COMPUTERS- Can we live without them for more than a week?

Well, we can answer that question and it is a great big NO! How did we become so dependent upon technology? I am finally posting after a very long time. There are many reasons why it has been so long. 1-My new preschool is taking a lot of time, mainly lesson planning; 2-New calling at church; 3-My camera is being funny and I can't get pics onto my computer. So, bottle all these things up and you all have to go without a post for a long time. And now here I am and I bet you're thinking - finally we are going to get some more posts. Well, our computer has finally given up. We have been without a computer for a little more than 2 weeks. It has been extremely hard! I am currently trying to find a talk show that asks if you can live without a computer and then Oprah comes out and gives all the participants a free computer!! I am here and ready, they wouldn't even have to wait to do their show, I have already done the hard part. Unless you don't want to know anything about the world or keep in touch with those that you can't via the phone (this includes mothers with kids at home, we all know what happens with kids when that phone rings!) this is completely impossible.
I am currently at my mothers typing this. Hopefully I can get a few pics up of the last few months, I know I feel so bad that it has been months since I put pics up. I am only here for 2 days, so I will see what I can do. But after that I can't promise when we will be back online. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season. Hopefully we will be back before then, but if we aren't we wish you a very happy holiday.

Listen to this!!!

I don't recall who told me about this, but Thank You! I love this arrangement. It is absolutely beautiful and energizing. I so wish that I still played the viola when I hear songs like this. This is a time when my music teacher and mother were right: I would end up regreting that I didn't put more into my playing.
Enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfH2BY5pdLw

Finally- Pictures

I finally got pictures put on CD. So here are a ton of them! Our summer has been filled with so many different things. Here is a little of what we have been up to:


Over the summer Evan has become my little scientist. He want to try experiment with something every day. Here he wanted to mix water, salt and food coloring! When nothing happened he put in more colors and then some sugar. Nothing! Then he put it outside to see what heat would do. The great thing about it was that every time there was no reaction, he didn't get frustrated. I hope he keeps up the experiments(to an extent!).



Evan was a trooper and volunteered to help me snap beans. I wanted to freeze them so that we can have fresh beans in the winter. We love crunchy beans! We also froze broccoli and blueberries. Our garden was good to us, as long as we remembered to water him. We had a strawberry almost every morning waiting for us. I was trying it out to see how well they would do, next spring I will have to plant a lot more of those. Natalie and Evan were always trying to get more. My raspberry plant didn't make it, but I forgot to water it for a little while. But the blackberry bush is taking over. Hopefully in the spring we will have some blackberries!!!! I really want to plant in Sept, but not sure what is good to plant in the fall here. If any of you have let me know, otherwise I will be doing some research in that area.


We spent a lot of time swimming. We probably went to our pool 3-4 times a week, plus throw in a water park here and there. I didn't realize until moving to Texas how much I love swimming and being in the water. Zach and Evan loved the slides, as did Dad! And this water park was great, it has water slides for all ages and all fear levels. I was impressed at some of the ones Zach went on. We spent forever there and then we come home and zonked out!

highlight of our summer- Disneyworld!!! Gabriel and I were talking and realized that we have gone probably 4 times, but always quick trips. This time we went and were able to spend some nice quality time at the parks and with his parents. The kids still managed to have more fun splashing in puddles and goofing around. It rained pretty hard 2 days we were there.

We did a late night swim, which the kids thought was great! To them it was like getting away with something! Zach and Evan's highlight was driving the little boats with Grandpa and Dad.

And Natalie's was seeing the characters. She had to give everyone a hug!

Our summer is almost over and I can't believe the end is near. I loved having my kids home this summer. I am not ready for them to start school. I wish I could home school them. It is very tempting at times. School starts on the 25th and I am so sad, but I will have something to fill Nat's and my time --I am starting a preschool out of my home this year. I am very excited and a little nervous. I have always wanted to do this, it has been a dream of mine for years. I just hope I can recruit enough kids to make it work. Wish me luck!!

Pres. Hinckley Quote

Recently I read a book with quotes from Pres. Hinckley and his wife. They were all directed to women and were very comforting. I would love for everyone to hear them, but don't want to overwhelm you with a ton of quotes. So, I will try to post 1 a week and hope that you find comfort and strength as I did in reading them.

My dear sisters, you marvelous women who have chosen the better part, I stand in great admiration for all that you do. I see your hands in everything . . . Many of you are mothers, and that is enough to occupy one’s full time. You are companions – the very best friends your husbands have or ever will have . . . You are nurses. With every illness that comes along, you are the first to be told about it and the first to respond with help. In cases of serious sickness, you are the bedside day and night, comforting, encouraging, ministering, praying.

Mission memory

Part of my mission in Chicago was spanish speaking and I loved it! The people love to give us something when we would leave their houses. One of my fondest memories was when they would give us mangoes. Of course we wouldn't have knives with us to cut them open. So, my companion and I would peel them with our teet and then savor every last bite we could get. I recall the juice just running down our arms and dripping off our elbows. They were so good!

Well, I read a post on a friends blog a while ago about a mango and it brought back this memory. It had me craving a mango, but they are expensive. Then our farmer's market had them on sale 3/$1. I jumped on it! I tried to get my picky eaters to try it. My die hard fruit boy took on the challenge. He was skeptical, but once he took a bite he was hooked. In 1 day we had all 3 eaten. And today at the store he saw them again and he begged me to get more, lucky for him they are still on sale. I picked out 1 and then had a hard time finding another. I thought he was going to break down right there in the store over a mango! Don't worry I found 2 more good ones and all is good. When I tried to calm him down he says, "I don't think I can eat anything else unless I get more of those." What do I do next week when the mangoes aren't on sale?
But I am glad that he enjoys them as much as I do.

Pay It Forward

A few of my fellow bloggers have had this up and I am taking the challenge also. I like how it was worded on one blog "that we can do two things: 1) Find value in homemade again and 2) Send something to people without needed reward."

Here's the deal. The first 5 people to leave a comment here will get a homemade gift from me. The only catch is that you have to pay the gift forward by reposting this on your blog. I will check to make sure you've done so. I don't know what the gift will be, but it will be homemade. I'll get it to you sometime soon. I don't promise you'll love it, but I'm not going to make you something I think you'll hate, either, because that would be like an un-gift and defeat the entire purpose.

Let's have some fun.

Happy Birthday Natalie!!!

I can't believe it has been 3 years since this day! This is our little girl and she has been so fun, but a lot more work than my 2 boys.


The day before her birthday we went to the mall and passed this cookie shop. They had this cookie in the window and the kids loved it. How funny that they would have this up right before her birthday! What a nice surprise!


We celebrated her day on Monday, since I was no where close to do it on Sunday. She went with me to one of her favorite places: the dentist. I was due for a cleaning and she wanted hers done again! Then we went and got ice cream to go with her cake and had lunch. The boys went with Gabe to get Natalie something. The boys loved showing her how to open her presents. She loved what they picked out: a princess tent, a barking dog (her pet), and a Diego game. Life is good at the Peterson home!

The "icing on the cake" was her castle cake. She picked this out days ago and couldn't wait for me to make it. She asked everyday if we could make her cake. It didn't turn out exactly how I wanted it; 1-I didn't have the right size pans & 2-I had 2 anxious boys who wanted to help decorate it. They did the purple tower tops and the flower and vines all over the cake. I love to make a master piece and so as they were deciding where to put the purple tops and the flowers and such I cringed! But I kept reminding myself in 10 years what do I want them to remember from this moment;1-a mom who is extremely picky about where a purple cone is placed or 2-a fun time decorating their sisters cake. I opted for the 2nd. We had fun and I was able to do most of it while she napped!

A perfect ending to a perfect day!

Something new

Dad gave Zach a new chore to do the other day. Zach was really excited before he started. I don't think he lasted 5 min. Can you tell he was not having fun? But it probably didn't help that I picked the hottest day and the hottest time to have them out there working.
So. . . . Evan said he wanted a turn. And he loved it! He wanted to do more and more. I was kind of worried about him pushing up the hill, he is so little and it looked like it would just run him over. But he told me when we were done that next time he wants to be able to mow more.

Natalie has very little hair, as most of you know. She just turned 3 and for the first time, on her birthday, I was able to put two little pigtails! I was so excited that she actually has enough hair for 2! It was fun to actually play with her hair. I only hope that she will let me for a few years.

catch up!!

Here is a lot of catch up- sorry! I don't know what happened to me. There is more than this, but that will come up tomorrow or the next day, we shall see.
I sent the kids outside to play one day, shortly after Gabriel had put our bird bath in the back yard. He cleaned it all out and had it looking very nice. Well, I went outside to check on the kids after a few minutes and this is what I found. They dumped their bubbles in the bird bath and proceeded to play! Gabriel had to wash it out again!

Our dinosaur find!

After a walk with Dad one day Evan came home convinced he had found a dinosaur bone on a dirt road by our house. He asked for day to go and dig it up. Finally he took his counter partner and tools in hand he did it. He did it so carefully with a digging tool you get with one of those toy dinosaurs that you dig out, a sponge brush and a shovel.

And this is what he found! He says it is the head of a small dinosaur. Do you think we should turn it into a museum?

Dentist Visits

Natalie begged to have her teeth cleaned after watching her brothers. The office was so nice and got her right in. She loved sitting in the chair with those glasses that are too big for her. She let them clean her teeth and even take x-rays of her front teeth. She woulnd't go for the flouride tray. But I will take what she did do. That is more than my boys did before they were 5 and she just turned 3!

Trips!!!

This is why I have been so busy lately.

1-My dryer!!! Yes, I am still trying to fix it. I can't tell you how many time I have taken it apart. I think I have called the appliance place so many times the lady is ready to have my number blocked.

2-Sports. Both boys are involved in sports, 2 different and somehow they end up at the same time. Soccer has ended, baseball is still going. They keep cancelling due to weather. But for now we are scheduled to end on the 28th, as long as they don't reschedule beyond that.
3-Trips

SAN DIEGO

In April Gabriel and I celebrated our 10th anniversary. Considering we can fly anywhere and we have never taken advantage of that together, Gabriel surprised me with a trip to San Diego. And he even arranged for a couple friend of ours, who also is celebrating their 10th anniversary this year, to meet us there. We were limited on time, but we had a wonderful time there. It was absolutely gorgeous and the weather was wonderful. Our friend, Brandon, had done research on restaurants and they all turned out to be really good. We stayed at a hotel right on the bay across from Coronado Island and we took a ferry over to the island. We saw the Coronado hotel and walked along the beach. It was so nice to not have kids and just enjoy ourselves.

There is a funny story about this hotel and me, but I will only tell you if you ask. Angela and I got the biggest laugh out of it. I will just say, I didn't do research like her husband did.
We saw this statue by some other military sights and I thought it was hilarious. The thing was huge! Come to find out it is on loan. So, hurry on over to San Diego to get a look.

Good food, good friends and good times. Thanks Brandon & Angela, we can't wait till our next trip!

CHICAGO

Gabriel and I both served missions for our church in Chicago. We have been telling our kids for a couple of months now about Chicago pizza(our kids love pizza). They have been waiting very patiently. So, when the swine flu hit and they closed the schools for a week we decided we would go! Gabe had the day off and the kids were out for a few days, weather was good and flights weren't too bad--so we went. It was not the best trip we have taken. We left our house around 4:30 am and got home around 11:00pm, yes we did it in one day. Our poor kids. They loved the "el" train, weren't too impressed with the pizza (Evan thought it was pie), they loved throwing rocks in Lake Michigan, playing in the sand, and their mouths finally watered as we walked through the Lego store on Michigan Avenue.

We went all the way to Chicago to find this wonderful rock!

And to play in Chicago sand! No matter where you go, boys will find dirt and rocks and be perfectly content. Why did we have to go so far to find this out?

This was the only time Evan smiled in the restaurant. He only tasted the cheese, which was about 2/3 of the pizza. Zach ate his piece, wasn't his favorite, but he ate it. Natalie threw a royal fit and then zonked out on my shoulder. She slept the rest of the time we were there.

She is following in her brother's footsteps. Will lego's never end at our house. Natalie did this the whole time we were at the Lego store, she just kept asking for more flowers. Eventually they ran out, so it was time to go

We have had a fun and busy couple of weeks, and now the end of school is coming and I don't even have my summer schedule close to being done. I actually haven't even started it, it's just all in my head now. Hopefully I will have it done, before school ends.

Better late than never

I know I am almost a month late with this picture, actually I think I am! I have been crazy busy for the last month or so, which is why I have not responded to anyones emails or commented on anyones blogs. I have been looking for brief moments, but no long enough to comment. So sorry. But here is a quick photo from Easter. I was trying to get one before church, because after church Natalie is a bear or she is asleep. However we were running late, even though we don't meet until 1:00!! I don't know how that happens. Too bad that only 1 out of 3 is looking at the camera and 2 out of 3 are completely dressed. But I am glad that 3 out of 3 were actually all happy to go to church that day!

Our week's Summary

When food dislikes interfere with your fun
Evan is going to be a boy that loves April Fool's Day. He was thinking of stuff all day to try and trick people. Zach wanted to put ketchup on him to pretend he was bleeding. Evan thought that was cool, but he doesn't like ketchup so he thought he would use something else that is red. On Thursday he comes home from school and asks me if ink on your skin can give you ink poisoning. And then he shows me his hand. He was so excited to try and trick his dad and proud that he beat his brother to it! But then mom made him wash it off.


What I have been up to this week
Our dryer hasn't been drying very well lately and it seems to just be getting worse. I called a service guy to schedule to come look at, and it is $60 to just come look at, not to mention if there is anything that need replaced or labor hours. So, I have been reading up everything I can to figure out how I can do it myself. What I thought was the problem ended up not being right. But I tore the dryer apart, took the part in to have it tested, and then put it back together. When that wasn't the problem I thought maybe there is a clog in the vent leading outside, but that isn't it either. Bottom line I tried so hard to avoid a service fee and be independent but I guess some things you just can't get away with. Darn it!!! I hate spending money that I know I could save if I just knew more about things like this.

"Take me out to the ball game. . ."

Zach had his 2nd game on Sat and was so excited, he made an out and he hit the ball and made it to 1st base! What a day. I love the first picture you can see his team mate in the back telling him to run. He was playing 3rd baseman and he tagged the base and then when the player got to 3rd base I think Zach tagged him at least 2-3 times. He was going to make sure that he got him out! This was really good for him considering both games he gets up to bat in the last inning with 2 outs and bases are loaded and then he strikes out. Gabe and I don't think he realizes the whole picture, but he was really upset his first game that they lost. He came home crying and very upset. Sports can be so good for kids, but hard.

My Dear Sweet Husband

I have a great husband!! I know cheesy, cheesy!! But he reads my blog and I wanted him to know how wonderful I think he is.
Gabriel went on his first camp out this last weekend with the Boy Scouts. I was impressed and worried the whole time. It was pretty cold that night. He said there was a little bit of snow flurries when they woke up Saturday. But they had fun! And I am so impressed with him. Way to go Gabriel!!

We have had many a discussion about doing thoughtful things. So, last night this is what I found on my pillow. Yes, I did watch the movie and read the books, but am not one of the obsessed ones. But this box cracks me up! Can you read what some of the hearts say? Hilarious!!

Thanks Gabe! I love you.

When Mom and Dad are sick. . . .

What do you do when mom and dad are both sick? Just ask our kids that entertained themselves all day today while Gabe and I have taken turns sleeping and just taking it easy.
So, this is what our kids did to pass the time.

1. Build a "water track" to drive your boats down the hill to the pool.

2. Find all kinds of creatures while digging in the dirt. We discovered worms and some slimy thing, we think it is a snail.

3. Bury treasure in your backyard, Mom and Dad don't care if you make a hole in the grass.

4. Play pirates with each other.

It really amazes me sometimes what kids can come up with when left to find fun on their own. Makes me wonder why we have a playroom full of toys. Kids are amazing.

Spring Break

We had Spring Break this last week and it wasn't as we had planned, but in the end I think the kids had fun just having a break from school. I know I sure did. Evan started getting sick last Sunday and was sick for most of the week, Natalie followed him a few days later and then me and now Gabe has it. We wanted to take the kids up to Chicago for the day and go get Giordano's. The kids have talked about it for weeks. I did a mini class for our last Primary Activity about serving a mission in Chicago and pizza was talked about it. Zach had asked if they had ever eaten it and Gabe and I decided that would be fun for the day. Well, due to the fact that St. Patrick's is a huge deal in Chicago, the flights were all packed for most of the week. So, we will have to pull them out one day and do that later. And since 2 of 3 were sick we just hung around the house. (How fun is that!?)

A tip from a friend lead to this. I sent the kids out to "wash" the trampoline. We put soap and water all over the and they had so much fun. It was the best slip and slide too! Zach said it was the best chore ever!

We went to the park one day and had our first ant attack. Minutes before we were leaving Natalie fell on top of an ant hill and got quite a few bites. It was a scarry few minutes. As we were leaving the park Natalie says to me, "Thanks for saving me Mom." How is it that a 2 year old can make you feel like a million bucks? I got a few bites myself trying to get them off of her and she is always coming up pointing to them and will say, "You got bit? You saved me from the ants?" She is a little terrifed of going to the park now, but hopefully will soon forget.

And we did cleaning. The kids were great about helping out, especially since they were rewarded with a new Wii game dad had borrowed.

While the boys cleaned the house, Natalie was cleaning herself. She would put foamy soap on a brush and rub it in her hair. After I captured her she went and got her hair washed and not 10 min later she was back doing the same thing. I have had to put all our foamy soap way out of her reach!

Gabriel took Friday and Saturday off and we went to an indoor water park on Friday. The kids had a blast. It was very crowded, but fun. Not anything fancy, but we had fun being together and I will be sad to have my boys gone all day tomorrow. Spring break is a very nice break!

My Cowboy

Evan's kindergarten class has been learning all about Texas and for the finale they were to dress up as cowboys and girls. Well, other than a hat I didn't have anything for him to dress up. The shirt I picked didn't have long sleeves and apparently cowboys do. "Cowboys wear boots, not tennis shoes" Evan informed me that morning. And the bandana that I had intended for him to wear around his neck appeared to be too close to what a cowgirl would wear. So, he is looking at himself in the mirror saying that the kids aren't going to be sure he is a cowboy. (How is it that kids 'know' everything!) I suggested that I could put a mustache on him to make it more western. Well, long story short he agreed and we all had a good laugh. He went to school a lot more excited about his costume. He came home just as excited, no one else had a mustache!

What a cute cowboy!

At it again

We had our Blue and Gold this last week. Our theme was Cities Across America. We took our menu from an old time diner menu: hamburgers and hot dogs. Therefore, we had cakes made the same. A neighbor of mine is a genius when it comes to cakes. We had a little trouble with the hot dog, but it still looked pretty good and it was all cake, minus the hot dog which were twinkies! The boys thought they were great and that is all that mattered.