EMBRACING THE CHAOS

Winter Festivities and Family Fun

2010-02-15T12:38:00.000-08:00

We actually made it to Utah for Christmas! It was no easy task but we did it and it was so worth it. We hadn't been back in two years, so it was nice to see family and friends around Christmas time. I took so many pictures, it was really hard deciding which ones to put on here because let's face it, pictures say a thousand words. Let's just say we did a lot of laughing and a lot of partying. We really needed a vacation from our vacation when we got home. Which brings me to this picture...

Need I say more... We went to the cabin for New Years and we were having so much fun, she fell asleep on the 4-wheeler in the freezing cold! Yep, she's cross eyed! Talk about KOed. It was a lot of fun. A lot of the Stowers were up at there cabin, so it was a little mini family reunion.

Sitting in my favorite spot... Right next to the fire with child in hand. They help keep me warm.

This is our kids getting to know there Dad all over again. Gotta love Christmas break. Wish we had more time to do things like this... Just hanging out together. It was fun to see family, but this was my favorite part.

THE COMMANDER... Brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it. We needed something bigger and were fortunate enough to stumble upon this. Let me just say, HEAVEN! And Corey and I got each other the roof carrier for our Christmas present. Talk about a dream come true. None of our kids touch each other! It's a beautiful thing.

What kid of Hogge would they be if they didn't have some sort of project to do. And a Jeep one, no less. We start 'em young.

WE LOVE GRAMMY! She's amazing. She's a machine. I haven't found anything that woman cannot do!

Christmas morning. Doing the present dance. And I'm here to tell you, she doesn't get cuter than this! Christmas morning was awesome. Santa came to Nanny and Grandpa John's house, and happened to leave a few presents for the kids at Grammy and Grandpa Larry's house too! He spread out the day of surprises.

I don't think Ethan can pull a normal face anymore. This is infact his personality. I LOVE IT! This is sledding down Nanny's drive way. The wind was trying to blow us off the mountain, so we used it to our advantage and let it blow us down the drive way. It was so much fun! My Mom spear headed to operations, and talk about one adventure after another. I think she slept for the next 3 days after everyone left. We did Sledding, Temple Square, acted out the nativity, had a family Christmas Program, an AWESOME dinner, and gift exchange. It was a busy week. Not to mention the endless movie parties. It was a blast.

Aisia and Autumn sledding down the drive way. Autumn was the hitch hiker. She was catching a ride with anybody goin' down. She LOVED it!

Okay. I had to put this picture on here, because it is by far one of my favorites! I see it and it just makes me laugh. What a dork! He makes me laugh everyday.

Christmas morning. I must say, we've had better looking moments, but I'll have you know, I MADE THAT BACK PACK! I made one for Ethan, Autumn, Carter, Jayda, and Tyson. Never to be made again. Maybe someday I'll fall in love with sewing, but it just hasn't hit me yet.

Notice the nose. She, Ethan, Tyson, and Addie were playing Rudolph and Santa. Addie was Santa, and Ethan, Autumn, and Tyson were the reindeer. They colored their noses with chalk. It was really cute, and they played for HOURS!!

The wisemen. Quite pretty, I must say.

Just a picture to prove that he does have hair! He's getting quite the personality on him, and the hair is quite fitting. Spiked, like Ethan.

SO MUCH FUN is what it was. We were also able to get together with some friends that we haven't seen for years, and talk about a laugh a minute! Why we didn't take pictures is beyond me! I even got a new camera for Christmas! (Thanks for moving up in the world, Nat) Next time.

Thanks for the memories and all the fun!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-14T20:01:00.001-08:00

Halloween brought so many different adventures this year! Too many to be honest. We're going to try and keep it a lot simpler next year, for sure. But it was fun.This was at the Children's Museum. They made the cutest Haunted House for little kids that I have EVER seen. I thought this picture was rather fitting. Autumn can be quite the witch sometimes, but look at how cute she is.
And so it begins... Each day he is getting braver and braver. I give it no more than a week. Again, don't mind the date on the picture. Our camera is SO out dated, but it still manages to capture the moment and only costs in batteries, so I guess we'll keep it around. (At the top of my wish list) but moving on...

This is at the Ward Trunk or Treat. It was like, 40 degrees outside, so they moved it indoors. Thank heavens. Ethan was Iron man, Autumn was a "Pink Tink," and Carter was a dragon. It was so cute to watch him crawl around in that costume. And for some reason, I managed to not get a picture of all three of them in there costumes. Hum.

This was my pleasant Autumn at the Cherubs Choir Halloween Party. She likes to stand out in the crowd. Literally.

Children's Museum Haunted House.

So October was BUSY to say the least. Carter turned ONE! We had a little party and some cake. I had my first official Parent Teacher Conference. It went well. For the Halloween Festivities, we went overboard! Our neighborhood does the ghost thing, so we made treats and left them at there door. We went to the Children's Museum Haunted House, The Cherubs Choir Halloween Party, Ethan's Halloween Parade and Party at School, the ward Trunk or Treat, and then went Trick or Treating. It was a bit much and I am sick to death of CANDY!

We've had a lot of projects to keep us busy and few girls nights/ guys nights to break up the monotony. Looking forward to the next Holiday, because all we really HAVE to do is EAT! One of my favorite things to do.

Summer Fun in the Hot Hot Sun 2009

2009-10-18T16:52:00.001-07:00

Four Generations! Going to and coming back from Lake Powell is a lot easier when you know you're going to Grandma Joy's house.

This picture has a story behind it. When we were out in Utah we went and visited my Grandma Runia while she was in the hospital. While we were waiting for the valet to bring our car around, an older Downs Syndrome gentleman walked by, and Ethan could not stop starring. I tried what I could to get his focus elsewhere, but it wasn't working. After this man walked passed, Ethan stuck his tongue out, and we weren't the only ones in the room who watched him do it. He just had this look of confusion on his face with his tongue sticking out. Kids just don't know. It was HILARIOUS!

All of us together again. Next to never happens with us all spread out. Can't wait to do it again!

For old times sake. Forever Powell!

Check out that diaper action! It couldn't be attached to a cuter kid! Although, she wasn't really all that cute there. She was Satan wrapped up in a cute little Autumn shell.

Can't wait to do this again! Little Sahara, here we come! Thanks Kye and Nat for the memories, and the wheelers.

Ethan couldn't stay off! He drove this four wheeler all day long, all by himself! I can't believe that's my baby!

Lovin' it!

Autumn and Jayda at the Children's Museum in Salt Lake.

Ethan couldn't get enough of the helicopter on the roof to play in. He kept butting in line.

Oh the times they have in Nanny's bath tub. She LOVES to play with them, and they LOVE to go to Nanny's house. I've never seen such proony kids.

Thanksgiving Point at the Children's Gardens. Those of you with Children know how difficult this can be to get every kid in the picture, and then to have them smile... Yeah, right. But we had a blast! Can't wait to do that again.

Playing the tree drums.

Ethan and Skylynn Harmon at the Trail Center. He's quite the lady's man... Already! At least he has good taste. She is SO CUTE!

Our garden 2009. It started out beautifully, and then got a disease, and it pretty much killed everything except for the bell peppers and jalapenos. Fun while it lasted.

The party was at our house all summer long. My neighbors Mom let us barrow her blow up slide and we put it right out in front of our door. It was quite the event and tons of fun. Yes, I went on it, are you kidding me! I was not letting that pass me by.

Autumn turned 2! She got to pick out her cake at Sam's Club, and she chose the princess cupcakes. She got a baby doll and stroller, and all the accessories. Car seat, swing, etc. She thought she had died and gone to heaven. She loved it!

He LOVES his car! He's very protective of it. Such a happy kid. Always has a smile on his face.

So that does it for our summer fun. I miss the warm already, but am really looking forward to some Utah snow. It's so different than Nebraska snow. Trust me, there's a difference.

Yeah, I know...

2009-10-18T13:36:00.000-07:00

It's been a while. We will just start with the now, and work backwards. I'll do a summer vacation post later. I made a promise that I would do this before the week was out, so here it goes. I must fulfill it. This will be random and pretty much in picture form. Why? Because pictures say a thousand words. It saves me a lot in explanations and journaling.

First things first, don't mind the dates on the pictures. Our camera has been bothered by three sets of little hands and fingers. Not to mention it's old. But it works, so here we go. And so it begins. She "wants to go pooh on the potty like Dora does." Then when she flushes it she says "Bye bye pooh!" Then she grabs the stool and washes her hand. She's got the routine down, she's just been misfiring on a few signals. I'm just excited that she WANTS to do it!

This was another Fall Break Project. It made a huge difference! We love it! Didn't think doors would make such a huge difference, but clearly, they do! I'll post another picture later of all the doors. They're all in now, I jus need to touch up a couple of spots that I missed, and of course, think of taking the picture. But I promise, it looks awesome!

It was sitting by the garbage, so we sanded it, stained it, and sprayed it! Can't beat the price. We already had all the stuff, so it went pretty quick. Can't beat the price!

Our Fall Break Projects. So awesome. This is what we like to call our "Callie" moment, when you find something you can use and it was FREE!

Family Photo Opp. Wenninghoff's 2009. They had port-a-potty outhouses for the bathrooms, and Ethan was so excited! He wanted to go in the gray one. He brought me along to show me what it looked like. He thought it was so cool. One of Corey's classmates was taking his boys to the bathroom and was asking where they were. Ethan was so excited he wanted to show him. He lead them over there and said, "See, isn't it beautiful!" He's so awesome. He can find the beauty in a port-a- potty.

Have we mentioned how much we love our commander? We can go anywhere now and not hear a word from the back seat! We just plug 'em in. Notice my dead flowers in the back? It snowed fall break and killed 'em. They looked SO GOOD! I'm not ready for cold yet, but at the same time, it means the holidays are coming, and that I am looking forward to.

Yep, we've had a lot of these kinds of days. Need I say more?

Wenninghoff's Hay Ride 2009. It was supposed to be in the 60's that day, but not even close. It was 46 degrees. We didn't let it stop us though. We had a bon fire and roasted hot dogs and had smores and had a lot of fun! It was a CWDA activity, so we weren't alone. We were out there with a bunch of other crazy Dental students and there families.

He is so easy going. He always has a smile on his face no matter what silly thing you're doing with him. He has started throwing fits. They are hilarious! He sits on his butt and kicks his legs, and spins in a circle, all while screaming and crying at the same time. It's a must see.

I love these pictures. She has done this more than a few times. She can't decide what she needs more, food or sleep. She will never say die, so this is what it comes down to. Sleeping at the table. She has grown up so much. No more kicking the door. She loves watching Mulan. I was doing haircuts on the boys the other night, and she snuck out of the room with the scissors and tried to pull a Mulan on her own hair. She almost cut off the whale spout on top of her head. She also LOVES bowes. She is ALL girl, and quite the artist. She is just, awesome. So cute, and so much fun. There is never a dull moment with any of my kids. It is so fun to watch them and try and figure out what in the world they were thinking. How lucky am I!

Ethan's first day of KINDERGARTEN!! I almost cried, but held back. Why, you ask? Good question. Actually, I was wishing they took 2 year olds instead. It seems like once you get your kid to the stage where they kind of listen to you and help you out, they take 'em away. He is loving school though and is doing so good! He's so smart. He's still a little bit stubborn, but it's not his fault. He gets it from his Father. He is also so much fun and still says some of the funniest things. He likes to say, "When I turn into 8, we are going to move today." And then every few days he asks if he is going to turn into 8 so we can see Nanny today. He loves playing Autobots and still has more energy than any other kid I've ever seen and then some.

It is what it is people. Every day is another adventure, and a welcomed one. I love being a Mom. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't have a rollercoaster ride of emotions for my children. I do have a favorite though... It's the one that's behaving.

Our two week break in photo form...

2009-05-26T09:06:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Day! We decided that it would be fun to have a BBQ with some friends for Memorial Day, and guess what... It was! Ethan wasn't feeling very well so I took him to the doctor today, and he has strep again, for the 4th time in less than a year. Poor kid.

I BEGGED my parents to come out and visit, so they did! We had so much fun. Grandpa John had a blast entertaining Carter while the rest of us played at The Amazing Pizza Machine. It's a must do for kids. It wears them out. Parents too. We all had a little snooze in the car on the way home. Except for Grandpa, of course. He was our designated driver.

Ethan and Corey took first place at the indoor race track at the Amazing Pizza Machine. It was so much fun!

We also went to Mahoney State Park while my parents were here, and we had a BLAST! They have this huge indoor hamster cage and the kids just went nuts! It's big enough for adults, so Corey and I got to chase kids through the maze. I felt like a kid again. My knees didn't, but my heart did. It was a lot of fun.

It also has a couple of slides, and Autumn was queen of hunting them down. She loved the slides. They were a little scary in my opinion, but a lot of fun.

We also went to the Pedestrian Bridge. It's the first Pedestrian Bridge in the United States to connect two states. It crosses the Missouri River, and connects Nebraska and Iowa. It sways in the wind though. It's a really neat place to visit, and isn't that far from our house. Corey and some of his school buddies rode there bikes from Village Green down to the Pedestrian Bridge and then all over tarnation after that. It's also not too far from the Old Market. It was a lot of fun.

After Church on Sunday, we grabbed the kids kites and went down to Ethan's school to play on the play ground and fly kites. They had a blast.

I just had to put this picture in here because, let's face it, HE'S CUTE! And I love the outfit.

I don't know what kind of Super Hero he is trying to be here, but whoever he is, I thought it was very unique. Notice the princess shoes on the hand AND feet. Underwear over the pants, sunglasses, and a chain saw to boot. AWESOME!

She was deceived. They were playing chef outside and there was a kitchen bowl outside that had "mud cookies" in it, and she couldn't resist. Poor kid.

While my parents were here, for Mother's Day, my Mom and I got to go and see WICKED!!! I forgot the camera to take some pictures of us to prove it, but you believe me, right? IT WAS AWESOME, AND I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE IT AGAIN! It was so nice to have an evening with just me and my Mom. It was certainly comedic, and we barely made it, but that is a hole other story in and of itself.

And then amongst it all, we celebrated our 9 year anniversary. We did get to sneak out on a little date while my parents were here, and we went and walked by the Missouri River and went to Panera Bread for lunch. It was fun. I can't believe it's been 9 years already! Time flies when you're having fun. I LOVE YOU, SWEET!

Now we're back to our good ole chaotic life. We wouldn't recognize it if it wasn't.

Our Months in No Particular Order...

2009-05-08T18:52:00.000-07:00

First things first... Happy Birthday Ethan! I can't believe you're 5!

We ended up having a little party for him the day after his birthday, hoping we'd get better weather, but as you can see, it was a little bit chilly still. Oh well, it was still a lot of fun.

Widowed no More!! My imaginary husband has come to life! He has unburried himself from his mountains of books and endless tests and is peaking his head up just in time to see some sunshine. We've got two weeks and counting before he hides himself again, but we'll take it! What a blessing to have the first year of dental school behind us.

So much for New Years Resolutions. I am just excited to finally have a minute to share some of our more memorable moments over the past few months. And since pictures tell a thousand words, we'll start there... In no particular order.

Yes, she can actually take a picture that looks like this. This child has got a big noggen. Like in the 97% big. She is in the 50% for weight and 68% for height. So a little top heavy to say the least, and it has been taking it's toll on her sweet face. In one week, she made at least 4 falls that she really made count. She had two goose eggs. One on each side of her forehead that looked like horns, had a scratch by the side of her eye, and fattened her lip twice. Accident prone; need I say more?

Carter started solids and has really enjoyed sitting at the table with the rest of us. He gets fed at least 3 times per sitting. Once from me, then Ethan, then Autumn. He never goes without.

I splurged and bought myself the first pair of high heels since I think middle school, and Autumn LOVES them! It's pretty sad when your almost 2 yr old can walk better in them than you do.

And Carter at 6 months old. HE IS SO HAPPY!! He is such a good baby. He is finally sleeping through the night now, and our sleeping arrangement has finally worked itself out, so that makes him even that more adorable. WE LOVE YOU CARTER!

I had to put this in here because now that summer is here, this will be a lot more common at our house. This is after I passed over it once with the shower. DIRT, DIRT, and MORE DIRT! It makes a mess but it keeps them in one spot and for the most part, pretty content. It's my double edge sword. Let me just expound for a moment. ETHAN has been digging in the mud so that he can find worms to torture and disfigure. and then put in his bug catcher, and I was sick to death of the mud, so I told him NO MORE MUD. He could dig in the dirt, but no more mud. He tried a few times to sneak some water outside, or turn on the hose, but his plans were foiled by yours truly. Then, his clever little wheels got turning, and the neighbor came over and told me that Ethan had just PEED in the dirt. I put him in time out and explained that when he needs to go to the bathroom, he needs to come inside, yada, yada, yada... When I asked him why he did that, he said he wanted to make mud. How genius is that? Always one step ahead of me.

OH, my sweet ETHAN. Never a dull moment when this kid is in the house. He makes me smile EVERY day. I love how Autumn is "brushing her teeth." We have had to pretty much lock them in the bathroom to get any brushing done. Ethan escaped the other day and I don't know what exactly happened, but he came running back to me with spit hanging to his belly button and tears in his eyes, and apparently in all the excitement of his escape, he fell or something, and his "toof brush went down his froat, and it hurt." I laughed until I had tears in my eyes. I'm still laughing. Now he knows why we stay in the bathroom to brush our teef.

My boys! I can't believe I can say that now. I never thought I would, to be honest with you. They are just so cute. Carter is Ethan's, RIGHT HAND MAN. Whenever we take Ethan to school, Carter becomes his show and tell. He likes to tell the kids all the new things Carter is doing. He is such a cute brother, and very protective. Just like BROTHERS should be.

You have probably noticed the trend in most of Carter's pictures, but HE LOVES HIS FEET! They can entertain him for hours. Same with his hands. You should see him get anxious. His hands and feet do there own little dance. It's pretty funny.

For Spring Break in March, we thought it would be FUN and relaxing to go see family in UTAH. Don't get me wrong, it was nice to see family, but it was more WORK than FUN. For Corey and I that is. The kids had a blast! This was one of the FUN moments. Carter and Riley got to meet each other for the first time. They are 10 weeks apart. Oh the times they'll have. Look out world, here they come.

These two are partners in crime. This was a wretched week to say the least. And I even turned 30 in the midst of it all. They have this thing with lotion and chap stick. Ethan likes to wear it, and Autumn, well, she likes to say, "Taste good." I had just bought a new bottle of lotion for my face... GONE! Then they found Corey's stash of lotion... ALMOST gone. Instead of kickin' some butts, I got the camera out instead. You see, to save the hair on my head and my sanity these past few months, I had to make an arrangement with my children. When situations like this one arise, and I have the "I'm gonna kill ya face," in their sweetest of voices, I have told them to just say, "MOM, WE'RE ON LOAN." I'll tell ya what, it has saved lives, and has turned my frown upside down.

Autumn: The thief. If it's missing, check her onesie. Ethan caught on to this gig too, and whatever he didn't want me to know he had, he would put it down her shirt, and if he knew I would be really upset, he could blame it on Autumn. HE IS SO SMART!

And yet again, another typical ETHAN thing. This was in the thick of the sickness at our house, and both Autumn and Carter were doing nebulizer treatments. Ethan decided he wanted to be the green eyed man, and this is how he did it. We got a good laugh. He is just so cute! So happy the sick season is over too, might I add. (Should I knock on wood?) We had it bad all winter. They know us very well at the Dr's office. THANK YOU DR KAUFMAN FOR ALL YOUR HELP!
He's awesome, and Ethan especially,just LOVES him!

This too was very memorable. We have the missionaries over to eat at least once a month, and Ethan and Autumn wanted to see what it would be like to "Walk in their shoes," so they literally put them on. This was, of course, after Ethan snuck under the table during dinner and tickled their feet. We actually ended up pulling out the video camera because it was so funny. He got all of us rolling! We'll miss you Elder Perky and Elder Schulz.

Autumn is a book worm, and this is how she reads books to Carter. No, she doesn't like to tease.

OHH, the ATTITUDE. She LOVES to color and she LOVES to paint. And if you don't get to it fast enough, this is what can happen. Actually, I didn't think it was going to get this out of hand, I mean, I was in the room while she was doing it, I was just sleep deprived and loading the dish washer. See what happens. TWO STEPS FORWARD, 10 STEPS BACK. And so goes the story of our lives.

I wouldn't have it any other way. Yes, we have our challenges but WHO DOESN'T? Life is meant to be enjoyed, and lived, and loved, and experienced, and that's what we do best.

Three Peas in a Pod

2009-01-18T13:16:00.000-08:00

This is how they play hide and go seek. They always hide in the exact same spot. It's hilarious.

Her hair is finally long enough, and she finally had enough patience with Mom to allow me to put her hair in a pony tail. Corey LOVED it! And so did Autumn. She is all about doing hair. GIRL! Need I say more.

She loves to kiss Carter on the head. She is ALWAYS doing it to her baby doll too. It's so cute.

This is Iron Princess. She could not decide what she wanted to dress up as, but no matter what outfit it is, she will have the princess shoes on. I love having a girl!

Guess who? She is out little mouse. She likes to shred everything she can get her hands on, and eat everything off your plate while sitting on your lap, after she has just eaten the exact same thing off of her own plate in her own chair. I wonder where she gets that from? (ME)

Such a cute little Iron Mommy. Everytime I burp Carter, she has to burp her baby too. Monkey see, monkey do.

Playing hide and go seek.

We had a little slumber party in the basement the other night. We had popcorn and watched Kung Fu Panda. Or as Ethan says it, "Hung Ku Panda."

I have decided with the lack of sleep in my life these days that I had better start writting the cute and not so cute things my kids are doing, because it is changing so fast. This new year has brought an explosion in personality in these two that is so fun to watch. They are such good buddies.

Ethan has been saying some of the funniest things:

When he wants the Salt and Pepper, he'll say, "Mom, can I have the black and white?"

He likes to tell me how big he is getting. I think I only told him one time that he needs to try and eat all of his food so that he can get big like his Daddy, and for some reason that seemed to stick. Most of the time he finishes everything on his plate and then has me stand up so that he can measure how much bigger he has gotten against me. He likes to stand on his tippy toes too. It's really cute.

I am always trying to ask him questions that I know he will answer with some of my favorite things he says, like, "Ethan, you are getting so big!" And he'll say, "Yes, I'n are."

And this one I know we have probably told a few of you, but Corey was going to Scouts and Ethan LOVES going to scouts with him. He asks Corey if he can go with him every week, and this particular approach happened to work. He asked if he could go, and Corey told him he could go when he was a little bit bigger. And about three seconds later he said, "Dad, I'n bigger." Then Corey said, when you're older, okay kiddo. Then again, three seconds later Ethan said, "Dad, I'n older." Tu-shay. Because he actually was bigger and older. He's quite a clever little cuss.

I love the way he says bathroom, he says, bass-youm. And speaking of the bass-youm, he camps out in there! The other day I was looking for him and found him in the bass-youm, I opened the door and he proceeded to show the pooh that he had wiped on the toilet paper and then said in a panic, "Look Mom, I got bugs in my butt!" I think we might have over done the bugs thing, but you use what works, right?

Ethan and Autumn like to sing this one ALL THE TIME, and that is the song, Superman, by REM. I told Ethan that it's "Daddy's song," because we all think Daddy is Superman around here. Now we can't get them to quit singing it, however, the words have changed. Ethan likes to say, I am Superman, and I can't do it either. Instead of, I am Superman, and I can do anything. It always puts a smile on our faces.

And here are just a few words that he says and what he is actually trying to say that I just love:

Hella-ba-chop-cher: Helicopter

Scrooky Grabber: Screwdriver

Slipperly: Slippery

Rearry Berry...: Really very...

Askigent: Accident

Shun: Sun

I got the proposal of a lifetime last Sunday too. Ethan noticed Corey's wedding ring and Corey was telling him that it meant that he was married to Mommy. When I went to get in the car, Ethan asked me if he could marry me. Corey proceeded to tell him that I was already taken and that it doesn't work that way. What it really means is that Mommy and Daddy are going to be together forever. I think he was okay with that answer, but what he really wanted was to wear the ring.

And last but certainly not least, Ethan loves that show, Super Why on PBS kids, and the other day he slid down the stairs on his back side and said, "my butt has to go fast for Super Why."

Ethan cracks us up everyday! He really is getting to be so big and is growing up so fast. He is loving his Pre-K class. He is a very head strong little boy which poses a problem every once in a while, but usually there is a reason for every action. We are learning so much from him, and he is such a big helper with Autumn and Carter, and such a blessing to have. WE LOVE YOU ETHAN!

Some of the cute things Autumn is doing:

Whenever she wants something that you have or that Ethan wants, she always says, I do.

When she sings the superman song, she always say, I am Soupman.

She loves to sing and dance. She can dance to church music and make it look good. It's a lot of fun. When she wants to sing I am a Child of God, she starts singing," Sidewalk away." Meaning, walk beside me, help me find the way.

Whenever you ask her a question, it's always, Oh, Yeah.

And the way she says okay is always like you are putting her out to do something. "OKAY!"

"No" has become her new favorite word.

"A Poopa," means she's either poopy or needs to be poopy.

She is always saying, "Don't cry Carter." She LOVES him!

Whenever we get throwing her around, which she loves, the child has no fear, she will always say, "Againg!"

At night time, she will always ask for a "Sawn", and when you sing a "Sawn" that she doesn't like, she will always be polite and say, "No sawn." and if you keep singing, she will sit up and put her finger to her lips and say, SHHH. It's hard not to laugh.

She always says that she has an owie, and they happen to always be on both hands. If that isn't princess like, I don't know what is.

Sib up: Means sit up.

She will always grab your face with both hands when she wants you to talk to her or when she wants you to talk to her. And then she will give you kisses, but it has to be on both cheeks.

She will only rub noses with her Dad. It's there thing.

And last but not least, we have started putting Autumn in time out. Her favorite thing to do to get herself into time out lately has been hitting. So I put her in time out the other day and when I went to get her out, I asked her why she was in time out, and she said, "For hitting Ethan and Mommy." I said, that's right. Then I said, now what do you say? She said, "Thank you." I laughed my head off. I thought that was pretty funny. She has since started saying Sorry, but she was saying Thank you for the first few rounds of time out until she started figuring it out.

She is so much fun, and I am so happy we have a girl. I'm just sorry that she's the only one. I hope she stays as girly as she is because it's so much fun. She does have a pretty serious attitude, but she is always telling us how cute she is. Thanks to her Dad. We LOVE you Autumn!

Aren't kids just so much fun. We'll discuss the not so fun another post.

The ups and downs of Christmas Break...

2008-12-30T18:28:00.000-08:00

The Poinsettia Tree at the Lauritzen Gardens.

Let’s start it off with the ups, shall we…

1. Daddy’s home.
2. Getting a lot of house projects done and a lot of organizing.

3. I’ve been spoiled with husband time/family time/me time/sleep time!
4. Kids on Christmas Day!
5. Good Food and lots of movies!

The downs of Christmas break...

1. Trying once again to transition Ethan and Autumn into the same room.
2. Once Christmas day was over, we were ready to see family.
3. Between three kids we have been to the doctor 6 times this month, and myself twice. That's a lot of doctor time.
4. Freezing rain and sub-zero temperatures.
5. Vehicle Dramas. Flat tires on the jeep, and a broken drivers side window on the car. FUN!

But the pictures are priceless.

This was the kids "Santa Claus Tree". This is the one they wanted Santa to visit. They made most of the decorations themselves, and the beauty of this tree is that I didn't have to care too much about the decorations on it being ruined or moved. I love that all the balls are clumped together, right in the front where Autumn hung them. Ethan was a little bit more particular about where he put his. Plus it was a real tree and it smelled so good. There favorite thing to do was to take the laundry (that I had just cleaned that was waiting to be folded on the couch) and hide it from me behind the tree, and sometimes in the water under the tree. Infact, it was there favorite hidding place.

So proud of her Christmas Tree.
Autumn is such a cute little Mommy. "Monkey see, Monkey do," is what comes to mind. She has done everything with this baby that Mommy does with "Carger." She loves her g's.

Transitioning into Ethan's room has really started to take it's toll on our little girl. We came up to check on them, and Ethan had somehow managed to squeeze his 4 year old body into Autumn's size 12 month dress, and this was the last layer of underwear Autumn had on when I got home. Dad forgot the camera in his frustration.

Camping out in the basement. Ethan had been wanting to camp out with his Dad for the longest time, and Corey promised him that over the Christmas break they would do it. Let's just say Corey's had better sleep than he did that night with Ethan being his second pair of skin and farting in his face, and "slash lights" in the eyes, but all in all it was a good father-son bonding night.
Just the boys.

Christmas Day. She was thrilled with all her girly garb! Talk about a shoe fest. She loves shoes.

Usually kids are so excited to open presents that they run downstairs in their PJ's, but not ours. When they woke up, we went into their room and I asked Ethan to guess who came last night, and he said, "Grammy and Grandpa?" I was a little shocked to hear him say that, but he had just woken up, so I gave him another shot. Then he said, "Nanny and Grandpa?" So I gave him the hint of the big guy in the red suit, and he said, "Okay. Let me get dressed first."

And getting dressed was his favorite thing to do. All Ethan wanted for Christmas was BATMAN! Everything Batman. I quit counting how many different times he changed that day. Just too many options. This kid has got such an imagination and the facial expressions to boot. Good thing Santa caught the day after Halloween specials.

And Iron Man as well. AKA "Iron E"
And last but not least, our Fairy Princess.

This feels like it should've been a Halloween post! Hope you all have a Happy New Year! Looking forward to it.

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble... Blog, Blog, Blog...

2008-12-02T11:27:00.001-08:00

Each taking there turn with the Santa hat.

A face that melts her Daddy's heart. Good thing Mom can see through it, sometimes.

What would the world be like without Nanny? THANK YOU, MOM!

Welcome to the family little guy.

Oh, so sweet.

On Santa's Nice List...

They had a blast having Grammy and Grandpa to themselves!

Now what would give you the idea that Autumn wants to be like Ethan?

My dear friend Carissa took these pictures for us, and they just turned out so cute, I had to post them.

Ethan is such a sweet brother.

Ahh, and finally the entire brood. Kinda takes my breath away.

We'll just get right down to it. The pictures are the funnest part of the blog anyway, right? Life is only getting better. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We had Larry and Shaun out for the weekend, and what a relief! IT WAS AWESOME! We ate, and ate, and ate, and ate... and slept... YOu get the idea. Gained a few pounds for sure, but enjoyed every minute of it. Ethan loved having Grandpa around to throw him around a little bit. Autumn didn't really care who they were, as long as they'd read her a book. She was a little shy of Grandpa for some reason though. And Carter kept there laps warm for sure. It was really nice to have some company.

November has been a lot of fun. Lots of transitioning, lots of growing. Carter is now a month old. 5 weeks to be exact. He's finally starting to fill our a little bit. He weighs a little over 11 pounds now. He's starting to smile a lot now, and not just because he passed gas. He's as cute as ever. Ethan and Autumn still adore him. Autumn is right on top of the diaper changing time. She gets all the equipment out we need and then some. And Ethan is the pro burper. That's his contribution to the Carter tasks of the day.

Corey is another year older, and hopefully another year wiser. He is neck deep in Dental School and Halo parties. Can't wait for Christmas break! We might actually get to see him for a bit. Looking forward to it.

With all the rush of getting food prepared and juggling kids, I missed the spirit of the Thanksgiving Holiday. You know, that being thankful part, and I didn't get a chance to tell anyone! So now you have to bare with me. Don't worry, I'll keep it simple. The first thing that came to mind was parents. WOW! So happy to be alive. Don't know how they did it, and how they did it so well. My husband, of course, who keeps me grounded. Trials, that keep me alive and living, and of course my three adorable children.

Life just doesn't get any better than this... Unless it involves more sleep.

I... I will survive...

2008-11-04T08:24:00.000-08:00

It's happened! Yes baby has arrived. October 23, 2008 at 11:28 pm. Really cute. 7 lbs 10 oz 20 1/2 inches. IT'S A BOY!!! I gotta tell ya, it was a surprise. But a welcomed one. He broke all sorts of molds. He doesn't look anything like the other two. Maybe the nose. He's the runt of the litter, and now there is more than one Hogge boy. It's all new. He's so sweet. Oh yeah, his name...Carter James Hogge. Ethan is absolutely in love with the little guy. He wants to hold him all the time. He said the cutest thing the other day. I was trying to get a burp out of Carter and Ethan said, "Here Carter, I will show you." And then he burped. It was so cute. Autumn just wants to poke his eyes out. She is still running around saying, "Were da baby?" She hasn't quite figured it out yet.

Halloween was a lot of fun. Since we didn't know gender, we had to play it safe with a costume, so Carter was a dragon, Autumn was a princess, and Ethan was a Knight. It was perfect weather! It was like 72. They had a Halloween Parade at Ethan's school, and he got to lead his class outside with his teacher. Ms. Stephanie was a princess, and she told Ethan that Knights are Princesses boyfriends, and then she asked him if he would be her boyfriend. OF COURSE he said yes. So she would just say, come on boyfriend. And he would grab her hand and away they went. I figured if I picked something with at least a weapon, I wouldn't get any crap, and it worked out. I know I said this last year, but this is probably the last year I will be able to get away with a themed Halloween. It was a lot of fun. I especially love Ethan in Carter's costume. When it got here, we had to open it right away! Then it got quiet, and when I asked Ethan to come down and show me what he was doing, out popped a scary dragon! I don't know how he got himself in that thing, because it took both of us to get him out.

In other news... I have been replaced. Or at least the dish washer has been. What a wonderful upgrade. Our old one was falling apart. And speaking of upgrades, we got a new grill too. Talk about all sorts of fun.

As for family cutes and updates, Autumn has found a new way to hide. She thinks if she barries her head, you can't see her. It makes hide and go seek a lot of fun. She has become our mocking bird. She will repeat almost anything you say to her. She follows Ethan around like a puppy dog. Most of the time, they play SO CUTE together. When he gets home from school she lights up. She will run to the door and give him a great big hug. She thinks he hung the moon. She loves to sing and dance, and oh yeah, like most girls with an attitude, she likes to tell you what to do.

Ethan has just come out of his shell. He is site reading now, and doing really well with it. We had our first Parent/Teacher conference, and it looks like I've got a lot of teachers to warn. We were supposed to go to Parent/Teacher Conference on Thursday night, but we were in the hospital, so the teacher pulled me aside after I dropped him off. I'm not gonna lie to ya, I was wanting to hide myself under a blanket, but she said some things that gave me quite a chuckle. She said he is extremely smart. He is picking up the reading thing really well. He knows his numbers, shapes, etc. He just HAS A PROBLEM WITH AUTHORITY. Just needs some good direction. She also said I am going to have my hands full with his teachers in the future, because he needs to be challenged. Boy does that sound like a guy I'm married to!!!

As for tramatic experiences... I always seem to have one of these right after I've had a child. We have been trying to transition Autumn into sleeping in Ethan's room. We got her a bed and everything and Carter brought each of them a fish. We put our fish tank up in Ethan's room, and we have just been trying to make it the place to be. Well, little did we know what a hip happenin' place we actually made it. We had been putting them to bed at the same time, which was really hard, because they were staying up and playing for until about 10:00 at night, which would be okay if they weren't still waking up at the same time in the morning, so I decided that I would put Autumn down first, and then put Ethan down. Which I thought was brilliant, but then at 11:00 at night, she woke up and would not STAY IN HER BED!!! It got my blood boiling. My Mom and I kept the hallway pretty hot with every threat in the book. I just felt like I was being out smarted by my children. Then I broke out the pack and play and put that in Ethan's room, thinking if I could just pin her in, the party would stop. Not so. I asked Ethan if he would sing her a song, which always turns out to be I am a child of God, and what do I see Autumn doing... Dancing. Finally, my Mom pulled out the big guns. She told Ethan she was going to get Corey. He freaked! Of course, all of Corey's siblings know how pleasant he is when you wake him up. Well, so does his son. So Ethan calmed down. And finally, at 3 am, the party stopped. We woke up at 9:00. I have never had such a laugh though in all my life, hearing those same threats come out of my Mother that she used to say to me. I cried I was laughing so hard. Just thinking about it makes me chuckle. So that's that venture. We'll try transitioning later. When lack of sleep is common place.

These are just a few of the happenings going on around here. Enjoy!

Time Flies....

2008-10-02T11:54:00.000-07:00

So I was supposed to blog on my myspace account when I got back from Utah in August, and obviously it never happened. Happy to say I have pulled my head out and am now enjoying a quiet afternoon TO MYSELF!!! So now we'll update. Yes... new blogspot. I'm sick of the crap people. Hopefully you'll all be able to access this acct better than the other one.

So, now to update you. I'll summarize. Our Summer was chaotic, but a lot of fun. Hopefully we got all the sick out of us before baby comes. Oh yeah, for those of you who don't know, we're expecting #3 and final in 3 weeks. Looking forward to meeting it, boy or girl, and then not having to ever be pregnant sick again. It's a beautiful feeling.

Corey started Dental School in August and comes home with a smile on his face almost everyday. He is loving it! Ethan thinks he is going to church everyday because he has to wear a shirt and tie. We were really surprised to find out that 5 other classmates live here in Village Green. That has been a lot of fun. Next year we'll probably have half the class living here. It will be good for those late night study sessions. I thought this whole Dental School thing would be harder than it is, but so far, I am really enjoying it. I guess it's just because it feels like we've been waiting for it for so long, that now that it's finally here, it feels cloudy and dream like.

Ethan also started school. He is in Pre-K at Bancroft Elementary School. It's a good thing his teacher said they like the tough ones, because I have a feeling he just might break them. But he is definitely doing much better. He is growing up so much, and is a crack a minute. He says some of the funniest things and has some of the funniest faces to go along with it. He is very animated. For example, the picture at the top. We see this face a lot. It's kind of the "Oh crap, I'm in trouble face." Because believe it or not, he does a lot of that getting in trouble business.

Autumn... Well, she's found her attitude. She is now 15 months and is talking sentences, and if she can't say the word and you guess what she wants, you get a forever smile that you figured it out. She eats like a bird. Her favorite fit throwing these days, or at least the newest one is what we like to call the butt fit. She has her feet flat on the floor and her hands too, and she shakes her butt in the air. It's hard not to laugh. I used to think Ethan was loud, but Autumn gets the prize. WOW! She has got a good set of lungs on her, and they usually come out at feeding time. She has started fighting back with Ethan. That's pretty funny to see. this little thing pushing Ethan around. She's pretty tough. She has her Dad WRAPPED!!! She can do no wrong. The other day we were taking the garbage out and Corey got home early from school, and she was throwing a fit on the sidewalk and saw the jeep and took off running. She knows where the sympathy is, that's for sure. But with a face like that, it's hard to say no.

All in all, things are good. I will brag and say, I got all of my Christmas shopping done already. We had the budget all worked out and I realized that it is going to be really cold and I'm going to have a newborn and I just don't want to do that, so... I jumped on it. It's a very nice feeling.

And now I will take my bow and pat myself on the back, because although this blog thing is not perfect, or as easy as I thought, it's done!! Enjoy.