A New Discovery.....

According to Wikipedia, "Planking" (or the "Lying Down Game") is an activity consisting of lying face down in an unusual or incongruous location. The hands must touch the sides of the body and having a photograph of the participant taken and posted on the Internet is an integral part of the game. Players compete to find the most unusual and original location in which to play. The term planking refers to mimicking a wooden plank. Rigidity of the body must be maintained to constitute good planking.


Whoever came up with this truly ridiculous game must have had way too much time on his hands.  With that said, it is quite entertaining and makes for some good family fun.  Here are some photos for your enjoyment.....

My Baby's Three!

Where have the last three years gone?  It's so hard to believe that Claire is already three.  My baby is growing up.....not too fast, though.  She's still in diapers.  That's a whole different story....one that I hope ends sooner than later.

Claire was just a few weeks old here......

And now she's in a big bed......

Claire has definitely brought a new feel to our house.  It's amazing how one little girl can whip the whole family into shape.  I don't remember a time when she wasn't talking.  Sometimes I feel like I'm having a conversation with a 12-year-old.....and then I remember that she's still not potty trained.  Either she's more stubborn than the boys or I've just run out of steam.  

Claire is feisty, funny and strong-willed, but she's got a soft, tender side that can melt your heart.  She makes you work for the tiniest bit of affection, but when you get it, it's so worth it.  Man, I love that little girl!  Our family wouldn't be complete without her.

I love thinking of all the things we'll be able to do when she gets older.....shopping, pedicures, movie nights when the boys are camping.  The possibilities are endless.  =)

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Several months ago, I found an ugly little TV stand at Goodwill for $10.  I'd been wanting to make Claire a play kitchen for sometime, and this was just the thing I needed to get started.

Not too impressive, but I had a vision.  Thanks to Scott and his dad, my vision became a reality.  They did all the hard stuff like removing doors, dividing the bottom shelf, putting a new back on, etc.  Then I got to do all the fun stuff.  We were so happy with the way it turned out and so was Claire.  She absolutely LOVED it!

Amy and her boys stopped by to give her some new toys for her kitchen.....

What a fun birthday!  All of her gifts went so well with her new kitchen!

At Claire's request, we had a "worm cake."  This girl really does love worms.  I can't keep her from picking them up off the driveway after a rain storm.  Yuck.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Claire!!!  We love you!

Halloween!

Halloween was cold and rainy this year.  The kids' costumes and candy were dampened, but their spirits certainly weren't.  We trick-or-treated with our neighbor Josh, and his dad Darrel again this year.  Josh and Logan are the same age and love playing together.  

Mason and Logan went for scary/gross costumes this year, while Brady and Claire opted for the softer side of Halloween (much more my style).  

As a mother, a little piece of my heart broke when Mason told me he wanted to dress up as the "bleeding Scream mask."  It's quite ironic that this very costume scared the pants off him when he was two.  I seriously thought there was some irreversible damage done after that night.  For years, the poor guy trembled and clung to my leg at the mere sight of one of those masks.  It's funny how things seem to change almost overnight.  While I was not wild about the costume choice, I did like the fact that he was finally facing his fears....or rather wearing the face of his fears.  Oh, how far we've come.  

Logan wanted to be Ghost Rider this year.  He and Scott had fun coming up with his costume.  I think they did a pretty awesome job.  Costume creativity is definitely not my biggest strength, so it's nice to have a husband who enjoys that sort of thing.

Brady had his heart set on being a Ninja Turtle, which was funny to me because he's never had a big thing for them.  It all made sense when I realized that one of his best friends had the same costume. 

Instead of serving it's original purpose, the mask became an umbrella as we sloshed around in the rain from one house to the next. I prefer being able to see his cute little face anyway.   

For having three brothers, Claire is definitely a girly girl.  Don't get me wrong....she can hold her own and make any of her brothers cry, and then in a snap, turns into a sweet little princess.  It's amazing how that works really.  I think Scott is officially being taught that women are just born crazy.  That's my new excuse...."I can't help it.  I was born that way."  I don't know why it doesn't work as well for me as it does for Claire.  

Anyway, here's a picture of our feisty little butterfly.

So sweet and innocent looking.  Right?  Don't let her fool you.  She's a girl on a mission and almost always gets what she wants.  I'm thinking that's a quality that will manifest more positively as she gets older.  

Well, here's to another Halloween...... If only could stay away from the candy bowl!

Project Beadboard

I've been chomping at the bit to make little changes around the house......you know, to make things a little less "cookie cutter."  I've been wanting to put beadboard in our tiny downstairs bath for quite some time and finally got Scott on board.  Lucky for us, his parents had already planned a visit and his dad is quite the handyman.  He was so nice to help us out.

First, the baseboards had to come off.  I'd watched a tutorial online and thought, "That doesn't look too hard."  Boy was I wrong.  I was so happy to have D (Scott's dad) there to help out.  If it weren't for him, we would have really messed things up.

Next came the fun task of cleaning the baseboards.  I really need to teach my boys how to "aim" better!

Scott and D removed the sink, and then it was on to the fun part.....

Power tools!  Don't you love how these pictures make it look like I did most of the work?  That's just a little strategic planning....Scott and D did most of the hard stuff.  They just let me jump in here and there and were nice enough to snap some pics.

This is the part I'd been waiting for!  I was so excited to get my first glimpse of the "new" bathroom.

Once all the beadboard and trim was in place, Scott and D left me alone to paint and worked on some other projects (more on that later).  I love that we opted for a less traditional look and put the beadboard in horizontally.  It really makes the bathroom look so much brighter.

Scott and D put the sink back in....a task that is easier said than done.... 

And VOILA!

{We still need a mirror.  The old one doesn't fit anymore.}

I absolutely LOVE the finished product.  It's even better than I pictured in my head.  Thanks for helping us out, D!

Earthquakes, Hurricanes & Fallen Trees....Oh, My!

Mother nature has been pretty busy around here this week.  On Tuesday, we had an earthquake.  I was with the kids at the pool when all of the sudden, it sounded like a truck was going to drive right into the pool.  The concrete started swaying beneath us, and everyone stopped what they were doing and just stared at each other.  It took a second to register, and when it finally did, all the cell phones came out.  Everyone was trying to call friends and family, but no one could get through.  We were all a little freaked out.  I quickly grabbed my kids and headed home.  We found one picture knocked over and a sweater that had fallen off the drying rack, but nothing too bad.

Just four days later, we were hit by hurricane Irene.  It rained all day long and the winds were CRAZY!  We had three trees go down behind our house.  Three families in our ward (that we know of) had trees fall on their houses or garages, and we just feel so blessed that no one was hurt.  We only lost power for a couple hours, which was way better than what we anticipated.  All in all, we feel pretty darn lucky.

Events of the Summer....

I'm waaaay behind on my blogging.  We've done a lot of fun things this summer, and somewhere along the way, I've lost all motivation to blog about them.  So here's my attempt at catching up....

Logan had a birthday in June.  I can't believe my little Logie is eight!  He's growing up so fast.  We had a fun birthday breakfast consisting of Walmart coffee cake (only the best for our little man).....

and opened presents....

Logan requested a party at Laser Quest, so that's what we did.  It was so much fun!  Scott and I even got in on the action.  I'm not sure who had more fun - the kids or the grown-ups.

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July was a busy month.  We had our nephew, Scott's parents and Scott's aunt come and stay with us before the big Schlensker family reunion we host every year.  It was so fun to have them here with us and we were so happy they could be here for Logan's baptism.

What a special day!  

Everything was just perfect.  I just wish we had taken more pictures.

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All the boys (Scott, Papa D, Mason, Logan, Brady & Caden) went to the beach for a day.  The water was FREEZING but they had a fun time.  It was Caden's first time in the ocean and he loved it.  They found all sorts of sea creatures and even brought some of them home (the dead ones, of course).

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Next on the agenda was the reunion.  We were so lucky to have Aunt Mar join us this year.  It was so fun having her around, and I loved that the kids got to know her better.

Claire warmed up to her quickly and before she knew it, Aunt Mar had a little shadow.  Every time she turned around, Claire was there.  She even surprised her in the shower once!  (Sorry about that, Mar.)

The reunion was so fun.  It's so nice to have the whole family together.  The kids always have such a great time playing and the adults love chatting and catching up and eating ice cream late at night.

Aunt Mar was nice to take the family picture this year......

It's always one of the favorite activities.  Right, D?......

We also got to meet our adorable little niece, Mae, for the first time.....

Is she not the cutest baby alive?

I love this shot of the sisters....

Thanks to everyone for helping make this year so fun!  Can't wait 'til next year!!!