Happy Fourth of July! 2010

We had the annual Steve and Mike Firework Display and Show.

Started out with Sparklers and Roman Candles till it got dark enough...
Mike had just mowed the grass...

Everything's better in your boots...And on a bike...

Decker's seat during Mike and Steve's Firework show...Decker kept running over to play on this tricycle, so I just brought it over and set it next to my chair.We had a bonfire too.....for clean up of the yard and of course...roasting S'MORES ...

Happy Fourth of July!!

"We must never forget that freedom is never really free. It is the most costly thing in the world. Freedom is never paid in a lump sum. Installments come due in every generation. All any of us can do is offer the generations that follow a chance for freedom."

Big Toy Time June 26-27th

When I moved to Washington, I learned a few vocabulary terms that I wasn't familiar with.

One is "BIG TOY".

I've called them playground's, jungle gyms or swingsets all my life. But now I call it a BIG TOY. It's what you see at a park or school playground and now...in our own backyard. ;)

Our Bishop's children have all grown the stage of playing on this Big Toy and asked if we might like it for our little Decker! Wow did we ever jump on that one! All he asked is that we dissemble and haul it away. Yeah!

So now it's at our house and Mike has been working on assembling it. We need to get some swings with fresh chains on it, and kill all the spiders living on it, but that is about it. So far, Decker is loving it! Even when the slide is lying flat on the ground. He tries to "slide" down it.

The steering wheel is another of his favorite parts about this toy.

Speaking of Big Toy's-- this same weekend friends, Dave and Steve came over to help flatten out our yard after we dug it up last month. Decker loved watching the tractor work!

This is one of the holes left from a huge stump pulled out of the ground. It's in a far corner of our yard and so we're filling it with rocks that cover our yard. See the Brick flying through the air?
Now, since the yard is leveled, we have rocks everywhere that we need to rake and get rid of before we seed the yard with grass. It made me remember when I was younger and my parents bought a house that had a backyard that was full of rocks. Dad gave each of us kids that were able a 5 gallon bucket and we started filling them with rocks...we need about 5 more kids for that one to work in our yard. ;) So on to plan B...

Smudging Our Home Feb 21, 2010

One of our good friends offered to come over and smudge our home with Sage to get out all the bad feelings and negativity that this home has experienced. We walked through each room and did all the corners.

The way smudging works is "the smoke attaches itself to negative energy and as the smoke clears, it takes the negative energy with it, releasing it into another space where it will be regenerated into positive energy."

She noticed some bad feelings in the kitchen. I jokingly said they were probably mine since the garbage disposal wasn't currently working. :) She felt some negative vibes in several places in the house, but felt they were gone by the time she was done.

She also shared some Feng Shui with me and the set up of our home.

• The master bedroom is in the right corner of the home--being the happiness space. Woo Hoo! ;)
• Our wealth/prosperity corner is where our office will be located--so good news there too!
• There is good ventilation from the front door and back windows. It's not a straight shot to bring all the good air in and then just have it disappear out the back door or windows when they're open.

At Work:
Our Backyard. We walked around the whole perimeter to make sure nothing was left untouched.
The Shop/Garage

Thanks Laurie! It was both educational and fun having you over!

Grandma Wood's House; June 12th

Here's some more photos at Grandma Wood's.

Reinacting the statue that's at the Seattle Temple...except on a bicycle. He can't quite reach the pedals yet, all he needs is a good push and some downhill. :) Decker and Kaya

Uncle James put this swing up a couple of years ago. Decker's first ride. HOLD ON TIGHT!!Sidenote: We cut Decker's beautiful long locks on May 5th so he's had spiky hair for the last month or so. Decker likes to touch his hair when it's sticking up and likes to check it out in the mirror. Sometimes we do his hair just like Daddy does his. ;)

Family Pictures...

Decker and I are both surprised about something...don't remember though! ;)

This video is of Decker on the swing with Daddy.

Father's Day 2010

Father's Day this year was a SICK one. All Three of us are under the weather with a bad cough in the chest. Mike went to the doctor and got a prescription for antibiotics to clear out the infection.
We took Decker to the pediatrician and the Dr. didn't seem too concerned since it hasn't affected his appetite or disposition, or caused him to have a fever or other symptoms. It's been educational.
Since I'm pregnant, I just try to grin and bear it. ;)
So, for the day, we stayed at home all day. I was awoken at about 5:00 a.m. to little Decker tossing and turning in his bed so I got up to check on him. He felt really hot like he had a fever, so I gave him a glass of water and I thought, I ought to give him something to eat before I give him Tylenol on an empty stomach, so I gave him some crackers. Not 5 minutes later, he threw all that up. So we got in the bathtub to clean up and cool off a little. After that, Decker was so sleepy, so I put him back in bed. We then all slept in till 10:30. I got up a little earlier than that and made Breakfast for my boys in bed. Bacon, Eggs, Waffles and Orange Juice.

Then we set up our bed pad downstairs and put on Toy Story 2 and fell asleep watching Woody and Buzz--Decker's latest favorite characters--not that he's ever seen the movie or anything...he likes them because they are on his Pull ups. :)

We got some good rest today and just hung out together as a family. Hopefully the sickness will leave our home soon! My cute Boys!!

Happy Father's Day Mike! You're the best!

WE LOVE YOU AND APPRECIATE ALL YOU DO FOR OUR FAMILY!

Winter's over, time to mow the Yard; May 22, 10

We went over to Grandma's house to play in her fields. After a long winter, the grass and buttercups are overgrown. Visiting Kaya

Can't quite reach the pedals yet...

Such pretty flowers! Love SPRINGTIME!