The BIG Update...

You know you've all been waiting for it....clicking on my blog from time to time to see if there is anything new, only to be completely disappointed when all you see is the same ultrasound picture from months ago....I know I'm a slacker. Sorry.

Here is the most recent picture of our family at the Nauvoo Temple on 4th of July Evening. We stood up there on the hill and watched the fireworks over the Mississippi, it was lots of fun.

And now for a "super quick" update on the family and all it's members:

Alida - I'm still happily growing baby #6. Right now I'm roughly 30 weeks pregnant, only 10 weeks left! Squee! I can't wait to meet our little boy. I've been keeping busy entertaining 5 kids during the summer, gestating, working on church callings, going on weekend trips, hanging out at Cub Scout Day Camp for a week (it was a blast!!), coaching Elise's cheer squad, assistant coaching Ashlynne's cheer squad, making believe I'm potty training Liam and working. I am currently working from home for an attorney about 10-12 hours a week. I love being able to still keep up my paralegal skills AND work from home, what a blessing.

Jeremiah - Work, Travel, School, and squeezing in some playtime with family about sums up Jeremiah's life right now. I am always amazed at how he juggles a full time job (for which he travels at least 3 days out of every week), a full time school load, and still finds time to spend time with all of us. It's been very difficult and I appreciate every sacrifice he makes for our family, he is such a superb man. I'm pretty darn lucky. The biggest news is that he finally graduated with his degree in Business Administration on May 2. It's been a long time coming and I am so proud of him. Next we move on to his Masters Degree in Construction Management this fall....for another 3 years!! I'm so excited (no really I am...I promise...3 more yrs of this crazy schedule=awesomeness
...stop laughing I'm been serious! Serious! )

Ashlynne - Our oldest is 10 1/2 and now that the school year is over she is technically a 5th grader. I can't believe I have a 5th grader, this is her last year of Elementary school and then she is on to middle school! I'm sure it will be even more real when school starts. Earlier in the summer she had the opportunity to go to Mt. Rushmore for a week with her Girl Scout Troop. She had a blast and I missed her like crazy but enjoyed the little break. She stays pretty busy with cheerleading practice, swimming in the pool (she would do this all day everyday if she could), playing school with her younger siblings (she makes them worksheets, gives them schedules, she's a little mommy/teacher), drawing pictures, designing homes, and writing stories. So far she says it's been an awesome summer.

Brinton - My sweet son turned 9 years old in May, about a week after Liam's Birthday. Because his birthday was also the day daddy graduated we wanted to make sure the day was extra special. We chose to celebrate the day before...he chose the breakfast (McDonalds), the lunch (Taco Bell), what we did (went to the Zoo all day and then swimming at our gym, since the slides were open), and then what we had for dinner (Pizza Shoppe). We gave him the choice between an actual birthday party or a nice present which we picked out and which would be a surprise. He decided on the present and received an iPod Touch. (We don't really encourage the kids to have personal video games, so it was a happy medium) He has stayed busy this summer swimming in the pool, attending Cub Scout Day Camp, and riding bikes all over the neighborhood with his best friend. He has really enjoyed running in 5ks and has ran a total of 3 in the last several months. At this time we are still waiting to find out when he will have to go in for surgery on his neck. His Orthopedist and Neurosurgeon want to perform a Cervical Fusion on his c1 & c2 vertebrae. This requires bone grafting from his hip bone/pelvis. Since he is kind of a little guy they are trying to wait it out till he grows a bit more. He returns to the Children's Hospital for another MRI/MRA with sedation in August to see what the next step is from here.

Elise - Oh, Elise! My 7 year old bundle of energy, joy, emotion, destruction, happiness, love, frustration, creativity.... Elise has really been enjoying the summer so far. She loves swimming in the pool, she cooks up some awesome recipes in her kitchen (she's going to be a chef someday, you know), draws pictures all day (fills up nearly one whole notebook everyday!), and she is currently reading Oliver Twist. She loves Cheerleading and loves it even more that her expecting, preggo mommy is her coach this year. She is really looking forward to going into 2nd grade and is trying hard to teach herself to write in cursive. She recently found one of Ashlynne's old cursive writing books and everyday she works on a different page. I love that she loves to learn.

Julianna - is a 4 year old Princess. She embodies the term princess so completely....it's exhausting. She loves pink, skirts, dolls, pink, princesses, barbies, and pink. She loves dancing and she too is now on a mini allstar cheer squad. She had her first dance recital in June and she did such a great job. It was so fun to see her up on stage, she looked like she was made to be up there. She misses the Kindergarten deadline by 29 days so it's another year of "Mommy Preschool." She doesn't mind, she loves sitting with me at the kitchen table and learning new things everyday. (Ignore the poor quality of the photo. I had to take it with my iphone because my camera's battery died....in true Alida fashion)

Liam - if I had to pick 2 words to describe my son they would be ALL. BOY. He climbs, he terrorizes, he picks up sticks where ever he goes, he shoots fake guns and makes sound effects, he loves cars and Thomas the Train, he stomps around the house like a dinosaur, he loves to shake his groove thing to music. ALL. BOY. Recently I bought him a potty at IKEA, mostly because I liked the design, the color, and the price, but definitley not because I thought he would actually use it. HOWEVER, he has completely surprised me and taking a serious interest in his little potty chair. Every single time that we sit him on it, without fail, he goes. He sometimes takes his diapey off, sits down and goes all by himself. I really need to be taking his cues and start training him but the thought exhausts me....how bad is that. It would be nice to have a trained 2 year old before the baby comes but I don't know if I have the energy. Dumb, right?!

Well there you have it, the longest "condensed version" of an update that I can muster up. Maybe I'll actually start blogging again.....we'll see. If not I'll see you at the next update!