Our Beautiful Girls

Our four girls are growing up so fast. Jayd is now 13, Chancey 12, Lilah 10 (in 4 days) and Olivia 7. Every four months it seems we need a complete new set of clothing for each as they have been all growing like weeds the past year. I look at their school pictures from last fall and am amazed at the changes I see in each of them. A couple of weeks ago they had a fun night staying at Aunt Heidi's house and having a girls sleep over with their cousins Lexi and Ashley. Aunt Heidi had fun painting their nails and fixing their hair any way they wanted. Matt and I are not ready to have the boys paying attention to our girls but as you can see from the pictures it won't be long before that happens.

Fun At The Pool

Summer is the time for pool days and we certainly had fun at Nana and Papa's community pool with our cousins Lexi, Bruno and Ashley Vassel. Abe and Elijah have become genuine fish this year and Chancey, Lilah and Olivia are seeing the improvements from their swimming lessons that they took this spring.

Curtis Family Reunion 2009

This year Lynne was in charge of the family reunion and she chose a wonderful place called the Heber Valley Girls Camp. Our camp location included 4 cabins with 8 bunk beds each and an outside pavilion having a kitchen area, picnic tables, shower and restroom facilities. What a place!! It was so beautiful. We enjoyed games of uno, Bang, volleyball and horseshoes. Lynne also had jars of candy which we had to guess the number in them in order to win the jar.

We enjoyed a wonderful fireside program and took pictures of the group. All of grandpa and grandma Curtis' children were there as well as most of the grand kids and great-grandchildren. The next day we enjoyed some time at the lake where we were able to use peddle boats and canoes. Thank you Lynne for all your hard work in organizing the reunion. Our family really enjoyed attending. (Sorry the right side of the pictures get cut off a little.)

Vassel Family Reunion

We enjoyed attending the Vassel family reunion and seeing everyone there. Aunt Marety had all her children there as well as the grand kids. Aunt Bethy and Uncle Darien had all their kids and grand kids there except for one. We enjoyed a lovely picnic style dinner and visited as we watched the kids and grand kids playing together. Unfortunately, the kids were in charge of the camera so the pictures are of themselves but there are a few of Tim Smithsom and Jenn's kids. I love the one of Jenn and my kids sitting on our back steps.

Summer Fresh Corn

One of our favorite summer meals includes having fresh corn. The other day I went to the farmers market and got a whole bunch for that nights dinner. The kids enjoyed shucking the corn and then eating them until we were all too full to do anything that night.

Scooby Doo

This afternoon Elijah asked if he could watch a movie. Of course he chose Scooby Doo which is not a surprise as he is EXTREMELY obsessed with anything Scooby Doo. I said he could and he chose Alien Invaders. Elijah then said, "Scooby is scared." I told him Scooby is always scared because he is a woose. Elijah then looked at me all concerned and said, "Scooby is not a woose, he's a dog."

What's He Thinking About?

Elijah and Jayd were sitting at the table this morning eating breakfast together when Elijah said, "Jayd's friends."
"What about Jayd's friends?" I asked.
Elijah replied, "Bailey. Bailey is a nice girl mama."

Jayd and I looked at each other in bewilderment and laughed. I'm not sure why Elijah was thinking about Jayd's friend Bailey this morning but it sure is fun to see how much he is aware of what is happening around him and can communicate this with us. For a 2 1/2 year old his communication skills are amazing and so fun to listen to...except when he is communicating in his new found form of whining...which I promise you will not last long as far as I am concerned.

More Like A Moose

While I was away this past weekend for our annual women's retreat, Matt was home with our 7 kids. At one point in the day most of the kids were downstairs watching a movie together and "watching Elijah" so that Dad could get some things done. Well, the watching part did not last too long and Elijah went up to the kitchen. Elijah loves to play that he is cooking so when he found a tub of butter and a bag of powdered sugar on the kitchen counter he decided to have some fun.

The end result of this fun was that Dale enjoyed some of the tub of butter and the powdered sugar was ALL over the kitchen floor. Not in one spot of course but EVERYWHERE. I'm told that little feet marks of powdered sugar were everywhere. Matt of course found Elijah and was less than happy with the babysitting abilities of our children. As Justin relayed this situation to me on Saturday night I asked if dad had a cow when he saw the mess. Justin calmly replied, "No...more like a moose." I guess I can be grateful that my kitchen is clean, my husband did not leave and that all 7 children are still alive.

Abe's Boogers

In church yesterday I noticed Abe had his finger in his nose. I asked him to get it out. He pulled it out and showed me a booger at the end of his finger. He said he was putting it back into his nose because he didn't have anywhere to put it. Do you know how difficult it is to laugh quietly in church. I have to admit I was laughing so hard I started crying. I'm just so grateful he didn't think to eat it.

Jayd's 13th Birthday Party

So what happens when you put 16 girls together in one house? Can you say major noise. Today Jayd celebrated her 13th birthday with her friends. After lots of games and tons of pizza they decided to have an eating contest on the floor with the cake and ice cream...with no utensils. That was fun to watch!! I had made 2 cakes for Jayd as I knew with all those girls and our family we would need them. They were fun to make.

Graduation From Pre-school

Today was Abraham's graduation from pre-school. Mrs Tresa was so amazing with him and really helped him alot. The cute little girl in the pictures with Abe is his "girlfriend" Beau. They try to sit next to each other as much as possible and Abe has told us that he is going to marry her. Isn't she adorable. Abe's pictures today started out with him mad because of what he was wearing but finally he decided to smile for me after one of the other mom's made faces behind my back.

Jayd's Track Meet

As Jayd went into Jr. High this year she decided that she wanted to try new sports and see what she likes. Last summer she did a week each of Volleyball and Basketball training camp and then tried out for the volleyball team. She made the 1st cut but not the team...but good job for trying. She hopes to do both these camps again this summer and try out for both teams.

This spring Jayd decided to try track with her good friend Bailey. Each day after school she practiced with the team and really showed good dedication and hard work. We finally got her some good running shoes and that definitely made a difference for her. Jayd competed in the mile, the medley (her part was the 400 or 200 meter) and this last meet was asked to fill in on the 4x100 relay also because one of her team mates was injured. On the mile Jayd came in at 6 minutes 54 seconds and earned 2nd place for her school. Because of this she will be competing this week at the North End District competition. Her medley team also placed for this competition so we wish her luck on both these runs. Great job Jayd!!

Western Caribbean Cruise - Days 7, 8 and 9

Day 7: Today we are were supposed to port in Cozumel Mexico but because of the Swine Flu we were told that the ship would not be going there. We were definitely disappointed. This day ended up being a full day at see instead on our way to Key West, FL which is where Carnival decided to take us instead. Another restful day with sleep, reading and just enjoying our time together.

Day 8: Today we have docked in Key West, FL. There were some very large yachts docked by our ship so I took a picture of them. One even had a helicopter on top of it. We walked around Key West and finished our shopping for the kids. I liked Key West as it reminded me most of Martha's Vineyard. The people were very friendly. We loved watching the ski boats, catamarans, sail boats and yachts as they passed our ship while docked in Key West. We marveled at how blue and clear the water was here. The sunset was beautiful was we started back toward Miami.

Day 9: Today we docked in Miami, FL at about 7:30am. We were off the ship and on our way to the airport by 9:30am. Our flight home was uneventful and we were so excited to see our kids when we got home that night. We are grateful that we were able to take this trip together. It's weird to think we have been married just under 2 years when it feels like 10 years. We needed this and can't wait for whatever trip we decide to take next year together...that is if we can find people to stay with our 7 kids again. ;-)

Western Caribbean Cruise - Day 6

Day 6: Today we docked in the country of Belize. This was by far our favorite place to visit. The country still had the poverty that we experienced in Roatan but it didn't seem quite as bad as Roatan. We have booked an excursion to see the Mayan ruins of XUNANTUNICH which is only a couple miles from the boarder of Guatemala. XUNANTUNICH is estimated to be a Mayan site from 300 AD – 900 AD. There are large temples, buildings and a partially uncovered ball court at this site. It was a 2 hour bus ride to the site but our guide spoke almost the whole time there telling us about history of Belize, customs, ways of life, how most people live etc.

We arrived at our starting place and boarded a small man powered ferry across a small river. At one point you could see ladies at the shore of the river washing their clothing. Our tour guide said that this is the best way that the women keep in touch with each other and with what is going on in their villages and towns. We could see clothing drying on lines under and around houses. Most homes are built up on stilts. We were told this is for protections from animals and for during the rainy season when everything gets flooded. Very few homes had glass windows as most had just curtains, wooden slats or metal grates over them.

After our quick trip across the river we boarded small vans and were taken up the mountain about 2 miles to the base of the Mayan site. Then we started our walk up to the sites. Once there we were amazed by the grander and beauty of these ancient sites. We were told about the rituals and sacrifices the Mayans performed. Then began our climb up the largest temple. Wow...this was fun, exciting and frightening all at the same time. We laughed about how if this was in the USA then there would be railings all over but here you were on your own on small ledges and steep stairs. The carvings that are still on this temple were amazing.

Once we were on top you could see the magnificent area around the site as well as the other buildings. We could understand why they built there as it was possible to see miles in all directions. As you can see we took lots of pictures so that we could try and take home what we experienced. When we got back to the river and the little shops we bought a carved Mayan calendar, carved jaguar (the Mayan sign of royalty), a hand crafted and painted pottery and jewelry. We were excited to see 2 LDS missionaries with a lady at one of the shops and found out they were from Guatemala and Honduras. The lady was baptised a year ago and she said that in the area there were about 80 members that attended their church.

When we were done seeing the site we were taken to a restaurant and served a lunch of rice with beans, chicken and cold slaw. On the way back to the bus I kept looking for the kids of the country as they were in their schools or waiting on the side of the road for a bus. Most of them were dressed in school uniforms. I was able to catch a school with kids outside it through the bus window and was excited to show our kids how the children of Belize attend school.

Western Caribbean Cruise - Day 5

Day 5: Today we are on the island of Roatan off the coast of Honduras. As we dock there is a group singing and dancing to native drums. We decided today to go to a private beach. We are put in buses and driven about 20 minutes away to the beach. On the way we are surprised but the horrible poverty that we see. It seems that there is no trash pickup and there are open sewers along the homes. Everything is so dirty and it's hard to imagine how people can survive living like this. It explains why they suggest us going to this private beach as when we get there you can tell they have done a lot to make this area nice. We find out the this is a private area that Carnival is buying. We did see LDS missionaries walking along side the road and we wished we could stop and talk to them about their mission and the area.

We sat in our chairs under and umbrella and looked out at a ship wreck just off the shore. There are people snorkeling and we see a turtle off in the distance by the dock. There are sand crabs everywhere and it was like walking in a mine field in the water but it was so beautiful, blue and clear. The water really was quite warm and we enjoyed just being out in it to cool off. We ordered lunch and I did great until Matt said that this was interesting mystery meat in our hamburger. I lost my appetite the rest of the day on the beach.

When they took us back to the boat we could see small open shops along the road selling items but once the bus stopped at the ship we were told by a Honduran security officer that we could not go past the gate to shop there. We wondered if the shopping areas by the ship were owned by the government and they did not want the tourists going outside that area. One of the couples that we dine with in the evening said he did walk out and bought some things. I guess we were not sure if we should go against what the officer had said to us.

Western Caribbean Cruise - Day 3 & 4

Day 3: This is our first full day at sea with no stops. It is choppy and windy but that doesn't seem to matter and we are just enjoying our time on deck reading and relaxing. Tonight is the formal dinner. Boy...some people really go crazy with their dress for this night. We are at a table with 3 other couples. They are all nice and very different from us but we have an enjoyable evening.

Dayr 4: This morning we stopped at the island of Grand Cayman. The ship anchored and they put us on small ferry boats to go to the island. We have not booked a tour and decide to just enjoy walking around town and shop. It rained for about 2 minutes but that only cooled the humid air already there. Matt was feeling sea sick today for the first time. Going on and off the ship REALLY messes with your head. We did take a cab to 7 Mile Beach and just enjoyed the area for an hour or two. The cabs drive CRAZY there. The water was so blue and clear.

Our Western Carrbbean Trip - Day 1 & 2

Matt and I returned from our trip a couple days ago and I thought I had better write what we saw and did before I start forgetting the great places we visited. Each stop had it's own characteristic. We enjoyed so much just having the time to be together, relax and rest. As you read our days you'll probably say we were pretty boring...but that was just fine with us.

DAY 1: We left on Saturday, April 25th. The days leading up to our leaving were so busy and hectic as we got ourselves, the house and all the kids ready for us to be gone. In all my hurrying I pocked my left eye and scratched it pretty badly. Yes, I'm a dork and for some reason accident prone now that I have had eye surgery. What's up with that? It makes no sense. We left for Miami, FL on a 6am flight and by the time we got to Miami I knew I needed to see an eye doctor. We found and eye hospital (yes...believe it or now they have one in Miami) and we went right over at about 5pm. They may be one on the best in the country but they were HORRIBLY managed and it took 3 hours before I was able to see a doctor. After 5 minutes of cleaning up my eye of the loose and rough edges of the scratch on my eye, he send us home. He said that it would be a rough 1 or 2 days of pain as the Epithelial layer of the eye healed. We got back to the hotel and I asked Matt for a blessing.

I have learned that faith is very interesting. We can pray and pray for a loved one or ourselves and the Lord will do something contrary to our desires. I have also learned that He will grant our desires at other times. Why does He choose one over the another? I have yet to figure that out except that it is His will and that we still must have faith in His decisions and help in our life. I had been praying almost hourly all day that the Lord would take away the pain that I was experiencing and after the Blessing that pain began to lesson. In the morning I felt no pain. No matter how I would have felt in the morning, my appreciation and love for my Savior has once again been strengthened.

DAY 2: We were picked up at the hotel in Miami by the tour bus and taken to the docks where the ship was waiting. We were on the Carnival Valor ship. Wow...it was huge. We went through lots of lines before we were allowed on but that gave us time to meet some people while we waiting. You could just feel the excitement in the air as we all waited and anticipated starting our vacations. We set sail at 4pm. It was windy and the ocean choppy but we did not care. We were on our way.

The Birthday Boys

Wow...my boys are getting so big. Justin has just turned 15 and Abraham is now 5. Where has the time gone.

I remember when after only 5 months of marriage I was told I had less than a 5% chance of ever getting pregnant. It was such devastating news to me as I had wanted to be a mother so badly. Three years later we were very surprised and delighted to know that I was pregnant. I was so excited when I felt my baby move for the first time. Toward the end of my pregnancy I would pull my shirt real tight and watch my belly roll and move for hours. It was such a thrill. When Justin was born on his fathers birthday we were so happy. What a beautiful boy. I am so grateful that Justin gave me those first experiences of motherhood and he has filled my life with such joy and love.

I remember the first time I met Abraham. It was Easter weekend and Matt was bringing the kids to my house to meet me for the first time. Abe was 3 weeks away from turning 3 and he was such a sweet and cute little boy. I can remember sitting in Church with him a couple weeks later and him sitting on my lap. He would snuggle with me and he fit so perfectly there. It was fun at his birthday to give him the medieval castle set and see him playing with it with his sisters.

I love these boys. They have such sweet and fun personalities. They make me laugh with the things that they say and do. I am proud of them and how they are learning to become brothers. Abe asked for a medieval castle cake so I attempted to make one with the help of my good friend Shauni Snow. Thank you Shauni for all your help. You just don't realize how huge this cake was until you see the picture of the boys standing next to the cake. Abe loved it so that is all that matters.

It was so nice to have family come to celebrate the boys birthday. Thank you to Nana, Papa, Christopher, Kris, Brielle, Bruno IV, Heidi, Lexi, Bruno V, Ashley, Karmen, Rodrigo, Joaquin, Ezekiel, Grandma & Grandpa Curtis and Andrea for coming to our party and making the day such a fun time. We love our family and were glad that we could share these special birthdays with each of you.

Tractor Ride

Elijah got to have a ride on our neighbors tractor today. Our neighbor was moving some dirt into his backyard so Elijah and I went out to watch him. Elijah learned how to put the bucket up and down and even got to steer. Here are some cute pictures of Elijah helping with the work.

Elijah Goes To The ER

On Monday the 13th of April Elijah had a little accident. I was doing dishes and Elijah was playing in the kitchen when he tripped and bumped his head into our heavy wooden benches for our table. I was to him immediately to see his head start to grow right before my eyes. It grew to about 2 inches out within about 30 seconds so I knew he needed his factor immediately. I was also concerned because it grew so fast that it started to open up the skin on the outside and bleed slightly.

I put Elijah down, even though he was still screaming, and grabbed the factor supplies and the phone. I called my good friend Shauni Snow who said she was coming right over. We got him factored within 10 minutes of the accident but I knew that he also needed to be seen at Primary Children's Hospital to make sure he was not bleeding under the skull as well. Shauni took Abe so that Elijah and I could start our 40 minute ride to the hospital.

The Hematology Department told us to go right to the ER for a head CT. Elijah definitely did not enjoy being confined to the table for the scan but the results showed that the bleeding was just on the outside of the skull. We were released after 3 hours and sent home.

It's been 5 days now since his accident and it looks like he has the bud of a little horn on his head and it's a nice yellow/green/purple/blue color all around it. It will take several weeks for the blood to go down in that area but we are once again feeling so blessed to have the factor available to us right in our home and a hospital that is close enough to help us when in need. Elijah is an active child and we are sure this will not be his last quick run to the hospital.