Will Is One...

William Rudi turned the big "1" years old on May 17th!
We had a fabulous party for both him and his cousin Alli, who turned "6" this year!
He watched all of his friends and family bombard him with love and affection warily, he was confused by the candles on his first cake, he attacked and loved his first oreo cupcake, he was happy with all his many gifts and by the end of it all he was plain worn out!
We love Will! We can't believe how big you are! We've enjoyed every second of this first year with you!

Spaghetti Lover...

Not only does he look like his Big Brother Briggs, he LOVES Spaghetti...just like his Big Brother Briggs...
my little scrony baby... he'll be One Year Old in One Week!!! Can you believe it??

Happy Mother's Day...

Just shoutin' out to all my female friends and family....

Happy Mother's Day!

I'm so very thankful for all your examples! You all are Wonderful Mothers and you make me try so hard to be as good as you each and every day! Thanks & I hope it was Awesome!

Love Ya! ~K

Spring Soccer....

Briggs and Eryn had so much fun playing soccer last season that they decided to play again this spring. They both had so much fun and did so well, we're so very proud of them...



Briggsy's first time playing goalie.. He loved it so much he decided it was his calling and played it for the rest of the season. He did VERY WELL!

Oma supporting our little athlete's.
Eryn was so excited when she found out that her Daddy was going to be her soccer coach! She absolutely loved it! and Jens was quite fond of being the coach as well. He got such a kick out of all the kids and was really great with them. He's thinking of coaching them again in the fall...he's already had requests to return.. Way to Go Coach!!!

Reagan loving her brother and sister soccer stars! Now we need to get her playing, but she is staying true to her dream of being a Drama Queen!!! We'll keep trying!!!

Coach: Daddy Players: Mason, Eryn, Jaelyn & Ryan

Eryn Jane and her sweet little cousin Natalee trying to cool down in the shade...

Daily Funnies...

We've been talking about this all week... I think I really need to post it.

Jens worked from home on Thursday and helped me out by taking Eryn Jane to school.  As they were walking out the door:

EJ - "Geez Dad! Your truck is REALLY DIRTY! "

Jens - "Yeah, I know!"

EJ - "Is that how you roll?"

I Ran...

... a total of 23 miles this week!!!  

Not trying to boast, but, anyone who knows me, knows that this is a VERY BIG DEAL for me!

I FEEL GREAT!!!  

Now, I'm going to bed!!!

Prompted...

This evening we spent time with my family at my mom's house for our monthly birthday dinners. Jens and I made Gulash and Spetzla....it was yum. We had a great time!
On our way home we had an interesting experience...
We were stopped at a red light at Lindsay & Germann. (if you know these crossroads, there's not much there, not even sidewalks and it's pretty dark at night) Well, standing there at one of the corners was a young girl/woman? (it was hard to tell how old she was) all alone. It was just very strange, she seemed to be talking on the phone and waiting there for something or someone. As we passed her Jens and I asked each other if we should stop and see if she needed help? We kind of felt like she was okay, but we turned around, just in case! Jens rolled down his window and asked her if she was alright? She said "Yes". I'm not sure if she saw me or not, I tried to lean as close to Jens as possible so she could see me. I didn't want her to be scared.
We then had to turn around again, I think she saw us and was worried because she crossed the street and as we waited, again, at the red light she kind of hid behind the light pole and kept peeking around at our car. I felt really bad for scaring her, but it was just a weird situation and I wanted to be sure she'd be okay.
During this whole scene the kids were asking us if she'd be alright! We all noticed that she looked a lot like my niece Kaitlin, I think that kind of made us a little soft towards her....
As we drove off Briggs kept saying over and over that he was worried about "that girl". Then he said, "Mom, Dad, would it be alright if we say a prayer for her?"
Jens turned down the music and Briggs offered a very simple, but very sweet, prayer for the young girl that seemed to be standing all alone at a dark street corner. He thanked Heavenly Father for all of his blessings and asked Him to bless her with safety and that she would get safely home. The Spirit was strong in the car with us, I immediately felt comforted and couldn't help crying. (after all, how many times a day do I pray that my kids get safely home....over a million!!!)
After his prayer, Jens asked Briggs if he'd felt a prompting to pray. Briggs said, "yeah, I guess, well, I felt the Spirit!"
My Briggsy has such a good heart, he's so caring and compassionate and genuinely worries and cares for others. He's my "stubborn softy".
I know it's hard for him, he worries sometimes too much ( I have NO IDEA where he gets that from!!!) and it takes a toll on him! But, I am so grateful for him in my life. He teaches me soo much! Being an 11 year old boy, our Mom/Son relationship is changing, but it's getting better every day. I love you Briggs!

Face Lift...

Hey Friends & Fam,

My blog has gotten a "face lift". No, not this one! I did re-do this blog, but I'm currently referring to my business blog. CHECK IT OUT! and tell me what you think! I hope you love it!



p.s. it's still a work in progress...

Lots of Love,
Kristi

Reaching Out...

I went to sugar doodle today to print some conference activity papers for E.J. and found this sad story:

Helping a Family in Need:

There is a sweet family in my ward that lost their father this week in a tragic car accident. He leaves behind a wife and 6 children. Their 3 youngest are in the primary where I am the singing leader. I keep having a repeat image in my mind of their sweet 5 year old on the front row singing, "I Love to See the Temple" with all his might.


I want to help, therefore:


I will be donating all my sales in the month of April to the Howells family.


How can you help?


Purchase products on my website:
(all sales this month go to the Howells Family)

or go to this site for more info:
http://ldsprimaryposters.blogspot.com

These stories touch my heart! It makes me realize how VERY GRATEFUL I am for the Plan of Salvation. That I know in my heart and in every part of me that I'll be with my Family Forever! Jens is so much a part of me I don't know what I'd do without him! I hope and pray that the Spirit will strengthen this and all families that have to go on in this life without their loved ones and that they will know that they can be with them again!

Lately, I've been trying to GET OUT OF MY SHELL and my little world and try to help others. I'm really excited about being able to help because, as it turns out, I get the awesome privelege to sing with the nursery kids every Sunday and I NEED new ways to capture their attention!!!

Lots of Love to you all!

FREE GIVE AWAY...

Hey friends & fam,

Wanted to let you know that Laurie & I

 are giving away FREE burp rag sets.

Go to Krissi Lu's, by the link below, to find out how! 

But, act fast! The promotion ends this weekend!

Love ya,

Kristin

Daily Funnies...

So, I was in the kitchen, cooking dinner while Reagan and Eryn were playing the Wii and Reagan asks me...

Reagy - Mom, what are we having for dinner?
Mom - Lasagna
Reagy - Oh!
EJ - Ughh! (crossing her arms and sticking her hip out to one side...)
I knew it was "Za-lagna"
Mom - you mean "La-sagna?"
EJ - Yeah! That! I could SMELL it!

The weird thing is that she really loves Lasagna. It's one of her fave's!?

I had to update this post because I just watched my 10 month old baby boy taking all the fruit snacks, one by one, off of his high chair and stuffing them down into his seat by his legs. Is he already shoving food? Hiding it away so I'll think he's done??? But, they're fruit snacks?

It only took NINE months...

Will's first tooth FINALLY broke through today. I felt the little jagged edge while I was feeding him dinner. When he had woken up from his afternoon nap, I noticed him rubbing his tongue around on his bottom gums, but didn't think much of it. It took me a few minutes, then I realized and felt around! "YEA!!" I was singing and clapping my hands for him. He just looked at me, like, "What did I do?"
The weird tongue movements wasn't the only thing I DIDN"T pick up on. Runny nose, SUPER Slobbery (more than usual, if that's possible!), Cranky! Oh Boy, was he EVER CRANKY!!, wouldn't let me put him down, and constantly chewing on my chin, shoulder, knee..and soaking my clothes! You'd think by the 4th one might be able to pick up on these clues. But, since all my kids are completely different, I never can tell.
Oh Well! What can I say! I'm a nut! Especially since I've been excited about this all night, and now, while I'm writing this post, I'm getting very sad, I feel like crying! Do I really want my BABY to get teeth! It means he's growing up and I'm not very fond of that!
I'll post a picture of his tooth when you can actually see it! For now, here's one of him smiling his Crazy Smile at the camera while in the tub!

He loves to SPLASH!

Daily Funnies...

So, I was driving home from picking up Eryn at school and this is how our conversation went....

Mom - Eryn Jane, how was your day?
E.J. - Good!
Mom - What did you do?
E.J. - Well we didn't do much work because Firefighter Johnson came to our class.
Mom - Cool. What did you learn?
E.J. - When your home all by yourself, if you "got bleed" you call the 911.
Mom- if you're "bleeding"?
E.J. - Yeah! If you "got bleed" , like, blood.

I think, now, when ever my kids get hurt, I'm going to ask them.. "Got Bleed?"

President's Day Hike...

We decided that we'd spend our day off hiking with our good friends The Rays. After getting some much needed antibiotic drops for Eryn Jane (finally) we headed up to Usary Pass (is that how you spell it?) It was so much fun! It was a beautiful day! And, I was so surprised at how well the kids did. Especially Eryn Jane. I kept calling her my Super Trooper! Because she WAS!!! She was AWESOME! I'm so proud of her! Then they all passed out on the way home! Love it!
Jens said, "All we need is a few more hikes to get us ready for our Germany trip!" We've got to get ready for all that walking!

Will was such a good boy! As long as Jens was moving he was happy! He LOVES being outside!

Briggs chose this spot for a photo op!

We hadn't walked very far when Reagan started complaining! But, once we gave her a power bar and she got into her groove, she did great! We have to accomidate her high metabolism and long skinny legs.

Taking a break! ..AND...a Nap!

Valentimes Time...

Have I told you that I have the most AWESOMEST calling. I get to have all the eight year old girls (including my beautiful daughter) come over to my house twice a week and we just get to Have Fun!!! That's all we do! This last Activity Days we sewed Valentines pillows! They were quite simple, but I'm amazed at how well the girls did. A lot of them had never sewn on a sewing machine before and they did awesome! I was very proud of them! It was a lot of fun!

Of course, I had to be prepared to help Eryn Jane make her VERY OWN Valentime Pillow as soon as Activity Days was over. She always has such a hard time staying away when the girls are there. She just can't understand why she can't join in the fun.
Now all Reagan asks me is if she can sew some more. She wants to make a blanket and a pillow... She's my crafty girly!

This is MY pillow. I'm very proud of it! Every time Will sees the camera he smiles! It's great!

The kids were so excited to go to school on Friday for their "Valentimes" parties! Reagan and EJ were especially excited because their Aunt Kaci bought them new special "Valentimes" outfits! How cool is she! They loved them! They laid them out the night before and couldn't wait to wear them to school! Thanks Kaci!

On Valentines Day Jens stayed home with sick kids while I went and ran a 10k for a fundraising event with my good friend Dena Gazeley. I was excited that I shaved 8 minutes off my last 10k time and it was good to run for this fundraiser. It was for two conjoined twin girls. Two Sisters - One Heart. They share one heart and one liver and they are just adorable. It felt good! It was neat to see how their community came together to support these girls and others with the same challenges.

When I got home I was greeted with all kinds of cute signs that the kids had made me and taped to the front door and the garage! That made me feel even better! Jens even made a special sign for me... a stick figure running past a 10k sign, headed for a half-marathon and then a marathon and then a triathalon. I am training to run a half-marathon in July,but I don't think that stick figure will ever make it past that sign! It was nice to see that he has such faith in me!

Jens was able to go biking after I returned home and we just hung out with sick kids. EJ got pink eye over the weekend. It was very sad and she kept telling EVERYONE..."Don't touch me!" Poor Baby!

Briggsy's Birthday Party...

Yes, two ice cream cakes! Spoiled Much?

Briggs wanted a Lego Birthday Party this year. Surprise! Surprise! So he invited some friends, I think we had 8 boys total. We took them to the Lego Store at the Chandler Mall, gave them an allowance and let them free to choose what they wanted. I have never been myself before and it was lots of fun. Briggs was kind enough to let his sisters Reagan and Eryn tag along. They chose to buy a container and fill it with all sorts of different blocks from the back wall. I think they're lego fans as well now.
We then brought them back to our house where they built in silence for a good hour. I had gone to pick up pizza and when I got back I expected to walk into a house of screaming crazy chaos. The only sound heard was that of rustling legos. It was interesting and I quickly became a HUGE fan of the Lego Party Idea!!

We ate pizza, played with legos, sang happy birthday and Briggs opened his presents and then we played Guitar Hero World Tour until 10pm. A lot of the moms told me when they dropped off their boys that they would come and pick them up early if I needed the evening to end a little early, if it was just too much for too long. Jens and I actually didn't even realize what time it was and were surprised when the doorbell started ringing. We were jammin out with the boys and we all had a great time! Santa did good with that gift!!!!

So, I guess you could say the party was a Huge Success! and most importantly Briggs had an "Awesome" time, so I was pleased!
Happy Birthday Bud!
I do wish I had better pictures! First, I forgot my camera at the Lego Store and then it was being quite lame or I was being a lame photographer. Nothing was coming out very good!

How cute is this boy????

Mini Briggsy...

Just posting a fun picture. are those teeth EVER going to come?

String of Videos....

Well, I finally posted some videos on here for you. Granted, they're not as pleasing to the eye or ear as Kirks awesomely crafted home movies, but hey a girl can't be good at EVERYTHING! Right?!?!
Just some of Will's Milestones and EJ Jammin' Out! to Mario Brothers, I think?

There's a Warning Below, but I will WARN YOU NOW! TURN THE VOLUME OFF BEFORE YOU WATCH THESE VIDEOS! My voice is impossibly, insanely dorky...I've got the baby high pitch squeel goin' on! It does NO ONE ANY SORT OF GOOD listening to that kind of NONESENSE! I sound LAMe! SO please.... and, if you do hear it, give a crazy Mom a break!

Will Crawls

For Family Night, the kids ran around and put outlet protectors all over the house. He's getting way too fast, way to quickly! We've got a lot of baby proofing to do!