Let the Sugar High Begin!!!

Seeing Pink

I have the absolute BEST family, friends & neighbors!!! A good friend of mine threw a ward shower for me last Thursday, and then my Mom and sisters threw a shower for me today. I very literally have a closet full of pink now!! It is so fun, and so very different! I keep folding, and re-folding all the cute little outfits. Too fun! But, I have to admit, I feel a little guilty-I mean this is kid #5-should I be getting all this stuff??? But, I won't complain, it has been so sweet of everyone! I can't wait to see Drue in all these cute clothes!! (But, I CAN wait at least another week or so :)

Hold Your Horses!!

Yesterday at about 5:30 I was making dinner and I started to feel some cramping. I thought it was no big deal, until it kept coming and going. Finally I got Mark's stop watch and started timing them-the contractions were 6-7 minutes apart! I called my Mom, but she was still at work. Told my dad to have her call me, then about 10 minutes later she shows up at our house! I thought she had talked to my Dad, but she had no idea what was going on. She ended up staying the night with the boys while Mark and I went to the hospital. They hooked me up to all the monitors and put me on medication to stop the contractions. It took about three hours for the medicine to kick in, and the contractions were still 8 minutes apart. But, luckily I wasn't dilating at all. Mark went home at about 2am and then came back to get me at 5:30am. My mom was meeting my aunt and they were flying to California this morning to help out my Grandma and Grandpa, so the timing was perfect.

I am *supposed* to stay "down" as much as possible...like that's possible...but Mark took today off and probably tomorrow-which has been sooooo helpful! He is a great Dad and husband! We are both so glad that Drue didn't decide to come last night. We are so not ready! Now at least we know we need to get ready, and hopefully she'll stay where she is for at least another couple of weeks.

Fall Fun

Today Mark and I took the boys-minus one- to J&J for their annual food drive/hay ride. This is the first year we've done it, and it was a lot of fun. It's one of those things that you're glad you did for the photos and the memories-but, you're really glad when it's over. :) Devin had "prior engagements" with some friends (he's getting to "that age"), so I left it up to him whether he came or not. Heaven knows we didn't need a 'tude from him when I knew we'd have plenty of 'tude to go around.The hay ride stopped in a huge pumpkin patch and each child got to pick out a pumpkin. Sam picked a pretty big one and carried it all my himself without too much complaining. Noah loved picking up his little, slightly rotten pumpkin, and then promptly throwing it back on the ground. Ty had to find just the right one, not too big, but not "the littlest". We also picked one for Devin-aren't we nice? Of course when he got home and saw it he complained that it wasn't big enough...well next time you'll choose to come with us then, right???? We'll see. Anyway, it was a beautiful day, and nice to do something outside. I wish these kind of days would last longer!!

It's Great to be 8!!

Sam was a sweet baby. A big baby, but a sweet baby. He slept well early on, which is always a good thing! And he had a cute personality. He had lots of dark hair and really olive skin...which is funny because now he is our pasty boy :) I guess his olive skin was like Pangaea and turned into the hundreds of darling freckles he now has all over his face! :)

Sam has always been great at everything he tries. He hopped on his bike and rode without training wheels the first time he tried. He is a great baseball player, basketball player, and skateboarder. His math papers always come home with "wow"s on them. (Even though he says he doesn't like math) And he's a great reader-getting better every day!

Sam is not one to hide how he feels about anything, which is really fun when he's happy, and not so fun when he's not. He wants to do the right thing all the time, and gets frustrated when he doesn't, or when other people don't.
For his birthday he invited three friends to Sparetime and they bowled, played mini-golf, and had pizza. It was a lot of fun. Devin made Sam a go-kart with help from Grandpa Spalding and Mark. It turned out really nice and they have had tons of fun on it already.



Today (the 10th-his real birthday) he was baptized. It was a really nice program. He was the only boy being baptized-there were three girls and him-all from our ward! The baptism went off without a hitch, no do overs :), and he had lots of friends and family there to see it. Afterward we went to Golden Corral and celebrated both his baptism and birthday with family.

Happy Birthday Sam!! We love you!!

Greener Grass

My friend Sarah posted about their car troubles, and she did a great job of putting life into perspective. The grass really isn't all that green on the other side.

Mark was sure that by now, somehow, we would have been able to get a newer, bigger vehicle. But, here we are still driving the 1994 Montero that has over 250,000 miles and makes some very interesting sounds, letting the neighbors in on our coming and going. Adding another child to our family in about a month will be cause for more excitement, seeing as we can't fit another child into the Montero. I was contemplating tying Drue's car seat to the roof, but then I thought better of it and decided on tying Devin to the roof instead :) Only kidding. Mark is especially peeved because we have to register the Montero THIS WEEK, and he doesn't think the tires will pass inspection, which will mean throwing money we don't have into a car that will no longer fit our family. Kinda frustrating.

But...here's the part that I learned, and am still learning. At least we have a car to drive. I could be one of the moms I see every once in awhile, walking down the sidewalk on 1700 West with two kids in strollers and three tagging along behind, all holding grocery bags and going who knows how far down the road to their dumpy apartment and their gang banger neighbors. I live in a house I love with neighbors I love and a car I am trying desperately to love-a husband I love and kids I adore. I have it good. And anyway, how often do we all pile into one car.....once or twice a week? We can handle this! :)

P.S. The photo is NOT our Montero....just in case you couldn't tell.