Merging.... or not.

Some know that I have another blog that currently is just hanging out…. Socks and Shoes NOT Required. Kind of geared more towards homeschooling, prepping and parenting, this blog was meant to be more of the family blog that people who are far away can read and see the kids grow. I have stepped back from both for a while. I do love to write I but feel like I can’t be totally honest in all of my writings for fear of hurting people that I love, so I have been writing privately to hash out all of my thoughts and feelings.

I’m not sure yet where this blog will go… if I will continue to make it just of the family {which I totally can because my family rocks} to merge my other more “professional” blog ie… web hosted, with it, do I add all the dirty stuff, or keep that separate. AND.... Blogger is WAY easier to manage for the non-techy people like me. Seriously.... I would be up hours on end watching YouTube and reading tutorials just to end up in tears because I don't understand computer speak.

I’m just not sure yet what I’m going to do as I come back into my writing. I do know that I want a place to write about the kids, something that I can print off and give to them so they have something while they were growing up. Managing two or more blogs is just too hard for me right now, so I’m just still thinking about how I want to go forward.

Blowing off the dust...

This little neck of the woods is dusty... duuuus-ty!

Since my last post... in May, I think, lots has happen.

Benji and Tim had birthdays turning 5 {and starting kindergarten} and 9.

The boys started school... well... going to school. Benji {K}, Tim {3rd} and Tommy{5th} to the Elementary school up the road, and James {6th} at a charter school.

Swim learned how to climb the fence... we now go to the rock wall once a week.

Oh there was Halloween, and all the boys had fun coming up with costumes and trick or treating the neighborhood.

Thanksgiving where everyone helped make the meal. It was low key and actually really nice to be by ourselves. It was so fun having everyone in the kitchen, and making some fun traditions... and food that we will make every year.

There was Star Wars.

And James turned 12!! and was ordained a Deacon.

Christmas came and went with joy. We had our bumps over the season, but it was a good one.

The first of the year brought more birthdays as Steve got another year older, and Swim turned 3... Yes, that boy is now 3

We are now in March, and James is in the first phase of braces... {a pallet spreader} Tommy is playing handball... {yeah, I had to google it too...}, Tim is playing roller hockey, Benji is working on reading and is so excited when he knows the words, Swim is crazy... seriously!! But he is so fun and there is always something going on with him. And Charli... well that girl is so sweet! She has a cold... her poor face is snotted shut in the morning, and she is still so smiley. He snot smile is so sad and so cute at the same time.

Steve is just working...he is enjoying it, and learning a lot with the doctor he works with.

Me... where have I been... well, I have been going back to school. I was going to APU {American Public University} to get a bachelors in Sociology. I have been doing 2 classes at a time, and they are over an 8 week period. I"m done now.. at least until September I'm transferring to BYU-Idaho because they have the major that I want, a bachelors in Marriage and Family, I'll then go on to get a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy.

Our family is busy but I like it.

So there you have it... I'll be around a bit more and be back with pictures as well.

Charlotte is ONE

She has been with us for a whole year!! It went by so much faster than I wanted it to.

She is such a joy to have in our family. She is so calm and is always smiling. She loves playing with her brothers and they just adore her.

Benji will give her whatever she wants.

She laughs all the time, she will sign “please’ for the things that she wants. She says ‘mom’, ‘cookie’, and ‘please’… so pretty much the most important words in the English language.

She is a meat eater. She loves fish the most, but will eat anything that is meat.

Oh… and chocolate. I’m totally convinced she can smell it. I’ll be hiding with some chocolate and she will come find me to have a piece.

 she did NOT like the balloons!

Charlotte is a great sleeper!! {and I for one am so happy about that!}

She is running everywhere and is a champ on doing stairs.

She is also learning the ways of Swim. Every now and then I see that sly little smile and then she’ll do something that she thinks is so funny.

She HATES baths… likes screams and tries to climb out. So for that reason she is only bathed about every two weeks.

Her hair is so pretty, it’s brown with golden streaks. I’m kinda jealous….

Charlotte is also my lightest baby at a year! A whole 23 pounds {a full 7 pounds lighter than all of her brothers at a year} … which is funny because she was my biggest baby when she was born.

I never knew that I wanted a girl until she joined our family. And I’m so glad she did. She is the perfect end to our family.

Grandma came

In April Grandma Johnson came to visit.

We went to the Olympic Training Center. It is actually a very inspiring place. We were able to watch some of the athletes work out.

 ...I think they need a little more training...

There was the USA bobsled from the Salt Lake Games that was on display for us to see, and for the boys to get in.

We went to a dinosaur museum… Benji was in heaven. There was a little tour going on that we joined in and Benji pretty much took over and was telling everyone about each of the dinosaurs.

And then we went to the zoo. We love going to the zoo. And I think we only lost Benji once. He climbed into the elevator, to go up to another section of the park , before anyone else could get in and by the time we were able to get up there he was gone. We found him looking at the bears. The zoo is always one of our favorite places to go.

 they do love each other...

This is Colorado Springs. 

We love to have people come and visit us! And we love that Gandma Johnson is up for anything... Even a mile and a half walk that is mostly up hill.... I've never been to a zoo on a hill... I guess I can cross that one off my list.

Tommy is a decade!!

During all the commotion of living, and blogging elsewhere, chasing Swim and teaching Benji to read… Tommy turned 10! He has been here a whole decade!

This boy is such a good kid! He is responsible and is so great with his younger siblings… especially Charlotte. {and she loves him}

He reads like crazy and loves books. Any books… all books!! We spend a lot of time at the library to keep books in his hands. We have to have a rule that he has to read two books before he can read one again because he will read and reread the same book over and over again to be brought back into the world he just left.

Right now he is wanting to go to Oxford or BYU for college, and would like to study Ornithology or Computer Programming. He is really smart and can do it if he wants too… I know that.

Tommy is a one-friend type of kid. He likes all people and is nice to everyone, but he likes to have one good friend and play with him.

For his birthday he had a couple friends. They played x-box, ate pizza and ran crazy… pretty much every little boys dream.

I’m so happy, and very lucky to be blessed with this amazing boy. 

Eggs for all

The boys are big now… but they still like dyeing eggs. I love that they still love to do this. Of course we had to do it while Swim was sleeping but it was still fun watching them pick their colors and hold their eggs in the water.

I’ll keep them little for a little while longer…

All he wanted was the snow.

Swim waited and waited for the snow. He was so happy when it finally came.

He brought me a jacket, 4 socks, and a sweater to help him put on. I hconvinced him he needed a bit more than that.

Once dressed he spent the next hour out side, as happy as could be.

He was born during a snow storm... I don't think I'll ever be able to keep him out of the snow.

I love my Crazy

Life is always fun

Always interesting

Always changing.

Often time I wonder what it would be like to be a "normal" family.

To buy a house

To know that this is it

I wonder what it would be like to have stopped having children... three kids ago

To have a small family.. a normal family

But then I look at my crew. Some big and some small, and I stop.

This is my life. My wonderful... crazy... not normal life.

And I love it!

I wouldn't trade it... for anything. This is my normal... this is my crazy.

I get these perfect moments, with these perfect people.

And that make me happy!

Christmas.... 3 months ago.

Christmas this past year was a good one.

We bought a live tree. It was beautiful and fun to decorate.

We had to string the lights a couple times because the first time Tommy put the lights on the tree the poor tree looked like it was being held hostage, it was wound so tight! Once we let the tree go, and tried again Tommy did a great job.

Our tree usually looks uneven usually decorated more on top or on the bottom. It's always fun to watch the boys decorate and how they do it.

In the end though we had to take the tree down. It was dead... I mean REALLY dead. It wasn't drinking the water that we were putting in the thing. We decided that a dead Christmas tree is a fire hazard so we took it down. It was kind of sad taking the tree down well before Christmas but it was necessary. And it's a really good thing that we did. While Tim was taking the lights off the tree they were shocking him! We would have had a fire! So it really was a blessing in disguise, and I am grateful!

It was a lot of fun shopping for the kids. Shopping for them is the best part of Christmas for me. I love seeing how surprised they are with what they got each year.

We got something for Swim to climb on... our little monkey loved his slide.

Christmas morning is always so fun and there is so much going on.

Can you get over these eyes!! I love her! It was a god first Christmas for her. Like all the babies, she loved the boxes and paper more than anything else.

The snow missed us by 4 days, so it was a beautiful sunny day on Christmas. Here's to another year!!!

Welcome 2015!