Single Digit Temperatures

Oh the weather outside is frightful and....

we're the idiots playing in it!

Gingerbread

All of the Jackson grandkids...for now!

Last night everyone gathered at our house and enjoyed some navajo tacos and also Sheena had made gingerbread houses for each of the kids to decorate.

More candy ended up in Keith and Haydens mouth then on their house

And for Kaitlyn and Hannah more candy ended up on their houses than in their mouths.

Now who wouldnt want this little present under their tree?

Decorating

You know its bad when your 4 year old daughter asks her Grandma to come and help decorate your house b/c you just never got to it for Thanksgiving. Ever since Halloween Hannah has been bugging me to decorate our house. She would see all the house that were decorated for Halloween or Thanksgiving and would point them out telling me that that persons house was decorated and then she would ask when we were decorating ours. I would usually avoid answering this question by distracting her with goodies to eat, but it only worked until we saw the next house decorated. So when I finally brought home the Christmas decorations one Sunday her eyes got big and was full of energy to decorate.

So once it was all done she asked, "When are we going to decorate some more?"

Turkey Day, Sledding, Bowling

This Thanksgiving we went over to Lovell. We had great food, great company, and great fun. Hayden had gone over a few days before with his aunt Shawnee and the rest of us went over Tuesday night. The roads were good until we got to Greybull and everything just turned white. So the rest of the way there was snow packed road and blowing snow. It was wonderful, but it would not have been a trip to Lovell in the winter if we didnt encounter terrible words. 

In preschool Hannah made a pilgrim costume and here she is looking very cute and also a little bit Little House on the Prairie.

This is Heidi and her cousin Ethan they are almost exactly 3 months, just off by 1 day.

The kids got to go sledding down 7th street in Lovell and they also got to enjoy a game of bowling. Hayden also got to go to his first movie in a movie theater: Megamind. He did very well sitting in his seat eating popcorn.

I love this picture Hannah is giving a thumbs up.

A Mixture of Crazyness

At the begining of Novemeber I packed up all the kids and we drove to Lville (laramie) for a quick visit with Carissa and Quintin. I think a lot of people thought of it as pure crazyness, but I needed to get out of the house and go somewhere far from Gtown (gillette) I had not gone anywhere for a good 3 months and was going a little stir crazy. I got the kids and myself all packed up then loaded into the car. Heidi was fed and then strapped into her carseat and then the older two were strapped in. Then as a last minute thought remembered that the portable DVD player was being a little touchy and with my fingers crossed strapped it to the seats and turned it on. After a few minutes of tinkering with it and a few words, said in my head I took it down and placed it nicely under the seats and debated what to do while driving towards Mcdonalds. There was an interesting commentary going on in my head. about what to do. I couldnt decide whether or not to just head out and pray that the kids would be perfect angels without it. I had really painted a pretty picture of Hannah and Hayden falling asleep or sitting in their seats so nicely that I didnt even know they were there or brave taking all three out of the car again and treking into Wal-Mart to see what wonderful options they offered. Then it hit me...Radio Shack was right by Mcdonalds and usually didnt get too busy at one time, just on occasion. So instead of braving Wal-Mart we braved Radio Shack instead and walked out with a new DVD player. Then after spending 45 minutes setting it up and trying to figure out how to turn it on and a few more words said in my head again we were ready to go. Needless to say the ride down was great. I really didnt hear a peep out of the kids except the occasional snore or heavy breathing, since all three of them ended up falling asleep. Needless to say the DVD player worked great.

 

 

Even though getting down to Lville took awhile once we got there we had a great time. That Friday it was such a beautiful day that we packed a picnic lunch and went to the park. Hannah and Hayden had a great time playing on all the equipment with Uncle Q. Heidi had a great time sleepig in her carseat. Then on Saturday Carissa and I went to her baby open house while uncle Q watched Hannah and Hayden. Before we came back I had to make sure to bring him a Mtn Dew as a great big thank you. Then that night Carissa made pizza and the kids got to make their own. THANK YOU Carissa and Q for letting us come.

Grandparents

I have such wonderful memories of my grandparents. I will always remember going to Grandpa and Grandma Jacksons house for Thanksgiving and having the football game on and for Christmas the movie A Christmas Story playing in the background. My Grandpa Jackson would always get me hyper before we let to go home and that was usually by tickling me until it seemed like I couldnt laugh anymore. I would go and help Grandma Jackson wrap Christmas presents and while there would get a story or two about my Dad growing up. I also remember watching the movie While You Were Sleeping and Sleepless in Seattle with her. I remember going on walks with Grandma Sessions. When she lived in Moorcroft we would go looking for arrowheads and after she moved to Casper we would walk around the block with her dog Festus. Summer break I also got opprotunities to stay with Grandpa and Grandma Sessions. We didnt do anything really special it was just to be able to spend time with them. I learned to love shopping with my Grandma Sessions. Grandpa Sessions has always been a hard worker getting up in early in the morning and returning in time for dinner. He always went to bed after dinner and I could always hear the tv in his room and it was always a western. I also had the privelage of knowing my Great Grandparents. I remember going to Lovell to visit Great Grandpa and Grandma Negro. We always called Grandma Negro G.G. and it was Grandpa Chuck. I remember Grandpa Chuck wearing his Yankee hat. I swear he slept with it on. We would go down to Utah every summer and while there we stayed with either my Great Grandpa Tyler or Great Grandpa and Grandma Jackson. Everytime we arrived at Grandpa and Grandma Jackson it seemed like G.Grandpa Jackson was sitting at the table playing cards. G.Grandma Jackson was always smiling and it always seemed like she was doing something in the kitchen. Also at their house was a tree swing that we would take turns riding on. I remember always taking Great Grandpa Tyler out to eat. Or we would go visit him at his house. He really was an amazing man. Him and my Great Grandma Tyler served a mission together in Hawaii. He also taught himself how to speak spanish. We would aslo call my Great Grandpa and Grandma Sessions Grandpa and Grandma Ha-Ha because they had these dolls they got from Hawaii. A couple of years ago I went into the house that they used to live in and didnt even realize it until I walked in. It brought back a few memories.  
I am so glad that my children are having the same opprotunity to know so many of their grandparents and hopefully they will be able to create memories of their own.

Halloween

Setting the scene: we walk up to a house that has a gated entrance before you get to the door. In the entrance it is decorated for Halloween, fake spider webs with fake spiders and such, There is a statue of a porcelian doll which to me kind of looked chinese. Hannah, Hayden, and Kaitlyn are up by the door treat buckets in hand getting ready to ring the bell and say the magic...give me candy (j/k)...trick or treat and I watched as the porcelian doll turned her head and Hannah flipped out. Ran to Grama crying. The funny part was just minutes before we were reminising about the house. How when we were younger the couple would have a coffin in there and the husband would be in the coffin scaring kids and the wife would be a statue of some sort standing by the door. Since then the husband has passed on but the wife continues to hold up the tradition.

Halloween this year was fun. Hannah loved wearing her costume and couldnt wait to be able to go Trick or Treating. We got to carve pumpkins at Papa and Grama's on the Sunday before. I couldnt get Hannah or Hayden to clean out their pumpkins, and Hayden only wanted to use the knife to cut. He threw a fit when I wouldnt let him. Then on Saturday we went to the church and got to enjoy some fun carnival games and also Trunk or Treat. They got to decorate "Eyeballs," shoot marshmellows out of a marshmellow gun, and they even got to practice their roping on a pretend cow. Then on Sunday we went out to Grama and Papa's house and they got to go Trick or Treating with Kaitlyn and Keith. Heidi even got to enjoy in the fun by being strapped to Grama in the baby carrier. It was fun to watch them and also to listen to them. The first house we went to the girls got their candy and then you hear Hayden saying "my turn," and of course Hannah getting scared will always be a priceless memory. Then we also got to enjoy Sheena's yummy carmel apples. Which I have to say is one of the top things I look forward to with Halloween.

Hayden and the Dentist

Hayden got to visit the dentist for the first time this week. A few weeks ago he fell and hit his lip and split it open and also damaged his tooth. It took us awhile to realize that his tooth was not pearly white but a bit more brownish white. So after realizing that it wasnt chocolate on his tooth I called and made an appointment to get it looked at to make sure that there wasnt damage that needed to be worried about. I wasnt sure what behavior to expect so I had Grama watch the girls. Hayden did wonderful. He didnt let the assistant lady look in his mouth, but once the dentist (who was a guy) asked he opened right up. It did take two little play monsters and a lot of coxing to get him to let them to take a picture of his teeth. Any time the camera came close he would cover his face. We found out that there was no damage to his tooth just that when he hit his mouth blood drained into it turning it colors. It may go back to being white or it may just stay brownish white only time would tell.

If you look at the tooth on the right you will notice a slight change in color from the others

Heidi's Blessing

Sunday we blessed Heidi in church. The Hendershot's from Lovell all came over and my brother and his wife as well as my sister and her hubby all came up from Laramie. And also our family here in Gillette came. It was a great sacrament meeting. The blessing was wonderful and then to top it off it was fast sunday and Hannah got up with the help of Bryan and gave her testimony. She usually will bug us on fast sundays to go up and bear her testimony especially after seeing other little kids go up. It just reminds me of how precious our children are and how I admire their courage. Standing up in front of poeple and talking scares me. I get plagued with nervous fidgeting and not to mention that my mind goes blank, but Hannah got up there without any fear. I do want my family to know that I have a testimony.

I know that the Church of Jesus Christ is true.

 I know that families are forever.

 I know that we are lead by a living prophet just as they were in the Bible.

I know that Jesus is our Savior and that he died for us.

 

 Heidi's blessing dress is the dress that my Mom wore when she was blessed as a baby.

After I got looking at the pictures that we had taken of Heidi in her dress I noticed this one and couldnt help but think that this look reminded me of Hannah.

 

So I got digging through pictures and found this one of Hannah Halloween 2006:

Too Cute for Words

Lifts

Hannah and Hayden had until recently just been dancing solo but today they decided was a great day to start practicing there dancing lifts with Grama.

Heidi even had a great time watching

We have been adjusting to our family of 5 well. I was expecting it to be a hard transition b/c of all the comments from people, but it has been pretty great. Hannah just adores Heidi and is always wanting to hold her and play with her. Hayden just ignores her. He will give her some attention even though it is only for a moment. He does like to help turn her swing on, give her kisses, and put her binky in her mouth when she is crying. I do have to say I am LOVING not being pregnant, even though the whole 9 months was worth it. I can handle the recovery and the pain that comes with it and could do it over and over again but being sick just kicks my butt. 

 

Heidi had her 2 week check up yesterday and is doing great. She is 7lbs 10oz and 20 1/2 inches. She has started to stay awake a little more after each feeding and does fairly well sleeping at night.

Hayden has been keeping us busy. A few times I have found him coloring on the wall. Once with a black sharpie and the other time with chalk. I have to say that I am grateful for Citrol. It took the sharpie off the wall very well, probably a little to well b/c it also faded the paint a little and now I have some more to add to my touch up list for painting. He also the other day was not watching where he was going and fell down the stairs hitting his face on the railing first and then tumbling down a few stairs. I wish before he was born I had invested in a bunch of band-aids. It seems like he is always falling down and getting cut up.

Hannah has started preschool for this year and is loving it. She will point out all the letters she knows when she sees them some where and will also tell us how to write them. She is also big on wanting to know when something is going to be. Like for instance she keeps asking how many more days till Halloween. But she doesnt like hearing that it is 33 days away and insists that it is only 5.

Bryan has been keeping his self busy as well. After Heidi was born he built a shed so that we would have more room to store our junk and we have been talking about getting a garage up sometime in the next few months. It amazes me how talented he is with his hands. He has also been spending time in the sky. He has been working toward getting his pilots license and any chance he gets trys to go out and build up his hours.

4+1=5

Heidi Brynn

September 9, 2010

7lbs 6oz

19 in 

 

Hannah

As per my last post Hannah is now 4 and I wanted to take some time to write down a few things about her.

*Lately she has been more motherly. She is always checking up on Hayden and if he gets hurt she has to see the owie and kiss it better for him. She also tries to help him if he gets frustrated with something. She has also taken up playing with her dolls more. The baby has also been given the nickname Boo so she is always asking what Boo is doing and when she is going to come. She is excited to see her and keeps telling me she is going to help.

*She is also definitely a girl. She loves to put on her play dresses and get all glammed up with shoes, rings and crowns. Hayden also ends up being her Prince so she pretends she is in trouble so he will come save her.

*She is very curious always asking questions about things and learning more. If she recognizes any letters she points them out says its name. H is still her favorite though. It still amazes me the information that she retains. Last week was the first time she was able to tell me what she learned in Primary. I was so excited for her. She got to be the reverence child a few weeks ago for church and got to stand up by the pulpit folding her arms as the people came in. She did a wonderful job she just stood up their smiling and was so cute.

*She loves books and will sometimes be seen carring around 4-5 of them. She will just sit and also look at them and recently has started to "read" them herself by making up her own story. She also makes sure that we dont forget her bedtime story.

Our Four Year Old

Hannah turned 4 last Wednesday. She had been waiting for this day for a long time. Ever since about May she would ask if it was her Birthday yet. So when her day arrived she was so excited. That night we let her open our presents and Grama and Papa came over and brought theirs for her to open. That day she helped me make cupcakes and so that night we sang Happy Birthday and let her blow out the candles. She got a new 12inch bike which she kept riding around the house. She had been telling me early that her little red trike were too small for her and she had to go slow b/c it wasnt big enough and she needed a bigger bike. It was very cute. She also got a cd player and a couple of new cd's for it. One of hte cd's was a Phineas and Ferb (show on Disney) soundtrack as soon as we put it in she started singing and dancing.

Then on Saturday we had a party at one of the local parks and invited family and some close friends. She wanted to have a carriage cake, a few months ago I found the pan and she decided thats what she wanted. So I baked the cake and my Mom decorated it (THANKS MOM). Hannah had a lot of fun running around the park and enjoying ice cream, she didnt want any cake.

Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate!