Grammy and Gramps Visit

Grammy and Gramps came to visit us at our house right after Christmas. While they were here for only a few short days, we had a blast! It was fun watching the children play with their Grandparents. And I'm not going to lie, it was fun for me as well!

Gramps has always been a big fan of trains, so he and Matthew were right at home with each other.

On their last day we went up to Savannah. We had lunch in Forsythe Park, right across from this fountain. It was a beautiful day.
Grammy and Gramps had so much fun with Josh going down the slide. It was fun for me to watch as well!

I am so glad that they were able to come and visit. I wish it could have been longer, but I'll take what I can get!

Christmas 2008

We here at the Boyer house are just pleased as punch that we were able to spend Christmas together this year instead of having Jarum in Iraq. We were also happy (no offense to our family, we love you!) to stay home this year. It has been a while. The day was wonderful with much happiness, laughter and fun to be had. All of the gifts we received were wonderful and much appreciated. Santa also did quite a good job, according to the kids. The laughter mainly came from watching each other try to do the hula hoop game on the Wii fit. We have videos. We'll probably either delete them or hold them for when blackmail might be needed.




And yes, that is our new TV, otherwise known as "The Beast." Just wait until you see it, Mom. You'll do a double-take, I'm sure. :p

Merry Christmas!

Real Simple

For my birthday last summer, my sister Megan introduced me to the magazine Real Simple. She'd noticed that I had been getting Better Homes and Gardens and thought that I might like this one better. I asked her what was so special about it and she just said that on top of the layout just being fantastic that it has some wonderful ideas for everyday life. MY GOSH, was she right! Every month it is a special treat when I open the mailbox and inside is my new issue! The November issue helped me to have a less stressed and highly entertaining Thanksgiving, and the December issue has been helping me with decoration ideas and such for Christmas.

There are a few items of the magazine that I especially like:

Tried and true beauty ideas: Pretty much they take products and rate them. Almost like a Consumer Reports. They also include tips on things you might be doing wrong. For instance, did you know that you shouldn't apply conditioner to your whole head? They suggest starting from your ears and working the conditioner into the ends of your hair, as ends are what really need the conditioner. This saves you from having oily-looking hair on the top of your head and also keeps you from having to wash as often. I tried this, and it's awesome!

New uses for old things: Did you know that packing peanuts in the bottom of a flower pot makes it so you don't have to use as much potting soil and still allows for proper drainage? And that old rubber bands tied around an egg and then dipped into Easter egg dye make for tie-dyed eggs? They also have suggestions for paper clips, felt circles, etc.

Month-specific Simple lists: Did you know that August is the best time to buy a computer? Did you know that 55% of women in their 60s describe themselves as very happy versus 40% of women in their 20s?

Anyway, the whole reason for this post is that I have been rather stressed of late due to the holidays, kids, etc. You know, the usual. However, when I got my January issue of Real Simple in the mail on Saturday, I just had to smile. The whole issue is about making lists; whether they are to-do lists or not-to-do lists. They have ideas on where to make lists and how to make lists. There is a list on how to return anything. There is a list on 15 ways to get more fit. A list for making your clothes last longer. The best part is that most of this issue, while being informative, is also incredibly funny! There is an article on famous people's (fictional) lists:

Genghis Khan:
Pillage
Plunder.
Have shirt taken in.
Pillage
Pillage
Seven o'clock parent-teacher meeting
Plunder
Pillage

Fred Astaire:
Wash ceiling
Take cravat-tying lessons
Find something new to twirl (am tired of canes and umbrellas)
etc.


If you ever read Real Simple, make sure you read it from cover to cover, as the very last page is often what gets me through the month. The whole page consists of punch-out cards that directly relate to what was in the issue. January has cards that should be punched out and placed in various rooms of the house. The card for the office has important dates to remember. The card for the fridge has six simple recipe substitutions (I am always looking those up!). The card for the laundry room has stain-removal strategies. The card for by the telephone has methods for how to get a human on the line for places such as amazon.com, Walmart.com, Citibank, etc.

So, there you have it. A magazine full of well-written articles, tips, tricks, and ideas. If there is a better magazine out there, I haven't seen it. Try it, you'll like it.

New Page Element.

If you scroll down to the bottom of my blog, you'll see a cute little pic of my family. I totally stole the idea from my friend Amy. Thanks, Amy!

Halloween!

We had a very enjoyable Halloween this year. Matt, especially, has been looking forward to this night since, oh, last Halloween. He woke up Halloween morning, quite distressed that we weren't out right then and there getting our candy. Sometimes three year-olds are hard to reason with. :)

We went to the Trunk-or-Treat held at the church. There was a mini carnival, food, and of course the candy. The kids had a fantastic time, especially since their friends, from when we lived here before the deployment, came with us.

Gabriel, Jacob, Vaughn, Josh, Liam, Kaylee and Matt.

The little Clone Trooper is Ty. We had to coax him in, if I am remembering correctly.

And who are those cuties???

We hope the rest of you had a wonderful Halloween. It's so much fun to celebrate with kids, especially when they actually get what is going on!

Why Yes, I Do Still Exist!

As I've been trying to post this, I've realized why I don't blog as much as I should: every time I sit down to the computer and try to do anything with pictures, Josh comes running and wants to look through our entire collection. Even as I type this, he is trying to crawl up my leg and is very put-out that we aren't looking at his pictures! GAH! Anyway, this is what has been happening to the Boyers lately:

Kaylee played soccer this fall. She has a natural gift of energy that allows her to just run around and around and around. She's a pretty good kicker, as well!

Lining up for the first shot.

Playing Goalie

Jacob also had the chance to play baseball this fall. I know that baseball isn't exactly known for being a fall-ish sport (except for the play-offs and the World Series), but being in the South, it's warmer longer so they just decided to throw in an extra baseball season for the year. YAY! And, as of this posting, his team is undefeated. GO METS!

Jacob playing right field.
At bat.

Every year the elementary school has a Fall Festival. Last year it was held outside and you had to pay to do the carnival attractions. This year it was inside (thank goodness, because it was pouring that day!) and the attractions were free! Another YAY!

Matthew building a bubble.

Kaylee's turn.

And Jacob.

And Josh.

Jarum thought it would be amusing to put a temporary leaf tattoo on Josh. That night we taught Josh how to flex and say "Strong!" He's awesome.

This little attraction was called "Shrink Wrap the Kid." It was highly popular, and even more fun to watch! Kaylee's face is indicitive of every single kids' reaction to this thing. What a great idea!

So, there you have it! We're alive and having oodles of fun doing various things. YAY!

Blah.

For the past two weeks I have been enjoying boundless amounts of energy and I have been getting much accomplished.

And then this weekend hit. Nothing special happened that would cause me to be tired. I just felt drained beyond belief. It's like my body is rebelling against itself and trying to tell me to SLOW DOWN!

Do you ever just have one of those days where you know you're supposed
to be doing various jobs/chores/randomness, but you are so tired that
you can't get your body to kick it into high gear?

Meh.

The Yard

I'm sitting here in my newly cleaned/unpacked/organized library/office (my gosh, that's a lot of slashes!) enjoying the quiet of the morning. Southeast Georgia is enjoying a cool week and this morning I have every window in the house thrown wide open! I don't know how long it is supposed to last, but by golly, I'm going to enjoy it while I can! Usually by this time in the morning it's already in the upper 80s, and it is now a cool 71 degrees. I can totally deal with that!

I've been receiving a lot of requests to see what the outside of our house looks like. Jarum has been working very hard on putting in a new automatic sprinkler system and various other front yard-y tasks. So, without further ado....

The Yard!

Rise and Shout!!!

Saturday was the season opener for BYU football. And, because Jarum and I are both rabid fans, we decided to get the sport package on directtv so that we could watch almost the whole season from the comfort of our living room! We decided that it was important to share this moment with the kids, so we had a fun family party!

Click for pics!

Rah rah rah rah rah, goooooooooooooooooo Cougars! (We won, by the way).

Best part of the evening? Getting Josh to say "Go Cougars." It was awesome.

The Barley House

For those of you (namely our moms) who have been dying to see our house, we now have pictures! Yay! I did my best as far as getting it presentable, but we have only been in the place for exactly two months, and we're still working on getting pictures and such up on the walls. /caveat. :)

The Things I Have Done in the Last Four Days

1. Did cartwheels when I checked the bank account and saw that Jarum's bonus from Iraq was finally there.
2. Went to Savannah and bought a new piano with part of said bonus. Went to Savannah by myself.



3. Cursed at the Master Bathroom sink for draining very sloooowwwwlllyyy.
4. Went to church and organized all manner of musical numbers.
5. Took a nap.
6. Made a very nice Sunday dinner.
7. Cursed the Master Bath sink again. Tried Drano. No go.
8. Looked up how to fix a clogged sink.
9. Woke up Monday morning and fixed said sink. That's right. By myself.
10. Took the little kids shopping.
11. Bought the baby new shoes. (baby: shews)
12 Survived Walmart. And while at Walmart, bought a ton of Georgia grown peaches.
13. Came home and froze said peaches.
14. Prepared piano lessons for the kids.
15. Gave piano lessons.
16. Family Home Evening.
17. Woke up Tuesday morning with a mission.
18. Started laundry.
19. Cleaned bathroom.
20. Continued laundry.
21. Finished knitting another dishcloth.
22. Had lunch with Jarum.
23. Made Strawberry freezer jam. First time. It's pretty.

24. More laundry.
25. Swept and mopped all of the floors, and when one has wood all throughout, that's a lot of sweeping and mopping!
26. Got phone hooked up.
27. Helped kids with homework.
28. Made bread.
29. Made another AMAZING dinner. Just from spare stuff in the kitchen. Oh, my gosh, YUM!
30. Spent time with kids.
31. Still more laundry.
32. Got kids ready for bed.
33. Smiled as Kaylee showed me her first lost tooth.

34. Blogged about my last four days. (Still not finished with laundry. That will have to wait until tomorrow.)


So, yes. I have been incredible busy. This list does not include normal day-to-day things such as dressing/feeding/bathing/changing children/myself, talking to friends and family, reading, watching tv, yada-yada. But while they have been incredibly busy days, I am able to sleep the sleep of one who has accomplished much and can enjoy a job well done.


And somewhere along the way, I have enjoyed the cuteness of my kids. Peace.

First Day of School!!!

The school year has started and there is much rejoicing on all sides in the Boyer home. This year Jacob is in Third Grade and Kaylee has started Kindergarten. I don't think there were ever two more excited children than these two. I know I was excited for them. The only one who was a little disappointed was Matthew, because he just can't quite grasp the fact that he is just not old enough for "pack-pack school."

Awww, the two by the front door, just itching to go out. I had to make them stand by each other though. Before I snapped this, they were about three feet apart.
I nice shot of they're super-cool back-packs. Tinkerbell and X-Men. What could be better?
Outside in the front.
I think Kaylee just enjoys being a ham! She loves getting her photo taken.
Jacob is pretty much just humoring me at this point. And aren't the flowers pretty? Jarum just put those in last Saturday.

I would have had a picture of Josh, but he's not really into picture taking right after he wakes up. He was there, and was waving good-bye with the best of us.

They had a great first day, and are just finishing up the week. They love their teachers and riding the bus. I'm so glad that after all of the hubbub of moving and whatnot over the last several months, we are finally back into a routine of some kind. Life is going to be better all around, I'm sure of it!

Pictures! We've Got Pictures! We've Got Lots and Lots of Pictures!

Yes, my dear friends and family, it is now time for those long awaited pictures. If you don't feel like looking at a mess of picspam, then this is not the post for you. Move along. :)

I suppose I'll just get right into it and treat it as a slideshow? Does that work for everyone? Okie-dokie.

Here we are in Pleasent Grove/American Fork (I can't remember which) enjoying some time at the park. This is the first time that Josh had ever been in a swing at the park and he just loved it!

I took the kiddles to a day out with Thomas the Tank engine. Needless to say there was excitement all around and we had a really good time. This is after the train ride, after face paining, and during some horrific wind.
The three older kids (Jacob, Kaylee, and Matt) with Sir Topham Hat. I didn't even try getting Josh into the shot, figuring he'd just be too dang scared. Probably a good call on my part.
This is on the way to Ephraim after the Thomas fun. My sister Megan took this pic while I was driving. Good times.
This was at Thomas, I think. I can't remember. I just know that Matt was showing off his tattoo and Josh was hamming it up for the camera.
Matt and one of his many cute and expressive faces at my Aunt Melanie's house.
Josh eating some cereal at Aunt Melanie's. Everyone had a great time here. It was good fun.
Joshua the Ham smiling before getting his very first haircut, just a week before Jarum's return from Iraq.
My gosh! Look at that! I could put it up in ponies!
Getting ready. He has no idea. LOL
This is me just keeping him still while my mom did the back of his head. Actually, he handled it really well. We've done another cut since and he just loves them. Doesn't even fuss.
The handsome, all clipped boy. He loves the camera. Can you tell?
Kaylee's "before" pic. Here hair went all of the way down to her bum. She literally had to pull it over her shoulder while, ahem, going potty.
And now at her shoulder blades. It looks so great at this length. Much easier to deal with and just dang cute!
Preggo Rachel playing Guitar Hero III. This pic makes me giggle every time I see it. :p
Rachel with her hot new do. She didn't have a camera when she got it cut so I took one with mine. Here you go, Rach.
Josh at the BYU Museum of Art. They were having a family fun day. So I took the family. The end.
After the MOA family fun day. Look at that background. OH MY GOSH I miss Utah!
Josh overlooking the falls at the gardens at Thanksgiving Point. If I could live there, I would. And I miss the cafe. Mmmmmmmmm sweet potato fries. Mmmmmmmmmm.
Josh and Matt at a different falls overlook. It is the largest manmade waterfall in the country? Is that right? Someone check my facts.
Grammy and Josh in the gardens. Awwwww!
At the airport waiting for Jarum to get off of the plane. We were slightly excited. It was also fun watching everyone else watch the kids. Lots of smiles and a few tears of joy on the kids' behalf. Very sweet.
DADDY! (see the couple to the left? Lots of that.)
I think Matt was happy. Actually, Matt wouldn't let Jarum out of his sight for a few days. I even had to remind Matt two days ago that he no longer had to pray for Daddy's safety in Iraq. :)
At the airport. Josh was very happy to see Daddy as well. No "who the heck are you?" moments. He pretty much just dove into Jarum's arms.
Back at my mom's house. The kids stuck to him like glue. It was very sweet. And also refreshing. It was one of the few days where they weren't attached to my hip.
Josh and Clara. Holy cow, were these two partners in crime!
Picnicking up in American Fork Canyon. It was so gorgeous. I just couldn't get over it.
A close-up of the little boys. Josh's expression just kills me.
Jacob's eighth bday. He got Mario Kart for the wii. Happiness was had by all.
Awwww, loves!
Rachel gave me the idea of making this gator cake. Thanks, Rach. It was a huge hit.
Opening presents at his water party. Good times.
Random pic of clean children.
This is the view out of my front door in our new house in Georgia. We love this house. But I'm going to paint the inside. It's grey. I feel as though I'm living in an elephant. Other than that, though...
Close-up of the trees. There are little white flowers in them. It's a very pretty thing. (And I will have more pics of the house, once things are unpacked and pictures are put up, etc.)
Living room. We have so much more space that the kids often don't know what to do with themselves.
Splash park on post. We go every Tuesday. This is the first year that Matt has actually gotten in the water. Now we can't get him out!
Josh has taken Matt's place as the there's-no-way-you're-getting-me-in-that kid.

Well, there you go. See, Kimmy? Baby is not married yet. He's still a baby. Tara, there you go. Rachel, I do actually blog when I'm not living at Mom's. Mom, enjoy the pics of your sweet grandbabies.