Tirzah Girl

My sister Bethie took these pictures a couple weeks ago when she was over...they are just so Tirzah! She is quite the cutie!

Sneak Peek of Newborn Photo Shoot

How I love my little Chloe...she is gaining quite fast--she is already over 8 pounds and she was 6 pounds 2 ounces when she was born. She is four weeks old and eats great! Here are a few picture my sister Beth took yesterday...

The Most Amazing House Party Ever!!!!

 I'm not sure if you all remember me talking about the company called House Party in the past but after this post I bet you'll all be interested in paying them a visit!

House Party makes it easy to have a party in your own home and get exclusive access to awesome products for you and your friends. They provide the fun, you provide food, your friends and feedback and promise to have an amazing time.The parties are sponsored by the brands you love. By hosting, you and your guests get to try their products and receive an incredible Party Pack chock full of goodies! You don’t pay anything or sell anything. It’s a no-pressure party. Just tell us what you and your guests think.

Doesn't that sound like fun? Trying new products for free and having people over to enjoy them as well and share the goodies they send you??? House Party has quite the variety of companies that you can apply to host for... I usually only apply for ones I am really interested in and I have been chosen several times I have done a Shutterfly party (people got free photo books), a Walgreens party where I had all sorts of samples of their food and other things, I also did one for SpinMaster's Games where they sent me two brand new board games to try out, and I did one for Philadelphia Cooking Creme to try out their new sauce and it came with an amazing cooking pan...so I've done a few and enjoyed them and I've applied for others and been denied so don't be discouraged, I've always wanted to do a Ball's Canning party and get their kit but I haven't been selected yet.

Well, I am a host for the Fisher Price party coming up and let me show you what they sent my family!!!

We got two boxes in the mail, one had all sorts of things to give out to the kids who came to the party--coloring book, a cute dvd, a cd of kids songs, a Little people car, a catalog and some coupons along with the bag and tissue paper to prepare to give people. Then came this huge box--57lbs...and it was like Christmas in September!

Look at Gideon and Tirzah staring into the box, they had so much fun helping Daddy unpack and share in the excitement of each new toy! I have to say the amount of toys they sent is overwhelming!

So they sent a Little People race track with some toy cars, and a Little People princess castle with some extra princesses, a kitchen table/stove that has a bunch of cooking items and then five accessories to go with the table: a tea set one, an ice cream set, a barbeque, a birthday cake and baby food one. Can you believe all the toys???? We can't, we feel ever so blessed! We will be sharing the toys in the future with friends and probably putting some at the chapel where more kids besides ours can benefit! Fisher Price has been so generous and this is definitely been the best House Party ever...if you want an invite to the party let me know, its coming up in a couple weeks..

This is one of the toys set up, Joshua has been wonderful setting them up...we did two of them last night and set up the table tonight...the kids have had so much fun!!!! So let me encourage you once again to go out to House Party and look around and start applying to host parties, there is no cost and you get to try some great products. And let me tell you their parties work, I have been reading all week about people who are hosts of the parties that have gone out and bought many more Fisher Price products that they have seen through the party page and catalog...and this is before the party, so they are making money as well! So everyone is happy!

Fall Friendship Swap

So I don't know if you remember last year but I participated in an event called the Fall Friendship Swap...it was so much fun and is happening again this year and I urge you to participate. It is where you get paired up with a person and you both prepare a box of fall decorations, goodies, scents, etc to send to one another! It makes you eager to start decorating yourself and to get in the fall mood and you get to share your creative crafts or food with someone else.

Here is the website where you can sign up: Fall Friendship Swap

Here is what I did last year and what I got: My Box and something I made last year

Three Cute Children--I love them so much

It is quite the adjustment having three busy children...Chloe feeding, holding and changing...Tirzah needing some Mommy time and constant supervision and Gideon always wanting someone to admire his playing! But we are learning...the older children love their baby sister and love being involved with burping her, talking to her, watching her or bathing her. Yesterday I was able to get some adorable sibling pictures, Chloe now being wide awake for longer and very happy!Oh and I LOVE how babies make such funny expressions but can't talk so you can make up what you think they are saying...

How did I get held by my big sister?

Help...

Notice Chloe's hand--help me Mommy!

Then she said she'd had enough...

Um, excuse me, can I be taken away from my little older brother?

Family Gathering at a Funeral

Some of my family had not met Chloe yet when we all gathered on Saturday for the funeral of Pam Martin, the woman who has been living with my family for the past few years. She had been yearning to go home to the Lord and it was time, so although we are so sad because we love her, we are just as happy as we know she is so much happier and better off with her Savior. My whole family was there so Auntie Maddie and Uncle Jonathan got to finally meet their niece. Also it was wonderful to see Bobby, Bency and little Zach! He's so big and cute!

Zach and Pops

Daddy with Tirzah and Gideon

Uncle Brandon with Chloe

Aunt Maddie and Chloe

Mommy and her sweet baby

Bobby, Bency and Zach

Spanish Missionary Night

Joshua has been in charge of what is called the missionary night once a month at prayer meeting for a very long time. We used to have a fellowship meal on those nights but we haven't done that in a long time. Joshua and I have been praying for a long time about trying to revive interest in missions and making the prayer night more interactive and interesting. So last night was our first try.

Decorations and people...Jesse is always camera ready!

We had a night focused around the country of Spain. We decorated the room with the flag and colors and then Joshua and I fixed a meal that is common in Spain called a Spanish tortilla with sofrito (the tortilla is not what you would expect--it is made of egg, potato, cheese, onions, etc.) and then the sofrito consists of rice with a tomato topping. Spain has little to do with the Mexican culture except similar languages...Recipes can be found here: Spanish tortilla and Sofrito

Three weeks old today

We had preciously contacted the missionaries in Spain and asked for specific prayer requests and challenges they face in Spain. So we read aloud the challenges at dinner and then I had printed off a sheet of prayer requests for each person and those were read during the prayer meeting later.

Sofrito

Overall it was a great success and we are looking forward to next month doing it again except picking a different country!

Joshua's 30th Birthday Party

 We had a wonderful celebration of Joshua's birthday on Monday. We had over many friends and grilled some chicken for delicious fajitas. We had fresh salsa and a yummy mango salsa that is very spicy but the sweetness just makes an incredible combination. We ate and played outside, the little ones running around and the older ones playing corn hole. We had strawberry pies and sang happy birthday. Sadly I don't have a lot of pictures as my camera is halfway broken so sometimes it works and sometimes if doesn't. Later we played Paplitos (little slips of paper) which is a hilarious game of telephone on paper...it makes for quite a few laughs. Joshua also got his big birthday present that many contributed to (thank you everyone) yesterday--an ipad! He was having fun exploring it yesterday...so Joshua has left his 20's behind him and ventured into the 30s...he doesn't look it and he's accomplished quite a bit! Happy Birthday Joshua!

Michael and Katelin

Aunt Jamie and Chloe

Gideon with his foaming Hippo

Cousin Judah