Siesta from Blogging

So sorry folks for my siesta from blogging but frankly, so much has happened that is has become a little overwhelming to try to catch up. I will try to slowly add those pics and stories that we've enjoyed (and some that we haven't) a bit at a time.

Magpie's!

O.k. folks, here's some more pictures of our little Magpie's. Sparky Sir Poops-a-lot is on the left and Erin Betelgeuse (pronounced Beetle Juice) is on the right. Our kids helped pick the names, no more explanation needed. Sir Poops-a-lot is the Wray's little addition and Betelgeuse is our little addition. We trade off every other day caring for them. So, the fun story behind these little guys is that Magpie's have always been one of my favorite birds. I even painted a picture of them in collage (I will locate it and post it later). I love how pretty they are and yet they're basically considered nuisance birds. They are related to crows and ravens and are actually extremely smart. They can talk if their tongue is split but that probably won't be happening with ours. They have such funny personalities. They love to pester other animals and occasionally people. They kind of remind me of me I guess. Anyway, I have always said to James that I would love to have one as a pet. Then a few days ago, there were two fledglings and a mother bird that were hanging around our house. One of them got caught in the window well and I had to get it out. I could have kept it, I suppose, but that would have been kind of like kidnapping. Then just a day or two later, we found these little guys. Ah, tender mercies. I love how God knows us, even down to a love of Magpie's.

Unplanned New Addition!!!

We have an announcement to make! However, it may not be quite the typical one. Instead of baby buggies, bottles, and diaper changes, it's home made nests, chopped up worms and who knows what else. These little additions came about when we innocently decided to take a nice Sunday stroll. We joined a couple of the neighbors on our walk. And little did we know what we would be coming home with. On the way home, our neighbor Chad spotted something unusual. On the ground beneath a very tall tree were two helpless baby birds. For what ever reason, out of the nest they had tumbled. Spotting the nest was impossible, let alone finding it in order to return the babies. (Contrary to popular belief, the mother will accept babies back even if they have your scent on them. They just have to be warm). We stood there not really knowing what to do but not wanting to leave them there to die. On a whim I asked James what he thought of trying to save the one that looked to be in healthy condition. The smaller one was almost completely bald and flopping around. We were certain it was injured. Chad and James discussed how we could possibly put it out of it's misery and who would get the nasty job. As they discussed I picked up the healthier looking one and began to walk home with it, a gleam in my eye and feeling a bit crazy. I couldn't think about the other one. I just had to leave. Then to my surprise, Chad decided he would have a go with the "injured one". He scooped it up and we were off. Now several days later to our complete surprise they are both alive and doing well. We have lovingly cared for them; feeding them pureed dog food and veggies, chopped up worms, and yes, even spam. They are omnivores so they eat just about anything but we have to start with pureed stuff because they are still so young. Now several days later, the one we thought was injured is just fine, he was just so young he couldn't sit at all. Their feathers are coming in very fast and they are so much fun. They like to cuddle and seem to like us quite well. We will post updates on them. Hopefully they will live. Oh, forgot to mention, they are Magpie's. There is more to that but I will talk about it later.

A Post of their Own

O.k. I really felt these pictures deserved a post of their own. Flashback...While on choir tour in high school we all went to the beach and all of the boys decided to play football. Well, James and I had just started dating (halfway through our Senior year) and I thought he was so good looking out there playing football that I just had to take a few pictures of him. I snapped one that ended up making James look like a regular super model but alas, I searched in vain for it and it is no where to be found. Anyway, that pic was the inspiration for me asking James to run on the beach in Grand Cayman so I could take some pictures. Thanks to my husbands inability to take anything seriously, and the joys of getting old and white, these splendid jewels of perfect form are the result.

My personal favorite.

VACATION!

o.k. I really stink at blogging when it comes to adding pictures in any type of sensible arrangement. But here are random shots of our wonderful vacation in April. I will add more details and more pictures about the trip soon.

Born to Model

I know what you are all thinking right now. "Where did this guy come from!" and "Holy cow he is hot!" Here's some pics that just prove James was born to be a model. But we chose a different path in life and instead he enjoys writing religiously fanatical blogs and reading his scriptures all day. What a waste of pure talent. What a waste...what a waste.

Family Portraits

I take a while to get around to some things but here are our family portraits that we took in the fall. I thought that they were so cute of the kids but we just barely got them printed and hung up in the house. There's a couple more that I want to share but I will post them in a separate entry because they deserve a post of their own. We took these along with our friends whose pictures we were also taking that day.

Mommy's Little Ponies & Faithly Scriptures

Kids are so fun when it comes to linguistics. I just have to tell these two little stories because they are so cute. First of all, Maillie loves "My Little Ponies" movies and is always wanting to watch them. When the kids are choosing a movie Maillie always announces that she wants to watch "Mommy's Little Ponies." I've heard her do this numerous times and thought it was cute and that she just misheard the title. One day I decided to correct her. I said, "No, Maillie, it's called My Little Ponies." She then announced to everyone again, "Ya, I want to watch that one, Mommy's Little Ponies." We had a good chuckle when the light finally turned on and we realized she wasn't mishearing the title but misunderstanding it. So cute. She still calls it Mommy's Little Ponies.

Andrew doesn't do this anymore but for quite a while after he started learning English he refered to the scriptures as the "faithly scriptures." We'd gather together for family circle (song, scriptures, and prayer before bed), and Andrew would ask if we were going to read the "faithly scriptures." Not exactly sure where it came from but it was cute while it lasted.

Highly Cultured?

Here's some pics of our kids enjoying a movie...

Here is the movie that they happen to be watching.


So when my four year olds start asking to watch Pride and Prejudice over Care Bears what exactly does that mean? Oddly enough, our kids love that show. They don't always make it through it all but they do request it occasionally. They love the music, dancing, and smiling lovely people. Who doesn't love Pride and Prejudice?

Eight is Great!

Well folks, we have certainly hit a mile stone in life. Our oldest child just turned eight! Mills turned eight on March 1st 2008 and got baptized that same day. It was such a great day. We had most of our family here from both sides. Mills' cousin Natasha (who was born on the same day and in the same hospital as Mills) came down from Logan to be baptized here so that we could kill two birds with one stone. The day began with Mills' birthday party with a few friends and her siblings. After that was over we had to run some errands. While we were out the weather was nice yet Mills was worrying that something would stop her from being baptized. She said, "What if a big wind storm comes?" I said, "That's o.k., the baptism is inside so you'll still get baptized." She replied, "But what if it's really bad?" I said, "Don't worry, nothing can stop you from being baptized today." She went on, "But what if it's a tornado?" I said, "Rain or shine, you're gettin' baptized today! The Lord will protect you." We then went to her friend Rilee's birthday party (who was also being baptized that day, though we couldn't attend). We came home to family starting to arrive. Little by little, the wind began to blow and the temperatures started to dip as Mills proved to be prophetic. We got ready for the baptism and by the time we headed over to the church the wind was blowing like crazy and snow was starting to fall. Never the less, little Madison got baptized and was throughly thrilled. She has been waiting for this day for about four or five years. After it was over I asked her how she felt and she said that she felt like her chest was on fire, but in a good way.

I'll post baptism pictures when I have them.