Snell Family

Quiet....it isn't always good.

2011-11-02T23:35:00.004-05:00

Her face might be messy or she may have a runny nose most of the time but London sure is cute.

I think they look so much alike. Their baby pictures have tons of similarities. Cade even loves to drag her around and pretend to wrestle with her. He's a good big brother.

Now to the title. I snuck upstairs to get ready and was glad that they seemed to be playing with each other. I heard a little giggling and a lot of quiet. I kept telling myself it was fine but my curiosity got the better of me. They were hiding behind the counter when I found them. I couldn't hold my laughter in. London was BEAMING! She was so excited to have someone color all over her face and to see that color on Brynlie. I was trying to take a picture of Brynlie alone and London kept poking her head in and saying, "Cheese!" Too funny. Luckily I had just bought washable markers. They even decorated my tile. Gotta love it!

Brynlie's Debut

2011-08-29T22:54:00.002-05:00

She cracks me up! I think she got her moves from her dad. :)

I know...I can't believe it either!

2011-08-07T23:02:00.009-05:00

Wow, a post after nearly 16 months! We have our first family snapshot after way too long. This picture is proof that we are alive and well.

The kids start school tomorrow. Not too excited about that. It's been fun having them around and they've played great together.

Brooklyn gets baptized next Saturday. That's crazy to me. Time is flying. Brooklyn loves playing the piano and playing with friends. She took diving lessons this summer and absolutely loved it - did a great job too. She just informed me that she wants to play the violin too. We'll see.

Caden is venturing into 1st grade. Hopefully he doesn't get too wiped out. He starts flag football soon and can't wait. He's a pretty good brother to all of these girls!

Brynlie (or Blim as she has been nicknamed) is growing up fast. She loves to help me fold laundry and begs to get London when she wakes up from her nap. She is a good helper and pretty funny.

London is almost 16 months. She crawled at about 5 months and didn't walk until 14 months. She takes the cake on being our hardest kid. We'll definitely keep her though. She makes us laugh all the time with her funny faces and jabber.

Heath is loving work. He is traveling around to lots of offices extracting wisdom teeth. It's awesome that he gets to do what he loves most.

I'm still enjoying being home with the kids - unless they are fighting. :) Here's to hoping I can post something before another 16 months have gone by!

The Grand Arrival!

2010-04-17T23:53:00.006-05:00

London Talia Snell, was born in grandioso fashion on Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 12:25 am. She weighed 7lbs, 7ozs and has a head full of nice dark hair. She sure was anxious to be born, as Chelsea started having contractions around 11:15pm, we got to the hospital around midnight and she was delivered by the nurses, because the doctor didn't have time to get there, at 12:25am. For those of you that know Chelsea, she loves her epidurals, and unfortunately this time she didn't have time to get one. She was very disappointed with that, and now that she has delivered with, and without, the epidural she has solidified the opinion of, "Why in the world would you want to go through that without one?!"
Here are some pictures of London. Many of you may see a very close resemblance to her older brother, Caden, when he was a newborn.

She's 2!

2010-02-14T22:55:00.006-06:00

Brynlie's birthday happens to be today on Valentines Day. I know, cute huh. Well what's really cute are her 2 year old pictures we took today. Not that the pictures are that great, but the person in the picture is what makes them so cute (yes I'm bragging about the good looks of my little girl!)

She's getting OLD!

2010-01-29T19:56:00.002-06:00

You know your almost 2 year old is growing up when you're in the other room and your child keeps yelling for you. You pretend you can't hear her and then she starts calling for you by your first name! Apparently I was needed.

Happy Hearts

2009-12-21T16:21:00.002-06:00

The other day we took the kids to the store to buy some presents for kids who don't get much. They picked a name from the "Angel Tree" and off they went to pick out a gift. We talked to them about the true meaning of Christmas and how it's better to give than receive. We then asked them how they felt, if they had fun, etc. This was Cade's response, "My heart felt happy and...it beeped."

The verdict is in....

2009-11-18T12:45:00.003-06:00

For those of you who may not know, I am 18 weeks pregnant. I had a regular appointment today and was surprised when they said I could have my ultrasound right then. And......we're having another GIRL! I'll be honest, Heath and I were hoping it'd be a boy, but of course we're excited. Brooklyn and Cade on the other hand....not so excited. When I told Cade that he was going to have another little sister, he furrowed his eyebrows and grumpily said, "I didn't want a sister!" A few minutes later he followed up by saying, "Mom, I already have a sister!" I told him that now he will get to have his very own room. He got all sad and said, "But, I wanted to share with a boy!" Poor kid. I think he'll get over it though. Brooklyn isn't so upset now that she realizes that the boys are completely out numbered, which to her means-girls rule. Brynlie of course is clueless. We'll have plenty to deal with once she does clue in.

A Bunch of Randomness

2009-11-15T21:26:00.005-06:00

Just a cute shot of the kids before heading off to church.

I'm sure it's pretty obvious but Cade is pretending to be Luke Skywalker. And yes, we do go out in public like this and he typically doesn't match this well. Fun times.

As I was heading out the door for church Cade showed me what he was wearing under his suit. His football uniform! I was laughing so hard. He didn't show Heath until we were at church. You've gotta love the kid. Last week he wore his red soccer socks with those sweet boots. Church shoes are definitely on Santa's list.

It may be hard to tell but I couldn't resist taking a picture, Heath put Brynlie's shoes on the wrong feet and had no clue. I think Brynlie even knew something was weird.

We always make a pit stop at Jacob Lake on our way to Utah. The kids love playing on the rocks there.

The kids loved climbing Grandpa Bob's tree and swinging from it.

Grandpa Bob is the best with kids. By the end of our visit he was best buds with Brynlie. Grandpa's face lights up when he sees them at his door.

Brooklyn had fun carving her pumpkin.

This girl has some serious hair! You never know what it's going to look like in the morning.

The kids had so much fun at Halloween. Brynlie LOVED getting her face painted, Cade thought his "chest hair" was so cool he wanted to paint more on for church. And of course Brooklyn loved getting to wear makeup.

This is how Cade came downstairs ready to go to the store. The boy had THREE pairs of underwear on top of those shorts! I told him to take them off and he looked at me like, "What's the big deal mom? Everybody wears underwear."

Last Wednesday Heath and I went on a real date! Our typical date consists of a redbox movie every now and then. But this time Heath set it all up....even the babysitter! We got to go see The Phantom of the Opera. It was awesome. The Phantom had the most incredible voice. We had a great time. Thanks for the wonderful date Heath!

Soccer

2009-11-10T21:03:00.003-06:00

Now that the soccer season is almost over, I am finally getting some pictures up. Cade was so excited to play this year. He got to pick out a ball and some cleats with Heath and he was ready.

He is number #9 and the day he got his uniform was like Christmas. He wore that thing with pride.

He's even scored a couple of goals which he was so excited about.

At the beginning of the season, he really got into it and was stealing the ball, etc. Now he kind of just runs on the outside. It's still fun to watch.

Every time he gets excited about something he's done he will look at us on the sidelines and give us his thumbs up.

Hopefully he will always enjoy soccer, but I think he'll play a lot more sports before he decides on his favorite.

Dad's Gone Again

2009-08-28T16:14:00.006-05:00

He's only a phone call away but she still misses her dad. She won't say "dad" yet but she was looking for him this morning and was even signing dad.

So to pass the time the kids watch a little Signing Time. Brynlie is OBSESSED! If she wants to watch it she will turn the TV on, sign "play", yell "MA!", and then start dancing. It's pretty hard to resist. It's fun to see her sign some things since she isn't talking a whole lot.

Apparently I shouldn't have interrupted her while she was eating.

Cade and Brooklyn were both complaining that their eyes were "wet" yesterday because they missed dad. He'll be home soon enough.

Night in with the kids

2009-08-21T23:10:00.005-05:00

Chelsea got to go out this evening with lots of the girls from the ward so that meant that I got to stay home with the kids. On my way home from work Chelsea called and told me to pick up this grand movie because Brooklyn really wanted to watch it.

So I thought to myself, "Self, since you can't have a date night with your wife, why don't you have a date night with your kids." So I picked up the movie from the Redbox at WalMart, and picked up a couple extra goodies as well to enjoy with the movie.
When I got home and showed the kids what I got for us to do tonight Brooklyn was so excited for the movie, while Caden's response was, "I don't want to watch Hannah Montanna; it's a girl movie!" I love that boy!! Then I had to explain to him that sometimes the best thing to do as boys is to make the girls in our life happy by doing things that they think is cool. Not sure that he quite understood that, but when I showed him that we got to eat popcorn and root beer floats while we watched the movie he was okay with it.

Anyway, we had a fun time eating our munchies and being curled up together on the couch watching Hannah Montanna. I can't wait for football season to start :)

Surprise, Surprise it's a Post!

2009-08-19T16:05:00.011-05:00

This is a typical face for Cade. He loves to you give you a thumbs up.

We started the summer off by driving to Utah. It was my dad's 60th Birthday! We had a great time with all of the grandkids running around. Oh yeah, there were lots of hot dogs too. You can't have a party with dad and not have hot dogs and pop. It was pretty good.

Brooklyn and Cade had fun exercising to a Jillian Michael's DVD. Brooklyn did the entire thing. I was impressed. Cade on the other hand, kept getting tired. Maybe it was the cowboy boots?

Brynlie is probably going to be our bag lady. She loves to put shoes on and carry anything that might resemble a purse.

Brooklyn turned the big 6! She had a Hannah Montana party with her friends and cousins. It was her first party with friends so she had a great time.

First day of school already! She was so excited and is still loving it. Party because she says she gets 3 recesses. For that reason alone she wants to stay in first grade forever!

Cade couldn't leave without giving her a hug. As we were walking away he told me how much he was going to miss her. Then when we went to pick her up he said, "Mom, I might cry when I see Brooklyn because I missed her."

Brynlie is now 18 months. Wow. That went by fast. She is coming into her own these days. She's not afraid to let you know what she thinks. She is also quick to give hugs. She always walks up to the kids when they are in time out and hugs them or pats them on the back.

We were afraid we wouldn't get any smiles but she was all over the camera idea. Every time she would say "cheese" she would start laughing.

They are all growing up so fast!

Worth Quoting

2009-05-27T23:47:00.002-05:00

Brooklyn has been wanting to make bracelets for awhile, so the other day I told her that I bought her some really cute beads for her bracelets. In a completely somber and serious voice Brooklyn responded, "Mom, can you please stop shopping so that we can go to Disneyland?"

The kids are still addicted to Star Wars. That was their movie pick today and Cade enlisted me to have a light saber fight with him. We were battling it out when I heard Brooklyn yell to him, "Cade! Use the forest! Use the forest Cade!" Cade immediately put his hand out. "Mom, I'm using the forest on you!" OH! I get it. The forest=the force! May the forest be with you!

Home from the Hospital!!

2009-05-07T19:03:00.012-05:00

Thank you so much to everyone who has been so kind and done so much for us during the past couple of weeks. We have appreciated everything from the baby sitting, to the meals, to the thoughts and prayers. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Cade was finally released from the hospital on Tuesday afternoon. He is home now and still has a PICC line in that allows us to give him his IV antibiotics for another week here at home. He was a trooper during the entire process and had such good care from the physicians and nurses at Banner Desert. We particularly liked the nurses in the PICU, Bob and Janna. I have put some pictures up of our little guy through this whole process.

In the wagon outside the hospital

Chelsea reading a story right before surgery

In the PICU right after surgery

His daytime nurse, Bob

His night time nurse, Janna (on the left) and Respiratory Therapist, Frankie

Recovering after he was extubated. The yellow tube in his nose is what they used to feed him for a little while.

At home with Dad, feeling better

Update on Caden

2009-04-29T23:19:00.002-05:00

Well, as I said, Cade went back to the doctor yesterday. (Note: Do not take other kids with you to the doctor when you have a sick kid that wants to be carried, and you have a baby who can't walk yet.) He got sent for another chest xray. One of the nice ladies that worked there watched the girls for me because Cade was too scared to go into the room alone. Anywho, they admitted Cade to the hospital again and tomorrow he is having surgery. They are going to basically clean out all of the fluid and puss that has built up in his right lung and then put a chest tube in. Sounds fun huh? Poor kid. He really is being a good sport. We will update when he's doing better.

Brynlie's new toy

2009-04-28T14:28:00.002-05:00

I have found the perfect thing to keep a 14 month old busy while I make some phone calls. The only problem is I just have two left!

Pnemonia + Birthday = NO FUN!

2009-04-28T13:07:00.005-05:00

I'll try to give a quick run down of the past week. Last Monday Cade woke up with a fever of 104.5. It didn't get much better and by Tuesday afternoon he was screaming from stomach pain. In talking to the pediatrician they thought the pain might be from his appendix. So we went to the ER and and after a couple of hours we found out he has pnemonia. Apparently with pnemonia there is a lot of inflammation which can cause stomach pain, nausea, etc. The doctor showed me his chest xray and his right lung had a huge white area where the pnemonia was/is.I have to say, this kid is pretty tough though. He didn't even flinch when they started the IV in or the two separate times they drew blood. He was in the hospital for 2 days and had some great people take care of him. We also had some great people from the ward and Heath's work and family and friends take care of us. Thank you all SO much!

Unfortunately, Cade wasn't feeling all too great on his birthday, which was Saturday. He asked Brooklyn to open his presents for him while he watched with no excitement at all. Maybe we'll have to rewrap them when he is feeling better. He is going back to the doctor today because he still has a temp. of 103 that won't seem to go away. I guess it will just take some time!

Look Who Turned One!

2009-04-05T21:39:00.012-05:00

We celebrated Brynlie's 1st birthday on Valentine's. This last year has gone by so fast. She loved her cake. She was even licking the pan. It was a pretty low key day but we had fun.Last month my friend Andrea and I braved a drive to Utah with 6 kids! I'll admit that I was a little anxious about the whole drive but the kids did incredible! They kept each other entertained and laughed and sang and seemed to have a great time. Thanks for coming with me Andrea!

Brynlie and Cade loved to play with the marbles. Brynlie soon got banned from the game because the marbles kept appearing in her mouth.

Who doesn't love ear muffs?

And yes, Brynlie has found her nose. Every time she rediscovers that hole she thinks it's hilarious. Cade and Brooklyn get a kick out of it as well.

Brooklyn is now in the hair business. Poor Cade enjoyed it too much.

So apparently my kids think they have incredible style and everything always looks good.

I may not be up on my fashion but cowboy boots with suit pants...tucked in? He honestly thought it looked "cool". The kid wears those boots with everything! Imagine a red tshirt, shorts, teal soccer socks pulled up under his shorts with boots to top it off. And this was in public...I chose not to pick that battle that day.

Brynlie loved Grandpa Bob but then again what kids doesn't? Grandpa is turning 90 this month! We love you grandpa and grandma!

We had a fun trip in Utah and are excited to go back in June for my dad's 60th Birthday!

3 Signs you know you aren't wanted somewhere

2009-02-20T14:14:00.002-06:00

If you ever wonder whether or not someone is annoyed at your presence, take note of the following:
-After getting off of the escalator a little boy named Cade, couldn't resist touching that big red button that's on the escalator. The escalator stops and it starts making a really loud beeping sound. Immediately "Mr. Security Guard" walks by us, looks at me and said in a extremely sarcastic tone, "Oh, that's nice!" Cade got a lecture and he really did feel horrible.
-Ten minutes later in the same store (different department) my mom sees a security guard and asked if it was the same guy. I look at him and he immediately makes a b-line for the opposite direction.
-Probably another 10 minutes later (different department) Brooklyn and Cade kept laughing about something pretty soon that same security guard walked by through all of the clothing racks as if to see if we were causing any more trouble.
So I think it's safe to say that Mr. Security Guard would not like it if we were to frequent his store. He was obviously annoyed. Lucky for him, I hate to shop so there is a good chance that by the time I go shopping again he will have moved on to another job.

Bad things come in 3's!?

2009-02-11T10:59:00.003-06:00

So I've heard the saying that bad things tend to come in 3's. Well I sure hope that is the case because if it is then I'm out of the woods.

You see, back in the middle of December we were driving along one rainy evening to my parents' home, and we were stopped at a traffic light. As we were patiently waiting for the red light to turn green all of a sudden we were jarred forward and heard some crunching noises as a teenage driver had rear ended us. Yes, everybody was fine, and there was barely any damage to our car so not really that big of a deal.

Then, on Christmas Eve as we were driving yet again to my parents' home for dinner and we were again stopped at a traffic light getting ready to make a right hand turn. There was a car in front of us and they were turning right as well. The car in front proceeded to make the turn, I looked to my left to make sure no traffic was coming and I hit the gas to make my right turn. Well for some reason, that I'm still not sure about, the car in front of me decided not to make the full turn and had stopped and I smashed right into the back of their car. Again, no one was hurt and our car seemed to be okay, but their poor car was pretty crunched.

And now, since bad things do come in 3's, last night as I was leaving work I see a note that is on my front windshield under the wipers. I pull it out and the first thing it says is, "I am VERY sorry." When you read those words first you know the rest can't be good. The note continues to explain how this girl was backing out and accidentally hit the back end of my car! You have got to be kidding me. I just had to laugh at the whole thing. My rear bumper was scratched and buckled out from the other paneling. I was very thankful, however, that she did leave the note and her number to call her for insurance information.

There you have it. A perfect example that if something bad happens in your life, don't get to upset about it yet, because you've got two more "bad things" coming you way. I am living proof! Lets just hope it has ended and this trend doesn't continue in multiples of 3.

Quick Update

2009-01-23T22:20:00.011-06:00

Our friends from dental school, the Rasmussen's, came to visit earlier this month. The Mitchell's came over as well and we had a great time visiting and laughing. Thanks for coming guys! We have been loving the nice warm weather!

Ever wonder what you would look like without any teeth?

Brynlie has recently started to get into things. It might not have happened this soon except for the fact that Cade, being the helpful older brother that he is, showed Brynlie how to get in the cupboards. It went like this. "Here Blim, you open the door and then you pull everything out. See!"

Cade started Preschool last week. Can you tell by his cheesy grin that he was SOOO excited to go?

My parents were in town for almost a week! Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures with them but we had such a GREAT time with them here. They did so much for us (like always) and I already miss them.

No one told Cade that Halloween is over.

Does this look like a baby that has a high fever with croup and can't sleep? She is such a content and HAPPY girl. I am so thankful that she is such a good baby!

Still Alive

2009-01-05T22:54:00.003-06:00

Yes, we are still here though our lack of posting suggests the opposite. Christmas has come and gone and we had a great time. Sorry no pictures this time, I'm too lazy to download them tonight. I just had to write a few things before I forgot them.

Lately Cade has really been into Star Wars. OK, let me rephrase that, he has been OBSESSED with Star Wars. It's pretty fun to watch him get so into it. Quite often he reminds me that he's not Cade he's "Luke Skywalker". Grandma DeEtte gave him the Star Wars Trilogy for Christmas and that was a hit. He got a light saber for Christmas as well and I think he finally feels complete. Well the other day the kids and I got in a water fight and I kept laughing and pretty soon Cade turns to me and said, "Laugh it up fuzz ball!" I wasn't quite sure I heard right so I asked him what he said. This time he said it with a wag of his head, "I said, laugh it up fuzz ball!" So he really does pay attention to all parts of the movie and not just the fighting scenes. I thought it was pretty funny.

Brooklyn and Cade have nicknamed Brynlie, "Bryn". Cade seems to struggle with words that start with "Br". He calls Brooklyn, "Brookie" but it sounds more like "Bicky". So of course Bryn sounds like "Blim". He's always concerned that she's sad or tired. "You sad Blim? Blim are you tired? Huh Blim? It's OK Blim." Who knows it might stick.

The Things They Do

2008-12-08T14:02:00.008-06:00

So the other day Brooklyn and Cade were playing together and soon enough they started arguing. It was one of those times that I was pretending that I couldn't hear what was going on. Pretty soon I heard a loud smack and then Cade started crying. I'm sure I rolled my eyes and thought, "Here we go again." Shortly after, Brooklyn started crying. It wasn't her hurt cry but sounded more like her really sad, I'm sorry cry. I was hoping she was feeling badly that she had hurt her brother. So I walked up to them ask what happened. No answer. I got closer to Brooklyn and kept asking why she was crying so hard (Cade was fine at this point). Finally between sobs she managed to get out, "Because my song is on!" What? As I paid closer attention to what was on the radio, I recognized the song, Where are you Christmas? from The Grinch Who Stole Christmas soundtrack. Earlier this summer Brooklyn watch that movie for the first time. She was watching it by herself and I decided to check on her. It happened to be the part where Cindy Lou Who is singing Where are you Christmas? Brooklyn was bawling her eyes out. I thought she was hurt but she told me she was crying because the little girl sang that song so beautiful. Yikes, is all I have to say. The girl is only 5 years old and she is so emotional about a song! I'll be honest, I was trying not to laugh. Wow, we are in for a treat when Brooklyn is a teenager. Good thing she's so lovable!

On the flip side, Cade is such a boy! If there is anything he can throw, he throws. If there is something to kick, he kicks it. If there is a pile of whatever on the table, he knocks if off. For example, I was at the store this morning and Cade saw a huge Christmas tree with pretty ornaments on it. So what did he do? Yep, he walked right up to it and knocked this huge bulb right off the tree and sent it bouncing. Nice Cade. Luckily it didn't break. Don't get me wrong, I love the little guy and he is a good kid. We'll just work on not being so destructive. It'd probably help if Heath and I weren't always laughing. His faces are too funny not to.

Nine Months Old and Kids That Fly!

2008-11-20T21:52:00.009-06:00

I think each kid grows up a little faster than the last. Who knows where the last nine months have gone. This is a typical expression for Brynlie. She is definitely a squealer turning screamer. I know she's trying to communicate but it would be a little more pleasant if it was an octave lower. She is such a fun baby though. She is pretty much always happy unless Brooklyn is over doing it on the hugs and kisses (which happens often) or Cade is squeezing her cheeks too hard, or he's sitting on her like she's waiting to give him a horsey ride (which also happens often). They've got a lot of love for their little sister.

She's crawling everywhere. If she sees something she wants to play with she laughs until she's got what she wants.
Brynlie is such a little Heath. We've tried calling her Heather and Heathina but...no.
She loves to suck up necklaces like she is eating spaghetti. Of course everything goes in the mouth at this stage. It's like she has her own built in pocket.
The kids LOVE to jump on the couches. This morning they were showing me some of their flying techniques.

Nice form Cade! He's working on getting his back straight. They had to check out each picture and then they tried jump a little different or a little better. Not bad entertainment for a Thursday morning!

Family Pictures

2008-11-06T18:21:00.010-06:00

A few weeks ago we were able to get family pictures done here in our house with the main purpose of them being used for my dental office. So thanks to Kim, Josh and Dusty for hooking us up with free family pictures. Here is a sampling of what an amazing job Dusty did while setting up his own mini studio right here in our house.

Chin Talk

2008-10-26T21:05:00.003-05:00

This is the fun we have on Sunday evenings.

Brooklyn

Caden

Photo Shoot

2008-10-20T11:18:00.009-05:00

We recently had some fun taking pictures of the kids in the backyard. We were waiting to get some pictures done for Heath's office and thought we'd take advantage of the kids being clean. They actually had fun posing and listened pretty well.

Trip to Utah

2008-10-16T18:32:00.015-05:00

The first part of October I drove with the kids to Utah. I tend to get really tired when I drive so I was lucky enough to have my mother-in-law, DeEtte, drive to Utah with me and my mom drive back to AZ with me. Thank you both for your help! We had such a great time. I hadn't seen my brother for a year and a half and it had been two years since I'd seen my sister Tiffany. Cade is sporting his BYU sweatshirt because he watched his cousin Graham play football and he wanted his own football shirt. He wore it for two days straight.

It is always fun to be around my parents. Mom took such good care of us and dad was always playing football or something fun with the kids.

Brynlie got to meet her Great Grandparents Mary and Bob for the first time. Grandpa is so great with the kids and they all love him.

My dad took us to eat lunch at the Church Office Building. After we got to meet my mom after some of her meetings and she showed us around the Relief Society Building. The girls in the picture are Secretaries there. Emily is on the left and Anne Marie on the right. They are so fun. I also got to meet Sis. Allred and Sis. Beck (I met Sis. Beck at General Conference).
We had to get some pictures of the kids at Temple Square. My dad was taking our pictures when Cade runs off and is kicking the flowers! Apparently Cade didn't get the memo that says you have to at least act like you listen to your parents at Temple Square. Poor flowers.
The kids had such a fun time playing with their cousins. Cade loved having Graham around to play with.
Quincee and Brooklyn got along well also. I wish we lived closer to them all.
The kids had so much fun clearing out grandma's garden before it snowed. And it did snow Sunday morning. The kids were SO excited to see snow and make a snowman. We walked out of church and it had all melted. Caden cried and wondered why someone would take all of the snow away. We are missing Caitlin and Jonah in this last picture. I'm so glad we were able to go and play and have so much fun. Thanks for letting us leave you for so long Heath. We are happy to be back home with you!

6 Months old and Baseball Fun!

2008-08-29T18:13:00.009-05:00

Well, it may be rather obvious that I am not great at this blogging stuff, so here is a post so that "someone" will stop asking me if I have posted anything yet. Brynlie is 6 months old already! I really can't believe how fast time flies and how fast my kids are growing up. Brynlie is doing great. She is sitting up now and is always giving you a huge smile. She has started laughing a lot more which is so much fun.

Cade loves to try and get Brynlie to laugh. Speaking of Cade, he is looking so old!

Last weekend we drove down to Yuma to watch our brother-in-law, Dionys, play baseball. We've never seen him play before and it was a lot of fun. Too bad he doesn't play for the Diamondbacks, we could see him play a lot more often.

Cade was showing off his baseball that he got from Dionys in the dugout. He was pretty excited.

In between games Dionys let the kids go out on the field and play around. I thought this picture was so cute. D.J. is explaining to Cade how you hold the mitt and how you catch the ball, etc. Hopefully Cade can get really close to A.J. and D.J. because he's been around dress up clothes for too long!

Dionys even played catch with them. Cade had such a good time out there. Thanks for letting us come watch you Dionys!

This picture is from earlier this summer. They are sure glad to be here close to their cousins!

Now I Can Sleep!

2008-08-25T23:40:00.003-05:00

How great is America! We are so lucky to live in the BEST NATION ON EARTH, and I'm so glad that they represented so well the last two weeks for the world to see. No, of course athletics is not everything and a country can't be judged by its olympic performance, but not only did we win the total medal count (as I predicted we would), I am proud to be an American for how our athletes handled the Olympics and all their successes. From Michael Phelps, to the Men's Indoor Volleyball team, the athletes of the USA were absolutely remarkable. And, to top it all of I must say that my respect for Kobe Bryant has actually increased the last 2 weeks. I'm still not a HUGE fan, but it was just neat to watch him handle himself at the games, not just on the court, and to see him lead his teammates to an Olympic Gold. I got to watch an interview with him during the games, and he was genuinely proud to be an American and didn't apologize in the least that he stated we are the greatest nation on earth. I respect him for that. And, as I predicted again, the guys basketball team was dominant, in every single game! GO USA!!

Oh, as far as the title of this post goes, in case you didn't already figure it out, now that the games are over I might make it to bed before midnight!

Olympic Mania

2008-08-18T00:34:00.002-05:00

So far the Olympics has lived up to all my expectations. The swimming was unbelievable, one of those sporting events that I won't soon forget and am likely to be talking about even 10 years from now.

Of course the US Mens Basketball, the Redeem Team, has got their act together from 4 years ago and is rolling over the competition. I have mixed feelings about Kobe Bryant, not a huge fan, but I must say that I believe his attitude is right on with US basketball and it has done a lot to help the other players. Also, what better move could you make than to get Coach K to be the head coach? Much better job with these players than a NBA coach would do.

Of course the Olympics wouldn't be the Olympics without the judging controversies either. I don't profess to be an expert on gymnastics in the least, but I don't understand how someone can get a medal when they completely fall on their dismount and someone else who only takes a little hop doesn't even medal (see the girls individual Vault event).

Looking forward to Track and Field. The 100m event was already crazy. If you missed it, the Jamaican, Bolt, can flat out fly!!! Only one more week of sleep deprivation!

Back to School

2008-08-12T21:46:00.006-05:00

I can't believe that our little girl is so grown up. Yesterday was Brooklyn's first official day of school as she started kindergarten. This is the first time that she has gone somewhere for school, as she did preschool at home with Chelsea last year. I was anxious to see how she would handle it, but she acted so adult like and just walked right into school like she didn't even care she was leaving us. It was so fun to see her so excited to get dressed up for the first day, and have her hair just right (such a girl)! I even got to take the afternoon off of work and was able to walk her to school with Chelsea and the kids.
Unfortunately we are in transition right now with homes, we are staying at my parent's house, and so Brooklyn will have to switch schools probably about the time that she is starting to make friends in her class. Chelsea and I struggled with the decision of what to do as far as where to send her for school, but when push came to shove we decided that kids are incredibly adaptable and she would probably do fine no matter what we decided.
Here are a couple more pictures of our mini adult!

This is why I LOVE the Olympics

2008-08-11T14:49:00.000-05:00

Wow, for any of you who didn't stay up last night to watch the Mens 4x100m Free Relay you missed out big time. Lucky for you I have copied a link here to the NBC Olympics website where you can go and watch it, and watch it you should. It was absolutely incredible and our athletes are amazing!! The video is not that long, the race was not even 4 minutes, so you don't have any excuse not to watch it. Go ahead, indulge your inner self and enjoy!

Click here to go to the website

Together with Friends

2008-08-11T00:44:00.002-05:00

This weekend we were able to get together again with our good friends from dental school, the Mitchell's and my good high school friend and his family, Cody Smith. It is fun to be back home to hang out with friends again.
I must tell my parents and my sister, Ondria, thank you so much for letting us stay in your homes while we are looking for our own place to stay. You guys have been very kind and we really appreciate it.

These are a few of my favorite things

2008-08-09T13:38:00.003-05:00

Yes, you should think Julie Andrews and the Sound of Music when you read that title (wow am I displaying my age and my inner "manly" touch with that!)

I just thought it would be appropriate to get back on the blogging scene with a couple of my favorite things that I have been able to enjoy recently. Now it goes without saying that my wife is definitely my favorite and that the following don't even come close, but for this post lets focus on these other favorite things.

Number One: Apple iPhone!!
Yes that is right, I finally was able to fulfill my guilty passion and am now a proud owner of the iPhone. Lest some of you think I am a spoiled new dentist who is buying all my fun new toys, I have wanted this thing for over a year now and have held out. I even suppressed my desire to buy the new 3G phone when it came out, and thankfully I did. You see, my wonderful brother in law, Juan, is a proud new owner of the 3G iPhone and so he was kind enough to sell me his old iPhone for a great deal, and I couldn't pass that up. I am a bargain shopper you know.
So how do I like the iPhone so far, you might ask? I love it!!!! Chelsea is already sick of me telling her how cool it is and how many things it can do. But the thing really is amazing and I am using it all the time. Thanks Juan, and thank Chelsea, for letting me cough up the 5o bucks for this wonderful gadget.

Number Two: The Olympics
I admit, I am a huge fan of the Olympics and have been waiting for the opening ceremonies now for a while. It is so amazing to me to watch these athletes compete and to see how good they are at what they do. As most of you know I am a huge sports junkie and there is just something magical about watching the worlds best compete on such a huge stage. It is disappointing to say the least when you hear about the doping scandals and such, but regardless of all that which goes on, I still love these two weeks that come around every two years.
I must make one comment on tonights opening ceremony in Beijing. If I had to sum it up in one word...AMAZING! I am not usually a big fan of the opening ceremony, although I usually always try and watch it just because I love the olympics so much. It is usually too symbolic and artsy fartsy for me. But the one tonight was incredible. The things they did were so precise and so neat to watch. For those of you that didn't get to see it, you have got to try and find it on the internet and just watch the drummers sections, remarkable to say the least.
Last comment. Many people are saying that China is going to lead the medal count when all is said and done. I am making my bold prediction right now, that the greatest country on Earth, even our own US of A is going to lead the medal count when all is said and done. And I make one more bold prediction. That Team USA Basketball will take home the gold this year and do so in a very dramatic way, by cleaning house of everyone they meet! C'mon now USA, don't let me down in front of all my readers!!!

We're still here

2008-07-17T17:29:00.003-05:00

No we haven't fallen off into the ocean of Phoenix's new coast line due to global warming. We are still around and doing well, it's just that we don't have regular internet access so it limits our blogging abilities.

We are currently living in my sister's house while her and her family are in Mexico with her husband's job. So I guess we are house sitting for a month or so. While we are here we are looking to try and buy a home and wondering how that is possible with the costs of homes these days, and yes I know that home prices are down from recent years. In trying to plan a budget and decide what we can afford, we might just settle down in a nice community trailer park in Apache Junction!

I am working in three different dental offices, one in South Gilbert, one in North Gilbert and one in Tempe. So, here goes my shameless plug, if any of you are in need of a dentist, I can point you in the right direction!

Sorry for such the delay on the homefront. We will try to be better, but no promises....

The Best Nation on Earth

2008-07-04T22:26:00.006-05:00

I can't let this miraculous holiday go by without expressing a few of my thoughts about this wonderful country we call the United States of America. How lucky are we to live in such a great nation, where we enjoy so many freedoms that so many others in the world can only dream about. During this celebration of our Independence I would like to express thanks for all those that have fought, and sacrificed so much, to allow this country to remain free. I have a brother who is training to be an Air Force pilot, and at times like this, I always try to take a minute and reflect on how fortunate I am that I have fellow American's like my brother who are willing to fight for our freedoms, and allow me the opportunity to enjoy living in this, the most wonderful country on earth.

And please, don't forget to protect this great nation, and all of its freedoms by not voting for the socialist Obama! I'm not a huge McCain fan either, but compared to the alternative he looks like gold! Sorry, just had to throw the political plug in there.

Feel free to play the following video clip. There is no video, only my favorite patriotic song, God Bless the USA by Lee Greenwood.

Mastercard Moving Promotion

2008-07-03T17:48:00.002-05:00

Penske Rental Truck: $413.32
Gas: $753.31
18 hour drive with 3 kids under the age of 5: Priceless

On the move

2008-06-27T23:58:00.002-05:00

So we have officially left San Antonio. We packed up the truck yesterday and headed out today. We stopped in Las Cruces, New Mexico for the night and will finish up the trip tomorrow. Luckily my parents were nice enough to come out and help us pack up, load and clean the apartment. And then, perhaps more important, they were willing to make the trip in the cars back to Arizona with us. Thank you Mom and Dad, we love you and you have made this so much easier for us. We really appreciate all your help!!

I start work on Monday, yikes! I'm a little nervous, but it will be nice to have an income considering the student loans are already due! I guess our next post will be from Arizona.

The Taylors

2008-06-22T21:34:00.006-05:00

We got home from the coast on Monday and that night our good friends, Grant and Amanda Taylor, flew in for a visit. It was such a great week! We knew the Taylor's in Denver and the kids adore them so needless to say, they were so excited to see their friends. They were, however, a little disappointed that they didn't bring their dog Rufus with them. Maybe next time.The kids soaked up all of the attention. Grant and Amanda took the kids swimming, played with them, read books, you name it. I felt like I had two live in nannies! It was incredible and so fun to see the kids so excited. Once the kids went to bed, Heath and I got our chance to hang out with them. We stayed up way too late every night but it was great to catch up with such good friends.

We had fun eating dinner along the Riverwalk.

We got spoiled this week in more ways than one. Thank you Grant and Amanda so much, we had such a great time! We'll miss you guys!

A VACATION!

2008-06-22T20:32:00.012-05:00

We had our first family vacation over 2 years ago. Going to visit parents not included. We decided it was about time for another one. The director of Heath's residency has a home in Rockport, TX which is close to Corpus Christi. Last weekend we headed down there and had such a great time!The first morning we got there the kids were ready to go out around 8:30. I went out with them so they could find sea shells and throw rocks. Cade kept throwing his shells into the wind and inevitably they would come back and hit me in the face, thanks Cade.

They had fun making a sand castle with Heath.

Who doesn't like to get buried at the beach! Me.

Poor Brynlie was always so tired but she was a trooper. She blows raspberries when she gets tired.

Brooklyn clobbered Cade with wet sand. Oddly enough he had no clue he was such a mess.

We found a tiny branch to attend church on Sunday. Brooklyn had a great time in Primary which consisted of two other kids.

We had fun walking out on the pier which was just outside the house we stayed in. No, the kids don't always hold hands and yes, I asked them to for this picture. I thought it was cute though.

Here is our attempt at a family picture before we almost blew away.

The home had a couple of big screen T.V.'s and the kids loved the idea of watching cartoons in bed. It was so fun to be somewhere were we could just hang out and have fun. Brooklyn even asked if we could live there. Thank you Dr. Douglas!

Happy Birthday

2008-06-10T20:52:00.001-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHELSEA!!

I am so lucky to have this wonderful woman as my wife! She does so much for me and for our beautiful children. I'm sure all of you that know her would agree with me that there isn't a nicer, more selfless person than Chelsea.

I love you sweetie. I sure hope you had a wonderful birthday. I had fun being with you all day. Thanks for letting me take the day off of work! Happy Birthday.

Catching Up

2008-06-04T21:32:00.011-05:00

Every once in awhile someone in my household reminds me that I never post any of the pictures I have taken. Well here they are.Bryline loves her baths these days. Brooklyn and Cade love to watch her splash herself.

This was right before her first trip to the pool.

I love that she actually has some rolls to her. To give you an idea of how small Brooklyn was, she wore this same swim suit when she was 9 months old.

I decided to convert Caden's crib into a makeshift bed. I know he's 3 and in a crib. It was a space issue really. The kids have enjoyed jumping from bed to bed etc. I am completely regretting my decision to do this. On average it has been taking Cade 1 1/2 hours to fall asleep because he thinks he's so cool now that he has a big bed and can just slide out. Tonight he told me, "It's too hard to fall asleep, it's taking too long!" Two hours later he was finally asleep.

The kids love to make pizza with me. Don't they look so old!

The packing has begun. Ugh!

A few weeks ago we went to an open house type thing for a Veterinarian Hospital. They had free pony rides that the kids loved. I felt bad for the poor horses, it was so HOT!

Well these are some of the happenings as of late. Maybe I'll try to be better at posting our adventures....maybe.

I love my wife

2008-06-03T22:34:00.001-05:00

Just thought I needed to tell Chelsea how much she means to me and how much she does for our family. Thanks, Chels. I love you!!!!

Guys Night Out

2008-06-01T00:11:00.002-05:00

Tonight it was out on the town with the good ole' boys! Caden and I dropped Brooklyn off at her primary activity at the church, and we hit the nightlife. That's right, just us boys. Chelsea was kind enough, and trusting enough, to let us get out and cause some ruckus that only boys can do. So what did we do, you ask? I mean c'mon, obviously I can't divulge the full extent of our adventures, but lets just say that Playplace that Ronald McDonald built is down right manly! We had a blast slamming back the vanilla ice cream cones and hot fudge sundaes, in between flying down those crazy slides. Yes, we were in heaven. Sometimes a boy gots to do what a boy gots to do, if you know what I mean!! Maybe Caden will give me permission at some later date to post more details of our adventure.
Ah yes, and I guess I do need to confess that we had to hit up WalMart for Mom; to buy some trash bags and makeup. But hey, what's a good guys night out if you can't keep the women happy back at home!!

Grateful Sunday

2008-05-25T19:28:00.004-05:00

Again, I have to say that this "grateful Sunday" idea is borrowed from Farnsworth's Blog.

Today I am grateful for growing up in a time period where I learned that in competition there is a winner and a loser. I am grateful that I had parents who taught me that not everything in life is fair and that sometimes I will get the short end of the stick. I am grateful that I grew up in a time where not everything was handed to me just for being me, but rather I learned that if I wanted something I had to work for it. I am glad I learned as a youngster playing little league baseball, basketball, and football that the winners got trophy's and the losers...well...we didn't get trophy's...and that was okay.

I just watched a little clip tonight on the TV show 60 Minutes, that talked about the age group of America known as The Millenials. Many of you who are probably reading this right now fall under this age group, those born between 1980 and 1995ish. It was a pretty interesting piece altogether, and while I didn't agree with 100% of it, I had to chuckle when the reporter said that this generation is the generation that grew up with the philosophy of "blue ribbons for everyone", "everyone is a winner." This generation hasn't learned the meaning from their parents of the word "no" and have been given everything they ever wanted to them, now! You need to read, or watch, the 60 Minutes piece for more information on it.

The reason I am posting this is because it drives me nuts that there is this "blue ribbons for everyone" attitude out there. I don't understand how this can be healthy. Life is full of losers and winners. If you want to be a winner in real life you need to work hard for that and do what it takes to win. While it may be hard for a 5 year old to lose the game, and then watch the other team jump up for joy and be rewarded with trophies while they walk over to their orange slices and Capri Suns, at least the lesson is learned that not everything is given to them in life and that everything is always going to be good. Life isn't like that, and we shouldn't be doing our kids a disservice by giving them this false sense that life is fair for everyone. When they lose, pick em up, dust em off, and tell them that things will still be okay, winning isn't everything, but if you want to win next time then work harder for what you want!

By the way, lest you think I am going to be that obsessed little league dad on the sidelines who is always screaming at my kid to make them better, you are dead wrong. I am not advocating that winning is everything, in fact I don't really believe that. I am simply stating that it is just as important to learn that there are losers in life, and if you ever fall into that category, you need to learn how to deal with it. This is a very important "lesson" of life.

3 Months Old Already?

2008-05-20T13:31:00.006-05:00

Brynlie is already three months old! I can hardly believe it. Time is going by so fast. Brynlie is doing great. She is full of smiles and coo's and loves to blow "raspberries". She's quite good at it too. She is so much fun to have around!

Bathroom Dialog

2008-05-17T12:51:00.003-05:00

I was standing outside the bathroom this morning waiting for Cade to finish pooping and I heard the following dialog between him and Brooklyn.

Cade: "My poop is kinda stinky."
Brooklyn: "What?"
Cade: with more empahsis "My poop is kinda stinky!"
Brooklyn: "Yea it is. What does it smell like?"
Cade: "Macaroni and cheese."

I can only imagine what that must have smelled like!

Two Issues

2008-05-15T21:10:00.003-05:00

So I just read online that the State Supreme Court of California just made it legal for gay and lesbian couples to marry. Yes this is a political post of sorts, and yes you may choose not to read any further if you wish.
I have two issues with this whole thing, and for the sake of your sanity I'll make my comments brief.

1) I have nothing personally against anyone who is gay or lesbian, they have the right to make that choice (even though I strongly believe it is the wrong choice). However, marriage is, and forever should be, strictly defined as a union between a MAN and a WOMAN. You can't start changing definitions of things just because people begin to live "alternative lifestyles." I could go on, but promised to be brief.

2) It bothers me to no end that the judicial systems in this country think that they can make laws. It is happening way too often that a handful of judges are deciding to take the law into their own hands and, based on their decisions, determine what laws I have to live by. I think America needs to take another look at the Constitution and remember that the laws are not made by the Judicial system.

There, I've said my peace for the time being. Sorry to ruin all the warm and fuzzy feelings you are accustomed to when reading this fascinating blog of ours.

Exercise or Ice Cream?

2008-05-12T14:36:00.004-05:00

So I was exercising this morning (something I should do more often-as you will read) and I was on the ground doing some Pilates when Brooklyn walked up to me and said, "Mom, you look like a whale!" I'm sure she meant that with a lot of love. I had to laugh, I mean seriously, how do you take a "compliment" like that. Kids seem to be brutally honest don't they? As for how I was feeling after that comment...I headed straight for the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream. YUM!

Too sweet

2008-05-05T22:26:00.002-05:00

Well I was waiting for Chelsea to post this, but I guess I am going to have to! We were in the car the other day going somewhere and Brooklyn started talking about how she was going to start going to school when we get to Arizona. She talks about this a lot and I think she's pretty excited about the whole thing.
Well, shortly thereafter the kids began whispering to each other. All of a sudden Chelsea heard some sniffles and she turned around to ask them what was wrong. Then all of a sudden, with a puckered chin, the corners of his mouth turned down, and his eyes filling with tears, Caden said "Me going to miss Brookie when her goes to school." Talk about heart breaking! Then immediately Brooklyn joined in and began crying saying that she was going to miss Caden too. Chelsea and I had to hold back our own tears!
These two definitely have their moments of contention (more than we care to share), but one thing is for sure....they are best friends. In fact, when they are upset at each other they always say, "I'm not going to be your best friend anymore!" Shortly after this "episode" in the car, Chelsea and I were commenting on how at times it can be difficult to have kids that are under 2 years apart, but at times like that it makes it all worth it. They love each other and I sure hope that they can always stay close and be "best friends."

FHE

2008-04-28T18:41:00.003-05:00

So we just finished having FHE and right after the closing prayer this is what Brooklyn had to say. "Mom, guess what? When you was saying the prayer I feeled Jesus in my heart! Guess what he said?" Of course I was curious and asked, "What?" "Jesus told me to be a good girl and then we can live as a family all the day! That's what Jesus told me in my heart!" She was so excited. It's an incredible feeling as a parent to see your child so excited about the Savior and the Gospel. I'm so grateful for the Plan of Salvation (that's what our lesson was on) and that we will be able to live with our families "all the day".

Up and coming golfer

2008-04-26T23:05:00.004-05:00

Sorry everyone for the lack of posts lately. We have been in Arizona looking for jobs and homes and actually have a lot of things to post about, but have just been lazy in doing it. I am actually posting this one to try and get Chelsea encouraged again to post some of our happenings from our trip to Arizona.
Our trip to Arizona was such a blast. We originally intended for it to be 4-5 days of home searching, but when we found out that it was unlikely that we were going to be able to buy, our trip turned more into a vacation. It was so fun to be able to be with family again and to have Chelsea's parents there visiting as well.
One of my highlights for the trip was taking Caden to the driving range with both of his grandpas. He LOVED hitting the balls and I am pretty sure that he hit more than the other three of us combined. In fact, it was so fun, that I actually ended up purchasing the little club that he used. It was a used club that belonged to the golf shop, and they had new ones for sale, but the new ones were $20 per club. So I asked if I could buy the used one, I know Caden doesn't mind used, and they sold it to me for $5! Here are the fun pictures.

Our Crazy Family

2008-04-13T21:04:00.002-05:00

Well for Easter it is tradition in our home to get the kids a new Sunday outfit and we thought this year it would be neat to try and capture a nice family photograph after church on Easter Sunday. We quickly realized that with no photographer around to help us it might be quite the challenge. So we set up our tripod and camera and started snapping away. After the first handful of pictures with Cade looking away, and Brooklyn closing her eyes we knew that our efforts were futile. So then we just decided to have fun with the kids and told them to make their silliest faces for the pictures. This is our final product....and actually it better represents what our family is really like than some nice, polished masterpiece.

Best Friends and a Love Bug

2008-04-05T21:09:00.006-05:00

Well Heath has been in Arizona all week looking for work so I thought I'd show him the cute kids he is missing at home. Doesn't Cade look like he's ready to hit the golf course? He loves this outfit and picked the hat out himself.
Brooklyn is still such a good helper and she can't stop saying, "Brynlie is so cute!" She asked me the other day if once Brynlie grew up, we could have another baby. She said we could pray to Heavenly Father and tell him we want another little baby and then maybe he could put one in my stomach. She's thought about it a lot I guess.

I can't believe Brynlie is already 7 weeks old! It's going by so fast.

Brynlie is smiling a lot more lately. It's so fun to see her personality start to develop. The kids love it when she makes noise. They come up with all sorts of things that they think she is saying, such as, "Mom, she said that we should have ice cream!"

This is the outfit she came home from the hospital in. It finally fits!

The difference between boys and girls

2008-03-30T16:13:00.002-05:00

This morning as I was getting ready for church I was brushing my teeth and Brooklyn comes in telling me to stop and listen to something. So I turn off my toothbrush, yes I do have an automatic one and I love it, and all of a sudden I hear the sound of scissors opening and closing. I look out into my bedroom and proceed to see Caden, with a pair of scissors in his hands, cutting away at my suit coat that was laying on the bed! I won't go into the details of the punishment that proceeded :), but rather how different Caden and Brooklyn's outlook on the whole situation was.

Caden- After the punishment I was talking to him about how we don't use the scissors to cut holes in things, and how now I can't wear my suit because it has holes in it. To which Caden replied, with a big grin on his face, "It's okay dad, everybody yikes (likes) holes!" Then I told him how not everybody does, because I don't, to which he said, with that sort of 'dad it's okay, don't freak out' tone of voice, "Me friends yike holes!" I had to hold back the laughter at that point and just ended the conversation with a, "Cade don't use the scissors anymore."

Brooklyn- Remember she is the one that came and told me about Caden cutting the suit, she had no part in actually doing it. So after I was done talking to Cade I didn't see Brooklyn anywhere around, but could only hear sniffles coming from her bedroom. So I walked in there, and there she was sitting hunched over in her little chair with a very sad look on her face. I went over to her, put my arm around her, and asked her what was wrong. Then the flood of tears came as she simply said, "I'm just sad that Cade cut holes in your suit," and the tears kept coming as I gave her a hug and told her how much I love her. I finally got her to calm down and explained to her that everything was going to be okay.

I know I have posted before about how much of a girl Brooklyn is, and how much of a boy Caden is, but I thought this was just another perfect example of the emotions of little girls and the 'no big deal, everything's okay' attitude of little boys. As for my suit, you ask? Well it's going in the garbage as it has about 5 or 6 big cuts in the back of the jacket and along the sleeves.

Oh, the outfits!

2008-03-24T21:44:00.003-05:00

Cade has recently started picking out his own clothes. Yeah, I'm not sure we are ready for public places yet. For starters, it may be hard to notice, but the little guy isn't even wearing any pants. Brooklyn and Cade periodically go through a hat and glove phase (or gwubs, as Cade would say). They sure keep things interesting and are always making me laugh!

March Madness

2008-03-20T21:10:00.002-05:00

What kind of man would I be if I didn't get a post in about March Madness. Is anyone else out there as excited about college basketball as I am? Okay, I must admit that I really haven't been able to follow the season that close this year, but there is something about the bracket that just draws me in. For some reason you know that if you watch the games during March you are going to see some fantastic display of athleticism and, as was already demonstrated today with the Duke game, some fantastic finishes. So if you aren't a fan, this is as good a time as ever to plop yourself on that couch of yours, pull out a carton of your favorite ice cream, and enjoy the games. Go on, try it. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Streaking!

2008-03-12T17:19:00.002-05:00

Earlier today the kids went outside to play. They came inside extremely wet and muddy so I had them jump in the shower. I had Cade go get dressed while Brooklyn showered and when I went to see if Cade had his clothes on, I couldn't find him. I was looking all over and couldn't find him anywhere. I found his towel on the floor and just happened to glance out the front window and there I saw him. Cade was standing on the front porch completely naked! As soon as I opened the door he took off. I tried to grab him and missed and I've never seen his little legs run so fast. I looked at him as he took a rest by the neighbors window. I couldn't even call after him because I was laughing so hard! It's not every day that you see a 2 year old streaking around the apartment complex. Here's to hoping it doesn't happen again. After a lot of coaxing, I got him back inside, all the while laughing.

Lucky number 7!

2008-03-09T22:17:00.002-05:00

Whomever said that the number 7 is lucky....I agree! Today is mine and Chelsea's 7th anniversary and life couldn't be better. I can't believe how fast the time goes by. It just seems like two years ago that I first laid eyes on this gorgeous girl, with her blue eyes and her long curly hair. I remember wishing I had the courage to strike up a conversation with her but had to live vicariously for the moment through my friend who did all the talking as I stood close by. It wasn't for another 3 months until I got the courage to ask her out on our first date (actually I had to wait my turn as that same friend that did all the talking that night started dating her after we first met her.)

Our first date....November 4, 2000
Our first talk of marriage....about 2-3 weeks later before she left to Utah for Thanksgiving
Asking permission of her father....The first time I met him around December 14, 2000
Official engagement.....December 29, 2000 at Zions National Park in Utah
Sealing in the Salt Lake City Temple.....March 9, 2001!

Yes, you are all correct that is way fast. And I tell you what, I wouldn't have done it any other way. From the first time I went out with Chelsea I knew that there was something special. I remember being at home and asking my mom if it could all really be this easy. I was so worried that I might have been overlooking something because I couldn't see anything that was wrong with this girl, and everything was going so well. I'm not sure how I did it, but somehow I put on my best front and convinced her to marry me. And because of that, I am the luckiest guy in the world.

So what is it like to be married for 7 years to someone like Chelsea. Well, lets just say I can't wait for the next eternity that I get to spend with her. I can honestly say that I wouldn't change one thing about her, or one thing about our relationship. We are very blessed with a relationship that I would think anyone would love to have, or at least it works for us. I don't say this to brag, but rather simply to state how fortunate I am to have her as my wife. She adds way more to this relationship than I do, and it is because of her that we have the wonderful marriage that we do. I love her, and I'm so thankful that we are together.

Happy 7th Sweetie!! I love you!! Thanks for being that person that I thought was only possible in my dreams. You are the best!!!!

Pictures

2008-03-04T15:30:00.005-06:00

I figured it was about time we posted some new pictures of Brynlie.

The kids have been great with her. They both are so gentle and full of kisses. Cade is constantly calling Brynlie, "your baby". Brooklyn has been a big help. It's fun to see both of them interact with Brynlie.

The Mother In Law

2008-02-21T22:43:00.002-06:00

Don't jump to conclusions yet just from reading the title. For those of you that want to hear the traditional "in laws" stories and are thus interested by the title of this post, you can stop reading now. For this post is all about how lucky I am to have such wondeful In-laws and in particular at this point my mother in law, Pam Norby.

For those of you that don't know, Chelsea's parents were not able to be here for the births of our first two kids as they were out serving in the mission field. However, for Brynlie's birth her mom was finally able to be here, and Brynlie was very accommodating to wait and come until Pam flew in her to San Antonio from Utah. She has been her now for 9 days and I have enjoyed having her in our home so much. She is such a HUGE help around the house, her cooking is amazing, and she is so good with Brooklyn and Caden. She has let Chelsea and I both sleep in while she gets up with the kids at 6 am. She does all the dishes so Chelsea and I can get the kids down to bed. She has done all the laundry since she has been here. She has helped Chelsea corral the kids while they try to go run errands. She has just been a tremendous help and I am so lucky that she was able to come and be here to help us out while we are still trying to get used to playing zone defense on the kids, rather than man to man.

Thank you very much Pam for putting up with us for these 2 weeks and for helping out so much. Also, thanks to Richard, her husband, for being willing to eat freezer foods for two weeks while I enjoy nice home cooked meals from his wife for two weeks! Thanks you two, I love you guys. I am so fortunate to have such wonderful "in-laws."

The Rest of the Story....

2008-02-17T22:40:00.003-06:00

I have had several people ask me to tell the story of the scare that Brynlie gave us when she was born for those first few minutes. I have debated how to go about doing this and to what detail I should give. After talking about this with Chelsea I finally decided that I would go ahead and just post the journal entry that I wrote the day after she was born. So I apologize for any of the personal feelings and stuff, but hopefully this will give everyone a better sense of the experience. One more thing, this entry is about 3.5 pages in Word so it is rather lengthy.

For an occasion such as this a journal entry is almost mandatory. Chelsea gave birth to our third child yesterday morning, Brynlie Monique Snell. She was born at 5:32 am; she weighed 7lbs 5oz, and was 19 inches long. She has a head full of very dark hair and she is absolutely beautiful. She reminds me quite a bit of our first daughter, Brooklyn, when she was born. And, just as was the case with Brooklyn when she was born, Brynlie had to have her own little drama to begin her life. Very much the same as Brooklyn as well, hers was one of great blessings from our Father in Heaven as to her swift recovery. I am so thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who is in charge of everything, and knows exactly what is happening to my family and me. I know He is watching over us.

I’ll start from the beginning I guess, and as I go through just notice the amount of simple things that together made the whole event one big miracle. Chelsea started having contractions Wednesday evening around 6pm and they just continued to get worse until we ended up going to the hospital around 11:45 pm that night. They admitted Chelsea and checked her and she was dilated to a 4. So they did all the paper work and other stuff as the contractions continued to get more and more painful and closer and closer together. I’m sure it was very difficult for Chelsea to have to endure that pain, but through it all she never once made a peep. I am so thankful for Chelsea and how she handles pain. It really is difficult for me to watch her be in so much pain as she was, but I am glad that she handles it so well.

After what seemed like an eternity the Anesthesiologist came in and gave her an epidural, thank heavens for modern medicine. I never have understood why some girls insist on not getting epidurals; it makes no sense to me. So after that happened both Chelsea and I just relaxed and tried to get some sleep, but were pretty much unsuccessful as we were continuously interrupted by someone coming in the room and either checking on Chelsea or stocking some sort of instruments or whatever. Needless to say, we didn’t get much sleep.

Chelsea’s doctor, Dr. Cherney-Leecock, also came into the hospital about 1:30 and told Chelsea that she had half expected her to come in tonight since earlier in the day at Chelsea’s appointment with her she had stripped her membranes. I thought it was pretty neat that the doctor actually showed up at the hospital to hang out long before the delivery was actually in progress (one small event), as every other OBGYN that we have had hasn’t come in until Chelsea was actually pushing the baby out. Dr. Cherney just slept in one of the on-call rooms.

Chelsea continued to labor through the night and around 4:00am the nurse came in to check Chelsea and said she was at a 9 but her water had not broke yet, so she tried to have Chelsea push along with some of her contractions to see if she could break her water to perhaps speed things up a little. Well, upon pushing several times and watching the baby’s heart rate drop to the mid 20’s from her normal 140’s, and not being successful in breaking her water, the nurse decided to forgo that option (one small event that the water did not break). The RN said she would contact Dr. Cherney and see what she wanted done so she did so and came back and said to just continue having Chelsea labor and see what happens. About 5:20am the doctor came into the room and began telling us how she had had this nightmare and couldn’t sleep for like the last 45 minutes so she decided she would just come in and break Chelsea’s water and see if we couldn’t get anything to happen.

In her nightmare she told of how she was checking Chelsea and that there was a problem known as cord prolapse. Which means that the umbilical cord is hanging down in front of the baby’s head and it is an emergency problem because that means when the baby comes down the birth canal the cord gets pinched and the blood supply gets cut off to the baby, and therefore so does her oxygen supply. So in her dream she quickly wheeled Chelsea to the OR and was yelling as she was running, “Get a room ready, get a room ready. We have a prolapsed cord!” She said that as she was yelling she was so confused because everyone was looking at her with kinds of bewildered looks on their faces and no one was doing anything. She was so frustrated and couldn’t understand with such an emergency why everyone was just standing around. It was at that point that she woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep (this whole nightmare was one small moment). She related this whole story before she even put her gloves on to check Chelsea and to break her water.

So after the telling of the nightmare she got her gloves on and broke Chelsea’s water at 5:26am. As she was checking around she suddenly got a very serious look on her face, and then expressed, “Oh my gosh, we have a prolapsed cord! I don’t believe it, her cord is in front of her head.” She then attempted to move the cord up around the baby and tried doing this for about 30 seconds to a minute, and after being unsuccessful she told Chelsea that she was going to have to take her to the OR and do a C-section right now. She yelled at the nurses to get the OR ready because they had to go right now. It was at that moment that a little panic set in and I wasn’t really sure what was going on. But all of a sudden the room was filled with nurses moving around gathering things and getting ready to go. Dr. Cherney, still in disbelief that this was actually happening, and offering a few explicatives as well, took off her sweatshirt and decided that she was going to have Chelsea push to get this baby out rather than going to the OR (one small moment). So rather than getting the bed ready and putting up the stirrups and everything, and rather than the doctor getting all gowned up they just started having Chelsea push. This time, unlike the previous births of our kids, they weren’t having her push with her contractions, rather it was just “push Chelsea, push”. Dr. Cherney stuck the vacuum up there and attached it to the baby’s head and between her pulling and Chelsea’s pushing little Brynlie was delivered at 5:32am. It was a total of 6 minutes from the time they broke her water to the time she was out, and only 3 minutes from the time they started having Chelsea push until she was out (one small moment). I have never seen a baby come out so fast; both Chelsea and Dr. Cherney did such an amazing job at getting her out.

Even though she came out so fast, poor little Brynlie appeared pretty lifeless. She wasn’t moving or making any noise. As she came out Dr. Cherney swung around and placed her on the warming table where the NICU nurses, already there and waiting, began putting the bag on her and giving her oxygen and trying to get her to take her own breathe. For about a minute I don’t remember hearing any cry or whimper from Brynlie as they worked on her. Then all of a sudden a little whimper came out and there was a sense of relief on everyone’s faces. They continued to work on her and she bounced back so quickly, from lifeless and purple, to pink and totally looking around engaging your eye. It was truly incredible. Her APGAR scores were 3 and then 9, which shows her incredible bounce back. They wheeled her off to the NICU where they continued to monitor her for some time and the nurses told us that since she was without that blood supply for those few minutes they are always worried about her digestive organs because her body naturally shunts blood away from them in order to provide the vital organs, heart and brain, with the needed blood. One good sign from the nurse was that she said that it sounds like her bowel sounds were good though, so this was promising in that regard. They kept her in the NICU for about 5 hours until they brought her up to our room.

She was able to stay with us for most of the day and Chelsea was even able to begin nursing her. Everything about her seems perfectly normal now and you would never know that her poor little body went without a blood supply for a few minutes. She is absolutely beautiful, but I guess our girls are setting a trend of bringing a little bit of drama with them as they enter this crazy world.

Throughout this whole situation it is so easy to see the hand of the Lord and to know that He was absolutely 100% mindful of our personal situation. Just a few things to consider that could have led to a very different outcome.

What if Dr. Cherney wouldn’t have been sleeping there in the hospital but rather come from her home when she was called by the nurses that Chelsea was ready to start pushing? Who knows if that extra time would have caused serious damage to Brynlie.

What if Dr. Cherney wouldn’t have had that dream? I’m sure she still would have noticed the prolapsed cord upon checking Chelsea, but it probably wouldn’t have been at the forefront of her mind.

What if the doctor wouldn’t have had the part of the dream where no one was helping her in the OR? I know the answer to this one because today when she checked on how Chelsea was doing she said that if it weren’t for that part of the dream she would have taken her to the OR rather than trying to have her push which would have been a big mistake because there is no way that she could have gotten her out in the 3-6 minutes that they did with just having Chelsea push.

What if Chelsea’s water would have broke on her own rather than having the doctor right there when it happened? Well today the doctor told us that if this would have happened the outcome could have been a lot different as that would have meant that so much more time would have gone by until the baby came out. This is because a nurse would have had to of checked Chelsea, then they would have had to notice the distress signs from the decreased heart rate of the baby and then call Dr. Cherney. Then hopefully the nurse would have noticed the prolapsed cord, but in our case I’m not so sure of this because our RN had only been done with school for 7 months and she admitted that she had only heard of a prolapsed cord but never seen one before. Then after she hopefully noticed it she would have called Dr. Cherney, who would have then got Chelsea to the OR. But if the RN didn’t notice the condition then the doctor would have come down to deliver the baby and then noticed, after so much time, that the cord was prolapsed. And who knows the outcome after that much time of not having the baby with a full blood supply.

I hope you can see, and greatly appreciate as I do, that the Lord was with us and the doctor every single step of the way. He didn’t leave anything to chance, and I am so thankful for Him. I know that he loves us, and that he knows each and every one of us individually.

Just one more thing real quickly. A couple of weeks ago Chelsea had asked me to give her a Priesthood blessing for the arrival of our little girl. I don’t remember much about what I said, but I distinctly remember saying that she would be comforted as she knew that our Father in Heaven would guide the doctors in their necessary labors. I’m sure of the fact that our Heavenly Father did send direct inspiration to Chelsea’s doctor, who is not a member of our faith, to prepare her on how to best handle the problem that she faced through her dream she had. And I think it is self evident from the fact that she made the decision to have Chelsea push the baby out rather than do a C-section, and that she was able to deliver this baby in only 3 minutes, that our Father was guiding her. I’m thankful for a loving wife who puts so much faith in the Priesthood that she is willing to ask directly for blessings. And I am thankful that the Lord has entrusted me with His power to bless my family through the Priesthood. This gospel is amazing, and I am so thankful to be a member of it. I know it is true, and it is nice to see the Lord’s hand in my life as a testimony builder to me that He loves me, and that this is His gospel.

And now you know....the rest of the story (I hope that line isn't copyrighted)!

Brynlie's Pictures

2008-02-15T20:04:00.007-06:00

Just some pictures for everyone that has asked for them.

Just minutes old

In the NICU

Sleepin away

The Beautiful Little Girl

The Grand Arrival

2008-02-14T22:25:00.003-06:00

Here is the official introduction! She had quite the story in the first few moments of life, but that is for another post. Enjoy. Pictures will follow. Isn't she beautiful!!

Sunday Afternoon

2008-02-10T16:02:00.000-06:00

Just thought you all might like to see what a nice typical Sunday afternoon is in the Snell household. This is the kids' interpretation of the Waltz I guess. Brooklyn asked her "prince" if he would dance with her because she is "Cinderella."

Okay, so maybe it isn't always like this. But sometimes we like to dream that the kids were always this nice to one another.

Just waiting

2008-02-09T17:42:00.000-06:00

We haven't posted for a while because there isn't much to post really. Just an update for everyone though. We are still waiting for the baby to come. Chelsea is due this coming Friday. Her mom comes into town on Tuesday and I personally think the baby is just waiting for her grandma to get here before she makes her grand entrance. We are definitely anxious for her arrival, although I must say that at least for me life is definitely easier with her inside the belly than out! We'll keep you all posted.

Disgust for the Main Stream Media (MSM)

2008-02-02T22:52:00.000-06:00

Is anyone else fed up by the MSM during this political season? It is so evident that the MSM is wanting a McCain victory in the GOP primary so that then the American people have to decide between two Democrats in the presidential election. Every time McCain get some endorsement or wins some primary it is on the front cover of every newspaper, it is the lead story of every evening news broadcast, there is a huge picture of his nasty smile and two thumbs up on every news website, and he gets more free TV time from all this than anyone! No wonder why the average American thinks that he is the "Clear Front Runner" of this GOP primary.

Now lets think about the MSM and their love for Mitt Romney. How many of you remember the headlines "Romney wins Wyonimg!!"..... yea I don't either. How many of you remember the large front page news story with a picture of Romney giving his victory speech when he won in Nevada....yea I don't either. Now just today, how many of you even knew that Romney has won in Maine because this headline is all over the evening news....yea I only know because I am an avid Romney follower. And, according to the tally that Hugh Hewitt has on his blog, if you add the 18 delegates from his win in Maine, Romney now only trails the "clear front runner" (as McCain is loudly described by the MSM) by 6 delegates going into Super Tuesday. If anyone in the MSM would give some props to Romney anywhere along the way then maybe he could have some of this excitement with the general public that McCain has gotten due to his love by the MSM. Wake up people!! If you are a conservative Romney is the only clear one to vote for. He has all the support from Rush, Laura, Sean, Hugh (conservative talk show hosts) and now he has the official backing of Rick Santorum (former PA Republican Senator), which by the way I didn't see any free air time for a special news conference for this announcement like we did with Arnold and Rudy for McCain.

The MSM will have America believe that Romney is dead in the water and that McCain has all the momentum. Well, if you just look at the facts, Romney has now won more states than McCain has and only trails him slightly in the total delegate count. I would hardly say that this means that McCain is the "clear front runner." Too bad the average American can't get their information from some better source besides the MSM.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

2008-01-31T11:59:00.000-06:00

Do you ever feel so lucky that you are surrounded by such great friends? Well, I've met some incredible people since we've moved here, they are all so nice and last night they gave me a Baby Diaper Shower. They went all out with cute decorations, great food, fun games and of course great company. Everything was perfect and I am so thankful to everyone that came! Thanks to Lyssa for the pictures, I completely forgot my camera.

This is Sandy Liddell, Hillery Ray and Kari Dawn Edmunds.

Everyone was so nice and gave such great gifts! Next to me is Linsay Jarvis, JoEllen Giani and Karrie Shirley.Isn't this the cutest cake? Linsay made this with her incredible decorating skills. She's amazing. Thanks Linsay!

This is Lyssa Zimmerman and Jami Black. They put the shower together and did such an incredible job. THANK YOU Jami and Lyssa and to all of those who helped you and to everyone that came and was so generous! You guys are wonderful!!!

Bed time

2008-01-28T22:01:00.000-06:00

Just a quick story to add to the blog (sorry for the lack of political stuff lately, I know that is what ya'll love to read). I was putting Brooklyn down to bed tonight and while we were waiting for screaming and kicking Caden to come to bed I decided to lay down by Brooklyn. So I tucked her in with her covers and layed down beside her with my face facing hers. No sooner than I had taken one breathe she said in her sweetest little voice, "Dad can you turn the other way because I don't want to smell your breathe." I guess she doesn't like the smell of roses! So I politely turned over and she just said, "thank you." Nothing like the honesty of a child.

A CHILD'S PRAYER

2008-01-23T21:05:00.000-06:00

This event happened a couple of weeks back but since we really don't have any new posts up on the blog I thought I would include it.
A couple of weeks ago I went to go play basketball in the evening at our church. The games were fun and all and when I was done I just came back home. Then next morning when I was getting ready to go to work, I noticed that I didn't have my wallet. So I looked in my gym bag where I had left my wallet from the previous night, and sure enough it wasn't in there (this is the same gym bag that I had put my wedding ring in to play basketball and ended up losing my wedding ring too!) So I looked all around the house, in my shorts pockets, my scrub pockets, trying to figure out where I put it. Finally I came to the conclusion that it must have fallen out at the church and hopefully someone found it and turned it in to the lost and found. When I got home from work that day, which was a Friday, I decided to take the kids and go down to the church to try and find my wallet while Chelsea went out to dinner with her friends. To make a long story shorter, Brooklyn said the sweetest prayer in the car before we got on our way to go to the church and asked Heavenly Father to help Daddy find his wallet. Well, needless to say, when we pulled into the parking lot that Friday evening, there in the middle of one of the parking spots was my wallet just laying on the asphault. I picked it up and showed it to Brooklyn, and immediately the biggest smile came over her face and she said, See dad I told you it would be here. Jesus made you wallet be here. The faith of a child is incredible. I learned a very large lesson that day, and it wasn't to get another gym bag because it is cursed :)

Excuse me, do I live in the United States of America?

2008-01-16T19:24:00.001-06:00

So my wife and kids were in the office of a well know government agency that shall remain nameless to protect the innocent. When I got home from work I asked her how her appointment went and she said that it was okay. She then proceeded to tell me how she was the only "white" person there and that the workers weren't the friendliest bunch (I know, I know, hard to imagine that government workers wouldn't be friendly!). She then proceeded to tell me how when she asked the workers some questions regarding the program, rather than explaining how the process works, they handed her a pamphlet to read. Well normally I guess that would be okay, except for one VERY LARGE problem this time...the pamphlet was in Spanish. When Chelsea saw this she asked the lady for one in English, and here is the kicker....they didn't make them in English!! Hello, what country am I in again? You are telling me that our own government, you know the one here in the United States of America, the one that has a national language known as English, doesn't even print the pamphlet in English! WOW! That is about all I can say. And people in this country don't think we have a immigration issue!? I was livid when I heard this and almost went to this place just to give them a piece of my mind, but then cooler heads prevailed and I let it go. But it still really bothers me that my wife couldn't get an English pamphlet from our own governmental agency. Ridiculous!

Spiderman and his Best Friend Brooklyn

2008-01-09T10:38:00.001-06:00

Caden is currently known as the super hero Spiderman. Thanks to Grandma Pam and Grandpa Richard he got some Spiderman pajamas for Christmas. They were a huge hit. He was so hyper once he put them on and he instantly pulled out all of his Spiderman "moves" as seen above. He gets pretty intense with it and it makes us all laugh.
Cade is also into hats lately. We've heard that if you read while wearing a helmet you are able to retain quite a bit more information. Wish that were true. Cade even wore Heath's bike helmet to bed the other night. It was classic, I should've taken a picture.
One of the assistants at the VA Clinic made these hats for the kids. Everyone there is so nice to our family. She did a great job and the kids love wearing them (even though it's been 75 degrees). This picture is a good representation of the friendship that Brooklyn and Cade have. Of course they have their moments, but they really do love to play with each other. The other day Cade told Brooklyn that she was pretty like the clouds and that she was his best friend. They are good at giving hugs and saying, "I love you." They are so much fun and Heath and I feel so blessed to have them!

Princess Dreams

2008-01-02T21:52:00.000-06:00

Brooklyn woke up this morning all excited to tell me about all 6 of her dreams. She goes into pretty good detail for a 4 year old. Her first dream was about visiting the play place in IKEA last weekend in Austin. That apparently was a short dream because she wasn't too enthused about it. The princess dream on the other hand, was definitely more exciting. Her eyes got all big when she told me that in her dream she was a.....(she kept me in suspense) Princess! She talked about how pretty her dress was and what color the "sparkley's" were and that there was a prince too. To top it all off, she got to kiss the Prince! And who might the handsome Prince be you ask? None other than her brother Caden! I had to laugh. She was so excited about the whole thing. Cade followed up by saying he only had 4 dreams about Lion King and Diego. It's fun to hear the kids tell me their dreams and stories they make up. Brooklyn usually talks about a Barbie or a princess and Cade's stories involve Spiderman and/or bad guys. They are too funny. We'll see what tonight's dreams hold for them. Hopefully they are all about sharing and talking kindly and cleaning up. It could happen right?

Texas High School Football

2007-12-30T17:26:00.000-06:00

So this happened a week ago, but with Christmas and all I didn't get around to posting so I thought a week late post would be okay. As many of you know we are living in Texas right now, and everything in Texas is BIG, right?! Also, as many of you know, I am a football nut. Another thing that many of you might know is that I went to the best high school in the state of Arizona when it comes to football, Mountain View (Go Toros!). So needless to say, with all of the previous facts about me and Texas it was only fitting that I had to go see the the State Championship game for 5A High School football here in Texas. I didn't want to go by myself so I thought Brooklyn would be a fun companion. Her and I made the trip downtown to the Alamodome and watched Trinity (from Dallas) defeat Judson (from San Antonio). We had a great time but I think Brooklyn was more entertained by jumping over the chairs and doing gymnastics on the railings than she was in the football game, it was still fun to have her as my date though. Here are just a couple of pictures.

Santa, are you there? Here's My Christmas Wish

2007-12-22T23:14:00.000-06:00

I know there are only a few days left till the big day, but I think I still have some time to get my wish list out to Santa. So if any of you feel like playing St Nick this year, my official request is for this...If any of you have an extra $400 lying around your bank account and that Christmas spirit of giving is touching your heart, now is your opportunity to act on that urge!

Christmas Cards

2007-12-19T20:49:00.000-06:00

We have now received several wonderful pictures of friends and family for their annual Christmas Cards. I must say you all have beautiful families, and thank you so much for putting us on your mailing list for these pictures and cards. In lieu of this new blogging explosion, I have talked Chelsea into allowing me to post our Christmas Card on the blog for all to enjoy. I know there are several of you that are going to be disapointed because now you can't hang our bright, smiley faces on your fridges, but if you are so inclined I made the picture large enough for you to print it out and do with it what you like. Merry Christmas to all. The Snell Family.

Sea World with Grandma and Grandpa

2007-12-19T20:34:00.000-06:00

As you saw in the previous post we were lucky enough to have Grandma and Grandpa come and visit us last weekend. On Saturday, we decided to brave the cold winds and make our way to Sea World. We have been there a few times now, many of which we have blogged about, but of all the times we have been there this time it was like we had the park to ourselves. I guess there were very few people crazy enough to endure the cold windy day just to get a glimpse of Shamu! Even with the winds and cold, we all had a good time.

The best part of the whole day was when we were walking into the park a random lady handed us her ticket and told us that her husband had gotten sick so he was unable to come, and she had this extra ticket that she wanted to give away! So that saved us $50! Thank you to whomever you are that was so kind to just give us your ticket for free!

Enjoy the pictures!
Brooklyn getting kissed by a Beluga Whale
Grandma getting kissed by the Beluga Whale

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HEATH!!!

2007-12-18T08:07:00.000-06:00

We celebrated Heath's 29th birthday on December 14th. His parents came which made for some great company. The kids were so excited it was his birthday. They had fun decorating the apartment for him and putting the candles in the cake (upside down). I'm sure most everyone knows what an amazing person Heath is but I'll just point a few things out. Without a doubt Heath is a wonderful father. The kids are so excited when he comes home from work. They love to wrestle with him and I always see them giving him hugs and saying, "I love you daddy!" As far as being a husband, he's perfect for me. Yeah, that may sound cheesy or whatever, but it's true. He is so thoughtful and so fun to be around. He always makes me feel good about myself and makes me want to be a better person. I am so thankful to be married to my best friend! I love you Heath!
Cade celebrated his dad's birthday by shaving for the first time. This was an early Christmas present from Grandma and Grandpa Snell (Thank you!) and he loves to shave "just yike daddy!"

Politics vs. Poo Poo Platter

2007-12-07T18:56:00.000-06:00

While those two things usually go together in most people's minds, that is not what this post is about. I just find it interesting at the response that our last two posts have received. Based on the number of comments it appears that our society is more interested in poo than politics! In a matter of days our poop story had over 10 comments and it has been five now that my declaration for Romney has been out there and only 7 comments (2 of which are mine)! C'mon people, you don't have to agree with me when it comes to what candidate to vote for, but I sure hope the lack of comments isn't a demonstration of a lack of interest when it comes to voting for our next President of the United States, especially this year when another Clinton might be stepping into the oval office (and might I add that she is by far the scarier of the two)!

Great Book. Even Better Candidate.

2007-12-03T21:38:00.000-06:00

I am reading the book "A Mormon in the White House? 10 Things Every American Should Know About Mitt Romney" by Hugh Hewitt and am absolutely loving it. Now I must admit that the book is a little biased towards Romney since Hewitt really likes him, but since I myself really like Romney I guess I like that bias. In this crazy political season, almost as crazy as the college football season, I hope everyone takes a good look at all of the candidates and picks one that you feel best represents your beliefs (and oh how I hope that none of you are voting for Hilary, Obama, Edwards, Giuliani, or McCain, but if you are there is still time to do more homework and change!) If any of you are curious about Romney, I suggest reading this book to learn more about his views and where he stands on the issues. I know a lot has been said about Romney, by his naysayers, that he is only a flip flopper and can not be trusted. I'm sorry, but I just don't see that. Yes it is true that he has realized he was wrong with his stand on abortion and has since changed, but in listening to him and more importantly seeing his voting record as governor, I truly believe that he realized he was in the wrong and thus decided to change his mind, and to me there is no fault in that. Romney would be great for this country, just as he has been for several companies, the Salt Lake Olympics and the state of Massachusetts.
Since this is a political post I guess you do have the opportunity to disagree, but if you do please post your comments for all to view. Also, please take the time to visit Celeste's Conservative Corner for excellent reading (Celeste is a friend from dental school and she has an excellent website devoted to conservative views).

Who Ordered the poo-poo platter?

2007-11-30T13:08:00.000-06:00

So Heath was actually home early yesterday (yahoo!) and so he played outside with the kids while I finished up dinner. When they came inside they showed me how they bought a candy bar from the kid next door for his fundraiser. Of course they wanted to eat it right away. It was a Caramello and they got chocolate all over their hands. It had been a few minutes since they had finished and I found Brooklyn sitting down holding her shoe licking her finger. I asked what she was eating and, "I don't know" was the response. I said it was probably dirt and asked her to stop. A few a second later she came up to me and said, "Um, mom...it was poop." Sure enough she had dog poop on her shoe that she was convinced was chocolate! That was the third time in 2 days that one of my kids stepped in dog poop. It drives me crazy that people around here don't clean up after their pets!!! So apparently my four year old isn't afraid to eat something that smells weird on the bottom of her shoe. Yuck!

It's Official!

2007-11-25T18:20:00.000-06:00

It's official! Caden is now potty trained! It's probably been 3 weeks since I got serious about it but we've been busy and not home much so I wasn't sure it would go all that well. Cade surprised me and it seems he was more than ready. He caught on so quick and (knock on wood) he has been a lot easier than Brooklyn. The other day we were at the store and I had already taken him to the bathroom once and at this point we were far away from any bathroom. Cade told me then that he needed to go poop. So we were walking to the bathroom and the WHOLE way Cade was saying in a loud voice (as hard as I tried to get him to whisper) "Mom! Poop's coming out! Poop is coming out!" It was pretty funny. Luckily we made it with time to spare. Now I can save a few bucks on diapers...at least for a few months.

Grateful Sunday

2007-11-18T20:25:00.000-06:00

I decided it's time to take a page from Stephanie Farnsworth's blog and do a Grateful Sunday post (by the way I love the idea Stephanie, I should adopt it permanently...but I'm too big of a blogger slacker for that!)

This Sunday I am grateful for....helmets! No not the kind you see on TV every Saturday and Sunday in the fall while watching the best sport known to man, but rather those kind that protect us motorcycle riders (or in my case a little 49cc scooter!) This past week I had a little "accident" while riding my scooter to work and am very grateful that I had my helmet on.

I was approaching an intersection going about 35 mph, when all of a sudden a car decided to turn left in front of me. Rather than broadsiding the car with myself and the scooter, I locked up the brakes and no sooner than I did that did the scooter slip out from underneath me and sent me flying to the ground. I immediately hit the ground and my head bounced against the road as I skidded along the asphalt. Luckily I missed the car and was actually okay. I got back up to my feet and looked over at my scooter, which surprisingly was still running, allbeit on its side. So I just went over to my scooter, picked it up, hopped back on and rode the rest of the way to work. It was really quite surreal. I guess I should have stopped a minute and got the information of the guy/girl that turned in front of me but I think I was in such shock that nothing more serious happened to me that I just got up and left. I did get some nice road rash on my elbow, hand and knee, a very large and ugly bruise on my hip, and one whopping headache, but other than that I was okay. I know that it could have been A LOT worse, and someone must have been watching out for me. Thanks to my kids for all those prayers about keeping daddy safe on his scooter! I must say, judging from the wicked bounce my head made on the road, if it wasn't for that helmet, I don't know if I would be posting this right now. Here are some pics of my minor injuries. I was also luckily wearing my big winter coat that I think padded my fall a little as well.

Picture of my scrubs with the asphalt ground in nicely and the hole in the knee

Super Why!

2007-11-17T10:43:00.000-06:00

Cade and Brooklyn love this program on PBS (I have never seen it personally), but when I get home from work Cade is always running around and yelling "superWISE" like he is some kind of superhero. He even tells me how he goes after the "bad guys." So Chelsea made both of the kids the little eye masks that they apparently wear on the show and the kids loved it. This picture is a classic as Cade loves to wear it with his Superman cape and belt (and yes we are doing the potty training thing right now so he is in his McQueen underwear).

Cade also loves to wear this new hat that I got from my brother in law, Dionys, so I thought I would post it as well because I think he looks so cute. By the way, thanks Dionys for the hat I, and Caden obviously, love that hat and it has replaced my ASU one as my #1 go to hat.

Rudy's; Great Food and Great Fun

2007-11-17T10:35:00.000-06:00

It has been a week now since we went out with the Dial's and the Giani's but I thought it would still be okay to post some pictures of our first time ever at the world famous Rudy's BBQ. We had such a fun time and thank you, thank you, thank you to the Dial's for inviting us and taking care of us. We absolutely loved the food and will definitely returning to take any family and friends along that come and visit (so all you family and friends that might be thinking of coming to wonderful San Antonio for a visit, here is one more reason to come see us!)

And to make the night complete, thanks to the Dial's who have ESPN and a DVR, we were able to watch the glorious ending to the Ohio State/Illinois game (sorry Krista).

2007-11-12T14:11:00.000-06:00

Wow, a whole week without a post...we are slacking; my apologies (that is probably a very wrong use of a semicolon, but deal with it). We were watching home movies with the kids the other day and I just thought I would put this clip up for everyone to see. We got a kick out of it. Some background first (although I bet most of you have already watched the clip and are now reading this). This video was back in Denver and Cade used to love to swing this little broken golf club around and in particular he loved to swing it at Brooklyn. It really freaked Brooklyn out, as you can hear on the video clip. The funniest thing though is what happened at the end of the clip (sorry Jocelyn if you are watching this).

Cade the Handyman

2007-11-05T12:54:00.000-06:00

So Cade went to great lengths today to try and give me the hint that he doesn't want to sleep in a crib anymore. I got out of the shower to find that he had yanked the screw from the wood and pulled the metal rail out in order to dissemble part of his crib. I was rather impressed until he started using the metal rod as a weapon. The poor kid is still in the crib and probably will be for awhile but I think I'll watch him a little closer from now on.

HALLOWEEN!

2007-11-04T15:02:00.000-06:00

We had a fun Halloween this year. The kids were so excited to dress up and say "trick-or-treat". I think they mastered it well. Brooklyn chose to be Cinderella and Cade just had to be Superman (since he has given himself that nickname).

Brooklyn couldn't wait to get her hair done and to be able to wear a little makeup. "Is everyone going to think I look so beautiful?" Brooklyn asked after she was already. Once Caden saw Brooklyn all pretty in her dress he went and gave her a big hug and said, "Brookie so pretty!"
From the moment Cade got his costume in the mail from his Grandma Pam he was SO excited. He called grandma to tell her thank you SO much. She did a great job sewing it and making it look so cute. I think Cade wore the costume for a day and a half before he would part with it. He was jumping off of everything yelling, "Superman!" Thanks Mom!

They had fun at the trunk or treat and
couldn't wait to sample their candy with their dad. Right before we left Brooklyn ran up to Heath crying because her Cinderella shoe just broke. "Now I won't look pretty anymore." she said. Good thing for Heath and duct tape!

Baseball with apples

2007-10-29T16:45:00.000-05:00

So grocery shopping is always an adventure with Brooklyn and Cade. I usually make them sit in the grocery cart whether they are crying or not-it's just quicker and easier. Well I just needed a few things today so I told them they could walk if they would listen. Yeah right! First stop, produce. Cade's eyes were glued to the apples. He heads straight for them and grabs one. I ask him to put it down and then tell him to put it down. I find myself reaching for him as his arm is cocked back ready to fire with an apple in hand. I was definitely too late. Before I could even get to him and pick up the bruised apple he was launching more. People were watching at this point and as he continues to throw I hear this lady gasping as Cade has succeeded in making applesauce on the floor and on my feet. I finally got control of the situation and had a good "talk" with Cade. As I walked away I imagined how funny the whole ordeal must have looked. A two year chucking apples as fast as he could, his pregnant mom trying to stop him, and his big sister looking on in awe wondering why mom isn't moving any faster. Quite a sight I'm sure. I hope everyone enjoyed it, especially that lady that was gasping rather loudly which probably translated into, "Get some control over you kids!" Ahh, the excitement kids bring into our lives. Gotta love it!

Goggles and Paper Hats

2007-10-25T11:14:00.000-05:00

These are just a few pictures from our trip to Mesa. The kids had a fun time in the hot tub. Brooklyn could use some help getting her goggles on right and Cade is totally posing for the camera. They had a fun time hanging out with Maya and all of their other cousins. I'll have to find some pictures of the rest of them because they are all so cute. Brooklyn and Cade already miss playing with them all. Thanks for the fun time everyone!

Isabel and Cade both fell in the pool that week. Luckily, Ondria was close by to grab Isabel and Chris sacrificed getting his clothes and shoes wet to grab Cade. Thank you Chris!

Heath will probably roll his eyes when he sees that I decided to post these pictures of Cade. I thought his "outfit" was too funny. Katie Snell helped the girls (granddaughters) make these hats in Mesa. She is extremely creative and the kids love her. Cade was rather attached to the hat as you can see. The goggles seemed to help him navigate the stroller around. He wears these goggles often and they immediately get foggy but it doesn't seem to bother him.

Soccer

2007-10-24T12:09:00.000-05:00

We have had fun watching Brooklyn play soccer this fall. She was so excited the day we bought her cleats, shin guards and a soccer ball. As soon as we got home from the store she put all of her soccer stuff on and didn't take it off until bedtime.
Her team name is the Rockets and she is playing with her friend, Bryson Simonton, which she was so excited about.
Cade loves to go on the field at half time and kick the ball around with Heath. He's actually pretty good. He loves to show his support for Brooklyn by drinking all of her water when she's not looking.
It's so fun to see Brooklyn's face when she kicks the ball. She really enjoys playing and we've had so much fun watching her.

Whitney's Wedding

2007-10-22T12:02:00.000-05:00

Well we finally made it back home. This last weekend we were out in Arizona for my little sister's sealing. It was so fun to be together with all the family and it was great to have extended family drive in from Utah and Colorado for the big event. The best thing of the whole trip was being able to sit in the sealing room of the temple with our entire family for the first time ever. Our family is so blessed and I am so grateful to wonderful parents who raised us so well. We are so lucky to have the gospel in our lives. The whole weekend was very fun, from the sealing, to the reception, to the wonderful (and famous) family "discussions". The only thing that would have made it better was if our drive home wasn't 15 hours long! Gotta love the road trips (that is a whole other post in and of itself!) Congrats Whitney and Juan.

10 year reunion

2007-10-14T21:00:00.000-05:00

So I just got back home to San Antonio from attending my 10 year high school reunion back in Mesa, Arizona. I have to say, I was excited about reuniting with old friends and to catch up on the current happenings. While the 15 hour drive over there from San Antonio wasn't the most fun thing in the world, I am very glad that I made the effort to get to the reunion. It was fun to see old high school friends and see how everyone was doing. I'm not sure what I expected out of the whole ordeal, but one thing that was surprising to me was how much people....stayed the same! I guess 10 years isn't all that long of time in the grand scheme of things, but I had just thought that more people would have changed more. Thanks to everyone who traveled to such great lengths to make it to the reunion, it was fun to see everyone. A big thanks goes out to my wife, Chelsea, for putting up first, with a 15 hour straight-through car drive with 2 kids and one on the way, and second, for staying by my side the entire night at the reunion. Sorry, I don' t have any pictures to post, but I'm sure there are several other's blogs where you can find all sorts of pictures from the event.

What's the deal?

2007-10-06T14:06:00.000-05:00

I was recently reading someone's blog who mentioned that they are gong to join the new custom to make her family's blog "private." Now, I may be the only male who follows this blogging stuff and maybe because of that my view is different than many of yours, but I just don't understand the whole "private" blog. I like blogging for the fact that it is fun to see how other people are doing and what they are up to. I have, on several occasions, stumbled on to other friends' blogs through others blogs and it is always interesting to see how they are doing. If everyone makes their blogs "private" then this will stop that real quickly and you will only be able to read about those whom you already know about. Thus canceling out the fun of happening upon old friend's blogs because you weren't personally "invited" by them. And for this reason I am resisting the "private blogging" movement and staying public!

Fun with the Farnsworth's

2007-10-06T13:54:00.000-05:00

So even though it has been a week since we went, I thought it is better late than never to post our activities. Many of you probably already read of our adventure on the Farnsworth family page, but I thought I would post our pictures as well.

Last Saturday we were able to hit up Sea World again, but this time we were fortunate enough to have fun with Dave and Stephanie and their 3 boys (such a cute family). It was so fun to introduce Chelsea and the kids and go watch the show with them. Thanks Dave and Stephanie for making the trip down here just to hang out with us!! Okay, so maybe we weren't the only reason you came down, but it was a fun morning.

Fun at the Park

2007-09-26T15:39:00.000-05:00

This last weekend we went to a little open house at Raymond Rimkus Park. The kids had so much fun. There was a magician there and I don't quite think the kids got what he was doing but they loved the balloon animals he gave out.
There was even free face painting. Brooklyn knew exactly what she wanted painted on her face and Heath and I couldn't believe how still she sat the entire time! Cade wanted a football but he got the closest thing to it I guess. Once we got home from the park, Brooklyn would go and look at herself in the mirror every couple of minutes and come back saying how cute she looked.

They love playing on this little merry-go-round thing.

This is just a random picture of the kids when we go on our walk. To be honest, our walks are few and far between. It's a little too humid for me. Not to mention this stroller is an absolute BEAST! And to help matters, the other back wheel broke this morning. I think that's supposed to make my walk more challenging and thus more beneficial. Yeah, I think I'll just go by myself next time.

The best wife? I have her!

2007-09-23T22:02:00.000-05:00

Chelsea is the best wife out there. She lets me sleep in every weekend and gets up early with the kids. Then to top it off, this morning, I was fast asleep and all of a sudden the kids come in and jump on me and say "daddy wake up. Mom has breakfast for you." Then Chelsea walks in with a hot waffle and an Orange Julius on a tray! So not only does she get up early with the kids and let me sleep, but then she brings me breakfast in bed! I'm not sure what I did to deserve such an incredible person, but whatever it was I sure am glad I did it. I got so lucky, and somehow tricked Chelsea into taking a chance on me. Thanks Chelsea, I love you.

Do you want to dance?

2007-09-23T21:14:00.000-05:00

I know I have mentioned before that I have the most prototypical "girl" and "boy" for kids. Brooklyn loves dressing up and looking in the mirror and asking how cute she looks, and Caden loves throwing balls, swinging sticks, and watching football. So to further add to why I think this of my kids I have to relate the following story that took place this morning before church.

Brooklyn had just got her dress on with her new shoes and was swishing it in front of the mirror and was all smiles. She came up to me and asked me if she looked cute, and of course she did so I grabbed her and gave her a big hug and told her she looked beautiful. She then walked out of the bedroom and into the living room where Cade was watching TV. Chelsea and I were still in the bedroom and we heard Brooklyn ask Cade in this sweet little voice, "Hey Cade, do you want to dance with me?" To which Cade immediately responds very curtly and matter of fact, "No. Watching TV."
Chelsea and I just started laughing because it was your typical girl just wanting to impress the boy and the boy not even noticing the attention the girl is seeking! It was pretty cute.