Baptizing

Over the past months we have had a lot going on with friends. Matt has had the opportunity to baptize two of our friends kids, Kaiden and Davin. Claire has been so excited both times and is always telling us that tomorrow she is going to be baptized by her daddy. It was a neat experience for himand obviously had a large impact on Claire. We have had several get togethers with families that Matt has kept in touch with over the years. This picture on the Motorcycle is Matt hugging Rick, his friend Kevin's dad. Many have asked if it was so he wouldn't fall of but no....it was Matt trying to be obnoxious. Those of you that know Matt well will not be suprized by that. It has been a busy time for our family but it has been fun. The weather is getting nicer and we have more and more opportunities to get out and be with friends. We were able to go to the canyon the other night and have a fire with our friends the Yarbrough's. Nora thought it was so great to crawl around in the dirt and just try to eat everything on the ground. Claire and Ivan had a blast roasting Marshmallows and throwing sticks into the fire. It was a great night away for us. Things are busy but good.

Rainy Day

Today was a very rainy and even snowy day. Mostly Slush, not snow but it made life a little frustrating. The kids were stuck inside all day and they have gotten so used to being outside that it was hard on all of us. It get's so hard sometimes, especially because our kids don't listen very well. Matt says it's because I give in to easily but it's so hard not to when they are nagging all of the time. I love being a mother but days like this one make it hard to keep going. Nora is getting so big though! She is so ready to walk it is not funny. She will let go of your hand, take one step and then sit down. I think she is like me. She has figured out that the more verticle you become, the more people expect of you. She's a smart one :) ! Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day! And hopefully the sun will shine!

Good Books!

The woman that I babysit for (Tami) let me borrow the book series entitled "The Twilight Series". I had previously sworn that I would not read these books because Everyone else was and I didn't want to read something just to be like everyone else. I could NOT put them down. Each book has around 500 pages and I read all three in 4 days. They were so good. I am now on a waiting list for #4 which comes out in August. In the meantime, the author "Stephenie Meyer" has written another book called "The Host". It is not part of the series but I have heard it is great. I called Tami today to see if I could borrow it from her when she was finished and instead she bought me my own copy! It was so awesome. I can't wait to start reading it tonight!

Good Day!

I am so bummed that there are no pictures to go along with this post. Something happened to my camera today and I lost all of the fun pictures I took of our day. We spent the day at a Nature Park in Syracuse, UT. We had so much fun. We went with my parents and my Grandmother. Carter, Ivan, Claire and Nora had a blast!!! We threw rocks in the stream, ate strawberries and even fed the Seagulls. I had the best pictures and videos of Ivan fishing and Carter eating strawberries. After we came home we played out on the front lawn. Nora decided to stand up for the first time! I was able to get video but of course, lost that too. She did it several times so hopefully she will do it again and we can get some more video.

Big Boo Boo

Yesterday Claire and Ivan were getting ready to settle down for the night and watch a movie in our bedroom. They were both jumping on the bed. I told them it was time to stop jumping and lay down. Claire jumped flat on her back hoping to hit the pillow. Instead of hitting the pillow, her head hit the edge of Matt's night stand. She screamed and screamed. I consoled her and then went to put in the movie. When I turned around she had moved up to the pillow but the place where she had been had a blood spot. It was then that I realized that she had cut her head. We took her to the neighbors house because he is an E.R. nurse. He cleaned it for her and said it might need a staple but she would probably be okay if we took her home and put ice and pressure on it. We did that and she seems to be okay but the cut looks really sore and there is a big bump there too. She has been a good sport to let me clean it and check it. Here are some pics of her big boo boo.

Mother's Day

For Mother's Day this year we decided that it would be a good idea for the children to make something for their Grandmother's. We spent Friday night perfecting our garden stones and on Saturday we went to the cemetary to put some stones on Grandma Peggy's grave. The children had a good time looking for Pine Cones at the cemetary and Nora had an even better time eating them. Our little family went out to dinner for my present. This was awesome because eating out is one of my favorite things to do. Matt also bought me a Jamba Juice which is my absolute favorite!

Mustache May!!!

Every year Matt participates in a tradition that his brother Chris started. It's called Mustache May. The point is to see who can grow the best moustache and keep it during the month! I am not sure if this is cheating or not but Matt has been working on his for a couple of months. He just kept telling me, "gotta get ready for moustache May!" So here is my proud husband and his awesome 'stache!

The Great Outdoors

Today was a wonderful day as far as the weather goes. The children (all 6 of them plus some neighborhood friends) spent the afternoon on the front lawn. The kids rode bikes and played in a tent while I sat my butt in a lawn chair. I wasn't movin' for nothin'. Who am I kidding, I was chasing kids all over the place. Nora insisted on crawling to a little patch of dirt in the corner of the yard and eating it. The surprising thing is, I let her. With Claire that would have sent me over the edge. It's funny how lax you get as you have more kids. Summer is so close and we are excited. We are getting a new trampoline (because our other one blew away this winter) and a small swimming pool and we are just going to be outside as much as possible. I am looking forward to this so much. It has been a hard winter, cooped up in the house. I am also going to do a lot of reading this summer. I am looking for great books, so if anyone has any suggestions please send them my way!

A little bit of sunshine

After a weekend with the flu, today turned out to be a welcomed change. I was finally feeling better today. I realized that a lot of the reason that I have probably been down lately is that I have been sick since January. It has really been hard on me but today was a good day. We were able to get out in the yard and do a little (and by little I mean a miniscule amount)bit of yard work. The kids played for several hours. Even little Nora was able to crawl around in the dirt and grass and ruin yet another pair of pants :). Tonight I took one of the girls I babysit for Ice Cream. She had been such a huge help to me on a particularly hard day that I promised her a special treat. We went to Cold Stone Ice Cream where we spoiled ourselves and talked about everything her little mind could think of. It was a great opportunity to get to know her better away from the hussle and bussle of all the kids. I like to have one on one time with all of them for this reason. Claire and I also had some one on one time which I really really enjoyed. This hardly ever happens but she needs it and I found out I do too. We went to a new book store that opened in town and she got to pick out a princess sticker book. She was so cute. She had a lace hair band stretched around her head like a crown and she was wearing ballet shoes. The lady who owns the bookstore said that Claire reminded her of a character from a book called "Fancy Nancy". So claire has been nicknamed that. She asked me that day as I was getting dressed if she would have "grommits" like me one day. I had no idea what she was talking about but she was pointing to my chest so you can guess what came to mind....I laughed so hard and explained what they were really called etc... Only later did it dawn on us that she was not asking about mommies anatomy, she was asking if she would be able to wear garments one day. So I gave her an anatomy lesson that was totally uneccesary for her age. I was so glad to know that she noticed though and that she wants that for herself. Hopefully her desire to go to the temple will remain with her as she gets older. Another funny thing she said this week...she is always saying she is hungry. She complained about it so much yesterday, even moments after she had finished a meal. I finally said "Claire, your tummy is not hungry, it's upset." Thinking maybe she had a touch of the flu like the rest of us. She replied "It's upset because it's hungry!" I don't know when I have laughed that hard. She is such a funny girl and so full of energy. I hope that I will be able to keep up. So these simple events have brought a little bit of sunshine to the Garff house this week.

Another week...

well, another week has passed in the Garff house and it was a bit of a crazy one. Ivan has been acting out more and more. I hope it's just because he is turning 3 soon. They say terrible two's but I think three is worse. This week has been lonely here in Tooele. There is plenty to keep me busy but not enough to keep my mind busy. I guess I need a good book or something to pull me away from my little world for a while. The weather has been chilly so there is not a lot to do outside. It doesn't seem to stop my kids however, I had to make them come in from playing in the snow. I keep myself and the babies cooped up inside however because they have been sick all spring. By babies I mean Nora and Carter (the little boy I babysit). Lately it has been very hard to be out in Tooele. I miss my family very much. Usually the distance does not bother me but it has been weighing on my mind. I think because it was an exceptionally hard week. It would just be nice to escape to my moms house for a while. I have missed my husband very much this week too. I wish so badly that he could have taken the week off to be at home. I know we are a huge demand on his time and he worries about us a lot when he is at work. I don't feel like I have a lot of friends here right now and so that is frustrating too. I guess I just need a little pick me up. I just have to remember that we are extremely blessed. Or as I like to put it, we are Blessed recipients of goodness. I am so grateful for my husband and my children. Although we have our hands full as a family, we have fun with one another and we love one another and express that love often. I am so grateful for a husband that calls to me from the kitchen just to let me know he loves me. I am grateful that it has rubbed off on me and I do the same with my children. God has truly blessed me in my life. Although I am lonely and a little sad a lot of the time it is not for lack of love from my family. For those of you reading this from afar, i.e. Iowa, I love you and miss you very much.