What am I doing?

Well, we continue to do many different things here at the Hay house. I don't seem to finish any one project. Tom and I for many years have called ourselves the half done family. I hope we don't do that this time with the girls room because I would hate to have them living in the livingroom for the rest of their childhoods. :) Yesterday I took Julia to her PT and OT appts. My parents took Macie, Thomas and Matthew their house and they pulled weeds. They came home and Macie and I canned 3 quarts of refrigerator pickles. I got the recipe from this new website that I found through my blog stalking habit I have. I'm not sure if the pickles will work out, but it was worth a try. I'll let you know in a week after they have been in the fridge for the right amount of time. Check Prudy out and you'll find some great recipes. Yummo.
Everyone in the Gang was very tired from the day before because we had gone school clothes shopping and we went to Aunt Kelly's for dinner. Kelly had a High School friend come to town and we all went up to Sutter Creek for dinner. We had a blast and the kids sere super tired. So anyway yesterday everyone had naps including Julia (yeah) and that is when Macie and I did the pickles. After nap we made some candy that a friend of ours gave us. It was an Easter candy making kit. So here we are in the middle of summer and we are eating Easter candy. :)
I plan to take the kids to the water park today, but things always seem to get in the way of my plans so we will see.
Well I'm off to play with the kids, do the dishes with Macie, help Thomas clean his room, and give Henry a bath, do some laundry. You get the drift.

This Week

So today is Monday and we begin a new week full of great things to do. Here is what we have to do this week.
1. spackle and chaulk the baseboards in the girls room.
2. Touch up the paint in the girls room.
3. Matthew has his last speech session on Tues.
4. Macie has an ortho appt. on Wed.
5. Grandma is taking the kids school clothes shopping on Wed.
6. Tonight we get to go to grandma and pa's house for dinner
7. Organize a couple of closets
8. Go to the kids swim team awards night on Tues.

I guess that is enough. It was a terrific Friday, Sat, and Sun. Tom went to Scout camp and my sister came to help me put the laminate floor in. Big surprise is that her husband showed up too, and they did the whole floor while I painted baseboards and took care of the kids. Sunday we went to church and got to relax afterwords. We are waiting for the loft beds to arrive so we can move the girls back into their bedroom and begin on the boys redo. Well I'm off to do a little spackling. :)

A Busy Week

I wish I had pictures to go along with this post, but I don't. This week has been a busy one. We started thinking that we could buy a new house. You know 5 kids in a 3 bedroom isn't all that fun. Well we found out that we couldn't afford the house we wanted so we thought why not add on and get more bedrooms that way. Our friend across the street is a spacial designer and she came up with the perfect plan. We are in love and decided to go ahead and get some bids. We will not be adding on. The one bid we did get was too rich for our blood. ($125,000) So, now we are re-doing the girls and then onto the boys rooms. We will be putting in closet organizers, re-painting and getting loft beds for each girl. We are hoping that this will give the feeling of more room or maybe just the illusion of it. So Monday Macie and I spent all day on line researching loft beds and found the one she wants. Julia loves this one. I know a bit expensive, but only a fraction of what an add on would be. The beds should be here in 2-3 weeks. Now we have to paint and lay the new laminate flooring. We got a smokin deal at Costco for the floor. We also made a big giant cookie.
Tuesday- I took Matthew to his Physical Therapy appt and then Macie went to the orthodontist. She had to have x-rays and will be getting a retainer soon. The ortho says that we will be doing extensive work on her in the years to come. Oh, Joy!
Wednesday - I took Macie to get a cavity filled and then onto Wal-mart to buy odds and ends.
Thursday- I made some plum jam and homemade bread.
Friday - I moved the girls out of their room and into the living room. We can now begin the re-do of their room.
Saturday - picked up the paint. Finished prepping the room, started priming the walls, washed all the blinds except my room and the boys, washed all the windows, went to the river cats game with all the kids. They had a ball at the game, and the girls love sleeping in the living room. I hope it doesn't last too long having a living/bedroom.
Anyway I should have taken pictures of the beginning of the re-model, but I didn't and I'm kicking myself. I would love to see the work that we do as it gets done. I guess it's not too late. The girls love the new colors that are out and I let them have a light neon green type of color. The color is called Scotch Mint #G040. You can search and check it out. It seems brighter in real life than at the website. It's only paint right? :)

The Sound Of Music

Ok, the annual Music Circus has started here in our town. It used to be in the round in a tent. They have built a building now with air conditioning, but it is still in the round. We used to have season tickets and loved going, but it has become to difficult to get a babysitter every Tuesday for 7 weeks in row. So this year we were able to go to one production and it just happened to be The Sound Of Music. My mom likes for the children to go so we took the three oldest kids. They loved it. I think I had something to do with the overwhelming support from the kids. You see, The Sound Of Music was one of the first movies I ever saw as a kid. I remember being so enthralled with it at the movies. As a young adult I purchased it on VHS for myself and have watched it many times. So you can imagine the happiness I felt in my heart when my three oldest children were equally enthralled as I was. I have to say this production of it by the Music Circus was the 3rd time I've seen it there and it was by far the best one. I'm not sure if you are familiar with the production or not, but there is a point when Maria and Capt. Von Trapp kiss and it was at that point when all was very quiet and still in the theatre that Julia decides to say very loudly "Yuck". I would say about three rows of people looked at us and were snickering at Julia. These people were in the same row as us and in front and back of us. I have to say it was pretty funny, and I am proud that she would find that yucky after all she is only five and we don't need a kissing bandit on our hands. My friend Lori babysat the other two at home, and I am grateful to her for her kind act of service to me. We had a nice family time and we even took the kids to the Clarion Hotel for desert before the show started. They loved getting desert in a fancy place. We would be glad to host a Sound of Music movie night if anyone is interested. :)

New Look to the Blog

As you all can see I have a new look to my blog. I found the background on a fellow bloggers site. I couldn't tell you who that blogger is because I am constantly reading blogs of others and then going to new blogs through links of the original blog. Yes, I know, mind boggling, but fun to see what others say and write about. I think the new look is soooo cute and fun. Who knows when I'll tire of it and change, so for now enjoy the stripes. :)

New Signing Time! DVDs

Hey everyone, there are new Signing Time! DVDs. You'll need to pre-order them. If you are one of the first 300 people you might just get it autographed. I ordered hoping for an autograph. :) I think I'll give them to Matthew for his 3rd b-day. He just loves Rachel and Signing Time! Be sure to click here to order your set of Series 2 Volumes 11 & 12 with free coloring book and crayons. Happy Signing!!!!

Yosemite Vacation 2008

We just got back from Yosemite and fun was had by all. We arrived on Sunday afternoon. It took us quite awhile to get there. We all met at Kelly's house in Sutter Creek and then followed each other all the way there. The kids loved that we stopped at a fish hatchery that Brad knew about on the way there. Of course they were starving so we headed to Groveland to stop at a park and picnic there before entering Yosemite. Tom and I decided not to allow food to be eaten in the car due to the bear situation in Yosemite. Mom, Emily, Kelly and Macie all saw a little bear in the camp. Mom got pictures of course I did not. I'm sure I was either feeding someone or trying to get someone to take a nap. The children had the time of their lives which makes all the work of going on the trip worth it. Sunday evening before dinner we took a bus ride around the valley. According to Julia this was her favorite of the whole trip. Matthew loved climbing a rock that was near our cabin. Thomas loved going rafting and Macie like seeing Yosemite Falls. By the way that is all I saw of the valley this trip due to having 5 kids that needed to be fed, napped, or taken to the swimming pool. I loved it though. Monday everyone went rafting and Dad stayed back with me to help me with Julia, Matthew, and Henry. We saw the gang come down the river from Sentinel Bridge. Tuesday we took a hike to Yosemite Falls and saw beautiful scenery. There was a fire nearby and the valley was full of smoke. Every pretty sight we saw was just a little hazy. The Hunkins went to Vernal Falls and then we all went to the Awahnee to have a drink. The Hay Gang had 2 yummy drinks one was even called the Awahnee Dream. What fun. Emily, Ali and Ashley had to go home Tuesday evening and we went to eat Hamburgers and fries. The kids got ice-cream and watched the nightly show in the amphitheater. We went swimming everyday in the pool at Curry Village. Henry even got in. Matthew had a very special private swim lesson with Auntie and he is surprisingly happy in the water. We packed up and came home on Wednesday. We were all sad to see Yosemite go, but know that we will be back. Macie even spent some of her hard earned money at Yosemite. She loved being able to do that. The Gang, of course, couldn't make it all the way home without stopping so we fixed a picnic and ate at the Groveland park. Henry was very happy to get home where he could crawl around to his heart's content. You see we had to keep him pretty much locked up the whole trip because of all the hazards that camping brings. Sticks, dirt, leaves all seam to end up in the mouth. Here are some of my favorite shots of the trip. Enjoy!
Matthew became quite the rock climber.
Everyone just loved rafting.The kids at Yosemite Falls.Emily and Julia at the famous Awahnee Fireplace.
Thomas enjoying the Awahnee Dream.
Scary Matthew.The Hay Gang.
Julia's dirty little foot on the way home. I'm not sure how much dirt I cleaned off of people during our stay, but this is the most I saw at one time. :)

Fun Contest

I found this fun contest. It is from a mom and she seems to love Signing Time! as much as we do. Check out her site and you may win a collection of Signing Time! DVD's. Good Luck!!!!

Our Baby Is 1 Year Old Today!!!!!

Yep, that's right Henry is 1 year today. We just don't know where the year has gone. He has reached many milestones and loves to play and giggle with his brothers and sisters. He is the most gigglie baby I know. Today he went to the see Dr. Wong, and poor Dr. Wong, she had to deal with the whole Hay gang coming to the appt. Anyway, he had his 1 year old shots and is now a bit cranky. Now, we all know how big he is, but he has weighed in at the 50 percentile with 22lbs. 11oz. and he is 29.5 inches long putting him in the 48th percentile. I guess he is right on average and is no longer a super big baby. I then took the whole gang to get end of the year/happy birthday ice cream cones. Henry loved the bites of chocolate goodness that he got. Yummo, something new to scream for when everyone else is eating it. I also took him to get his first year portraits done. Ooooohhh they are so cute. This picture I took with my fabulous Nikon camera. Isn't he cute. I also took a few of Matthew with him. Henry can crawl, pull up on things, try to stand alone, sign more (Thank you, Signing Time!), laugh when things are funny, and just be so stinkin cute that I could just eat him up. Here's to you Henry. We love You.
Here is a video of our favorite, Rachel Coleman of Signing Time!, doing her Happy Birthday song.


More shots from the Hay House birthday photo shoot.

What Type of Food Am I?

You Are Italian Food

Comforting yet overwhelming. People love you, but sometimes you're just too much.

What Kind of Food Are You?

Internet Shopping, Oh The Fun You Can Have!!!!!

I have been Internet shopping today. I love to shop the net. I find great things that I don't have to go to the store for. Today I bought shorts. Shorts, you say, so what, You can get shorts anywhere. I say not these shorts. I like to wear longer length shorts. I like them to be to my knee. I can't seem to find them around here anywhere except a few places and then they don't always fit right. Well I found this place on the net called Knee Length I was able to buy shorts that are to my knee and got a great price to boot. I then went onto to my favorite Signing Time! and bought the newest DVDs. I've been wanting them and have heard terrific things about them so now they are being processed and sent to my door as we speak. If you would like to order from Signing Time! just click on my Signing Time! banner and it will take you directly to the store. Isn't that just great. I know you might be saying, but what about the shipping? I feel that it is worth the shipping price to me so I don't have to back up the gang and fight them and the other people in the store. I'm much happier if I can get what I need and save the gang the hassle. Now all I have to do is find out how to buy the necessities on the web. I'm sure I could do that to. Just don't tell my husband how much I love web shopping. :)

Father & Son Campout

Our ward has an annual Father-Son Campout. Thomas and Tom have been going for years now, and this year a new Hay went to the event. Yes, you quessed it, Matthew went and had the time of his life. For those of you who are familiar with our little monkey, otherwise known as the terror of the west(Scotts Flat will never be the same), you can only imagine the fun he got into. Tom is now in the Young Mens orginization so he had some responsibilities he had to attend to. This almost kept us from letting Matthew go, but it is the Father-Son campout afterall, so he went. Tom spent most of his time chasing Matthew down, putting up and taking down a tent, changing diapers, changing wet clothes (Matthew and Thomas), wiping 16 tons of snot/boogers out of Matthew's nose, supervising the cooking of the camp breakfast, trying to sleep ( listening to a Stevie Ray Vaughn tribute from across the lake at 1:00a.m. he says he may have to buy that album), trying to stay awake, eating smores, watching Matthew burn marshmallows and drop them into the fire, watching Matthew juggle golf balls that came from the Farmer clan (thanks alot), kept track of Thomas' fishing, hideout making and golf ball throwing. At one point Matthew was unaccounted for so Tom went looking for him and found him sitting quietly in a tree. Turns out he was stuck in the tree. Matthew could also be found in various tents around the campsite. Tom thinks the men became good at zipping up their tents after he was found in a few. I'm hoping that next year will be just as fun and that Henry can be in a position to go. Maybe Matthew can teach him a few tricks of the trade. Never a dull moment with Hay Gang!!! :)

Thomas is Famous

Well we sent the pictures of Thomas' Antsy McClain birthday party to Antsy and he made a page on his website all about Thomas and his birthday party. Antsy sure liked that Thomas is a fan and would go to all the trouble of having an Antsy party. Anyway check out the Thomas Hay page on Antsy McClain's website. Go to unhitched.com by way of the title of this post and then click on the news link and the birthday party page is the top article. Way to go, Thomas. By the way, we are going to see Antsy sing at the Palms in Winters CA, on Friday night and Macie and Thomas are coming with us. What fun!

Edited on April 21, 2008

We took Macie and Thomas to see Antsy McClain on Friday night. We got to sit in the front row and Thomas was absolutley thrilled. The concert went until 12 midnight and the kids hung on. They loved his song about Larry getting the cooties. Antsy even announced to the audience about Thomas having an Antsy McClain birthday. Thomas has told me that he wants to be like Antsy when he is older. He wants to sing and play the guitar just like him. We couldn't think of a better role model for young kids. Thomas knew many of the songs and sang along. Macie was completly mortified when I got up to take Thomas to the bathroom and Antsy stopped playing and asked "Where you going?" as I walked out the door. Then he asked Macie if I usually take a long time in the bathroom or if I was going 1 or 2. She jsut laughed and pointed at Tom and said ask him. He then proceeded to play licks until I came back. I have watched him to theis bit before and thought how funny it was, well not anymore. :) I vow to never sit in the front row again, unless of course we have the kids with us. What we won't do for our children. :)

Swimming 101

As of April 1st I began swimming with the Masters Swim Program here in Rocklin. Even though as a girl I swam on many a team I am in way over my head. It has been 12days and I have gone to workout 6 times. Today (Sat.) I went to the special time they have to let new members get pointers for their stroke. Man, I know it's been a long time, but I had no idea I was that bad. :) Anyway I won't let the lack of a good stroke get me down. I'm going again Monday morning bright and early. My workouts are at 5:30 a.m. I know, I know, that's way too early, but if I'm going to get into shape and lose some weight I need to get out there and do it. So, I go. I do feel better and stronger. I just hope my stroke can get up to snuff. I did learn a lot this morning about how to move myself through the water. Anyway I'm off my soap box now and I will continue swimming and getting better. Oh, and one more thing I already smell like chlorine.

Favorite Mom Contest

I want to tell you about this contest. It is for America's favorite mom. One of my friends has been nominated and I would love to ask you to vote for her.
You all know how crazy we are at the Hay House for Signing Time! and Rachel Coleman. Well she is the mom nominated please go vote for her. Because of her we have the gift of communication with Julia.



This takes you to vote for her. You will need to register, but you can also vote once a day. Online voting ends April 25th. Have fun and go Rachel!!!!!