I love Michael!

You may think I am wierd but I absolutely love Michael McLean! I took Madison to the Forgotten Carols last week and I haven't been in a couple of years and it was awesome. If you have never seen the production it is definately one to take time for - it really starts the Christmas season out with the right attitude! Angie - a friend of mine in High School got me started with Michael McLean and his awesome songs got me through some pretty rough times during those high school years and even today hearing some of them will bring tears to my eyes from some good and bad memories. It was fun to explain the story to Madison behind all the different carols - we went with a bunch of the girl cousins, sister-in-laws and Grandma Ellen - it was a great night!

We love our Elli!

I thought this was a fun story to share and will be fun to look back on for me - it was one of those moments that you see your kids individual personalities shine through!
To preface the story I should let you know that Thanksgiving Day was the last day for "sippies" at our house - they have been put away in a box "to save for the baby"! (Elli was a big lover of the sippy and has actually done better than I thought with them going bye-bye). We were out to dinner the other night at Panda Express and we were each reading our fortunes and Elli's fortune said "Star light, star bright your wish will come true tonight." Well a few minutes later Elli squeezed her eyes shut tight and said "Star light, star bright I wish I had my sippie!" I don't think I have laughed that hard in quite a while. "Thanks Elli for keeping life interesting!"

FYI

I figure this is as good a place as any to get the word out without too much effort. The McDougal family will soon be increased by one ... yep it is true, I am pregnant and due the end of May! It has taken me awhile to actually be able to say it out loud but my waist line is definately expanding and I won't be able to just blame it on too much Halloween candy for too much longer. I still am trying to decide if we are completely insane or blessed - time will tell. I have of course been completely sick and then just last week I got bulldozed with a horrible cold but other than that things are going as to be expected.

Please forgive the Christmas background before Thanksgiving but I was goofing around trying some new ways to spruce the blog up and i figure with the time it takes me lately to accomplish anything... better sooner than never!

Halloween '08

We started our Halloween Day by taking the kids to Dinosaur Park.
We met the Gallacher cousins there... the kids had a great time.

Our three little trick or treaters!

On Halloween night our ward hosted it's annual chili cook off dinner and trunk or treat. Here are some pics of the kids and their friends!

Our not so scary witch and Mithchie.(aka ... Madi and Sienna Morris)

Jojo and Miss Butterfly (aka...Teagan Morris and Elli)

Stitch, Fireman, Indiana Jones & Wizard (aka... Isaac, Seth, Robby & Cambden)

Five Things You Didn't Know About Robby...

Robby is the middle child in our family and the only boy... he has an older sister and a younger sister. He is always a good sport about it and in his younger years had plenty of practice in patience as Madi would play dress up with him.

Robby rarely sits still or quiet ... even if we are just driving in the car you will eventually hear "blow up" or gun noises coming from the back seat. I am never quite sure what we are blowing up but it is hilarious to watch in the rear view mirror. "Boys will be boys!" Other random noises that are a constant in our house are whistling and a strange "woooo" noise that you just have to hear to appreciate.

Robby is a great big brother (most of the time)... he is always trying to help Elli or share something with her to make her happy and even though she is not always nice back he keeps trying ... what a trooper!

Robby is not always the tough guy he tries to portray... his bedroom is in the basement along with Madison's but Robby hates to be down there by himself. He can stall with the best of them when asked to go down and get pj's on or brush teeth until he is sure that Madi will be down there also. You've gotta love a tough guy with a tender heart!

At our recent parent/teacher conference with Robby's teacher she informed us that his math level is that of a 2nd grader at the end of the 2nd grade year. She wants him to start going into the 2nd grade class during their math time ... we'll see what happens.(if curious this math gene definately did not come from his father) Now the catch -- his teacher told us that kids that are ahead in certain academic areas usually end up being bored as they get older and tend to get into trouble. ( So the question is - do I take this converstaion as a compliment that Robby is doing well in Math or as a bit of a warning that I should be scared for him in the future?) Whatever happens it is fun to watch him count everything and he especially loves telling time and figuring out how many more minutes until something.

Robby is an awesome little boy and we love having him as part of our family ... We love you Robby!

So now you know a little about Robby. We tag Isaac, Kaitlyn and Shelby.

St George Escape

Madi and Robby were off track the last 3 weeks of October and James had to head to St George for work so the rest of us decide to tag along. I will admit that by the end of 3 days with all of us in the same Hotel room - mom was a ready to come home but overall it was a great trip. James had the car most of the time so me and the kids hung out at the hotel and went swimming most of the time. The hotel had an indoor and outdoor pool so it was perfect for all times of the day. I think our kids could swim forever. Monday night we caught up with the Bain family who now live in St George and we went to a local farm that had a corn maze, hay ride, play area, steer roping, trains and petting zoo. The kids had a blast and you would think that our kids and the Bain kids were long lost friends - they had so much fun together. Thank you to the Bains for a great evening! On Tuesday we headed over to Snow Canyon and went hiking through the red rock and then went to the Sand Dunes where the kids played for about 2 hours. It was beautiful and a lot of fun ... we were happy to have awesome weather! On our way home on Wednesday we decided to stop at Cove Fort... besides the 30 degree drop in temperature since we left St George, it was really interesting (even the kids liked it). Overall... a great little vacation!

Crazy Hair Day

The kids had crazy hair day at school the other day -- they had so much fun coming up with what crazy hair-do they would do that day(Madi thought about it the entire week before. Madi ended up with a side bun, a side braid and a back ponytail. Robby ended up with spikes(not many other options for brillow head) and then they both had pink highlights. Elli's hair was done just for the picture ... (aka: bed head!) The morning was crazy for me trying to get it all done before school because it is always hectic in the morning but after looking back at the pictures it was well worth the chaotic morning. The kids had so much fun and they looked great.

For the Love of Soccer

Well, Soccer season is in full speed at our house. James is coaching Robby's team (The Red Fire Dragons) and is the assistant coach for Madi's team (The Silver Dophins). So since the beginning of September ... Wednesday & Thursday nights and all day Saturday are sll Soccer ...YEA!!! The kids are loving it so of course we are the supportive parents who won't be sad when October 25th rolls around. They both have been playing really well this year and it is fun to watch them learn and get a little better each game. This is Madison's first year with playing with goalies on each team - she has done it a few times but says she doesn't like it very much. I would say they both play best when they are playing "fullbacks". Here are some pics to share the joy of the season with all of you!

Can you say "Little Miss Homemaker"!

Ok, so as I was looking back on the past week - I thought to myself, when did I get this old?

First I was called into Young Women's as the Beehive Adviser this past Sunday and as I have started hanging out with these awesome girls I realized that even though it seems just like the other day that I was there age - it was actually many, many days ago!

Then to make me feel even more "maternal" I decided that I was going to tackle the task of canning and freezing this fall. So off to Grandma's for some tomatoes in which I made salsa and canned tomatoes and then thanks to my nice brother in law who was in Perry I was blessed with a bushel of fresh peaches. I am so sick of blanching and peeling produce I could puke... but overall I am very excited at what I accomplished!

Also - for all you fellow BHS graduates out there -- guess who is the mia maid adviser - good old Mrs. Watts from adult roles - she is now a counselor at Bountiful. She is a great lady and great with the girls. Small world!

1st Day of PreSchool For Elli

I can't believe that our little Elli is starting Preschool - she was so excited. Robby and Madi went back to school in August and she has been asking everyday since when she gets to go to school. I should be said that my baby is old enough for preschool but I have to admit that I love the couple of hours of kid free time 2 days a week.

The first day of school she came home and told me that she learned hopscotch and criss-cross applesauce. Yesterday she came home and had gotten the "star" award for sharing the barbies with the other girls during play time ... these are big accomplishments for our little 3 year old! There have been no tears from Elli - she is always ready to go with her back pack on!(usually at 9am and her school doesn't start until 12:30.) We love this crazy little red head!

Yea -- Swiss Days!!

Well you know that Fall is officially upon us when the annual Swiss Days Weekend occurs. James keeps commenting that summer is over and he can't believe it -- I will agree that it went so fast this year. But I am always happy to see Swiss Days upon us because it is always so fun to shop till you drop! I was able to browse all the booths with my friend Steph from Pocatello on Friday -- this was her first trip to the hallowed Midway event (she commented to her husband that she would be gone for a couple of hours only - Ha Ha - was she in for a surprise!) But she made some great purchases with my expert advise, of course! On Saturday, my sister in law and mother in law came up and we made the treck again to the booths and of course some shopping had to be done with the fam - Dad and Gayla- which included some good purchases for the new addition to the cabin. However, the newest crazy shopper to the Swiss Days Clan would have to be Madison - I have not seen her that excited for a long time - it was so funny. She has been working hard the last 2 weeks to earn 5 dollars to add to her own 5 dollars to spend at Swiss Days. She then got spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa with a little more money -- so she couldn't wait to shop the day away. She couldn't fall asleep the night before and then she was up by 7am begging me to go "right now"! (What have I created?) Grandma Gayla and Grandpa Bobby walked around with her in the afternoon after I had met up with Steph and Madi loved every minute of it and was so proud to show me all her purchases.

I always love going to Swiss Days and running into so many people that I love and may or may not have seen in a long time. It was a beautiful weekend at the cabin -- lots and lots of fun!

Here Goes...

I have been telling myself for months now that I can be as cool as my sister-in-laws and start this whole "blog thing" so here I go at my first attempt. I love to read all of our family and friends' blogs and keep updated on their families so hopefully I can try to do the same. I also figure it will be a great way to look back and keep track of my own family craziness.

So this past Monday was our official one year anniversary in our new house in Syracuse. I always say it takes at least one year to get used to a new place and I would still say that is true. We are enjoying our neighborhood and my good friend Denise (who lives one street over) has made the transition much easier- it is always nice to see a familiar face. We have enjoyed being back near our families and the kids have made lots of new friends. I do miss our friends in Idaho but that is always the downside to moving.

We have had plenty of projects to keep us busy in the new house but with each project it make it feel more like home. We are just beginning the fun project of finishing our family room in the basement - try not to be jealous!

We have year round school here and Madi and Robby just started back last week. Madi started 4th grade and Robby started 1st. The kids are enjoying it so far and so is Mom! However, the starting of 4th grade makes Mom and Dad feel a little freaked out - when did that happen?!

James is still working for Empi selling Physical Therapy equipment and I am working about one day a week at Davis Surgical Center. James is looking forward to fall and the coaching of both Madi and Robby's soccer teams. (maybe "looking forward" is a littl bit of a stretch - but what do you do when the league calls begging for coaches)

Well I hope I can keep this up...wish me luck!

Hug Ya - Luv Ya - Bye!

What more needs to be said?