Happy Halloweeeen!

Bob and I are sitting at home...alone....passing out candy. Even Toby the dog juked us. Nathan joined a bunch of his buddies and took Toby trick or treating. Amanda is over at a guys house with a bunch of other highschoolers watching a scary movie....Disturbia. As for costumes....well...Toby the dog was the most expensive. Nathan wore his Jedi costume from last year and Amanda went with a friend to the store and bought little kid pajamas. I guess that is the craze for the "mormon" highschoolers up here. They like wearing little kids costumes that don't quite fit.---I don't quite get it....but....oh well. It totally reminds me of my favorite movie Tommy Boy...."Fat Guy in a little coat". Haaaa-Haaaa. I love that movie!! Here's some picks of our "not-so-little" kids :)

It's official.....we've gone to the dogs

The day was so nice this last Saturday. Our family decided we'd like to check out this new park we discovered the other day. So, we lovingly loaded into the van and cheerfully drove to this nice new park......A DOG PARK!!! I've never seen one of these before. What a crack up! They even had plastic fire-hydrants. One section was gated off for small dogs and then another was mixed. There was sand to dig in, little hills and tons of grass to run and get wild on. Our dog Toby was very hesitant and just went around sniffing other dog's rears - yucky! Then, when a dog would turn to play, Toby would run over by us and hide under the bench. Every once in a while he would venture out and do a mad dash around the perimeter. Our other "human" son, however, is a totally different story. He LOVED the park. He had his "groupies" that followed him around everywhere. It cracked us up because for 1 1/2 hours we sat on this bench watching Nathan run back and forth smiling and having a great ole time.....all the while a pack of dogs would be chasing after him and having just as much fun. Once in a while Nathan would lay in the grass and all these dogs would cheerfully jump all over him. Nate had a HUGE smile on his face the entire time. It ended up being one of our funnest days. We really laughed and had so much fun the entire time. Hanging out with dogs really is quite refreshing! They're funny!

The Monster Bash!!

What a great night!! All the Ordyna Oregonians gathered at Adam and Lindsey's for a haunting good time. We ate super good soup....which I stole the recipe and posted it on the blog. We also played fun games and laughed at each other....it's funny getting dressed up. We even dressed up Toby the Dog. He was Peter Pan. What a riot!!

The gang

Wendy and Peter Pan

A bunch of "joy in our posterity". Does anyone recognize Nate (hint: he's Rocker Soccer...or is it Soccer Rocker??)

Ummm..if you ever think I'm weird...you should see my brother!

If anyone ever wonders if I'm a little odd....well....here's just a sampling of what my life was like growing up :) - multiplied by 7 - HA! Maybe I can use these as future "blackmail" pictures??? --(Dan the MAN!!) Watch out ladies....he's in town!

Gummy Eyeball wrappers....Is this a good use for them???

de-motivational posters

I know, I know......we're suppose to focus on the positive.....but....these are just too funny to me. I think they're more geared toward "my life". As for the last one.....I always wondered why I never succeeded in math!?!? Enjoy!

Retards....we all know one of them

Goals....It's best to avoid standing directly between a competitive jerk and his goals.

Defeat.....for every winner, there are dozens of losers...odds are you're one of them

Cluelessness.....there are no stupid questions but there are a LOT of inquisitive IDIOTS.

Simplicity.....the simplest solutions are often the cleverest. They are also usually wrong.

Amanda's big night

Here's Amanda on the night of the football game. She was definitely the prettiest one out there. Between the announcement that she won and the night of the football game, we had to squeeze in a night of shopping for a dress. Of course you can't wear the same dress twice. It was funny when Bob was asking us "WHY" we need to get a new dress....Amanda and I paused for a while and just looked at him while we were processing a good reason......then, before we could respond, he smiled and came up with his own answer...."Ohhh...welcome to having a girl in highschool" Ohhhhh......the woes of a father!!! We were lucky to find a dress in a super short time. We had to put a jacket with it in order to make it modest.....but.....the type of dress that it is....you can't tell at all!!!! YEAAAHHH!!! The football game totally took me back to my own high school days. What happened to my youth???? Guess that's why I like the song..."Don't blink"

GORGEOUS (inside and out!!)

Having fun before halftime.

So pretty!

The most faithful fans! (mom, mom's friends, and brother Nathan..Dad's taking the picture)

Our grown up "Princess"

Amanda won Homecoming Princess. The King and Queen are Seniors and then the court is made up of Juniors, Sophomores, and Freshmen. First each class nominated 5 boys and 5 girls from each group to be on the court....see earlier entry. Then, from those 5, they voted again for who would be the King and Queen (Seniors) and the Princes and Princesses (lower classmen). Well........Amanda WON!!! What a year she is having!!! Is there anything more???? I've always known she is a princess!! Here's a picture of the other girls who were in the Freshman court with her as well as a couple of other shots I took....quality is terrible because I used the video camera instead of our nice digital SLR camera (bob's b-day present one).

Nathan's a Deacon!

I had such a wonderful day today. I am so grateful for the blessings of the priesthood in my life and that I am and have been surrounded by men who are worthy to hold and honor it. It was wonderful to look up while Nathan was being ordained to see him encircled by men who have been such a wonderful part in my life...my husband, 2 of my brothers, a brother-in-law and my bishop....all dressed in suits, white shirts and ties and all lovinglybowing their heads as they pray to Heavenly Father. I thought of the way Christ blessed others with his hands and here these wonderful men were doing the same by placing their hands on top of Nate's head. It's a hard feeling to describe but I just felt such a sense of peace and gratitude. It really was magnificent. After the ordination, we all went home for some Hawaiin Haystacks and some good company. Click on the picture to make it bigger if you'd like :)


The "we love nathan club"........One Happy Family

The boys + Emma table .........The "adult" table


Girls gone Wild................Boys Gone Wild

Bob turns 38!

A few of Bob's fan club members (Jeffrey, Benson - I think, and of course....Toby the dog) Is it just me or is Bob looking OLDER!!! -- a few more grey hairs.....Oh my!

Let the fun begin....Is that cake on fire?

Not too good of a picture....but, the smoke cloud from the candles is just too fun to pass up!!. I'm also wondering what's going through Toby's mind....he's giving Bob and questionable look. Bob's best birthday present was being able to give his son the Aaronic Priesthood. What a great day!!

John and Daniel come for a visit

John flew from Boise with his son Daniel for Nathan's Aaronic Priesthood ordination. It was a real treat for us to have the two men. Although, we REALLY missed Megan! Thank you sooo much for the time and money it took to support us. We love you!

Daniel was Nathan's biggest soccer fan.....can't you tell?

Daniel's favorite place to play was Toby's kennel. What's wrong with this picture????

Nathan's Spotlight Week board

It was Nate's week at school for the spotlight. So, he put together a board to hang in the room that showed all the things about him.

Amanda nominated to homecoming court

During a seminary class that I was subbing for, Amanda came walking in with a turtle balloon and bubbles (I don't know the significance of the turtle baloon???). She came up to me and excitedly - yet - quietly - whispered in my ear, "I was nominated to homecoming court!!" She is going to be involved in tons of activities this next week and then the big homecoming dance....which she is going to go with her friend Kendra and some other girls....too young to date! Girl friends were a much better option than her dad or brother :) The entire week sounds super fun and I think she'll really have a great time. They are really treating the entire court like royalty.....even taking them all out to PF Changs for lunch one day this week!!

General Conference fun

Whoa - Dang Good-looking!!! On their way to Nate's first Priesthood session

Hurray for President Eyring and Elder Cook. We were so excited to find out the news. We love conference time!! The kids have graduated from playing bingo to actually taking notes in their journals. Nobody complains anymore either ---Wow!! I guess consistency really does pay off. This was Nathan's first time to go to the Priesthood session with his dad. Look how good he looks in his new suit. He loved going. His favorite talk was the one on procrastination and the story of the high jumper (of course I have no clue what he's talking about because I didn't go - can't wait to read it)...and... they even went out to eat afterwards! Totally fun memory. Bob was so excited also. He's been waiting for 12 years to take his son to priesthood with him. This really was a HUGE highlight for him as a father. I loved the talk on Mothers by Sister Beck and the good, better, best by Elder Oaks. I laughed when Elder Falabella (sp?) shared the story of his toe showing through his shoe and his dad polishing it black. It reminded me of last year and Nathan's good ole duct tape shoes. Oh my....those were hillarious!! Well, actually I LOVED THEM ALL!! I feel so blessed to be able to be a part of the restored gospel. Our entire family is truly happy and have been so blessed.

Our traditional conference breakfast: pumpkin waffles and eggs benedict -nummy!!

The note takers....even Toby found a comfy spot!

The Real Birthday

Hip-Hip-Hurray (and thumbs up). What a day he had!! We had to wait to celebrate until 9:00pm because Amanda had a soccer game. Nathan's favorite cake is not a cake.....it's either icecream cake or pumpkin pie!! So, I got a huge pumpkin pie at Costco and he's just spiffy happy.....can you tell? He got tons of fun presents but the best one was his new suit. Now he's ready to pass the sacrament which, if you ask him, is his favorite reason to become a deacon. Watch out world - the kid is 12!

I'm a Seminary Teacher!!!

It's official.....I am now teaching Seminary at Century High School. I team teach with another lady and we have the morning class. I am sooooooo excited. I went to my first teacher training and learned a lot. Seminary is covering the Old Testament this year and it will be a great opportunity for me to gain a deeper respect and understanding of that book. Well, just wanted to share my excitement. I really love the students!

Nathan the party planner

This year I was the birthday scrouge. I told Nathan that I thought he was getting too old to have birthday parties. It's also really hard to buy presents for older kids that are reasonably in a budget. So, I said no party....but....we'd do something special as a family. As you can tell from the pictures below, my advice didn't go very far. He told me that he would plan his own party and I didn't have to do anything. He was so determined and had things so well planned out that I caved in......how could I not??? He organized the decorations and made a sign for the door, he planned to have them all come in and start decorating golf balls with markers (thanks Uncle Paul for the used golf balls you collected at the golf course). He then had them go on a scavenger hunt throughout the house. Then we sang and opened presents. After that the boys headed upstairs for an impromptu miniature golf game with their golf balls, Dance Dance Revolution, billiards, and pinball. They also had a little fun jumping on the trampoline. Before they went home, they sucked the helium out of the balloons and had fun talking and laughing high-pitched. The entire night was super fun and I am that much more impressed with Nathan!

The Gang

Decorating Golf Balls - what's Amanda doing?

Billiards

DDR

The clues for the scavenger hunt