We have a new Aunt!

This summer is a summer that our family will always remember because we added a new member to the family! She is very cute and fun. The kids love her and she makes Uncle Mike very happy. She is our new Aunt Anne! Mike, Chad's little brother got married about a week ago. The day was beautiful and the couple were even more beautiful. The kids and Chad were all in the wedding. We all had a great time celebrating with Mike and Anne on their special day. There was great food, music, dancing, and lots of family and friends. Here are just a few pictures from the wedding.

Mothers day

Happy Mother's Day to all you busy moms out there.

Today I'm a REAL Mom on mothers day, doing it all.

Chad went to work at 4:45 am this morning and so no breaks for me.

Chad did leave out these beautiful flowers for me this morning and a sweet card.

REAL moms on Mother's Day get up at 6:30 am with four kids, make breakfast,

my pick, of course, waffles and sauges. Then get four kids ready for 9:00 am church.

Go to church and then come home to this:

Never ending laundry and a sink full of dishes.

Which I'm choosing to save until tomorrow, it is mothers day.

Now on to the best part of Mother's Day. My kids!

The kids have been real good today they told me that because

it was Mother's Day, they were not going to fight or whine.

I of corse told them that sounded great.

On this mother's day, I want to write about each one of my kids

and what I love about them.

Addie 7 1/2 years old

Addie is my little helper, we often call her little mommy

because she is always helping out. When I need help

she is always willing to do it. She loves school and has

come a long way this year with reading. She can now read

small chapter books and she is so excited.

Addie is very caring and often thinks of others and wants

every one to be kind and loving.

Addie has been learning how to play the piano and

I'm amazed at how good she is at it.

She is very excited about her upcoming

8th birthday when she will be baptized.


Emma 6 1/2 years old

Emma is my score keeper. She likes to make sure all is fair in our house,

unless it is beneficial for her. It is always ok with her if she gets a little more

than everyone else in the house.

Emma still likes to sit right next to me on the couch or right

on top of me if I let her. She loves to cuddle.

Emma also loves to be the best and will always put

100% into what she is doing to win.

Emma is in kindergarden this year and has done great!

She is in the top of here class, and has lots of friends.


Adam 3 1/2 years old

Adam is my boy. He is a real mommas boy and

wants to be with me all the time.

Adam has fallen in love with his DS and I have to put

it up most days so he will play with something else.

Adam still loves golf and is always trying to swing his clubs in the house.

I had to make a no club swinging rule unless Brandon is taking a nap rule.

Adam will say with great excitement when Brandon is napping,

" I can swing my clubs now Brandon is sleeping" as he is running

for his clubs.

Adam is an all-boy boy. He needs to run, jump and wrestle

every day or he will turn into a beast. I have had a lot of fun playing with him.


Brandon 10 months old

Brandon is my baby who is growing waaaaaay to fast.

He is now in the exploration stage which means he makes big messes and fast.

He can crawl really fast and if you turn you back on him,

he will get into something. His lastest favorite things to do are

open all the drawers in the kincken and pull everything out. He

is also in love with rolling out all the toilet paper in the bathroom
and putting his hands in the toilet.

Brandon is a very happy baby. He loves all food and

will still take two naps a day for me, which I love.

Today for the first time Brandon looked right at me and yelled out

" ma ma ma"

from his highchair after he was done with his lunch. It was so cute.


On this Mother's Day I feel very blessed to be a REAL mom

and spend the day like I always get to with my kids

who I love more and more every day.


Christal

becoming a better photographer

So one of my goals for this years is to become a better photographer.

To try new things,

To have fun,

Take more pictures of my kids

and

To put the art back into my pictures.

Luck for me last week while looking at one of my fav. blogs The Idea Room (link in my side bar) there was a photographer who is telling it all when it comes to photographer.

The photographer Kristen Duke challenged the reader to go all manual.

So I did it and I turned out great!

These are the picture I came out with. I have not done any photoshop to the pictures and look at the color I love it! It will still take some time getting the hang of working with my camera but I'm up for the challenge to get great color like this.

My boys are so cute!

Brandon 9 months Adam 3 1/2 years.
Boys are so fun!

Brandon 8 months old

January, February and now March have come and gone and too much has happened to get you caught up so I will start with what is going on this week. The kids and I have been enjoying the great warm weather spending time outdoors playing. I took this pictures yesterday of the kids.

Brandon and his little mommies.

So I'm putting it out there so all of you have your fare warning. If any one messes with Brandon you will have two big sisters to deal with. Addie and Emma love this little guy so much. They can't get a enough of him. They both start off the day fighting over who getts to hold him first and who has held him the longest. They fight over who gets to feed him or bath with him. They both want to make sure they are the best big sister. It is really cute.
Brandon is now 8 months old and has been getting into everything in the house he can crawl super fast and opens cupboards. He walks along the couch and will climb over anything or any one in his way of something that he wants. He is really into smiling with his mouth open right now and it is so cute! It makes me smile every time I see it.

Let Snow !!!

We love the snow! Last weekend we had lots of fun thanks to our good friends Dodd and Amy. Amy planed a trip to the snow for Dodd's birthday and asked us to go with them. Chad had to work so with the help of Amy and Dodd I went with out Chad. The kids had so much fun and the smiles on their faces tell it all.

Adam had the time of his life. He really loves the snow. On the way home he ask at least 5 times if he could have his next birthday at the snow like Dodd. Too bad his birthday is in August and he will probably never get snow for his birthday.

This is the great house Amy found for us to stay in.

Brandon is 6 months old

My little love is growing up. Brandon is 6 months old and doing all kinds of new fun things. Eating is one of Brandon's favorite new things he does and he looks so cute doing it.

Just another day in Paradise

This is just one of the many reasons why I love Ventura.

It is January and as many people bundle up to walk outside, I get to grab a sweatshirt and take a walk at the beach as I watch the sunset. Ventura really is Paradise.
2010 has started and like many of you, I'm excited for the new year and all the opportunities this new year holds for me and my family. Chad is really big on new year resolutions, and I guess after 10 years of marriage he has rubbed off on me. I have made a whole list of goals for the new year and so far things are going great. My biggest goal this year is to get rid of my baby fat- you know that extra weight that comes with having babies. I'm not having any more babies, so I can work hard to get it off and keep it off. I started eating healthier the day after Christmas and I joined a gym this week, hence the workouts have started. I have great hope that by this summer I will be a healthier mommy with more energy for my kids and I will be fitting better my swimsuit. Along with my list, the kids have made resolutions. Addie 7 years old wants to become a better reader and read every day. Emma 6 years old wants to ride bikes more and learn more at school. Adam 3 years old wants to hit a golf ball into the bucket at the range which is about 60 yards out. Brandon 5 months can't tell me yet what he wants to do this year but I'm sure learning to crawl and walk is what he plans on doing.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all you blog readers.

It has been a long time from my last family update and I have now come to the understanding that blogging and many other things are on the back burner for now. All the work that comes with have four kids really leaves me with very little free time and I'm too tried most nights to turn on the computer. The work of being a mom is really hard and so so great at the same time. I really believe that the hardest things in life are the greatest things. I feel very blessed this year with the birth of our baby Brandon, he really completes our family. He is the happiest baby and makes are whole family happy. He is such a happy baby that in the middle of the night when he wakes up to eat he wakes me up by cooing and laughing. It is so cute that I look ward to waking up in the middle of the night to feed him. I really love this little guy.

I hope this week you will all have joy and peace as we celebrate the birth of the Savior , Jesus Christ.