one year ago.....

It has been an entire year since the last time I even felt like posting something on here. Maybe it's because I never feel like I have anything interesting to share, or maybe because I don't want to share my life online.....I thinks its the former. (and maybe a little laziness on my part!

I just want to share some good news....baby #5 is coming sometime in the spring.....my guess is 2nd week of April. (i am due the 5th of May, but come on! When have I ever had a baby near it's due date???) I am finally feeling excited about another sweet squishy baby at home, and I feel the need to share the news! It took me about 3 months to figure out that this is a good thing. Don't get me wrong, I love being a mommy, but 5.....count them 1,2,3,4,5 kids!!! I felt completely overwhelmed by the idea. Now I am feeling just plain thankful. Thankful that I can have babies, thankful for my healthy body, thankful for a hubby that cares. I am so thankful for this new baby.....even if it happens to be another boy (that would make 4 boys and 1 girl....Clarissa is hoping and praying for a sister!). We will find out the day before Thanksgiving, so maybe I will feel like blogging again, very soon!

on another note.....Rick and I do make the cutest little boys!!!!

Heritage...

I have been spending all of the few precious moments I have to myself, on blogging. I took it upon myself to get a blog started for the private school that my kids attend in Garland. I think that it is a pretty amazing place, and I think others really need to see how wonderful it truly is. Check us out a www.heritagefoundationschool.blogspot.com !! It is still in the early stages of develpement, but I hope by Christmas to have it in full swing. I invite you to follow the blog and leave comments too! Hopefully I can get the website updated as well www.heritagefoundationschool.org GOOD TIMES!!!!!

Family Foto Shoot

At last.....we broke down and had a little family photo shoot. I think the results speak for themselves! My sis Laura is the photographer extraordinaire. She brought us to this very exclusive area (AKA TRENTON) and we found some really great spots to take pictures right across the street from my Mothers house!! Clarissa is very photogenic!

I love this picture of my CRAZY boys! Tomas and Sam

JAMES!!!!!!

I LOVE this picture...it shows their true personalities...

This is how we are most days!!!

Cool barn!

Me and my Sissa!!!

I wish you could see James in this picture...

. We are a happy family......most of the time!!!!!!!!!!

Fall

No, pictures yet...don't ask!

So onto the post. If you really give a hoot about what I've been up to lately, then obviously you will read on....but I warn you....It might get slightly boring, and dare I say, serious! Okay, not serious, because its Anna, and the day I write a completely serious blog is the day that rats fly.

Okay, I really think I've lost something of great importance to me...I have completely lost my mind! not that I really have ever used it to it's full potential in the past...but I'd still like it back regardless. So here's my life:

Monday....wake up at 6:30 (try to get somewhat ready and awake in 10 minutes so I can arise the rest of the household, make lunch and find socks for Thomas and Sam) 6:40...2 older kids up and ready in 30 minutes (so they can practice violin and cello before school. 7:00 the 2 little girls I am watching arrive and join us in the festivities of the morning. 7:00 again....I wake up Thomas while James waits about 10 minutes to wake up...he usually is disturbed by all of the string instruments in the house. 7:55...by this time I have fed all children...dressed all children...have all children in mini van....pick up neighbor boy....and off to school....we race the bus because if we get stuck behind it, we are LATE for school. 8:15....school starts for my three oldest kids. 8:20 to 11:30....entertain 3 small children while doing various household chores. 11:00 early lunch for my babysitting girls. 11:30 pick up Thomas 12:00 drop off Miriam at Kindergarten 12:10....eat lunch AGAIN and 1:00... practice violin with Thomas (James takes a nap somewhere in here) 1:30 Lilly naps 1:30 to 3:00....I play a never ending round of chess with Thomas(he is 4 years old) 3:10 All kids are home...Some will go to music or dance lessons after this 3:45 Lilly goes home 4:00 I make a dinner of meats or pasta or cereal (only if I haven't taken the aforementioned children to their various lessons.) 4:30...Rick is home, and we eat! 7:00 scriptures and bedtime 7:30....kids are NEVER asleep by this time, but I wish they were 8:00....Some of the kids might be asleep. 9:00 All kids are asleep and I have CRASHED!

Tuesday.....repeat Mondays routine, but add in an early morning Cello lesson and teaching dance in the afternoon! Oh Geesh

Wednesday....repeat Monday....Clarissa has dance this day

Thursday....repeat Monday.....I get to attend my Principals of Freedom class this night! It's my favorite night!

Friday....repeat Monday, but no school for my kiddos! Friday is a good day! Thomas and Clarissa have violin in the afternoon!

As you can plainly see.....I have lost my mind, if you find it, please let me know!

Still no pictures...

So, I still have no pictures to share. You would think that I would just take the initiative and get them on the computer, but for some odd reason I can't bring myself to do it. Rick is the official "down loader of the pictures guy" at our house and I'm just on willing to take on one more task here at the Palfreyman homestead. While Rick was away this past year (traveling the world) I did my fair share of duties....Mom duties (ya know, basic mom stuff), Dad duties (ya know, like getting the tires rotated, cleaning out the mouse trap...like 20 times, killing INSANELY huge spiders, shoveling the 1/4 mile driveway when it snowed so hard that even the jeep couldn't get down the hill...not up...but DOWN, took care of the 2 horse-dogs in the backyard, sold 4 puppies.....there are so, so, so many other things, I can't take it all in right now), Girl Camp duties (that was just FUN, so maybe I can't count that duty), Sisterly duties (this consists of making fun of lame movies a.k.a. anything Twilight), Churchly duties (...4 kids...sacrament meeting...me alone....enough said..) Daughterly duties (I just love my mom so much, and I think daughterly is a funny word....so it is included).

So, as you can see, the pictures will have to wait.

Music is my LIFE!!

It's been a while....

Whenever I take a month or two off my blog, you can most defiantly rest assured that life is SO CRAZY! I want to post pics from all of the summer fun we have been having (D.C. trip, bear lake, family reunions...) but since I got a new camera back in June, I haven't spent the 10 minutes it might take me to figure out how to download them onto the computer....lazy you might say, well, maybe!

So back to music....my life is completely taken over by string instruments....I often sit back and wonder how this all happened....ya know, my quest on becoming a Suzuki mom! It's not a title to be taken lightly. As a Suzuki mom you are required to take lessons yourself, sit in at every lesson your child has (and take detailed notes)...while your other children are reeking havoc in the music teachers house. In addition to weekly lessons, you are required to practice with your children AT LEAST 5 days a week, and they have a group lesson once a month on top of it all (note taking require here also). I have done this quite valiantly for Clarissa (for 3 1/2 years), and Sam (for almost 2 years), and now Thomas is to join the ranks....officially...as a Suzuki violin student in the studio of Diane Austin! (we were on a 2 year waiting list! YIKES!) So, I am making it official, I have left the ranks of a somewhat normal person and have become a COMPLETE CRAZY MOTHER!!! If you want to see my children play there beloved instruments, they will participating in a celebration concert at the Conference Center on October 17th and 7:00 p.m....tickets are $8.00. I expect all grandparents to attend....Aunts, Uncles, and cousins are optional.

Weeding is the worst!

Since yesterdays post was quite short and sweet, I thought that maybe today I would enlighten the world on why weeding is the worst. I actually don't mind weeding. It's the spiders and other such creatures that get to me. Latley, I have been feeling much better (Thanks to Dr. Young!) and so I've been doing A LOT of weeding this past week. Yesterday was no exception. I got my gear on (gloves, hat, sunglasses) and set out to weed by my humongus driveway. But it wasn't until about 2 hours later that I realized why this is a bad pasttime...TICKS! Yes, you heard me right....TICKS! I can hardly spell the word without chills running down my spine!!!! I got in the shower last night and BAM....found a tick on the back of my shoulder...EW EW EW EW EW EW EW....luckily Dr. Rick was home (that's my hubs, he's not really a dr. but he might as well be) so he could pry the blood sucker off my flesh. Of all the years living in Utah and comming across these beastly insects, I have NEVER actually had one in my skin! EW EW EW EW EW! I am still totally grossed out by the idea. I may never weed again. There are also snakes and black widow spiders at my house.......I need to move!