Grant Family

Still Alive

2010-02-28T11:45:00.000-08:00

To those few of you that are wondering if we are still alive, the answer is, most of the time??? I have been getting harassed lately about not ever updating. So I figured that after a year maybe it would be time to update again. Now all 2 of you can get off my case! I wont even attempt to update you on all the happenings around here. Just know that my 4 year old twins keep me on my toes constantly and my 7 year old pre teen keeps the emotions high around here. I will check back in shortly (fingers crossed) and post some pics of my crazy kids.

This one is for you Erika!

2010-02-28T11:38:00.001-08:00

Yes, we did it again!! I am 29 weeks and hoping that SHE weighs in at 15 pounds because I feel HUGE! We are still searching for names. So if any of you have any sugestions, PLEASE send them our way.

Remember This Science Experiment?

2009-02-08T18:20:00.000-08:00

My friend Brooke and her 2 kids came over the other day and for some odd reason Brooklyn saw this as her chance to do a science experiment. She got out our big book of science fun, totally bypassed mom and went straight to Brooke.
" Brooke will you please do an experiment with me",asked Brooklyn. "Of course I will. Lets do a really messy one just so that your mom will have to clean it up."replied Brooke "Oh Brooke, your so much more fun than my mom." Brooklyn said.
Needless to say we did settle on a messy experiment. We made a monster volcano. Now we have all done this experiment at one point but usually it is done outside in the sandbox. At least that is where my sister and I always had to do it. You take vinegar, dish soap, and baking soda mix them all up and Walla, you have a volcano. But lets take it one step further and add food coloring.But since nobody can decide on one color mom gives in and we do it twice. I did think ahead and spared myslef the mess, we did it in a big tupperware bowl. Of course though that did not stop the kids from playing in the lava and getting all soapy. Although this was only about a 15 minute process it was the highlight of the day as you can see in the kids faces. And to you Brooke, as soon as you get in your house I will be bringing Brooklyn and her science book to your house.

The Dentist

2009-02-08T17:18:00.000-08:00

What is more fun than taking 1 kid to the dentist? Taking 3 kids!! This is the boys 3rd visit to the dentist and Brooklyns 8th maybe. I have been prepping the boys for weeks now so that there would be no surprises. And to my surprise they did very well. Brooklyn is always excited to go and she does everything she is told. Cooper loved it. He let them take every xray and he laid very still while they cleaned and checked his teeth. Fischer didn't mind his xrays but he was not in love with the taste of the toothpaste. He has my gag reflux when it comes to certain tastes. Poor kid. But all in all it went great and I don't have to think about it for 6 more months. Thanks Grams for coming and helping with controlling the monkeys.

Christmas

2009-01-09T18:55:00.000-08:00

Christmas was so much fun this year. The kids had been anticipating "Santa" for days and asked every night for a week, "Santa come tonight?" When they woke up on Christmas and realized that he had finally come all craziness broke loose. All 3 of my kids are so dramatic that they danced around and shrieked over every little thing. I keep telling myself that I am going to buy all of their presents at the dollar store because really it's not about the gift, it's about the wrapping paper! I was smart enough to buy each kid their own snow shovel, which has come in very handy. They shovel the back walk for me everyday. Next year, it's a toilet brush and a vacuum for each kid!

Family Pictures

2008-12-30T21:27:00.000-08:00

A few of you have asked who took our pictures and where at. My good friend Brittany did them, and yes she can take yours too. She is so much fun and fantastic with kids. We did them at Union Station in Ogden. It was such a fun location, the kids loved it.
You can contact her and find her prices here: http://bloggingwithbrittany.blogspot.com/

Merry Christmas

2008-12-22T21:57:00.000-08:00

My Favorite saying this year: Maybe Christmas he thought doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas perhaps... Means a little bit more.

It's a about #%@$* time!

2008-12-10T13:45:00.000-08:00

Since I got so behind on my blogging I decided that I wouldn't blog until it snowed again. Well I woke up the other morning to snow. Sure it wasn't much and it didn't stick but it was enough to make my kids think that they needed to go outside and make snowangels. Of course I let them and for a whole 5 minutes they had alot of fun. Then they realized how cold it was and cried for mommy to let them back in. Being the nice mommy that I am made them take off their wet muddy clothes outside then I let them come in. Yep mom of the year. Needless to say I am back to the blogging world, at least for a minute. I will try and update on all the things that have gone on the past 2 months.... Halloween, Thanksgiving, the Twins bday, school programs, daycare,Christams parties,family pictures, to name a few.
p.s. I am protesting Christmas until we have 3 feet of snow. I don't believe in Christmas in Utah without snow. So those of you who were hoping for presents from me, you better make it snow!!

Washington D.C.

2008-12-10T12:06:00.000-08:00

Way back in October Neil and I flew out to visit his parents on their mission. They are serving in D.C. and it was so much fun to see them and explore the big city. We left our kids at home with friends and family which made it all the merrier,(Thanks Brittany and Danielle). We did a tour of the Holacaust Museum which was very disturbing, upsetting, tear renching, and humbling all at the same time. We did so many things I can't list them all but one of my favorites was a moonlight tour of the city by trolley. It was so beautiful to see everything lit up. We drove to 19 different monuments and sights. And got out at 6 of them to explore. We ate great food, ran through the streets during a monsoon and got soaked, had lots of laughs and of course good shopping.

What the *@#%!

2008-10-14T13:27:00.000-07:00

I love snow, don't get me wrong. But I love the fall even more and was not expecting this in October. My kids on the other hand were super excited to build a snowman.We used spray paint for the eyes and the mouth hence the reason it looks like a crime scene. Thanks dad for braving the cold and helping while I sat inside with my camera!

Pumpkins! Pumpkins! Pumpkins!

2008-10-14T12:53:00.000-07:00

I was feeling brave today so I let 5 little boys run loose in my basement with paint brushes! They had the best time and it was so much fun watching them. Most of them ended up with more paint on them then on the pumpkins but look at how "amazing" they turned out!! My cute neighbor Kate came over and helped keep things under control.
Thanks Kate, your the best!

The next Picasso!

Aren't the kids talented??

This is my favorite way to decorate pumpkins, no mess!

Brooklyn loves to do crafts, I think she gets that from her Grams.

And these are my pumpkins!

Goofy Boys!!

2008-10-11T19:19:00.000-07:00

Seriously, not a day goes by that these two don't bring me to tears by laughing so hard! If you can't tell they have hammers tucked into their diapers. They want to be just like Handy Manny.

Should I be worried???

2008-10-10T08:18:00.000-07:00

The BIG 6 !!!!

2008-10-06T21:09:00.000-07:00

So my baby girl turned 6! She thinks she is 13 but to me she will always be 3! We had a fantastic day with her. It started with breakfast at her favorite breakfast restaurant. Then off to big Kindergarten. Followed by her favorite lunch: Turkey sandwich with pickles and cheese. (she is not hard to please) For her big activity we headed to Build-a-Bear. Now I have never been there and I think that I might become a regular. We had so much fun and her imagination ran wild. We ate dinner at the Gateway then it was home for her fun Barbie cake (thanks Jen). We invited a couple of her friends over for cake and it turned into a real party. She went to bed that night and told me it was her best birhtday ever and she wants to do it again next year. We love you Brooklyn

This for you Elder Grant

2008-09-27T13:12:00.000-07:00

Park City, Yet Again

2008-09-20T23:11:00.000-07:00

As most of you know Neil and I have an obsession with packing the kids up and heading to Park City for the weekend. We love having a quick getaway that is close and we always find fun things to do and if by chance we don't find something to do, we hit the pool! Neil is having shoulder surgery on the 22nd so we thought we should have one more fun weekend before his arm is all tied up. We spent most of our time in the pool but of course we hit the outlets, rode the trolley up and down main, took a drive through Deer Valley, rode the Alpine Coaster, and we hit main for Park Silly Sunday. On Sundays the city shuts off main street and turns it into an open air market. You can buy all kinds of artwork, jewelry, food, and lots of fun stuff. You can get your face painted, play in the petting zoo, or just pet all of the dogs that people drag out with them. We had a great time and love spending time with the kids without the daily interuptions and routines.

Camping at Pebble Creek

2008-09-11T14:16:00.001-07:00

2008-09-11T13:44:00.000-07:00

Photographer Brooklyn

2008-08-20T21:30:00.001-07:00

Brooklyn insisted that I showcase some of her photography. She actually is very good with a camera but there was something wrong with it this day and it is not her best work. (but don't tell her that).

Husking Corn

2008-08-20T21:23:00.000-07:00

Are these the cutest 3 boys you have ever seen??!! We can't leave unpeeled ears of corn around because the twins will peel them as fast as they can, but at least we have found something they will eat. Yeah for us! Too bad Papa Roy isn't here, this is his job and the boys would love to do it with him. We miss you Papa.

Kindergarten

2008-08-20T20:49:00.000-07:00

I'm not even sure what I am feeling right now. My "little" Brooklyn started Kindergarten this week. She was so excited to go and (her words): "Get some alone time away from my brothers." She loves her little brothers but they can certainly get in her personal space. I am excited for her because she is having so much fun but the thought of her being in a "big" school scares me. I can no longer shelter her from the "real world" that is full of bullies, temptaions, and all kinds of scary people/things. Maybe I am being a little dramatic but she is my baby girl. I love you Brooklyn and am so proud of you.

We are still alive!!

2008-08-14T21:43:00.000-07:00

For those of you who are actually interested, we are still among the living. This summer has been busy. We are always gone doing something wether it be going to the cabin, staying in Park City,or just hanging out at the local pool, we have found plenty of ways to keep busy. No time for an update now but soon, very soon.

Summer, Finally!!!

2008-06-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

How much fun can you have with a $3 sprinkler, a trampoline and some siblings?!! Since the weather has finally started to act like summer I can't keep my kids in the house. Fisch wakes up every morning and picks out the swimming suit of the day. Cooper prefers to just be naked and Brooklyn, being the girl that she is, goes through many outfits and swimming suits in one day. The towel washing is endless. Neil and I have even been known to put on our swimming suits and hang out in the 8 inch deep kiddie pool. (we really need to fence along our back yard, sorry neighbors). So if any of you are looking for a majestic water land to play in we do have a kiddie pool, a sprinkler, and even a slip 'n' slide. Yes, I can sense all the jealousy going on!

Why buy toys?

2008-06-20T20:37:00.000-07:00

How do you keep 2 toddlers busy for 20 minutes?

Need I say more?

Happy Fathers Day!

2008-06-15T14:34:00.000-07:00

My Kids have the best dad ever! Brooklyn says her favorite thing to do with him is go fishing. Cooper says he likes to play ball and Fischer just smiles from ear to ear and laughs because he gets silly shy when you ask him "personal" questions. Neil can certainly put his foot down when necessary but for the most part he is big kid. He loves taking the kids on bike rides to the pond and feeding the ducks, he is always willing to throw the ball around, he is the one that drags us out to the local swimming pool, and of course "Pajama Time". He has the best pajama dance. Who knew that if you dance and yell like a maniac the kids will rush to put their jammies on! He is also a great handy man. This past month he has brought our dishwasher back to life, kept the washing machine from flooding the house, fixed my moms sprinkler system (after it flooded her basement), made countless repairs to the cars, and cooked numerous meals. He is my SuperHero! We love you Daddy!

Memorial Weekend

2008-05-27T22:50:00.000-07:00

Brooklyn amazed me on Memorial Day and I have to boast about how proud I am of her quickly. So all weekend we had been explaining to her the purpose of Memorial Day. She grasped the concept very well but was dissapointed to find out that we didn't have any gravesites to visit. I tried to explain to her that we could honor people that hadn't died but that were doing great things with their lives. She said she wanted to honor her Papa Roy for being in Iraq. She did what any little girl would do and got out the crayons to color him a picture. (you will be getting that soon dad) But what really touched my heart is when she asked if we could visit the cemetery and bring flowers for those that didn't have any. We headed to walmart (of course) and she picked out her own flowers. We headed to our local cemetery in the pouring rain and she was wide eyed at the amount of flowers that were there. We got our flowers and went forth with our mission. We found a gravesite of an older couple that had been burried together. Brooklyn thought it was sad that no grandkids had brought them flowers so we left them some. The next one we found was of a one year old little girl. I explained to her how this is possible that a one year old could die. She was so sad and started to cry (in the rain). We left this little girl some flowers. We proceeded to walk the cemetery and have a conversation about how death can be good and bad at the same time. She is so wise beyond her age and she seemed to grasp the idea that Heavenly Father has set forth a plan for us. As we were leaving she asked if we could do this every year. I was so touched that she came up with this idea all on her own. She is such a compassionate and sensitive little girl. We love you Brooklyn.

2008-05-27T21:55:00.000-07:00

For Memorial weekend instead of camping and going on a vacation we did a bunch of miscelaneous things. It started on Friday night with us going to the Clearfield Aquatic Center. This has become our favorite hang out lately. Our kids are little fish. On Saturday night we took the kids on the Front Runner and headed to the gateway. We hit a gourmet restaurant know as The Food Court! Yum! The kids all chose Hot Dog On A Stick. Super Yum! We let them run around the arcade and of course you can't leave without playing in the fountain. But believe it or not we made it out of there without getting wet. Then it was back to trax and back on the front runner. The kids loved the train and we had a great time. But next time we will take stollers, It gets really old chasing 2 2year olds everywhere. We would have skipped church on Sunday to go fishing but we "chose the right" and went, I had to teach so that got us there too. We finished the day by painting a chalkboard and a magnent board for the toy room. On Monday Brooklyn went and played at Grams house so that I could do an overhaul of her bedroom. No kidding, 4 hours later I was still organizing. She is very good at hiding things in every crack of her bedroom. We were supposed to go to a BBQ but that got rained out so we pretty much hung out and cleaned the house. Although "clean" doesn't really exist at my house. My amazing Husband did plenty of fix-its around the house. Thanks honey, You always impress me with the things you know how to do. So needless to say, we had a fun relaxing weekend with no schedules to keep up with. I could use lots more of those

Yeah for garbage day, again!

2008-05-20T20:49:00.000-07:00

As I have mentioned before we love our garbage man. Last week he stopped and gave the kids these jerseys and hats. They are super big adult sizes but they don't care. We try them on every single day and look forward to Thursdays even more now. Thanks garbage man for putting a smile on our faces.

Tubes

2008-05-20T20:41:00.000-07:00

So after numerous ear infections that never seemed to clear up we finally put tubes in both boys ears. They were actually very excited to go to the hospital and see the doctor. They got to wear the cutest little gowns that showed off their little diapered bums. Adorable! They even got to pick out their own stuffed animals which we now carry around all over. Everything went great except that it didn't clear up their "selective hearing" problem. A mom can always hope right!

2008-05-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

Did I mention how cute these gowns were!

2008-05-20T20:27:00.000-07:00

They had plenty of things to keep us entertained while we waited for our turn. The boys thought it was pretty cool to cruise up and down the hall in the wagon.

2008-05-20T20:19:00.000-07:00

The boys pulled through like real troopers and were back to themselves within minutes.

NO! Stop it! Don't do that!

2008-05-07T13:57:00.001-07:00

2008-05-07T13:42:00.000-07:00

I am presenting a challenge to all of you fellow bloggers. After a stressful day at my house, yes it happens, I get so tired of hearing myself say: NO! Stop it! Don't do that! Get out of there! Be nice! Time out! Say your sorry! Give her a love! and so on..... Well after counting how many times I say something along these lines in a one hour period I was amazed, over 45 times between my 3 kids.(maybe not that many but it sure feels like it!) So I am going to try and come with some nicer and more constuctive ways of stopping them from doing things that they shouldn't. So my challenge for you is to count how many times you say these things in an hour, or a day, if your not as mean as me. Then think about that number and see how you feel. I know that I wouldn't want to be told these things over and over again. But as a Mom what do we do or say? So please help me out by giving me your suggestions on how to "nicely" talk (yell) at my children. Can you tell it has been long day? and it is only 3:00! Get home Neil!!!!

Random

2008-05-05T22:53:00.000-07:00

For those of you that know my boys know that when you ask Coop what his favorite food is he shouts SUGAR!!! Until recently Fisch hasn't cared to much for sugar but I believe that his twin brother has started to wear off on him, which is bound to happen. The boys have decided that whatever they are allowed to eat the dog should also be allowed to eat. This includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and of course ice cream.

Why do I even try???

2008-04-28T17:39:00.000-07:00

My house may not look like it but I really do try hard to keep it clean. It is a constant battle to even keep the place looking halfway presentable. I have finally accepted the fact that it will never be clean or at least very tidy until the kids move out (when they are 30 because they will be my babies forever). But this past Sunday we had Neils family over for dinner so I spent all day Saturday cleaning the house. I even polished the tables and chairs, and not just the indoor picnic table but my real table. But never the less my kids left their dirty little footprints to prove that they were here. Literally!

Camping with the Goblins!

2008-04-28T17:35:00.000-07:00

2008-04-28T16:28:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we ventured out of our very small comfort zone and took the kids camping. We decided to go after much hesitation. Why the hesitation you ask? Because when it comes to taking the kids anywhere other than redneck central (walmart) I hesitate. My kids are very adventerous, noisy, naughty, daring, mean, and scheduled. We stay home so that we don't make a scene anywhere and so that Mom is sure to get her Sanity Hour (naptime). But after thinking about all of that we decided that there was no better place than in the wilderness for my kids. So we hitched up the ol' trailer and headed out. We caravaned with a group of old family friends, and Grams of course. After 5 hours in the truck we arrived at what is known as Goblin Valley. From the moment we arrived until the moment we said goodbye to the goblins you couldn't have washed the smiles (or the dirt) off of my kids faces. We flew kites, went on 4 wheeler rides, went hiking, cooked dutch oven dinners (thanks Neil, your the best), burried toys in the dirt, and played with lots of new friends. Needless to say, we will be leaving our comfort zone again this summer for the beautiful outdoors of Utah, If we can afford the gas. (stupid gas prices). We had the best time and truly enjoyed watching the kids have fun. (and getting really, really dirty)

Yeah for garbage day!!

2008-04-10T12:08:00.000-07:00

So The kids and I have a tradition every Thursday morning: We wait for the garbage man. Fun you say with sarcasm! But you should see the joy on the boys' faces when our dear, sweet garbage man pulls up. We get Brooklyn off to school and then we bundle up and sit outside to wait for the big garbage truck. We have been known to sit outside in the rain or snow for up to 45 minutes just to see that truck. Even better is that our garbage man knows we are waiting and he slows down, rolls down the window, honks, says "Hi boys" (which there are usually 3 or 4 boys due to my babysitting), and he makes our day. We love our garbage man and he gives us something to look forward to!! Yeah for garbage day!!

Useless Information

2008-04-07T22:30:00.000-07:00

Did you know, because I didn't that 250,627 people in the U.S. have the first name Emma & 182,274 people in the U.S. have the last name Grant and of all of those people only 150 people are named Emma Grant. Who Knew??? I know your interested about your name now aren't you??

A must Look!

2008-04-07T22:29:00.000-07:00

HowManyOfMe.com

There are
150
people with my name
in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

2008-04-07T22:00:00.000-07:00

A day at the Tree House Museum

2008-04-07T21:48:00.000-07:00

So I had this brilliant idea of taking my kids to the museum and I don't know who had more fun Me or Them! I haven't been to their new location yet and it was so much fun. My sister and 2 of her kids came, My friend Ashlee and her daughter, and of course Grams came with us. We did manage to pair off because nobody could handle doing the same thing at the same time but it seemed to work out well. There was so much to do: climbing, coloring, story time, craft time, music playing, dress up, trains, and of course the fire truck which was Cooper and Fischers favorite thing. And thanks to Ashlee, Brooklyn got to do her favorite thing which is crafting. I will admit that my boys tend to be EXTREMELY wild so we don't get out much in public. But going here was great because they could go wild. I love watching all 3 of my kids having fun and truly enjoying themselves and this was a great place for that. But as much fun as we had and as wild as they were I couldn't have done it without help, thanks guys for tagging along on our adventure. Next adventure: to be announced!!!

Look Ma, No Training Wheels

2008-03-26T08:56:00.000-07:00

So the time had come to say goodbye to the training wheels, and not for Brooklyns benefit but for mom and dads. The training wheels were so crooked that Brooklyn was learning to ride her bike sideways! She was constantly tipping over, she couldn't go fast enough, and not to mention all the tears about still riding a "baby" bike. So we took her to the park and within 20 minutes she had it down. Neil and I got more excercise in that 20 minutes chasing her around than we have had all year. Now we are still working on starting and stopping but for the most part she has mastered it. Yeah Brooklyn, mom and dad are so proud!

2008-03-26T08:53:00.000-07:00

LOL

2008-03-13T15:13:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned that my kids make me laugh every single day?! This is my reason for getting out of bed in the morning (okay, and food).

Sad Day!

2008-03-10T13:06:00.000-07:00

As many of you know my Dad left today for Iraq again. This is bittersweet for me because I am so proud of him for being willing to work so hard yet sad because we are going to miss him so much. My kids have so much fun with him and he is the best Papa ever! Our favorite things to do with him are play puzzles, lincoln logs, and build snow forts. We love you Papa and are going to miss you. Come home safe.

Papa Roy!

2008-03-10T13:00:00.001-07:00

I finally gave in

2008-03-06T11:38:00.001-08:00

My neighbor Ashlee has been bugging me to start one of these forever. She came to my house and set it up for me. So now I'm officially a "blogger!" Look forward to all my exciting stories and pictures of my fun family.