Finally some TIM time

OK OK lets be honest, all of you know that Aleca does not blog the entire truth. So while she is playing in ID. I thought I would share the real story.

First you need to understand I use 5 rules to live by:

1. Everything is fun, but we can always make it funner

2. Any expirement is fair game

3. Cheetos is considered a meal

4. If nobody dies it was sucessful

5. If we are not having fun refer to #1

That being said. We started with some expirements.

But their was a mishap. And some gamma radiation was leaked out.

(WARNING, you may need to enlarge to see that I AM flexing)

I wasn't the only casualty....

Slightly lesser known rule is 5b. That says cleaning is only effectively done in a bathing suit.

(I Love you BABY)

More to follow .....

Saga Continues

Question? What do you do when the kids don't listen?

Answer: Still working on something that will work

I have taught two girls how to ride a bike and it always goes like this. Dad: "the secret to riding a two wheeler is speed, you have to ride really fast and you will be OK, go slow and you will crash, but do fast and you will stay up." Girls: "What about stopping?" Dad: "you will figure that out pretty quick on your own." Girls: "Dad that doesn't sound right." Dad: "it is." Girls: "MOM! Dad's tring to kill me!" and then it was a slow process.

Now I decided to teach Rugby while Mom is away. Dad: "the secret to riding a two wheeler is speed, you have to ride really fast and you will be OK, go slow and you will crash, but do fast and you will stay up." Rugby: "OK"

One big push and he had it.

He did figure the stopping thing eventually.

Baby Logan...

I'm here in Idaho spending some time with my newest little nephew. If you know me, you know that I have a weakness for babies. I couldn't resist coming to take care of this tiny man in his first few days of life. This is Tim's brother's first baby and he has quite a few Taylor traits peeking through already.

If you notice he has a colic on the right side of his head. Each one of my kids have it along with many other Taylor kids.
He is a great baby and super cute.
He looks so peaceful and sleepy here. Babies are so great (especially when they aren't mine).

Cotton Candy Monster...

So, I think I figured out what you can do with all of your left over cotton candy Cheri. Just watch while this young boy consumes his weight in his newly found sweet sweet addiction. It's nothing less than amazing.

We went to a store that had hats. The kids gravitated straight to them. I think it's in their blood.
Ey Ey Captain Breckyn!
Wow-- what can you even say about this hat? Yikes!
Emerson found his new love, cotton candy. We were at a fundraiser this weekend and Grandpa bought him a bag. I think it lasted all of 20 seconds. He was mowing it like a little machine. When the first bag was done he kept badgering me to buy him another bag. With his new found sugar rush, he had lots and lots of energy to pester me with. Thanks Dad!

Zippitydo...

Here are a few more shots of the fam enjoying their time together.

Chloe has been enjoying Coop a LOT. She likes to poke at him every chance she gets.
Little Miss Thang finally got her chance in a moment of weakness from Jodi.
Cam has taken over the power wheels and is even giving rides to his big cousins.

Here is the zip line's maiden voyage. This is the stripped down version. We will be modifying it as soon as Tim gets a little time this weekend.

Even the big kids tried it out.

Coco got to give it a go too.

We also pulled out the slip and slide for a little extra entertainment.

Coop is in the house....

Cassie and her family is in town visiting this week. I just can't get enough of her new little nugget. He is so cute and very snuggly.

Look at those bright eyes!
He's all ready for a dip in the tub.
Z isn't letting him do much on his own. She has been on him like stink on a monkey.

B got a chance to hold our little guy.
...so did Yaya...
This is trouble! She loves babies and can't stop touching them!!!
Z and her newest little treasure.
Coco has taken quite a liking to the go-carts...

I'll be uploading some videos later. But, truth be told, I've been busy cooking and having fun. I'll get to it soon enough.

Just another day with the Taylors...

Breckyn is looking so grown up.
She and I spent most of the afternoon picking raspberries and catching frogs.
Rugs spends all of his free time coloring and cutting things out. His latest passion is tic-tac-toe. He challenges everyone to a game or two.
Zoey helped Rugs design this sweet pirate costume. I think she just liked saying RRRRRRRGH a lot.
Dad and Tim spent part of the afternoon installing half of the much anticipated zip line. I'll keep you posted on the progress.

bye bye birdie...

So I fixed the bird dilemma. After chopping up worms for the sixth time, I knew that this project was not for me. I had made them a little home with a light to keep them warm. I looked up on the internet how to care for them and it said that they need to eat every 15-20 minutes. I was so not into that. I've got my own babies to worry about. So I talked Tim into taking them out to a place called "Fellow Mortals." They take on baby animals of all kinds that you may come across in the wild. So I'm officially FREEEEEEEE! Bye bye birdies...

More 4th fun...

Every year the boys like to put on their own personal fireworks show for the family. It gets crazier and more daring each time they do it. It's a lot of fun and excitement for all involved. Note that they are both covered in soot from getting a little too close to the show.

Beans spent the night cruisin' on Em's bike. She even followed me inside on it.
Owen needed an emergency bath and so I got out my favorite tool to dry him off. It's Tim's backpack blower-- it's awesome!
Em wasn't too sure about the fireworks. We finally talked him into doing the poppers with the other kids. After that first plunge he really got into it. This is his face telling me that it's "not a good idea!"
The kids were all watching one of those expanding fireworks. They affectionately named it the "poop worm."
Our brave kids getting front row seats to the nutters big show.

baby birdies...

We have been landscaping at the church all week long and today we found these. I was trimming a bush and a little baby bird fell out. I looked a little closer and found a nest with another bird. We got them out because the nest was disturbed and the mom had left. We got a Kleenex box and some fluffy stuff. I called Breckyn over and put her in charge of our new babies. She was loving it. We brought them home and I now have them on the kitchen counter with a light over them. I have already gone on two worm digging expeditions. I've actually chopped up the worms for these two little things. They are eating well and drinking water. I'm not sure what else to do with them. If we would have left them they would have died for sure. But now I find myself left with two birds I'm not really sure what to do with. Any suggestions? I remember trying this a few times as a kid and it never really worked out. I'm hoping to prevent that this time for my kids. What to do?

Gettin' too big for her britches...

It has occurred to me as of late, that little Miss Breckyn is growing up. She is starting to notice things around her and have adult opinions to share with everyone.

The other day I had to babysit for some kids from church. They were at our house all day and part of the night. B kept pressing me for answers about why these kids were with us for so long. She wanted to know what kind of mom would just drop her kids off for the day. I kept giving her the P.C. answers not wanting to share the intimate details of this ladies problems with my 8 year old. Finally after the millionth time of getting the soft answers from me she says, "Come on Mom, what's the real story here?" I'm not sure how she knew there was drama but she noticed and the rest of the kids didn't care a bit.

Earlier this week after a long day of yard work, we sat down to dinner. Tim was out of town and I had been pulling weeds and landscaping at our church all day with the kids. When it was time for dinner, I was pooped. I decided to go with P.B.J.'s, yogurt and apples. The other kids started getting squirrely as we are eating and Breckyn says, "Guys, quiet down and eat. Mom's tired and she needs us to be good." Z says, "Yeah, right! How do you know that?" Breckyn replied, "I know Mom's tired because we are having sandwiches for dinner. If she weren't so tired we'd be having something way better than this." She was so right on and I didn't even have to say a word.

My baby is getting too old....

Happy 4th

We spent our 4th at Jodi's house. She lives right across from the park that puts on all of the big fireworks for Elkhorn. We got front row seats from her back yard. It was awesome! Em on the prowl for cool bugs.
The boys were loving all of the freedom and good food.
The girlies spent the evening in pursuit of lightening bugs. They caught quite a few. Breckyn claims that this is her favorite night of the year because she can stay up late and catch bugs.
Beans was the funniest kid to watch the show. She kept yelling, "again again!" She loved all of it-- even the loud noises. When the fireworks started we had a captivated audience. The kids were mesmerized and so were we.

Happy Fourth of July!!!

Random...

I just recently did a little surfing on itunes and found something really great. John Mayer released an acoustical album with some pretty awesome tracks. One of the new ones was "Free Falling." If any of you are around my age you will really enjoy this new version of an old classic. Check it out-- you won't be disappointed!

Head Trauma-rama...

Enthralled in his game of freeze tag Sunday night, Rugby ran full force into the T.V. hutch. His noggin caught the corner and he had a huge welt the size of a golf ball on his forehead. It was red and looked like it was going to burst. I bombarded him with a really lot of ice and called to Tim to get the flashlight to check if his eyes were dilating. The other kids saw all of this and had some major questions about the whole flashlight deal. After the trauma had settled Tim proceeded to give the kids a rather lengthy dissertation about dilation, concussions, brain damage blah blah blah.... The loved it because they think their Dad is a scientist you know. They are sure that he knows everything. Tim was rather proud of how well his rambling was received and he ended the night on a high pridefull note.


Fast forward to the next morning....


Rugby comes into our room yelling, "Daaaaaaad! Emerson hit his head downstairs and his eyes aren't dilating!!! I think his brain is wrong! Come check with your flashlight!"


Perhaps he took the science lesson one step too far this time...

pretty pretty Sunday...

I thought I'd catch the munchkins while they were looking clean and not in swimsuits.

B and Z looking so old (and still matching... which is getting to be a rare thing these days)
The squirrely twins...
Emerson and his attitude as of late. It's been an adventure to say the least...

Summer fun pies...

My mom has a legendary apple pie recipe that everyone always goes nuts over. I thought I'd give it the old Leca twist and try it a new way. Instead of making the recipe with apples I tried peaches and strawberries. (separate of course) It makes for a fun twist on an old favorite. They smell heavenly and I'm ever so proud of my new found fun.

Mom's recipe goes like this...

Mom's Dutch Apple Pie

Mix...
6-8 apples pealed, cored and sliced (the thinner the better)
2/3 C. Sugar
2 Tbs. Flour
3/4 tsp. cinnamon

Place apple mixture into uncooked pie crust.

Topping...
3/4 C. flour
1/3 C. sugar
1/2 C. butter

Place mixture over the top of apples and bake @ 400 degrees for 45-50 minutes.





My twist was using different fruit and leaving out the cinnamon. It is a fun way to include a little fresh summer fruit into your baking. Next time I'm going to try raspberries. It's almost picking season in our yard! Enjoy!

Dancing Queens...

This is it, the blog you have all been waiting for..... the big dance show! The girls have been working very hard on their routines and today was their day to strut their stuff. Here is the whole dance class. (...and yes, they were all just as excited as B and Z)
Z was stoked but, B was a little nervous. Zoey picked out just the right hair accessories so she would look good on stage. They all taped and spray painted matching shirts in class for the finishing touch. They wore their shirts like a giant badge of honor. They were just so proud of themselves and it shows in their dancing.

This is the pom pom routine...

This is the infamous hip hop routine...

summer buzz...

Here are a few pictures from our lazy summer...

The Beans...
Jodi let me borrow this sweet hammock. I'm in love with it!
Em kickin' it in the pool...
We've taken the kids to pick strawberries this year and yesterday we went back for more. They are the most fragrant smelling red juicy sweet strawberries I have ever had. You'll have to come to Elkhorn to enjoy them with us. We were having "who can pick the biggest" contests with the kids. It was a lot of fun for all.

For family night tonight I decided it was time for a lesson in manners and etiquette. So, I dusted off my china and fancy glasses and started our lesson. We talked all about the dos and don'ts of table manners. They really enjoyed it (mostly because of the fancy glasses).

Here they are using utensils and all of their best manners.
B and Z thoroughly enjoyed telling the boys what really happens in a fancy restaurant. Em drank his weight in juice and never really made it to the food part.
Their reward for making it through dinner without incident was going out for ice cream. It gave them another chance to practice in public. Em tried not to get messy but he perhaps set the bar too high by ordering a dip cone.
Mr. Cool was all about behaving for ice cream (and trying what everyone else got... a boy after my own heart).
What could be better than ice cream?

Mr. Taylor enjoyed his reward just as much as the kids did (and he didn't even get any on his face). Go Team Taylor!