Our Little "Brown" House

The Times of our Lives

2011-10-30T18:38:00.001-07:00

By the look of things I have got a little behind with my blogging. Many, many events have happened since then. That is the way our lives go around here. Thank heavens I bring my camara and capture some of these events or I would never remember to blog them!

And the battle was on! The tractor was coming. Jarrit didn't understand that they got to take their pumpkins home. So he was telling Karder to put it down. Notice how Karder is holding the pumpkin away from him. Jarrit was yelling at him saying, Put it down! Put it down! And Karder was yelling back saying, No! This is my pumpkin!

Karder picked up a rotten pumpkin. He just threw it down and was saying, "yuck!"
In search for the perfect pumpkin
Karder the Scarcrow and Jarrit the Cowardly Lion from Wizard of Oz
Tanner
Heidi
Braxton, Tanner, Heidi, Karder and Jarrit at the pumpkin patch
Cassandra and Zayne going to Ontario's Homecoming Dance.
Tristan #15 at the State tournament. Their team got 6th place. They played great!

Tristans team at the State Soccer Tournament
Tristan and his team after they won their Weiser game. Making it into the state tournament. This is the first time in the history of the school that the boys soccer team has ever gone to state. Check out Tristans white head band!
Tanner played lineman, quarterback, and center. He made 4 touch downs this year. Great job Tanner!
Tanner was one of the team captains

Tanners Football
Cassandra 11 grade, Tristan 10 grade, Braxton 7 grade, Tanner 4 grade and Heidi 1 grade
Heidi's first day of 1st grade

My weight loss journey

2011-10-28T15:56:00.003-07:00

As many of you know I went through a terrible depression. This depression lasted for 2 years. During this time I gained alot of weight. My top weight was in 2009 I was at 220 pounds. I decided in January of 2010 to put that time of my life behind me. To focus in on my mind and my body again. To make myself a priority. That is not an easy thing for a mother of 8 children to do. But in order for me to be the kind of mother that I needed to be I had to do this for myself. More than anything I needed to feel alive again. I was tired of hiding behind all my weight. So I started to eat healthy. I started to exercise more. My goal is 90 pounds. As of today I have lost 62 pounds! I know that I am not there yet. But I have a goal. I am taking it one day at a time. And one choice at a time. Little by little it is coming off. This makes me happy!

Pete's Lake

2011-10-18T17:52:00.001-07:00

Bill, Kerry, Shalisa, Braxton and Tanners trip to Pete's Lake.

Stokes Family Reunion 2011

2011-08-13T23:21:00.001-07:00

Our Family
Amberly made up a Movie Trivia Game. Everyone enjoyed that while Bill and I made dinner. It was our night to cook. We had pulled pork sandwiches, bbq tritip steak and salads. Yum!
The guys took out the guns.

Tanner, Austin and Eaan playing on the beach
IT'S COLD!!!
Bill, Kerry and Tristan
Fun in McCall
Braxton helping Heidi with Bingo
BINGO!
Heidi making a necklace.

My brothers, Jeron and Kaleb, dared Tristan to eat 11 hamburgers on night. They told him they would pay him 40 dollars if he did it. He was really excited about the bet. Until 6 hamburgers in and he had to give up. He got 12 dollars out of the deal any way. He earned it though. Later that night he lost all of his hamburgers.
Karder and Jarrit. Our grandbabies. They are the cutest little guys! Best of buddies

The Boys caught a water snake
Amberly made up a music trivia game on her ipod. We played name that tune and artist. It was lots of fun!

Baseball and Birthdays

2011-08-13T22:45:00.000-07:00

We had a birthday party for Braxton, Heidi and Tanner. Aunt Chris and Aunt Leisa where here. Also cousins from Tennessee, Travis and Stephen Brown. We where playing outside. Ashley and Josh got the kids water balloons for their birthday. So naturally a BIG water fight broke out. It was lots and lots of fun!

Braxtons baseball team: Fruitland Cubs. They did great this year. They got 1st place in 4 out of the 6 tournaments they played in this summer. Braxton played out field. He also pitched in a few games. Great job Braxton!!

Fun day at Grandma's

2011-06-04T07:36:00.001-07:00

Ashley had to work Thursday night. So the boys came over to play while she was at work. When she came home to get them they where in Cassandra's bed with her watching a movie. They both hid under the covers and kept saying "no bye-bye!" They refused to leave. So they stayed the night at Grandmas. The next day they played and played. We sat outside for hours and played in the front yard. We ate licorice and ice cream cones. We have a little helmet that I think is supposed to be a knight in shining armor helmet. But Karder likes to pretend that it is his catchers helmet. So every time he is at our house he runs to the toy box and takes our his catchers helmet to play baseball. He watches Tristan play catcher at his game all the time. So I think he is just copying what Tristan does. It is very cute. Jarrit played for hours with the big dump truck. He turned so that it made a scraping sound on the driveway. I think he was pretending he was mowing the lawn. The boys are getting great imaginations. They are jabbering alot now. So they are fun to watch and listen to. And then we went to Mesa Park and played some more. After that we went and watched Tanner play baseball. At the end of the night both boys where exhausted and in complete meltdown mode. Poor Ashley loaded up two crying babies and brought them home. It is a tradition that before they leave they walk around and give everyone kisses. But they where both crying and tired so that didn't happen. Ashley said that they cried the whole way home saying, "No kisses!" We had a fun day. But we where all exhausted by the end.

The Byers

2011-05-29T10:40:00.000-07:00

Easter 2011

2011-05-29T10:07:00.000-07:00

Heidi's stay in the hospital

2011-05-27T15:19:00.001-07:00

May 28,2011 I gave Kent updates every day while Heidi was in the hospital. I thought it would be good to blog these letters. So that I have a good journel of the events and dates that took place. Just a small update as of today. Heidi is doing awesome! She is running around like nothing ever happened. She goes in for a colonoscopy on June 10th. They just want to make sure that she does not have an underlying problem.
I am so thankful for a kind and loving Father in Heaven that watched over and cared for our little girl. I am thankful for the priesthood. For the many blessings that she was given. For the promise of a full recovery. I am thankful that our little Heidi is still with us. She is a blessing in all of our lives.

March 27,2011 On Thursday Heidi woke up and had a small fever and was complaining that her tummy hurt. She has complained about her belly for about a month now. She said that it was hard to go potty (bowel movement) So I just figured that she was constipated. She has been running around and as active as ever. But when she started getting a fever on Thursday and complaining about her belly I started to get concerned. She was very lathargic most of the day. But was not in a tremendous amount of pain. I thought maybe she was getting a flu bug. But in the back of my mind I also thought it could be appendicitis. So before I went to work Thursday night I told dad to make sure that she slept next to him and to call me if she got worse. He reassured me that she would be fine but that he would call if she got worse. About 3:30 am I was paged over head that I had a phone call on line 1. My heart immediatly dropped. I was in a panic. I rushed to the phone. Dad told me that I better come home. That she was not doing well. He said that she got up and went to the bathroom and then came back to bed. A few minutes later she got up again and this time he followed her. He said that she went and knelt down by the toilet. Dad asked her if she felt like throwing up. She said no that her tummy hurt. So he called me. I came home and took her to Holy Rosary. When we got there the nurse was doing her vitals. He asked her to jump. He wanted to see if her belly hurt when she jumped. She just stood there and stared at him. And then she looked over and Cassandra and gave this look like "is he kidding" It was funny. So she jumped 1 time for him. Any way, they did all there stardard test to see if she had appendicitis. The doctor thought she might have it. But wasn't really sure. And then he told me that they couldn't do anything for her there because she was to small. She would have to come to Boise for a pediatric surgeon. But they could do blood tests. I told them that I would just watch her for a few more hours. If she got worse I would take her to Boise and they could do the blood tests on her there. So we came home. It was 6:30am when we crawled into bed. She slept very sound until 10:30am. She woke up crying saying her tummy hurt. I asked her if I could feel it. I started palpating it on the left side. When I got to the right side she pulled my hand away and groaned. I knew then that it was definetly appendicitis. So I showered her and got her ready. And we went to Meridian St. Lukes. I wasn't sure where the emergency room was. So we went in the front door and asked the receptionist. She told us to go back to the car and drive around to the back of the building. And she would call the ER and tell them that we where on our way. On our way to the car Heidi was breathing really hard. I asked her if she was okay. She said that she couldn't walk anymore. So I carried her to the car. She was really hurting at this point. In Meridian the took a blood sample. Her white cell count came back at 25,000. Which is very high. The only pediatric surgeon on for St Lukes was in Boise St Lukes. So they transported her by ambulance to Boise. Before we left the doctor told us that we where very lucky to get this surgeon. She was the best in the valley. That was reassuring.
She went into surgery at 7:15pm Friday night. We where told before she went in that the surgery would only be about a half and hour to an hour. By 9:00 we still had not heard anything. I started pacing the floor. I knew something was wrong. About 9:15 the surgeon came out with a very grave look on her face. She told us that when she opened her up that all she could see was a big mass. She wasn't sure if it was a tumor or just some kind of a mass. And she couldn't find the appendics any where. She said that she has done hundreds of these surgeries. She has never seen anything like this. She looked at dad and I and said, "I am not going to lie to you. I am very concerned." She reassured us that she would do everything she could to help her. We told her to do whatever it took. About an hour later we got a phone call from the O. R. Nurse. He said that the pathology reports came back that it wasn't a tumor it was just a mass that had formed around the appendics. So they where going to remove it and then the appendics. After the surgery Dr. Renolds came out and told us that it was a hard mass that had grown around this appendics. Just like it was sheilding it. She said that she literally had to chisel the appendics out. The appendics had ruptured about a month or so ago. Of course Heidi didn't show any sign of being sick so we had no idea. Grandpa Winegar passed away about that time. So I was so preoccupied with that. I may have just missed the signs. But all the toxin stayed inside of this mass. The mass was on her bowel. So the part of the bowel that the toxin was on rotted. So they had to remove part of her bowel. She sewed it back together. In hopes that it will heal and not leak. The surgery lasted for 4 hours. If that mass had not been there to protect her from those toxins, Heidi would probably not be with us today. It was a miracle. Devine intervention took place. And her life was spared.
Today she is going for walks around the ward. She does not like it and cries the whole time. and begs to go back to bed. But they reassure me that each day will get better. They have added another pain medication to go along with her morphin. So that is keeping the pain down better today. The respritory therapist is coming in a couple of times a day doing therapy on her. So she keeps her lungs open. That will prevent pneamonia. She is also getting 2 different kinds of antibiotics by iv every 2 hours. They just came in and took an exray of her belly and her chest. The surgeon was concerned because her tummy is very distended today and her white cell count is still pretty high. But the exrays came back and showed no other problems. So they are going to give her a supository and see if they can't get her to poop. That might help the gas and bring that belly down. It is pretty painful for her. We are still not sure why the cell count is so high. So they are just going to watch that. She is on lots and lots of antibiotics which will help with infection. They also moved her to the cancer ward of the peds unit. So she wont be around anything that is contagious that will make her sick. I am very glad about that. It is much quieter over here as well.
She will be here for at least 1 week maybe 2. She has had 3 blessings. Each one has promised her a full recovery. So I have complete faith that this will happen. She is a little fighter. She may only be 41 pounds but she has a lot of fight in her. She will pull through this. It is just so hard to see her in so much pain and going through all of this. It just breaks my heart. Her name is in temples all around the world. People from all over the world, races and religions are praying for her. I have felt those prayers and witnessed the answers to those prayers. Tonight she went for a walk around the ward. She has been since last night. But tonight she went and stood straighter and walked faster. She cried the whole time and begged to go back to bed. But she did an awesome job. I see small improvements all the time. I know that tomorrow is going to be a good day. I can just feel it. I will try and be on here in the morning in case you want to email me. I will also send you an update daily. If you get a chance to check it.

March 29Sorry I didn't get you written last night. I had every intention of doing it. But as things go, it has been a roller coaster ride. Her day yesterday started out really, really good. She just seemed to make one improvement after another. She was walking and going potty without crying all afternoon. I just kept saying WOW! because it was such a huge change. At about 4:00 yesterday afternoon she sat straight up in her bed all by herself! She hasn't even wanted to move her legs up to this point. So it was very shocking. I asked her what she was doing and she said she wanted to go for a walk. That was amazing. She usually cried and tells us she just wants to stay in bed a little while longer. But not then, she wanted to go! So we walked down to the fish tank and looked at all the fish. She was standing there and then said, "I've got to poop!" I have never been so excited about poop in all my life! We have been wanting her to do that for days. Her tummy has been so destended and hard. So we went back to the room and she went. After that her tummy is no longer hard. So that is good. But the bowel movement took everything out of her. She got so tired. And then to make matters worse they took her off her morphin and put her on another med instead. We had a pretty hard night last night. She cried and cried. Finally at 4:00 this morning I said a prayer and asked Heavenly Father what I should do to help comfort her. My next thought was to crawl into bed with her and cuddle. So I wrapped my blanket around us and cuddled. Within seconds she was asleep. I left the blanket there when I got out of bed. It seems to be giving her a little comfort. She is sleeping soundly at the moment. The surgeon will be in here soon to check her. Hopefully they will take this tube out of her throat today. It is really bothering her. And work on her pain meds a little. We will have to see. I feel like we are on a really bad roller coaster ride that just never ends. We are having alot of up and down moments. But I feel like she is making progress in the healing process. Her white cell count went from 25,000 to 14,000 so that is very good. She coloring is better. And her tummy is no longer hard and is not a destended today. So I think she is healing.
I will keep you posted. Just continue to pray for her. Not only for the healing process, but for her comfort as well. Iove you~Mom

April 3I first want to appologize to you for not giving you an update the other day. I kind of did it on purpose. Because I didn't know how to write that her pickline leaked into her tissues and that she had to have 250cc of fluid taken out from around her lungs. I knew that if I gave you that update you would be frantic. But in return I worried you by not giving you some kind of an update. And for that I am sorry. One thing I will tell you is that this whole thing has been like a roller coaster. Just when we think she is rounding the bin towards better days, bam we get knocked down again. It is so exhausting and frusterating! Yesterday was such a great day for her. She played, smiled, talked and laughed all day long. It was like we had our Heidi back again. We where really hoping that it was the end of this nightmare and that we would be getting her home soon. But unfortunately that didn't last through the night. She started vomiting and did throughout the day today. Her tummy swelled up and got hard again. The doctor told us that she has a bunch of bile and junk in her stomach. For some reason her body just isn't processing it. He said that we just need to be patient. That sometimes these things take awhile to start working. Her surgeon is off for the weekend. But she will be back tomorrow. So in the meantime they decided the best course of action will be to put the tube back into her stomach to drain all this bile out. Can I just say that when she woke up and figured out that the tube was back in her throat again, she was ticked! So Dad gave her another blessing. This time he commanded her body, by the power of the priesthood, to heal. It was a very powerful blessing. Right after that she went to sleep. She has been sleeping alot since then. And has been reasonably comfortable.
Because of this set back, I am thinking we will be here for at least another week. I am hoping that when her doctor comes back tomorrow that she will have a few answers for us. And some kind of a game plan for this week. I wish I could give you better news this week. I hate these kind of emails. But I know that you will worry without them just as you worry with them. With all that being said just remember tomorrow is a new day. I will try and get back on here and give you a new update early enough that you can check it. Just because she feels like this now, doesn't mean she will be this way tomorrow. We may have a wonderful day tomorrow. What is getting me through each day is the knowledge and faith of the gospel, my Savior and the Preisthood blessings she has recieved. Dad gave Josh some very good council the other night before he gave Heidi a blessing. He told her that what ever you say or promise in a blessing will come to pass. I truely believe that . It may not happen immediately. But it will happen. I know that she is going to heal completely. And some day this will just be a memory. It is hard when we are going through it. The trial is ours. It's not for her, it's for us. She is so young she will forget all of this. We are the ones that need to learn and grow from this experience. I loved and appreciated conference so much this weekend. I needed that extra strength.

April 4Heidi's Dr. just came in and checked her. She was hopeful because Heidi let her press on her belly without crying or pulling her hands away. But she still has alot of fluid being pulled out of her stomach. So the plan is they are going to leave the tube in her stomach for a few more days. Tomorrow they are going to do another CT scan of her belly. And Wednesday if there is still alot of fluid going through that tube, she will take her back into surgery and repair that bowel. She said that she is not trying to avoid it because she doesn't want to do the surgery. She just wants to be patient and see if her body will start working on it's own. So that is the plan for now.

April 5 Heidi had to have another surgery today. Part of her bowel died. Her other intestine recognized it as something foreign or dead. So it sucked it in, like it was going to get rid of it. The dr said it is just like folding a sock. The correct term for it is called, Intussuception. It was a 3 hour surgery. They cut out the dead bowel. And then sewed the small and large intestine together. The dr thinks that she should start healing pretty quickly now. Tomorrow they want to take the tube out of her nose. And start having her drink. Thursday they want to start her on soft foods. And by Saturday we should be bringing her home.
/strong>April 6 Well we are on day 12 of our hospital stay. Last night was challenging and worrisom especially for the nurses. They spent most of the night at Heidi's bedside. Heidi's blood pressure was elevated all through the night and into the morning. At the same time they where struggling to keep up with the morphine for the pain. They finally put an IV drip of morphine and gave her a little thing she could press a button on if she wanted more. It would deliver a little extra to her. About an hour later she started crying again. I asked her if she pressed the button. She said, "I did but no one came." She thought that it was a button to call the nurse so that she could put the medicine in her. After we explained that if she pressed the button the machine would put it in her arm. She held that button close and has not let it go unless she has too.
This afternoon her blood pressure is about down to normal. They took the tube out of her nose that went into her stomach. And the took her catheter out. That made her feel much better. They lowered the amount of pain meds. She seems to be doing fine with that tonight. She is getting up and walking to the bathroom. She is super sore. But not crying in pain tonight. She even played a board game with her dad and I. She thought that was all kinds of fun. She had some company. And now everyone is gone for the night. So she is sound asleep again. She looks so much better tonight. She looks tired but not sick like she has looked. I think tomorrow should be a good day for us. I am hopeful. I think they will want her up and walking tomorrow. They should start her on liquids tomorrow as well. Maybe by Friday she will even be eatting something. We will see.
Ashley and I were laughing tonight because she told her that "her bum rotted so they had to take it out." LOL! She also told us that she doesn't like turtles. So she dreams that the nurses and doctor are turtles. You can tell she doesn't like them or trust them any more. They come around her and she turns to ice. She stares straight ahead and will not even acknowledge that they are there. She told me she wants out of here so she can go home and eat her food and play with her toys. I am hopeful that we will be able to do that soon!

April 7So Heidi has had a fabulous day today. She is back to her spunky self. We spent the day painting her toenails and finernails. She has went on 6 walks. Watched movies, played games, colored and drank lots of lemonade. She has been a happy girl all day long.
I have to tell you a couple of funny stories from today. This morning I got her all cleaned up and put a ponytail in her hair and curled it. The nurse came in and said, "Heidi you look so cute today!" Heidi said, "No I don't." The nurse said, "Why not?" Heidi said, " Because I'm wearing this!"(she points to her ugly blue hospital gown that had astronauts all over it.) So the nurse told her that she could put on her own pajamas today if she wanted. That made Heidi very happy!
Later that morning the nurse came in the room to shut her machine off. It had constently been going off all morning. The oxymeter on her finger needed to be changed so it was not registering on the machine, therefore making it beep. So she asked Heidi which finger she wanted it to be on. Heidi, very seriously, said,"I dont care. You can put it on my flipoff finger if you want." The nurse and I started to giggle. I had tears running down my face. I couldn't believe she just said that! The nurse said, "That would be perfect! Then you can show it to me every time I walk in the room!" I appologized to the nurse and explained to her that Heidi is 5 years old and hasn't learned to filter her thoughts before they come out of her mouth. But I have to say it was funny!
On a more serious note. The doctor visited with me this afternoon. She said that Heidi's pathology results came back. It showed alot of swelling in her bowels. Things that should not be there. She said that this appendicitis was not normal. Nothing about it was normal. Between the mass that grew on her bowel. The bowel that died and then the intussusception (One bowel sucking the other bowel in). She thinks that Heidi may have Irritable Bowel Disease. She said that the surgeries that have been done might be enough to settle it down. If not then she may need to be on medication to keep it under control. We are going to take her to see a Gastoenterologist next week. they will probably do a colonoscopy. And then we will have a followup appointment with her surgeon Dr. Renolds. Dr. Renolds is not concerned. But she does feel that this might explain the problems she has been havingApril 8It is hard to believe that 2 weeks ago Heidi was in surgery. We where sitting in the waiting room unaware of what was about to transpire. It has been an emotional, stressful roller coaster. That has had good days mixed in with bad. Just crazy!
Today Heidi is GREAT! She ate ice cream and chocolate pudding this afternoon. She kept saying, "mmmm this is good!" She loved every bite! She is smiling and happy today. She is still having a hard time walking. I am hoping with each passing day that gets better. But she did walk to the fish tank and back 6 times today. So she got a prize out of the prize box. She is a little trooper. The doctor is off tomorrow. So it will be pretty much the same thing for tomorrow. Sunday she will be back. And she will determine then if she can go home or needs to stay a little longer.

April 10The doctor came in and was pleased that Heidi is eatting so well and keeping everything down. So they are going to stop all her Lipids (nutrients they where giving by IV). And stop all her antibiotics. Yesterday they stopped her morphine drip. And where just giving her a miligram as needed. She has had it quit regularly today. Last night she had a complete melt down because it wore off. She was in alot of pain and discomfort. It took the nurse and I a good half an hour to calm her back down. After that I crawled back into bed. Tanner had spent the night with us. He just didn't want to leave us again. He despritely wanted to stay. So I let him. He slept in the chair with me. When I got back into bed. Tanner was laying there with tears streaming down his cheeks. I asked him if he was okay, and he just sobbed. It was really hard for him to see his little sister in so much pain. He stuck right by her side the entire day. Any thing she needed or wanted he did for her. They played game after game. He crawled in to bed with her and watched movies. Those two really missed each other. They are best friends. It is fun to watch them.
So the plan for pain control is they are going to start giving her advil regularly instead of the morphin. Of course if the pain is to much they will go back to the morphin. But as long as she is on that, they wont send her home. So we may experience some withdrawls tonight. I've seen her go through it before. It's not pretty. But it is necessary.
With this being said, we are here at least 1 more night. They will come in the morning and do another blood workup. The doctor will determine then if she can go home or not.

April 11Heidi is home!!!

State Baseball Champs 16-0!

2011-05-22T18:41:00.000-07:00

Four players from the jv team where chosen to play in the State tournament with the varsity team. Tristan was chosen to be their backup catcher. He went out in between each inning and warmed up the pitcher. He was very excited to be a part of this big day! Tristan is a Freshman this year. Fruitland played their first game against Priest River. The second game was against Kimberly. And the championship game was against their old rival Payette. Fruitland won 16-0!!! The boys also won the academic award. They had the highest GPA as a team in the state. Fruitland is the first team since 1987 to have won 3 major state titles (football, basketball and baseball) in one year. Great accomplishment boys!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-03T04:22:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas at our house this year. It is always our tradition on Christmas Eve to open presents containing new pajamas. That is always something everyone looks forward to. Kerry and Shalisa came over for that. And then went home to have Christmas morning at their own home. Josh, Ashley, Karder and Jarrit spent the night at our house. So we had a house full. It was fun! Kerry and Shalisa came back early Christmas morning so we could call Elder Brown. We talked to Kent on the phone for over an hour. He is doing so good! It was great to hear his voice again. Kerry and Kent spent some time talking back and forth in their different languages. Kerry speaks Spanish. He went on his mission to Leon Mexico. Kent speaks Portuguese. He is in Cape Verde West Africa. The awesome part about that is the language is different but similar enough that they could understand what each other was saying. It was fun to listen to them. Kent ended our conversation with his testimony in Portuguese. I couldn't understand the words. But I could feel the Spirit as he bore testimony of our Savior. It was beautiful. I looked around the room at that time and all I could think was, "this is what it is all about." Christmas was perfect at that moment.

Ashley made Karder and Jarrit new blankets for Christmas. They turned out really cute
SISTERS!
Kerry and Shalisa came over to open pajamas on Christmas Eve
Wasn't me!!! Tanner got Scubby Do pj's on Christmas Eve.
Sarah and LaWren got their family a puppy this year. They asked us to watch it on Christmas Eve. So they could surprise their family Christmas morning. Karder loved this puppy

Santa was good to us this year!
Waiting for everyone to get in the room. So we can start opening presents.
More opening of presents
This was a great moment. Karder LOVES baseball. He will find anything that resembles a bat and ball and play. Papa found him a bat and ball set. His eyes where huge when he opened his present. He thought that was the greatest present ever!
Heidi got a memory game. She likes to talk anyone that is around to play it with her whenever she can. Tanner got a new coat. That is why he is wearing it in the house.
Jarrit got a sit and spin. He loves it
Braxton got Kynex for Christmas. He loves to put things together. He made an awesome car out of these Kynex. It even moves on it's own. Josh was an awesome big brother this year. He helped Braxton put together his car. As well as help Heidi put together her doll house. Those are always things Kerry and Kent did for us. Josh stepped in and took that roll this year. Thank you Josh!

Snow Day

2010-12-06T05:33:00.001-08:00

On Sunday night it snowed and snowed and snowed!! By Monday morning I was thinking to myself, "Please be a snow day! Please be a snow day! And guess what? We got a snow day! The kids where super excited to be out of school for the day. They shoveled our driveway and steps. And then they took off to spend the day at Stokes (their cousins). They had snowball fights and pulled each other around on their sleds. They had tons of fun in the snow. And mom got the quiet house to her self to sleep away her snow day. Fun was had by all!

Our first big snow fall of the year.
"I am a little pilgrim girl. I like to fish and play. I'll follow the little Indian boy. On his first turkey hunt today."
I forgot to post these pictures with my Thanksgiving pictures. Heidi's kindergarten classes had a little Thanksgiving program. Afterwards we had punch and pumpkin pie.

The entire kindergarten at Fruitland Elementary. About 150 students! They where dressed at pilrims, indians and turkeys. They sang songs and recited poems. It was about 15 minutes long. They did a great job!

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-12-06T05:07:00.000-08:00

This year for Thanksgiving we went to Nampa. And celebrated it with the Stokes side of the family. Everyone was there except for Amberly and Jeron and their families. We had some delicious food. And a wonderful visit. It turned out to be a very nice Thanksgiving.
Dad, Mom, Kerry and Shalisa deep in conversation.
Kerry and Shalisa
Everyone hanging out waiting for the rest of dinner to arrive.
Kerry, Sarah, Cassandra, Jarrit, Adam and Allie
Mom carving the turkey
Kerry I love that smile!
Mom and Shalisa
What? You don't like my hat? Who says it's a purse?
New cars, a table and only a diaper on. Life doesn't get better than this!
Enjoying a little movie time on the computer.

Random Pictures I have taken lately

2010-11-17T06:21:00.000-08:00

Elder Brown at the top of the mountain
Elder Brown
Tristan with Grandma and Grandpa Winegar
Karder and Jarrit
Tristan and Jarrit
Kerry's indoor soccer game. It is kind of dark. But you can still see him. I couldn't get a clear picture of him.

Grandpa Winegar

2010-11-14T03:44:00.001-08:00

Elder Brown,
I hope you will forgive me. But I am going to post part of your letter I wrote you, into my blog. Because I think it best describes what is going on with Grandpa. I think it is important to journel the hard times as well as the good. Because the Lords hand is in all things.
Grandpa Winegar has had a problem swallowing for about a month now. He really struggles to eat and drink anything. So Grandma made an appointment for him to see the doctor. They went in last week and did a scope of his throat and took a piece of it so that they could biopsy it. The results came back as throat cancer. It is a very fast growing cancer. On Friday he went to Boise and had a Pet Scan done. This will show if it is any other organs or part of his body. His cancer is in the bottom portion of his esophagus, next to his stomach. However, the doctor didn't see anything in his stomach. But this scan will show his stomach, lungs, liver all those areas. We will have a better idea then how long he has. And what can be done for him. Grandpa is Grandpa though. He is a fighter. And he plans on fighting this. He just tells everyone that he wants it out. I am not sure with his age and his congestive heart failure what they are going to be able to do. He basically has 2 options if he is going to fight it. He can have surgery and take the cancer out. Or he can have radiation. Both of those options are very painful and have risk involved. Since the cancer is in his throat and fast growing every time they cut into that it spawns new cells and grows even faster. So the doctor is very hesitant to do that. And the radiation will burn really bad. It is very painful. But it could shrink the cancer, helping him to eat again. We will get the results back from that scan in another week or two. And then he will sit down with his doctor, the oncologist (cancer doctor) and the surgeon to decide what the best options will be. I will definitely keep you posted. But for now, Grandpa is in good spirits. He still has his sense of humor. The day the nurse called to give him instructions about his Pet scan, she told Grandma that he had to dress warm and not wear any metal for the scan. When Grandma told Grandpa that he said, "That means I can't wear my pocket knife?" Grandma said, "No you can't wear your pocket knife!" Grandpa said, "Well, how am I supposed to protect myself?" He is so funny! I love his dry sense of humor. It used to be that Grandma would sit on one side of the couch and Grandpa would sit on the other. Now everytime they are together they are sitting right next to each other, holding hands. They are so sweet. They have been married for 64 years. Grandma keeps saying she doesn't know how to live without Grandpa. He is her whole life. From the moment she wakes up every morning, until she goes to sleep at night, she takes care of Grandpas every need. So this is very hard for Grandma. I am just so glad that I am there with them every day. That I can spend that one on one time with them and help them as much as I can. That is a big blessing in my life. I think I have gone through just about every emotion with this. But I know that it is in the Lords hands. It is his will. It is just so hard to let them go. Grandpa and Grandma have been a huge part of my life. I don't think there will ever be a good time for them to leave this earth. But I know that I have a mother on the other side that is anxiously awaiting their arrival. That gives me alot of comfort having that knowledge. Yesterday Jeron and Heather and Amberly and Tyler came down to see them. So all 5 of us got together for lunch at Grandma and Grandpas. We spent the afternoon visiting. I think Grandpa really enjoyed that. We took a picture together. That is something that never happens. It is definitely one that I will cherish.

Cassandra's State Soccer Tournament

2010-10-27T06:09:00.001-07:00

These are pictures of Cassandra's state soccer tournament in Twin Falls. This was her first game. They played Snake River. They lost by 1 point.

This was Fridays game. They played Filer. They won 7-0. Cassandra is the one in black kicking the ball. She made a goal during this game

Lining up to play their last game. They where playing for 5/6 place.
The last game was against Community School. It is a private school from Ketchum. It went into triple overtime. So they picked 5 girls from each team to take turns kicking the ball into the goal. Whoever had the most balls into the goal at the end, won the game. Cassandra was one of the girls chosen for her team. This is a picture of her shooting. Their team ended up loosing. But it was hard fought to the end. Cassandra did awesome!

Fall Sports

2010-10-20T10:28:00.000-07:00

This was Tanners first year of playing football. He spent the season learning the sport. He was excited to finally get to play football.
This was Braxton's first year of playing soccer. He did a great job! He can run and run and run! He made a few goals this year for his team. Their team was undefeated.

At the beginning of the season, Tristan had to make a decision between soccer and football. He hates playing football. But he had never played soccer before. He didn't think he would like it. But after his first day of practice he loved it. He was the jv's goalie gaurd. Tristan found a new sport that he loves! He did a great job this season.

Cassandra started her soccer season as jv and varsity goalie. As well as goalie gaurd. Midway they put her in as forward for the varsity team. She did fantastic at that position. Their team won districts. Tomorrow they go to the State Tournament in Twin Falls. She will be their starting forward.

Cassandra's First Date

2010-10-18T06:02:00.000-07:00

Cassandra turned 16 on September 22. She was asked out on her first date by Zane Sather. He is from Ontario. He asked her to go to Ontario's Homecoming dance. She was so excited. She was beautiful. And had a wonderful time on her first date.

Cassandra and Zane

Cassandra trying to pin on Zanes flowers.
When all else fails ask Mom to pin on the flowers. Only to find out that she is not any better at it.
Why is it so difficult to pin on flowers? I took forever. But Zane was very patient.

Letter from Elder Brown 9-27-2010

2010-09-27T10:12:00.000-07:00

The room where he had is surgery
The table the Kent layed on to have his surgery.
The hospital where Kent had his surgery.

Hello Everyone,
Another week down and nothing to incredibly exciting has happened this week. Not that I can think of anyways. But I hung out in the house quite a bit this week, kind of. On Monday we did P day and i stayed around in the house. And Tuesday same, just kind of hung around in the house. It was Really boring and we dont have Air conditioning. And it is really stinking hot here! I have lost weight just sitting in the house haha!! Me and my companion were talking this week and we decided the only way you can get fat here is by bad genes and no way else. But anyways, I worked all day Wendsday and the rest of the week. I was tired of sitting in the house and so was my companion. But really the work was the same this week. I liked it a lot more this week because sitting in the house and studying 12 hours a day helps you get caught up on the gospel subject. Granted I am no were close where I want to be. But I am catching up. I read all of Jesus The Christ. And man that book if you havent read it I would suggest it. It really goes into the life of Christ and just the scriptures and everything it is a really good book. But anyways I really dont have a whole lot to write about this week. I guess the only real big news is that transfers were this week. And something happened that I didnt think would. I am staying a third transfer with my companion. Which he said never happens. Three with someone is very rare, I guess. And I am staying here in Sal probably for another at least two transfers. haha! So it should be great fun. But I feel bad for my Companion. He was so ready to leave because he has been here in Sal for 6 Months. And he was like there is no way I am staying another transfer. I have knocked every door. And I just dont know what I would do if I got put here another transfer. And we got the call from President and he told Elder Rosell you are staying one more with Elder Brown in Sal. And I thought Elder Rosell was going to die. Seven and a half months in one area!haha! And these areas are small. Theres only so much you can do. But that was all the exciting news this week though. That I am staying on Sal and probably will stay here for a couple more transfers.
But anyways, I dont know what else to write. I was very sad and yet happy to hear about Mr. Paridis. He is having a joyous reunion, I am sure, with his loved ones on the other side. I was reflecting a lot about Mr. Paridis these last couple of days. And just thinking about all the times we would go over there and knock on his front door and say my tire is flat. Or I need to put a new tire on my bike. Or I hit a tree stump in Grammys yard with the lawn mower, now the blade is bent. haha!! He was always there. I am very glad that you all went to his funeral. He was a great man. Almost like a Grandpa. But the awesome part about it is, we will see him again. What a great blessing the plan of salvation is. That we can live with our family and all of our loved ones once again. That after this life isnt the end but merly the beginning of our mission. That is why we must prepare to meet our Savior one day. And prepare everyday. I want to let you all know that I know that Families are forever. And are very important to your Father in Heaven. It is the greatest possesion we have on this earth. Because it is one of the only thing we can take with us after this life. So cherish your families. Love them, care for them, and most importantly serve them. Be the examples to them. Because I promise you that the path or direction you take in your life they will follow. But be joyous to know that FAMILIES ARE FOREVER. But I dont know what else to write besides I love you all. And will be more animated in my writing next week.
Love Elder Brown

A letter from Elder Brown

2010-09-13T08:02:00.000-07:00

Our Missionary
A small army of Helamon
His first baptism
Doesn't he look awesome! He looks so happy!
Elder Brown's new ride
This looks like a little village
I think these are houses that people actually live in!
Baboon on the house
Hey Mom ya it has been a better week since the A.P.S left. Well kind of sort of! haha! On Thursday I was sitting there doing personal study and out of the corner of my eye I see someone at our door. It was President Neves. He made a surprise visit to our house. Our house was a filthy mess! Because the other two elders that live with me and Elder Rosell are very sloppy and dont clean up after themselves. It rained that night so our house was muddy and it was just a disaster. But luckily my room was clean. haha! But anyways he came and didnt say a word to us and went and sat down and we finished our personal study. And then probably the most emabarrasing thing that has ever happened to me in my life, President Neves said,"Cancel all your appointments until 6. Because can you honestly feel the spirit with your house like this. And he helped us clean our house. o man was i just in the upmost embarrasment. I wanted to go hide in a corner! Then we had an interview and President Neves is a cool guy. Man he made me feel loved and stupid at the same time. But he made me realize that what I did wasnt the best thing. And that I could have been more loving about the way i handled it. (Just a side note: Elder Brown had a run in with his A.P. last week. He kind of lost his temper with him. That is what he is talking about.) Then he said,"Elder Brown when I first saw you and even now, I see a strong leader. You had something I have never seen in a missionary before. That is when I wanted to go bang my head against the door. But it was all good. And I have learned from that mistake. And am trying to better myself from that.
This week has been a crappy week of sleep. For the first time in my mission I have woken up a half hour late two days in a row and not exercised. Not to be disobedient. But I have this really bad rash on my legs. That is eating away my skin. And it burns really bad and makes it so I cant sleep at night. The last 4 nights I have got a combined eight hours of sleep. So my tank has been running low and it stinks. I have had to sleep in that extra half hour or I would be miserable all day. I have put a ton of desitan and the things you put in the package on it. And it doesnt help at all. It is just getting worse and our nurse went home last week. So I am stuck until our new nurse comes which is next week. But it is like I told my companion, I am not going to their hospital here. It is nasty! I dont want Aids! I"ll take a picture of it and you will know why. haha!
One thing that was cool about this week is I got my first Baptisms. It was sweet! I got to baptize in the ocean and the water was magnificent!
Other then that we have been having really nasty weather. And hurricane season is coming. So that will be cool. If you dont hear from me it is probably because I am dead or something. (another side note: Someone should tell him he should never say those kind of things to his mother!)
But anyways love ya mom and will talk to you next week! Well I am glad to hear everything is well at home and thank you for everything in the package I loved it all! I feed the Flamming hot Cheetos to these African kids and they hate them because they dont eat hot things here. haha! but thank you so much!
Love you
Elder Brown

PEACHES!! PEACHES!! PEACHES!!

2010-09-12T05:57:00.000-07:00

My friend, Malya, gave us 4 bushels of peaches this year from off her tree. They were beautiful early Alberta peaches. The skins slip right off of them. You dont even need to use a knife to peal them. Four bushels of ripe peaches on a school day usually means disaster. But my kids all stepped in and helped. The 3 youngest helped after school on Friday. Tristan, Ashley, Josh and the babies helped out on Saturday. Together we got the job done. It was great team work. Now we have over 100 quarts of yummy peaches to enjoy this winter!

After I blanched the peaches I put them into cold water. The boys job was to peal and pit the peaches. They did an awesome job! As you can tell they actually had fun doing it.
Everyone hard at work
Heidi's job was to load the strainer with peaches. And then I would put them into the water to be blanched. She was a big helper!
The babies even got into the action. Karder and Jarrit thought it was great fun to help Heidi load the peaches into the strainer to be blanched. Ashley and Josh also came to help. We got alot done! By the way, excuse Heidi's hair. She just got out of the bathtub right before I took this picture. I didn't even think about combing it before I took this picture. Poor little girl looks like an orphan! Oh well, such is life at our house!
Our favorite thing to do with peaches:Put peaches in the blender with some ice. To make peach nector. The kids drink it and think it is delicious! It makes a great after school snack. I can't get them to sit down and eat a bowl of peaches. But they wont hesitate to drink them. Silly kids!

Tanners Baptism

2010-09-05T19:02:00.001-07:00

Tanner and his Dad. Dressed in white. Ready for his baptism. He was very excited!
Tanners Confirmation Day
Tanner thought Heidi needed to be in all his pictures. But I talked him into just one. These two are best of friends. He is so patient and loving to his little sister. And of course she idolizes him. I just wish it would always stay that way. But for now, it is nice.

School Days

2010-08-30T06:04:00.000-07:00

For the first time in 23 years all my children are grown up or in school. I have had children in school for 19 years straight. By the time Heidi graduates it will be 31 years straight of kids in school! I will officially be a pro after all of that! That is hard to believe!
I knew it would be hard sending my baby away to school. I just didn't realize how hard. I cried all the way home. She loves school so much! I know she will do great. It is just an adjustment for mom.
I have 5 children going to 3 different schools this year. I told the kids Friday morning that I feel like a bus driver. I have 3 different stops to make to drop everyone off. But I love it! I love the fact that I can be there after school to hear all about their exciting days. It is one of the joys of being a mom.
Heidi getting ready for her first big day of kindergarten. After school she told me that her body loved school so much it thought that she needed to go back again!
Tanner and Heidi's first day of school. Tanner is in 3rd grade. Heidi is in kindergarten.
Braxton,Tristan and Cassandra's first day of school. Cassandra is a sophmore, Tristan a freshman and Braxton is in 6th grade. He is in middle school this year.

Family trip to Coeur d' Alene Idaho

2010-08-28T12:43:00.000-07:00

We took a family vacation this year to Coeur d'Alene Idaho. It was beautiful! And so much fun! We saved and talked about this trip for a couple of years. We where able to get a big home right next to the lake. Everyone spent hours playing at the lake. A couple of days where spent at Silverwood theme park. Evenings where spent barbecuing and sitting around the campfire. We couldn't have asked for a better trip!
The Cork Screw
Panic Plung
Taking a break
Heidi after a wet and scary ride. She was not happy!
Tanner and Heidi
Josh and Karder

Pulling out the canoe.

Tristan's plung into the water
Braxton and Tanner waiting their turn for the rope swing
Braxton getting ready to jump into the water with the rope swing
Stories around the campfire
Playing in the sand
Braxton's backflip

Funny faces

Day at the Lake
Karder and Jarrit played hours with these brooms. They where great toys!

Some Crazy Kids I Call Mine!

2010-08-04T17:00:00.000-07:00

Entertaining themselves during a long, boring car ride
Who's children are those anyway?!!?

A cold, windy day at the Oregon Coast
Falls on the way to Salem Oregon
On their way to Tristan's State Baseball tournament in Salem Oregon.

Byer family sealed for time and all eternity

2010-07-31T11:41:00.001-07:00

Ashley and Josh where sealed in the Boise Temple today. It is always an awesome experience to see a family sealed together for time and all eternity. Congratulations Ashley, Josh, Karder and Jarrit! We love you!!!

Pictures of Sal, West Africa

2010-07-19T15:59:00.001-07:00

Elder Brown sent some pictures of Sal. I thought you would enjoy seeing them.
View from above
Island of Sal
Another View of Sal

Sal
childen of Sal
Blue Waters of Sal
Elder Brown in Praia

Did you miss me?

2010-07-17T07:48:00.001-07:00

My blogging has slowed way down. I guess that means I have been super busy. That is not a lie. Sometimes I think that all I do is work, sleep and run kids to their sporting events. Pretty sure that is not a lie. But that is okay. I am very happy right now. And my family is very happy right now. I guess that is all that matters. Since I last blogged I turned another year older. The years are starting to creep up on me. I am now 42 years old. Hard to believe when I only feel 20.
Kent is now in Cape Verde. He called home from the airport in Boston. He had an 8 hour layover. So we got to visit with him for awhile. He is doing awesome! I am so proud of him. He is now on an island called Sol. I will post his letter now. If you would like to read it. It gives a little description of where he is and what he is experiencing.
Hey Family and friends how is it going so i have been here in Cabo Verde on the Island of sal for a week now i will tell you a little bit about it and will try to send some pictures so on monday i left the MTC after Two months there!!! i was really happy about that but i flew for a long time and got no sleep and so i was super tired but i landed in Praia and was automatically in a culture shock i just couldnt even believe it i was like what in the world this place is a dump and it really is just third world like you could not even believe but the first night was really hard just thinking i have to be here for two years and it hit me really hard but i just prayed really hard that night so anyways we got to Praia and it was crazy people here drive crazy no kind of traffic law it is nuts and they dropped us off at the presidents house the A.P.S and then we went and ate dinner with the president and his wife which was really good and my President is such a cool guy and is really young looking like missionary young looking but nicest guy and so is his wife very sweet lady but then we got done eating dinner with them around five and we went back to the A.P.S house and went to go do whatever go to bed or whatever so i went to bed at 530 there time and 12 30 your time and slept in until 6 15 the next day jet lag is kicking my butt here i always have to be sleeping but i woke up that morning headed to the airport got on a plane and headed to SAL with Elder Egbert and i knew i was serving on the same island as him but i didnt know that i would be in the same house so me and Elder Egbert still have some time together were not comps anymore though our trainers said that it is really rare for one person thats new come to Sal much less two new people so i guess the Lord still wants me to learn something with Elder Egbert haha but i met my trainer Elder Rosell he is so sweet we get along so well he is funny and we just have identical personalities which is the best part but we are serious too we work and work i come home and i just crash i have already lost ten pounds here in a week because we are walking and not eating a whole lot at all which bugged me at first but no it is just whatever food isnt really that important and when you do eat it is fish and rice so it burns off quick but yeah it is nice to have a sweet trainer and Elder Egberts Companion is elder wardell he is the Ex A.P. but he is a stud i love the guy everyone in our house gets along awesome. but ill get back to more about our area and Cabo Verde A little bit so i got to SAL and that day we went right to work and worked and worked but it was fun the people are really nice just nicest people ever but they are flaky very flaky they tell you things and then dont even do them and they lie all the time always busy because they are to nice to tell you there not interested but there are some major problems here i have now taught two thirteen year old girls with babies and it is totally normal and acceptable here chastity runs Rampant and so does immodesty it is really bad but this is the peoples culture here nothing like America nothing at all but it is still a great country and i am beginning to love it hard at first but now it gets easier and easier everyday. but this computer wont let me upload photos so im sorry ill try next week i wanted to show you the beaches most beautiful blue water and white sand beaches it its absouloutly beautiful its amazing but lets see what more can i tell you about ok here is something that is not in America campo de coco which is a pooping field and you walk bye and you see people in the wide open field squatting doing there business and it is just the most normal thing ever the first time i saw it i just sat and stared like what the heck um thats not normal but my trainer said o you will get use to it and then right after he said that he picked up a rock and wiped and thats when i was just like well looks like im definitely not in America anymore dont see to many forty year old men and women doing that in public haha but o well it will all be good just a lot of culture shock right now but the work is good here we are busy all day just teaching people will listen they just wont act so now we have to get them to act and it will happen but if you want a dog just write me because there are more stray dogs here then people haha but sorry for this letter as bad as it sounds i am alright i am alive and i love it just culture shock haha and being the only white people haha but it is all good i am sorry it has been a crazy week so i haven't studied a whole lot on one subject but i will next week and the plane ride to mindelo for zone conference but i will write you a little bit about some investigators of ours i will write you about two of them one is a family and one isn't an investigator but a returned missionary so the familia de anilson o i love this family they are so cool they have three kids one is 13 one is 3 and one is 6 just cool kids i cant talk to them though except the thirteen year old because he has gone to school so he knows Portuguese and if they haven't gone to school then they just speak criolou which stinks so the only people i can talk to is the older people but anyways i was talking to Anilson and he wants to get baptized so bad but he Drinks and to the best of my ability i was like Anilson man look at your kids and your wife they need the priesthood in their home they need an example what is more important alcohol or spending eternity with your family and he is like my family and he hasnt drank in three days and him and his family were at church yesterday o my gosh i could have cried it was amazing i loved it. the other one is DEDE he served a mission a whole two years and is just on the wrong path he drinks breaks the law of chastity and just all this stuff and hasnt been to church in two years and my companion has worked and worked on this guy and i told my comp and we talked about it and just said no more beating around the bush so we went right in there and were just like here it is dede what is to say you dont die tomorrow you are an endowed member of this church and you have already done this stuff you need to stop feeling vergonha or shame and come to church get your life back on track or else it will not look good on that judgement seat then we read him a scripture about how the greater punishment will be on those who know more and then we asked him if he was going to go to church and he said yes again Cabo Verdeianos Flakiest people ever so we went to his house and waited for him to get ready and he came to church with us so it was a great day here yesterday the people are great just need to realize that what there doing is bad and i guess i cant blame them it is 100 percent there culture but still they need to realize well yall next week i will be back on i love you all very much and HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM I LOVE YOU!!! but till next week

Love Elder Brown

Letter from Elder Brown 6-11-2010

2010-06-12T20:08:00.000-07:00

Dear Family,
Monday I picked my subject and stuff that I was going to study for the week. I picked charity and love which was a really good topic for me because of Elder Egbert. I picked it and have studied it and just practiced it. It is working so well I havent even argued with Elder Egbert this week which is nice. I just ask myself is this worth getting mad and losing the Spirit over and the answer is always no. Nothing is worth getting upset about. You should never get mad because then you lose the Spirit. So practice that. Ask yourself that is this worth losing the Spirit over? This Tuesday I got apostle number 3. Robert D Hales not as good of a spot but the same spirit was still in the room. A spirit that brought me to tears. The Spirit is just an amazing thing that we should always strive to have. What a joy it brings. What a companion it is and can be through out the day. His talk was amazing and I loved it. I am almost positive the Prophet is coming at the end of the month which is way exciting! I'll tell you if he does. But you can be jealous it is ok! So i was extatic to hear about your job! O man how the blessings come in if you let them. It is amazing how the Lord will bless you. So continue doing that. I encourage you to. Ok so I have to go. I might be back on here in a little bit. I just want to let you know everything is amazing here! I want to just be like my Heavenly Father more and more everyday.
Elder Brown

What have we been up to?

2010-06-01T20:00:00.000-07:00

I love my family!
Grandpa Winegar
My Mother's headstone on Memorial Day 2010.
Tristan's 8th grade graduation from Fruitland Middle School.
Tristan's 8th grade class
Memorial day was very nice. We went to the cemetary and decorated Moms grave. And then we went back to Kevins house for a wonderful barbeque. I only had 1 hour of sleep before we left for the cemetary. So I came home and slept for 5 more hours. And then Bill brought me to see Robin Hood. I am a huge fan of Russell Crow. I have never seen a movie that he is in that I don't love. Needless to say, I loved this movie. Kerry and Shalisa brought Tristan, Braxton and Tanner to the mountains for Memorial weekend. They just got home today. They had lots of fun. They also brought a couple of Shalisa's little brothers. They are very brave if you ask me.
Kerry and Shalisa are doing good. They are healing from their car accident wounds. They are working with at lawyer right now to try and get money for their medical bills. And to get another car. Hopefully they will get some help in those areas.
Ashley and Josh are doing well. Josh's dad died. So they have been busy trying to get his estate settled. Josh was his Dad's only child. So he has alot of responsibilities on his shoulders. But he is handling it great. Josh was given his first church calling about a month ago. He is Sunday School Secretary. He is loving it! He and Ashley are finished with their temple prep classes. Josh was baptised June 13, 2009. So they can go to the temple and be sealed after that date. They are really looking forward to that.
Elder Brown is doing awesome! I couldn't be prouder. I cry with every letter he sends. His testimony is growing so big. He is working very hard. He still asks with each letter for people to write him letters on dearelder.com. He loves getting letters. So write to him if you have a minute. He would love it!
Cassandra is just finishing up drivers ed. I am not sure if I am ready for another teenage driver. But it will be nice having someone else to share the driving responsibilities. She started summer practice for basketball and soccer today. They should keep her busy this summer.
Tristan, Braxton and Tanner have all started baseball. It takes up almost every night of the week. It will until the end of July. But we love baseball season at our house. We are going to send Tristan to a summer camp at BYU this summer. He is very excited for this. It is going to be a big experience for him. Tonight I had to bring Cassandra to her practices at 4:00. We had an hour before Braxton and Tristan's practices started. So we went to Mesa Park. The little kids played on the playground. Tristan hit balls to Braxton and Tanner. I was sitting there reading my book. And they decided that Mom needed to join in on the fun. So they found me a mit. They were very suprised when I could actually catch a pop fly. But when it came to throwing the ball back to Tristan, it became great entertainment for them. Let me just say, I am not so good at that! Oh well. We had lots of fun and laughs. I think we made a few memories. I can guarantee that I am going to be super sore tomorrow! At this park they have a big tennis court right next to the playground. So Tristan and I went to Walmart today and bought some tennis rackets. We are at this park every day for practices. So we decided that we are going to go a couple hours early and play tennis every day. I am very excited about it! I am sure it will be even more entertainment for my kids! :)
My job is going great. I am still really enjoying it. I applied to a full time position. It is overnights. The store manager told me that he is going to highly recommend me for the position. I really hope that I get it. It would be a very good thing. If I get it , I am going to give up my babysitting. I have done it for so many years. I am ready to do other things. It is just very hard to schedule sleep as well as all the other things that I have to go and do every day. It is hard to schedule your day around other peoples schedules. Or drag 4 or 5 extra kids around with you wherever you go. I have had these kids for a long time. So it is going to be hard to say goodbye to them. But I know that I need to do it.
Well this is long enough. That is a little update on a few things we are up to this summer.

Braxton's baseball 2010

2010-05-19T11:17:00.001-07:00

Letter from Elder Brown 5-14-2010

2010-05-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

Hey Family,
How's it going? Just sitting here on p day in the laundry doing my laundry being independent. haha!! Well the mtc is going really good. I like it a lot. The food is really good. well lets see the weeks events, Sundays are different here they speak just portrugese which i dont understand. But it is coming, so that is good, more and more every day. well classes here are awesome. I love my teachers. I sit in the class room for all six hours and just want too learn and sit there and not talk. It is weird! But one of my teachers went to cabo verde and said it is such a shock and everything that you honestly dont come back the same. You are just humbled and thankful for everything you have. He has never met one person that went in on his mission there and came back the same. It is the best mission ever! He said that President Hinkley came to the islands and talked to him and it is supouse to be the next tonga. That it is going to be a very succesful mission if we work hard. So I am really excited about that. Well it sounds like another busy week sending dad off and sports and everything. But glad to hear it is going good. Well lets see what else happened oh the best part of the week! Elder Jeffrey R. Holland came for my first devotional this week and I got like front row seats! What a powerful message he delivered. It was amazing and I loved it so much. What a powerful speaker. But this place makes you such a better person. I watched legacy this week and cried it truly is an amzing place the spirit is so strong. I want to get out and serve these people bring unto them the restored gospel. Well write me on Dear elder i love the letters and i want to hear from everyone even my siblings all of them! It makes the week awesome and packages with snackage would also be appreciated! Well that is all for me I Love you lots you are in my prayers. Make good choices. The Lord loves you and is watching over you. I know this and testify of it. You just need to come to him in Prayer.
Love You
Elder Kent Dan Brown
ps it is all right if you post this on your web site Mom

Karder and Jarrit 16 months old

2010-05-10T06:59:00.001-07:00

Karder Bill Byers
Jarrit James Byers

Cassandra's track events

2010-05-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

This year in track Cassandra is doing high jump, 200 meter, 400 meter medley and the 200 meter medley.
Cassandra running from her high jump event to get ready for her 200 meter medley.
Get ready!
Get set!
Go!!! Cassandra came in first in the 200 meter race.
200 meter medley. Cassandra is in the orange and black.
High Jump
Cassandra cleared four foot six inches.

Elder Brown

2010-05-06T07:51:00.000-07:00

These are some pictures of the events that took place prior to Elder Brown entering the MTC. Elder Brown gave his farewell talk Sunday, May 2. After church we had a big barbeque at our house. On Monday, May 3, at 5:00 pm he was set apart as an Elder. After we left President Barlow's office, we went to Grandma and Grandpa Winegars house. Elder Brown was given a beautiful blessing by his Great Grandpa Winegar. His Grandpa Stokes, Uncle Wayne Ashton and his father stood in the circle. On Tuesday, Bill, Elder Brown and I traveled to Utah. We had dinner with his Uncle Jeron and his sons, Spencer and Austin. And then we we stayed at his Uncle Steve's house. Wednesday May 5, Elder Brown entered the MTC. He is very excited to start this new chapter in his life. He will stay in the MTC for 9 weeks. While he is there he will learn to speak Portuguese. After the 9 weeks he will be flying to Cape Verde, West Africa. I will write more details about that later.
Good Luck Elder Brown! We love you.
We had 22 people in our front room after the barbeque. We were watching The Little Rascals.

We had a big barbeque after Kent's farewell talk on Sunday.
Heidi, Karder and Dallen playing under the trampoline in the dirt.
Grandma and Grandpa Stokes
Uncle Kalab barbequing a great dinner.
Uncle Adam and Aunt Valerie after eatting a fabulous barbeque dinner.
Kerry and Shalisa enjoying lunch after Kent's farewell.
Kent with his best friend Tyson Green
Elder Brown with Grandpa Stokes
Elder Brown visiting with his sister Cassandra
Elder Brown with his Great Grandma and Grandpa Winegar
Elder Brown saying goodbye to Stokes'

Saying his goodbyes.
Elder Brown walking away with his host companion. Ready to start a new adventure. It is going to be an awesome 2 years!

A new car and some tennis

2010-04-30T17:17:00.000-07:00

2010 Mazda 6 i sport.
After 10 years our Oldsmobile Alero finally died. This is a picture of our new car.
He loves it!
This is his first year playing.
Tristan is playing tennis for Fruitland Middle School this year.

What happened to Easter?

2010-03-30T14:39:00.000-07:00

What happened to Easter? Part of my job at work is to work with holiday displays. So for the past week we have been putting out Easter candy, baskets, stuffed animals and toys for Easter. I personally hate the fact that Easter has become so commercialized. Why do parents buy their children presents for Easter. I don't understand that. It seems to me that celebrating the coming of spring has become the focus of Easter. It is just another holiday to "buy" something. It doesn't help that when you step into Walmart it is wall to wall "Easter stuff"
I try not to be very fanatical. But when it comes to Easter, I am. My kids get to have an easter egg hunt. But never on Easter. And they have never received a present of any sort on Easter. I feel that the Savior's death needs to be a reminder of his atoning sacrifice for us. The celebration needs to be in the fact that He Lives! And because he lives so will each of us. Because our Savior and Redeemer did this for each of us, we have a Plan of Salvation. To me it is a sacred holiday. One that needs to be reverenced. Not commercialized.

The Tale of a Working Mother

2010-03-18T07:54:00.000-07:00

I have always considered myself a "working mother". Whether I am home all day or working outside of the home. I am busy. A mothers job is never done. Along with all the duties at home that require my attention every day, I babysit 6 children plus Heidi. I have had all of these children from the time they were little babies. So they have grown up with me. They know my routine, my rules and I love them to pieces. I do not look forward to the day that they will no longer be coming to my home.
When Kent graduated from High School last May, he and I sat down at the computer and started filling out applications. One of the applications we filled out was to Walmart. After we filled out his application, I decided to fill one out for myself. Why did I do that? I have NO idea!!! I filled it out and never gave it another thought. I forgot all about it. Until I recieved a phone call Sunday night, March 14. Ten months after I filled out my application! Walmart wanted to know if I would come in for an interview. At first I couldnt figure out why they would be calling me. And then I remembered! So I went in on Monday and had 3 interviews. They hired me to work overnights in their Lawn and Garden Department. Not like I didn't have enough to do! I now have two full time jobs!
At first I couldn't understand why I got this job. But I knew that it was something that I was supposed to do. The next day I began to have a little deeper understanding of just how blessed I am. The General Manager came in to speak to us at our Orientation Meeting. He told us that Walmart has had a hiring freeze since October. They have hired no one. Not even for Christmas. Of the hundreds of applications 6 of us where chosen. I know without a shadow of a doubt that the Lord knows each and every one of us. He knows our needs even before we do. I know that I have been praying that we will have a way to get Bill a car. His is dying. We do CPR on it every once in a while just to keep it going a little longer. But it is not going to last forever. And we do not want to take out a big loan to get a new one. I have also prayed that we will have enough income to keep Kent out on his mission. The Lord knows these needs and others that may arise. And he has answered those prayers. I will only be working 120 days. Because this job is seasonal. But it will be enough to meet those needs that are before us.
Do I think this will be easy. NO! But I do know that the Lord will make me equal to the challenge that is before me.

Kerry and Shalisa's Wedding Day

2010-03-14T07:56:00.000-07:00

Shalisa's Bridal Shower

2010-03-06T13:07:00.001-08:00

We made English Trifle for the dessert.

Our beautifully decorated room.
Shalisa, her mom and 3 of her sisters.

Kent's 19th birthday!

2010-03-05T08:20:00.001-08:00

Kent got new luggage for his birthday.
Kent's friends Tyson Green, Monica Slagle and 3 Elders came over to eat cake and wish Kent a Happy Birthday.
Kent blowing out 1 candle at a time. It may be 2 years before he gets another birthday cake. So he took his time blowing out the candles this year!
German Chocolate Cake. By the end of the night there wasn't a crumb of it left!

A Few Happenings

2010-03-01T10:02:00.001-08:00

Heidi playing at the park
Braxton and Karder
Tanner and Jarrit
The little boys can walk now! They love to be outside!
Jarrit
Karder
Tristan's basketball team (Fruitland Middle School) won the SRV District championship!
Cassandra had her New Beginnings for Young Womens. All the girls wore pretty gowns. The theme was being temple worthy. The girls where beautiful!

My First Blog Book!

2010-02-20T13:33:00.001-08:00

I was introduced to blogging in November 2008. It is one of my favorite things to do! I love to record the events of our family. I was told by a friend about a book you can make from your blog posts. So I decided to give it a try. And it turned out awesome! It is a 60 page hard back book that will be a record of the activities of our family from the end of 2008-2009. I think it will be enjoyed for generations to come. One of the things that I included at the beginning of my book, was a description of each one of my children. How old they are. What they are doing in their lives and what their interests are. I can't believe how much has changed since I wrote those things back in November 28, 2008!
I plan on making a new book each year. It is a perfect way to keep a beautiful journal complete with pictures of your family and events!

Kent received his mission call today!

2010-02-18T13:04:00.000-08:00

Kent just read where he is going!
Kent opening his call!
Kent's mission call came in the mail today! It is just sitting on the table waiting for him to come home and open it!

Kent received his mission call today! He is going to the Cape Verde Praia mission in West Africa. Cape Verde is a group of islands out in the Atlantic Ocean. It is off the coast of West Africa. Praia is the capital of Cape Verde. There are approximately 124,000 people on this island. Kent will learn and speak Portuguese. He will be reporting to the MTC May 5, 2010.

Tristan's sleep over!

2010-02-06T16:46:00.001-08:00

Everyone stayed up until 5:30 am! With only 3 hours of sleep they where a little quieter in the morning eatting their pancakes!
One of the boys was a good piano player. So they listened to him play. And then they all joined in on chopsticks.
They wrestled so much that sometimes my walls shook! I was honestly worried about my little house full of 14 year old boys wrestling!
They played a game of nervous. They each bite onto an end of a Red Vine and eat it until it is so small that their mouths almost touch. The first one to move away looses. It had everyone laughing!
All of Tristan's presents came in Hannah Montana gift bags! He got candy and 70 dollars in cash. Not a bad birthday!
Cameron eatting trying to spread the dog food onto his pizza to kill the taste!

This week Tristan turned 14. He had a basketball game the night of his birthday. The next night was Cassandra's final district playoff game (they won!). So he asked if he could invite a few friends over for a sleep over. I was quickly corrected when I wrote on his invitation that it was a slumber party! I was told boys do not have slumber parties. They have sleepovers! So he invited 6 boys from school to his big party. I never realized just how funny 14 year old boys where. I have never been around a group of 14 year old boys with out girls around. That is a different experience! They walked down to Pioneer to see if they could find anything good. They came back with a can of dog food. They dared Cameron to eat this can of dog food. He told them that he would as long as they paid him 5 dollars a piece to do it. I thought he was going to be sick! They laughed and cheered him on until he did it! It was so gross!!! They sat at the table and ate pizza and imitated their teachers from school. I have to say they did a great job of it! They played the piano, wrestled, played a game of nervous and played hide and go seek in the dark. One of the boys said, "This is the best party I have ever been too!" I am pretty sure he meant it. We did nothing special or out of the ordinary. It was just plain old fashion fun! But the party was a success! Happy Birthday Tristan!!! We Love You!!!

My Weight Removal for January!

2010-02-01T08:33:00.000-08:00

In the book Fit for Life for Women the Doctor was talking about weight "loss". She said that when you loose something, eventually you want to find it again. When we loose our weight we do not want to find it again! We want to completely remove it from our lives. So instead of saying weight loss, we need to be saying weight removal. I never want to find this weight again!!!! This will give you some indication as to how much of a mind set I am in. The family made brownies on Saturday. I have NEVER been able to pass up brownies. They are my biggest weakness! I just can't do it. Well guess what. They smelled great. But I had ZERO desire to eat one! How can that be!!! They did not even tempt me! So I never felt like I was depriving myself! Because I didn't even want it! NICE!!! My eye is on the goal! So my progress of weight removal is this: This week I lost 5 pounds. For a total of weight loss for January~ 18 pounds!
The Biggest Looser Bootcamp is a great video! I do it at least 3 times a week. It is mostly weight lifting. I highly recommend it! My big motivation is my goal chart. I hang it on my closet door. When I accomplish my goal for the day I put a star next to that goal. Each star represents accomplishment. And it constantly reminds me what my goals are. So it is easier to stay on track.
I use these dressing sprays for my salads. They are only 1 calorie per spray! And they taste great! This is the oatmeal I have every morning with a 1/2 a grapefruit. The oatmeal is sugar free and whole grain.
One of my secret weapons! Air popped popcorn. I usually do not like it. However I found Parkey spray with 0 calories and 0 fat! I spray that on the popcorn and then season it with popcorn seasoning. It has 2 calories and 0 fat! I can eat my popcorn guilt free and it is delicious!
Fit For Life~by Bill Phillips and Fit for Life for Women~by Pamela Peeke both are very good books to read!
My elliptical. Sometimes it's my friend. Sometimes it is not! I can put a book on it and read and read and read while my legs and arms move! I try to get 45 minutes a day on my elliptical.
This is my normal lunch. I enjoy everyone of those things on that plate. It is healthy and delicious!

"I believe" continued....

2010-01-30T16:38:00.000-08:00

Back in December I wrote a letter on my blog called "I believe". This letter was my testimony. I know that it is true just as much today as the day I wrote it down. I am thankful for that prompting to put it into words and to share it with others. I knew that there would come a day that I would have the opportunity to share it with the people that gave me their magazine. This morning they came to my door again. The first thing they said was, "Hello Kaylyn!" Yes they know my name! And then the lady asked me if I was enjoying the magazines that they leave every month. I hesitated. The lady asked me if there was something wrong. I told her that I do not want to be disrespectful to her or her religion. So I am worried about how to say it. She told me not to worry about it. That she wanted the truth. She wanted to hear what I felt about them. So I told her that every time I read them I get angry and frustrated. She asked me why. I told her because I feel that their beliefs are sad. And that I could never believe that way. She told me that the magazines are just a stepping stone to get me to read and understand the Bible. That their religion is not all doom and gloom. I told her that I like to blog. And after reading one of their magazines I blogged about it. I told her that I would like to share with her what I wrote. She agreed to come back next week. I will then give her a copy of "I believe". I do not in any way plan on arguing any points of doctrine. I just want her to know my testimony. I pray with all my heart that her spirit will understand those things that I am sharing with her. I don't plan on converting her. But I do plan on sharing my testimony fully with her before she leaves my home. And challenge her to read The Book of Mormon. Since I have so diligently read and studied those things that they gave me. Please keep me in your prayers.

Happy Birthday Karder and Jarrit!

2010-01-27T12:59:00.001-08:00

It's hard to believe that 1 year ago today Karder and Jarrit came into this world. And yet in another way, it feels like they have always been here. I have waited my whole life to become a grandmother. I waited with much anticipation for them to arrive. I remember the first time I saw them as they where wheeled down the hall from the birthing room into the NICU, they where perfect. I loved them so completely from the first time I saw them. Being a Grandma has been everything and more than I ever dreamed of. Karder and Jarrit are special spirits that have brought so much joy into our family. Happy Birthday boys! We love you!!!

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

2010-01-22T12:51:00.001-08:00

I love to read. It's something that I do every day. It makes me happy to read. I am always transported to a different time and place when I read. My love for reading is a blessing. Sometimes there is a book that comes along that changes the way I think. The Book Thief is one of those books. It was an honor to have read this book.
The story is told from "deaths" (the grim reapers) point of view. I know that sounds terrible. But it isn't. It is a story about a nine year old German girl living in the late 1930's in Molching, Germany. This is during Hitlers rein. She lost her father. She saw her brother die. And then she was taken away from her Mother and was brought to live with her foster parents. At her foster parents they taught her to read and write. She learned to have a great love for books. This story is about courage, friendship, love, survival in an impossible situation, death, and grief. If you are looking for a very good book to read, I highly recommend this book.
I want to thank my Sister, Amberly, for giving me this book. And for all the other books that she shares with me. If you have any books that you have read that you highly recommend, please let me know. I am always looking for a good read!

Potty Watch!

2010-01-20T10:04:00.001-08:00

We have been trying to potty train Casey (the little boy I watch during the day) It has been a challenge to say the least. His mom found this fabulous watch! It goes off every hour. It has a song that it plays and bright lights flash on and off. Every time it goes off he automatically comes and finds me! He is always staring at the lights and listening to the music when he walks up to me. He has had no accidents today! It automatically sets itself everytime it goes off. So I don't have to watch the clock all the time. The child finds me! It is ingenious! For all of you with potty trainers out there, I highly recommend it! I forgot to ask where she got it. I will ask her tonight when she picks them up.

The Earthquake in Haiti

2010-01-19T07:15:00.000-08:00

Because I use my blog as a journel. I want to include this post so that I can refer to it in the years to come. I think this tragidy is on a large scale. It is something that we can learn from. And that we should remember for years.

I can't help but think of those poor people in Haiti. An earthquake ravaged this land over the weekend. It is so sad. So tragic. I was at Grandma and Grandpa Winegars house Sunday evening. I sat and watched 60 minutes with them. I was sickened when I saw a section of Haiti just piled with dead bodies. They estimated 50,000-100,000 dead the day of the earthquack. By Monday the numbers had rose to 200,000. Along with 1.5 million homeless. Many more dying by the hour from their injuries. It looked like the Holocaust! They were trying to get rid of all these bodies because of the smell and disease. They said that they could hardly keep up. They had backhoes and they where literally scooping up bodies and dumping them into dump trucks. They where dumping these bodies into mass graves. I told Grandma that the sad part about all that is that no one is going to know where their family members are. Are they dead or alive? No records are being kept. So if they are dead, no one will know where they have been buried. But I am positive that the Angels in heaven are keeping a record. The Lord know each and everyone of them. They are in his care now. I was reading on the church website this morning about the church relief in Haiti. The church has sent 85,000 pounds of supplies to Haiti. All the missionaries in Haiti are accounted for and safe. They are helping to distribute and unload all of these supplies. I bet they never dreamed that was going to be their mission when they got their mission call. What a mission! All of the churches in Haiti where for the most part undamaged. They are being used to house 4000 people right now. When I hear things like this I realize that through all of the tragedy the Lord is there. I pray that He will send the help and comfort that those poor people need at this time.

Weight Loss Progress

2010-01-18T07:50:00.000-08:00

Well I hear about it all the time on Biggest Looser. And I guess it is true. "The dreaded second week" I was sick Monday and Tuesday. But I was back to exercising on Wednesday. I worked out for at least an hour a day. I worked out for 2 hours on Thursday! I ate super good. And guess what? I lost nothing!!! It is very disheartening! But I will just press forward from here. I will make this a super good week or exercising and eating right. Hopefully my body will kick into gear.

Bills 42nd Birthday

2010-01-15T10:39:00.001-08:00

January 13, 2010 was Bill's 42nd birthday. Ashley, Josh and the boys came over. We had a nice dinner and then Bill opened his presents. Heidi spent 3 hours that day coloring the perfect picture for her Daddy. It was Elmo blowing out his candles on his birthday cake. She was so excited about this present. Bill teased her before he opened it. This was the conversation; "I think I will just hang it on the wall right here!" "No Daddy! You have to open it first!" Why I think it will look nice right here." "No Daddy!!! Just open it!!!! She was so excited for him to see her picture! All in all I think he had a nice birthday!

Weight Loss Progress

2010-01-11T11:29:00.000-08:00

Well everyone it has been a week. I am right on track with my goals. I have worked very hard this week. I made sure that I worked out every day for an hour and a half, accept Sunday. I kept my calories under 900 calories a day. My calories were made up of good healthy food. So my first weigh in: I lost 11 pounds this week! :)

My Goal for 2010

2010-01-10T16:40:00.001-08:00

Well 2010 has came with a bang as usual. I spent 2009 making my blog book. I just finished it. I was waiting until this weekend when we got paid to order my book. And then the unthinkable happened! My computer got the blue screen of death! Unbelievable! I lost my book! So I will be starting all over! Thank heavens I still have my blog and some of my pictures. It wont be exactly the same because I lost some pictures. But it should be pretty close. I dread the thought of starting over. But it will be worth it when it is finished!
Well as the new year begins I started my new years resolutions. The biggest weightloss I have ever had! For 2 years I struggled with depression. So I was on some wonderful medication that helped pull me through those 2 years. But at the same time helped add 75 unwanted pounds onto my body. It is a daunting thought loosing all of this weight. But one that has to be done. I am tired of carrying it all around. I have alot of motivation this year. Kerry is getting married on March 13. Ashley and Josh will be having their family sealed in the temple in March. And Kent will be leaving on a mission in May or June. There will be lots of pictures! I hate having my picture taken. And the only reason being is that I hate facing the fact that I am fat! But that is the fact. So I am ready to do something about it. I made a goal chart on a graph chart. When I accomplish my goal for the day, I put a pretty star sticker on that day. My goal is that by March 13 I will have lost 60 pounds. By my birthday, July 11, I will have lost 75 pounds. Tomorrow will mark 1 week. I will weigh myself every monday and post my progress. I put a tracker on my blog if you want to follow my progress. I know that this is something that I can do! I am going to take it 1 day at a time. And 1 decision at a time. If I loose 60 pounds by March 13, I am going to buy myself a new pillow top for my bed. If I loose 75 pounds by my birthday, July 11, my brother and sister are going told me that they will buy me a Kindle. I am very excited at that thought! I thought that was very sweet of them to do that for me. It is alot of motivation. But more than anything I know that my family is there to cheer me on and support me the whole way! I WILL DO THIS! THAT IS A PROMISE!

Recap of 2009

2009-12-31T10:01:00.000-08:00

Today is New Years Eve. Every year on this date I stop to reflect over the past year. So here is a small recap of what happened at the Brown house during 2009.
*We started the year off with a bang! Two new additions to our family were added on January 27, 2009. Ashley started her family. Karder and Jarrit were born. We have watched them grow bigger and stronger with each passing month. We watched them as they first started to smile and crawl. Now at the end of the year they are starting to take their first steps. And can say a few words. Life with "the boys" has been fun!
* We have celebrated holidays and birthdays.
* In March we watched, with joy in our hearts, as Josh was baptized and then confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
* We moarned the death of a beloved Father and Grampy.
* We cheered as Kent took home the 2nd place medal at the State Wrestling Tournament. A couple of months later we watched him with great pride as he walked down the isle to graduate from high school. And now at the end of the year as he finishes his mission papers, while he works hard to earn his money for his mission. He is helping to build the new Internet Truck Stop in New Plymouth.
* We spent many hours, days and even months at the baseball field. As we cheered on Tristan, Braxton and Tanner.
* We supported and encouraged Cassandra and Tristan as they started a new school year in a new school district. This move was a positive one. Cassandra played soccer and is now playing basketball for Fruitland High School. Tristan has played football and wrestled this year with Fruitland Middle School. They have both made wonderful friends and are doing well in their studies.
* We were estatic as we heard the news of Kerry's engagement to Shalisa Slagle. We have grown to know and love Shalisa. We are excited to have her as a member of our family.
* We were happy for Kerry when he was called back to work at Costco. And soon after moved to Nampa.
* We prayed for Josh as he searched and soon found a new job.
* We helped Ashley and Josh as they moved from their little trailor to a beautiful home a few miles away.

The Lord has poured his blessings upon our family this year. We have been greatly blessed. This year has been eventful! I look forward with great anticipation to the new year.

Traditions

2009-12-29T12:15:00.000-08:00

Every Christmas Eve Bills family has a Christmas party. Grammy would love to surprise us with a lunch. She would save up her change all year and then she would buy us lunch. Sometimes it was chinese food, sometimes it was Subway, sometimes it was pizza. It was always a fun treat. Something she enjoyed doing for the family. This year was sad not having Grammy and Grampy there. We celebrated at Ron and Leisa's house. Each of the family takes a turn and shares with us a talent. With the Brown family that always involves alot of singing and instruments. And then we had treats and opened presents. After that the family gathered around the piano and sang lots of Christmas music. It is always a treat to listen to the Brown's sing!
When Bill and I where first married we found out that our families had different traditions concerning Christmas. His family opens all their presents on Christmas Eve. My family got to open 1 present. That present was always a pair of pajamas. When my Mom was still alive she always made our pajamas. So they always matched. Bill and I decided (mostly because I refused to open all our presents on Christmas eve) that we would open the presents from his family at their party on Christmas eve. And then we would come home and open our pajamas. Still leaving us plenty of presents to open on Christmas morning. It is the only pj's that we buy during the year. So it is a fun treat to get new pajamas! This year I was able to find footie pajamas for almost all the children! Even Kent and Kerry got footies! The kids loved them! Kerry, Shalisa, Kent, Cassandra and Tristan even went to Kmart that evening in their new footie pajamas! We had to purchase 14 pair of pajamas this year. Our family is growing!!!
Other traditions include, orange rolls, cold cereal in little boxes and hot chocolate for breakfast. Shrimp for lunch. And lots of game playing in the afternoon.
I love traditions!

2009-12-19T20:25:00.001-08:00

2009-12-19T20:20:00.001-08:00

My Grandma and Grandpa Winegar

2009-12-19T17:39:00.000-08:00

Tonight my thoughts are on my precious Grandparents. My Grandpa Winegar is 82 years old. And my Grandma Winegar is 80 years old. They have lived long enough to see their grandchildren, their great grandchildren and even their great-great grandchildren. I honestly do not think anyone could have grandparents better than mine! They have always set a high standard for me to follow. I have learned at their feet. They have been guiding me and loving me unconditionally my whole life.
When I was little, about 8 years old (33 years ago) my grandparents started a tradition. I don't think they knew then that this tradition would grow to involve so many of their posterity. One Saturday in December our family gets together to have a Christmas party. We have lunch. Which always involves soups, bread, meats, cheeses, and homemade candy. And after the lunch we have a Nativity Story. Grandpa reads the Nativity Story. We stop every once in a while and sing a Christmas hymn. The children dress up as Shephards, Angels, Wise men, Mary and Joseph. When it is their turn they come on stage. After the program my Grandpa always takes the time to bare his testimony to us. It saddens me to think that my Grandparents wont be here on this earth forever. But I know that when the time does come, there will lots of posterity to carry on this wonderful tradition.

2009-12-19T17:34:00.001-08:00

Byer Family Pictures

2009-12-17T20:53:00.001-08:00

Kerry and Shalisa's Engagement Pictures

2009-12-10T07:23:00.001-08:00

I believe

2009-12-01T12:37:00.000-08:00

A certain church comes to my door about once a month a leaves me a couple of their magazines. I am always respectful to them and their beliefs. Even though I do not agree 100% with them. This particular magazine caught my eye. It says, "Exposed: Six Myths About Christianity." INTERESTING. So I sat down this afternoon and read through as much as I could. But before I was finished with the first one, I wanted to cry. I wanted to shout from the rooftops! NOOOO!!!!Their Myth #1 "The Soul is Immortal" Their "Fact" AT DEATH A PERSON CEASES TO EXIST. They believe that God gave us the "breath of life" and that is to mean litarally "breath". When we die and stop breathing we stop existing. This makes my stomach hurt. It is the saddest thing I have ever heard. I cannot imagine my Heavenly Father (God) ever wanting me to stop existing. I believe that he knows each and every one of us perfectly. He loves us with a perfect love. I believe that we were sent here to this earthly life to gain a body of flesh and bones. I believe that while we are here that we will be tested and tried. And that by so doing we will become stronger and better people. I believe that our Heavenly Father (God) wants us to live with him again. "Ceasing to exist" does not sound like Gods plan.
Myth #2 "The Wicked Suffer in Hell" Their Fact: "God does not punish people in hell." Because I believe in God, I believe in a Heaven and a Hell. I believe that someday we will stand before our maker (whether you believe it or not) and we will be judged. He will want an accounting of what we did with our time on earth. I live my life every day with that knowledge. Am I scared of that day. No. But I will be prepared. I also believe that God sent his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ to the earth. He was beaten, spit upon, called horrible names. He bled at every pore. He was nailed onto the cross and died. He died to Atone for our sins. Why would he do that, if there was no Heaven and Hell. Or if we just "stopped existing". There would be no purpose. This is why he is called our Savior and our Redeemer.
I will not go into the rest. But I just felt very compelled after reading that to write my feelings and my testimony down.
I know that God lives. I know that he is perfect. I know that he has a plan for each and every one of us. He loves us. He knows us by name. I know that someday I will live with Him again. And I will be reunited with those that have passed on that I love so dearly. They will be waiting to greet me with open arms when I pass through the veil. I am thankful for this knowledge. I am thankful to be a Daughter of God.

Here's whats going on at "Our Little Brown House"

2009-12-01T11:22:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted in awhile. I am always thinking I need something new and grand to post. But I don't have that. So here's whats been going on at our house:
1. I went to my sisters the weekend before Thanksgiving. I had a wonderful time! We went to the Unique Boutique Bizarre at Bonneville High School. It was amazing!!! I spent a lot of money and still did not see every booth. I can't wait to go back again next year! My sister taught me how to make some beautiful and whimsical bead watches. I love them!
2. Thanksgiving was good. We spent it at Ashley's. Her home is beautiful and comfortable. We ate lots of turkey, took naps, played games and went to see New Moon again. It was a great day.
3. I took down fall and put up winter. My house is decorated. All I need is my Christmas tree. I wont get that until at least this weekend. I always worry about it drying out and dying before Christmas. One more shopping trip and I should have all my presents bought. Not to many more to get. With a big family it seems like a lot of presents, when in reality, it's only a few a piece. But Christmas is much more than presents. Our family has learn that and accepted it over the years.
4. Most of the people in our house, including myself, are sick with a cold. Tis the season. I could think of worse things. But I never have time to be sick. It is kind of inconvenient! But I do have to say, my foot is feeling much better. Not a 100% yet, but better. No more crutches!!
5. Have a wonderful Christmas everyone!

2009-12-01T11:11:00.001-08:00

My African watch. I made 3 watches. I call my 3rd watch my Cindi LouWho watch. It looks like it belongs in whoville. I cant find it today to take a picture of it. I am thinking my daughter wore it to school. I will take a picture and post it as soon as I get it back.
Amberly taught me how to make these beautiful bead watches!
My BIG calendar. One of my favorite things!
My Snowmen

Kerry is engaged!

2009-11-15T13:03:00.001-08:00

We are very excited to announce that Kerry is getting married! He is marrying Shalisa Slagle. She is a young woman in our ward that Kerry has been dating for a year. He met her about a month after he got home from his mission. Her family moved here from Washington, while Kerry was on his mission. Shalisa is the oldest of 9 children. She is smart, and beautiful. She is so sweet to Kerry. She will be a wonderful wife and mother someday. They haven't set a wedding date yet. But they are thinking it will be sometime in March. We are excited to have her as a new addition to our family.

2009-11-15T12:52:00.001-08:00

This is the only picture I have on my computer of Shalisa. I will get an updated picture of her and Kerry soon!

Night at the Steelheads Hockey Game

2009-11-08T15:32:00.000-08:00

Kent was able to get us tickets to Saturdays hockey game against the Utah Grizzlies. It was a very fun game. Bill and I, Kent and his friend Monica, and Ashley and Josh went. We had so much fun. We love a good hockey game! Monica had never been to a hockey game before, so it was fun to watch her reaction to what was going on around her. There where 2 really good fights last night. A hockey game is not a hockey game without at least 1 really good fight. We got 2!!! Steelheads lost 2-0. But it didn't matter. It didn't keep us from having a fun night! Hopefully we will be able to go at least 1 more time before the season ends.

2009-11-08T15:15:00.001-08:00

Stephanie Nielson

2009-11-05T07:00:00.000-08:00

I was introduced to Stephanie Nielson (Nienie) blog by one of my friends. She is one of the most amazing women. She was in a plane accident. She was burned over 80% of her body. Stephanie defines what a good woman, mother and wife should be. She defines it in her every day life. In her thoughts and in her actions. Stephanie blogs almost every day. I enjoy and encourage everyone to put her on your blog list. She is an inspiration to me every day.

My Grinch size heart is growing!

2009-11-02T08:41:00.001-08:00

I have never (even when I was a little girl) liked to dress up. In fact, when I shop for clothes I very seldom try anything on. I have always disliked Halloween because I had to dress up. That dislike has grown since I have become a mother. And I am now expected to find costumes for my children. I know I sound like the Grinch!
Something happened this year. I actually enjoyed Halloween!!! Weird! I have been collecting items for various costumes over the years. I keep them in a big black garbage bag. My kids took that bag out this year. They totally found their own costumes, while I sat and watched them. They had so much fun rummaging through this bag of clothes. I made a good dinner. We all sat down at the table and ate. No one was in a hurry. After dinner they dressed in their costumes and I drove them around to peoples houses that we knew. For the first time in 22 years of having children, I enjoyed it! There has always been alot of stess involved with Halloween. This year I didn't even think about it. Maybe my Grinch size heart is growing. :)

Going to the Trick or Trunk, Carnival and Chili Feed

2009-10-29T13:34:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Purdums Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-23T14:57:00.000-07:00

The Joy of Service

2009-10-20T09:56:00.001-07:00

I am always looking for a teaching moment. I think it is so important that my children learn to serve others. We live in a world that says me, me, me. We spend alot of time supporting our children in their various activities. We make sure they have nice clothes to wear. They always get things for their birthdays and Christmas. I feel that as parents we try and do our best to help our children feel loved and comfortable. We have been very blessed as a family. I in turn want them to share those blessings with others.
We have a little 90 year old neighbor lady, Lorraine Smart. She is a widow and lives alone. When they moved into their house 60 years ago they planted a little tree. That tree has since grown to be huge. It is a beautiful tree. Yesterday as I went outside to get the mail I glanced over to her yard. Her beautiful tree had deposited its leaves all over her yard. I thought, there is my teaching moment! For Family Home Evening last night we went outside and cleaned up all those leaves. We filled 18 large black garbage bags! My children had a ball! We talked, and played and worked all at the same time. It took until it was dark but no one complained. My children kept saying, "this is so much fun!" They learned the joy of service!

2009-10-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

Family Time....It's the best!

2009-10-17T20:56:00.000-07:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

My Little Helpers

2009-10-16T12:50:00.001-07:00

Tanner helping with dinner

2009-10-15T12:53:00.000-07:00

"Hay! That tastes pretty good!"

2009-10-15T12:50:00.001-07:00

Just one little kiss?

2009-10-15T12:48:00.001-07:00

Jarrit lovin Fall

Karder~8 months

2009-10-08T19:16:00.000-07:00

Karder is a character! He is so active. This little boy never slows down! He is crawling all over. And has just recently learned to stand up along the furnisher. It is fun to see how different these 2 little boys are. They change every time I see them! But 1 thing has not changed; they both still get very excited when they see or hear their Grandma! This makes me very happy that they know who I am. Being a Grandma is the best!

Jarrit~8 months

2009-10-08T19:01:00.000-07:00

Jarrit is, for the most part, a calm, happy baby. He loves to sit and play with his toys. He can get on all fours and rock back and forth. He does not have the crawling thing down yet. But he is content watching his brother. He loves to smile and laugh. And he loves to talk (make noises) to his Grandma on the phone.

23rd Wedding Anniversary

2009-10-02T07:34:00.000-07:00

Our story began before I was born. We have had our up's and our down's. It has never been a smooth ride. But it has been interesting, very seldom ever boring. But it is our story. And I love it. I was the first child out of 8 children. It had been many years since my mom had been around a baby. She wanted some practice taking care of a baby before I was born. So she called Betty Brown. Betty had just adopted a little boy named Bill. Bill was born 6 months before I was. So my Mom kept Bill for the day and practiced taking care of a baby. When we were sunbeams Fruitland and New Plymouth went to church together in New Plymouth. Bill kept pulling my piggy tails. So one Sunday I got sick of that and went to the Bishop and told on him! When I was 12 Fruitland went to church in Payette. My Grandma and Grandpa Stokes lived in New Plymouth. One Sunday we were at their house visiting. Bill came over to collect fast offerings. I hid in the back room and peeked through the door at him. I thought he was so cute! I didn't see him again until after my Mom died. A couple of days after she died Bill and Leisa came to my Grandma Winegars to give us a pie. I was 15 years old. After they left I asked my Grandma who that was. She told me it was Bill Brown. I told her that I wished he wasn't married! She said, "he's not, that was his sister Leisa!" Shortly after that he called me. We talked for awhile and then he asked if he could come over and take me for a ride. On my 16th birthday he took me on my first date. We dated for 2 and a half years before we were married.
It is hard to believe that we have been married for 23 years. It seems like just yesterday that we were a young, struggling married couple. And then there is another part of me that thinks Bill and I have been together our whole lives. He is my life. It is hard to picture my life without Bill. He is a big part of who I am today. We were married at the age of 18. Now I can't believe we did that! So we have literally been growing up and changing together. We have had our share of marital struggles. But I am happy that he is still a part of my life. I am not sure if I could survive without him. I never want to find out. Marriage is not easy. At least for us it has'nt been. But we have learned. We have grown. We have to make it a daily process. I love Bill more today than I did 23 years ago. Whenever I look at him, I still think he is so handsome. I feel lucky that he chose me to be his wife.

2009-08-09T15:25:00.001-07:00

Stokes Family Reunion 2009

2009-08-09T14:57:00.000-07:00

As I sit at my computer this afternoon, I am reflecting back on the wonderful weekend that I had with my family. My family, with the exception of my sister Amberly and her family and Jeron and his family, went to New Meadows, Idaho. Amberly and Jeron and their families where greatly missed. It never seems complete without everyone in attendance. As I think about their absence, it reminds me of just how important it is for ALL of our family to be together forever. I don't want to have any of my family missing. Some of the happiest moments of my life have been when all my family is together. We enjoy each other so much! It is what our Heavenly Father designed families for. My Aunt Donna Jemmett and her family have a cabin right out of New Meadows. It is beautifully surrounded by pine trees. The sound of the water in the Salmon River running over the rocks was the perfect backdrop for a wonderful vacation. It is usually very warm in this area this time of year. However, we went during a cold front. When we arrived Friday evening it was raining. But Saturday was about 75 degrees and sunny. We couldn't have ordered better weather. Saturday morning Cristle and I went for a walk up a trail on the mountain. As we are walking I couldnt help but think of my Mother. She would have loved this vacation. This place had everything that she loved and cherished: her family, mountains, wildflowers, rocks, berries, the river and trees. I told Cristle, "My Mom would have eatten this place up!" I missed her. But I thought of her walking next to me on that trail. It made me happy. Saturday we all played all day long. There where so many things to do. Everyone had something to do all the time. We rode four wheelers, shot guns, played lawn darts, visited on the patio, some of us went into Riggins and shopped and got milkshakes. In the evening, after a yummy dinner of barbequed pulled pork sandwiches, beans and watermelon, we went out to the volleyball area. The sun was starting to set. It was beautiful outside. We had a big volleyball game. It started small but just about everyone had joined in by the end. It got very loud and very competitive. Exactly what our family loves to do! At the end of our game we gathered around the fire. Dad told us stories about his mother, Lottie Stokes, life. It was very interesting.
Sunday morning we packed, cleaned the cabin and then had a family meeting. We discussed where we want to go on our family vacation next year. I am already looking forward to it. What a wonderful, wonderful family reunion!!!!

2009-07-25T20:13:00.001-07:00

Life without baseball?

2009-07-25T19:13:00.000-07:00

We have had 5 months of nonstop baseball. We have finally reached an end to the season. I am so relieved. However, now I can't help but ask the question, "now what do we do?" We have become so used to planning our every evening around either practices or games. It is going to be weird (but nice) not having anything to do in the evenings. I do not have any plans of filling that time with other activities. Those will come soon enough. I think I will just enjoy the rest of my summer.

Random going's on

2009-07-16T16:24:00.001-07:00

I haven't blogged for awhile. It is a busy time of year! So what have I been up to? Lots and Lots of baseball! Tristan, Braxton and Tanner have been playing baseball. So we have had 5 months of baseball! Baseball 5-6 days a week for 5 months! Time to be finished for awhile. At least for 1 month before we start into football and soccer.
I am not sure if I like this hot weather. It is over 100 degrees for the next 3 days at least. And then it will calm back down into the 90's. It makes it very difficult for the kids to go outside and play. They are driving me crazy today. I feel like it is a snow day and they are all cooped up inside. Not good for any one! I am looking forward to going to LaGrande next week. I think I am going to leave everyone home. Of course I am bringing Tristan. But other than that I am going to be child free for 5 days. I am looking forward to sleeping in, taking naps and going to see some movies. No children tattling, fighting or crying. That is what I call a vacation!
I picked a 5 gallon bucket of beans from my garden yesterday. I canned 20 quarts. It is nice seeing food in jars. Especially food that I grew! We have been very blessed this year. Our garden has really taken off! So I should fill lots and lots of bottles.

Tristan's National All Star Team

2009-07-16T16:16:00.000-07:00

Tristan plays Babe Ruth baseball for SRV (Snake River Valley). This team is comprised of the best players chosen from Ontario, Fruitland, Payette and New Plymouth. Their sponser is the Elks in Ontario Oregon. So they play district and state tournaments against Oregon teams. They played their district tournament in LaGrande this past weekend. They played against Baker, LaGrande and the American SRV team. Tristans team took first place at the tournament. For their grand finale of their baseball season they will play their state tournament in LaGrande. This will be July 20-25.

My new clothes line

2009-06-23T11:33:00.000-07:00

I had been hanging all my clothes over the fence to dry. Not because I dont have a dryer. But because I just like having my clothes dry outside. My brother in law, Ron Beutler, built me this beautiful clothes line. I am loving it! Thank you Ron!

My Garden

2009-06-23T11:29:00.000-07:00

Summer Fun

2009-06-23T11:26:00.000-07:00

Yep, Heidi is without a shirt! I was hanging clothes out and looked over and she peeled off her shirt and down the slide she went!

Moyle W. Brown

2009-06-18T09:56:00.000-07:00

I thought I would let everyone know that my father in law passed away peacefully in his sleep this morning. What a beautiful reunion he is having with his family at this moment. I can picture it! He is finally reunited with his wife, 2 of his sons, a daughter in law, a grandchild, his parents and a host of other people. He can walk, talk and sing again. I am sure he is filled with joy this morning. One of my friends said today, "I bet the heavenly choirs are singing their best today." He influenced so many lives. Most people will say that he changed the way they think about music. Music was never the same after you sang a time or two with Mr Brown.
My thoughts today are that of a daughter. I love him so much! From the very beginning that Bill and I where dating, he wrapped his arms around me and he stole my heart. He taught me how to can. He taught me the value of a good deal. He shared with me his decorating ideas. We had some long talks together. I could always count on him being there when I needed him. When he was in the hospital and had his toes amputated, I stayed with him for 10 days. What an awesome experience. I was proud to do it. After it was all over and he got the tube out of his throat he told me that he would have my next baby for me! HA HA HA!!! I told him that was a deal! So the day I had Tristan he came into the room while I was in labor. He wanted so bad to be there for me, like he promised. But all it took was one big groan from me and he said, "I'll be out in the waiting room!" White in the face, he left and waited and waited and waited. He was there for me, just as he promised. I have sooo many memories. I cannot put them all down.
It is bitter sweet here on this side of the veil. Even though all of us know this, it is still hard to let them go. Because we love them so much. Loosing a loved one is never easy. No matter what the circumstances. But oh what joy and peace the gospel brings. I love the plan of salvation. I love that I can share it with my children, especially during times like this. I love knowing that when it is my turn to return, I will have a heaven full of people to welcome me home. What a glorious reunion that will be.
I will miss you my dear father and friend. Until we meet again.

Pure Happiness

2009-06-08T16:02:00.000-07:00

Heidi and her friend Samuel. Samuel is 5 years old now. We have been watching him since he was 2 years old. He is like a brother to Heidi.

Kent and Karder taking a Sunday afternoon nap

2009-06-08T15:59:00.000-07:00

Sleeping like a baby!

Memorial Day 2009

2009-05-26T07:26:00.001-07:00

Kents Graduation

2009-05-24T11:38:00.000-07:00

I Remember......

2009-05-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

With Kents graduation, I have been reflecting back at his life so far. It has definitely been an adventure. I was so worried this past year whether or not Kent would actually graduate. He has a hard time concentrating when there are distractions. In school there has been constant distractions. I knew he was definitely smart enough, but could he stay the course. And then I thought back of when he was 3 years old. Kent woke up the first day of school and told me that he was going to go to first grade today. I told him that he was only 3 and that he would have to wait a couple of years. He kept telling me that he was going to go. So I got Kerry and Ashley off to school. We lived in town so they walked to school every day. And then I sat Kent down in front of the tv to watch Barney while I got into the shower. When I got out of the shower Kent was gone. I searched every where. And then it dawned on me Kent went to 1st grade. So I went to the school and I told the principle that I thought that my 3 year old was in 1st grade today. She looked confused and I explained. She said "how would he even know where the 1st grade classrooms are?" I told her that this is Kent we are talking about. When he says he is going to do something, he means it. Even at that young of an age. So just to amuse me, and not believing a word I said, she walked me to the 1st grade classroom. Kent was sitting on the floor with the rest of the 1st graders listening to the teacher read a story to them. He was just beaming. The teacher talked to me after the story was over and told me that he came in her classroom and sat down with the rest of them. She said I figured that you where working at the school today and that he was supposed to come in here. She said I asked him if his mom knew where he was and he said, yes I told her. I told her that he walked to the school by himself, found the 1st grade classroom by himself and did exactly what he told me that he was going to do.
I have learned over the years that Kent will accomplish what he sets out to do. It may not be easy for him. He may accomplish it at the very last minute. But it will be done. I love him. He has kept me on my toes. And I have no doubt that Kent will accomplish some wonderful things in his lifetime.

some thoughts.....

2009-05-21T06:42:00.000-07:00

It has been so long since I blogged. I am feeling guilty. Spring is a busy time of year around our house. Especially this year. Kent is finished with high school. He will be graduating tomorrow night. I am excited to blog about that! :) All the other children will be finished with school next friday. So I am gearing up for a house full of children for the summer. I will have 5 babysitting kids, 6 kids of my own, as well as friends, cousins and neighbors. That makes for a house full! Never a dull or boring moment at the Browns!
The one thing I LOVE about summer is ball games. It is so fun packing a cooler of food and bringing our lawn chairs, to spend our Saturdays at baseball games. I love it. It is a nice break from being in the house all week. I love watching my children play sports. Cassandra will be doing basketball tournaments this summer. Tristan, Braxton and Tanner are all playing baseball. We will have plenty of games to keep us busy, that is for sure.
Kerry is 22 years old today. I can't believe it! Honestly it feels just like yesterday that I had him. It has gone so fast. It makes me sad. But I am pleased with the way he has turned out, despite my mothering skills. :) He is a good kid. And I love him more than I could adequetely express.
My garden and flowers are planted. I am excited to get some canning done this year. I have been collecting more canning jars. I have lots to fill this year. So far I have canned 37 pints of strawberry and raspberry jam. It is a good start to the season.
I have been trying to loose some weight. After going through depression, I really put on some weight. I am finding it very difficult getting it off. I just tell myself to take it 1 day at a time. So far I have lost 22 pounds since April 8. Slowly but surely it will come off. Just have to keep walking every day and eatting right (thats the hard part).
Well this is long enough. I will blog about graduation next. Very exciting!!!!