Christmas Morning

Ethan getting a new shirt!

Austin getting a new shirt!!

Our wonderful kids did not get up at the crack of dawn, thankgoodness. We did not rise and shine till 7:30am!! That is sleeping in for us, we are used to getting up by 6:45am, so we were happy!! We had a great Christmas day, each of the kids get a turn to pick a present and give it to whoever it is for. We go one at a time to make the whole opening presents adventure last longer and so we can appreciate all the wonderful things we have been given. We were spoiled again, and had a great day. Here are a few pics of our morning!!

Officially a teen!!

Today is Justice's official day to be called a teenager! YIKES, where does the time go. She had a fun party here at our house, 7 friends came over to have a MaryKay party. My bestfriend is a MaryKay lady and came to teach the girls that "less is more". They got to enhance thier natural beauty with some color and learned skin care. After that they had Oreo mint blizzard cake from Diary Queen and opened presents. Justice was very spoiled! Teenagers have to be right?! Later in the evening Travis took her to dinner for a Daddy/Daughter dinner date. (Say that 5 times). They had a good evening together, and Travis found out who the boy is she likes. Score!

So now we really have to keep tabs on her. I remember liking boys by age 12-13 so I guess I better be very prepared!! All in all I think she had a very Happy Birthday!! WE LOVE JUSTICE!!

We had a pretty bad storm today, so we decided Santa at Walmart would be the best route to avoid any accidents! So off to Walmart we go, to see Santa. Justice and Austin are "too old" for Santa so they chose to stay at home. Kason as you can see is very curious about this bearded man. Too cute at his age, to go see Santa. They are so unsure about this red man! Well the kids got to tell Santa thier Christmas wish list. It was a short but sweet trip! Merry Christmas:)

Tree Trimming

So we got our tree finally. I just love a real tree, I grew up always getting a real tree so of course I will having nothing less. We had fun getting the lights all untangled, finding ornaments and breaking a few. Kids loved seeing some of thier ornaments, and ones they made at school. We got it done pretty fast with 6 kids, ornaments were just flying on the tree. The kids had fun and did a great job!! Merry Christmas!!

Remodeling Already!

So we are in our new house, and we demolitioning it already!! The kitchen has one of those false ceilings, and it only over the kitchen area not the dining area, so it feels short or squishy! So we are having it ripped out and a new ceiling put in with recessed lighting. It will be nice when it is all done, but for now no kitchen. We maybe eating pizza tonight! DARN!!:) I will post pics when it gets all done! Here are the demolition pics!!

Thanksgiving night we had some friends over for pie!! Our good friends the Tillery's came over with 6 pies!! All together we had 9 pies!! Needless to say we had plenty! We had a nice evening hanging out with our friends. They have 2 boys, one is Karli's age and one is Ryley's age. We were all stuffed out of our minds!!

Thanksgiving day!!

Our yummy turkey day! We had a great dinner with all the fixin's!! We had a nice day at home all together, it was quiet and peaceful. Well as much as it can be with 6 kids! Everybody did something to help with all the food. Justice made two cheesecakes, Travis' favorite. Ethan made the crab dip, Austin made the gravy, Karli and Ryley arranged the crackers on our cheese and cracker tray. It was just a great day!! I am so thankful for so many things in my life, but my family is my most important treasure to be grateful for!! Hope everyone had as good of a Thanksgiving day as we did!! Happy Holiday!!

Self photography

Travis & I went to go see the new James Bond movie, Quantum Solace last Thursday. We decided to take our picture while we were waiting for the movie to start. We had fun laughing at ourselves. It was a pretty good movie, but I was disappointed. It really had a lot of fighting scences and not alot to the story. Daniel Craig makes a good James Bond though, I think he is a pretty good actor and fits the roll. Well it was entertainment!

Kindergarten Feast!

Last Thursday the kindergarteners got to have a special Thanksgiving Feast and have thier parents and sibling come. So I took Ryley and Kason and we had an early feast!! We had fun seeing some of the things Karli's class has been working on such as Indian bands with feathers, pilgrim hats and cereal necklaces. They were all darling pilgrims and indians. We had yummy turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, rolls and pumpkin cake. It was so delicious!!

Preschool field trip

Ryley is going to the preschool lab up at BYU-Idaho, and he just loves it!! I just love it!! All my kids have attended at least on semester, and have always enjoyed it. Kason is already signed up to go when he is 3. Last Wednesday his class went on a field trip to Broulims, our grocery store! I got to go to be a helper, it was so much fun. So we all got to load up a school bus and ride the bus to the grocery store. We got to walk around the different departments and see what they do there. The deli people gave us a sample of popcorn chicken and we got to see the giant meat slicer for turkey and ham. In the bakery we saw the giant fridges and oven to do all the baking. We also got a chocolate chip cookie!! Next we went to the produce department and watched them clean and chop the veggies, and see the giant fridge for all the yummy fruits and vegetables. We got an apple to eat for the rest of our trip. At the meat department we got to see the fish and even an octopus. We got string cheese from the guy in the butcher!! We then broke up into our color groups and each group had an ingredient we had to find in the store to make pizzas for our snack at our next class day. Ryley's group had the dough to buy. We found our dough, we used jumbo biscuit dough for the pizzas. It was a fun day and interesting to see all the different things that go on in the grocery store. We got back on the bus and headed back for school. Once we got back, it was pretty much time to go home. We had a fun day!!

Our group got the pizza dough!!

Checking out the meat department!

Riding the bus!!

I am getting older!

A few friends noticed my birthday cake has the number 33 on it. If you look closer there is a single little candle next to the two "3"s. So 33 plus one is...... 34!! Yes laurie we are the same age!! We did not have the right numbers for the cake, so Travis imprivised!! I am happy to say I am 34!! I love my birthdays!!

Back online!!

We finally have our computer back and working well! Lets just hope it stays functioning!! So I am behind on posting photos and thoughts. So here will be a synopsis of some of the things we have been up too. First Austin had a solar system expo at school and had to make a solar system, he loves projects and creating so this was so perfect for him. He just loved doing this! I took the kids and our wonderful "grandma" neighbor with us, Sister Vela. She loves getting out and she is great at supporting the kids. Austin was happy to see her at school also. There were lots of neat ideas for solar systems. We had a nice science lesson!

Justice also had a great science project to do. They are learning about cells. So the students had to make an edible cell. She chose an animal cell, and so we made a cake. She used different candy and chewing gum to make the different parts of her cell, it was a fun project and a tasty one. The kids all got to share and eat thier cells at the end of class!! good job kids!!

I had a great birthday! I was very spoiled as usual! Thank you to all my family and darling hubby for a great day!

Computer Woes!

You either hate them or love them, computers. Last week our fairly new computer crashed. I almost died, since I have like over a thousand pics from this year on it. And, though I have been told several times to burn them on a CD "just in case" I did not heed! Luckily Travis was able to save all my pictures. Hopefully our computer will be up and running by the middle of this week. I have been sorta lost with out it. We have our old computer hooked up to at least have the internet. We do not have email and have not for over a week. I am going crazy!! I have lots of pics to get on my blog and have to wait to post them till our computer is fixed. Thought I should at least post a message, so everyone knows we are still alive and are still somewhat floating around cyber space.
We are all doing really well, getting more and more settled in our new house and are busy with all of lifes adventures. Justice has been busy doing some choir concerts, she has one next week, at her school so I am excited to go see her sing! Austin is busy as ever in school, and is getting close to completing his Bear in scouts. He will be a Webelo in March!! Ethan is bouncing off the walls as usual, and still loves to help clean! Karli is loving Kindergarten and is doing a great job. She is really learning to read well, we are very impressed! Ryley loves going to "college" at BYU-I for his preschool, and has a field trip this week, which I get to go with him. He is very excited to ride the bus for a field trip. Kason has gotten to be so expressive, funny and dramatic. He is just so funny to watch, and of course he is just eating it up, my little ham!
Hey Travis caught a bank robber!! Okay so he didn't exactly catch him. He turned himself in. He came into the sheriffs office and said he needed to confess to robbing a bank in Texas and that he was going to rob a bank in Rexburg, but the people were just so nice! How wierd is that! Thank goodness we are such nice people here! He is a return missionary, and from the Netherlands. He is older in his 50's. The FBI in Texas wanted to let him go, but Travis and the prosecuter found a creative way to hold him jail till the stories could get settled. Come to find out he really did rob a bank!! The crazy stories Travis has! Needles to say Travis is busy as usual at work. I am now a part time employee at Deseret Book! Yeah! I have wanted to work there since we got one several years ago, now I am working there as seasonal help and hoping to stay on after the holidays even if it is just a few hours a week. I started on Election day, and work about 15 hours a week, usually I go in around 6:00pm or 5:00pm and get off about 9:30pm, a couple days a week and then work several hours on Saturdays. Travis is usually home, but if we have a conflict, Justice is so willing to step in and help out. She is a great daughter and is so helpful with being the 2nd mom!! So there is a brief synopsis of the days of our lives in Sugar City!

Class Halloween Party

Karli had a fun Halloween Party at school today. I got to go help with the party, Ryley came with me. They got to make sucker ghosts, decorate a little pumpkin and make a trick or treat bag. Some fun activities for the kids to do. Ryley liked going to school with the big kids. Cute little witch, Miss Karli!!

Halloween Time!!

Travis is a great dad!! He did all the pumpkin carving with the kids. I was gone teaching Foster parent classes and Justice was gone to Young Womens. Kids had a great time, what kids don't like to carve pumpkins!! Good Job Everyone!!

Family Times

Lots has happened and some fun things have occured, I am finally getting some time to write and update with some pics. Before we moved in the begining of October my family came out to see us. My mom and dad, Eric & Lindsay and thier boys, and my sister, Jennifer. We had lots of fun and the kids enjoyed hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa. My parents stayed in a hotel, so they had the kids come have a sleepover and watch a movie, the kids just loved that. They got to go swimming, which is a rare treat since thier are no pools in Rexburg. My friend Nantalie's family are potatoe farmers and we got to go up to the farm and pick the potatoes the combines don't get. It was fun to see how the whole process of potatoe farming works. We got to go see the potatoe cellars with all the millions of potatoes, and the machines that run and high school kids who work spuds!! It is quite the production!! We got boxes of fresh potatoes, they were kinda little but, we will be eating them up. We had a lot of fun having cousins and Grandma and Grandpa visit us. We will miss them! Travis & I are planning on taking a road trip to Virginia in June.

We are back!!!

We finally got back online tonight!! Thanks to Travis, he is amazing and has done so much to get us all settled in our new home. He took about a month off to help pack, move all our stuff and get us settled!! Thank you so much sweetie!! Well we are loving our new home, kids love all the space and more bedrooms!! Travis & I are loving having our master bedroom and bath!! We did not have that in our old house!! Our kitchen is tons bigger and the house has beautiful hardwood floors through the whole upstairs, except bedrooms. It is just wonderful! Travis already has started painting and we have one room totally done, it looks great! We are doing the front entry and kitchen this week!! We are still living out of some boxes, but for the most part we are all moved in. I have already been baking!! The kids worked really hard also, I was so impressed out how much lifting and up and down stairs the kids did for thier old parents!! My knee has been bothering me, and they were lifesavors!! We will have to get some pics posted soon so you can see our new house!! We do have a change in email and of course our mailing address. You can still use our postoffice box or our new address is: 302 S. Cutler, Sugar City, Idaho 83448. Our new email address is williamsfam8@q.com
Our phone is the same, 208.359.9427.
Well I have lots to do, can't get too caught up on the computer!!
Love, Amanda

To the Zoo!

Saturday was a Foster Care appreciation picnic and free day at the zoo. So me & the kids went to Idaho Falls for some Saturday fun in the sun. Travis had to work. We had a yummy lunch and fun seeing lots of beautiful animals. Some have already been moved to thier winter home, they don't do well in Idaho winters. Some pics of our day! Justice is in the teenage I don't want my picture taken stage, so she is not in any pics, but she was present!!

Some quirky "quirks"

I have never been tagged before and don't really know about this whole tag "thing". So I guess I am supposed to list a few of my quirky things.
1. I, like Amber, hate those silent moments, I always wish she is with me to help fill in those silent moments. She is so good at talking and thinking up things to talk about. I freeze like a deer in headlights, and suddenly can't think of a thing.
2. Only I can clean the bathroom correctly. I would rather do the cleaning, than let my kids try to learn to clean it!!
3. I like to pop zits! I know it is quirky, but I do. I am not obssesed by any means, but if I see one I gotta pop it!!
4. Travis says I can't walk past a mirror without checking out my hair!!
5. At the end of the day, I like to pick the mascara off my off lashes.
6. Another from Travis, no matter where I am in the car, I think I am driving!!
Backseat driver, who isn't!!

We Sold our House!!

YEAH!! We have had our home for sale since March and thought it was never going to sell. We have had TONS of lookers but no one willing to make the plunge in this uncertain market to make an offer. Several weeks ago, a friend of mine was asking about our house for a family member. She spread the news and that family member came to look at our house. So they are the ones buying our home. We got an offer last week and we accepted, so we are buying a new house in Sugar!! It is actually one block from us, and we get to stay in our Ward!! We are really excited, the kids are way excited to have their own room. It is a 6 bedroom, 3 bath house! We are really excited, oh I already wrote that. I have posted a picture of the new home we are purchasing!!
We are so excited!!

Girls Volleyball!!

Whew!! Justice had a great season of Volleyball. They had lots of games, and played very well. Her last game was Thursday in Ririe, she is sad it is all over. But glad to be done with practices everyday!!

Dentist misery!

Today poor Ryley had to go to the dentist for the first time. We have a great dentist right here in Sugar City. So Ryley had to have a Pulpotomy (I don't know if that is spelled right), he was not happy towards the end but did a awesome job!! The orange "nose" is the gas to help relax, and he had on sunglasses since the light is bright. He ended up having a silver crown put on, so he is sporting some bling bling. He was not happy about his mouth being numb, thought is was a wierd and scary feeling. Ryley did a great job, and came home and slept off the numbness!! Some pics of his ordeal today!!:)

Ethan and soccer!

Ethan was the only one to play soccer this season, he did a great job. He was voted best goalie on his team. Here are some pics of his last game, he scored a couple of goals for his team. He loves to play and could run for hours. He is truely the energizer bunny's competition!!

New found freedom

Okay so the stage of climbing children, I think is the most frustrating!! Kason has learned to climb chairs and to climb on the kitchen table. It is really driving me nuts!! He is cute though, he really is quite proud of himself. Ryley got some light sabers for his birthday, so the boys love to sword fight. I think Ryley will be some sort of StarWars dude for Halloween.

Austin is loving football!! Here is a little clip of him playing, he is number 50, in the video he is the closest on the first line, in the blue in white. Saturday they had a Jamboree, which they played 4 teams for half and hour each. His first game is this Wednesday, he is so very excited!!
Also, Justice made the Girls Volleyball team. Tryouts were Wednesday & Thursday last week, she did a great job!! There were about 25-30 girls trying out and only 10 spots on the team. Go Justice!!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

Today 14 years ago, Travis & I got married for all time and eternity in the Washington D.C Temple. We have had a great life together thus far, and plan on spending the rest of our lives together, getting old together. We have 6 wonderful children who really make our lives happy and fullfilled!! I appreciate Travis and all his hard work, he is a great provider, father and husband. He works so hard for us, and so I can be a at home mommy. I love you, and always will. Here are a few pics from over the years.

First day of School!

It is official, today my kids went back to school!! Yeah, but sad. I will miss having them around the house. I am glad to get back so we will have more routine. They look so cute in thier new outifts for school. Karli doesn't go till after lunch, so she by herself in the pics. She wasn't ready for school as early as the other 3. It will be interesting to hear how thier day went this afternoon. I am excited for them to tell me. Then it is haircuts for the boys, volleyball tryouts for Justice, and then Scouts for Austin. We just don't slow down here!! Ryley starts preschool at the college in September. He is so very excited, especially to get a Batman back pack!!

New Braces!!

Today Justice got her braces on. We went this morning, it took about an hour and a half. She is looking good. So far she is not too sore, but probably by this evening she will be hurting. Tomorrow is the first day of school, hopefully she will not be too sore. Some before and after pics!!

Sand Bar

Today we spent a few hours at the St. Anthony sand bar with James & Amber and Christian, Taylor and Averi!! We had a fun, relaxing day. Kids loved swimming together, sliding down a waterslide, and jumping off the diving board into the river. We had a nice afternoon together.

Triathalon Dad!

We are so PROUD of Travis! Today he did his first team triathalon in Rexburg. It is called the Rush Triathalon and it includes athletes from 14 states. There were 500 athletes, this was Travis' first time doing something like this and he worked really hard to be ready for it. He did this as a team with the Sheriffs Department Marine Deputy who swam 1 1/2 miles, the owner of Diary Queen rode 26 miles for the bike part, and then Travis ran the grueling 10K. Racers started at an elevation of 4800ft. About half way into the run portion, racers were at an elevation of 5,200ft. The course then dropped back down to 4,800ft. Thier team took 2nd place!!!!!! Travis' goal next year is to complete the whole Triathalon on his own!! Photos to see!

Frog Catching!

My good friend Nantalie had some frogs at her house that she took her kids to go catch. So Friday she took me and the kids to her spot so they could catch frogs. This is Austins favorite thing, besides football. Ethan & Justice are in Utah at thier grandma and grandpa's house for 6 days so they missed out. This frog spot is in Plano, just 10 minutes or less from our house. The kids just loved it. They were so excited to get frogs. There were so many, you walked through the grass and they were just jumping everywhere. It was so much fun. The kids decided to take a dip in the water, and cool off. Ryley caught the first frog, it was catching mania after that. In all the kids got 14 frogs!! We took them home and bought a big rubbermaid container to put them in. So we have a frog box in the back yard!! It has been a neighborhood attraction!!

Football time~

Austin has started playing football this season, called Grid Kid Football. He is absolutely loving it!! :) He comes home from practice with a smile on his face, and more energy to keep on playing! He has practice every night from 5:15 to 7:30pm!! He would go longer if they would let him. Here are some of his moves he is trying out on his siblings!!

Summer Daze in the River

So we don't have a pool around, so we resort to the St. Anthony Sand Bar. It is a lot of fun, it is the closet we have to "beach" and this kids love it!! So we went today to cool off and the kids got nice and sandy!! I was nervous going by myself since it is a river and has somewhat of a current. On Thursday a 14 year old boy drowned, sad. But I braved it and took the kids without Travis. He was working. We all made it home alive, and no one got sunburned either!!

Baby in a Box!

So the life a baby must endure being the youngest of 6!! Ethan decided to put Kason in a box and walk around the house with him. Wierd! It was pretty cute, but Kason had this look on his face, not scared, or concerned, just gosh must I go through this humiliation!! He sorta had fun, I thought he looked cute!! Then Ethan thought a piggy back ride with Kason on his neck surely would be more fun!! Kason loves his big brothers!!