure we have been under (and I'm not talking about Kendra's stomach) - to give up some information about the soon-to-be-born twins, we have decided to come up with a little game. We are going to reveal that the names we have chosen for the new babies do start with the same letter. So we are including a set of names for every letter of the alphabet. In this list ARE the real names for the twins.

You'll have to evaluate each set of names and come up with your top 3 picks for what you think the names will be. You also need to include in your guess, what you think the genders of the babies will be. Have fun!

A: Ashlyn & Alex
B: Bailey & Braxton
C: Camden & Connor
D: Devan & Damon
E: Eli & Evan
F: Fanny & Fabio
G: Gage & Gabe
H: Hannah & Hayden
I: Ian & Isabella
J: Jake & Jaren
K: Kailie & Karmon
L: Luke & Layne
M: Madden & Mason
N: Noel & Noah
O: Orrin & Olivia
P: Page & Payson
Q: Quinn & Quade
R: Reese & Raegan
S: Serenah & Sean
T: Tyson & Tallyn
U: Umbach & Udders
V: Violet & Valeen
W: Weston & Wade
X: Xavier & Xena
Y: Yve & Yordon
Z: Zack & Zoe

Watch Out!! Kendra Has a New Camera

2009-01-15T20:19:00.000-08:00

Every since my sister Steph got her new camera, we can't be around her without constantly being the subject of new pictures.
Well, Kendra's big present this year was a new camera, and I'm a little afraid that it will be the same thing around the house now. Here are some of the first pics taken with our new camera. We still don't really know how to use it, so they'll get better.

We had a great Christmas up in Sugar City. Lots of board games and lots of fun. We love our family!

Can you see all of the sneaky ideas going on in the mind of this 2-year old?

How did this happen? It is positive proof that children have outside influences.

Jared likes the fact that Kendra is slightly annoyed by the fact that he now has a fan club for the VERY occasional time he plays a videogame. Hey - at least he keeps it to games rated "E" for everyone.

Making a gingerbread house with two two-year olds.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-17T19:59:00.001-08:00

I know of at least 5 people who will croak when they see that we have updated our blog.

Just remember that we are WAY busier than you are.

Since it is impossible to recap the last 3-4 months in one blog entry - just a couple of highlights. First, Kimball & Koria both decided within a week of each other that it is cool to throw up. In September, we got in the truck and drove up the mountain to enjoy the fall colors. 20 minutes into the trip, we were faced with our first case of toddler vomiting - all over the car.

Sure enough, within a week, Kimball had to have his turn on the way to Cedar City.

Since that time, we have had numerous other cleanups - because it is obviously "the" thing for 2 year olds to be doing right now. We have experienced washing off clothes and car seat upholstery in everything from lakes to rest stops. In fact, the next time you go to a rest stop, try washing vomit off of multiple items of clothing and blankets with the faucet that you have to push down every 5 seconds in order for water to come. And try doing that while people are come in and out, wondering what you could possibly be doing. It's pretty awesome.

As a sidenote, we love Chuck the TV show. Give it a try.

Back to stories. Halloween was a hit with the Kids. Kendra caused quite the stir at our ward trunk-or-treat with her costume. Kimball & Koria loved being Robin Hood & Maid Marian.

Finally, we were thrilled to go look for Christmas trees this year. Where we live, most people hunt year-round. And in case you didn't know, yes, there are hunts at all times of the year. It's not just the deer hunt, ok? Well, we don't hunt, so hunting for a tree is as close as we get. Thus, Kendra was extremely excited when we bagged this trophy tree.

Merry Christmas!

Go ahead and comment...

2008-09-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

Article from the 1955 Housekeeping Monthly (Seriously)

** Disclaimer ** I know that Kendra will want me to say that she does not endorse this post. This is only to show how times have changed. Enjoy!!

GUIDELINES FOR HOUSEWIVES:

Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready, on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs.

Prepare yourself. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.

Be a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and it is one of your duties to provide.

Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives.

Prepare the children. Take a few minutes to wash their hands and faces (if they are small), comb their hair and, if necessary, change their clothes. They are little treasures and he would like to see them playing the part. Minimise all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum.

Be happy to see him. Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.

Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.

Never complain if he comes home late or goes out to dinner, or other places of entertainment without you. Instead, try to understand his world of strain and pressure. Don’t complain even if he stays out all night.

Don’t ask him questions about his actions or question his judgement or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house. You have no right to question him. A good wife always knows her place.

Thrill of the Ride

2008-09-10T12:29:00.000-07:00

Our annual Black Family Day At Lagoon this year didn't start off as smoothly as we had hoped, but it sure ended well. Kimball decided to smear mud all over my khaki capris at 6:30 a.m., just as we were headed out for a week-long Fourth of July trip to Idaho, started off by events at the amusement park. He had broken away from Jared and I as we were trying to get loaded into the car and I ended up tackling him on the newly planted grass (a.k.a. mud hole) in the back yard. Believe me, it WAS the only way to stop him. With mud-caked sandles, I threw the punk over my shoulder and headed for the car. Unfortunately, I didn't notice the mud-stains until two hours into the trip. Uh, ... dark brown marks and khakis all day at Lagoon ... I don't think so. We took a quick detour to see Catherine the Queen and buy some new carpis (I wasn't complaining about the fact that I HAD to buy new clothes -- you do what you have to as a mom), followed by a quick stop at Artic circle for lunch. The corndogs were not a hit. Neither was the sunscreen that found its way into Kimball's eyes. He was so badly effected by it that his face broke out in hives, his eyes swelled up past the point of recognition, and his cries of despair turned into wails of agony. No, I'm not exaggerating. It was that bad.

By mid-afternoon, some of the wails had turned into moans, thanks to a few hundred runs in the waterslides at Lagoon-A-Beach. I even made a classic Kendra run on the one of the kid slides, causing a few raised eyebrows from the teenage lifeguards on duty. Can't adults scream as loud as the kids on the kiddie slides too? Anyway, the water did us a great service and took away the sting of the sunscreen from the few hours previous and the afternoon that followed was nothing short of "magical" for the kids ... and their parents.

There must be some sort of craziness that comes with red hair, because Koria was nothing short of insane on the rides. Jared taught her the art of the arms-in-the-air-scream which she mastered by her second roller-coaster ride. Kimball couldn't wipe the grin from his face, and neither could we.

With one final trip to Rattle Snake Rapids, we came out looking like one sunburned, exhausted, very wet family. Next year, we're not using sunscreen. At least not before noon.

Dough vs. Doneness

2008-09-10T11:48:00.000-07:00

There's been a long-contested battle in the family as to which is better -- cookie dough strait from the mixing bowl, or fresh-out-of-the-oven, oozing with newly-melted chocolate cookies. Koria and Kimball set out to discover the truth for themselves. Since both versions contain extreme amounts of sugar and butter, obvious problems arose with scoring. We may never know the answer.

Shock Factor

2008-08-24T20:06:00.000-07:00

Since we know how excited you all must be about the upcoming Democratic and Republican National Coventions (listed alphabetically in order to not be discriminatory), we decided to add some real shock to the world by updating our blog.

We also wanted to announce that Koria has officially embraced the hard-rock culture of the early to mid 1980's. You never know what is truly going through your 2 year old's mind until you discover too late that they have discovered mom's makeup bag while you weren't looking.

Also, since school has started back up, we want to say that it has been an awesome summer and thanks to all of you who made it such. We love summer. We will miss summer.

Top This..

2008-06-22T11:49:00.000-07:00

Just to let you know about the housing opportunities in our area....

Kendra's Marathon Pics

2008-06-21T11:37:00.000-07:00

As requested, here are the pics of me after the marathon. Sorry that there are no pics available from the triathalon and the heptathalon, but I was just too exhausted. I'm thinking about swimming the English Channel next.

Time Outs

2008-06-11T11:54:00.000-07:00

So I'm a fan of "time outs" when Koria and Kimball are acting up, but some times, they are more effective than others. Yesterday they both landed themselves in trouble at the same time. They decided it would be fun to spit milk all over their toys, trampoline, books, ... and each other. Sounds like fun, egh? Effective or not, at least the milk spitting stopped and dry ground could again be found. The plastic shovels in Kimball's hands are his "swords." Those, and any other instrument with handles.

What happened to April and May?

2008-06-10T12:40:00.000-07:00

Alright, alright. I get the hint. Everyone's let me know that I haven't posted on our bog for . . . a while now, so I am going to attempt to catch you up on a few of the highlights from April to June. Here we go:

1) We bought a truck, to which one of our neighbors responded by saying "Now you really belong in Emery County!" A slight gag-reflex followed (from me). Jared once pulled out of the Stake Center here in Huntington and saw a huge monster-truck type vehicle turning into the parking lot. He said that he was surprised to see a 90lb, 80 year-old, gray-haired woman in the driver's seat, all ready for church. Guess it's just a way a life in these here parts ... yes sir, I'ma thinkin' we done got ourselves a keeper! Funny thing is, I like it, and I like driving it even more. Maybe I'll be the little old lady in the driver's seat someday.

2) Jared was able to go with the Spanish Group on their first ever Temple Trip in April. In case you are trying the find him in this picture, he was the one taking it. Sorry.

3) Becky , a.k.a. "Aunt Amazing", came to stay with us for a week and help us out! We went "treasure hunting" for a few days (geocaching), explored the desert, hit the park, created a patio for the backyard, played some new games, watched some reruns, played in corrals with sticks and mud, and had one of the funnest weeks we have had since the last time she was around! The kids are still asking me if we can go find "treasure" every time we get in the car and pretend to call Aunt Becky on their play phones every two minutes. Gotta love her!

4) Kimball decided to come down with a nasty case of sinus infection, which led to asthma attacks, which led to a two-day trip to the hospital, which led to a bizarre case of Roseola and more meds than we care to remember! Kimball actually started to like the hospital when he realized he could watch cartoons all day and eat an endless supply of popsicles. The nurses gave him a stuffed toy doggie that sings "Honey, You are my Shining Star" and lights up when you push his paw. Since our return home, K&K get a kick out of playing it every night for hours on end when they are supposed to be going to bed. Jared and I can hear that song from the other side of the house, followed by lots of laughter. Whatever makes you happy. We are happy to say he's doing much better, the rash has cleared up, the nebulizer meds that make him wired have worn off, and he's back to attacking Koria and running around like a mad man. Koria's happy to have him back too ... at least we think. We KNOW she's happy to be bossing him around again.

5) We planted grass in the backyard and are hoping the patches turn into a lush tropical oasis in the desert. Picture is pending tropical oasis success.

6) Jared had his 27th birthday ... again! I made sure he had enough candles to blow out. Golfing, a movie, a night out, cake, icecream, a good day.

7) I ran a marathon, followed by a triathalon, followed by a heptathalon. I'll try to find a picture that makes this seem legit. Until then, you will just have to trust me.

Well, that's only a taste of the last couple months. The hightlight are better than lowlights (speaking of which, I had some bad lowlights put into my hair last spring immediately following a freakishly bad highlighting job --I don't recommend it) so we'll keep it to this. Life is good. Maybe I'll just try to keep up over the next few months to avoid another mega post. How's that sound?

At What Age do you Allow Children to Pick Their Clothes?

2008-06-02T19:44:00.000-07:00