The Keith and Annette Stoddard Family

Our crazy week...

2011-12-08T19:12:00.001-08:00

Hello from the Dorius'!!

Things here have been crazy!

Jes has been working crazy long hours

(I think in hopes of making Christmas not so tight)

Monday he worked 5am-3pm at his regular job.

Then he worked on a side job from 4-10pm.

He was in bed by 12:30am.

Tuesday he worked 5 am-3pm at his regular job.

He then drove to Park City and worked at the Mansion, not getting home until just before 1 am.

Wednesday he worked from 4am-3pm - regular job.

He took his big ladder over and hung "Grandma Carolyn's" Christmas lights on her house.

Then went to his side job again, getting home just after 10:30.

Believe it or not today he slept in!

He didn't leave for work until almost 6 am.

He didn't get home though until 5 pm.

He ran back over to "grandma's" to add an extension cord and get them lights glowin...

He actually ATE DINNER WITH US...

and then headed back to his side job in American Fork.

Emmalee has been working crazy long hours as well!

She has Concert Choir at school, and then are doing a "Spirit of Christmas" program.

She has had rehearsals almost everyday for the past 6 school days.

(It is not just the choir, but it is the whole fine arts program together!)

(so it's BIG)

She has gone to school at 8:30.

She gets out a 3:15 and stays at the school working on her homework as best she can because rehearsals start at 4:00.

She is supose to be done by 9pm... but her best friend is the President of the Concert Choir, and multiple times she and her friend have had to stay late to clean up the classrooms the students wait in until it's their time.

It has been A LOT of work for her.

She crashed yesterday and called in a Hookie Day.

We ran errands together, and she spent most of the day desperately finishing the homework that has been piling up so she won't mess up her honor roll status.

Performances started tonight and so she will be at the school from 5-9 today and tomorrow and monday, with another program on Saturday from 2-4.

During dinner tonight, when we did our "Best Part/Worst Part of the Day" - without Emma because she had just left for her performance - Caleb said his best part about today was that "I gots to see my whole family all at the same time for a few minutes today"

*sniff*

He is such a sweet boy.

It has been rough!

They have been in bed everytime Em and Jes have come home.

I can't wait for NEXT TUESDAY!!

Oh wait!

That's Young Men/Young Women's Night.

Ok.

I can't wait for next WEDNESDAY

LOL

New year update

2011-01-07T01:11:00.000-08:00

This 1st week of 2010 has not been terribly kind. I was knocked flat with strep throat, and have finally come back to the land of the living to find it is Thursday and I am terribly behind in life, laundry and drinking/eating (lost 10 lbs though!) Jestin has been incredible to keep the home fires burning as far as feeding, shuttling car pool for school and dishes. Our home still looks almost like it did the day after Christmas (you know...like Christmas threw up all over LOL) but the kids have quietly played near by, or watched netflix on the Wii while I tossed and turned in fits of agony/sleep on the couch. It was fun. (not)

On an upnote, Jes had two small jobs this week. We may make the rest of the payments we needed to pay last month, with the exception of our mortgages, which are in modification process still (though we have a trustee sale date of January 28th!) and the supply house bill that seems to never end. This recession has kicked our butts so hard we have lost the ability to let it get us down. Curse or blessing? Not sure. We just find joy in each other, in life, in serving and in living the gospel and leave the rest to God. I guess if we end up living in the camp trailer for a while... maybe we will start traveling the country like snow birds? Bwahahaha

He is still applying anywhere and everywhere. We can't believe how qualified out of a job he is. Small jobs keep trickling in, and meeting our very most basic "needs" so we wonder what that means? Is the answer "hang on a little longer and your business will pick up" or is it "you are not looking in the right places" or is it "the path was present months ago and you missed it" or is it "have faith...keep being 'an example' to others...and we'll see just how much you can really endure before you both are in the nuthouse/poorhouse"?? Bwahahaha. All we get when we seek answers is peace. Handy... but terribly helpful.

Emma was not happy to start the second half of the year. She is SO like Jes in regards to change. She wants things to stay the same. She is adjusting. She wrapped up her voice class and now is starting piano! :) She is excited! She has been a strellar little woman these last 5 weeks. I am telling ya, if you are going to have a stroke and try to keep a family of 6 running, everyone needs an Emma. I would be lost without her. She is starting to wear thin, but I have improved so much I am trying to take on much more and let her be the sister again instead of "mom's manager" (you know...like I am the CEO and she is the running manager LOL) She is just awesome and I am so lucky to have her. She really is one of my best friends.

Cody is plugging along. Most people think he is Jes on the phone now his voice has changed so much! He is officially a 1/4" taller than Emma and quickly approaching me. *sigh* He's 11. Heaven help us! I just pulled up our family photos from Fall 2008 and there was Cody, walking next to Jes, and he barely reached his shoulder! No wonder we can't keep the boy clothed and shoed! LOL He also has quite the fuzzy mexican lip fuzz (ucky) but we are trying to avoid his shaving for a little while yet. Poor thing! He is loving his newest game for the DS - Bookworm - and we don't mind him playing for hours! (especially when he teaches us all the meanings of new words! :) )

Cameron is doing much better these days. He was really acting out for a while. Jes discovered the discipline tool that works with his personality. Push ups. Without fail... they impact his behavior for the better. It's so crazy how they all respond so differently to different parenting styles. It's a lotta work to be a parent and figure them all out! Until they have a growth spurt/hormones and everything changes! Tee hee! He is loving the MP3 player Santa brought him for Christmas and is often listening and singing (*grin*) while wandering about the house. Tee hee. yes it is off key because he can't hear himself. It's funny. Sorry. We giggle.

Caleb is bursting forth into independence. It is a blessing... and a sorrow. He really doesn't "need" me for any of his basic care anymore. He eats, dresses, showers, pottys, makes his own food, brushes teeth, etc etc. I still get to read to him, but that is quickly going to be coming to an end. He is not the baby anymore. And he is amazing! He can put together practically ANY puzzle, build anything he sees out of anything he wants (ie; paper, cardboard, clay, garbage) He is quite the inventor. It's fun.

The chickens are having a hard time with the cold weather. Jes put a heat lamp in the coop, but now they tend to pick on each other a little bit more... maybe because they can see each other all night? One of them grabbed the comb of another during the night one night last week and spread loaded the coop with blood all over. It was a mess! Silly birds! We are only adveraging 3-6 eggs a day from all 10 birds.

Stroke recovery is moving forward. I am slightly affraid that more is coming before it is over, simply because many of the avenues I need/want to chase are not fesible for me/us right now, but I am holding tight to my priesthood blessings, and hoping my interpretations and understandings are what the Lord really meant. ;) This illness has set me back a bit, but my Dr. ordered one more round of steriods to help promote healing in the brain, so that is good. The biggest loss I have found with the strep is my speech. Reading aloud (one of my exercises) is torture! I have lost something there. Can't say big words, complicated sentences, etc. I am looking forward with great joy to a time when Jen can come and do my massage therapy again as well. We haven't been able to hook up since Christmas, and now with being sick all week, I am betting someone else will get it, so we are not up for visitors to take it home with them! : P The other thing I am looking forward to with great joy is driving again. I am SO stir crazy not being able to do what I want/need to without needing someone else to take me. It's hard.

Anywho... That is a quick update on us. How are all of you? We need to keep up on here better. We really enjoyed having you that could come down for Christmas! Dinner was lovely and the chance to hang out was even better! (and thanks for letting us feed the Wilkin's as well... she is telling everyone in the ward how absolutely amzing my family is... it's a story they will all hear over and over and over now *GRIN* you'll be famous! tee hee)

We are looking to 2011 with hope... even with this rocky start of a week. Haven't we hit the bottom yet so we can come back up? I am fully willing to submit to whatever the Lord has in store for us, I just really would like it to be a little less stressful. LOL

Love you all!
Heather

btw... had to change our look on this blog to get the photo of all of us to fit properly. Hope everyone is ok with the colors/layout etc. If anyone finds a better one...run with it ;) ((hugs))

Brent

2010-09-22T22:58:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,

We hope that you are all well.

Just to let you know, Brent injured himself on this summer's High Adventured trip. After seeing a chiropractor with continued pain, he finally went to our family doctor who referred him onto a pain management doctor and a spine doctor. So here we are now. Brent is schedule for surgery on his neck/back next Wednesday (Sept 29th). They will take out the herniated disk and fuse the two surrounding vertebrae. It will take up to a year for full recovery. So, here we go.

Love you all.

Nicole

Dorius Family Update

2010-09-12T17:36:00.000-07:00

Happy New Year 2011!!

Hi all. Thought I would post a quick update.

Jestin is still looking for permanent employment. He has had small jobs here and there and they are scrapping us by, but that is it. I have applied for a night watch job at a home for troubled youth. The lady called and said to send her my resume (eh? resume? I may need some help here soon B!) and she would put it at the top of the stack for their next hire. We'll see. It would be from 11pm-3am and I would just sit and be there in case any of the girls woke up. I can commit to that kind of work! LOL 9-5 not so much... but even on a bad heart day I could still go and sit. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Emma is adjusting to Jr High. It's not her most favorite. She doesn't like trying to keep 10 teachers straight! (yep... she has 5 classes a day on an a-day b-day schedule.) She is taking Intro to Voice, Drama and Hip Hop. Next sememster she gets to take Piano lessons at school! I CAN'T WAIT! *grin* With 10 classes totally the kids can take much more elective type classes and figure out what they enjoy at an earlier age. She is a little leery about her first science project... she has to gather and document 25 different kinds of bugs. We had trama the first couple of bugs because she had to put them in the freezer to kill them. She was pumped to find a huge dead grasshopper in the parking lot! It was already dead! LOL! She is enjoying Hip Hop (the courses she choose combine to test her dream of wanting to be a singer) and thinks that next year she wants to try out for Drill Team.

We really like the charter school here. There are some around that are iffy...but this one is awesome! I like that I get an email with all her homework assignements each day, so if she forgets something we can get it caught up before it's due (we can print off any and all homework). They totally set these kids up to succeed and I like that! They also teach them the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which is really cool too!

Cody is liking his 6th grade teacher. It's a man, and he SO reminds me of Cody's personality. Cody loved the first project they had... a Sugar Baby to learn responsibility. It was fun! (pictures on our blog) He also is signed up for Drama (they start some electives in the elementary age kids in 4th grade). He has LOVED his drama class and can't wait for this years. He is also on the brink of Pre-Algebra already because they place the kids where their skill level is, instead of by age/grade. He will likely be in the same book as Emma... and Emma is ahead "for 7th grade" as well (they usually study Math 7) by doing Pre-Algebra. It is cool.

Cameron is liking school too... though not quite as much. He loved the freedom of summer way too much! LOL! We are getting into the swing of things though and he really likes his teacher. He aces all his tests and is doing just great!

Caleb, my sweet baby Caleb, started Kindergarten and LOVES it!! He wishes it were all day! He is learning a lightening speed. He is at the local Elem. because they offered a better speech therapy program (with the old YW Pres. in our ward) and his teacher is also in our ward! He is happy as a little clam. (And thanks Ma for helping him get his prized back pack! He LOVES it! Glad we didn't talk him out of the $3 one! LOL)

Jestin needs eye surgery. And soon. They think they messed up with his first eye surgery and damamged the lens, as he now has a catatact in that eye. The surgeon wants to do cataract surgery for him and then do the diabetic retinopathy surgery as soon as possible for the other eye. The problem? Our state insurance will cover NOTHING. We are trying to figure out what to do to make it happen, and still pay our other bills with money we don't have as well. It's fun... let me tell ya. But he can't go blind or we are up a creek without a paddle. We are praying and trying to sell a hot tub that his uncle gave us to see if that will help.

On other notes, there has been lots of fun trials that keep us on our knees. We are serving as best we know how, and trying to do all that we can within our means. We are thankful for the power of prayer. We are grateful for our testimonies and the peace that knowing Heavenly Father's plan gives us. Without it, I think we would be much worse off and despairing quite a lot. But we are continuing to grow and know that this too shall pass... for it always came to pass... it never came to stay. ;)

2010-09-09T11:10:00.000-07:00

Hello from Jackson!

We are having tons of fun!!

Monday we went to Yellowstone. We saw Old Faithful and all of the upper geyser basin. I love the Morning Glory Pool. I fell in love with it as a kid. It isn't as blue as it was because people have thrown things into it and blocked it's source. We saw lots of animals but no bears. We explored Old Faithful Lodge. It was cool. Found out to stay there isn't a bad price but you have to do reservations atlease 13 months in advance. On May 1st they will open reservations for 2012. They will likely be sold out before May 2nd. I found a perfect t-shirt for Sean we may have to go back and get. Dang I was dumb not to get it.

Tuesday we went to Jenny Lake and Jackson Lake Lodge. That was lots of fun. At Jenny Lake we took the boat across and hiked to Hidden Falls. Can I just say, my feet HATE me. Oh, do they hurt!!!!. It was worth it though.

That night we went to the only thing we had planned for sure. We went to the Bar J Wrangler chuck wagon dinner and show. It was so fun. We met some folks from Indiana and some from Ogden. It was cafeteria seating. We was a blast. Highly recommend it if any of you get a chance.

Yesterday we were lazy! My feet are recovering. I slept until almost noon. We did drive to Teton Village. It was too stormy to ride the tram. We could have spent the money but seen nothing due to the cloud cover. We came back here and vegged. We went to the grocery store. We got here with the great tomatos Heather gave us and had nothing to cut them with. Anyway, we went to the pool area. Dad swam but the pool was alittle to cold for me. I sat in a salt water hot tub. I have a new nickname, Corky. There was no way I could stay down. The minute I wasn't concentrating to stay seated I popped to the top. Sure felt good though. The real hot tub is outside.

Today we are going to shop in Jackson. There are tons of shops. They even have a Christmas shop, Yea!!! I fell in love with this town as a kid too. It was like magic with the wooden sidwalks etc. Of course, it has grown and become commercialized since then. I hope I'm not disappointed

Well, I better go. Dad has brought me breakfast. He goes to the diningroom and then brings me a plate. I just laze around the room and get ready (and write to you) while he goes to eat. I am just not a breakfast first thing kind of person.

Sean, the place we camped with my folks if called Flagg Ranch. It has really changed. It is very commercialized. The part we stayed in has actually been closed. Atlease it is right now. They may open it in the summer.

Hope you are all doing well. We are having lots of fun.

Love you all,

Mom

Ma and Dad ran away to Wyoming

2010-09-07T13:01:00.000-07:00

Here is the latest email I got from them...

Hi,
We are having a blast. Yesterday we went to Yellowstone.We saw the two things I wanted most and LOTS more. My feet hated me big time. It was worth it. We saw Old Faithful and Morning Glory Pool and most of the upper geyser basin. It was cool. Old Faithful went off twice while we were there. We took pictures from two sides. We explored the Old Faithful Lodge and had lunch/dinner in their cafeteria. We didn't see any bears but lots of other animals.

Today we are going to Jenny Lake and Jackson Lake Lodge. They are on our list. We are trying to do the most outdoor stuff on the warmest projected days. Tonight is our Bar J Wrangler dinner and show. The only thing preplanned.

I am practicing on the lap top, as you can tell.
Talk to you soon.

Love you all, Mom

Happy New Year!

2010-01-02T13:35:00.000-08:00

Hello Family - Here's a wish to each of you a blessed and Happy New Year! We hope this finds all of you well again and that it stays that way. It's no fun being sick, especially during the holidays.

Well, here we are and what a year it has been for us. Morgan is now 14 and he went to his first Stake Dance this last week. Wow! It's hard to fathom us old enough to have a child that old. I made the comment to Brent that it's interesting to be on this end of the events. Brent texted a young man in his group to get a couple of young women to get Morgan to dance with them. We don't know if it worked but Morgan did come home and said that he danced with 3 young women, 1 of which wasn't even from our stake. I admire Morgan's ability to adapt to situations and put himself out there to make new friends. He is totally awesome!

Here he is all ready for the dance waiting for his ride which happened to be with the Stake Youung Women's President (she's in our ward) and a suburban full of youth from our stake. Awesome! So he had an instant group of friends to hang with at his first dance. He said he had a great time.

Christmas was really good for us. I really love having Brent home for most of the Christmas break. I am so gratiful to finally being out of the jobs that required us to work like mad dogs during this time of year rather on focusing on the reason for the holiday. We actually took the time to make treats this year. In years past it's generally been to our home and visiting teaching family but we were actually able to make treats for other including for our family out of state (we hope you all liked it!). It has also been fun playing games with everyone every day (much to Britt's dismay. Apparently, she not as excited about bored games as the rest of us.).

Oh yeah, here's a picture of our pickle finder this year!

Yup, it was Britt! And it was high in the tree. Way to go Britt! This is always a fun tradition and the kids are always excited to find the pickle. It almost has become the most anticipated activity of the morning.

We love you all and really hope for good things for the new year. May Heavenly Father continue to bless each of our families as we strive to live in this crazy, choatic world.

Halloween 2009

2009-12-29T11:44:00.001-08:00

Bobby and Trinity looking in their treat bags.

We played pin the nose on the pumpkin. A.J. won. His is number 5.

We colored ducks. I sprayed them to make sure the colors would stay.

Coloring ducks.

Joe and Clint making scones.

Clint making the "Frog eye stew" (rootbeer)

Having fun with our vampire teeth.

Smile pretty

Jestin's new callling

2009-12-06T23:09:00.000-08:00

I know I haven't posted about this, though I know Ma and Dad know and I think Jenny does. Just thought maybe you would all want to know what crazy calling they decided to give Jestin! He has been called as the new Elder's Quorum President for our ward. He is feeling VERY unable to do such a calling since he never served a mission and is not as literate in the gospel as he feels he should be, nor does he feel that he recieves revelation as he should... but it seems to be the right thing right now. He is stretching more than I have seen him do in a LONG time. He is rising to the occasion and I am happy for him. He really will do a great job... I have no doubt. But maybe if you could keep him in your prayers while he adjusts that would be greatly appreciated. :) Love ya all! ~~h.

Thanksgiving Dinner at Mom's

2009-12-06T22:47:00.000-08:00

Thanks Ma & Dad for a nice dinner at your house this year. It's always nice to come home. Here are just the few photos I took. I am a slacker I know!

Bethani asleep while eating... her tripopan (sp?) kicked in QUICK! *wink* A roll in one hand and a spoon in the other! LOL

Ma & Emma eating pumpkin pie and icecream

And Aunt Jenny measured all the kids... I need to ask the totals to post! I forgot to write them down!

Cody

Cam

Caleb

Emma

Brent and Nicole... I think you should measure your kids and send them to us so we can add them to the Wall for Fall 2009 *WINK*

2009-11-11T00:53:00.000-08:00

Bethani Pooh bear. She had wiped the black off her nose here so she looks like she has a mustach. The black skirt in this picture is the only one we got of me. Whoops! I was Mortica.

Bethani as Pooh Bear and Daddy as a little boy in his PJs carrying his teddy bear around with him. This is a bigger Pooh bear we found while trick or treating at the mall.

AJ the gatekeeper

Ninja Bobby

Joe's other shirt

Joe's first shirt (he didn't want to dress up this year)

2009-11-11T00:52:00.000-08:00

2009-11-11T00:51:00.000-08:00

2009-11-11T00:50:00.000-08:00

Halloween costumes

2009-11-11T00:48:00.000-08:00

Dorius Update

2009-11-03T20:47:00.000-08:00

Hi there! I thought I would post a quick update for my fam...since I have been severely neglecting my blog. LOL.

We are hanging in there. We just finished our 2008 taxes (filed an extension after the mess our accountant created for us with our 2007 taxes in the hopes of getting that screw up paid off before these new ones were due) and now we are in a pickle. We owe a large amount, and with little to no work coming in and all our credit lines maxed living month to month we are now part of the scared part of the population at the mercy of the IRS... and we pray they let us honor our payment plan and don't get any wild hairs to steal from our bank accounts or lien our home. It is scary and it sucks.

I have closed on 6 homes in the last month or so... yet every penny went to catch up all our late payments, etc. from little to no income for 4 out of the last 9 months. *sigh* I keep hoping the economy picks up and Jestin gets SUPER busy. As it stand right now he is working tons of little tiny jobs all over that gas to get there and negotiations on price dwiddle us down to not even covering expenses. Even a job he did for the CHURCH told us they couldn't pay for what was done and we ate a couple thousand dollars. It's not been fun being self employed. And to boot no one is hiring.

I have a home listed in Provo (originally listed for $999k) that just dropped to $850k. We had a call on it last weekend... but the homeowners wouldn't show it. They insist on being there when it is shown and wouldn't budge. Even when I told them the buyers were here from Texas and were leaving the next day. *sigh* Talk about disheartening. I just keep praying it will sell. That would cover our taxes! Then I wouldn't care we were in debt everywhere else! LOL
(Jenny! Stick to your debt free living with all you've got ok??)

The kids are good. Well... ok... mostly good. I just told Cody tonight that we have to send him back to school. I have to be able to work during the day at my job without hours away from it and he needs more than I can give him right now while I am trying to help Jess dig us out financially. Maybe next year he can home for school again... but for now he must go back. I visited with the American Leadership Academy today - a charter school - and LOVED what I learned about their interest in academics and the needs of the student coming first. They aren't pigeon holed as much as regular public school is and there are FAR more enrichment options for him. He will do marvelously I have no doubt - I am just so sad to break his heart. He is deeply bummed out. He loves being home with me. It breaks MY heart! :( Stupid economy!!!!!!

Ohhhhh... this post sounds gloomy! I am sorry!

We really are not that sad around here. We are blessed more than we deserve! I had a crown fall off over a month ago and have not had funds to go get it fixed. Last week I got a sore above that tooth on my gums and was affraid it had abcessed, so I went in. Turns out it was a canker sore, the tooth was fine, so he replaced the crown. He also filed it down to the right height so I can close my teeth for the 1st time since my heart first acted up when I had it put on. (I was so wigged out about the experience of being defillabrated that I did not CARE that I couldn't shut my mouth right when I went back for the permanant crown - I wanted out of that chair and out of that office! LOL) I was grateful, but sick as I walked to the counter to pay. I knew my account was in the negative, as we had been waiting on the church job to pay for weeks, and I was about to write a rubber check. She said $75. I got ready to pay and she looked up and said... oh! Wait! You have a $75 credit on your account! No charge for today! *GRIN* Now... first of all... I paid our tithing the day before. Secondly... there is no way I had a credit because 1 - I paid cash, at the cash discount when I paid last because we had no insurance, and 2 - that was over 2 years ago! If I had had a credit that long...wouldn't they have sent me a refund check?? Either way... I know Heavenly Father paid that dental bill for me. :) And I am so thankful!

Our chickens are doing great! We get 6-8 eggs a day. They taste SO good! They have TONS more yummy flavor than store bought eggs! Ahhh... it is lovely. The kids love to play with the chickens too... they are fun pets to have!

Emma is slowly getting over the loss of her hamster Shadow. She is not sure she wants another one anytime soon. She will be 12 in just a few days! WEIRD! She got her temple reccomend interview tonight and the bishop gave her her reccomend, dated for her birthday. We are planning a baptisms trip shortly after then... she is excited. She also gets to start wearing makeup - weird! - and we are going to start that whole adventure too! She gets to attend her first YW activity the day after her birthday. I am so not ready for all this growing up stuff! She went trick or treating for the first time by herself with friends this year... and I was fine with it... even excited for her... 'til she walked out the door and down the walk! I burst into tears! It was like sending my first child to kindergarten all over again! Wowza! LOL! She did great and had a wonderful time. :)

Cam is super pumped! He gets to move to ALA (the charter school) with Cody. (Emma is on the waiting list - 6th grade is full) He has a neighbor that goes there that he enjoys playing with, and he is struggling at school. They have 2 teachers with small children Team Teach. One does morning, and one does afternoon. (they cant get teachers because the pay is so crappy and the classes are so full!) There is little to no consistency and he got over half of his report card in beaming NI's or U's. He is not doing well in that confusing environment... so when the charter school said they had room in both boys grades I was really relieved! (see? more blessings from heaven! We really ARE blessed! :))

Well.. I better get to bed! I have some apples to finished putting up tomorrow and then I need to take Cody to explore the school and see if we can't get him somewhat excited about his new adventure... we also need to hit DI and see if we can be blessed enough to find a couple of uniform clothes for the two of the them. So fun!

Hope all is well with your families! post when you can! (((HUGS)))

Christmas Gifts

2009-10-21T21:56:00.000-07:00

Hi family! I am wondering if we have decided on what to do for Christmas this year. We are really unable to do much - so I was wondering if we did exchange family names if we could try and do something hand made or of sentimental value and such? Of if we should just know we love each other deeply and skip gifts?

I am trying to convince my in laws to that as well... LOL We will see! I would rather give Santa the chance to visit our kids this year...

Am I rotten to think this way? Input would be appreciated :)

Go see my blog.

2009-10-13T21:50:00.000-07:00

I put an update on my blog about my health.

I love my family

2009-09-24T16:08:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to express my love to you all. I am thankful to have each and every one of you in my life. You each have taught, and teach me, new things and help to stretch me and help me grow. I know some of us likely would not have chosen to be friends on the street simply because we are all so different and diverse so I am thankful that God put us together as a family. I am glad we can share the ride of life together. You are a cherished part of my life. (Even when ya make me crazy! bwahahahaha) Love you!

Girls Night Out

2009-08-31T12:29:00.001-07:00

Howdy

2009-08-16T19:29:00.000-07:00

Now that Girl's Camp and Trek is behind me, maybe I can catch up on some things before school starts in 2 1/2 weeks. We shall see I guess.

The kids are all doing well. Everyone is healthy and enjoying the summer. Brent is finishing his next school session and will be starting his last class in the next couple of weeks. Yeah!

Nothing more to type because my brain is mush from a week of Girl's Camp and lack of sleep so for now, know that we love you all and miss you terribly. We hope that you're all doing well, you're healthy and finding joy in what you're doing.

Love, Nicole

No problems

2009-08-07T20:09:00.000-07:00

I got my results from the ultrasound and the doc did not see anything that looks bad, so now I don't have to worry about been poked with a needle or having a boob smoosh for at least a few more years. Yea!! I can't wait for our girls slumber party with Mom, Katina, Bethani, Heather, and Emma at mom's next Friday it's going to be way fun. I wish that Nicole and the girls could come. Maybe we will have to do something like it next time you guys are able to come down. :)

Update

2009-07-31T08:12:00.000-07:00

Well not much has changed for us. Clint is still working at Lehi Roller Mills. I am on unemployment until September because the doc got sent to Iraq with the Guard. I hate not working, my brain feels like everything is chaos; what should I do first? what needs done first? who should I help first? It makes me feel crazy. We got the materials to start our fence yesterday so that will be a big project. I had my well woman exam this week and they found a mass in my right breast that they want to ultrasound and maybe biopsy, so I'm having that done next week, but I'm not to worried because that mass hasn't changed much for several years. So other then that all is normal, well as normal as we get. :)

Dorius' too

2009-07-29T09:41:00.000-07:00

Hi! Me too. Slacker that I am. LOL. Actually I have been too busy to even keep up on my own blog very well! *grin*

We have had a really rough patch. There has just not been much work since late Dec. Jestin has had one bigger job in Sundance, but they dont like to pay on time, and so we have had months were everything is late being paid and it feels like we will never catch up! He has had a little more work trickle in, but without the funds to meet supply needs for the next jobs it is hard! Being self employed really bites as of late.

I have been working my GUTS out in Real Estate. We (my partner Maria and I) have over 9 active clients... 3 under contract... 3 listings etc! We have worked hard! But nothing is closing. Obama and his brilliant policies have made it virtually impossible to close the home buying process because the banks aren't lending and it is a mess!! Even our client with $100k down is struggling to close. HE IS A FREAKIN IDIOT! I am so discouraged by where our new Pres. is taking this great nation of ours. Jestin calls him the Anti Christ. I am not sure that he isn't far off. :( At any rate it is really discouraging to put your heart and soul into your work for months and months on end with nothing to show for it. And to boot the subdivision we have worked over a year in, the one that had the Parade of Homes home... we were suppose to recieve a commision on that sale (the P of H) and the builder has not paid. He is lying to my broker and it is just a mess. We have pulled off the project. And the clients that I have been working with on that one have found a new home (one of the ones under contract) and the others are not far behind. It is so disheartening. BUT! The real estate market IS picking back up. There are a few banks lending and I just hope some of them include OUR people. :)

The kids are great! They are loving summer. I have horrible guilt because with lack of funds for fuel or anything else we have done VERY little in the way of fun. We went camping with Ma & Dad for Cody's birthday... that was a blast! Ma was SO in her element! We need to go again SOON!

Emma and Cam have decided to go back to public school this fall. I am somewhat relieved and sad all at the same time. Cody still wants to stay home and learn. Caleb is signed up for Preschool, but he may be moved to one here at the elementary - he needs some speech therapy. We are waiting to see what the district will do.

Well... I better go. Real estate is calling. Have a great day!

So much for keeping up with everyone!

2009-07-28T23:59:00.000-07:00

And no, this wasn't a chastisement for you. It was for me because I was the one that talked it all up and here it's been over a month (possible closer to two) since the last past I did. I am so sorry. Here's the goings on in our home: busy, crazy and busy. Does that help anyone? Just kidding!

For Brent, nothing has changed. Work, school work and calling mixed in there. He did go to Scout Camp earlier this month with Morgan and the rest of the Scout Troop. Work is still keeping him very busy and often comes home just to get right back on the computer. Oh well, at least he's home and I can still chat with him.

Morgan just finished Scout Camp and was able to pass off several merit badges while there. He has also talked with a sister in our ward that works at a preschool to see if they have any projects that they would like to have done that he can do for an Eagle project. He is so excited about it and wants to be the youngest person in our ward to get his Eagle. If he stays on track and gets his project done before the end of August, it's a huge possibility.

Britt and Jesse are taking a leisure summer. They are both participating in the libraries reading program and outside of Activity Days, nothing much is happening for them. Actually, we just picked up a sewing pattern for sleep pants and material and I'm going to teach them how to sew. That should be fun. I'm so excited to share one of the things that I love to do.

Kate is still growing like a weed. However, she's not a big as hew cousin who is 3 months younger than she is. He's got at least a good 4 inches on her. Oh well, we can't all be tall right?

And for me, this past weekend, I had the opportunity to participate in Pioneer Youth Trek. Most of the trek families this year were lead by husband and wife couples this year except for the trek family I was in. A sister in another ward and I were introduced as the "widows" for this trek and given 7 children, one married couple and one set of grandparents to help along the way. It was an amazing adventure, not to mention hard, hot and very exhausting but well worth every bite, bump and bruise I have to show for it now. I love serving with the youth and being able to attend trek with them helped to strengthen connections I didn't even know were there. I have walked away a better person for myself, my family and my calling. If any of you every get the opportunity to participate in a trek, do it. It won't be easy but it will be worth it.

Love you guys and I hope that you're having a wonderful summer.

Nicole

4th of July?

2009-07-03T10:10:00.001-07:00

What are you all doing? Anything fun and exciting?

Sean, Katina & Family

2009-06-02T00:18:00.000-07:00

It is fun to read all of the things on here and know how everyone is doing. I have been praying for the peace to be in our home and minds so far I am not seeing any change but I am hopeful that our vacation that we are leaving for on Sunday will help. Disneyland here we come. Thankyou for your prayers and help. WOW Heather I thought we had problems looking like a zoo sometimes with all the kids running around here but I think you have the prize in that area!
Nicole I haven't had a chance to re read the conference issue of the Ensign yet, but I do have something that I actually read about in a school newsletter that I decided to try and it has been pretty fun. They called it a brag board so I changed it slightly but all the rest of the idea is the same. We have been having a lot of trouble with the kids having trouble seeing any of their talents and well quite frankly lately I feel like all I ever do is get after them for something or another and it was bringing us all down then I read this idea and it has been great! The idea was to put up a board of some sort ours is just half of a poster board laminated. On the top it says have I done or seen any good....yes I have! It is....(my change) then underneath are two columns one that is for new things and one that says oldies but still goodies. Then we cut up index cards into thirds and wrote on them the good things we have noticed others doing or things that we thought we did really well on and then posted them on the poster that way everyone could see them. It has been fun the kids check it often to see what kind of new things are up there about them and they always get excited when there is something new but they also enjoy reading the older things too. I have to admit I am the one that posts things mostly but it has also helped me to notice the good and not so much the bad more often. It has made me have a whole new appreciation for all of my kids and the amazing people they are becoming! Some days I admit it is hard to think of things but sometimes those are the days when I try the most! I try everytime I add one about one child to think of one for at least 2 or 3 others but I usually end up thinking of one for all of them so it is a good way to also let them know that they are not just a number I think. I worry sometimes that they feel that way because there are so many of them and I hope this is a way to show them that they are noticed individually and appreciated. I know it didn't really start out from a spiritual source but it has been a spiritual experience for me. The day that I read it I was at my wits end with several of our children and then I read that and I started thinking about what I would write if I started one and I am ashamed to admit it probably took longer than it should have for me to think of things for all of them but I did and it was an answer to a prayer I hadn't even realized I had uttered until after I read the article. The prayer for a way to bring us back into harmony with each other. Obviously there are still good and bad days especially with so many teenagers at our house but I am feeling much more like a mother who appreciates and enjoys my blessings(children) than I was previously feeling. I hope this is kind of what you were wanting as a response. I enjoyed sharing it!

Ma's black eye

2009-05-31T13:54:00.000-07:00

Our Update

2009-05-30T14:32:00.000-07:00

So, I've been so busy posting my "thought blogs" I figured I should post something about the family. So here's what's going on here. Brent is still working hard at work and school but still seems to find some time for us too. I'm always so shocked at how much he can squeeze into his day. Something is changing though, work just put him on a 24/7 on call status which means he has to be available at all times for tech support. The good things about it means that no matter how long those calls are, he is paid for complete hours and all time spent is overtime. Yeah for the paychecks. At this point, we don't know how much it's going to impact our family time. He's trying to get approval to have a broadband card so that we can still take trips as a family without inferring with his new status. Either way, right now, we're looking at the blessings that this new assignment will bring rather than focus on the negative impact it could have.

He's really loving his calling in Scouts. He has been a great motivator to the boys he's over and to the boys he's not, he's trying to share information with them on their Scout leaders so that they can have the boys advancing together.

And speaking of Scouts, Morgan is plugging right along to his Eagle. His is so excited now and is constantly talking about what to do next so he can have his project ready to go in the next few months. The goal is to be finished with the project by the end of August if not sooner. My younger brother will be up at the end of July and that might be the perfect time to get the school bus stop structure up weather wise. We'll see and we'll post pictures as he starts the work so you can all see.

And speaking of Scouts again, there's Britt. She is about to advance in Girls Scouts from a Junior to a Cadette. She has her advancement ceremony next Thursday. She is also looking forward to this years Girls' Activity Day Camp at the end of June. It's her last year and that means extra stuff for the 11 year old girls.

Jesse is working hard at finishing the 3rd grade strong. She has never had any issues at school and all her teachers have loved her to pieces. They always send home really good comments about her. Her reading has really blossomed this year. She, like her older brother and sister, really likes to read. I don't know what's wrong with my kids. They are constantly reading. What happened to video games and playing with friends non-stop? ;) Just kidding, my children love playing video games and with friends too. Jesse is also very much into singing. She joined the school choir this year and they have the school end concert next Thursday. She told me on Thursday when I picked her up from choir that she tried out to a solo part for "My Country Tis of Thee." Wow! She is so courageous! I can't wait to hear if she got the part.

Kate, what can we say about her? She had her 2nd birthday recently. I can't believe two years have passed since she was born. On one hand it seems like only yesterday but on the other hand, it seems like forever ago! She has taken to singing too! I've had her in a YMCA gym class and they always start and end the group with circle time where they sing songs. Her favorite seems to be "Oh, Elephant" but she likes any song that has movement and noise. She is also talking up a storm and we have to be careful of what we say because she has also starting copying what we say. (She likes to say "what the flip" all the time because of Morgan.")

For me, I'm just trying to keep up with everyone and still take care of my responsibilities. I'm right in the middle of getting ready for Girls' Camp. Yeah! This year, I'm an advisor to 3rd Year girls (14 yr old). Our theme for the year is "Follow the Son". So everything revolves around Christ and his teachings. We had a camp meeting this morning with our cabins and we spent the morning making our signs with a cabin name the girls came on with (Sun Babes) and working on their skit and other little things. It was great fun and it gave us a little glimpse of what our week at camp is going to be like this year. I can't wait.

So there you go. That's us. Busy Busy Busy but who isn't? I love you all. I'll read you again soon (or post)! Have a wonderful weekend.

Dorius Update

2009-05-28T15:41:00.000-07:00

Hi! I am tickled that we are all getting more active on here! I had envisioned such and agree with Nicole... we can't be close in person or telephone very often...but we can here! *GRIN*

We are hanging in there. ;) We have started some paperwork for a loan modification for our second mortgage. It could save us hundreds each month. I look back and am not sure how, but we survived from the end of Dec. through April with little to no work for JWD Electric. I know all our credit lines are maxed & our savings is gone... but even that couldn't have gotten us through... It's been hairy. Jess has been working more since April.. not 40 hours a week by any means... but working. :) Tithing brings blessings only the Lord can offer. And we are SO very grateful.

My work is picking up some. We closed on a house across the street from me while we were in Arizona. That makes it so I can get groceries. :) Gave them a huge a deal on commission (family rate because they were going to use us to buy)...only to have it go wrong. It is disappointing to learn how many people want ya to work your guts out for nothing. I keep telling myself it will eventually come back to bless us for being so kind and we will get an honest wage somewhere else. *sigh* I have quite a few possibles... and multiple clients looking/having to sell first etc... but I try to never count my chickens before they hatch... and before I am done and have completely earned what I make. I am still sitting at the Subdivision a couple of times a week. Our builder has a home that will be in the Parade of Homes starting tomorrow... so we are all praying for a pick up! (especially with the new $8k credit!) And I am thankful for the chance to sit down for a minute here though and give ya'll an update while I use up my shift of time here at our "ghetto trailer"! ;)

I like my new calling... though the research is quite time consuming! Emergency Preparedness is a HUGE subject area. Maria and I (my real estate partner, bishop's wife, best friend & co-E.P. specialist) are going to try to get Disaster Plans for the Neighborhood going. It is a BIG undertaking, but we both feel the urgency to do it. Should be an adventure. ;)

Emmalee is growing fast. She wears my shoes now, is almost the same bra size as me(sorry uncles!), is taller than her Gram (Jess' mom) and is dying to not be growing up so soon. She loves homeschooling... and has done more power point presentations on what she has learned than I can count! She was able to be in the same Hope Of America Concert as the boys, and I did get pics that I will post as soon as I can (2businesses plus regular "post-vacation chaos" and that just does not get to be high on the priority list right now darn it!) LOL She loved Arizona! She had a great time with the girl cousins, though the teenage drama was a little more than she could handle...LOL. She is a peacemaker child and does not do well with constant irrational contention. I pray it continues through HER teenage years and we can stay close. :)

Cody is doing awesome! My biggest hopes for his homeschooling career may have been manifest yesterday. One of the things he was struggling with was wanting to play with friends or be social...he always said no! Since starting homeschooling his personality has blossomed! He has such a quick wit and a cute sense of humor! He had one of the kids in our neighborhood call and ask if he could play... the one with severe ADHD that he has completely avoided because he was just too much for Cody's quiet personality. Cody said yes! He went to his house to play... they played there and then came to our house to play! And they played SOO well together!! I was thrilled beyond belief! Cody was so patient with him and they really had a good time. It tickled me to pieces! He of course is excelling in schooling. We have exhausted the interest of DNA and genetic modification...for now...and we are now on to solar energy. *grin* He is almost all done with his Bear book and is really excited for the Weeblos camp next weekend with his dad (they are letting him go because he is close within 30 days of becoming a Weeblos)

Cameron is a pickle. Sometimes he is SO sweet and other times he is a sour puss. He re-broke his arm, hates to do school work for me, is really emotional about his best friend moving the end of June, and could live on the computer playing webkinz, or any other virtual reality type games if we would let him. He gives the best hugs ever, loves you deep and long, and keeps us on our toes. He still has NO sense of time. He has figured out the art of manipulation and is not too crazy about mom and dad's rule of "what did your mom/dad say?". *giggle* We are almost through Alma in his Book of Mormon reading before his baptism next January. (btw - Uncle B & fam: if you'd like to try and come we would LOVE to have you!) He loves Piggies in a Pancake and would eat them for every meal if he could! :)

Caleb. Oh man oh man Caleb. He is so much fun! On the way to AZ he snuck into the snack box (that's what I get for putting it next to him!) and ate an entire GIANT sized Hershey's bar. From Phoenix to Tucson we could not figure out why he would NOT be quiet!! His mouth went a hundred miles a minute! We laughed so hard when we figured it out. The poor boy was on a huge sugar/caffeine rush!! He LOVED AZ and STILL asks if we are in AZ. He loves motel rooms/condos. ?? It is a hoot. Any and all we drive by now he wants to know if we are staying there. LOL! This boy likes vacations! ;)

We really did enjoy our trip to Tucson for Kayelani's Graduation. It was lovely!! It was so fun to see McOmber's so happy to see Grandpa and Margean, and even more so to spend a little time with him and then stay and spend some extra time with them. KK has a really nice boy she is dating and each night the 6 of us adults would stay up and play games until all hours. The last night we were shocked to realize it was almost 3am UTAH time! LOL. I felt so very loved by our Heavenly Father while we were there... it had been in the 100's the week before we went down. It even hit 110 in Phoenix on our car temp gauge as we drove through. We arrived in Tucson to cloud cover... and it stayed the ENTIRE time we did!! It lightly misted rain a few times and never got above 85! Jess and I were both REALLY concerned about how my heart would do... but with the exception of a few times of needing to lay down, my heart did FANTASTIC! Heavenly Father really does create miracles in our lives if we choose to see them that is for sure! Everyone kept saying Tucson weather is NEVER like that. Storms fly in and out and temps roller coaster all over. I was SO greatly appreciative of the tempered weather I can't even explain! What a humbling experience!

We have been working together the last few evenings on building a chicken coop. It is fancy. Jess laughed and said "Son of a Utah Home Builders Assoc Superintendent of the Year had better build a good one!" LOL He is making the plan up as we go... it will end up looking like a little school house I think! The kids and I are debating on painting a bell on the front and making a sign that says "Hen High school" or "Poultry Preschool"! LOL The chickens are doing great! Well... except one. She is still SO tiny! I named her Wilbur. She is a Bandee chicken and looks like she has only grown a week since we got her! Jess had to give her a bath the other night because she was so pooped on. She is the sweetest little thing and holds her own though!

We added to our zoo-like qualities while in AZ. The kids wanted a gecko and I made the mistake of saying "if you can catch one you can keep it". Ha ha on me. We now have a lovely little Mediterranean House Gecko. His name is Gilligan, Gilligan the Gecko. Cody is officially in charge of him and LOVES it! Now we have chickens, a Yorkie, 3 frogs, a tankful of fish, a gecko and a hamster. My life is complete?? Bwahahahah

Katina... I will add peace for you all to my prayers as well. That seems like the only real avenue available at this exact moment - and I hate to say it - but wouldn't that just burn *her* up to know she has not effected you and your family? It makes her seem more like the problem that she is as well! Your children will feel your peace and WANT to stay. ((hugs)) and prayers!

Nicole... I really appreciate all you have written. You are much more than a sister-in-law that is for sure! I feel so blessed to have 3 wonderful sisters on this side of my family now! I know we have had our baggage as a family, but I know we are stronger for it. And we have a history all our own that is for sure! :) May God Bless the Stoddard family as we strive to be closer and honor and support one another in our struggles!

Thanks for reading this novel! WOW! I DO need to update more often! And I will have pics soon as well!! Gotta run! Home Depot is calling... LOL!

Something I Read

2009-05-24T22:28:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,

I was reading my conference edition of the Ensign and came across this quote from Elder Cook's talk "Our Father's Plan-Big Enough for All His Children." He quoted John 16:55 which says, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." (I read this address shortly after Katina posted her comments of what they're struggling through right now and I've been meaning to post it for a day or two.) I love this scripture because it tells me that not matter the pain I'm going through, I know that I can turn to my Savior and He knows what I am going through and that can give me peace. And, boy, does that cheer me up. We suffer trials and tribulation for our growth but knowing that Christ knows our pain and struggles lets us know where we can turn for relief.

I also loved this other quote from Elder Cook's talk too, "...be loving and kind to members of our own faith, regardless of their level of commitment or activity. The Savior has made it clear that we are not to judge each other. This is especially true of members of our own families. Our obligation is to love and teach and never give up. The Lord made salvation 'free to all men' but has 'commanded his people that they should persuade all men to repentance.'"

My family and our Stoddard family (and a few extentions) are perfect examples of this comment. Those of us that are stronger in the gospel need not "force feed" the gospel to those that are still trying to find out where they fit in. Today I was feeding Kate at the table and as I struggled to make sure that she was getting what she needs to sustain her energy if not add weight to her tiny body, I realized that I couldn't force open her mouth and put food into it with the expectation that she would swallow it down. She still has choice. A time or two, she would open her mouth and the food would drop into her lap or she would actually swallow it. The same holds true with those we share the gospel with. We can share our testimony with those we love but we can't force them to take it in with the expectation that they will let it sink into their hearts. They still have choice but regardless of that choice, we still love them and share our testimonies if only by our examples.

I love reading the conference addresses. It brings a different light on what I actually heard during conference. I love to read the addresses along with the notes that I took during the sessions to see what more I have learned since the intial address. It's fun to see if the goals I wrote on those days were actually met and applied to my life to this point. For this talk, the goal I made was to stop judging my family (especially my own siblings and parents). I didn't grow up in an ideal home but Heavenly Father didn't leave me alone and without blessings. Regardless of what my childhood was, I know that He loved me and blessed me with parents that tried to make the best of what they had. Could they have done better? Maybe, but I still love them and I will always treasure that they taught me good basic values. Because of them, I love the gospel and developed my own testimony. Because of them, I learned what a parent should be and try to be the mom my Heavenly Father wants me to be for my own children. My parents are good people. They are each in their own struggles, physically and spiritually, but as they continue down their paths, I hope that in some small way, I might be able to help them without them feeling like that I am "force feeding" them.

What was something you were able to read and apply from conference? I would like to know. Our best learning comes from sharing what we have learned with others.

I love you and I look forward to reading your responses.

Nicole

Advice

2009-05-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

Thank you for the advice you are right about controlling the actions of others it seems everyday we find out something new that makes it even worse. I think that will be what I start praying for we can certainly use all the peace we can get at our house. I had to laugh when you mentioned the scheduling and calendar it does get crazy about the only way I can keep it all straight is that we have one of those large desk calendars on the wall and everyone has their own color so when they have something we can write it down and even then sometimes it is CRAZY! It is nice to know of the support we have. We will let you know as things progress with Sean and his schooling at some point I would like to be able to go back too. I am glad for the blessings you recieve you are awesome people and deserve them all. Tell everybody we love them!

Thank You For Sharing

2009-05-19T15:26:00.000-07:00

Hey Katina - Thank you for sharing what is going on in your family and no, it didn't sound whiney. It's what's going on and if we don't know what's going on, then we don't know where to help or where to celebrate.

I can only imagine how hard it is having the blended family that you all have. I get a headache just thinking about the calendering and scheduling you guys have to keep. If anything, I pray for your sanity in keeping it all straight.

I'm sorry to hear that Nannette isn't being a very good person. I recently visited with a friend who is also dealing with her own blended family issues. Her two oldest children are from a previous marriage and suffer from medical issues that require certain medications. Her ex-husband has started manipulating their medication even though she has given him the strict guidelines that were stipulated by the children's doctor. It's sad when the one parent thinks they can get back at the other parent by using the children. She was telling me and my visiting teaching companion about how she started praying for justice on him because she was so frustrated with the health danger he is now putting their children in. This was a serious topic and we talked for quite some time about it but her advice to our friend, which is something you might want to think about, is to pray for peace, some type of understanding and strength for herself. We can't control actions the actions of others, we can only control our own. When we pray about us and our response to situations, we will have the Spirit to be with us more and Heavenly Father will hold each of us responsible for our actions.

To Sean, Brent and I so support you both in your decision to go back to school. It has been really good for Brent personally (as well professionally) going back to school. We have seen our financial outlook increase but more importantly, it has freed us to serve more. I know that this is what Heavenly Father wants for us. He helped Brent get this education not only to better our family but to better those around us. We have had numerous doors and opportunities open that we would not have with we continued on the path we were headed when we first moved here to Washington. Don't get me wrong, we are not rolling in the money, we make each and every paycheck work with very little wiggle room but because Heavenly Father has blessed us with a larger income, our focus is less on the bank account and more on serving those around us.

We love you guys and you are in our prayers. I know that Heavenly Father will bless you with peace and you will know how to handle the situation with Nannette. I know that you both are trying very hard to be Christlike with her and Heavenly Father will help your children see that and live by your example. Keep the faith and endure to the end!

Nicole

Sean, Katina & Family

2009-05-18T23:14:00.000-07:00

Well, I must apologize I have been bad at posting, but i am making a goal t try to start doing so more often, since I often have time at night since I find it hard to sleep with Sean gone. So from the top Sean is still working at the hospital and he has decided what he would really like to go into is respiratory therapy. This will start with him having to go to a two year program somewhere we are thinking UVU and then he will be able to take the respiratory portion via satallite at Utah valley. We are having a very horrible, terrible no good time with Nanette right now. We are at a loss of what to pray for anymore where that situation is concerned. It has gotten quite ugly as of late and shows no signs of getting better anytime soon in fact we are quite certain it will be getting worse before it ever gets better. We have tried so hard to be Christlike towards her all for naught! It is extremely frustrating!!!! Sean has finally decided that the time has come that he must stop being a nice guy and just leave her no wiggle room the law is the law is the law period no playing nice or allowin her to have extras or try to play like she is the victim when it is really the kids! I support him in this it is hard and takes its toll on our family every other week like clockwork......We try to be nice but sometimes I have to be quite honest I feel like we are dealing with our own personal version of hell personified in the boys Mom. However not all is bad! We have had a secret from the kids since January......we finally told them on the 3rd of May we are going to Disneyland this summer! Sean and I after much prayerful consideration decided that our tax return this year so go to one last bang up vacation. After this summer Tony will be 18 and will be under no obligation to spend any time with us if he chooses not to and unfortunately to our deepest and greatest sadness we feel we are losing him more and more each day that he lives with his Mother. So, we decided that for our last summer before we start losing kids to age and their own lives that we should make it a truly memorable one. So Disneyland came in to view we worked on it we planned we plotted and we made it happen. We will be leaving June 7th and returning June 13th. I was so excited to be able to tell the kids, that when we did, I had tears in my eyes. Because of court and other shinanigans pulled every summer by a certain person we have yet to have a vacation that lasted more than a few days with the kids since being married so we are so excited to finally pull it off! Sean is so excited that we told them at his prodding a full 2 weeks before we had originally planned it was so fun to see him animated like that. I still have my calling as a den leader for the scouts it is getting a bit better but is still very unorganized and frustrating most of the time I am trying to have a better attitude about it and enjoy being in there with Kole. It is fun to be in it with him and to get to plan and help him accomplish the goals. I am still job hunting though. I love being a Mom to all of the kids and seeing how they grow and learn so much. Tony I have mentioned he is not doing any better in school still does not have a driver's license and has changed quite a bit from the Tony we knew when he lived here. we just continue to pray for him and try to help where we can......:-( Billy has truly blossomed this last school year he has become a wonderful young man full of life and happiness. He is so excited to be able to share his upcoming birthday with Bethani his little birthday present as he calls her. Unfortunately a cloud has drifted over him as well since he is being repeatedly pressured from his Mom to say that he wants to go live there since he will be 15 in June. Sean is deeply regreting ever agreeing to this clause now.... hindsight and all. Joey is turning into a teenager in every sense of the word! he has a girl he likes her name is Kiara he has the tips of his hair bleached (sanctioned by Dad hated by Mom) a cell phone (bought by Mom, Dad lied to about it for quite awhile.....) But he is funny and growin so fast he is taller than Jenny now and is shooting for me! AJ is struggling as well he made it back to where he needed to be but was in danger of having to repeat 4th grade for most of the school year. However he found that he loves to sing and was in the school chorus and did really well. He was in the Hope of America choir that sang in the Marriott center to a full audience on May 5th. It was an awesome sight we were so glad he got to be a part of something like that. I am so proud of Kole! He brought home a certificate from school today recognizing him for outstanding performance on the IOWA tests for Grade 3. He scored in the top 10 percent nationally! In Reading, Core total, Mathematics and Total composite. It is signed by his principal, the state superintendent of public instruction and the Utah state board of education. I just thought that was so cool. Kole also was in the Hope of America show he and a small group from his school performed in the pre show they did 2 songs out on the floor on May 6th and did awesome too! Bobby is the funniest little kid I have met in a long time! He is such a goof! He is getting ready to graduate 1st grade and is doing pretty well in school he is all boy though and has more scabs and bruises from falling down.....he rode a skateboard down the hill by our house in flip flops the other day! Nut! He ended up needing 3 bandaids and a serious shower scrubbing after that! Trinity is getting ready to graduate Kindergarten she has grown a lot this year too both physically and educationally. She is also pretty funny and her and Bobby love to play together when they can. She has taken up writing letters to her cousin Lilly that lives in Pennsylvania and they enjoy sending things back and forth she has a harder time with reading but is starting to get that too. Last but not least Bethani she is almost a year old! Where has the time gone.....She finally crawled properly when we were at Jenny's house on Friday little stink. Too many people to haul her around I guess. She makes all kinds of funny faces and jabbers quite a lot now. She says Dad, Mom, Hi, Grandma(as long as grandma isn't in the room), Stubby and we are working on Jenny. She also waves, dances and sings la la la la la la la with Sean she is a music LOVER. I lost my camera after Hope of America part 2 with the memory card in it....grrrrrr and we just got a new one so I will try to post some pictures but I haven't quite figured out the new one all the way yet. I hope this doesn't sound too whiney I felt like Nicole asked and I should tell what was really going on and the things we are really struggling with since telling the sugar coated version wouldn't really help you know what was going on or what to pray for. I do want you all to know that I love being part of the Stoddard family and that we are grateful for everyday we have to enjoy our children who are our greatest blessings and joy despite the trials that come with a blended family. We have never wished that we hadn't gotten married and we can't believe that on June 8th it will have been 3 years since we said I do. We know that Heavenly Father is with us and pray that someday all of this will work out for the best and that we will know how best to lead and guide all of our children to be the best they can be. It seems to be something that will never happen at the moment but we try to keep a good outlook. We have been through a lot together and know that if it doesn't kill us we will find a way through it together and it will make us stronger. I thank you on behaf of all of us for any prayers you send our way. We pray for you too! If there are any questions you still have or something you want more information on just let me know. I will try to post again soon in keeping with my new goal :-P I am sorry about the punctuation or lack there of I am horrible at it. Sean laughs at me! I can type pretty fast, I can spell but I can't punctuate very well at all.....Oh well! Keep smiling! We love all of you and appreciate your love and support.

What is Family?

2009-05-17T21:32:00.000-07:00

That is my question to you. What does family mean to you? For me, it's connection. It's knowing who I am and where I belong. I love my family. I wish I heard from them more often so that I can strengthen my bond with them. I some respects I am responsible for hearing from them. Communication is a two way street. When Heather started this blog, I was excited because I saw this as a way for all of us to communicate with each other. Remember, Brent and I are 800+ miles away and picking up the phone isn't always the easiest thing to do. For me, I write better than I speak and the written word flows more easily than those coming from my mouth. Besides that, I can print the words from the screen to read over and over again. I can't do that with a phone call. Please post! I want to know what you're all doing. I want to make my prayers more meaningful rather than praying that your needs are being met. I would love to hear updates on Sean's pursuit to continuing education or seeing more pictures of what the nieces and nephews are up to. I would love to hear how Jenny and Clint are liking their new home and pictures (I didn't get an opportunity to see their new home when we were down in December). Heather, I love your family blog site and I check it often. I feel like you have done a lot to keep everyone connected. You have made efforts to let everyone around you know whats going on with one central location without having to tell the story over and over again. It was especially useful when you were having your heart surgery. We appreciated having that to keep us updated. My hope is that we can be more consistent with our own blog so that you can have updated information too. I haven't been as consistent as Heather but she has certainly set the bar high. Mom and Dad, I hope that you are reading this too. I love you. You are my Mom and Dad as much as my own parents are and in some respects, much more. I want to know what you guys are doing too. I would love to read some insights of how you are seeing things. You are the heads of this family and we can all benefit from your wisdom and guidance and what better place to do it than here. Like I said earlier, we can print it and read it over and over again.

I know it's not easy to stay connected and that it what Satan wants. It is his plan to destroy families and if he has his way, we would be miserable like him. Let's fight this. Let's stay close. We all need it. Our children are going to need it as they grow and become adults too. Let us be the example of what family is.

So, what is family to you?

I love you ALL! I love the Stoddard family. I have always felt good and at peace about my choice to marry Brent. He has been an excellent friend, husband and father and I know it's because of the example of his family. I know he developed his love of the gospel in your home growing up and I want my children to have a love for the gospel in our home but also from their extended family. The family is central in Heavenly Father's plan for a purpose. We are the core. Let us remember this and continue to strengthen ours.

I Love Couponing!

2009-05-12T22:59:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to show you all what my newest hobby is. I can't believe I let all these years go by with not doing this. It feels so good being able to use what we have been given in such a way that as we get our storage together, we can than help bless others as well. Check out our blog site for the complete story!

I hope that you are all well. We're doing good and greatly anticipating the end of the school year. Though we have an extremely busy summer ahead of us, we are looking forward to not having a school schedule to deal with. We certainly wished that coming that way this summer were in those plans but with Scouts, Activity Day Girls, Trek and Girl's Camp, we are looking at mid-August before we can actually say we have nothing going on just in time to start preparing for school to start all over again! Oh well. Bring on the fun.

I love you all and hope you are doing well. Have a great week.

Nicole

We finally got away!

2009-04-20T21:03:00.001-07:00

We got to go camping for the 1st time this season! (YEA!) We went to a place called Palisades. WOW! It is Awesome! The water was SO beautiful and aqua in color! They had paddle boats, fishing, golfing, ATV trails, full trailer hook ups...the works! It was perfect!

This is Caleb waitin' on the dock for his turn on the paddle boat... LOL

Update

2009-04-15T12:46:00.000-07:00

Go see my cute little blog. :)

Brent and Nicole Update

2009-03-21T22:30:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone - Here's what's going on with us in Washington:

Morgan just received his Life Scout Rank and is excited to start working towards his Eagle. His one project he wants to do (and has wanted to do for a long time now) is to paint over the graffiti. We have a building that is next door to our library and it keeps getting "tagged". Morgan has always been very sensitive to when people leave graffiti around town.

Britt is done with Girls Scout Cookies and sold over 300 boxes. Thank you to everyone that bought some and helped her earn her trip this summer. The troop is looking into going to Disneyland or the Oregon Caves. We're waiting to hear what the final decision is.

Jesse sang in a children's choir this last week and loved it. She is going to be my singer I think.

Kate is doing great too although she was sick with an ear infection this last week. And when they say misery loves company, while she had her ear infection, Morgan had strep throat. She loved having Morgan home this past week with her. Now that they're both better and ready to run, it seems Jesse and Britt may be coming down with it. More fun for Kate! Yeah!

I don't know if the family knows yet but Brent was released as Ward Clerk a couple of weeks ago and was called to be the Varsity Scout Leader (14/15 year olds). This means that come December, he'll be Morgan's scout leader. School is going well for him although he's not enjoying accounting very much. Work is also good. Right now, he's job is stable and he is being told that he safe from the lay offs because of his level status.

And what can I say about myself? Busy, busy, busy. Never a dull moment in our home. Anyways. Love you all and I love hearing what's going on so let's keep this blog going. (I'm trying to be better at the updating.)

Love, Nicole

Dorius Update

2009-03-17T10:43:00.000-07:00

Thought I would post a quick update on us:

Jess is still without much work. He has been talking to an old boss about possibly working with him and being a sub for him. We will see. Magleby has told us they would have more jobs for us if we had more man power...but how do you have more man power with no work? It's a quandry. LOL. He is staying very faithful about it all though... and the small jobs keeps coming. He tested and earned his yellow belt in karate this week. He is really enjoying it!

I have had a terrible time with my heart. (See our blog for details...it makes me cranky to type it out) I am very discouraged, but there is nothing I can do about it so I am trying to keep my chin up and "tread water" happily. (grr) Going backwards is just so frustrating. And being told to wait it out and see what happens makes me even LESS happy. *sigh* I shouldn't complain! I *am* alive right? LOL

I also have learned how to bottle chicken at home! Talk about YUMMY!! It is so tasty! And so easy! I am going to do beef next... and I want to learn to make homemade cheese! Go me! LOL

The girls in the neighborhood caught wind I did chicken and we had to have a canning party! I have such great neighbors!

Emma has come home for homeschool now as well. They are both doing SO good! I had no idea it would be so simple and fun and fulfilling. It really has been a joy for all of us! We feel closer and more like a real unit. It's hard to explain. I am relishing it for now!

They spent an afternoon using magnets to find the most amounts of iron in the dirt around the yard. Then they came in and did experiements on it. They set up their own museum and showed each of the family what they learned. It has been such a good time!

Here is a pic of Cam's broken arm from yesterday! He tangled his feet in the web climbing part on the playground and flipped out landing on the one arm with his full body weight. POOR THING!! It was not a good day! They had to put him to sleep to set it. It was a long day at the ER. He is doing pretty good today. Tylenol w/codine can do that you know! LOL! He can't go to school until after he sees the Ortho Surgeon on friday... and then even maybe not.

Sophie is LOVING being an only dog again. We have missed Zoey, but she belongs with her other parents again. They need her. And I need less to do everyday... LOL!

Caleb is as crazy as ever! He loves pre-school, and homeschool, and having the kids home as much as I do. We are never bored that is for sure! *grin*

I hope you all can post updates soon! It would be great to hear how you have been!

2009-01-25T16:37:00.000-08:00

Check out our blog for a big update..

2009-01-24T10:45:00.000-08:00

Morgan's journey continues as a hero. Check out our blog for more details.

Love ya all,
Brent

2009-01-14T17:16:00.000-08:00

And so...

We have gone from this....

Added this....

And added this...

And added this....

And this fine young man....

And together we have created......

......

........

...................

THIS!!!

What were we thinking ???

Bwahahaha

Such Cute Girls!

2009-01-06T11:39:00.000-08:00

We know where they get it from! *wink*

Dorius Family Update - warning kinda grumpy LOL!

2008-12-15T15:54:00.000-08:00

We are hectic as ever at our house! Between our two businesses, busy church callings, illness and christmas/december madness we hardly ever stop!

The kids had stomach flu early in the week and I had many adventures in carpet cleaning - joy joy! *grin* Then Cam and Cody had bad sore throats and headaches - Caleb was the one that started the stomach flu - was well for a day or two and started a nasty cold! Cameron started what looked like pink eye on friday - it cleared up with antibiotic drops the next day and then Emma's eyes started! She too started the drops and I pray we are passed it! (pink eye t-e-r-r-i-f-i-e-s me - that is what triggered my last bad case of A-fib! :O waaa! No! No! NO!) They all seem to be on the up and up this new Monday - though now Jess and I are struggling... fer the love!

This last week/weekend has been the worst I must say! I had to coordinate and pull off a Primary activity & coordinating all the class lists/callings so we could put on a teacher prep class for the new year last night. (the pri. pres. had her baby this week and the other counselor and secretary are due in a few weeks so I am not sure it will get better before it gets worse!) I had to coordinate the Ward Christmas Party Program that night that got dumped in my lap! ack! I hoola hooped to "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" with the Activities committee (what the ___ was I thinking?? I never caught my breath after that!) Then I was the "primary song leader" in a skit the bishopric did (Jess had to miss because he was so ill- I felt so bad!) and that was nice and embarrassing! It was hoot tho! Then I set up and pulled off the nativity scene and Santa claus all tied into one that REALLY turned out quite well! I was pleased with the results and the Spirit it brought! I also ran the curtains. Whew! By the time I helped with as much clean up as I could, I knew I was so done that I might not be able to drive myself & Emma home! I had WAY over done. I walked in the door and laid down on the couch and could not move for over 45 minutes - I hurt so badly! My heart was pounding so hard I wanted to puke and thought my head was going to explode. It was...umm...not so fun. *wink*

After laying down for 45 minutes I took my blood pressure it was 138/90 (I think) (Thanks again Jen! It is so nice to have that little machine here at home!) Anyway it was WAY higher than I am used to! And that was after laying down! Oye! Jess was so mad at me.

Sunday was just as busy - we both had ward counsel in the AM, church meetings, teacher training and then a powow with the Elders Quorum Pres hoping to find names that we can pray about - I got home yesterday around 7 pm and was a mess... I had horrid chills and aches - and all night I was miserable! Ugh! This makes 5 days straight of body aches every day - how annoying is that??

I also had my FLYSistahs Christmas party earlier in the weekend in SLC friday night and was there until almost 2am - one of them had some major meltdown (and rightly so :( ) but it made for "really? I am sorry you are in need of a good friend right now- but I gotta go home" kinda not such a good plan. So I stayed. I was slapping myself on the drive home and hoping I wouldn't sleep through the set up the next AM for the Primary Activity!

Jess has a monster chest cold & is just plain miserable - I am affraid it is pneumonia - he coughs until he almost throws up (and has a time or two) and just plain sounds terrible! (and deep down I am terrified Cam will get it.... :( ack! I am disinfecting like a mad woman!) I went this afternoon and helped Jess pull a main power feed through garage trusses - what a joke! He was too weak to push normally - I was too weak to pull like I wanted to and it was cold and that big fat wire did not want to budge more than a nano inch with each full exertion we could muster. Aye! It was pathetic. It took hours!! We finally said a prayer and asked for help. And then it slowly came! It was lovely - and I kept sensing that Jessie's Great Grandpa Allman (the one who married Grandma Lucas' sister) was there... though he was worried about Jessie and wanting us to quit. *sigh* The problem is you don't tell Jess to quit - when he has said he will do something - he does it - and his ambition never ends I tell ya! I feel so blessed by it and cursed by it other times...LOL! Silly sick man! I had to leave him there to get home for the kids - so I hope he is doing ok now - he *had* to the get the feed wired into the panel or the homeowner would be without power tonight.

Wow this post seems whiny! I guess I needed to "get it off my chest" LOL! I am feeling a bit better myself today - though my throat is sore and achy. Ah! The goodness winter brings with it! Yippe. I am going to go fold the mountain of laundry and get the boys sheets washed for the upteenth time this week. LOVE and SQUISHIES to all!

Brent & Nicole - I forwarded Morgans story to my neighbors and friends - they are all so proud of him too! It really is neat!

Sean - I am sorry I didn't call you back the other day - I should be home and available tommorow Am - LOL - if you still need me now! bwahaha "go Heather!" allrightythen.

Jenny & Clint - I hope Clint is feeling better and his shoulder is healing well! Post an update when you can... been thinking about you when I lay in bed at night and think "man! I still haven't called to check on him!" I suck. I know.

Mom and Dad - Jess hasn't forgotten your fence repair - it bugs him daily! He will get there eventually!

Love,
Heather

Morgan in the News

2008-12-11T08:13:00.000-08:00

Morgan made our local newspaper today for his quick thinking and heroism. Here's the link just in case Brent didn't send you the link already.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/puyallup/story/564255.html

All I can say is "wow". I don't know if I would have done the same thing and I'm an adult. What a crazy thing. I'm just trying not to let thoughts of what could have happen get to me because that just sends me into a panic that I think would detour Morgan from reaching out to help others again for fear of how his mother would react.

I am proud of Morgan and his ability to focus and quick thinking under pressure to help others stay safe. I know that he was being protected that day. Heavenly Father was aware of what he was doing and sent his angels to help keep him safe.

From Brent and Nicole

2008-11-29T12:00:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone! I can't believe Christmas is just around the corner. We can't wait to be there with everyone. The kids can hardly stand the wait. What I think is so cute is that Jesse is looking forward to seeing Bobby again. She apparently made a connection with him when we saw all of you last July. I love when the kids look forward to spending time with their cousins because that means that they have family bonds beyond our own immediate little family.

Things here are good. We had a good Thanksgiving and hope that yours was good as well. We had a quite dinner here with my parents and then went to a ward family's home for pies. They have the tradition of making lots of pies and inviting friends over on Thanksgiving evening to visit and eat pie. They started this when they were living in Japan away from family for the holidays and when they moved back here to the states, they continued the tradition. They are a good family and we enjoyed spending time with everyone who helped to eat the 21 pies they made (one family actually brought 5 more making it 26 total pies).

I hope that your holiday was good and that you're having a great holiday weekend. We look forward to seeing you all in three weeks.

Love you!

Nicole

Clint's Surgery

2008-11-27T20:10:00.000-08:00

I just thought I would let everyone know, Clint's shoulder surgery went fine. They shaved off the acromion hook, fixed a fray (partial tear) in his supraspinous, and cleaned out all the inflamed bursa tissue. They inserted a pain pump that continuously gives numbing meds directly to the shoulder, that will be in until Saturday. The surgery only took 2 hours. They kept him 5 hours after he woke up because he wasn't stabilizing. High blood pressure, fainting, nausea, etc. They let us go home around 8p.m. Then after I got him home he was awake every 45 minutes throwing up and needing to be readjusted until about 6 a.m. He woke up at 9 a.m. very hungry. He has been good since then. Just normal pain. Now he is more frustrated that he needs my help doing everything. He is not allowed to use the arm for 10 days, then he will have physical therapy.

Love, Jenny

picture colors

2008-11-25T09:43:00.000-08:00

Clint and I are wearing black

Family Photo Shirt Colors

2008-11-22T12:09:00.001-08:00

Post here what shade your family will be wearing for the family photos next month:

Jestin in something besides Carhart's and a JWD T-shirt!

2008-10-31T00:24:00.000-07:00

Our neighbor and friends invited us to the New Utah Valley University President's Ball. It was way out of our league...and quite fun!

My favorite was seeing Jess all dressed up! *GRIN* Thought I would share!

Thanks Jenny for stayin with the kids!!

Day of Mourning

2008-10-10T10:18:00.000-07:00

Sadness of sadness... I happened to be home this morning doing virtual because I wasn't feeling well and heard some really sad news...

Mother's Cookies Closes

That's right... my favorite cookies will shortly not be available ever again. Mother's cookies laid off it's workers, closed its doors, and declared bankruptcy. The world will never be the same again.

I went immediately to the store to try and grab one more bag of Circus Animal Cookies (you know the little white and pink frosted animal cookies). It took me two stores to find one bag... and even then it was the Halloween edition (white and orange). I will try to make this last treasured tasty morsel last as long as I can but they will probably be gone in a couple of hours. :)

Have a Great Day!

Idea's

2008-09-30T13:30:00.001-07:00

I like the idea that each family chooses a color for the pictures. That way when people see it they can tell who belongs to whom. Clint and I will probably have to where black or gray. That's what color all his shirts are. Unless we count his work shirts from when he worked at Fugal's, they are all neon orange. I don't think he'll like that. Hee Hee. Also I had an idea that might be fun. What if we did white elephant gifts? We still do the regular presents, but also have everyone bring one extra little gift that we could win from playing a game or something. They wouldn't have to be big gifts just something from the dollar store. I know Heather's kids love going to the dollar store, getting gifts, and wrapping them. Just thought all the kids might like it.
Love, Jenny

An apology

2008-09-29T20:41:00.000-07:00

I appreciate Brent's diplomatic approach. There is was no contention on my part in the least in these discussions and I want to apologize immediately if any of you felt that as a result of anything I may have said. I just know how hard it has been my whole married life to juggle so many families, and the guilt that is involved in it and wanted to have the opportunity to have some concrete plans in place for this part of our family before the other sides starts planning theirs.

I will go with whatever you all decide... aside from Christmas morning as we made a promise as husband and wife that that would be our sacred time. (I am very sad that others cannot enjoy that opportunity as well, I don't mean to make anyone feel badly about it... I was simply stating a commitment we made that we honor in our home. -one that one side of our family took horribly and we were ostrasized for a couple of years for)

I do not mean to push/plan the holidays. I just know in the past without someone taking the reins it doesn't happen and we can't function on last minute... it just doesn't work out most times (course often the Dorius' curse kicks in and we can't do plans either... ha ha) and I just wanted to be sure that, where we can all be together this year, I could in good faith say that we have plans before Jess' family tries to figure out their "dance" as well.

You all go ahead and plan and let me know what you decide. I just can't do contention if there is going to be any... I just can't. I will be happy with whatever you all decide. :) ~~heather

Thank You for the Love

2008-09-29T19:43:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

We are humbled that you all want to spend some quality time with us when we come down in December for Christmas. We realize that everyone is very busy and we were not insensitive to this when we made the decision to come down. This is a very unique opportunity for us to have so much time available with out having to take to much “personal time” off of work or school and we wanted to come down to see everyone with this opportunity. We feel blessed that we can share this opportunity.

That being said, I need to say I was made aware of this thread of discussion and have agreed for the most part to stay out of making any firm decisions regarding the activities surrounding the celebration of our Lord’s birth specifically because I knew that there would be many families involved and I did not want our family to be the center of any contention. I am concerned that this is exactly where this thread has the potential to go so I will offer our schedule and a few thoughts on questions brought up but I will leave it to you and your families as to how you want to proceed after that. We are open to just about anything as long as we can see all of you during this great season of love and joy.

- We will be doing a Christmas dinner/get together here with Harvey and Suzanne (whom we just brought up to live closer to us so that Nicole can help her more to become better) on the Sunday prior to Christmas.

- We plan on leaving here (weather permitting) early Monday morning and traveling as far as Gooding, Idaho (which is where we hope to be by night fall). We have determined for the safest travel it would be better not to travel at night if possible.

- We plan at this point to leave there early Tuesday morning and to be in Utah Valley by early to mid afternoon.

- After the holiday we plan on leaving Saturday morning to head on home.

You will notice that we have planned nothing for while we are there yet. Yes, we would love to get a family picture done. Yes, we would love to have a full family get together with everyone together and enjoying one another’s company. But, beyond that we leave it up to you and your schedules.

Here are a few suggestions (both heard and unheard) that I offer up as possibilities, again it is up to you:

- It was suggested that we get together, by Dad, on the 26th for a meal at their house. This shouldn’t interfere with most other families activities and Nicole and I can help get some of the cooking done while others may have to be at work during that day.

- On Christmas Day itself I vey much enjoyed the suggestion that Jenny put forth, that people will be just going in and out all day at Mom and Dad’s. Maybe this could be a snacky kind of day with treats and little sandwiches or something along those lines. Something that doesn’t require anyone putting forth a lot of effort on this day that so that all can enjoy it.

- Again because people might have to work during the day, we could probably do the pictures Friday evening. We would rather not do a dressy photo as we were not planning on bringing suits and dresses and such. It might not be a good idea to do white shirts for a couple of reasons, such as with a snowy background we might all look like floating heads so that might not be as good an idea. I agree we probably don’t want to look hodge podge so I am good with going with a specified color shirt and slacks (like beige or something). We think Mom and Dad could coordinate to their liking and the rest of could coordinate as a colored background for them. I am not choosy on the colors and we could even coordinate boys one color, and girls a complementing one. Another suggestion might be to have each family choose a different color to signify who belongs to who with Mom and Dad again coordinated to their liking.

In other words we are coming down to just enjoy family. Please do not be concerned with anything major if it will cause any issues on Christmas Eve or Day. We want to see and enjoy you and if that means one at a time then that will have to do. As far as Mom’s morale (as it was suggested) I think I would be more concerned with her sanity after having to try and coordinate a major gathering, so if we cannot all get together for more than a small meal and pictures that is okay to.

We love all of you and cannot wait to see you.

Thanks,
Brent

2008-09-29T12:14:00.000-07:00

11am sounds do-able to us!

BREeeeeNT..... what is the plan? or is there one yet? LOL

Also...so I can start planning now... shall we try to co-ordinate clothing a bit for pictures so it's not so modge podge? All black and white? Solid dark colors? Jeans and white shirts? Denium shirts? Church clothes? Any prefrences? It would be nice to have an idea to start watching for deals/sales on a certain thing now rather than try to fit it into the Christmas time pinch. *GRIN* MA! Dad! Any preferences?? Anyone else have an opinion? Shpeak up won't ya?
~~heather

2008-09-23T14:00:00.000-07:00

we understand the need to have just special time with your little family we feel that need too, but we also have a few other things we must consider. On the years when we have the kids for Christmas like this one we only have them until 1 pm then they must go to their other parents until 9pm. On the years we don't have them for Christmas we don't get them until 1pm and then they have to go back to their other parents at 9pm. Also, this year Nanette gets Tony and the rest of the boys for his birthday which is Christmas Eve. We also have Golding grandparents that would like some of our time too and in our effort to make neither family more important we have a real dilemma on our hands as to how exactly to divide our time and make it fair but still have time together as our family too. This year we feel it is important that we make it special because Brent will be here, but it will also be Bethani's first Christmas and the first Christmas that my brother Jim will be home from his mission. Also a big one for us this is the first year in 4 that we will have the 5 boys with us Christmas morning and all of the kids together on Christmas morning all 8 of them. Alot of exciting things and we don't want to hurt anyone's feelings so we will try to be as workable as we can with everyone, but we do have a few considerations to think of. Sorry that makes it so complicated to get together. What if the lunch wasn't until like 11am? Is that enough time for everyone or is that still to early? Any other suggestions? Want to give us away yet?? Just as a note we are telling this to the Goldings too so everyone will understand where we are coming from and hopeful still be speaking with us! We are good with the picture idea too! Especially since no one is pregnant that we know of so it will last a little while.:-) Love you guys! Sean and Katina

Christmas

2008-09-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

I am fine with which ever we do, lunch or dinner. Clint and I only go to his mom's sometime on Christmas day. They don't really set times because with so many combined familys it is way to hard to get together at the same time that makes everyone happy, so people drift in and out of her house all day. I think pictures a good idea too.
-Brent what days will you be here so we know what to plan from that time?

2008-09-19T08:31:00.000-07:00

I am good with that. :)

Also...we are ok with a lunch or dinner or even a Christmas Eve party...however our tradition is that Christmas morning is time for just our little family. And we try not to rush it. We have so much family that we want to see and want to see us that if we give up this time we dont get any as our own unit...so we have made this our "sacred" time that we try to enjoy just as our own unit. (Our few experiences trying to share it has been disaterous and our kids are growing too fast to miss even one of them...) I hope you all understand.

Having said that...what about lunch or dinner that day? or a big Christmas Eve party? (plus all our get-togethers the other days that Brent will be here....) *grin*

AND! Shall we have our family photo done? My friend Amy is a photographer and we could go get pics on the steps of the Provo capital type building or something... cheaper than Sears and a larger space too! LOL! Just thinking out loud.... what do you all think?

((hugs))
~~heather

Christmas

2008-09-14T17:04:00.000-07:00

hello all! We have talked about it and we really feel that for Mom's morale since Brent is coming home this year that we should have our party at Mom and Dad's house so that Mom can have all of her kids and grandkids under her roof for the first Christmas in a long time. We are greatful that Heather is willing to have us all over there, but feel that for this instance Mom and Dad's house is the best choice. We think that it might be fun to do a brunch and just have everyone bring their favorite breakfast thing to share. :-) Sean and Katina

Christmas Draw 2008

2008-09-10T10:51:00.000-07:00

Caleb and I did the draw, as per Brent's request... *grin*

Brent & Nicole = Jenny & Clint's Family
Sean & Katina = Heather & Jestin's Family
Heather & Jess = Sean & Katina's Family
Jenny & Clint = Brent & Nicole's Family

Also just a reminder... Brent and Nicole will BE HERE this year! YEA!!! I am offering my house as our gathering place for a Christmas party (be it Christmas Eve or Christmas Day) since we have wider open spaces and such. But I am good either way! Let's plan though so I can let Jess' family know what we are planning so they can plan around it! *grin* SOO excited to be all together again!

2008-08-14T09:54:00.001-07:00

Cam's in the hospital. Check our blog for updates. :)
~~heather

Ma's Newest "Granddog"

2008-07-23T08:52:00.000-07:00

This is Zoey. Aint she sweet?? Sophie loves her...

Bethani

2008-07-16T10:53:00.000-07:00

First time to church. Pretty dress.

Bethani

2008-07-16T10:20:00.000-07:00

Big smile.

Bethani Irene Stoddard

2008-07-03T14:37:00.000-07:00

Hey just thiught we would share some of our photos. Bethani weighed 7 lbs. 12 oz. and was 19 inches long at birth. At her 2 week check up she was 8 lbs. 4 oz. and 20 1/2 inches long. She is growing and doing well and absolutely beautiful if we do say so ourselves! Enjoy!

Check on Heather's Blog

2008-06-06T10:38:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy week... more info on our blog...

Sean, Katina & Family

2008-05-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm sorry it has been awhile I lost the link to the blog and kept forgetting to ask Heather for it...Anyway I would like to thank Heather and Jenny and Mom S for the baby shower it was fun! The aunt sitting next to me in the pictures is my Aunt Gayle and the one holding the baby is Aunt Carol. When we had the shower the baby had dropped a week earlier so we were thinking it wouldn't be long but here we are and she still hasn't come. We have had 3 false alarms already one of which actually sent us to the hospital a couple of times. Because I was only 36 weeks at that point the doctor couldn't do anything to help us along, so we got sent home :-( My kidney problems are being managed just fine by the antibiotics at this point so he can't use those as a medical reason to induce me anymore and he has to have a medical reason to do so. So, we are waiting and trusting that heaven knows what it is doing. It is hard though as my body is getting more and more beat up everyday. We are also way excited to see our little girl. Yes it is still a novelty to Sean to be able to say that! Unfortunately it is also that time of the year when the kids will be with their other parent for half the summer after Friday. Waaahhhhh! Nanette will be taking the 5 boys to California this next week so if the baby comes then they won't even be in the state! We also received the news on Tuesday that my job entitlement ended Monday and they are filling my position so I am jobless now too. I am able to apply for long term disability so that hopefully we will still have some income coming in, then I will be job hunting when the baby gets here. I'm not sure if this is a blessing in disguise yet or not but we are trying to be positive about everything. The kids are excited for school to end tomorrow and for their little sister to get here and they are all doing well right now. Sean is hanging in there and trying his best to be everywhere at once....he tells Bethani everyday that it is okay for her to come now and about all the things they can do together once she does it is cute and fun. I will be better about posting now that I have the link again......Katina

Thanks Brent

2008-05-26T13:09:00.000-07:00

Thanks for your info on the Soil Sweet. We had this weird seed stuff that the previous owners left in the garage. It was seeds mixed in with paper. It did nothing. We have been using Miracle grow. It has really made the grass grow thick and fast but hasn't helped the bald spots. So we bought new seeds and will try the Soil Sweet. Can't wait to see you in December.
Love, Jen

Wonderful News!

2008-05-20T09:15:00.000-07:00

That is great news Brent!! You are going to succeed so fully! I just know it!! We are thrilled for you here!! Keep up the great work!! ((hugs))
~~Heather & Jess

Surprise

2008-05-20T07:58:00.000-07:00

Hey to Everyone,

As most of you know I graduated last October from DeVry University and landed a job at Boeing in February. Well a few things have come from this:

1) We are better off financially and I have to say really blessed that Nikki has the mindset of paying things off so that we can be debt free and have a savings. Were not there yet but getting closer daily.

2) It has allowed me to be home in the evenings which is something I have not been able to do realistically in years and I am really enjoying being with my wife and family. I think they also really enjoy seeing dad more often then just the weekends.

3) It has given me a better perspective on technology and an ease that has allowed me to accept several opportunities to serve. The most recent is that I am working on a small database for the Seattle Temple so that they know who can speak a foreign language and when they are available to assist in ordinances at the Temple.

4) It has made me realize that even though I thought I would be good at it, I am not a programmer! Therefore I have a surprise:

Some of you may know already but for those of you who don't I am going back to school. I am going to go to Keller Graduate School of Management for my MBA (Masters of Business) with a concentration in Project Management. I will also be able to take the test to become a PMP (Project Management Professional) which will be a globally recognized certification. There are many things that make this exciting and I have the support of my beautiful wife in this decision. One of the best things is that I will not have to pay a penny as Boeing will pick up the entire bill as long as I keep my grades up. WOO HOO....

Anyway, hope all is well with all of you. Have a Great Day!

Brent

Pics from the Shower...

2008-05-16T08:24:00.000-07:00

This is the blanket that Ma is making for Baby Anne... it's white in the reverse side...

Left to right... Ma, Jenny, Emmalee, Katina's Mom, Katina and her Aunt _______. (ack! I swore I was going to remember!)

This is a blanket I made for the babes... was great to have something to do post surgery... and I was so excited to learn she loves the sound of elephants... it has little elephants on it! yea! Jenny gave her the CUTEST extra soft green blanket with a frog on it...that pic didn't work out. :( But it's darling!

Katina's other family... her cousin Autumn (blue shirt) lives 4 houses down from me... we were excited to really meet each other since I have meant to go introduce myself forever! LOL! (I had my heart issues and she was way PG with the little one being held by the aunt to her right...) Now we both can start venturing out and getting to know one another better!

It was a fun shower! Jenny did a fun game of "you can't say Baby" and we all had a necklace with a biniki on it & you had to give it to whoever caught you saying "Baby"... who knew Katina's family was so competitive! LOL! It was a hoot! The Aunt I can't remember her name won the game! Baby Anne got a good stash and it was a delightful time getting to know Katina's family better. :)

2008-05-14T21:49:00.000-07:00

Hey guys, I got my own blog up. It is a little boring but I can't figure out how all the fancy stuff works. I'll have to have Heather help me. Just thought I would let ya know. Love ya'll. -Jen

Katina's Shower

2008-05-03T09:03:00.000-07:00

(AHH Jesse you look B-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l!!! *wink*)

Jenny and I are going to be throwing Katina a baby shower next Saturday (May 10th) @ 1:00pm. This is an official invitation since May came out of no where and we have not mailed anything. (gulp) We thought we better do it sooner rather than later in case baby "Annie" decides to come too soon.

Jesse's Baptism Picture!

2008-04-26T17:08:00.001-07:00

Caleb....LOL!

2008-04-25T07:27:00.001-07:00

Changes In Our Home

2008-04-23T08:57:00.001-07:00

Hi all,

Here's Jesse's baptism picture (thank you to Mom and Dad for remembering your camera when I didn't hear Brent telling me to grab ours.):

It was a beautiful day, both because of the event and because of the weather. After several months of below normal temps and snow the week before, we had 80 degrees on one of the best days ever. She was so beautiful in her dress. We're getting her pictures done this weekend and I'll post it as soon as we can so you can see her dress too.

Britt and Morgan are doing well too. Right now they're going through WASL testing (Washington state's standardized review tests). This is Britt's first year and she seems to be doing well. Our concern was whether she would take her time and complete each question as needed. But she is doing well and only has three more days. Morgan is also doing well and is taking this year very seriously. He will be going to 6th grade camping in less than 2 weeks. He is so excited! It should be very interesting to see how he does because he will be gone for 4 days and I don't think he will be able to call home to say goodnight like when he's with his scout leaders when they go on overnighters. He is very senstive in this respect and is very mindful on how things are going at home when he is not here. Last night, on the way home from Mutual, his scout leader took his kids, his niece, and nephews and Morgan to McDonalds for Mcflurries. Morgan was so mindful that I would be waiting at home for him that he had Bro. Ayala call home to let me know that they would be a little late. He has given us quite moments of surprise when he has shown us how he truly can be responsibility. I have been so blessed with great kids not to mention a good husband from a great family!

Well, that's about it. Oh wait, there is another change. I will soon be released as Primary First Counselor. I can't believe after only 6 months as a counselor they're releasing me but it's all Brent's fault. The Bishporic was reviewing the stake calender when they saw that there was a Young Women's Girls Camp Advisor Meeting this Thursday and Brent mentioned that I would be attending. Well, little did he know that they have been considering names for a new Young Women's Presidency in our ward. They asked him to leave the room and within the hour they were on the phone asking to meet with me. I have been asked to be the Young Women's President. I am overwhelmed with this responsibility and have gone through many emotions for the last few days, so much so that I could not sleep last night. I know this is where Heavenly Father needs me to serve right now but I'm struggling. One moment, I'm excited and the next I'm wondering what I was thinking accepting this calling. It's been a roller coaster but not a moment has gone by where I have been prayed for strength and the faith to be who Heavenly Father needs me to be. Overall, I'm excited to be involved with the Youth again and look forward to sharing these experiences with my own daughters as they begin to prepare for Young Womens.

I love you all and hope all is well with you.

Keep the faith and endure to the end!

Nicole

Video about Jenny

2008-04-11T13:39:00.000-07:00

Hey B...we didn't even think about it because we were doing daddy-daughter type songs! I am sorry! Here is Jen's video from her childhood (since you saw mine on my blog) Those are the 4 songs we did... it is a blast to make them... I completely love doing it... so if you want me to LMK and I can make another one with you in it if you'd like :) ~~Heather

Videos For Dad

2008-04-09T13:39:00.000-07:00

Jenny and I made these last year for Dad's b-day...thought those of you that haven't seen them yet might enjoy them *grin*

Recovering

2008-03-28T19:10:00.000-07:00

Hi! I am recovering.Thank you for your love and thoughts and prayers! I am getting tired, so you can peek at my blog for an update, but I just wanted to say hi and thank you!! LOVE YOU ALL!!
~~Heather

Happy Friday!

2008-03-28T09:25:00.000-07:00

It's Friday here and it's suppose to be spring but if you were look out our window, you'd see the snow falling as I type. Oh well, it's still pretty. (Here's a picture of Kate and I checking out the snow).

Things here are quiet. The kids are all at school for their last day before Spring Break. We've got nothing special planned except Jesse's 8th birthday next Thursday. She'll probably have her two girlfriends from her CTR8 class over for the day and a family birthday party when Brent gets home from work. She can't wait to go to Activity Days. The leader and all the girls made her a welcome card this last week to welcome her in since she gets to go to their next activity.

Britt cracks me up. You will probably relate but this girl loves to read. Everytime we turn around, she has her nose in a book. She loves it so much it's actually getting her in trouble now. She puts reading above everything. School and house work gets put aside so she can read (huh, that's sounds like me). Her teacher loves the fact that she's always reading except that she's not turning in her reading log or getting her other work done. How do you get someone to stop something that we spent that last several years trying to get her to do?

For now, this is all that's going on. Hope this finds you all well. We still need a picture of Mom and Dad on the site. Love you!

Nicole

Staying Positive

2008-03-19T12:32:00.000-07:00

Well where to begin......I think with the kids we have here with us already. They are crazy! Joey has decided to be a part of the track team and is finding out first hand just how much work and dedication on his part it will take to do this. He has to maintain certain grade standards and this is giving him a few fits, we don't mind an extra reason for him to keep them up though! Otherwise, he has practice everyday and seems to be settling into it. Because of his asthma he obviously is not a sprinter :-) but he seems to like to do the other things like the high jump, shotput and the other field activities. They have their first track meet at Lehi Jr. High on Monday and he is looking forward to it. So we will have to let you know how that is going.

Tony had a learning experience a week ago yesterday......he and the other kids that live with us went tubing with my family (my sister has been here from Pennsylvania and the kids have wanted to go all winter) Sean and I opted out it was too much strain for my body to even go watch in the cold. :-( Anyway, So they got to the top of the hill and Tony just jumped right on his sled and away he went.......right into 3 trees and another tube...oops!! He wasn't injured too badly the only place he got hurt was his face. He had quite a few scratches and bit his lips pretty good, but no stitches were required and no bruises ever popped up. He quite literally learned the meaning of the phrase look before you leap. Most of the scratches have healed up just fine now and he can even laugh about it a little so that is good. Silly kid! :-)

Billy while he is still struggling seems to really like Dr. Bryson and even being asked all the questions he was last time is okay with going back so we are continuing his appointments and hoping that for him they will make the difference and he will start to reap some benefits. Dr. Bryson seems to be genuinely interested in getting right in there and helping Billy and it is a relief always to get a doctor that seems to care about each patient individually. Other than that Billy is doing much better in school and we are proud of him that he has really stepped up and started taking some interest in doing well at it.

Kole is getting into scouts and seems to be liking it, he goes to his Dad's on Thursdays and their scouts is that night with Kole's Grandma being the scout leader person the boys despair of me but I'm still learning all the scout lingo since I haven't ever had scouts before until we got married. He is still doing very well in his school skills and we are very proud of him too. He will begin seeing a counselor individually (this one is Robert the one we have been seeing as a family) to see if we can help some of the anger issues that he has but otherwise he is starting to do better in settling in.

Trinity is a pistol! She has all the brothers wrapped around her little finger they can frequently be seen playing house and with "babies" various stuffed animals and baby dolls. They all settle into whatever roles she gives them pretty easily and (they all try to tell us that they really don't want another sister!) they will play for quite a while with her. She lost her first tooth about a week and a half ago! I can't believe she is old enough for that already!! She talks with a little whistle now it is kind of funny to hear her talk, but she is so proud!

AJ was a stagehand in the recent play they did of the Wizard of OZ he really enjoyed wearing black and moving all the sets around and such. He is a funny guy but no one around here are really morning people so when he is up at 7 on Saturdays everyone grumbles at him waking them up because he raring to go. We have tried to instill that Saturday is sleep in day, but his zest for life just won't be curbed by sleeping in. He is a sweetie too and is always worried about me and making sure he says hi and finds out how I am feeling when he comes over.

Bob is a character all his own! He really seems to enjoy school and has a new (imaginary) best friend named Little Guy that is about two inches tall he was very offended when we didn't just know who Little Guy was so we acted properly contrite and now have another traveler with us when he is around. No one has sat on him yet thank heavens! Hehehehehehe

I guess that just leaves Sean and I. Sean is still working at Whitewater but is really unhappy there so he is job hunting. His boss gave him a ton of grief for having to be gone to take care of me when I got hospitalized right after Sean had been gone for having Influenza and then a pneumonia. Sean basically told his boss that his family comes first and he was going to be with me when I needed him and ever since then Sean has been actively job hunting instead of just saying he should be. His boss has been a real stinker to work with since then. Other than that Sean is healthy all the way and he is doing his very best to keep this whole flying umberella driving in the right direction single handedly. He is a sweetheart and deserves great blessings for all he does. This last Sunday I wanted to go to church because it has been awhile. Going out anywhere right now is a really huge undertaking for me, it almost always wears me out to the point that I sleep for hours afterwards it is frustrating, but I really wanted to go. So we went, we made it from just before Sunday school until just before the last talk in Sacrament meeting when I was in enough pain to be crying then he gently but firmly told me that Heavenly Father knew where my heart was and that I just physically couldn't be there anymore and we needed to go. We could try staying on the couches next week and hope that the softer seating would let me stay the whole while. Always trying to keep my chin up and let me know it is okay. I love him dearly!
I am of course tired of doctors but trying my best to stay positive. Somedays it works and some it doesn't so well. I appreciate Brent's thoughts for adding myself and Bethani to the fast and would welcome on behaf of both of us anyone's involvment who would like to do that for us. Just a small update on all of it. I went on Monday to my OB and I had gained 4 pounds instead of only one so I am an over achiever and now I just have to try to hang on to them! Also on Monday we had the ultrasound that was ordered. The flow into and out of my right kidney didn't look good at all but the tech isn't allowed to tell us anything to do with the medical stuff so we won't know difinetively until Friday when I go back the the urologist. The only thing we saw the tech type is that he didn't see any cysts which is one of the things they were worried about. He was a nice tech and he looked at the baby for us for a little and she was sticking her tongue out at us! Apparently we are going to have two pistols on our hands. She showed us very nicely that she is indeed still a girl and then at the end she was moving her mouth in a way that it looked like she was cussing us for invading her space with the ultrasound monitor again. It was way cute and funny and just what I needed! Her heartbeat and everything is still good none of this seems to be effecting her much which is a blessing I am not going to take for granted I am forever grateful that is so. Next step if the doctor didn't find what he wanted with the ultrasound is a partial IVT or P can't remember which what it is is they take an xray then inject dye to the area and take another x ray about 40 minutes later. Scary! If they ultimately find a stone or if my kidney just won't get better then they will put a stint in until I deliver. Problem is this will be a foreign object and my body will fight it so I will have to be on medicines to prevent that too. All I have to say is it is a very good thing that these little babies are worth it! Until then I will be home and taking care of myself even if Sean has to make me somedays! We love all of you and think of you often. We appreciate your love, support and prayers. By the way Sean says to tell you, "See, I'm not defunct I can make girls!"

Drinking from a firehose

2008-03-17T21:07:00.000-07:00

You ever have something thrown at you so overwhelming that you felt like you were trying to drink from a fire hose? Well that is how the last couple of weeks has been. I am learning a lot but have also lost a lot of sleep not being able to feel like I am in control of what I am supposed to be doing. The guys I work with have an abundance of knowledge but lack slightly in some of the more social aspects. I can't seem to get any of them to look at me during a conversation. For the most part you can see the fact that they love computers and love to "talk" to their computers. I am going to do my very best, as well I should, but I think I will look elsewhere in Boeing for somewhere to land in the not to distant future. For now I will try to learn as much as I can and hope I can figure out why God wants me here at this time.

I think the fast this weekend is a great idea. Their are three family members I think we should especially be fasting for. First is Heather and I appreciate her letting us know. This surgery is definitely something to be concerned about and you can count me in. Second I think everyone should consider Katina and the newest little one that is soon to join the clan and that all will be well with them.

I have to thank everyone also for prayers and support on our behalf for I know the Lord is guiding my actions and putting me where he wants me. I know that in part this is because of your faithful prayers and love for our family. Thank You.

Have a great night.

Special Fast Request

2008-03-16T11:04:00.000-07:00

Hi all. If I had been more on the ball, I would have called you all and set this up for this week. But as is I didn't, so I feel silly asking now...

Brent wanted me to post a time when we could fast as a family before my surgery. Next Sunday is Easter and I feel funny asking you to obstain on the day of the celebration of not only our Saviors Ressurection, but also of the joy of chocolate bunnies for breakfast! (bwahahahha)

So instead I am planning for a Saturday morning fast. I am asking mom to come with me to the temple that morning to do Initiatories, and I figured it was the perfect day for me. If you would like to join Jess and I on that day, we would be appreciatative, and if not, any extra prayers would be hlepful as well. I dont need to know if you can or not, I just wanted to make you aware of what we were doing.

Love to you all...

1 week 3 days!!! :)

Things in Washington...

2008-03-10T23:11:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone-

Love you all. I hope that all is well. We're doing good.

Brent did his first week at Boeing. He's funny about it though. Somehow he got it into his mind that he'd be able to hit the ground running and was stressed when he didn't. Apparently he lost a lot a sleep over it and mentioned it to his supervisor who told him when he went home that night he was to relax and enjoy his family and not stress about not knowing his job just yet. His own expectations were causing him to loose sleep. Yikes!

Kate is walking!!! She's been taking quick steps around the furniture but tonight she ventured out between our couch and recliner testing her "footing" and that was just the start. She kept going and going and going. It is so much fun to see her grow! What an adventure and blessing children are!

Jesse has two loose teeth right now. We're waiting to see if she can actually get these ones out on her own. The first two had to be pulled by the dentist this last summer and, even though she did well for the actual pull, I know that her body didn't. She came out of both pulls white as a ghost and sick to her stomach.

Morgan played in his first church basketball game this last weekend. They lost but he had a lot of fun. He loves sports. He's not one for sitting and watching but he is loves getting into playing. He's looking forward to playing soccer again this year.

As for Britt, nothing new is going on with her. She just finished her last booth sale for Girl Scout cookies and she should know soon what her final tally is. I glad to see her getting into something she really likes. It's been a struggle finding an interest for her. Her shyness really gets the best of her.

Well...there you have it, news from Washington. We hope to hear from you all soon.

Love you!

Keep the faith and endure to the end!

Back to the ER

2008-03-06T23:57:00.000-08:00

Hi guys! Wanted to give you an update...

Went the ER on wednesday morning. Chest pain. They ran all kinds of tests and Dr. Hwang has ordered a stress test for me. Tommorow. Should be interesting! Lately I can't walk up my stairs without wanting to die and he wants me to walk on a tread mill hooked up to all sorts of wires for HOW LONG?? LOL! Fun. I am on asprin therapy for now...although I woke up with my face swollen this morning...so we'll see what he says tommorow...and if in the morning when my zyrtec has worn off if it happens again...

I will post when I know more...
~~Heather

2008-02-28T13:45:00.001-08:00

Hey all - It's good to read from you all. I love seeing what is going on in every one's lives. (Though nothing is like spending time together, say, sometime this summer?)

Jess and Heather - Is there list of things that are up for silent auction that Brent and I can see? Would would love to participate if we can. And we're glad to hear that everyone in your home is getting better. Keep up the faith!

Sean and Katina - Also good to hear that you all are feeling better. We will keep Billy in our prayers. We know that Heavenly Father loves you all and there are great things waiting for you.

Clint and Jenny - Get better soon! We hope that everything else is going well.

Thank you all for keeping this website and posting pictures of Nikki's wedding. I think there needs to be a picture of Mom and Dad on the site. Also, how about putting up the family picture we had done last February? I know that it needs to be update with the new one and the one on the way but there's no reason we can't get it as current as possible until we're all together again.

Love you all!

Things here are good. Today is Brent's last day at REI and he starts Boeing tomorrow. YEAH! After many, many, many years, Brent will finally be home in the evenings again!

Morgan is busy with Young Men's, Scouts and School. He just registered for Junior High which he'll start in September in a brand new building. He's so excited! So, here we go...we have reached the pre-teens and the verge of having a teenager!

Britt has been busy with Girl Scouts and we're right in the middle of Girl Scout Cookies. She had a goal of 300 boxes but surpassed it by well over 100. If any of you would like some and see this posting in the next several days, let us know and well send them to you all. They're $4 a box.

Jesse is thriving! She is going to be 8 in a little over a month and she's so excited to be baptized. She is also a great big sister to Kate. She can get Kate to laugh like no one else. They have a strong connection.

Kate is now 9 months old and going strong. She will not sit still now that she can crawl and the older three are hardly anywhere in the house without her tagging along (including the bathroom especially when they're in the shower or tub). She loves music and enjoys when the kids play on the piano or Morgan playing his clarinet.

As for myself, I'm busy, busy, busy though you would not be able to tell from seeing my home! If it's not the house, it's the kids, my calling, errands or friends and nothing ever seems to get done. Oh well, endure to the end, right?

Love you! Keep the faith everyone and endure to the end!

2008-02-20T17:36:00.000-08:00

Bad week

2008-02-20T13:08:00.001-08:00

I agree with Jen apparently it was just a bad week! Sean, Tony, Billy(for a day), Kole and I all had Influenza A. We were sick sick sick. Mom and Dad S were sick too, but I think they determined that they didn't have Influenza when Sean had to go back to Instacare for the second time and they went with him. I missed a full week of work! Sean missed a few days then went back and then we were having real trouble with his temp. it was going from 94 to 104 and back and forth between for about 3 days. When he went back to Instacare again they discovered that his had morphed into a pneumonia! We are finally (knock on wood) all feeling better. A couple of us still have the throat itchies and the scratchy voices but are no longer sick. YEAH! Trinity and Joey were fine the whole time and have yet to even start getting sick so we are hoping they won't.......please please!
Also, on another note just to keep everyone in the loop Billy had his first appointment with the psychiatrist yesterday. We have seen some counselors with him and finally the last one suggested that we find more long term care to help Billy out, this was in St. George just before we moved. So, when we got up here we went through all the processes and got him into someone long term(Newt Bryson). This is to help him with his bathroom issues which have been determined to be psycological and whatever may be causing him to have those issues. Sean took him yesterday for the first time and said that he felt like Newt really listened to Sean and the concerns that he expressed and the things we have already tried etc. so that Newt can just jump right in and start helping Billy. Billy also said that he feels comfortable with Newt and thinks he will be able to talk to him and let him help. This would be awesome! We are unsure what will come from this at this point but we are really hoping that in the end Billy will feel better and we will be able to help him to the best of our and Newt's abilities with whatever may arise. :-)

Up Date

2008-02-17T20:16:00.000-08:00

Hey guys, I just thought I would let you know about my sick "baby". hee hee Last Wednesday Clint's left eye lid began to swell, I had him treat it as a sty because at first that is what it looked like. But on Friday he could barely open his eye. I panicked and had him see Dr. Welch. Turned out he has cellulitis. I gave him a shot and doc Rx a heafty antibiotic. He is getting better. It is almost back to normal. I guess last week all of us just had to have something going on. Hope everyone is feeling better. Love, Jen

We are getting better!

2008-02-13T10:56:00.001-08:00

Finally!! After a solid week of very sick boys, 2 ER trips, 3 doctor visits, and endless breathing treatments, the two littlest have kicked the bug! YEA!! I opened up the window yesturday and let the furnance fan run for 45 minutes or so. I am hoping it pulled in lots of good air and pushed out all the germy air! :D

I am suppose to tell all of you hello from Aunt Sherri! She and I IMed yesturday. She is having some tests done that could rule out cancer. I thought I would ask each of you to remember her in your prayers! :) The military medical profession is dragging there feet really bad and she is frustrated and a bit antsy.

Jen! Sorry about the mailman being a hoser! Have you called to make sure they had the correct address and that it hasn't been returned to them?

How are things at all of your houses?? Post when you can!

2008-02-12T12:52:00.000-08:00

Hey I thought you said this thing was suppose to be easy. lol It took me almost an hour just to figure this stuff out. Still no license, I think if it doesn't come soon I might attack the mailman. HEE HEE. Ma and I got my massage room at work painted. Everyone really likes it, I even got a WOW out of the doc. Sorry to hear about your littles Heather. If you need me you should call, because I only get on the computer about once a week. SEE I told you I'm bad at this I changed the font and can't figure out how I did it. Oh well I best be off Love Jenny

Yea!

2008-02-07T10:00:00.000-08:00

I am so glad ya'll could get on and post! so fun! We are not having such a great time here this week. Such a bummer. I have been super weak this week for some reason, and Cody came down sick day before yesterday, and Caleb and Cam both started with it overnight. High fevers, deep coughs, miserable. Cam has been slightly purple hued all night and morning...I am a little scared he may not improve. He was so tight it was making him throw-up...which in the past has meant "get him to the hospital" but this time so far it seems to have opened him up a little more. I have kept up on his breathing treatments and keep praying... poor thing! I can't imagine how miserable he must feel to be out of oxygen like this. He hasn't started sucking in too much...so for now I am just on high alert. agh.

I am in awe... with the website that our ward set up and with the yardsale last weekend... they have raised almost $7k for my heart surgery. *blush* It is such a strange place to be! I am so grateful...but it is still uncomfortable to be the one being served and money being raised for. Weird Weird Weird.

Jestin is doing good. He has been working hard on the mansion in Park City. They decided to take out the basketball court in the basement and turn it into a real to life movie theatre. It has been quite the project! The cost of gas is killing us...but at least it's work and it pays the bills right? :D Today he is home tearing out the rear end of his truck...he has to replace the leaf springs and shocks in the rear end. And it's snowing. Lucky lucky guy! eh? LOL!! He is also going to Wyoming this weekend to help Tyler bring back all of his stuff, so he will be gone fri-mon. Should be fun... hey Jen... if I need ya can I call?? Tee hee....

Nikki's wedding was nice...here is some pics for you that couldn't be there...

The "Ben's"

And here is one for Jenny! :D

Busy

2008-02-05T13:07:00.000-08:00

Well, I finally had time to accept your invitation to this. It has been end of the month at work which is always a busy time. I think everyone knows our exciting news, but just in case you don't. We are having a GIRL. YEAH! We are really excited to welcome this new little life into our not so little family..... We really feel that she will help us be able to blend our family even more. We are going to name her Bethanie Irene Stoddard. It is a name that Sean has always wanted and as long as he let me tweak the spelling of the first name I like it too. So that is what we have settled on. We had another doctor's appointment yesterday and the doctor says everything still looks and sounds good. I am still struggling with pain off and on, but it has not again hit the level it did when I had to visit the ER, so we are very grateful for that. Other than that we are just plugging along. Sean and I finally got cell phones last night. Our numbers are pretty easy. Sean's is 801.427.4443 and mine is 801.427.4284 just in case anyone wanted to get a hold of one of us on them. I look forward to contributing and reading lots of good things on this. :-)

Brent's Announcement

2008-02-04T09:24:00.000-08:00

Brent has been offered an Analyst/Developer Level I position with Boeing. As of today, he has completed all the required paperwork (drug test and background checks) and is waiting for Boeing to finish their process before he knows his start date. Heavenly Father has truly blessed us and we recognize His hand in this. We know that without His intervention in schooling and in our family life, we would not have come this far. It's fun to look back and see all the points in our life where that hand was there lifting us up when it is so apparent we would not have made it any other way. What a difference faith makes in our life.

So you can mark your calenders, Jesse will be baptized on April 12th and everyone it invited. Please let us know as soon as possible if you plan to come. Our home is small but you're all welcome.

Hello?

2008-02-03T22:22:00.001-08:00

Hi there my family... are any of you out there? I know Brent has great news, Jenny has great news, Sean has great news....

New jobs?
Licenses?
Baby genders?

Hello? Are ya gonna share or no?? LOL
~~Heather

Welcome to the Stoddard Family Blog

2007-12-07T15:34:00.000-08:00

Hi! I know I started a MSN group for us...but that was not nearly as easy as this is... So here is a spot we can share and keep each other informed..etc.

If you dont have a gmail account yet (it's free) I will send you an invite so we can all use this forum...

Can't wait to see us chatting more and more....