THANKS UNCLE BUDDY!

This is a collection of bottles and pitchers I have. The 3 middle ones (yellow, green & purple) were given to me by my Grandma Flynn and my Uncle Buddy. My Grandma gave me the yellow and green bottles when I was 13 staying with them for the summer. Buddy came out this summer with his wife Donna and when he saw my other bottles he told me he'd gotten a purple one identical to the yellow one at a yard sale out there in Massachusettes. Anyway, after a little trade, bribery & a beating with a fly-swatter he sent me the matching purple bottle! Nice set I have now thanks to him and Grams.

CHEERS!

WHAT THE $%@#!

BEN, MILLY & SAM LOVED THE SNOW--BUT COME ON SNOW IN OCTOBER!

PLEASE CAN'T IT WAIT TILL AT LEAST NOVEMBER!? PREFERABLY DECEMBER! WELL, NEVER ACTUALLY. . .EXCEPT IN THE MOUNTAINS SO WE DON'T HAVE DROUGHTS!

AWESOME CAULIFLOWER!

Just a funny accomplishment of mine--

My first head of Cauliflower! It was seriously 10in. wide and beautiful. I made a yummy soup with it, but my broccoli was bitter so it kinda ruined it--DARN BROCCOLI! So I guess it was only 1/2 way yummy.

St. GEORGE BOO-YAH

Adam and I ran away last weekend and it was very fun! St. George was perfect weather. We rented a little house that had a pool and hot tub in the back yard which was nice. We went to the Tuacahn Theater to see Les Miserable and it was awesome! We ended up seeing an old high school friend Andy Hunsaker there at the play and got to catch up with him and his wife Jan. We did some shopping for the kids mostly and got to sleep in! It was very weird not waking up to Ben crawling into bed with us wiggling and making car sounds. We drove through Snow Canyon (which took like 2 minutes & cost $5!) We also saw an orangey-red house on top of a bluff that was so ugly that Adam had to admit our yellow house was beautiful compared to that (finally). However, we decided we wouldn't mind living there if we could. It was a nice weekend and thanks to Kaffeine & Mom for watching our kidlets so we could go--you're the best Dee & Gouda-Mouda!

Cute pics of the girls--toothless grins and funny smiles.

2-Wheelin-Bike-Ridin-Benny

Benny learned how to ride a two-wheeler this summer--very fun. I took his training wheels off because they were loose and broken. He was so mad at me he cried for an hour saying "YOU BROKE MY BIKE! IT'S BROKE!" I got tired of hearing him cry about it so I made him get on it and start pedaling. I ran holding his bike around our circle a couple times, all the while him crying "YOU BROKE IT, IT'S BROKE!" Benny was doing fine so I let go and off he went still crying that his bike was broken until he saw me waving at him. Only then did he stop crying and with a big smile say, "MOMMY I DID IT!" The rest is history.

LAGOON!

Catching up on a few things--

We went to Lagoon back in September and had a blast! I was surprised by Ben & Milly because they went on everything they could get on! We went on everything from the kiddie boat ride to the little free-fall to the Tidal Wave! Sammy wasn't quite ready for the bigger rides and we did force her to go on a few "baby" rides that she thought were too scary. In the end she liked the ride and wanted to go again but I didn't want to fight the tears anymore. We had fun seeing Adam's coworkers as well as family there. But GOSH-DARN we NEVER win Nuskin prizes. . .so not fair!

Help for the Nielson Family

I normally would never do this, but this Sunday paper had an article about a fundraiser for the parents of 4 young children who got in a plane crash about a month ago in August. The mother-Stephanie Nielson sustained burns over 80% of her body and her husband- Christian Nielson sustained 30%. They are both still comatose but can hear. I was just touched by this family and what they and their children must be going through. They are LDS and live in Mesa, Arizona. Stephanie's sister is just trying to raise any amount of money to help them to recovery. This is their blog address check it out-- nieniedialogues.blogspot.com
I donated because if that had been one of my sisters, brothers, daughters, son, friends or family, I'd be greatful for any help that could be given to my loved ones.
Feels good to do good.
Your Thoughts,
Sarah

The Wheels on the Bus

Ben and Milly are back to school and back on the bus! Benny, as most of you know, has been going to Saratoga Shores for speech therapy since last year. He loves the bus and this year Milly got to join him! Milly was scared the first time and cried as they drove away but when she got home she said "I cry on duh bus Mom, but I not cry anymore!". I have to admit that I was almost ready to cry myself when they left! Especially after seeing Milly sad I got in the car and went to the school and waited there to make sure they were both not crying. When I got there they had all the kids they pick up for preschool make a choo-choo train and march into their class and they were just fine. Anyway, it's been a couple weeks now and they look forward to school days, riding the bus and bringing home their "papers" to show me! I love them telling me about their day at school, what they did and songs they sang. Just yesterday, the bus driver told me that Milly was singing for them on the way to school--I laughed, because Milly will do that all the time, just like Sammy.

Sammy is really enjoying 1st grade at Lakeview Academy and has Mrs. Clark as her teacher. Her reading is improving at lighting speed while her ability to hear me has diminished. She loves art, library and spanish days and bringing home her books from school. I'm very proud of her because she listens to her teacher, always does her work and is a good friend and student. She's gotten the hang of all day school and especially likes having lunch there along with 3 recesses.(who wouldn't love that?!) I just can't believe all my kids are in school--beyond bizarre! This picture of Ben is so funny to me--we got his entire Knight getup for $3! He wore it for 3 days straight. Milly wore her wings along with Sammy.

YARD OF THE MONTH

I'd just like to thank my WONDERFUL husband Adam for his determination, understanding and never failing strength to make this dream come true! Also, in thanks, I need to mention Katherine Flynn Argyle--(sniff, sniff) if it hadn't been for your wedding none of this could of happened and I'd still be hauling manure. I can't thank you enough! Last but not least, myself--thank you self for planting over 300 shrubs, trees, flowers & seeds. For spending many, many hours digging, shoveling, wheelbarrowing, laying soaker hoses, and especially planting. Self. . .YOU ROCK! Thanks to all the slave laborers who got suckered into helping me and for all those who donated their plants and time to the cause. This sign and recognition is for all of us! It's all been worth it the sweat and swearing to have this outstanding award placed in my yard--I am deeply honored. (kiss kiss)



Here are some more pictures of our beautiful yard that I know you are all so jealous of! Ha Ha Ha

Noah & Milly are Silly

Silly-Milly and Naughty-Noah are always finding a way to make us laugh!

By the way, nice goggles!

Milly's #3 Birthday

Happy Birthday Milly!

Milly turned 3 July 18th and we had big chocolate cupcakes and went swimming! Milly got a barbie tricycle/big-wheel thing and loves it. In the end, she was just so happy that everyones attention was on her! The icing on top was actually on our noses! We love you Milly and you make us laugh and smile everyday. You are so fun and quirky--I wouldn't change a thing about you! We are all so blessed and grateful that you are part of our family!

P.S.
She is potty trained and in record time--
YEA! A present for Mommy!

"I love my birthday because I can gross everyone out and it's okay!"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

+

Bear Lake

BELOVED BEAR LAKE

As always we went to Bear Lake this summer at the beginning of August for a week. Adam could only came and dropped us off and went back with Tom for work. However, even without him we still had fun (but not as much). We seriously just went to the beach everyday.

Sammy, Ben and Milly played hard and had a blast. Darby with Abby and Lucy were there with us along with Mom, Jon, Damon and Kas. They played and I read. I read over 1200 pages that week, not to shabby if I do say so myself. Sammy was content in baggy and well worn swimsuit. While Ben happy to be where ever Damon was or on a float tube. Milly looked uncomfortable, because she seriously had a wedgie the whole time! Not only that but she had sand stuck in weird places. Besides that Milly ran with the pack and was best of friends with Abby and Syd. It was nice this year to have them all a little more independent and comfortable with the water. They also slept well for once! I actually felt like we were all on vacation instead of torturcation. One thing that is always fun while at Bear Lake is we all have a book we're all reading so we can talk about it and this year it was the last book of the Twighlight series, Breaking Dawn--which should've been "Freaking Yawn". Sorry I was disappointed, obviously. Anyway, we had fun and Grandma spoiled her grand kids with every blow-up-swim-thingy possible! It was awesome--thanks mom for doing this every year it's our own little Cape Cod, but better.

I LOVE MAUI!

I know what you're thinking--I'm the worst blogger ever! I agree. Here it is 4 months later. I'm tellin' ya, summer is crazy and very fun! We went to Hawaii, Maui (mine being the first) at the end of April for a WEEK! We stayed in Kaanapali and it was beautiful! I know I'm backtracking but only for Amanda's sake-gosh! Here we are at one of many cool places we went to in Maui. We walked down to this beach and it had tide pools and all sorts of stuff on the rocks. That day we had just gone snorkeling at an awesome little cove that you have to hike down to. It was amazing--saw hundreds of beautiful fish and some creepy ones kept following us. I thinks they were expecting us to feed them. The second picture here is us walking through what looked like the Amazon to get to the awesome snorkeling cove. Adam even pretended to be Tarzan swinging from the vines!

Hawaii was a lot of fun. We went with Adam's parents Mary and Joe and his sister Ali and her husband Burke. To be honest I was expecting Joe to be more involved but he got a blister the 2nd or 3rd day in and was happy as a clam sitting in his room watching the History Channel half naked. Therefore, it was mostly just us two couples with an occasional Mary coming along, (when Joe didn't want her babying his foot and himself). We went to Black Rock beach and went snorkeling there, but it wasn't as good as that other place. There was cliff diving there and the natives would do some crazy stuff. However, at Black rock we did see (and Adam even touched one) 3 beautiful tortoises. They were right on the shore line and about 2-3 feet from our faces! That was a highlight for me. In this picture is Black Rock and you can see a bunch of people on the top there waiting to jump. Adam jumped a couple times it was a beautiful beach. On our last day we came here again and there were waves so we body surfed (kindof) and floated on the waves I loved it. Also we had an extra special treat here that day--sitting in front of us was the most outstanding woman I've ever seen--250lbs, wearing a white, see-through swimming suit, big tattooed boobs, and the loudest, most annoying voice. She sat on the beach yelling at her son KYLE!!! KYLE!! COME HERE KYLE!!! Meanwhile he's trying to get out of the waves wearing his snorkel gear and continually biffing it in the sand because he's trying to walk with his flippers on! We laughed and laughed--good times. Thanks who ever you were for the laugh. Anywho, we had a good time and we HIGHLY recommend going if you ever get the chance, it's amazing! Thanks Mary and Joe for giving us a very good reason to go!

You can't forget about my teeth!

Check out my AWESOME teeth!

TOOTH FAIRY VISIT

Yes, Sammy has lost her first tooth on her own. (she had her 2 bottom ones pulled, they don't count) Well, it took a lot of time, patience, bribery (thanks Nate), crying, yanking, and finally one bite of a hot dog and one last pull to come out. Hallelujah! It was practically sideways for pete's sake! Sammy was brave and very scared but I couldn't stand to look at that anymore--so 1,2,3 and you're outta here! Needless to say, the pulling it out created more crying, bribery (thank you MOM), a little blood and some anxiety over people noticing her tooth gone. The Tooth Fairy did come and left her 3 dollars and a note of Congratulations--very exciting! So, if you happen to see her just tell her how cute she is and there won't be a problem, I'd greatly appreciate it. Anyway, that's the latest for the Smiths. I'll be posting about our trip to Hawaii last week once I find them on my computer! Aloha and Mahalo

Ya-Ya I Bootiful!

Hi I'm Ya-Ya or Milly or Amelia which ever you prefer. I like being bootiful in my princess dress with a big hole in it that my Grandma-Mary made me along with my black shiny shoes with socks! I twiddle my hair and like to have my mouth open like I'm surprised most of the time. I think Ben and Sammy are funny but I like to boss them around as much I can without my Mommy getting mad at me. I like to sing twinkle little star in my own version and repeat as much as possible. I dance to music and shake my bum bum because it makes my Mommy laugh. If I get hurt I blame it on Ben even if he isn't there or didn't do anything--it makes me feel better. Everything I want is pink even if it isn't I say it is because that's what I want. I love everyone I meet and will give kisses and hugs to anyone who wants one--if I'm not grumpy. This is me in a nutshell and I am bootiful--that's all you really need to know about me!

Milly

We're So Lucky!

I believe that through many other people's lives; their trials, successes and miracles have impacts on our own. I think a lot of the time we actually realize the many blessings we have when we just take a second to think about it. How many times have my children been blessed with safety (especially Ben), also with good mental and physical health. The blessing of having a beautiful, safe place to live with an awesome husband who takes pride in being a real man!
From seeing my kids learn to ride a bike to having great visiting teachers and amazing friends--I feel so BLESSED!

You're probably thinking what this is all about but, today I found out my cousin Bryan and his wife Marcae just lost their first little girl Kate. She was a miracle and wasn't expected to live as long as she did. She was truly a fighter and so are her parents. They loved her to the ends of the earth and you could see it. It breaks my heart to think of losing my baby. When experiences like this in life come our way-- I can't help but thank God for what he has given me and also for what he hasn't. Kate is free of her tubes and discomfort, but for those left behind it seems to leave a hole. One that can't be filled or ignored. Hopefully through time, the hole lessens in it's depth and darkness, and becomes the your way back. Filled with light, reassurance and a purpose. That someday soon you'll hold your perfect baby again and thank her for helping you get back home.

I have a neighbor who lost her 5-year-old little girl to a brain tumor. She told me of an experience she had soon after her little girl passed away. She told me that one day while at the cemetery visiting her grave and crying why did this have to happen to her, she suddenly heard her little girl's voice very clearly saying, "Mama, some day you will be grateful this happened." My neighbor laughs after this and says, "I'm still waiting to be 'grateful!'".

It has been 5+ years since her little girl passed away but, I'm so amazed at how she has handled it. I could only hope to cope half as well as she does if I'd gone through what she had. But she also has every reason to try her best on this earth because she knows her little girl is waiting for her and all of the family to come back to where she is. What motivation that can give knowing they are there waiting for you. I would think in my neighbors case that the day she is grateful for what happened will be one far from now. She could be laying in bed thinking of her and what she said. Suddenly and quietly understanding, and then feeling the gratitude her daughter told her of long ago.

Anyway, not to be so gloomy but I am grateful everyday that I can tuck all 3 of my kids into their beds and kiss, hug and tickle them whenever I please. I guess it's days like this that make the day you just lived special and grand.

Benny's Prize

Benny finally got his prize yesterday for doing a #2 on the Potty! We are so proud of him--he's been waiting for the right moment and it finally came! Sounds silly, but seriously is was a battle and I think he was afraid to let it all out--maybe he felt like he'd explode or that it was letting go of something that was his?! Again, the mysteries of life--who'd ever think going to bathroom could be so psychologically hard? Only they know, and it's up to us to figure it out. Anyway, Benny got to go to the Dollar Store (which I just Love!) and pick out 1 prize. That obviously is a problem because there is always more than 1 thing they want. He had narrowed his options down to 3 things: a gun, a truck, and a crayon shaped water squirter thingy? That was until Sammy found the Helium balloons and that was all he had ever hoped for in his life! Benny picked out a Spongebob balloon and Milly picked one also with a big flamingo on it. They played the rest of the day with their helium balloons almost like they were people. They would talk to them and wrestle with them. It was very cute and funny. Sammy had a good experience also--she bought with her own money a little polley pocket doll. She paid the cashier, and was waiting to get her doll. The cashier held out his hand in a fist to give her back her change...she looked at him like "what do you want" and then she made a fist and hit his fist (we call it "giving rocks" and we do that when they've done something good) and all her change fell out of the guys hand all over the counter! It was so funny, but since Sammy is sensitive I just had to reassure her it was cool what she did and explain to the confused cashier what she did and why she did it. Adam and I laughed about that--sometimes you never know how your kids look at certain things until they surprise you with something totally out of the blue or unexpected. Anyway, we had fun at the Dollar Store and we are so proud of our Benny! Just keep doing it and I'll give you as many Balloons as you want!

Sadie Hawkins Flash Back

We're so cute!

Adam makes me look like I'm standing in a hole next to him. He's so tall! But that's the way I like 'em--tall, kinda dark and handsome. I just have to say--Adam's smile and whole look is G.Q. to me. Hey honey, we could use some extra bucks why not take up modeling?

Enjoy

Feliz complienios

Katherine is so smart but, I'm smarter.

I only say that because it makes her laugh.

Hello Friends and Family
We've decided to join the lastest craze of blogging and give it a go! The Smithies is a wild and crazy bunch of 2 boys (which Adam can still be considered) and 3 lovely ladies. Adam and I are going on our 10th year of marriage (yippee skippee!) and we have Samantha who is 6, Ben 4 and Ya-ya (Amelia) 2.5! We have a great time together and enjoy teasing, playing hide and seek in the dark and calling eachother stinky. ( "You STINKY!....NO! YOU STINKY!" this mostly happens between Ben, Ya-ya and Daddy--but Daddy usually is stinky) You probably didn't want to know that part but the kids worship Daddy--he can do no wrong! I hope this is just as fun to do for our family as it has been reading yours.

Your Thoughts,
Smithies