My recent creation!

Presenting The Horsley Elves

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Who said 200 square feet isn't a lot?

If those words ever came out of your mouth then you are an idiot. After waiting 2 days and 12 1/2 hours (is that a lot?) for the carpet guy to install the carpet it is finally finished. And we are loving the space. The best part according to Noah is..."the bigscreen" He says that with a twinkle in his eye. Check out the pics.

Little baby vs. big chair

I guess Ben thought it a good idea to put a still unstable baby in a huge recliner...that rocks...not meaning it is cool but meaning it moves back and forth when Adam runs into it because he isn't paying attention. What do you think?

Follow me around please.

The widget on top of this column is a follower widget. If you like my blog you can be one if the followers. Just click on the link and you can add yourself to the list and follow me in a not so creepy way.

WHAT THE HECK IS HE DOING?

So...as you may or may not know Ben has a new job with Granite school district. He just pulled off one of the projects he has been working on and I am so proud of him. Here is a clip so that you can see a glimpse into what he is doing.

Video Courtesy of KSL.com

Instead of starting the day at the office, like usual, Granite's elected officials went back to school today. Mayors, city council members, legislators and other leaders of the district toured two elementary schools, two junior highs, a high school and a technical institute. Benjamin Horsley, with the Granite School District, says, "There's so many diverse opinions about what needs to happen in public education, I think this gives our leaders and officials a chance to see what really goes on in the classroom so they can have the best information possible." The visitors got to spend time in classrooms and learned about new programs like the dual-immersion program and science program. They also got to see how the different schools deal with at-risk students and their families. Granite School District officials feel if the community leaders and lawmakers see for themselves how the schools function, they'll be better at representing the students and the public education system.

Do these count as family pictures...

Family pictures in my mind were always horribly inconvenient, boring (as a child), yet chaotic. They always had to be in a studio, or shot on location somewhere far away and more beautiful then the backyard (which could have easily worked). They were usually only taken on special occasions like weddings. Then they never turned out as good as the effort put into them to be taken, and the money they cost.

We stopped by our friend Aprils house after church a couple weeks ago and said, "hop in the van and come take our pictures". She grabbed her camera and off we went...to a brick wall down the street of a building that got knocked down.

No appointment.

No sitting fee.

No matching outfits.

No crazy photographer with wild artsy ideas.

No 6-8 weeks to develop.

This was fun!

Thanks April!

The really good ones are on our Christmas cards!

The toothless wonder lives!

The wiggly tooth is gone, and we are so excited. Well, Noah was anyway. The tooth fairy left Noah a dollar and we are going out to the store today to get a frame to put it in. (no not really, but if I gave Noah the idea i bet he would go for it. That's how important this seems to him). This is the big time. I feel so old to have a child who is losing teeth.

This is what Noah was doing with his tooth 2 hours before it fell out. I don't know if you can tell from the picture, but he could push it with his tongue almost parallel to his gums. It looked really funny, yet kind of hillbilly trailer trash at the same time.

Christmas cards for a good cause...

My very talented and generous friend, Emily, has created her own line of Christmas cards and is selling them to help the NIE Recovery fund. I am posting an example and her blog site so that you can go read more about it. I can help Emily facilitate an order or you can go to her blog. Her blog is

tim-yatesfamily.blogspot.com. Please check it out.

Today we bless Seth...

Our beautiful baby Seth was blessed on November 2. We are so grateful to have him in our family because he is such a sweet baby boy! And all of you who have met him know that is the truth. Such a fun day!

Poll: Who does Seth look like?

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Poll: Who does Adam look like?

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Poll: Who does Noah look like?

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Flashback...

NoahSeth (of course)

Adam

I just wanted to reminisce the babies in my life and who they look like.

Sorry Noah's picture is so fuzzy, digital wasn't all it was cracked up to be in 2002.

You can vote above and tell me who you think they look like.

Rain or shine?

What do you mean summer is over?

So what if it snowed 3-6 inches on October 12?

We know that it is October 30th and we don't care!

We are rebels and it is 75 degrees today!

We are going to pull out the slip and slide and slide one last time!

You can't stop us.

Noah is my guitar hero...

Every kid has to have a dream

Some kids want to be the President

Others want to be a fireman

Still others want to be a doctor

My Noah wants to be a rock star

Now all he needs is a drummer...

Amy, is John available?

Good ol' Sunday family dinners...

We have all been there... RING, RING... Hello, oh hi mom! No we don't have plans on Sunday. We would love to come over for dinner. What can I bring? OK I can do that, it sounds yummy! 5:30? Ok see you then. CLICK Don't you just LOVE family dinner!Good Times!

Funny things kids say Part4...

Yesterday we were at church and we were trying to get all of our stuff together to go home. Everyone knows the hustle and bustle that you have to fight to get out of the building. For some reason all the young men in our ward have always been so nice to my boys and they always take the time to say him to Noah and Adam and give them five. After Adam gave fives to two of the bishops sons he turns to one of them, points at him, and says, "you smell like a narf!" All I have to say to David is, I am so sorry. And who knows, maybe in Adams head it is a good thing to smell like a narf. Maybe we should all strive to smell like a narf.

Just like everyone else, we can't stay away...

It seems as if when the cold weather hits it is a MUST to go to a pumpkin patch. I have to be yet another of my blogger friends who visited Packs Pumpkin Patch. The kids just love chasing Ben in the hay maze. Well, Noah chased him, and Ben carried Adam for most of the time. We could have done without the mosquitoes, but the frozen yogurt for dinner after was a huge hit for the boys! Pumpkin patch and ice-cream for dinner, what can beat that?

We bought pumpkins for the kids to paint at our upcoming cousins Halloween Party and had a lot of fun. It seems that the fall would not be complete without visiting the patch.

A new realization...

So, for the last 4 to 5 years Ben hasn't been around much. Anyone who knows me at all knows this. . . Perhaps I am slow, or naive but I was hoping that when Ben quite his job and his 2nd job and his 3rd job that I would have some more time with him. I thought his new job would give him a more stable schedule. I got 1 1/2 glorious weeks with him and we spent a lot of time having fun! Then the bomb dropped. He was called to be YM president (Sunday and Tuesday nights plus weekly pres. meetings), and started school (which includes study groups 1 or 2 nights a week), his job (includes weekly and monthly board meetings). Now I think we see him less then before. I hate to say it but I don't think Ben needs us to survive. I am optimistic that maybe he will need us in 2 years. That is my realization for the day.

The first snow...2008

It is currently October 12, 2008 and we were expecting a light dusting of snow in the mountains, but we got a few inches in our yard. The boys come into my room this morning talking over each other about the snow they were so excited. We had to pull out the bin with all the warm winter clothes and stuff the kids into them because they were too small, but ok for today. Last year Adam hated the snow, but this year not so. They were so elated to spend time in the white playground. I was not so elated to realize that the cold weather is upon us...whoa-is-me.