Afternoon fun

Yesterday afternoon my friend, Lisa, and I took our kids to visit Lisa's mom in Spring Creek. With Briana along, we had 6 kids! Linda was so sweet to let us invade her house and, the kids had a great time playing with new toys! Linda is having a yard sale in a couple of weeks and was kind enough to let me go through her stuff first. It worked out great for me because she and I are the exact same size (including shoes) and she had alot of really great clothes/shoes/purses etc. And, many of her things had never even been worn! So, I had a fabulous time shopping :)

All 6 kids looking at the camera at the same time ~ amazing

Katie and her friend, Taylor. In the morning Katie told me she wanted to wear pink because that was Taylor's favorite color. As you can see, she was right! Katie is only 6 months older than Taylor and I just realized how much taller she is...

The John Deere boys... Tys and Dalton

Trenton 16 months

This little guy has been my little crazy boy lately! He is into absolutely everything and always has a need for "mama" to hold him (when he's not getting into everything) He has also become a climber and I'm constantly telling him to sit down on the chairs or to stop standing on the rocking horse etc. Of our three kids, he is by far the messiest eater! He could use a bath after every meal and it looks like the area around him just went through a hurricane! And, his new love in life is to throw fits or, hit whatever is around him at that moment... of course he always has consequences for this. This morning he was being a big 'ole crab so I put him in his crib for a little while. I was in the livingroom when all of a sudden there was a big "thud", followed by crying. He had climbed out and done a flying leap from his crib!! Katie or Tys had never done that before so, I was very surprised by this. He seemed to be o.k. but now I have to find something more secure for him to sleep in! Trenton spends his days "vroooming" cars around the house, looking for opportunities to destroy the bathroom, pulling DVD's from the shelves, dumping boxes of food from the pantry, dumping toys all over Katie's room etc etc. If this sounds like I'm complaining, I'm not. I'm simply justifing why my days are so busy :)

Inspite of his monster ways, Trent is such a huge joy in our family. He is constantly making us laugh with his goofiness and funny jibber-jabber. He adores his siblings, bottle and blankie. And, his great love in life is to be outside playing in the dirt, riding on the 4-wheelers or "vroooming" in his push car. We all love the excited "O" face that he makes whenever he hears a loud truck or 4-wheeler and runs to the window to see what's making that noise! Trenton also gets his "O" excited face whenever he hears daddy on the phone; he loves to hear his daddy's voice and has learned to say "hi dada", "good" and "bye bye". I love how his face has the look of excitement and joy (why wouldn't he, he's having so much fun causing great big messes!) and his big blue eyes are so full of LIFE! Oh how I love this little guy!

Rototilling

Once again, we spent this last weekend working in the yard. This time Casey rented a rototiller and he & my dad worked on tilling the ground. We prepared the dirt for a future big garden (3 times the size of our last one!) and an area for grass. We're also planning on putting in a back yard patio and walk-way. I love seeing the progress that is made and look forward to looking out my kitchen window to see green grass and a green garden!!

Casey got to use the tractor for a couple of loads before it began having mechanical issues.

The kids on their tractor!

Once the tractor died, we had to use manual labor to haul and spread that manure. Even Tys worked hard (notice his booty crack!)

Rototilling the grass area

Our wonderful friend and neighbor, Dena, brought this fun little car over for Trent! Katie was a good big sister and pushed him around... it kept them entertained while we worked

Popsicles

We always love Fridays because that means daddy is coming home! Once again, this week flew by for us. We spent quite a bit of it indoors due to our spring time rain showers, snow, wind and dirt storms! But, it IS clear today and we look forward to doing more yard work over the weekend. On Monday my mom and I went to Home Depot and got shrubs for our newly created front flower bed. Then, on Tuesday we were able to plant them. Without my husband here I had to dig 7 holes by myself.... yes, I am quite proud of myself for doing that! LOL

The kids have a new love for homemade popsicles! Even Trent has learned how to hold his

Casey began work at the power plants in Yerington and Sparks this week. He has been working 10 hour days and said that things are going well!

Routine

This last weekend was another busy one. Casey arrived home from Reno on Friday evening and, left again early Monday morning. We are getting used to this new routine and finding out how to make things work. While Casey is home we spend as much time together as a family and I always try to cook him special meals... I also spend the time getting his clothes washed, meals cooked for him to take for the next week, we pay bills, go through mail etc. We miss him greatly throughout the week! The kids enjoy talking to him before going to bed at night ~ even Trenton is learning how to talk on the phone! And, I am amazed at how quickly the week flies by. This last Saturday we spent the day working outside in the yard. We are preparing the back yard for grass and a garden and, hauled in 2 trailer loads of sheep manure. As Katie said "that's ALOT of sheep poop!!" I also worked on the flower beds that are going to go along the front of our house (I went to Home Depot yesterday for shrubs and got them planted this morning!) Casey always has lots to do while he's home and spends ALL day Saturday working on projects. We relax on Sunday... visit with friends and catch up on naps :)

This last week Casey brought along our camera and, Travis was able to take a few pictures of Casey doing some practice welding on the pipes that they'll be working on at the power plant. The power plant project has been delayed until tomorrow (hopefully, they really do begin tomorrow) Casey has been spending this time practicing his welding during the day and going to classes in the evenings.

learning how to weld left handed

I took these last two picures. While loading manure on Saturday, the ramp to the trailer broke. Normally this would have delayed our project since we couldn't get the bobcat onto the trailer without the ramp. In just a few minutes Casey had his welder out and welded the ramp back together! I told him that he was a pretty handy guy to have around!! *smile*

BMGH

Well, I am once again employed at Battle Mtn. General Hospital! Last week I applied for a part-time position as secretary for the hospital board... I had an interview this last Tuesday and was offered the job on Wednesday. Today I went in for all of my pre-employment stuff so, I guess that makes me officially employed! I think this will be a good job for me as it is VERY part-time (about 10-15 hrs a month) and the hours are flexible, except for the actual evenings of the board meetings. I will be doing their minutes, agenda, keeping up on the books, setting up for the mtgs., research as necessary etc. and, keeping in close contact with the hospital's CEO on anything pertaining to the board. I will be able to do quite a bit of my work at home. I have worked for the hospital in the past and already have quite a few good friends there; I have also known the CEO for many years now and look forward to working with her! I have to say that it feels good to be back... BMGH was my very first job and I have lots of old, good memories there.

I am looking forward to the challenge and, also hoping I can add this new job on to our already busy lives without it affecting the kids or Casey too much.

We've had a another good week here at home. The kids & Briana have gotten to play quite a bit outside and Casey will be home this evening from Reno. To celebrate his homecoming, I have a yummy berry crisp just out of the oven!

School

While Briana does her school work, Katie likes to get her writing book out and do her school as well. Yesterday Katie worked on writing "E" and "C" and, she is doing really well at coloring within the lines. On Monday our neighbor, Dena, brought over a couple of fun stencils, stickers and paper; Tys and Katie have had lots of fun creating "art" with them. I noticed yesterday that Katie had Trenton on her lap and was trying to teach him what she was learning. Of course, he thought scribbling all over the page was more entertaining!

Welding School

Casey took the camera with him to Reno last week and was able to get a few pictures around the welding school.... Casey's service truck.. he just added the new tool boxes on! While he was home over the weekend, he was able to organize everything and get tools put away; so, those bins are now gone. He'll be able to work easier out of the back of this flat-bed.

Welder's Helpers Welding School ~ classroom

welding stations

Travis (he, Casey and Dean will be working on the power plant project that is beginning this week)

Dean ~ owner, instructor, contractor, friend and huge help in helping Casey get his business started!!

Dean's service truck ~ a classic! Don't expect to go over 60 miles an hour or hear to have a conversation but, it's pretty cool!

Casey arrived home around 1am on Friday and left again early this morning; we enjoyed our weekend at home together!

Week in Review

I am amazed at how quickly this last week flew by and Casey will already be home late this evening. With Trent recovering from croup, the kids and I had a great week at home (I would say quiet, relaxing or uneventful but, we never have those moments around here!) We did some craft projects, read library books, played the new family favorite game of 1-2-3 DIEGO and watched Toy Story 2. The weather was nice towards the end of week and, Trent was feeling lots better, so we spent time outside playing and took a walk in the desert. I also worked on a few projects: switching the kid's clothes from winter to spring/summer, began reading a new Jodi Picoult book and cleaned house. Even though it was a bummer that Trent wasn't feeling great, I enjoyed this time with the kids and having the excuse to stay home! Tys has a new found love for YouTube 4-wheeling, go-cart and tractor clips!!

Trent now points and says "BAD" to anything that I tell him "no" to.... I am surprised everyday at new things that he is saying!

Creamy Chicken Penne

I made this amazing new recipe for dinner tonight... and even though the kids weren't too fond of the "green things" (snow peas) and "red things" (red pepper) they loved it!

Creamy Chicken Penne

2 cups penne pasta
3/4 lbs. boneless chicken breast, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped onions
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 pkg (6oz) snow peas
1 small red pepper, chopped
2 tsp. minced garlic
2 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. flour
1 1/2 cups milk
4 oz. cream cheese, cubed
1/2 cup Romano cheese, grated
1 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley

Cook pasta. Meanwhile, cook chicken and onions in hot oil in large skillet for 6-8 minutes or until chicken is done. Add snow peas, red pepper and garlic. Cook and stir for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat; cover to keep warm.

Melt butter in medium saucepan. Stir in flour until well blended. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to boil. Cook on medium heat 2 min. or until thickened, stirring constantly. Add cream cheese, grated cheese, salt and black pepper. Cook 1-2 min. or until cream cheese is melted and sauce is well blended.

Drain pasta. Add chicken mixture and sauce. Toss to coat. Top with parsley.

Beautiful Day

Trent is feeling lots better now! He still has a croupy sounding cough and runny nose but, is busily playing and getting into things :) Today is such a beautiful day I took the kids outside to play. We had an Easter egg hunt in the front yard, visited our friends/neighbors, Jeff & Dean, swung and the kids rode around on the 4-wheelers with their Papa. I have also been trying to teach Katie and Tys how to pedal their tricycle. They're getting better at it but, I have a feeling they'll know how to ride a 4-wheeler before knowing how to pedal a bike!

No pictures to post since Casey has our camera with him in Reno. He has OSHA training today and tomorrow than, will begin on the power plant project on Friday. Good news ~ he found a house that he can stay in while he's in Reno these next couple of months. He has been staying with our friends, the Prestons, in the past. They have been very gracious in letting him stay there but, we knew he needed to find something a little more permanent since he'll be there a lot more now. So, Mrs Preston got him in touch with a doctor that owns a house in Sparks but is only at the house about once a month. The doctor was more than happy to have him stay there and have someone look after her place. It's also nearer to the welding shop for him... God continues to bless us in more ways than one!

Croup

Even though Trent is feeling lots better today, he's been fighting croup and bronchiolitis yesterday and Sunday. I had to take him to the E.R. on Sunday evening for a breathing treatment, x-rays and lab work. The good news was that he doesn't have pneumonia or RSV... the bad news is that he has the worse case of croup that our doc. had seen this season! So, he came home with meds and a nebulizer to use before going to bed. We've also been using the humidifier, motrin and Vicks Rub around the clock... our house smells like a medicine cabinet. I can see that he is feeling so much better today! He is eating a little better and has been playing; although, he is still somewhat crabby and clingy. He also slept pretty good last night. So, thankfully, I think the worse part is over. Here he is hanging out with his daddy on Easter ~ it was so sad to see him too sick to play with his new Easter toys!

Saturday Excitement

Our Saturday morning became quite exciting when our friend, Bob, came over with his loader. He and Casey have been working on switching the bed of Casey's work truck to a flat bed... Bob brought the bed over from his house like this (thankfully, he doesn't live too far away!) Of course, the kids thought it was SO cool!!

Watching the excitement from our bathroom window

Once they were done I let Tys go outside to see the "big truck"... Casey took Tys for a little ride and, Tys even got to use the controls!

He didn't stop smiling the whole time he was in there!

Casey continues to work on his work truck and getting it "welding functional" His last day at Dyno was last Saturday night so, he's been laid off for a week now. Really, it hasn't felt any different than when he was on his 7 off from Dyno. However, I'm sure it will once that last paycheck comes in :) Thankfully, he begins a welding job in Reno this next week. The contract for that will be at a power plant there and will last a month - 2 months. He'll be home on the weekends... Casey also got his first mobile welding repair job this last week. Something he could repair quickly for a farmer/truck driver in need and I'm thankful for the ways God is reminding us that He'll take care of us!!

Easter Day

Happy Resurrection Day! Just like last Easter, Katie woke up with a sick tummy... she is feeling better already but, still stayed home from church. At least she was stylin' in her hair rollers, ha ha! Also, Trent came down with a bad case of croup during the night and has been miserable. Our house is humid from the humidifier and smells like Vicks VaporRub! Easter 2010

Easter 2009

Marie arrived Friday night from Boise and, we've had a great weekend with her! Yesterday morning I had 12 kids from church over to dye Easter eggs then, in the afternoon our kids got to hunt for Easter eggs in the house (since it was too cold outside) Then, last night we had a yummy lasagna dinner with Marie and Joe. The kids get so excited when they wake up in the morning and see their Auntie Ri sleeping on the livingroom... it's a GREAT BIG FUN SLEEPOVER!!

New Room

About a month ago I was browsing on-line and found a comforter set that I liked from Bed Bath and Beyond. And, even sweeter was the fact that it was ON SALE!! So, I called Casey and asked him if I could get my Mother's Day present a little early ~ since he hadn't even thought about Mother's Day and had absolutely no idea what he was going to get me, he thought that was a GREAT idea! LOL So, I ordered it. Then, while in Elko I found new curtains to match. All of it was under $100! Next, I'll be working on painting and wall decor....