Colton and James are here!

Colton Harvey Coy was born on 12/10/10 at 11:58 a.m. at 5 lbs. 13 oz (he is the baby on the left) and James Douglas Coy was born on 12/10/10 at 12 noon at 6 lbs. 11 oz (he is on the right with a temporary angel kiss birthmark on his left eye). They were delivered via an emergency c-section after they spontaneously turned sideways and wouldn't turn back during the pushing phase of delivery. They are doing excellent and mom is healing well and super happy to not be pregnant :)

Halloween Fun!

Here are Adam, Jonathan, and Michael when they just completed their Halloween pumpkins. We had such a good time carving them this year. The boys scraped their own pumpkins clean (and all over the kitchen- thank you newspaper) and drew their own faces. Craig and I then helped them carve their face according to their ability - so we all have 10 fingers left. Jonathan was smart enough to get his small wagon to tote his around for a while and finally outside to be lit. We then roasted the pumpkin seeds to try them. They weren't too bad even for little boys. It turned out to be a great night.

A Cute Toothless Grin!

I decided this year that we should carve our pumpkins. We don't always carve them. Sometimes we paint them or stick "Mr. Potato Head" pieces in them to give them facial features. This year, I figured that all of our children were old enough that I could manage the mess and chaos and that I probably won't be that brave with twins in tow next year. I love this picture! The two toothless grins are so adorable. Ethan made this pumpkin. He meticulously scraped the insides out and drew a face on the front. He really took his time and tried hard to do a good job. Craig helped him carve it. It turned out very well and he was very excited.

The First Day of School

School started on the 9th of August. The boys were less than thrilled (though they tried really hard to smile for me). They had a pretty short summer. The Academy didn't get out until after the first week in June and then they started the very beginning of August. This year they were realigning their schedule. They usually don't start until the end of August. Unfortunately, this made them feel like they didn't have much of a summer. It didn't help that I was so very sick and that Craig had to work for 3 solid (every day 13 -14 hour days) weeks in July. We quickly inserted a 3 day family vacation the very end of July to a Phoenix water park just so that we could have a little time. Craig and I, however, needed a shorter summer. We needed the structure of school this year and decided that if any year was going to be a shorter one, that we were grateful that this was the one. Jonathan went to preschool again this year, but since he goes in the afternoon, he did not get in this picture. I have a definite "let sleeping children sleep as long as possible" motto in my house. If you wake a sleeping baby or child, you are in BIG trouble :) Well rested babies and children are so much more happy. Because of this, I didn't realize that I didn't get a picture of him on his first day of school. I will have to take a late one and post it for him.

Born To Be With The Boys!!

Well I was never much of a "girly, girl" and you will still rarely see me pack a purse. I did always love to play with the "boys" because it was way more adventurous so I guess it is safe to say that I was just born to be with the boys. I have 4 boys now and 2 MORE on the way. Yes, I did say TWO. We are having twins! That is why it has been sparse postings for the summer. I am not much for loving pregnancy since I have every symptom imaginable and it is the quickest weight loss plan ever for me, but with twins, it all seems to have doubled. I am at 22 weeks now and we finally, due to lots of technical difficulties, got our first ultrasound. I had been told by one of our doctors (we have to do a group thing) that I was just having "nice dreams" when I mentioned that I felt strongly that I was having twins so we just had to play a nice hard game of patience for a while. We finally got an ultrasound today. They are strong and healthy and no defects were noted at this time. They are busy movers. One is right down in the pelvis making it hard to walk and feel my legs and the other one is transverse (cross ways) over the top under my ribs, but he is a little more courteous since I don't have a hard time breathing yet. The pictures of one are very definitely BOY. He is not shy and we got a good shot. The other one (the low one) was in a kneeling position and it was hard to see. We are pretty sure it is a boy but there is a very SLIM chance it could be a girl - but we are not good at them so .....don't buy anything girl because the chances are so way not there!! It was a good day! There have been a lot of spiritual miracles going on in our lives since we moved to Kingman. It has been the hardest "season" in our marriage thus far. There has just been one crazy thing after another for about a year and a half now. It is not over and we know it. BUT... Craig and I have not had as many miracles and divine help in our lives in any other "season" either. Yes, we have had them, but they have not been so frequent and strong as now. To be honest, I don't think we would survive without them. There has been so much growth and trial but so much sweetness and personal blessings as well. We are not sure what we are going to do about Craig's schooling since I can hardly walk and most day-to-day tasks are very difficult (think bathing, laundry, and just walking across the room). There is still some nausea but most discomfort is from only being 5 foot 4 and having two babies sitting on every nerve, vein, and artery available. We are excited and overwhelmed but we are trying not to focus on the "overwhelmed" part. We get plenty of "negative feedback" and so we are working hard not to create our own. At the end of the ultrasound, the lower baby flipped right side up for a few minutes (we pretty much watched and felt it all) so that they were both head to head. The ultrasound technician got a really good picture (the one I posted) of both of them in the same shot. Baby A as she called him is the lower one and he is looking at Baby B, the one that is on the top. There are two complete sacks and two placentas. They are NOT identical. I will try to keep you updated as much as I can.

Life in the Messy Lane!

This is what I woke up to one morning. I would like to say that this is abnormal but it is not. This is almost a daily affair for us. This is Jonathan and he is almost 2 in this picture (now 4). We have been having messes like these from about this day forward. We lock all things of potential mess hazard up like soap, shampoo, toothpaste, powder, peanut butter etc. Luckily we had relaxed quite a bit in our parenting by the time Jonathan arrived and actually have enough sense of humor to grab a camera most times. When asked what he wanted for Christmas this year, Jonathan replied in a dreamy sort or way, "soap, shampoo, ooh..... bubbles". He was totally serious. It is not that the poor kid doesn't have any toys because as our realtor put it, "you live at Toys-R-Us". We have tons - 4 kids worth and enough for all the play dates. All that I can say is that he would make a cute poster boy for Peter Pan Peanut Butter. It is almost like lotion. I need to download some more pictures but I have to find them. What brought this picture to my memory is that today we were doing some State Report projects with Adam and Michael and so we sent Jonathan and Ethan out to play. Yeah there was a hose out there but a little water isn't too bad until......you mix it with sidewalk chalk and paint yourself and the patio and stain the whole of it ORANGE. Yep the blond hair was orange and the face and feet. It took quite a while of scrubbing to get most of it out. So much for washable!! I know I have a picture of that. I think I have one of the 2" of bath gel that Jonathan filled his dad's church shoes with and the lotion he lotioned his bedspread with and the powder all over the carpet. I just have to find them. The powder reminded me of the Fresh Step Kitty litter commercial in that there was a little puff of white every time you stepped on the carpet and it smelled so......"baby soft" for quite a few vacuums. Since you all know now what I spend a LOT of time doing in my life.... you can all laugh next time your little one does it, grab a camera, and call for sympathy.

Flat Stanley

I am helping Ethan with his Flat Stanley presentation at school.

Ethan's Flat Stanley Project

Ethan is in first grade and they read the book Flat Stanley as a class. Then they made their own Flat Stanley and sent him to relatives around the United States. Ethan sent his to some cousins in Michigan that are about the same age. We put it all on a poster and presented it to his class. It turned out very cute and he was a good little presenter.

Adam's Science Project

Adam is 10 years old now and this is his first Science Project. He did very well. We forgot to get him in the picture. He worked very hard. He did all the typing himself and placing the lettering. He struggles with handwriting so he chose to type it. It took forever but it turned out well for him.

Loving the Snow

Here is Jonathan playing in the snow before it all melts. He was so amazed that it was so deep :)

Snow Days

This is snow day number two. It was in March. Boy am I glad that I did not move my little seedlings out into my garden the day before. It was in the high 60's until today. Too bad that the boys (except Jonathan) were at school. They missed it. I thought that surely with this much snow, it would last until they got home, but it didn't. Two hours later, it was all gone.

Look at the snow. This is snow day one. For all of you in Idaho who think I am nuts because I am excited about the snow, it is because I haven't had snow fall where I live for over 10 years. We only got a little bit this January day, but we were all so excited. Unfortunately, by the time we got dressed and our coats on, it had all melted.

Ahhh!

Times have been really busy for us as of late. Our ward boundaries were all mixed up here in Kingman and I was put in as Primary President. We had 100 kids and now have 85. They took most of the teachers and much of the leadership in our ward so we are starting from scratch to rebuild. Craig is eyebrow high in homework and when he is not at school, he is at work. We are grateful that this is only a "season" in our lives and look forward to spring break when we can see him more. Craig had a birthday this month. He is now 38. Jonathan turned 4 today and Michael turned 9 on the 23rd. I will post some pictures soon. I was in charge of the Blue and Gold banquet for Cub Scouts and did not feel right delegating it a week before it was to be held, so I kept it. It turned out well but it has taken 3 days for me to recover. I delegated well, but there is still always a lot to do.
I am starting tomatoes in an indoor green house and they are doing well and so are my flowers, onions, and strawberries. I have found that I love to do yard work and gardening way more than housework! I love the sunshine and being outside. Cooped up in the Bullhead heat has made me grateful for cooler weather and sunshine without heat or wind. It seems like the housework is undone in no time flat. Unless we are going to resort to permanent fasting and running around without clothes (my children wouldn't mind the lack of clothing part at this time in their lives), I am never going to be finished with "housework". The tomatoes, however, actually produce something and don't scream my name constantly. Right now, I think they are my best friends:)

So Close!

The Hualapai (pronounced Wall-a-pie) Mountains are not too far from our house in Kingman. It is nice to have a retreat in the desert that will take the temperature down several degrees. I am looking forward to enjoying them with my children in the summer when they are out of school. It is a BIG change for us to be able to play outside more because it is so much cooler in Kingman. This is one of the peaks on the mountain range. It was right out our cabin door.

Give me some food!

While camping, the deer came so close to us that we could almost pet them. The lady that came around to collect trash just reached out her hand and they came right up and let her pet them. I think we had too many little bodies that were way to wiggly and excited to get them to come that close. I like the picture of just the back half of the deer. It was like he was playing hide and seek with my children. My children think that if they can't see you, then you must not be able to see them!!

S-More smores!

So much gooey smore in his mouth that Jonathan can't get his lips to smile!

Camping isn't complete without smores! We were so happy and tired!! Craig looks like we are at the North Pole! We were just a bit wet after sledding on our bottoms all day.

After Sledding Snack

I didn't get a picture of Ethan sliding down the hill but after sledding he did make a quaduple decker meat, cheese, and cracker sandwich that he tried to stuff in his mouth all at once. Such a Boy!!

Michael and Adam join the trash bag brigade!

A New Use For Trash Bags

Since sleds are not popular in the hot part of the Arizona desert, we found the best thing that we had that would slide. This is Jonathan and I going down the hill on a big black trash bag. It isn't the same as an inner tube, but it was a lot of fun! Jonathan wanted to go over and over again.

Camping in the Winter

Life after the stomach flu finds us camping. Here in the desert, it is too hot to go camping in the summer so we rented a cabin in the winter. There was just enough snow to play in. The first morning, our children were up at 5:30 because they were too excited to stay in bed any longer. Craig and I were not too pleased!! We got dressed and went outside to play in the snow.

First Day of School 2009

I know it is really late, but we did not have a blog for the first day of school. Michael (the first one) had to go to public school alone because his brothers were already in the charter school. By November, Michael was joining his brothers at the Academy. Jonathan is in preschool for half a day with Mrs. Osterman. He likes it unless mom is doing more interesting things at home at which time, "he's on vacation" and doesn't need to go to school - his words. Adam is now a big 4th grader who loves math. Michael is in third grade and our social butterfly. Ethan has everyone charmed into thinking he is angelic. He is the last one off the bus and so he has the bus driver as his undivided audience. He loves the attention. He works well for those that adore him.

I have wanted to start a family blog for a while and I promised that I would do it right after Christmas while my husband is on Christmas break from Nursing School. I was hoping life would slow down then. Boy was I wrong! We all caught the stomach flu for a solid week. We are just starting to recover. So, I am keeping my resolution and starting with a family picture...hopefully, with more to come.

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