FoLlOwInG DiReCtIoNs!!

Here's Sammy!!! This is what happens when Sammy follows directions. I told him to go get some new undies on. This is how he put them on. I mean I wasn't specific, I didn't tell him to put them on his bum & not his head. What a goof ball! This is an example of my life with little Sammy. He is absolutely hilarious, & makes me laugh all day...even when we are in a hurry & I really need his undies on him BUM! He's so funny & you can tell from the pix that he KNOWS it! I just love that stinky little boy!
I even took this with my phone so I could send it to Scott at work. He said his co-workers thought it was good stuff too! So, if you're ever suppose to meet me somewhere...this is why I'm late! Crazy things like this seem to come up, especially as I'm trying to walk out the door! It's a good thing he makes me laugh, cuz he makes me crazy too!
- Kate

First Day of Kindergarten!!

Miss Avery Lyn had her very first day of Kindergarten! She was so excited, & couldn't wait to get there to meet the other kids in her class. A couple kids from her Kindergarten Enhancement class are in her school class too. That is so nice. I think she did great!
Here she is all settled into her seat! She was pretty funny with a goony little smile on her face. Wow, two kids in elementary school. When did that happen?
Crazy crazy! Well...I'm off to paint some more!

Little Aunt Katie Moves In!!

Katie is here!! She has officially moved in...to the office. The basement isn't quite done yet, so she is camping out in the office. But, she's here & we are LOVING it. I'm not sure she is, but we are. It's pretty nice having another "big kid" around to talk to, watch movies with, & someone to appreciate my cooking when Scott is out of town! I'm definitely going to enjoy the extra help too. She has already made a couple last minute store runs for me & yesterday I had to run the big kids & she was home to leave Brooke with. It's a beautiful thing! She starts Beauty School in a few weeks & then she can practice on us. (I know to some that might sound scary, but I'm excited!!)
Avery has already talked her into painting her fingers & toes, a couple times! I guess it's good practice for school, right. The kids LOVE having her here too!!

So MuCh GoInG On!

How sweet is this picture? I put Brooke on the couch & went to do dishes. I realized that I hadn't heard a request for something from AveryLyn for a few minutes, which MUST mean she has fallen asleep somewhere. So I go looking for her & find her snuggled up to Baby Sister. Brooke thought it was great to be smashed by her sissy. She had the cutest smiles when I found them!
We have had so much going on this week, Avery hasn't been able to make it thru a day yet without a nap or needing one desperately. In fact ALL the kids (& the mom) have needed naps this week! The naps are nice when they happen, but not so nice at night when I'm trying to get them all in bed. Avery Lyn needs ALOT more sleep than her brother & sister & we have been so BUSY. It's going to be an interesting school year, hopefully we all get used to the schedule!
I have FINISHED the painting. Well, okay not completely...I still have to do the bathroom. I wanted to do a fun color in the bathroom & I haven't gotten to it yet. But...the rest of the basement project is painted! Halle-freaking-luyah!! ( I had no idea how to spell that, but you know what I mean!) It looks nice & I can't wait to get it DONE!!

Sammy & Avery's First Day!!

There have been a lot of "Firsts" this week! Sammy had his first day of PreSchool yesterday! He loved it, after he had a little meltdown when I left. When he settled down, he decided he loved it. How fun!! He picked his Awesome shirt to wear; it's his favorite word. Everything is so Awesome!
Sammy also had his first soccer practice last night. He is SO SO excited about Soccer & LOVED putting on his shin guards & being one of the "Big" kids. He's so cute! He did touch the ball a few times with his hands. That's just TOO tempting for him!
Avery Lyn had her first day of Kindergarten Enhancement class today! She loves her teacher & came running out of class to tell me about her new friend she made today. She was very excited about class & loved her art project they did. Art is her absolute favorite, so her teacher made an instant friend in Avery when they did a fun art project on the first day. How fun!
We have had the craziest week ever! I have just graduated to the stage with kids when all I do is run them places. 3 different school schedules, 3 different soccer schedules, dance & a newborn! It's going to be interesting!
Hope all of you are having a great first week of school! - Kate

Last Day of Summer & First Day of 3rd Grade!

Avery Lyn

Savannah & Marlee
Savannahs cute friend Marlee came to play for the last day of summer & have a sleepover. She told Savannah that she hadn't seen Hairspray yet, & Savannah decided that was unacceptable! So, we packed up & went to see Hairspray for the second time. The girls loved it & Marlee sat on the edge of her seat the whole time. We are a little dorky & know all the songs to the movie. It was nice to hear the family behind us singing the songs too, so at least we're not the only dorks around. It was a great "Last Day of Summer Vacation"! We had to take pics with the hottie "Link" the girls love him. (I do too!!)
Savannah looking all cute & grown up for her first day of 3rd Grade!! We went down & met her teacher and got her all settled. She looked a little nervous when I left. But she came home very excited & raving about her cute teacher! Too fun! When did she get so big?

Late Night

The Girls had a Late Night to watch High School Musical 2! Avery Lyn, Savannah, Maddie, & Brooke were very excited to see Troy & the East High kids! It was lots of fun! (I secretly love Zac Efron too, well not so secretly.) The girls were so cute, dancing & singing to the music! We had pizza, popcorn, & cookies. Treats make any movie better!
Miss Brookie looking so cute & chubby. She's so cute.
Here is a picture of Scott while we were putting the primer on the walls in the basement. He's pretty hot in that mask & covered in primer! We have finished the primer & are starting on the tan paint! It's starting to look like a real part of the house down there! I can't wait for it to be done!

Timp Cave

Scott took Savannah & Sammy on a hike up to the Timpanogos Cave. It sounded like a pretty good hike for the kids. I guess Sammy ran all the way to the top! He's a nut! He LOVED it. Savannah is a little afraid of Bears in AF Canyon, so she was a little more cautious. It was a fun day for the daddy & stinky kids. Sammy answered questions from the Ranger & got to be "Junior Park Ranger". He is so proud!! He's worn his little Junior Ranger badge since the hike, to bed & everything. He's such a funny kid!

Class Postings!

Avery Lyn is going to start Kindergarten! She is so excited & we went yesterday to find out who her teacher is going to be. We haven't done kindergarten at this school, so we don't know anything about her, but we're sure she'll be great! We even walked around to see where her classroom will be. How fun!!
Savannah found her class too! She is excited too, & she is going to be in 3rd grade! How did that happen? She was very happy to learn that 2 of her cute little friends are in her class. She was a little disappointed that her BFF Emily is in the other class. They are on the same track, so they will have all the same recesses, so it's all good!
They were both so cute looking for their classes, & getting excited to start next week!


We had a little basement "mishap". We had a "small" leak on the main floor of the house, & it leaked right thru to the basement. Scott & I ran around like nuts trying to fix it, and when we opened the basement door it sounded like a waterfall. It was crazy, so the poor contractor had to come out last night & try to fix what he could. The crew is down there right now doing the last of the sanding. So, we'll see what has to be done to fix it. At least it happened now & not when it was all finished! It will be ok, just a minor set back. Hopefully we can still get the painting in this week! We did get the carpeting, doors & moulding ordered yesterday. It's coming along.

The Basement!!

The hallway to the back bedroom & the door to the bathroom.
The Family Room!
The top picture is with just the sheetrock & corner bead up. The bottom picture is the family room after they had finished the taping & mudding & the texture.
The basement is on it's way to being done! We're getting close. Scott is home now, so we are going to paint this week. We also have to get the bathroom stuff ordered & put in. The moulding, doors, & carpeting too. We still have a bit to do, but we're getting closer everyday.
I had a few "glitches" to deal with this week, but the week is over now & we all survived. The neighbors cat almost didn't survive, but I won't go into all that.
Yesterday was Ryannes baptism. It was a great day! She was so pretty in her little white dress & Savannah loved watching her cousin be baptized. Sammy & I need to work some more on being reverent, but other than that it was perfect.
Sammys little Best Friend Isaiah had his little birthday party yesterday too. So, after the baptism Aubrey came up & took Sammy to the party for me. So he could make the party & the rest of us could go to the luncheon for Ryanne. It was so nice of her & Sammy & I both appreciated it! He told me for the rest of the day that birthday parties are SO fun!! Avery was suppose to go to the party too, but she was having too much fun with Emmie & Jaycee so she stayed at Auntie Ree Rees with the rest of us.
So, we did somehow fit everything in yesterday. During all of that the crew was finishing up the texture in the basement. It really was a FULL day. It turned out great. Thanks to everyone who made the day possible.

BiG dAy!!

The little kids & I went to see Ratatouille today. They loved it! I think they mainly loved the popcorn, treats, & soda. As you can see from the below picture Brooke was very impressed!
Tonight when it was jammie time, Sammy decided we needed to play "whack" like Power Rangers! So, we did & he karate chopped me, jumped all over my couches, and beat the crap out of me with his jammies. He's so funny! He's lucky he makes me laugh!! Savannah thought we had both lost our minds, so she was the camera woman.
Morgan babysat for us tonight while I went to my cousins baby shower. So, when we got home we made brownies. Sammy was the lucky spoon licker & he still had brownie batter all over his face! When I finally decided I was tired of the Sam Power Ranger beating me up, I of course just tackled him. However, he thought he was so funny to wipe his brownie batter face all over me! I was his human napkin, and he laughed so hard. He thinks he's quite hilarious & of course he's right!!
The girls were still having fun play photographer, so they took lots of pictures. Here is the beautiful Brookie & her Mommy.
I had so much fun at the baby shower tonight. I got to hang out with a bunch of cousins. It was really great to hang out with Shari & Wendy Jo. I always love getting to talk with Shari & it was so nice to get to know Wendy Jo. She actually lives really close, hopefully we'll all be able to get together again soon! Thanks it's always so much fun to get to hang out & talk with adults. Especially fun adults!

SwEeT BaBy BrOoKiE

Brooke is starting to outgrow her 0-3 month clothes! How sad! I'm just not ready for her to get big already. The last few things I have put on her, have been pulled pretty tight across her chubby little body. She's so stinking cute, and I love that she's getting chubby, but I'm not ready to already be putting things away!
She is so sweet!!

Walking Gong Show!

Okay, so I took all 4 kids to the Dr. on Tuesday for their back to school check ups. Utah requires one more round of shots that Colorado does not; so they were all in need of shots. The Dr. office is under serious construction, so that made it even more crazy. We got there to a full waiting room, with no seats left. So, we started with all of us in one seat, reading books to the kids to try to keep them happy. Before we were done we were able to spread out, but by then we had read all the kid books, so my little monkeys were getting restless. We make it back to the exam room, and just trying to make it thru all the kids was a huge process! Avery Lyn needed to give a "sample" and needless to say she got stage fright. So it took 3 different trips to the potty to try and get her to go pee before we finally just gave up. The exam room only has 2 chairs and the exam table, so the kids were already on top of each other and fighting over who got to sit where. It was lots of fun, and we were in a small room, so I was fast approaching "had enough" status. Then... we finally make it to shot time! Wow, I mean seriously wow!!!
Savannah went first. I practically begged her to be brave so the little kids wouldn't freak out. She got a little nervous, and cried a little when she got the shot. As soon as it was over she was okay, but as I turned around I see Avery inching toward the door to get the crap out of there! So, I put my foot in front of the door so she can't open it. The nurse turns around and says okay it's Samuels turn. His response was "No, me not have to have shot." nurse: "yes, Samuel it's your turn." Sammy: "NO, me NOT have to have SHOT!" nurse: "come on Samuel, it's your turn." Sammy: "NO NO SHOT!!!". At that point, his Optimus Prime toy goes flying off the chair, he climbs up and over the side of the chair, trying to get to the door. Luckily I was still standing there blocking Avery from escaping so I caught Sammy in mid air, before he landed on Brookes car seat. He was thinking the same as Avery, he wanted out of there!!! So now I'm holding Sammy, & still trying to block the door from Avery. Sammy has his legs wrapped around me, and his arms wrapped around my head. He's a wiry little thing, so it wasn't the easiest thing to get him off of me. So as I literally wrestle Sammy I'm still trying to block the door. During all this my cell phone rings, Savannah answers it, and starts to chit chat. Sammy is screaming out of control, right in my ear, because he is of course still attached to me. Then I hear Avery singing a song about how, she hates shots and she's not going to have any! Just about the time I finally PRY Sams legs off of me, Savannah is putting the cell phone to my face. Because why not take a call right now too. So, I say "hello" and Scott says "what the hell is going on?" At that point if I could have crawled thru the phone I would have. I won't go into details about the very short conversation, but it was short.
The nurse gets a second nurse to help, (because obviously this lady she's dealing with is a total loon & has NO control over her children). The second nurse says that if I could just get Sammy to the table and hold down his upper half they could hold his legs. I mean honestly this is ONE 35 lbs. child & it's going to take 3 full grown women to hold him down. At that I'm still not sure we even can!!! I somehow get him to the table, all the while trying to make sure that Avery doesn't bolt right out of the door! He is still so out of control, I had to lay across him, and the nurses each had to take a leg. It was enough to count for my work out for the next 4 days. And, at this point we haven't even made it to Avery! Now usually as soon as they have had the shot, they tend to settle down, well not Sammy. He is still flipping out, he now sounds like a car alarm. No mommy kisses are going to fix this!
Then as we get Sammy to settle a little, and put him in the chair we all turn to Avery. More than ever she's ready to bolt, and trying to make it out the door! As I try to pick her up, she flips! I mean you'd think we were doing experimental testing on these kids! I'm sure the whole building thought I was beating the ever loving crap out of them! Miss Avery Lyn; she is less than excited about this. I pick her up, she goes completely stiff. She won't bend, she's screaming "No I don't want you to shoot me!" (yeah that had to sound nice to people in the other exam rooms!!) I get her to the table, quite easier than Sammy, but still just as noisy. She screamed so hard I thought she was going to lose her voice. When it was all over, I'm trying to console all the kids as if they have just been thru some horrific ordeal they are going to need therapy for! Sammy did inform me that my kisses aren't magic, they don't fix shots. I guess I can't be super mom in their eyes forever. Sad day!
As we were leaving ALL the nurses looked at us on our way out, I can only imagine what they were thinking. We all had tear stained faces by that point.
We met up with Gramma Robin after, she said we all looked like we had been put thru the wringer. She was right! They were all very anxious to tell Gramma all about their terrifying experience. Poor Gramma even went with me to get some dinner & to take them to WalMart to get their treats for getting shots. I think I wasn't looking so stable at that point! We really are the Walking Gong Show!

When is a good time to tell them that it's almost FLU shot time?

Reid Family Reunion

Sammy playing in the tubes. He's a cheese ball!
This is Avery Lyn at the end of the day, she was very ready to go home!!
Brooke slept most of the day. She's too cute, it was the first time she had slept in 2 days.



Savannah & Ryanne, it was Ryannes birthday!!


Last week was the Reid Family Reunion. We went to 7 Peaks on Friday. The kids had tons of fun, they always do! It was beautiful to have so many people there to help. The kids got to go on slides, suckered Grandma & various Aunts & cousins to take them thru the Lazy River, the Wave Pool and more than a few trips over to the Snake Pool. It was lovely for the mom, aside from trying to remember who had what kid and where; it was fantastic! Thanks to all of you who helped me out, I know the kids loved it, & I really appreciated it!

I'm so sad I didn't take any pictures from the last day of the reunion. We went to Wheeler Farms for a picnic. The kids had a great time with their cousins. We got to play with the Mercer kids, my kids had such a great time with them. Savannah & Meg are just a few weeks apart, and once they got over being shy they were cute little friends. And, then there is Sammy & Sammy. Sammy & Samuel Mercer are just a few weeks apart too. And, they were just hilarious two peas in a pod. Completely oblivious to everyone else around them, playing in the little stream, getting wet and muddy no matter how many times their parents told them not to. They were both all boy and too funny! We are definetly going to have to get those two together again. It will probably be bedlam, but funny bedlam!