Three Little Monkey's for Halloween!

Three Little Monkey's jumping on the bed...

One fell off and bonked her head!

Momma called the Doctor...

and the Doctor said...

"NO MORE MONKEY'S JUMPING ON THE BED!!"

Indiana Jones was too cool to be a monkey with the family

Eating the witches brew before trick or treating

Jackson wanted to be a monkey for Halloween this year so the rest of us went along with it.  I love all my little monkey's!

Fall Break in Show Low

The kids get a week off of school each October for Fall Break.  This year we tagged along with Matt up in Show Low.  Show Low is part of his territory and he had some work to do up there.  We drove up with him and played around a little.  Just staying in a hotel makes it a fun vacation for the kids.

We stopped at the Salt River Bridge and hiked down to the river.

We walked across the old bridge and bought some jewelry from the indians.  The kids each got a turtle made of different stone.

We had to eat at Grumpy Jackson's.. I mean Grumpy Jakes.

We went to Show Low's Family Fun Center for a round of Mini Golf.  Both Audrey and I got a hole in one!  

Day at the Zoo

For Fall Break we got together with Jackson's joy school group and headed to the ZOO!  The kids loved feeding the ducks and fish. Jackson couldn't get enough of  watching them gobble up and fight for the food.

Audrey and the girls doing their flamingo impersonation.

Jackson and his friends looking at the zebras.  

The kids favorite was watching the giraffes eat and the elephant trying to get in to the garbage.

Adult Halloween Party

We were invited to an adult Halloween Party.  Hey, we can have fun too right?

Harmony and Andrew as Kermit and Ms. Piggy

Matt as Steph as Speedy Gonzolez and his cousin Slow Poke Rodriguez.  I proved to be quite  "speedy" when I won at musical chairs!

Each couple brought a pumpkin that represented themselves... guess who?

Tim won most outrageous as the "Unibomber' and Rebecca won Best individual as 'Cruella'

Ruthann and Joe won best couple as Popeye and Olive Oil.

Finding Joy in the Journey!

Blake was reading the Oct. Friend (like always) and came across a story that inspired an idea.  Just like in the days of  King Benjamin when the families all gathered. They set up their "tents" to hear the Prophet speak.

Blake asked if we too could set up a tent to hear our prophet speak during conference.

The kids got their blankets, paper and pencils and set up camp in the family room.

When Pres. Monson gave his talk on "FINDING JOY IN THE JOURNEY", I had to smile as I watched my children's little feet hanging out of the back of their homemade tent...one of the many, many joys in my journey.

How blessed I feel to have the love and guidance from such an amazing man.  Pres. Monson's words are truly a blessing to me and I will reflect on them often, now and for many years to come.  

"If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled (and may I add; the messy forts in the family room-chairs, books, sheets, blankets, and pillows strewn about everywhere), will disappear all too soon and that you will- to your surprise- miss them profoundly."

"This is our one and only chance at mortal life- here and now.  The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief.  Opportunities come, and then they are gone.  I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not.  I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do.  Instead, find joy in the journey- now."

Pres. Thomas S . Monson Oct. 2008 Conf.

Top 4 things Chase loves to do!

Chase's very favorite thing in the whole world is his brothers and sister.  He lights up when they enter the room and each one can get him giggling until he can't breathe.  Kid number four has been a piece of cake because he has so much entertainment and I have built in babysitting!

Chase loves to play and chew on anything he can get his hands on but one of his favorite toys is his 'Jump Jump'!  Grandma Jones got a fancy one for him that lights up and sings.  This is mom's other back-up babysitter.  Chase has even put himself to sleep in this thing.

Chase loves bath time!  He kicks and kicks and he never cries when we dump water over his head to wash out the soap.  He seems to be getting baths a lot lately since he's been trying new foods.  Frequently we find surprises shooting up out the top of his diaper!

Of course Chase is a Cannon so he loves to eat!  I bet you couldn't tell by his slim figure but it's true.  Believe me, he lets you know when he's hungry!