The Braithwaite Bunch

It's Great To Be 8

2011-05-24T12:59:00.000-07:00

I don't even know where to begin to explain how much I love these pictures. Mrs. Sugu/Kristi is so talented and I love that she takes soooo many pictures. But then it's hard to choose which ones to print. I might as well have a whole wall devoted for these because it was so hard to pick. That has happened each time she has done our pictures. So......here are just a "few" of our favorites out of the "hundreds" she took :)

My absolute favorite!

What's Up!!!

2011-05-22T19:17:00.000-07:00

I have become one of those that doesn't blog for months on end and then posts one of those REALLY long posts to try and catch up. So here it goes!

Andee turns 5

Princess themed of course complete with crystal glasses (notice the pinky sticking up)

This cake has graced 3 of our birthday parties. I guess that's part of having girls!

Playing With Puppies
My nieces dog had these adorable puppies and we just couldn't help but to cuddle with them.

Paityn Turns 8

Paityn had a pajama/pizza party in "Mrs. Braithwaite's" classroom with her friends.

Kenadie Turns 2

What a little ball of fun. Don't mind the big ol' scab on her forehead. Falling down the stairs onto the sidewalk comes with being 2 I guess.

Trip to the Zoo

Playing With Cousins

The girls love that they have 2 cousins just down the street and they love when they come and play! Kenadie has become quite the little jumper and has learned how to stay on her feet pretty good despite two older sisters jumping harder and higher.

Easter

Coloring the eggs

The mess

My pretty Easter girls in their new Easter dresses.

Paityn's Baptism

She looked so pretty in her white baptism dress

Waiting to be baptized. What a blessing to be able to have a dad that holds the priesthood and is able to baptize her and give her a blessing. It was such a special day.

Two proud parents

Everyone who was able to come and support Paityn on her special day. We're so grateful that there were so many who were able to make it.

Hangin' Out

Having lunch together

Engjoying a good book together

Just relaxin'

We've just come to accept that this is Kenadie's camera smile :)

Climbing in the cupboards

Watching a movie together

And there you have it! The last 3 months in a nutshell.

First Graders Have a Dream

2011-01-12T09:36:00.000-08:00

After talking about "the dream" that Martin Luther King Jr. had, my first graders were asked to write down what their dream was to make this world a better place.

My dream is.......

everyone to be nice, to get along and share.

all the black people can do whatever they want.

to clean up the city.

that everyone would have more toys.

that I could fly.

my dream is for everybody to get along.

that everybody will be better.

if it will be quiet.

no fighting in the school.

to make my mom nice.

I'd have a new home.

to recycle and not to fight.

everyone has a good day.

everyone be nice.

my dream is there is no wars.

to work together!

for everyone to do what they want to do.

to be good people and to never be mean.

I hope their dreams come true!

Charity Get Together

2010-12-31T16:05:00.000-08:00

As siblings, we decided that instead of drawing eachother's names for Christmas, we would take that money and do something in the form of charity instead. We decided that each year one of us would be in charge of deciding how the money would be used. Our first year we started with my oldest brother, Jason, being in charge and have worked our way down. That year we picked names off of a Giving Tree and used our money to buy things for those families.
Last year, our second year, my older sister, Tricia, was in charge. We chose to buy materials and tie blankets to give to Primary Children's Hospital. We all gathered at the hospital and dropped off the blankets.
This year was similiar. My brother Jedd was in charge and chose to buy toys to donate to Primary Children's Hospital. Once again, we all gathered at the hospital and dropped them off. Both years we have been there, there has been an awesome Christmas tree display.

We are only missing 3 people: Haylee, Nate and Blake who are across the country in Georgia.
Grandkids

Sadie, Lindsey, Paityn, Hannah and Andee in front of one of the other neat Christmas trees they had there.

Andee and cousin Hannah in front of the big display. This was a Christmas Tree from Festival of Trees that goes on every year. It was pretty amazing.

Paityn and cousin Sadie with a surfin' Santa.

My brother Jedd's oldest daughter, Madison, was able to be there with us. We don't get to see her very often and we were so excited to see her. She's 12 years old and one of the "big kids" now. Here she is with the "older" girls.

Madison with her two little sisters, Lindsey and Hannah. They just love their big sister so much.

One of the reasons Jedd chose to donate to Primary Children's Hospital is because Madison has spent quite a bit of time there herself and they have always been so good to her.

I didn't even get a picture of them, but there were bags and bags full of toys and things for the kids at the hospital. It's kind of anti-climactic because all you can do is take the toys to the front desk and they just set them aside to be taken elsewhere later. I guess it's just a good excuse to get together :)

After dropping of the toys and things, we went to eat at Sizzler. We love Sizzler! You can make fun of us all you want but we love it!

Paityn and Brooklyn sat together and didn't shut up the entire time! She loves to be with the "older" kids.

Andee and Sadie sat together. Andee was her usual self and did a lot of talking and not a lot of eating. What some cheesy grins!

Kenadie having a good time with Dylan. She's just all over the place and didn't sit still for one minute.

So I guess it's my turn to be in charge next Christmas. I'm already thinking about it and wondering what I'll do. It's going to be good!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-31T14:48:00.000-08:00

I just love, love, love Christmas time. I get so excited for the day after Halloween when a few radio stations start playing Christmas music. I love the whole season. My season just happens to last 2 whole months! I always begin my Christmas shopping somewhere in August and Dave always gets so mad at me because then I end up over-buying. He's right, but I just can't help myself.
Ever since Paityn was a baby, we have done the Christmas Eve pajama thing (like so many, I know). Dave and I give pj's to the girls and then we give eachother pj's as well. I look forward to my new pajamas every year.

I made Dave smile! If you haven't noticed, he never does in pictures.
I found the girls' pj's at Disneyland this year. They were so cute in their matching evening attire!

Also, for Christmas Eve, Dave cooked us an awesome filet mignon steak dinner. It was delish!

When I was growing up, my siblings and I would often sleep squished in the same room, whether it be in a closet or squeezed together in one bed. So this year I told the girls they could sleep in their sleepingbags on the floor in my room. They were beside themselves with excitement and didn't go to sleep until 10:30 because they were up talking and giggling. It made me smile!

After staying up until 12:45 am, I was worried that we would have a really early morning but they didn't even wake up until about 7:45. That was with a little coaxing from Paityn, or else Andee could have slept a while longer.

Looking back now, I wish I would have taken more pictures of things like how it all looked before the girls went down and what each of them got individually, but this will have to do.

Andee checking her things out. She was funny because the first thing she wanted to open was her present from Becca (daycare/pre-school teacher). We had to physically steer her back to what Santa brought her.

Both Paityn and Andee got white desks with pink swivel chairs. That's what kept us up late :)

Another thing I tried to get was Kenadie's reaction to seeing everything for the first time, but it all happened so fast. Her face was just priceless. She stood there pointing with her little mouth in the shape of an "o" and jumping up and down. This little rocking horse was sitting on top of another wrapped present, but she didn't care, she got right on and started rocking.

Kenadie also got Lulu the Furreal kitty. This is as close to a pet cat as we will ever be getting. Kenadie loves it because she can pet it and it will purr and move.

Paityn at her desk

After a great breakfast (Dave cooked again and went all out...again DELISH!), we got everything settled and headed on down to Manti for more Christmas celebrations at my mom and dad's house. Everyone was able to be there except for my sister, Haylee, and her family. They did, however, join us via skype for the highlight of the night: White Elephant gift exchange! Again, wish I had more pictures.

My mom really spoils the grandkids. This year they got these really cute hampers (at least that's what we're using ours for). We also have the cousins pick names and give to eachother.

Kenadie got a new book among other fun things.

My mom has always done pajamas for the grandkids and since most of the grandkids on my side of the family are girls, there are a lot of nightgowns involved. Here's all the younger grand-daughters in their matching polka-dot nightgowns. My girls always LOVE these!

All the grandkids (minus 2 that weren't able to be there). Notice that there are only 3 boys out of the whole bunch. They range in age from 18 years down to 1 1/2 years.

We had a great Christmas and are already threatening the girls that we'll take things away if they don't learn how to behave :). The cycle just doesn't end

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

2010-12-21T09:10:00.001-08:00

When we got the call that school was not going to happen (thanks Kim!), it didn't take long for my girls to decide that they were going to enjoy the snow. They were bundled up and ready to go before I could tell them yes or no. But it was so fun and even Kenadie got in on the action.

Everyone got involved, well, except me who just liked watching :) With a big deck, it gave Dave lots to do and with a big back yard, it gave lots of snow space to play.

Andee finding buried treasure in the snow. Who knows what could be under there from fall.

Andee got done so her and Kenadie just watched out the window while daddy shoveled snow.

The beginnings of a snowman.......

....and with a little help from dad, the finished product. Great snow for making snowmen!

Just Call Me "Amy Oakley"

2010-11-12T16:45:00.000-08:00

You would think that with as many guns as we have in our house (locked safely away in a safe, in case you were worried) that I would know what to do with one if I had to. But no, I didn't have a clue and frankly, they made me a little (ok, a lot) nervous. So when a friend in the ward said that she was taking ladies from the ward to the shooting range, where they could take a little gun safety class and then shoot afterwards, I decided to join them. Dave has offered to let me shoot but I was not interested in the least. Did I mention that they make me really nervous?!
The day of the trip to the shooting range just happen to fall on a day that Dave would be, ironically, hunting. Before he left, he "tried" to show me how to work the gun but I wanted nothing to do with it. Just seeing him get it out made me breathe more rapidly. I tuned him out and said "no thanks"!
OK....so came the day and I thought about it all day. Worried might be a better word. I even considered not going because I kept imagining the worst. I sucked it up, toted my gun and ammo to the meeting place and we traveled to the shooting range in Springville. We started by having a gun safety class and then continued on into the shooting range itself. I was still pretty clueless. I was a little overwhelmed and I was sure glad our fearless leader knew what she was doing. With ear and eye protection on, we shouted our way through setting up targets and getting guns ready. We were a little jumpy and that first shot we heard while in there was a little bone rattling. But I soon learned that it was nothing compared to the first shot I took myself. After getting over the shock of the noise, the flash and just the fact that I had a gun in my hand and using it, it was kind of a big rush.

Got the stance, ready to go
We were all a little nervous. I think it made us all feel better knowing that those of us going for the first time felt the same way. I wasn't sure I knew what I was doing. Catherine "tried" to help :)

One guy there had this huge gun and asked if we wanted to try it. SURE, why not! It was really cool! I had my coat on the whole time because it was FREEZING in there.

Mine and Catherine's targets. I think I did pretty good. Watch out bad guys!

Catherine said she shot a lot more than what it showed. She's not sure where all the bullets went :) She had never shot a gun in her life and she did really well.

Amy and Stephanie with their targets. Stephanie was our fearless leader who arranged it all and is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to guns. She was awesome. Thanks Stephanie!

Bonnie goes quite a bit too. She's a good shot!

I had a great time and now I think Dave has it in his mind that it could be the beginning of some wonderful husband/wife bonding time. Maybe not my kind of bonding but it could make for a fun datenight I guess. Anyone interested?

Happy Halloweeeeeeeen

2010-10-31T19:00:00.000-07:00

What would Halloween be without the rain I ask you? It seems to be the turning point from summerish to winterish weather. And I guess it just wouldn't be the same without it.
Our Halloween started on Thursday with the school parade and carnival. Dave was nice enough to bring Andee and Kenadie down for the events. It's tradition. I've paraded my kids through the school every Halloween since Paityn was born. I love it.
Cinderella won out again this year for Andee. We went through quite a few different options but I guess thankfully she decided on something we already had.

Paityn chose something simple too. A cute little cat! You can't see them but she had a cute tail and some cute little paws that didn't stay on long.

And our little Kenadie had no choice. She got to wear something we already had too. You can't really tell here, but she's a 50's girl. It's so cute to see her toddle down the hall in this little poddle skirt. She found this horse, which was part of one of my students costume, and just "rode" around the room on it for quite a while. I hope Santa was watching :)

Friday was the night we carved our pumpkins. I always love this activity. It really shows my kids personalities.

Kenadie is interested in how everything tastes. She came to the conclusion that the insides of the pumpkin weren't that great tastin'.

This is typical Andee. She has been grossed out by the whole thing ever since her first Halloween.

Need I say more about how Kenadie felt about the whole thing.

Paityn has always loved doing this. She is now to the age where she does the whole thing by herself. She was very thoughtful about what she wanted her pumpkin to look like. It turned out great!

The full affect. Left to right: Paityn's, Kenadie's, Dave's, Andee's.

The Pumpkin Carving Crew. I'm part of the "behind the scenes" crew.

Saturday night was our ward Trunk or Treat. It was actually 3 wards combined and it was meant to be in the "trunks" but ended up inside the church itself due to the rain.

Paityn was once again a cat

A bundled-up Cinderella this time

And we changed Kenadie's costume to a ladybug because it was much warmer. And besides, she is our little "bug".

This was the scene at the beginning of trunk or treat. POuring rain, lots of umbrellas, lots of puddles and lots of cold, wet kids. They braved the weather for about 10 minutes until we saw that everyone was moving inside the church. To be honest, the conditions weren't much better. It was a combined, 3 ward activity and there were so many people crammed into the gym. IT was hot and hard to move around. Oh well. They got TONS of candy. I'm thinking that if it rains next year, we're just going to the mall (great idea Angie!)

Me and Kenadie manned the treats while the others went tricking

Oh boy! Kenadie couldn't believe all the candy.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Family Vacation (minus 1)

2010-10-22T16:16:00.000-07:00

UEA = Utah Exit to Anaheim. And that's exactly what we did. Leaving life for 8 days was great. We spent money like there was no tomorrow and just had a blast!
Our trip started out on Sunday afternoon when we left for Manti where we would stay the night and leave Kenadie to play with Grandma and Grandpa Maylett (and lots of cousins) for the whole time we would be gone. I highly recommend leaving little ones at home. I watched families dealing with little ones while we were gone and was so glad we decided to leave Kenadie to enjoy Grandma and Grandpa. I missed her like crazy but so glad we didn't have to worry about naptimes, what to feed her and changing diapers. We stayed in Manti Sunday night and set out on our 10 hour drive Monday morning. It actually probably took longer than that because we sat in traffic for 2 hours. The girls were real troopers and we made it to Anaheim Monday night.
We woke up bright and early so we could be at Disneyland at opening. Tuesday is a great day to go because the crowds aren't as big. The longest we waited in a line all day was 15 minutes. It was fun just to watch the girls' reactions to everything they saw though. It's just so MAGICAL there. I felt like a kid myself.

Our first character was Tiana from "The Princess and the Frog". They were mesmerized by the costume and just couldn't believe they were seeing a real, live princess! If I were to post all the pictures we took with the characters this would be a MASSIVE post. We got a ton of characters and filled up their autograph book.

We were all looking forward to the teacups but we got spinning so fast that I got a little sick to my stomach. I guess old age does that to you because I've never gotten sick on a ride before. That didn't stop me though. I love all kinds of rides. And I'm learning that so do my girls. Well, most of them I guess. They loved Space Mountain and Splash mountain but got really scared on the Tower of Terror.

This picture just cracks me up. This was typical of Andee the whole time. She's covering her eyes because of the sun. It never came out until about noon. I couldn't believe the amount of smog!

This was fun. They could get inside this huge box and pretend they were the toy inside the box.

I thought it was so funny to see this big guy (Dave) on the swings with this little girl (Andee). What a cute daddy!

One of the things they really wanted to do was ride the big white boat.

So we spent 3 FULL days at Disneyland and we were worn out! Our feet hurt so bad from all the walking. Our hotel was about 2 blocks away from Disneyland so it was hard to make it back at night.

The next day we drove to LA (even more smog and SO MUCH garbage on the sides of the roads) to go to Universal Studios. The crowds were pretty small so it was nice.

We saw a lot of characters here too. One of our favorites was Spongebob. He just had to do a belly bump with Dave. Cracked me up!

One of the rides was Jurassic Park where you go down this huge waterfall!

The whole gang of Scooby Doo was there (minus Velma and Fred) and they were great too!

awwwwww! what a cute family!

After Universal we drove to San Diego. It took us about 3 1/2 hours to get there because of the traffic! We had a hard time finding our hotel in the dark and it's not fun driving with Dave when he doesn't know where he's going.

We finally made it to our hotel on the beach and settled in for the next day. By this time we were about done with walking around and waiting in lines.

The next day we started out by going to the San Diego Zoo. It is HUGE!!!!!

We loved the elephants.

And this guy was so funny because he just sat there and stared at us.

We soon got to the point where we were tired of looking at animals and left. We only got halfway through. Like I said, we were done!

AFter the zoo we drove to Sea World which is about 2 miles from the zoo. It was a rainy, colder day.

The one ride we definitely wanted to do was the water roller coaster. Andee wasn't tall enough so Dave and I took turns going with Paityn. She loved it.

We, of course, had to see the Shamu show. We had awesome seats and didn't even get wet, much to Paityn's dismay. We did, however, go on a rapid's ride and got SOAKED! Needless to say, we were done at that point. We went back to our hotel for one more night.

The next day we went down to Mission Beach and spent a little time there. It was another colder, cloudy day but it was fun anyway. It was awesome to walk in the sand and water.

The girls got wet and we had sand everywhere but oh well.

One last picture

AFter the beach we drove to Vegas and stayed the night in Excalibur. Vegas isn't what it use to be, or is it I'm not what I use to be. Dave gambled $20 while me and the girls hung out in our room. We were in bed by 8:30. Sad I know.

We left Vegas the next morning, drove to Manti to pick up Kenadie and continued onto home. So glad to see Kenadie and be back home to our own bed and a home-cooked meal. We had missed all but had a blast! I think we're going to make it a 5 year plan and go again. Save your money and you can go with us!

What Do You Get?

2010-09-19T08:59:00.000-07:00

What do you get when you cross........

3 princess crowns

2 pair of princess gloves

1 safari-ish hat

1 pair of long pants

socks AND shoes

?????????

THE CUTEST BEEKEEPER IN THE WORLD!!!

That's right....a beekeeper. But for good reason.

Dave was pulling up our old rotted deck (it's only 2 years old, it's not supposed to be rotted!) and we knew we had some wasps nests under there.

Well....the big fearless leader that Paityn is, decided to send her younger, smaller sister Andee under the deck to check things out. She was sending her little sister into harms way but wanted to make sure that she was all covered and as safe as possible.

Thus, the three crowns to cover her face and neck, the two pair of gloves to cover her arms and hands, the hat to cover her head, and she of course made sure she had long pants on and shoes and socks to make her trek into the dark cave that is under the deck.

What a brave little beekeeper.

Summer Happenings

2010-06-29T13:30:00.001-07:00

I could come up with a million excuses of why I haven't posted in so long but I won't bore you. I've put several new posts on (5 I think) to keep you entertained. Enjoy

The Remodel Begins

2010-06-29T13:20:00.001-07:00

We never planned on staying in our house as long as we have and as soon as we realized that maybe we would be staying in it longer than we wanted, we began making remodel plans. We would just sit for hours and think of ways we could make our house better.
Right before Kenadie was born we needed another bedroom so we totally remodeled a room and changed it from an office to a bedroom. Dave moved the door, put in a closet, painted and new carpet. Paityn and Andee got that bedroom and Kenadie got the old bedroom. We also redid our bathroom. I guess that was the beginning of our remodel.
My aunt has been living with us up until about a month ago so we were living downstairs while she was living upstairs. She moved out and we took the chance to start the upstairs remodel. We knocked out a wall between two bedrooms upstairs to make a master bedroom. We'll be changing another bedroom upstairs and making one of the bathrooms into a master bath. Quite a project if you ask me but we are so excited.

The girls thought it was pretty neat that they could walk through walls!
Even Paityn got in on the demolition.

Before and afters to come!

Memorial Day

2010-06-29T13:12:00.001-07:00

For Memorial Day we love to go cemetary hopping. Sounds pretty lame but it's kind of fun to walk through a cemetary to see and read different headstones.

My girls are officially

1/4 Maylett

1/4 Eliason

1/4 Braithwaite

1/4 Jensen

And we visit each one every year.

Maylett's in Manti

Eliason's in Moroni

Braithwaite's in Manti

And Jensen in Ephraim.

Just Being Kenadie

2010-06-29T12:58:00.001-07:00

Our sweet little Kenadie has just kept us laughing this summer. I always wondered where we got our crazy girls and it seems that Kenadie is following in her big sisters footsteps with her personality. When she was a baby we thought she looked just like Andee, but now that she's getting a little older we think she's starting to look a lot like Paityn. It will be interesting to see who she'll look more like. But she's her own little person with her own little quirks.

Kenadie loves the dogs. She'll walk right outside, climb down the stairs and just go plop herself right in front of the gate. She'll talk to the dogs, let them lick her fingers and just giggle. She went through a phase where she had to look out the window every five minutes to say hi to them. She's over that stage now that she can just outside and visit them herself.

She loves, loves, loves the dirt. It's like a magnetic pull. While we were putting in our garden she was just content to play in the dirt and throw rocks into a bucket.

One of her favorite places to be is in the chair. She'll crawl in and sit for a minute, crawl out, then crawl right back in...over and over.

We finally got her hair into ponytails and I think it's adorable.

Not only does she like to sit in/under chairs she loves any kind of chair that is her size that she can get in and out of by herself. This keeps her busy for quite a while too.

Paityn and Andee both loved baby dolls early on but not Kenadie. She absolutely loves stuffed animals, especially puppies. The brown and white one that she's holding is her favorite. She takes that thing EVERYWHERE! It has had many a bath. She'll walk around saying "pup, pup, pup".

Piano Recital

2010-06-29T12:51:00.000-07:00

A few months ago Paityn started taking piano lessons. I LOVE playing the piano and I wanted my kids to maybe love it too. I wasn't sure if Paityn was too young but I talked to a lady in my ward and she said as long as she can count and knows her ABC's she's fine. Well, she can definitely do that so we decided to do it. For the most part she loves it, except when she gets to something that she thinks is hard. I remember those days of hating to practice and crying because it was hard. I hope she sticks with it.

This was her first recital and she did such a good job. She got to play a big grand piano and I even got to do the duet part with her on both of her songs.
She thought it was pretty neat and we are so proud of her for doing such a good job.

Summer Vacation

2010-06-28T21:44:00.000-07:00

Our latest and greatest - a trip to Yellowstone.

We traveled with the whole Braithwaite gang and had such a great time.

We started out our 5 day adventure by traveling to Lava Hot Springs in Idaho. It's just what the name says. It's a city built around these hot springs and a river that runs through this tiny little town. We started out our day there by going to a swimming complex with a heated outdoor pool that had waterslides. I managed to not take any pictures but it was really cool. Windy, but cool.

After swimming there, we went to eat and then headed on over to the hot springs for some more swimming. I guess that's what you would call it. It consisted of about 5 or 6 different "springs" or pools that varied in degrees, ranging from hot to boiling hot. They were like giant hot tubs that came out of the ground. Very cool (not pun intended). The girls loved it and didn't want to get out.

Kenadie wasn't so sure about it at first but soon got use to it and loved it.

We stayed the night in the cutest little motel called the Alpaca Inn and yes, everything was decorated with Alpaca things, and no, there were no alpacas grazing around.

We left our beloved Alpaca Inn bright and early at 7:00 am (well that was the plan anway - I think we left at 7:30). We drove to West Yellowstone and entered Yellowstone here.

We were so excited to see wildlife we had never seen before and not too far into the park we spotted 2 buffalo quite a distance off. So of course, we had to pull over, get out the binoculars and study those things. Little did we know that we would see buffalo everywhere and soon they weren't so novel and we almost got bored of seeing buffalo. We were almost embarassed that we got so excited at seeing those first two.

On our first day in Yellowstone we had this big hike planned so as we're going along our way we come upon this little herd of buffalo RIGHT OFF THE SIDE OF THE TRAIL!!!!!! We soon realized that we were going to have to pass RIGHT BY THEM to go on our way. I was a little nervous because they passed out pamphlets and posted signs to be careful not to get too close to the buffalo because they could charge. I made sure my darling little girls were close by and that we walked past them without looking at them and without making a noise. It was nerve-racking I tell you! But we couldn't pass up the chance to get a picture of course.

I've learned to get use to that look on Dave's face. For some reason, that's what he always looks like when he gets his picture taken. Weird I know.

After our hike (which actually turned out to be a bust because we missed our turnoff), we headed down to the most famous of Yellowstone's attractions: Old Faithful. We had to wait a little while for it to erupt.

Kenadie stayed busy in the dirt

And well......this is Paityn waiting for it to happen. So excited!

And...ok....well.....my picture of Old Faithful didn't load like it was supposed to but you've seen pictures right? Good. On we go.

On our first day we also saw A LOT of hot springs and smelled A LOT of rotten egg smell from them to last us a lifetime I think. These hot springs were EVERYWHERE and they STUNK!!!!! They were pretty cool though.

Paityn thought this little mud spring was neat. It would bubble mud and squirt it all over. It reminded us of that "bog of eternal stench" in the movie "Labrynth".

This is one of the MANY pools we saw. Some of them were so pretty with very clear water and lots of pretty colors.

We ended that day by staying in West Yellowstone in a dive of a hotel. We were only there long enough to sleep though, thank goodness.

Our second day took us to some of the same kinds of things but also a few different things like "The Petrified Tree". It was kind of funny that they had this petrified tree that they put this big iron fence around. Not the most interesting thing we saw but we had fun with it.

"The Petrified Daughters"

This day consisted of a lot of driving. We did see a black bear WAY off in the distance and we thought we would see more animals but no such luck.

We stayed that night in Cooke City on the east side of Yellowstone. It felt like a mountain man village.

The next morning we left our hotel at 6:00. And yes, that's a.m. and yes, we are crazy. But when you live with a hunter you know that the animals come out in the early morning. So off we went on our animal spotting drive and saw hardly anything.

After being a little disappointed that we hadn't seen much, we did get a chance to see a Grizzly bear with her two cubs. Dave stuck the camera up to the binoculars and shot this picture. Not the greatest and he didn't get the cubs in the shot but it was soooooo cool. We ended up seeing 2 other black bears and 1 other grizzly bear. Seriously...it was so cool.

After seeing so many hot spings and geysers that weren't geysering (I know, that's not a real word), we were ready to see something different. We took a little hike and saw this.......

It was breathtaking and a little dizzying to be up that high and look down to where the water was crashing below us!

While viewing this we noticed there were stairs climbing up the other side of the mountain and there were people on them. We decided to make our way over to it. We drove a little ways down the mountain, found the place where you started and then went down 385 stairs to where we were practically right next to the waterfall. AMAZING!

Awwwww!
The trip up those 385 stairs was a lung buster but so worth it.

We tried to save a little bit of money by taking our own lunches and stopping at picnic areas to eat. The kids found things to keep them entertained.

Like this giant "home-made" teeter-totter.

After all the fun on this day, we drove through the Tetons and then on to Jackson Hole, Wyoming and stayed the night.

We couldn't come to Jackson and not take a picture in front of the antler arches.
We did a little shopping here but not much else.

So there's our Yellowstone vacation in a nutshell. We had such a good time with family and getting to experience all the things we did. And even after all the fun we had, you want to know what the best part of the whole trip was?

THIS!!!!!!!!!!

ALL sleeping at the same time! Pure peace and quiet!

Mother of the Year

2010-05-07T08:48:00.000-07:00

That title does not apply to me.
Evidence #1
On my way to wake Paityn on the morning after she lost her 4th tooth, I realized that the tooth fairy completely forgot to leave anything under her pillow and had to borrow some money from Paityn's piggy bank. So while my slumbering 7 year old was still asleep, the tooth fairy grabbed her piggy bank from the shelf (right by her head), dumped out the piggy bank to find some quarters and dollar bills and put them under her pillow RIGHT before she woke up. Terrible I know. I sure hope the tooth fairy pays her back.

Evidence #2
We are traveling to Manti this weekend for Mother's Day and this was the conversation this morning on the way to school.
Paityn: Mom why don't you just call grandma and have her meet you 1/2 way in Nephi.
Me: Why?
Paityn: Then grandma could take us to her house and you could just stay home?
Me: Why?
Paityn: Because we need a break.
Me: From what?
Paityn: From you.
Me: WWWWAAAAAAA!!!!!

Celebrating 1 Year

2010-04-25T20:36:00.001-07:00

It's tradition to have a family party when you turn 1 year old. Right? Kenadie could have cared less but she sure enjoyed the balloons, the people, ripping paper and the cake of course. Our nickname for her is "bug" so we decided to do a bug theme (to a degree - we wouldn't want to go overboard).

Our little bug just checking things out. Definitely not paying any attention to mom or the camera.
It took her a minute to discover what to do with the cupcake but she did alright. She got a little messy but not too bad. I was worried about the color of the frosting and stains but we made out OK.

She got this cute little pillow/stuffed bug that she just loved. She loved all the things she got. Thanks everyone and Happy Birthday Kenadie. We love you!

Zoo Trip

2010-04-25T20:22:00.000-07:00

For Kenadie's birthday we decided to take yet another trip to the zoo. Kenadie loves anything to do with animals - stuffed and real - so what better place. Haylee and Blake just happen to be in Utah so they brought my mom up and we all went to the zoo (except Dave, who said he didn't want to spend the day with a bunch of girls - poor Blake).

It was a PERFECT day. The weather was so nice and we went late enough in the day that there was absolutely no crowds!
We, of course, had to ride the train! A trip to the zoo wouldn't be complete without one.

Paityn and Andee thought they were pretty cool stuff sitting in the very front all by themselves. Those giraffes are so interesting to watch. Kenadie couldn't get enough of them. And that baby elephant is still one of the cutest things I have ever seen!

We had such a fun time!

Easter Girls

2010-04-25T20:08:00.000-07:00

This is a little late, but I thought my girls looked so cute in their Easter dresses. They didn't even get to wear them until a week later. They almost couldn't stand to see them sitting in their closets and not being able to wear them.

And Kenadie just looked so big. Not a baby anymore! *tear*

The Things That Entertain Me

2010-04-10T13:00:00.001-07:00

This is what has kept me entertained the last few nights! The movie comes out and I wanted to read it before I saw the movie. The movie looked a little creepy but I decided to read the book anyway because my book-loving sister loved it and recommended it. I couldn't put it down it was so good.

My other entertainment only happens once in a blue moon, and that is concert. Dave gave me tickets to the Micael Buble concert for Christmas. It was about a week and a half ago and I am still replaying it in my mind. I LOVED it! He is an amazing performer. Even Dave, who isn't into that kind of music at all, thought it was pretty good. I've always loved Frank Sinatra and when I heard Michale Buble for the first time I thought it sounded just like Ol' Blue Eyes. All I had was the camera on my phone and I wasn't going to take pictures but I couldn't help it. They don't even come close to capturing the energy there. It was so cool!
I didn't even get a cheesy picture of Dave and I together dang it. All I was concerned about was that dreamy Michale Buble! Did I just say dreamy!?

Our Silly, Almost One Year Old

2010-04-08T09:54:00.000-07:00

That's right. Kenadie is almost 1. She fills our life with so many bright and funny moments that keep us smiling and laughing. She certainly knows how to work the whining to her advantage and goes from a cry to a smile in seconds. Here's just a few of those bright moments.

Kenadie figured out how to scrunch her nose and then obviously her whole face! She will suck in and out through her nose making a snotty mess around her nose, but it sure is funny!What a ham, and I still just love those two little bottom front teeth. Sad to say, but one of Kenadie's favorite toys is the box of tampons in the bathroom. It keeps her busy for quite a while which is great in the mornings when I'm trying to get everyone ready and I don't mind because it's easy clean-up. Kenadie's latest thing is taking everything out of boxes, or any container for that matter, and then climbing in and just sitting there. She'll try to rock it like it's a rocking chair and when that doesn't work she'll just sit there and bounce. Again, this keeps her busy for quite a while.

(This one's for you Blake!)
Kenadie loves to eat, especially anything that is sweet. Her wide open mouth proves this. We wonder if it could get any wider.

She was so funny when we were coloring Easter eggs because she would pick up the ones that were done and then just throw them. She thought it was great fun. Sometimes it's a struggle to get her to go to sleep and this time was no different. I never know what will help her go to sleep. My parents chair was the answer this time. I laid her down in it with her blankets, rocked a bit and she was out. She will probably never go to sleep like this again but it worked great this time.

We love our little "bug"!

Belle, life-size mouse, pirates and Spongebob!

2010-04-07T15:13:00.000-07:00

Those four things don't normally go together, but they do when you celebrate two little girls birthdays just 11 days apart. We didn't have big birhday parties this year (thank goodness) and just decided to let them pick where they wanted to have dinner. Andee chose to go to McDonald's first and then over to Chuck-E-Cheese (therefore the life-size mouse) to play games (no pictures). They had a blast but I'll remember not to go on a Friday night ever again! She also decided that she wanted a "Belle" birthday cake. I thought it turned out pretty good :)
Paityn chose to have a Spongebob cake for some reason. I was expecting something pink and girly but, no, she wanted Spongebob. Also, turned out pretty good. Then she wanted to go to Pirate Island Pizza for dinner. It was such a cool place and the food wasn't bad either.

I can't believe I have a 7 year old and a 4 year old. Now Paityn thinks she is officially a "girl" and not a "little girl" and now Andee has to have everything in groups of 4 instead of 3. Now if they could just get along :)

Is it Bad?

2010-03-23T09:45:00.000-07:00

Is it bad that......
I'm actually glad that my child is sick and I get the day off?
my other two girls are going to stay at the babysitter while I am home with sick child and getting some things done that otherwise, wouldn't get done?
that my kids watch Spongebob and that I sit there and laugh with them?
I'm glad I actually work just so I can have a break from my kids? All day, every day with them would drive me completely insane! Hoorah to all you that stay home but as for me and my house, mom will work (for everyone's safety)
that we are spending most of our tax return on vacations?
that Paityn wants to play a "I Am a Child of God" (or maybe "Book of Mormon Stories") on the piano for the school talent show?
that we bought a trampoline without the safety enclosure? I grew up without one and I was just fine. Can't say that about everyone that jumped on our trampoline growing up but still.....
that I put off my homework until the night before class or even the day of class?
that I take 15-20 minute showers at night? I need my time, right?
that I don't go to sacrament meeting on the Sunday's that Dave is working because I don't want to have to deal with all three of the girls all by myself?
my kids homework doesn't get done some weeks, even though I'm their teacher?

I'm sure there are more, but sometimes I feel so guilty about some of these (others not so much). Just need a little validation :) Sometimes I hear mom's say things that are opposite of things I do and I think those moms are great moms and so then what am I if I'm not doing things like they are. Did that make any sense? As I come to experience things and get older, I've come to realize that I don't have to do what everyone thinks I should be doing. If I want to work or watch Spongebob, then by golly I'm going to do it! I don't have to feel like a bad mom because of it.
So there you have it! My thoughts on my day off.

Dear Andee

2010-03-15T09:23:00.001-07:00

4 Years Old!!!!

Dear Andee

I begin to tear up just thinking about the joy you bring me. Your smile and infectious laugh have been such a spirit lifter for me and that little sparkle in those big brown eyes have always been able to put a smile on my face. For 4 years you have giggled and cuddled your way into my heart. You have become such a sweet, kind and helpful little girl from putting your apron on and helping me in the kitchen to making sure that my feet are covered up by a blanket so I stay warm. Even with all that sweetness though, you are full of energy and often don't sit still for long. I love your bubbly little personality.

We love you so much and can't wait to see all the things you'll learn in the next 4 years!

Prom - A Big Deal

2010-03-10T20:09:00.000-08:00

I've posted about this before, but it happens every year, and where I'm from it's a pretty big deal. With another neice doing Junior Prom this year, we had an excuse for going. The girls were so excited to get all dressed up and couldn't wait to see all the pretty dresses. Just to get a seat we had to go 45- 1 hour early. It was tough to keep these three little girls entertained.

Paityn, Sadie, Andee - waiting for the night to begin.
Mother/Daughter bonding evening.

Playing Rock-Paper-Scissors trying to pass the time.

Tiring of the whining, I told the girls to go do their own dancing on the dance floor (gym floor). We were entertained with Ring Around the Rosies.

After promenade we all hit the dance floor for some photo ops and even some dancing of our own. My cute parents even got in on the action.

My dad with Brookelyn, the one we were all there to see!

Paityn and Grandpa

Andee and Grandpa. Andee wasn't quite sure what to do!

The three little girls with our two prom princesses. Brookelyn the junior and Chelsea a senior who also got to participate.

We had so much fun. I loved having a girls night with my girls!

Bare Bums,Teeth and a Laughing Baby

2010-01-16T19:28:00.000-08:00

Just a few things that have made me laugh/cry/smile:
1. bare bums can be really dangerous (but really cute - just look at all those chubby parts to her! From her thighs to her tummy to her cheeks - oooh I could just eat her up!)

Dangerous part: While checking blogs one night, I was letting Kenadie's diaper rash air out and so she was just crawling around in the buff. All of a sudden, a certain stinky smell filled me with terror as I looked down at Kenadie only to see two big piles of poo smeared all over my mom's carpet and all over Kenadie's bum. Needless to say, we probably won't be letting any diaper rashes air out in the near future.2. two little bottom teeth are so cute!
Kenadie: after the poopy mess. A diaper just waiting to get put on.

3. For some reason, Kenadie has a really deep voice and that has carried over to her laugh. It is just so funny to hear this deep voice/laugh coming out of a baby girl. I captured this laugh a little bit one night when she was laughing at Paityn.

Sounds of Christmas

2009-12-31T20:11:00.000-08:00

Sounds defined our Christmas this year.

1. On Christmas Eve morning you could hear Paityn waking up at 7:30 am letting everyone know that it was Christmas Eve.

2. Sounds of squeelling coming from two little girls excited at just the thought of Santa coming.

3. The ripping noise of numerous presents being opened.

4. Paityn saying, "I got almost everything I wanted". Thank goodness.

5. Two little girls playing the Princess wii game. So funny to watch them standing side by side and Andee thinking she is controlling the character just because she has a control in her hands. So into it.

6. On the way down to Manti, Paityn singing Phantom of the Opera, a little off key might I add, at the top of her lungs with earphones on.
7. Andee saying over and over, "I got a Fancy Nancy. Look, I got a Fancy Nancy", with eyes as big as they could possibly go.

8. Kenadie crying for whatever reason she found.

Kenadie and cousin Jace. They are only about a month apart. Such a cute little guy!

9. coughing, coughing and more coughing. Winter colds were the norm at my moms house. Poor Kenadie and Blake (and Haylee) had some rough nights.

10. Kenadie trying out her vocal stylings.

11. The pitter-pat of newly crawling hands and knees.

12. Oh, did I mention coughing!

We had a great Christmas and now after a week, my house is still in recovery mode. With the New Year upon us, I am excited for all the fun sounds that will be accompanying it

Trimming the Tree

2009-12-13T16:34:00.000-08:00

After baths one night, all the girls got in on the action of decorating the tree. Kenadie just loved all those shiny balls that kept falling off the tree. With a little re-placement of the ornaments (they were somehow all put in the same place on the tree by a little 3 year old that couldn't reach anywhere else), we were in business.

We Have Pigtails

2009-12-13T16:30:00.000-08:00

We finally combed up enough hair to do pigtails AND curlers. Both Paityn and Andee had pigtails about the same age. Kenadie just wouldn't be a full Braithwaite girl without these.

'Tis the Season

2009-12-13T16:28:00.000-08:00

I have one word for you. STATIC. Need I say more?

Family Pictures

2009-12-10T11:20:00.001-08:00

Our family pictures this year consisted of, "We need a picture for our Christmas card, quick, Tricia, can you use your awesome camera and take a few pics of us?" It took place behind my parents house and that was that. It was hard to get all three girls looking at the same place, while at the same time having a smile on all three of their faces, and it was equally hard to get Dave to smile a good smile, but I think we got some keepers.

Fashion Don't

2009-12-07T12:32:00.000-08:00

I know I haven't updated in quite a while and I should be posting about my kids or something like that but I can't help myself.

If you know my dad you may know him as the kind of guy that's pretty put together, pretty classic, pretty traditional. Well, I see my dad a little bit differently. Sure, I see all of those other things but I see a pretty goofy guy who has no fashion sense when it comes to lounge wear! For years he has tried to get under my skin wearing all kinds of plaids and colors that completely clash with one another. He wears them just for me. Aren't I lucky.

Well, here is what he came out wearing one day on his way to go pick up a grandchild. He was going out in public wear THIS!!!!!
So here's for you dad! Maybe having your picture posted on the internet dressed like this will teach you a lesson :) Love ya.

My Little Witch

2009-10-20T14:36:00.000-07:00

Here's my cute little 6 month old witch. She is just a joy and only a little witchy when she's hungry or tired. Is that not the cutest little witch's hat?

Sweet Singin'

2009-10-08T19:46:00.000-07:00

Ever since our primary program about 3 weeks ago, Andee hasn't stopped singing this song. She'll even sing it to Kenadie when Kenadie is crying and it actually calms her down a little bit. Andee is in nursery and her nursery class was invited to sing I Love To See the Temple in the primary program. It was one of the most precious things I've seen and heard. Thanks Angie for letting those sweet nursery kids be a part of the primary program and thanks Rebecca for teaching it to them.

Haircuts for All

2009-10-04T18:41:00.000-07:00

BEFORE

AFTER
It's almost like I don't remember what she looked like with long hair. Paityn looks so cute with her shorter haircut.

Andee just got a trim but thought she was pretty cool!

Even Kenadie got in on the action. She just had these whispy old man hairs hanging around. I could pull them around to the back of her head and make a small pontytail, that's how long they were. They just sort of blew around in the breeze. My sister, Haylee, couldn't take it any longer and snipped them off. Seeing it Haylee's hand made me realize how much really needed to come off.

People of Lagoon

2009-09-18T20:04:00.000-07:00

My new favorite website, that you simply must check out, is www.peopleofwalmart.com

On our trip to Lagoon we thought it would be great to make our own page called "People of Lagoon". As we sat and watched people we knew we couldn't let them pass by without a little bit of acknowledgment and so here we present:

PEOPLE OF LAGOON!

At first glance: boy, boy. At second glance: girl, boy? But wait....girl, girl????? And what are they wearing!

One of our favorites! I don't even know what to say. The look says it all!

Who said you had to match when going out in public.

"Apple Bottom" is right! We kept looking and saying "Does that say what I think it says?"

Holy skinny and eerily twin-like batman!

Hey, is this a brother to the other dude? And it was hot that day. This hat probably shades his whole body!

Again.....guy? girl?

It's not just the dragon that scares me!

This was the first of what were to see all day long. Oh boy!

"I don't care if it is 100 degrees outside....I WILL NOT shave! Oh and does my hat look too little?"

Bright pink camo is not a wise choice when trying to hide troublesome parts of your body.

The fanny pack along with the whole outfit is a winner in everyone's book.

5 Months

2009-09-16T21:06:00.000-07:00

Did that title just say 5 months? WHOA!!! Where has the time gone? It seems like yesterday that we brought Kenadie home from the hospital but at the same time it's like we've always had her and can't imagine our life without her.

Milestones:
*She has just learned how to sit by herself and without bending herself in half.
*She grabs her toes while on her back and plays with them
*She has just figured out that she should laugh when tickled
*She absolutely LOVES her sisters - especially Paityn who acts like a complete idiot trying to get her to smile.
*She jabbers and jabbers and jabbers
*Started cereal but not too interested in it. Would just rather have a bottle or a snack from mom
*When on her tummy she'll push up with her arms
*Rolls over very easily
*Will pull her legs under her when on her tummy (crawling here we come)
*Blows raspberries
*Sucks on her fingers
*Moves things from hand to hand
*Studies everything
*Loves the baby in the mirror
*Acts shy by turning her head away and down and smiling when someone talks to her
*Chunky, chunky legs with a roll over her kneecaps

*Turns herself completely around when on her tummy

*I'm pretty sure she says "Ma" :)

*Likes to play Peek-a-boo

*Cries when you leave her or take a toy away from her

Kenadie has just gotten to be so much fun and we can't wait to experience all the new things she'll learn!

Lagoon!

2009-09-13T20:12:00.000-07:00

A day at Lagoon can be soooo exhausting. Especially when there are 27 people in your group. We had a great time though. A lot of waiting around and standing in lines but we're so glad we were able to go and so glad everyone was able to make it!

Kenadie was such a little trooper! She was held and watched over by several different people :) and was great the whole time.
Andee went on Rattlesnake Rapids two times and ended up not having an inch of dry anywhere on her. She was soaked!

This is the second group to go on Rattlesnake Rapids. Of course, both my little daredevils went both times.

This is the cause of all the wet clothes and hair. I love my brother, Jason (center, in blue),
in this picture. It says it all. There's just nothing you can do when going under this waterfall but to give up and get drenched! Andee was right next to him, therefore why she was so soaked.

The carousel is always a favorite.

I think the adults had just a good of time on the little kid dragon ride as the kids. Me with my neice Lindsey in the front, Andee and her cousin Megan right behind us, My sister Haylee and her little guy Blake right behind them, Paityn and her cousin Madison (both with mouths wide open, screaming), and my brother and his little girl Hannah in the back.

This was Kenadie's favorite ride! I think it was called "The Stroller".

My cute parents. Don't you just love my dad's hat.

Of course we had to hit the little rides.

This is typical. Paityn and Andee trying to kill eachother!

We went on a ton of more rides, just no pictures. Paityn wanted to go on everything and would have if those darn measuring sticks at the front of each big ride were accurate. She was tall enough to go on the "Colossus" but not tall enough to go on "The Spider" even though they both had the same height requirements. Go figure. She did go on "Wicked" though and had a blast. Next year we hope she'll have grown an inch or two!

Thanks everyone for such a great time at Lagoon. We can't wait to go again next year!!!:)

Summer Camping

2009-09-08T20:43:00.000-07:00

What would a summer be without a camping trip. One thing we would like to do more of as a family is camping. We rough it by sleeping in tents, cooking our meals over an open flame, getting dirty and smelling like campfire. This year we went camping up Manti canyon with Dave's sister and her family and Dave's oldest brother.

How cute are my two little campers! This doesn't happen very often :)
Our three girls and their three boys, James, Tyson and Sean.

Dave with our littlest camper. She was a trooper and just loved being outside.

The first night we were there Paityn got eaten alive by the mosquitos. Forgot to apply the spray to her forehead.

Riding in the back of the truck. Carseats? What are those when you're in the mountains.

The boys brought up their "Jeep" so the girls could learn how to 4x4 it.

Kenadie and I hung out in the truck a lot. It was pretty cold and windy.

Paityn's fish. She worked hard for this one.

This was the first trip that the girls really got into fishing. Paityn got to be pretty good at casting. We sat here for probably 2 hours. A little boring to me :)

There was this huge snowbank still left up there so they all decided to hike up to it. They thought it was pretty cool to play in the snow during the summer. They came back with some pretty wet bums.

Dave with the first fish of the day. This took about 1 1/2 hours to get. I know.....BORING! Can you tell I'm not a fisherman.

I just thought Andee looked so cute sitting there with her fishing pole.

We had a great time and can't wait to do it again next year!

My Uncle is Cooler Than Your Uncle

2009-09-07T10:40:00.001-07:00

So to make a long story short, my sister's husband, Nate, was in the process of being deployed to Iraq and requested a cross-country flight, where he could stop in Utah for a few days and say good-bye to family. He's in the Air Force and will occassionally make these flights and arranges them so that he can stop in Utah. How cool is that! Haylee had to go pick him up and invited me and the girls to go along.

This is the front of the plane. It was pretty cramped for space. The girls thought it was so cool to be able to sit in the pilot chairs. Tons of buttons!
They even gave us a ride to the plane. I felt like a celebrity going to my private plane!

Outside looking in (or is it inside looking out)

Left to right: me holding Kenadie, Nate holding Blake, Paityn, Andee and Haylee

Thanks Nate for letting us come! We love you, good luck and maybe we'll come pick you up in a few months again :)!

1st, I mean 4th, Day of School

2009-09-01T19:36:00.000-07:00

Here I am a teacher watching other moms taking pictures of their first graders on their first day of school and here I am a mom experiencing my oldest child's first day of first grade and no camera in hand. So, finally on the 4th day of school I finally took the "first day of first grade" picture! Better late than never, right?

I debated for a long time whether or not to have Paityn in my class and finally decided on giving it a try. I figured this was a once in a lifetime thing and might not happen with any of my other kids. You just never know. And if you know Paityn you know that she has AT-TI-TUDE!!! I was a little worried, to say the least, about her pulling this attitude with me during class. Gratefully, all my worries were put to rest when I had this little angel child named Paityn Braithwaite in my class. Who knew! Not me!
It's actually been kind of fun to see her interact with the other kids and seeing her doing her work. It's nice because I don't have to be the mom spying outside the classroom door, watching to see if her little girl is OK. She has surprised me with her kindness towards other kids and her eagerness to learn. She's been a teacher's dream so far. Now we'll have to see what we can do about a mom's dream of a perfect child at home :)

Buddies

2009-08-11T08:38:00.000-07:00

Blake and Kenadie. Kenadie and Blake. That's just how it is. Even though they're 7 months apart, we just know they'll be best buddies. They both just have the cutest cheeks and are both so pudgy and sweet around the middle. OOOOh I could just eat them up! Blake even let Kenadie borrow one of his toys. It's the biggest, coolest thing ever and she just loves it. She'll sit and bounce and play with and look at all the toys. Thanks Blake!

Swim Day

2009-08-05T11:13:00.000-07:00

The last time we went swimming, Kenadie did not like it at all so we thought we would try it again now that she's a little bit older. She did much better and filled out her swimming suit a little better. Her cute little butterball body was so cute spilling out of it. We went swimming in Manti with cousins and had so much fun. Sadie, Mikaela, Andee, Paityn (what a nerd in her goggles), and Megan

Haylee and Blake playing games. This little guy just loves the water!
Sadie and Paityn in the deep end. They think they're so big now that they can swim.

Andee could be in the water all day every day if I let her. She is very content just playing by herself and splashing.

And here's that little butterball crying in the water again. Really and truly, she did like it much better than the first time. She was just tired and it was a bit cold because it was a little windy and cloudy. She fell asleep shortly after this.

What Will We Do?

2009-07-31T21:30:00.000-07:00

All day today I have been watching our neighbors moving all of their things out of their house so they can take it to their new home and I am just so sad. We couldn't have asked for better neighbors and better friends for our kids. It was great just letting the kids run back and forth between both houses and knowing that when my kids were with them, that they were OK.
So many funny things have gone on between these 4 little friends. From Andee and Mahlia covering eachother with green marker to Paityn and Joseph building a club house out of a cardboard box. From princess dress-ups to bike rides around the block. From melted popscicles on the front porch to playing in the water. We wish them well in their new home and hope they know how much we will miss them.

Summer Lovin' - Lovin' Summer

2009-07-28T20:57:00.000-07:00

Our summer has just flown right by! I just knew it would go quickly.
When Kenadie was born I knew I would have 4 months of enjoying her and I knew that it would go by too quickly and I would have to give her up to a babysitter for 8 hours a day. It breaks my heart just thinking about it. But I am ready for a nice break from the other two hoolagins. I guess I won't get much of a break from Paityn since she will be in my first grade class this year. That should be interesting.

Our summer just wouldn't be complete without the 4th of July. Growing up in Manti, I don't remember a 4th of July going by when we didn't go to the city park and take part in the festivities. It's changed quite a bit but it's always fun to see old friends. The last few years we have parked ourselves under this tree. It's perfect for people watching! It's right in the center of the action and the kids just come and go and know that we'll be right there. It's great!

Here are my 3 little munchkins in their 4th of July attire. So cute.

Andee enjoying a slushee

Paityn and her cousin Sadie, who can't get enough of eachother

My attempt at getting some of Kenadie's facial expressions. For the most part she's a pretty happy baby with the exceptions of nap time and when's she's hungry but who can blame her.

Another one of our fun summer activities was swimming lessons! My girls could have lived at swimming lessons and been just fine. They had a blast. Paityn is such a great swimmer now and makes it all the way across the pool by herself.

I love swimming lessons at this pool because they keep the class sizes small. This is Andee's little class with all 4 of the kids in her class. She loved blowing bubbles, splashing, playing games and jumping into the water

Andee and her teacher. He was so cute with the kids.

Paityn even got to go off the diving board. She was so excited about it!

Kenadie is just growing and learning like crazy. She's one of the few babies I know that enjoys her tummy time. She loves to hold her head up and look at the toys in front of her and talk to them. We're working on the rolling over thing and getting close. It makes me sad to know that I won't be able to see her all the time now and see all those "firsts" that she'll be doing while I'm at school. I'm getting choked up thinking about it so I'll stop now :)
Here is a little video clip of our cutest summer lovin' moment. This is Kenadie and her cousin Blake. This was the first time they saw eachother because Blake, Haylee and Nate have been in Oklahoma. We were so excited for them to come and they said that they weren't going to be able to make it for the 4th of July but when we got to the park they were there waiting for us. They surprised everyone and we're so glad they were able to make it.
Blake and Kenadie are good buddies now. Blake always shows interest and concern for Kenadie, give her kisses and pats her "softly".

SMILE!

2009-06-29T16:51:00.001-07:00

I hope this makes your day! I giggle every time I look at it!

Swim Day

2009-06-29T16:46:00.001-07:00

We thought we would take advantage of one of the first nice days in a while and go swimming. The girls had swimming lessons coming up so I thought they better get a little practice in before they went.
Andee was a little hesitant at first but it didn't take her long to realize how much fun it was. We couldn't get her out when it was time to go.

This is how Kenadie felt about the whole thing.

Just sun bathing!

Peanuts Anyone?

2009-06-29T16:38:00.000-07:00

Any normal child would sell lemonade right? Well, being the child that she is, Paityn decided to set up a stand and sell TRAIL MIX! For a little while her only customer was Andee, Dave and myself. She moved her stand a short distance down the sidewalk and was SOOO excited when some neighbors across the street came and bought some from her. She had to run to the back yard and tell Dave that she had had her first customers. Andee couldn't get enough of buying it.
You can't see it, but her sign says "Peanuts, 2 cents"
What a little entrepreneur (spelling?)

2 Months

2009-06-16T15:12:00.000-07:00

2 months? Where did the time go? Although, it does seem like we've had her forever. She got her two month shots a few days ago and was officially made a princess by Dr. Clayton. We love Dr. Clayton!
Here are a few of the things that make Kenadie amazing!
*she makes her opinion known very strongly by crying and knows she can get her way
*she LOVES sucking on her fists - hopefully she won't find her thumb
*she has discovered that she can see her hands and will just lay there and look at them. It makes her go cross-eyed and is very funny to watch. She will also sit and watch her toes if she can find them.
*Kenadie is very happy in the mornings and is very generous with her smiles.

This is the best I could do with getting a smile. The camera is never around when I need it.

*she likes to play pat-a-cake with her feet and likes it when I put her toes in her mouth.

*has started to swat at toys hanging in front of her

*likes it when Paityn and Andee talk to her

*has discovered she has a voice and loves to goo and "talk"

*she LOVES the baby in the mirror (working on video for that. It's the funniest thing ever!)

*absolutely loves her baths and has learned to splash but hates getting lotion on and getting dressed afterward. BRRRRR!

*has the cutest chubby legs!

*likes playing with, sticking out and chewing on her tongue

*weighs 11 lbs. 13 oz and is 22 1/2 inches long

*likes to face forward so she can see everything

*she is known to sleep in until 9:30 or even 10:00 most mornings.

What a Blessing

2009-06-09T21:21:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, Kenadie was given a name and a blessing by Dave. It was such a special day and Kenadie was like a little angel in her first white dress. Families of both Dave and I came to help us celebrate. We were so glad they were all able to come and missed those that weren't able to come. We were planning on having our gathering outside but the weather had a different plan so we all were able to pack together in our house. It turned out great though! Our Little Miss Kenadie on her blessing day in her dress. She wore the bonnet that came with the dress for her blessing but we took it off as soon as we got home.
Close-up. Look at those cherub cheeks.
There's just something about a sleeping baby.
Dave looked so handsome in his suit and gave a nice, but simple, blessing.
Paityn and Andee were in heaven with all of the visitors at our house.Kenadie with grandma (my mom). Kenadie with grandpa (my dad).
Kenadie with Aunt Tricia (my sister).
And Kenadie with Uncle Jason (my brother).

Class of 2009

2009-05-23T11:19:00.001-07:00

Yes, I have a graduate! From Kindergarten that is.
Paityn absolutely LOVED kindergarten. Doesn't everybody. She learned so much throughout the year. She has become an amazing reader and loves to do anything that has to do with school.

They had to dress up in their best clothes. She was planning it out for days.
They actually got diplomas! You can see her picture with her cap and gown. They went all out!

Paityn would have loved Kindergarten anyway, but having Mrs. George as her teacher made it perfect. As much as she loved kindergarten, she loved Mrs. George even more. She is the best! Thank you Mrs. George for everything this year!!!

And Paityn had to get a picture with Mr. George too. He is #55 on BYU's football team and she just thought he was the coolest thing ever. I think she secretly has a little crush on him. Watch out Mr. George! She now recognizes anything BYU.

This was during the graduation program. She was just singing her little heart out, as usual.

Paityn and Forbes

These two became great friends. Forbes mom is a good friend of mine and was nice enough to let Paityn come to her house during the mornings and then these two went to afternoon kindergarten together.

Aren't those little graduation caps the cutest things ever.

Paityn had a lot of good little friends in her class. Paityn with Macie and Brynlee.

Paityn and Samantha

Paityn, Eliza, Ellie and Skye. Have you noticed how short Paityn is yet? :) Paityn and Michael. This little boy is about the cutest, kindest, sweetest little boy I know and Paityn talked about him all the time :)

Kenadie's Photoshoot

2009-05-02T21:08:00.000-07:00

Kenadie had her first photoshoot at 2 weeks old. My good friend/fellow teacher, Kristi, came over, along with her sister Grace, to take pictures of Kenadie. She has an amazing talent!! She said she was nervous about doing a newborn but I had no doubt that she would get some great shots. I was worried because Kenadie was not exactly cooperating but that didn't stop Kristi. And thanks goes to her sister for keeping Andee entertained :)

I was just so pleased and excited about these pictures that I thought I would share. I can't wait to get some printed and framed!

Kristi posted some on her blog as well to check out.

http://thesugies.blogspot.com/

1 Week Old

2009-04-23T19:37:00.000-07:00

For some reason we have celebrated all of the girls 1 week old birthday. So here's our newest little angel at 1 week old. It seems like she's been with us forever. We can't imagine life without her now that we have her. Happy 1 week old birthday Kenadie.

Doesn't Dave just look so excited to be surrounded by so many girls!

The Story of Kenadie

2009-04-20T20:58:00.000-07:00

Prepare yourself for a long post! And here we go!
After waiting and waiting for April 12th to come, it passed with no baby. Not feeling like I wanted to deal with two very energetic little girls named Paityn and Andee, we shipped them off to my mom's house for a few days. That was Sunday. Then came Monday, and you'd think I would just sit at home or clean or something, but no. We went car shopping. Without the girls, it was a perfect day to go. That night I went into "nesting" mode, cleaning and doing laundry, knowing that I was being induced the next morning.
So it begins. Monday morning, April 14th at 6:00 am I called the hospital to see when we could come. We were told to come at 7:00 am and that's just what we did. I was so anxious to have this baby but soooo nervous at the same time. I had never been induced and had heard some nightmare stories about it but had also heard some good things so I wasn't sure what to expect.
We got checked in, got in my gown, got my IV and was in for the long haul. My nurse was fabulous and made my stay there as comfortable as possible. She started the pitosin and I waited for those dreaded contractions to start. My dr. came around noon and broke my water and that's when it all started. I got my epidural a short time after that, after taking the pain as long as I could. I kept waiting for the epidural to take over my pain but it never did fully so I gave the button a push and got a little extra going in my system. This didn't work so after an hour I pushed it again. Once again, it wasn't working and the contractions were still so strong. I couldn't figure out why it wasn't working and thought that the epidural hadn't been put in right and I was worried they'd have to do it again. Well, come to find out, I was progressing sooo fast that the epidural couldn't keep up with the pain. The nurse kept a close eye on the babies heartbeat because everytime I was having a contraction, the baby's head compressions would go crazy. She thought the labor was just too much for the baby. Actually it was just that I was dilating so fast and getting ready to deliver. The nurse was shocked at how fast I was progressing. So in came the doctor and about 15 minutes later, after pushing only a few times, out came Kenadie. She was laid on my stomach while Dave cut the chord and all was well. She was beautiful and looked just like Paityn and Andee. She had lots of dark hair and her eyes were wide open. She got to hang out with me in the room for an hour before they took her to the nursery to get a bath and do the regular newborn routine. I was just so relieved to have her here and so grateful to my Heavenly Father that she was healthy and that all went well. We said a prayer before we left for the hospital that everything would be OK and I know he heard that prayer!
For some reason, these pictures are out of order so I'll just tell what each of them are. Here goes.

Kenadie in the nursery. She was already sucking her thumb.

Dave holding her and talking to her. He was so loving and tender with her. I just love his cute "daddiness"
This was after they had checked her out in the delivery room and handed her to me so she was only about 10 minutes old. Look at those nostrils.

Right after they gave her back to me. The nurse had put warm blankets around me because I had been shaking and shivering so hard. Not because I was cold though. It was because my body was in complete shock.

Kenadie in the nursery. I think she looks so chubby and healthy in this picture.

This was the girls when we came home from the hospital. They were so excited and couldn't wait to talk to her.

She is so cute in pink!

They just look so teeny in those car seats. This was coming home from the hospital in her cute yellow premie outfit that my mom gave her.

Andee just wanted to be close to her new sister. She has been really great and so loving.

Paityn was so excited because her and Kenadie both had their little velvet outfits on, on the same day.

Paityn thought she could help with bath time

This was Kenadie as I just put her in the bath. Nice and calm right?

Not for long! Needless to say, she did not like her first bath.

This is my wonderful mother who came to stay and help out. I can't thank her enough for coming. She has no idea how much I appreciated her coming and doing all that she did. She doesn't think she did much but, believe me, I couldn't have done it without her. I was so overwhelmed by it all that I wondered how I was going to manage with 3 kids, but having her here helped me focus and get my feet planted again. Thanks mom! You're the best and I love you so much!And this is just the cutest. One night I had put the girls to sleep and went upstairs. I had given Dave the baby to hold while I did this. I heard the girls out of their beds and went to check and see what was going on. I went down with every intention of getting mad at them for being out of bed but when I walked into their room, this is what I saw. I couldn't help but just smile and be OK with it. He said he had promised them a bedtime story. I thought it was absolutely precious.

She's Here!

2009-04-18T21:19:00.000-07:00

Here she is! Kenadie Braithwaite. She finally made her appearance on April 14th at 3:52 pm. She was 7 lbs. 4 oz. and 19 1/2 inches long. She looks just like Paityn and Andee did when they were born and has a ton of dark hair. She's doing great (and so am I!). More pictures to come!

Easter Came and Went

2009-04-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

After waiting a FULL 40 weeks for Easter day to arrive, it came and went with no baby. If you noticed my baby ticker above, I am now 40 weeks and 1 day pregnant. AAUUUGGHHH! Tomorrow is the day though. I am being induced on Tuesday whether I like it or not.
So while I was waiting for a baby to come, the girls were having a great Easter. On Saturday they received a package in the mail from Grandma and were so excited!
They broke right into their packages. This was the beginning of candy and Easter grass all over.

We colored Easter eggs and this is one that Andee made. Can you see the little finger prints in the paint? So cute.

Saturday night we left some carrots in the bunny treat jar for the Easter Bunny. I also put curlers in their hair. They thought they looked so beautiful!

That night, Paityn could hardly stand the anticipation of the Easter Bunny coming. She woke up at 2:00 am, wanting to go see if the Easter Bunny came. That morning she ventured upstairs by herself and saw that the bunny had indeed come. She just had to wake Andee up to go see. They were both so excited!

After the egg hunt

I could not stop laughing when I took Andee's curlers out. I couldn't figure out anything to do to make it look OK so I had to wet her hair down. Next time we'll use the bigger curlers :) They got new names after I took their curlers out. Paityn became Darla (from The Little Rascals) and Andee became Shirley (Temple) .

All dolled up in their Easter dresses. Paityn's hair turned out OK but after church she insisted that it be put in a polytail.
Paityn kept saying that it was the best Easter ever. So easy to please.

It would have been a great Easter if we would have had a new baby but oh well. We shipped the girls off to grandma's house and now we are just waiting to go to the hospital in the morning and trying to get last minute things ready to go. Stay tuned......

I have a 6 year old!?

2009-03-30T19:39:00.000-07:00

So my first born turned 6! Boy did that ever go fast.
So she wanted an Easy Bake Oven. Remember yours? I never had one but always wanted one so when that's what she said she wanted, I was all over it. But she got so many other things too that she hasn't paid much attention to it. She did make a cake though.

The one thing she wanted to do for her birthday was go to Chuck-E-Cheese! They had a blast. Paityn and Andee, both, were just in heaven. They just ran all over with Dave, doing all the rides and games while I just sat and watched, which was fine with me. Paityn told me that I didn't have any fun because I just sat and watched. But, believe me, that was my kind of fun just watching my two girls with their daddy having a good time. I just sat and smiled. Daddy's and daughters really are the cutest things.

Saturday was Paityn's birthday party. For some reason she wanted a "cat party" so we did our best to have one. As the kids arrived to the party I painted cat noses and whiskers on them. The boys didn't think that was very cool and didn't want their faces painted :)

All the kids together. Most of them anyway.

Some of the girls

Paityn with her cat cake.

We tried to play "cat,cat,dog" instead of "duck,duck,goose". It was OK for the first few minutes but I think I heard a "this is boring" so we stopped.

Da Boys!

The party was kind of a bust because the original plan was to have pizza and that didn't quite happen. The plan was to go get some pizzas from Little Caesar but they weren't open yet so I thought I would just order pizza and have it delivered. So I ordered pizza on-line from Papa John's. Usually when I order from there, it only takes about 20-30 minutes for it to arrive. Well, I checked my e-mail after I ordered to see how long it was going to take and it said 85-95 minutes. I was a little taken aback but "OK I'll just change things up a bit and we will eat at the very end of the party." So the 85-95 minutes passed and no pizza. I called to check on it and was put on hold for about 5 minutes, after which I was told that it was just going into the oven. So I promptly canceled the order in a not-so-nice way and had to break the news to the kids that there would be no pizza. They were pretty disappointed, as was I. So they got sent home with cake and candy as their lunch. Sorry parents :(

I think they had an OK time though. Paityn could have cared less as long as her friends were there!

Prom!?

2009-03-24T09:41:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I was able to attend my neices prom in Manti. It's one of those proms where they do the promenade, introduce each junior class member and families are invited to come and watch. Big tradition and I was so excited to go. Boy did it take me back to my junior prom. I took Paityn with me and she was so excited to see the "princesses" in their pretty dresses. It was just like in a fairy tale for her. Her face was priceless when she was watching the girls in their dresses. Here is Paityn and Sadie with Chelsea. She looked so pretty! And so grown up! She was always my little buddy when she was growing up. It's just crazy seeing her in make-up, high-heels and on a date with a boy :)

The two prom-crazy 5 year olds.

After they do promenade, they do a father/daughter and mother/son dance for the juniors. I told Paityn that I danced with grandpa when it was my prom so she couldn't wait to dance with him after the promenade. It was precious.

Paityn in her prom attire. She was so excited to wear her dress.

And just a glimpse of what 37 1/2 weeks of pregnancy looks like. I am ready to pop, ready to be able to breathe again and ready to be able to sleep on my stomach!

Andee's Photo Shoot

2009-03-18T11:55:00.001-07:00

So here are Andee's pictures we got taken at JCPenney. They got some cute ones and some not-so-cute ones so here are the cute ones.
When Andee got her 2 year old pictures, I put them next to Paityn's 2 year old pictures to compare. Here are Paityn's 2 year old pictures. Sisters? I think so!

Our 3 Year Old Princess

2009-03-15T15:07:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that it was 3 years ago that Andee came into this world. And now look at her. She is this wonderful little personality in our home and gives us so much joy. We love her so much!!!Her birthday was on Friday the 13th so I gladly took the day off to be with her. Even Paityn got in the birthday spirit and tried SO HARD to be nice to Andee ALL DAY. This is a big deal for Paityn and she was so kind and helpful to her most of the day. We dropped Paityn off at school and went and got Andee's birthday pictures done. She did so good and they turned out so cute (pictures coming soon). We opened presents and sang Happy Birthday later that night. Andee's castle cake

A purse she got from Grandma

Slippers from Haylee

The next day she had her first friend birthday party and invited some of her little neighborhood friends (and cousins) to a princess party. All the guests dressed up in their princess attire and were picked up in their carriage (wagon) and taken to the castle (our house). They dined on cupcakes and made their own princess wand. They were all so adorable.

All the princesses together.

Our youngest princess, Princess Hannah

Princess Andee and Princess Mahlia

Princess Sammie and Princess Lindsey

The royal court together in the castle tent put up outside on the deck.

Paity Lou Who

2009-03-04T13:04:00.000-08:00

Today at school it was "dress up as your favorite Dr. Seuss character". Here is what we came up with. When we were doing her hair this morning, she just sat and smiled at herself in the mirror and would laugh because she thought she looked so funny.
We are just excited for Friday when it's pajama day! That's always a teachers favorite day!

Practicing up!

2009-01-22T20:00:00.001-08:00

Paityn and Andee were getting some good practice with Baby Blake. I don't think they realize what they're in for.

Could They Be Any Cuter?

2009-01-22T19:53:00.000-08:00

They just looked too cute on this particular Sunday not to take their picture. I had braided both of their hair on Saturday night and took it out Sunday morning for church. They looked like little twinners with their hair. And they sure didn't mind posing either.

SnOw fun!

2009-01-22T19:40:00.000-08:00

We're glad the snow is finally starting to melt a little bit. The girls were so excited when it snowed all those days in a row.

All bundled up

Sledding with cousins in Manti

This is Andee in my old snow suit. Doesn't she look the part of a late 70's snowchild.

Paityn jumping off our deck into the HUGE pile of snow.

8-8-8-8-8

2009-01-18T20:36:00.000-08:00

So Kim tagged me but also said anyone that is bored with their blog. Well that's definitely me.

8-8-8-8-8

8 TV Shows I Love To Watch
1.The Bachelor
2.LOST
3.John & Kate Plus 8
4.House Hunters
5.Lipstick Jungle
6.E! True Hollywood Story
7.So You Think You Can Dance
8.The Biggest Loser

8 Things that I did yesterday
1. Went to Target and spent money I probably shouldn't have of course
2. Drove to Manti
3. Laundry
4. Cleaned up the girls messes
5. Cleaned up Dave's messes
6. Talked to Haylee about baby sleep habits
7. Watched Chelsea play in her MHS basketball game
8. Went to my old high school. Boy was it strange!

8 Favorite Places to Eat
1. Los Hermanos
2. Sizzler
3. PF Changs
4. My moms
5. Papa Johns
6. The Olive Garden
7. Wingers
8. Brick Oven

8 Things I am looking forward to
1. NOT BEING PREGNANT!!!!!
2. wearing normal clothes
3. Spring!
4. a new kitchen
5. spending some nice, romantic, quality time with my husband without a big belly being in the way, if you know what I mean :)
6. being able to breath normally again
7. my next bubble bath
8. someday not having to pay for daycare, or even worry about it

8 Things on my wish list
1. To have a quick, healthy delivery of this baby
2. To go on a magnificent vacation with Dave
3 .To have smart, respectful kids
4. To be able to just stay home with my kids
5. A new house
6. To have a completely clean and organized home
7. That my girls would just get along!
8. To take my family to Disney World

Well, now that was fun! Go ahead and try it. I dare you!

Little Miracle

2008-12-18T21:15:00.000-08:00

So if anyone out there is going through the potty training thing or is coming upon that blessed time, I have a great little invention that will help. I saw it on the news one night and thought "how perfect". It's made by a Utah couple that thought it would be great if their potty trainer had some kind of timer that would go off to tell them it was time to go potty. So they made one. You can get them at Macey grocery stores and Kid to Kid. Anyway......it has made our life so much easier and Andee loves it!

The BraithwaiteBunch

2008-12-18T08:16:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

GROSS!

2008-12-08T12:54:00.000-08:00

So it all began Friday afternoon when Andee and I made a trip to the grocery store. She was such a good helper so I let her get a treat. the treat of choice was "Bubble Tape". She LOVES gum and has finally figured out to chew and chew and chew and chew and not swallow right away. So she got home, opened her gum and started chewing. A little while later I noticed that her bubble tape was half gone and her mouth was clear full of wads and wads of gum. Needless to say, I took away the gum.
So that night about midnight she started coughing. She had a little cold so it was understandable that she was coughing. I brought her into my bed where she continued to cough. She was pretty awake at this point so I we were just whispering to eachother and talking a little bit when all of a sudden she coughed and THREW UP all over me, the pillow, her nightgown and my bed! I thought, "oh great, we will all be getting the stomach flu now." So I rushed her into the bathroom and came back. While in the bathroom Dave had started to take the sheets off the bed and noticed what had made her throw up. Yup! You guessed it. THE GUM! She had eaten so much gum that it made her throw up. She was fine after that and ready to watch a movie at 1:00 am. What a fun night!
So you can guess what the moral of the story is.
Sorry to gross you out!

Here She Is!

2008-12-03T12:37:00.001-08:00

So here are some pictures of our latest girl. Paityn was a little bit upset that it wasn't a boy but today she patted my tummy and said, "Mommy I love the baby because it's a girl." Thank goodness because I don't think I can handle another relationship like hers and Andee's. Hopefully Andee takes better to a little sister than Paityn did when Andee was born.

It's a ..........

2008-11-28T21:38:00.000-08:00

GIRL!!!!!
I know, I know. We just haven't quite figured out that boy recipe yet.
For those of you who don't know, we are expecting #3 on April 12th. We love those spring babies!

October

2008-11-06T19:06:00.000-08:00

Just a few happenings in October. First of all, one day I walked in the front door of the house only to find two things that I wasn't expecting, greeting me in the house. The first was this stuffed turkey. Paityn was a little startled at it as well. Dave shot this a few months ago and had it stuffed. I think it will go nicely in the garage next to the elk head that should be coming soon!

The second was that my downstairs bathroom was in the beginning stages of a much needed make-over. This also startled Paityn but she became really excited after she understood what it meant. Check out the black moldy wood we found at the base of the shower. Ya, that's fun!

One weekend while at my mom's house, Andee suddenly disappeared into a back bedroom. I thought she was just playing in her Cinderella dress but my mom thought it wise to go check on her anyway. This is what she found.....Andee hiding in the closet......ASLEEP! I guess when you're tired, you're tired.

And October wouldn't be October without all of the Halloween activities. Dave and I have carved pumpkins every year since we were dating. The tradition continues. Even Paityn has gotten to where she can use those little carving tools and kind of carve her own, simple face. Andee on the other hand wanted nothing to do with the slimy guts on the inside. She wouldn't even touch a pumpkin.

Halloween day was very long but the girls had a lot of fun! They both had Halloween shirts to wear and both wore their hair up with their costumes. They really looked like sisters. And get use to Andee's sideways-head pose. That's what she thinks you do when someone says "cheese".

I took Andee to school with me all day and she couldn't have been happier. She loved entertaining the kids and doing a few "1st grade" things.

For some reason, Paityn really wanted to be a vampire and we figured Andee would want to be Cinderella because she wears her ratty old Cinderella dress-up every day, all day. I got a cute shot of Andee with "Tater Buzz". They walked around the school carnival together. Just as cute as could be!

After school we hurried down to Manti so we could do trick-or-treating with cousins. Manti does trunk or treet on Main Street where they close down a few blocks of Main Street and then you can walk from trunk to trunk and from store to store. It was pretty neat! We loved that Halloween was on a Friday and that we were able to go down and be with family and cousins for Halloween.

This is one of my favorite things Andee does. Well, sometimes. Sometimes it just really frustrates me. If something doesn't go her way she'll cross her arms, put her eyebrows down, lip out and then she won't do anything but sit or stand there. I just laugh at her.
Spirit week was a few weeks ago and we had forgotten to dress up on a few of the days but we didn't forget about crazy hair day. This was our quick and easy crazy hair. She thought it was pretty funny.

Ours, All Ours!

2008-10-09T20:33:00.000-07:00

We are officially home owners! After living in my aunt's house in Orem, rent free, for 7 years, we decided to just buy it. We looked around for what seemed like forever and even made an offer on another house but the owners would not budge on the price. I think we were just meant to stay here. We love Orem, we like our ward and we have a huge yard that we couldn't have found anywhere else. My aunt sold us the house for a smokin' deal. We just feel so blessed by my aunt's generosity and kindness! It's kind of weird though. It doesn't feel like we bought it. It kind of already felt like ours in a way. Really, the only difference is that now we'll be making a mortgage payment! YIKES!!!!!
We hope to make lots of changes, updates and improvements so stay tuned. We're just so glad to have it be ours, ALL ours!

What a Bunch of BULL!

2008-10-03T07:49:00.001-07:00

So after 10 years of waiting and MONTHS and MONTHS of waiting, preparing and anticipating.....Dave got his Big Bull Elk. Total cost of this whole adventure? $1300, which includes the hunting tag, the price to mount the darn thing and the price to have it cut up and made into something edible. Dave's experience? Priceless!

Dave has the "deer in the headlights look" on his face because the elk was STILL ALIVE! He said he was a little nervous to even get by it.

This is Dave's favorite shot. Just look at those antlers!

This is his "Captain Morgan" pose. He said it was sooooo heavy and they couldn't help but snap this pose. What a stud!

This is the hunting posse. What a bunch of hunting nerds:)

Out of Shape!!!

2008-09-28T19:24:00.001-07:00

Just a little funny that happened to me today. I'm sure you're all interested. Well, I am the primary song leader in our ward and for one of our songs today we sang "Give Said the Little Stream". In senior primary I thought I'd make it a little more interesting. We usually try and sing it without saying the word "give". Trust me, it's harder than it sounds. So anyway....I had them all stand up and I told them that they also had to sit down on the word "give" and then stand back up. If you sing the song to yourself you'll see how many times the word "give" is said and how close they are together. The only chair I had around me was one of the little sunbeam chairs. So the first time through I could feel the burn in my legs a little bit from going up and down, up and down, over and over onto this little, teeny, tiny chair. To make things worse, the kids wanted to do it again! By the end of the second time through I couldn't even make it back up because my legs were cramping up and hurting soooooo bad. And 10 hours later I can barely walk. I guess serves me right for not exercising! Go ahead. Try it at home. I think I'll even try it again once my legs stop hurting enough to walk.

Also, a little shout-out to my sister Haylee who had her baby last week.

This is "Baby Blake", as we call him at our house, and I think most of his 8 lb. 6 oz. were in his cheeks :) Such a cutie. Congratulations Nate and Haylee. Can't wait to see you!

Happy Anniversary

2008-09-23T12:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my wedding anniversary and listen to how sad this is. I didn't even get to spend it with Dave. That's right....he's hunting! I ask you. Which is more important? Hunting or 7 years of wonderful, glorious bliss. JUST KIDDING!! Well, part of it anyway. It really is my anniversary and Dave is really hunting and well, I guess it's been 7 wonderful years but I'm not really that bitter about him being off hunting. Does that sound bad? Let me explain. Dave has been waiting for this hunt for about 10 years now. It is the Big Bull Elk hunt that he has put in for, for the past 10 years and finally drew out. He's been so excited so I've been OK with the whole "being gone on our anniversary" thing.
As I was eating my lunch yesterday, our secretary brought in THIS........

It was very sweet of him to think to do that ahead of time and I couldn't help but to tear up a little bit. I really do have a wonderful husband and am so grateful to be able to be with him forever. He is such a fabulous dad and such a great example to me. When we got married in the temple 7 years ago it was so special. Dave made so many good changes in his life so that we could be married in the temple and I am so blessed he chose to make those changes. I love you honey! (Even though he never looks at this:) )

September 11th?

2008-09-11T12:25:00.000-07:00

I didn't even realize that it was "9/11" today until someone asked me if I had talked about it in my class. At first I thought, "why would I talk about September 11th with my kids?" and then I realized what they were talking about. Could I have forgotten already? It has been 7 years. My kids in first grade weren't even born yet. I will never forget where I was when I heard about it and the feelings that I had. I was driving over the Springville exit bridge on my way to work when I heard it on the radio. I wasn't sure what was going on. All I knew was something about airplanes and New York. I think TV's were on all day and night for the next 2 weeks. Even though it was hundreds of miles away, it affected me. When it happened 7 years ago, I was getting ready to get married. 11 days later was my wedding day and the thought actually went through my head that it wouldn't happen because of the tragic events. I will never forget it and we all need to remember those that lost and sacrificed. Lesson of the day: Time heals.

Back to School

2008-08-30T10:44:00.001-07:00

Not only is it back to school for me, it's also Paityn's year to begin school as a Kindergartener. No one needs to tell me that the time just flew to this point in time.

Paityn is in Mrs. George's afternoon kindergarten class and absolutely LOVES it! I take her to Marnie's in the morning where she plays with Forbes. I understand that they love playing Barbie's together:)

Paityn's classroom is right across the hall from my classroom and I couldn't help but peak in there on the first day of school too see if she was OK. I saw her at recess playing with her friends and she had no idea that I was out there too. I'm glad she has a personality that makes it possible for her to make friends easily but her personality also makes me afraid that she will be really obnoxious!

I didn't cry on her first day of school like I thought I would and maybe that's because she is only 20 feet away. Now I just need to be that mom that gets the backpack checked after school and make sure her homework is done and handed in on time. I'm always complaining about my student's parents that don't do those things. I guess I'll be more understanding when it comes to those things now.
Andee will be going to "Becca's" again this year, which we love. Becca is a lady in our ward that does a daycare/pre-school and just loves my girls. It makes me feel so much better about working and not being at home when I have someone like her to watch my kids.
One thing we had to do for the beginning of the school year was get the traditional hair cut. We cut about 4 inches off Paityn's head of hair and for Andee's very first official hair cut we just trimmed the ends and took off about an inch. Andee was sooooo good about it. She sat so still and almost fell asleep while getting her hair washed. Can't say that I blame her.

Summer Fun!

2008-08-09T13:30:00.001-07:00

It's been a while since my last post (oh really? You hadn't noticed? Oh good) so I thought I would just post a bunch of pictures of things we've been doing.

The girls got a little kitten which was so dang cute when it was little. It was rescued from my mom and dad's haystack. It was a little furball. It is now growing up and still cute but litterboxes are not fun!

One night Andee just HAD to sleep with this little ring that had make-up in it. Whatever it took to get her to sleep. So a few hours later when I went in to check on her she had that make-up smeared ALL over her face. At first I couldn't figure out what it was and was actually a little worried but then remembered what she fell asleep with. It was then that I started laughing and had to get a picture.

Paityn got her ears pierced too. She was so brave and didn't cry at all. Her cousin on the other hand, was a different story. It took 3 adults to hold her down so she could get it done. Paityn loves having her ears pierced.

My sister, Haylee, came out with her husband from Oklahoma for a visit. She is having a baby in September and Paityn is fascinated with babies in tummies. Oh, the questions I get.

This was the summer of developing talents and learning new ones for Paityn. She learned to swim by herself and loves the deep end of the pool (frightening for a mom). She got these new goggles and had to wear them around the house. Hilarious!

One Sunday we took a ride up to Bridal Veil Falls and walked along the trail they have there. It is so green and so beautiful. I couldn't help snapping a shot of my two girls actually getting along. So cute!

Paityn also learned how to ride her bike, FINALLY! Is it bad to threaten her with not being able to go to kindergarten if she didn't learn to ride her bike? OH well. It worked. That's all that matters. She was scared to death to take off her training wheels but I was getting sick of her whining about it so I took her out and spent about 15 minutes practicing with her and then she just took off. She was so proud of herself and just had the biggest smile on her face the rest of the day. Now we can't get her off her bike.

Andee wanted to ride her bike too but just hasn't quite figured out the tricycle yet. She goes a little tiny bit and then gives up. But Dave helped her and that was good enough for her.

And these two pictures were just too cute.

For the 24th of July we took a trip up Manti Canyon. We love going in the mountains! We stopped at one place where my family had always camped at when I was growing up. We found all of my family's names carved in the trees. I was 2 years old when we did it and 29 years later they were there. We stopped at another place where I had carved mine and Dave's names in the tree 8 years ago. AWWW!

This is just my silly Andee! I can't get enough of her.

We have the cutest little neighbor girl, Mahlia, who is almost the exact same age as Andee. Just a few days difference. Recently they have discovered that they live right next door to eachother and it is so cute to watch them play. Mahlia's mom and I hope they will grow up to be good friends!

This past week has been my last full week off before school starts and Dave also had the week off so we decided to take the girls and go do some fun things. One day we went to Thanksgiving Point and did the Dinosaur museum and Farm Country. Dinosaurs must be a boy thing because my girls could have cared less. They did like the sand though. They liked Farm Country because they got to go on a pony ride and get their little fingers licked by little, tiny goats.

We did go to the Living Planet Aquarium too. The girls really liked seeing all the colorful fish, the sharks (even if they were small ones), and touching the stingrays.

And lastly, we took a trip to Lagoon. The girls could have stayed there longer if we would have let them. I thought 8 hours was enough time. Paityn's favorite ride was "the ship ride". She was so funny. Andee loved all the little kid rides. They were able to go on quite a few rides like the Rattlesnake Rapids. We got soaked but they didn't care. Andee loved the bumper cars even though all she did was go around and around in a circle. We had a great time even though we weren't able to go on all the big rides. I guess when you have kids all you care about is seeing them having a good time.

Paityn is the one in the middle on the very top row. She loved it! Her arms are even in the air.

One of my summer highlights was meeting up with my best friend from high school. I hadn't seen her since my wedding and it was so good to see her and meet her kids. Paityn and her little girl became fast friends. I should have taken some pictures. Maybe next time. Thanks Em.
So there you have it. Our summer in a post.
We have had a great summer and Paityn is getting so excited for Kindergarten. Me, on the other hand, could handle another month or two of summer before school starts. I love being home with my girls and spending time together as a family.

2008-08-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

As a 1930s wife, I am
Superior

Take the test!

T-Ball Summer 2008

2008-07-13T21:21:00.001-07:00

Make a Smilebox postcard

Fun 4th

2008-07-06T21:36:00.000-07:00

July has officially started! I guess you could say it started on the 1st because it was my birthday, but no. For me, it always starts with the 4th of July. I always got excited for my birthday but I would get even more excited because it meant the 4th of July was soon upon us.
Fortunately, this year we were able to spend it in Manti with my family but unfortunately, Dave had to work and wasn't able to spend it with us. Things just aren't quite the same when someone is gone but we made the most of it.
The 4th of July, to me, means spending the day at the Manti City park playing games, eating hamburgers and, most importantly, people watching. We staked our place out under a nice, big, shady tree where we were able to travel to and from the different activities. Our favorite is the egg toss. The Maylett's are usually some of the last egg tossers standing and this year was no exception. Paityn and I did the mother/daughter toss and got out on the first toss. It was either because Paityn didn't catch it or I threw it too high. I'll take the blame on that one. Later my dad and I made it to the top 5 and my sister and I made it to the top 4. My dad and neice won a toss together and so did my brother-in-law. It's serious business. We loved the free watermelon, the tug-of-war, the facepainting and just relaxing in the shade.

Paityn and Andee both went to the tug-of-war and got SOAKED! They didn't seem to mind and dried off pretty fast.

Above are the after pictures of Paityn and Andee and below are the before pictures. They both looked so cute before we went to the park, but between the heat and getting wet and just running around, they got pretty homely-looking.

After an exciting day at the park we CRASHED!!!!! We had a lot of fun!

The BraithwaiteBunch

2008-06-28T17:01:00.001-07:00

I changed my font at pYzam.com

Wedding Tag

2008-06-28T14:05:00.000-07:00

1. Where did you meet? Well, officially in elementary school but to be honest I do not have one single memory with him in it until about 7 years after high school. While I was going to college I worked at a grocery store and he lived with his parents. His mom asked him to go to the store for her and of course I was working. He sure did come into the store a lot after that. HHHMMMM!
2. What was the first thought that went through your head when you met? Dave was voted "Best Looking" in our senior class and so I thought he was a great looking guy but he also had a very, should we say, WILD past and that's all I knew of him. While at one of his weekend parties he told one of my sister's friends that I was someone he would change his life around for. She told me what he had said and I replied with, "what is a partier like that interested in me for?" He was just not my type but I was very flattered.
3. Do you remember what he was wearing? On our first date he was wearing jeans with a white shirt that had blue blocked sleeves and a hat.
4. Where was the first time you kissed this person? It was our 3rd time doing something together and he kissed me at night in my parents driveway. We had just been on a bike ride.
5. How did he ask you out? He came into the store to "get something for his mom" and mentioned that we should get together and do something. We set up a time but then I had to call and cancel on him because I had to graduate from college! Date with Dave or college graduation? We went out later though.
7. How long did you know this person before you became a couple? I guess we knew eachother for 23 years before we started dating. If you ask me how long it took us to become a couple after our first date, I would say a few weeks. He would say a few months. I guess that's the difference between guys and girls.
8. Has this person ever proposed to you? Yes, and you should have seen how nervous he was! Especially when he went and asked my dad for permission. I wasn't there but my dad does a great impression.
9. Do you and this person have kids together? We have 2 beautiful and funny little girls names Paityn and Andee. Paityn is 5 and Andee is 2. We just don't know where they came from with their personalities but we think they are the greatest little people ever!
10. Have you ever broken the law together? Together? No. Separately? Let's just say Dave has a record:)
11. When was the first time you realized you liked this person? At about the 20th time of him coming into the store and getting something very random. He was just so cute!
12. Do you get along with this person ex's? I have never talked to Dave's ex but I know a lot about her and know that she wouldn't be someone that I would get along with. I am very different from any of the other girls Dave dated.
13. What's the most expensive thing this person has given you? Probably my wedding ring.
14. What is the one thing this person does that gets on your nerves? Can I only name one thing? Gosh, let me narrow it down:) OK! He does not put anything away when he's done with it.
15. What is the one thing you do that gets on his nerves? I throw his things away that don't get put away (See #14)
16. Where do you see each other in 15 years from now? In our own house with a few more little darlings running around.
17. Wedding date? September 22, 2001. 11 days after the 9-11 attack.
18. Wedding day memories? The whole day was just so much fun. One thing that sticks out is right before going to the temple. Dave came and picked me up at my parents house and as we were just going out the door it suddenly hit me that I was actually going out the door to get married! Not on a date or going someplace like the store. I was going out the door to get married and I would not be coming back to that house as Amy Maylett again. It was so overwhelming and my eyes started to tear up. Dave took my hand and led me out the door to go get married. I loved the whole day though and have often wanted to go back and do it all over again.

I Tag: anyone who wants to think back to that time in their lives and think of things they haven't thought of in a while.

Summer Vacation

2008-06-17T13:26:00.000-07:00

We just spent most of the week down south in the Bryce Canyon area. We did a lot of driving and a lot of hiking.
Our first day we drove to Goblin Valley down by Green River. It was really, really cool and the kids loved climbing on the "goblins".

There was no shade and the sun and climbing around really wore the kids out.

Our second day was spent on the longest, hardest, sandiest, hottest yet most rewarding hike. We went to Calf Creek and hiked into a place that had an amazing waterfall. The trail was sandy like a beach which made it really hard to walk in. It was about a 6 mile hike round trip and yes we took Paityn and Andee. They got carried quite a bit but for the most part they did really good.

Our next day was spent doing a smaller, shorter hike and traveling. Our last day we spent in Bryce Canyon. It was amazing. We did another long hike into the canyon and out.

The first picture is of Dave at the top of the canyon looking in a little bit. The second is of my two little hikers. They were such troopers. And the last is a picture of the trail that we hiked on to get out of the canyon. You can see ALL the switchbacks that just kept going up and up and up. I thought I would never get out. When we got close to the top we saw a lady going down it in a knee-length skirt and high heels. I sure hope she made it.
We had a great time but it sure was nice to get back to a sand-free, air-conditioned home with soft beds, a kitchen. showers and bathrooms.

Milestones

2008-06-08T20:50:00.000-07:00

So we've hit a few major milestones at our house, well, according to Paityn and Andee. But I think they're pretty neat too.
According to Paityn she can now go to Kindergarten because she
1. Can do her own seatbelt with no help AT ALL!!!
2. Keeps her panties dry all day long (most of the time)

3. She can roll her tongue like a hot dot bun. And believe me, this is huge to Paityn. She has been working on this one FOREVER and would cry whenever she tried and failed.

4. SHE CAN TIE HER SHOES! This one is a big one because she's never really had shoes with shoelaces before. All they make anymore are shoes with velcro or slip-ons.

What a big girl! Watch out Mrs. George. She'll be all yours come August.

Andee on the other hand has made her own little ah-ha's
1. She got a "big girl" bed. It's just a toddler bed but she thinks she's so grown-up. She looks so cute lying there in this little bed.

And.....finally......brace yourselves for this one.......

2. NO MORE SOOTHIE!!! Wooohoo. I thought the day would never come but one day I had just had enough and I threw it in the garbage with her standing there watching. And the rest is history. She asked for it the first night but went to sleep. The next day she didn't even cry or ask for it when it came nap time. She hasn't asked for it since. If I knew it was going to be this easy I would have done it a long time ago.

She was always seen with this "plug" in her mouth. It was a huge comfort to her. But finally, at the age of 2, it's gone!
What a big girl!

Grandpa's Little Girl

2008-05-22T16:48:00.000-07:00

I've tried to upload this video forever but it just never worked.
One weekend when we were at my parents house in Manti, Andee crawled up on grandpa's lap and was treated to a lullaby. It was too precious. My dad somehow knows all of these old songs and will sing them at random, yet perfect, times.

Playing with Dad

2008-05-21T21:25:00.000-07:00

For those of you who know Dave, he is what you would call an avid hunter. Any kind of hunt you can think of, he does. He's already planning for September's Big Bull Elk hunt. He goes a little overboard, I think, but he enjoys it. While he's not hunting, he's searching for "sheds" of elk or deer. "Sheds" are the dropped antlers of deer and elk. So to give you a little background, Dave had been watching the elk on the mountainsides of our house from our back deck through his spotting scope. He had been watching them for months and months. I know, he's a little obsessed. Eventually the elk were dropping their sheds and Dave took a hike up to the mountains and found these huge elk antlers. They are seriously huge! I can barely lift them they are so heavy. The girls thought they were pretty cool. Andee had to put all of her weight against the one that she is holding and as soon as I took the picture she let it drop and went "Whoa, dat heaby!"

Dave also has two huntings dogs, Deuce and Boone, that he uses when he hunts birds like ducks and sage grouse. They're pretty energetic dogs and the girls just love when he lets them out of their "home" to run around in the back yard. They lick them to death and the girls just giggle. It's fun to watch them play with the dogs.

Andee's Pictures

2008-04-23T12:42:00.001-07:00

I thought since I put Paityn's pictures on, I better put Andee's on too. These of Andee's aren't cropped like the ones we ordered but you get the idea. She was being a stinker during them but her little smirk is just so cute!

The next pictures are of Andee and Paityn at age 2. Andee is on the left and Paityn is on the right. Can you tell they're sisters?

I meant to put Andee in pigtails because I knew I put Paityn in pigtails for her pictures at the same age and I wanted to see how much they looked like eachother.

Paityn's Pictures

2008-04-22T07:37:00.000-07:00

Over spring break I took Paityn to get her birthday pictures taken. We thought we would just try somewhere other than Kiddie Kandids, hoping that it would be cheaper. We tried JCPenney Portrait studio. The risk paid off. They turned out soooo cute and for MUCH cheaper! I love a good deal.
So here she is.........Paityn!

Easter Egg Hunt

2008-04-08T15:36:00.000-07:00

OK I know, I know....Easter has been over for quite some time now but hey, some kind of post is better than nothing. Right?
Paityn and Andee were so excited for the Easter Egg hunt. I think they were a little overwhelmed by all of the candy and people. Once they got going, though, there was no stopping them. The Easter Egg hunt was in Manti at the park.

This is right before the egg hunt started. We were excited to go with Sadie this year. Paityn and Sadie are only 3 months apart so it's fun to have a cousin Paityn's age for her to play with.

This is after the egg hunt as you can tell by the amount of candy they each had in their baskets. The candy was EVERYWHERE! And so much of it! Needless to say, most of it got thrown away. We kept the good stuff though.

After the egg hunt, the girls went and played on the playground with some friends. After a few minutes, I couldn't find Paityn anywhere. I looked around and finally spotted her sitting by a tree all by herself going through her basket of Easter goodies.

My Girls

2008-04-01T21:04:00.001-07:00

What would I ever do without "My Girls"! With personalities that just make a room seem so alive and big bright eyes that light one up. "My Girls" have given us so many precious moments!

All bundled up on a cold day. Look at that little round face!

"Help! We've fallen and we can't get up!"

Be My Valentine! The girls were so excited to have their Valentine boxes and wear their Valentine shirts.

I swore I would never let my child out of the house looking like this! Look what happens after a while. It's amazing how things change! There is not one single thing on this little girl that matches. Oh well!

Here's Paityn playing mommy. Andee is in the doll stroller. We took the same picture when Andee was about a week old. They sure grow up fast.