New Years Eve

We had a very busy day. We first went to Great Grandpa and Little Grandma Reafsnyder's house (Kami's Grandparents). Great Aunt Letha was there. We had lunch and even dad showed up even though he was working. We slept all the way home.

Later that night we went to the Tanner's for our annual New Years Eve party. Unlike past years all three kids made it to Midnight. Mom and Dad played bowling on the WII. Mom hit her head on the Patio at the Tanner's (don't ask). At Midnight we counted down and set of some noise makers. Then we went home and went right to bed. We even slept in in the morning.


I know that this is really late and have no pictures at this time. I will be posting more later.

Christmas Day 2008

As a family we started a tradition of dad turning on the Lights and starting a fire before we go down the hall. Every one meets in mom and dads room first. Well this year Tristan decides that he wants to see what Santa brought first. He came back to the room and was so excited about what he saw. He wanted so bad to tell the other two. Well mom and dad kept telling him that we would call Santa to come and take it back if he said anything. He did not care and out of the side of his month said "Bikes". I don't think they heard and he was relieved that he said it. So no harm no foul. So we get to the tree and they see all the stuff sent from Grandma Sue in Texas and their Bikes and Gavin's scooter. It was over before it started. Good thing we have it on film so we can go back to see it.

Later we went to the Barlow breakfast where we figured that we had 46 grand kids and we were still missing 59 grand kids. It was at the Marks older brothers house. Lots of fun.

Diner was small this year at the Fisher house, One of Mark's sisters house. More food and family time and we were off to home. We did not spend any time with our new toys until the day after.


I will have to add pictures later. I just wanted to get these last post up before the end of the year. We hope the everyone has a Safe and Happy New Year!!! News Year Eve post will be on Jan 1, 2009..

Christmas Eve

We spent Christmas Eve at the Collins house. The kids got lots of gifts and watched a movie. A few of the cousins we have (much less then the Barlow side) were there. We missed the 2 in Vegas this year, they were not able to make it out. Diner was great and we had more then enough food and deserts. The adults no longer exchange gifts we each bring a small gift and have a White Elephant game. This year there were I think 4 Aqua Globes, seeing a trend? We all must be lazy and kill plants. I know I have a brown thumb! Mom and Dad did get a park bench, way cool. After a long day we went home to recharge for the next day.

Tristan and Allyson turn 5!

Yes that is right Tristan and Allyson turned 5 on December 24th. Not Christmas eve. We are trying to keep them separate. The day started like any other. They got what they wanted for breakfast. Tristan wanted eggs with cheese and katsup and Allyson wanted pancakes. When Gavin told me what he wanted, his choices were eggs or pancakes, Allyson told me that he did not get to pick since it was not his birthday. I told her that although she was correct he had to eat as well. She was okay with that. Grandma Vicki came over to see us. It was cold and rainy outside so we had to play inside. We watched movies most of the morning while Mom got ready for Christmas Eve. Later that day we went to the Collins home for diner and Birthday presents and cake.

Mark's Big Day

It Happens to everyone sooner or later. Yes that is right Mark turned 40 on December 22. He handled it very well. He says that 40 is no big deal. I hung up some "40" , "Over the Hill" and a "Happy 40th Mark" sign on the garage door. He did not find my humor very funny, then he laughed about it. I received a call earlier in the day from Carolyn Bogh asking if we were going to be home that night. I told her yes and she said that she would be over after 5:30 pm. When the door bell rang I told Mark that it was for him. Not knowing what it was, he answered the door. His first reaction was that he was going to kill me. I told him that it was not from me. He thought that he knew the guy at the door but could not place him, it was Carolyn's Brother In Law Kevin from out of town. He was then handed a clip board to sign. On the paper it said "Happy Birthday Old Man, Carolyn & Michael". I though that he was going to fall over in laughter. She came in to see him and say happy Birthday. You will have to look at the pictures for what it was. I could never do it justice.

If you can not read it, it says "In loving Memory of Mark". Later that night Michael called to give me his condolences and see if I needed to have meals brought in. Mark told them that he has 5 months until Carolyn turns 40 to get back at her. Later that night being FHE I made him diner (Prime Rib, Twice baked potatoes and Veggies). Jolene brought him Brownies. All in all he said that it was a good day.

Random Stuff

I really love this idea of slide shows. I can never decide what pictures to put on our blog. So Here are some random pictures of the kids by the fire, in mom and dads bed and outside from the last weekend. Every one is getting better. There are some of the house with the lights and decorations, just during the day. My hope is that all the runny and stuffy noses are gone by Christmas.

Santa Came to our Town

Only in Highland, I say that because until we moved here I had never heard (literally) or saw anything like this. Well on Thursday December 17th after the kids went to bed and dad had gone to the gym, Mom heard a lot of noise outside. She went out to see what was the matter. She heard lots of sirens and saw a Helicopter with its light shining down. Could it be, well it is the right time of the year, and he comes every year. She decides to get the kids out of bed at 8:30pm and take a ride in the car. Sure it was late and cold, but what the heck. Kids are only young and excited about this sort of stuff for a short time. So we venture off and call dad on his cell phone so he does not come home and his family is not there.
We followed the helicopter light and sure enough it was a Santa sighting on his flat bed truck with loud music followed by 4 Fire Engines and what looked to be like the whole Highland police force (well not really). We pulled over in front of the Bogh's house (Michael & Carolyn), who never came out, I even called them. The line of cars was long. The kids did not want to get out of their seats. It was loud. Allyson hates loud noises! We called the Tanners to let them know but they had already seen him. We then followed them up to the Tanner's, how lucky are the Bogh's and Tanner's, Santa went down both streets. So we continue to follow to a rest stop for Santa. Dad finds us and we get out of the car. We get up to Santa and Gavin decides that this is not the year to see him. He hides his face in moms neck. Tristan and Allyson waived at him but with the crowd could not get real close. By this time we realize that we did not grab the camera. Oh well, maybe next year.

What a weekend. Dec 12-14

Well I am really trying to keep up to date with all the news that comes out of our house. But this last weekend was a bummer! Really! I will try to keep this mild.

Well let me start from the top. Imagine you are out to diner with your loving husband with no kids on a Friday night, you get a call from the babysitter (Kaitlyn Tanner) telling you that Gavin just throw up all over the rug. He is in the bath tub. Where do you want me to put the rug?

Okay?? Well you give instruction and then tell her that we are on our way. She has it all under control. Gavin is in bed and it is all cleaned up. Mom is up most of the night with him while dad sleeps on the couch. He lets mom sleep in (what a guy). So I get up and start to clean like a mad women. Just in case I want every one to have a clean toilet. The day goes on and Gavin is getting better. Then Tristan starts and an hour later Allyson follows. Dad is such a trooper this time around and helps out. So it is Saturday night, with 2 sick kids in the bathroom's. With the lingering sickness we can only dream of getting some sleep. Although everyone is holding down water we still don't get much sleep that night. Sunday is much better, we stay in the house and work on getting better for the coming week.

The kids miss out on Santa this year and the weekend is shot! No Christmas Party for us. That is okay, since every year one of my kids seems to get this around Thanksgiving or Christmas. Our only hope this year that is that this is it! Wishful Thinking? I will have to let you know.

Gingerbread House

We built a gingerbread house, well mom built the house the kids just ate the candy until it was time to put candy on the house. They seem to love it. They don't mind waiting until mom is done, since they are occupied with eating the candy. No worries, we always seem to have enough for the house. Did I mention that they love to eat the candy?? If you don't see dad in any of the pictures it is because he took them all.

Redlands Parade

Dec 6th was a very busy day for us. We finished that day off by going to the Redlands Parade with out Dad. He is not a big fan of parades. Well Mom ventured out by herself and it took her 20 minutes to find a parking spot. Then we had to walk about 10 minutes to where the Tanners were set up. It must have been a sight. There was mom with a chair, blanket and bag of goodies. There were the 3 kids all holding their own jacket. It was not cold but took our sweat jackets just in case. We made it just in time for the first band. They passed by us and gave out candy, toothbrushes and just about anything else, Tristan was the only one paying attention and would run back to mom and put it in the bag. The other 2 were eating the candy that Blake had. Good thing we had help getting back to the car. Thanks Tanners as usual!!

I wonder who takes these pictures??

Gavin!!!! This is what you get when a 3 year old gets a hold of the Camera! Kinda abstract?

Allyson's new hair style (December 6th)

Allyson is always wanting to wear her hair down and has a hard time when we brush it. She is so active that if we leave it down she gets lots of tangles. If mom would say that we will just cut it she would respond with okay. So we finally just cut it. She loves it. Check it out.

Another Family Tradition (Reafsnyder style) Dec 6th

The Reafsnyder Family (Kami's, Mom's side) have a tridition of having Chili and Soup with lots of goodies. They have had it for as long as I can remember. It started out on Christmas Eve but as the years went by and the Families grew (Grandpa is 1 of 10 kids), we started to have it on a Saturday in December. This year they had a jump house for the kids. They had a blast. It was great to see everyone there.

Allyson's first injury

Well I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later. Mom wishes later rather then sooner. However, it was not all here fault. Now let me start by saying that it was a complete accident. She was at the store with the day care on Dec 3rd, and from the way I remember it she was standing next to the sliding door of the big van she now calls the big gray shark, as the door was closing she bent her elbow backwards and right in the way of the closing door. Not as bad as first thought. She is all better, but she says it still hurts a little. It took a few tries to get a good picture of it.

Getting ready for Christmas

Growing up it was always a tradition that on the long Thanksgiving weekend we would go get our Christmas Tree and decorate the house. Mark and I have continued this tradition every year since we were married 10 years ago. We have always had a fake tree except for the first year. This year we needed to buy a new one. We had to retire Grandma Barlow's after last Christmas. So we went and bought a brand new pri-light tree. Mark picked out the type and we let the kids pick out the type of lights (color or white), they picked the color. We also bought more outside decorations this year.

It took us 2 days (Friday Nov 28 & Sat Nov 29), but it is all done. Friday we put up all the outside lights and on Saturday we did the inside and the Tree. The kids had a great time and wanted more, but we don't really have many tree ornaments. The dog even got into the action. When the Twins were born I started to buy them 1 new ornament every year and got ride of many that were broke or old or did not have any sentimental value. I figure that by the time all three kids move out they will each have at least 19 ornaments.

We wish you all a very Happy Holiday season.

Turkey Day

As I was reviewing Thanksgiving day it dawned on me that we did not take one picture this year. It started early of course at 6am with the kids wanting to get up and watch cartoons since we did not have to leave right away. We went to the Tanner's house for the traditional English Pancakes. There were also Sourdough Waffles (yum). Most of the Barlow family (way too many to name) were there, except for those who decided to play turkey ball (football), or go paint balling. None of the old guys could play. They might break a hip or something. The kids were really excited since there way more little kids there.

Dinner was at our house with the Collins side of the Family. Grandpa and Grandma and Great Grandma Collins came for Dinner. Great Grandma could not do much (she is in a wheelchair), but seemed to enjoy watching the kids run around and someone else do the cooking. Uncle Roy Barlow also joined us this year. Aunt Laura with Noah came for a short visit. When we got home from breakfast, mom started on the dough for homemade dinner rolls. This was the first time she made them. Dad asked her why she would try them for the first time on Thanksgiving, her reply was why not?? They were a hit. Dad and Uncle Roy both said that they were great. This was their moms recipe. Dinner was awesome!!! Everything turned out perfect!! At the end mom made Cinnamon rolls with the left over dough. They were so great that Grandma Collins took the recipe.

The day ended with Uncle Chad and Aunt Jenny with Ethan and Cody come over, and we played so hard that we did not fight at bed time. We were so tired. We even slept in the next day.

We hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and a great start to the Holiday Season!!

Eating like a Dog or Racing, you decide?

On Family night with the Tanners, Gavin and Garrett deciced to see who could eat faster. Tristan and Allyson joined in the jun. It was so fun to watch.

Take a picture of me dad!

Allyson loves to have her picture taken. She will ask, "Do I look cute? Then take my picture."

No! this was not staged.

The boys have a habit of reading the paper in the bathroom just like dad!. Top it off with Gavin who likes to take his clothes off when he goes to the potty and here is what you get!

Ducks vs Capitals

I don't have any pictures of this since mom did not go,but dad took Tristan to his first Hockey game at the Honda Center on November 19Th. The Ducks vs Capitols. To say he had a great time would be an understatement. He saw some fights and some one got a body check. He learned the Ducks song which I think is a Pennywise song. He had his own GO DUCKS chant. Dad said everyone would just laugh and thought he was so cute. Well he was so excited when he got home. He could not wait to tell his friends.

4th picture from the 4th picture file

Kinda blurry, but this is my 4Th picture in the 4Th picture file. This was at Gavin's 3rd birthday party (August 2008) with Grandpa Collins (Kami's Dad). We had a great time.

Thanks Megan.. Any one who wants to play has been tagged. As the tittle says, Find the 4Th picture from your 4Th picture file folder on your computer and post it.

Forts

Where are the kids you might ask??

Here we are at Fort Barlow. We Love to hide and make forts these days. We have always loved to hide under blankets. As long as you can't see us then you can not find us although we wiggle and giggle.

Lego

This little LEGO castle took Dad (engineering/drafting background) about 1 1/2 hours to put together. After some LEGO throwing and a few choice words (Tristan safe words) I finally completed this incredibly complex LEGO puzzle. Tristan waiting so calmly for Dad to finish, finally was allowed to play with this awesome Dragon protected fortress. After about 1/2 an hour he looks at me and says "Dad i'm all done can we take it down now". As you can see it is still standing and still being played with.

Day off!!

On Novemeber 11th mom had a day off from work. Aunt Laura (moms sister) with Noah and Aunt Jenny (sister in law) with Ethan and Cody came out for a play day. We did lunch at McDonalds (Dad met up with us) and then we went to the park so the little guys could play.

1st Picture - Allyson, Tristan, Noah, Cody, Ethan & Gavin

2nd Picture - Ethan, Gavin, Allyson & Tristan

3rd Picture - Cody, Gavin & Noah (boys love dirt and rocks!!)

Happy Halloween!

Well since the Tanners (Pat & Jolene) don't have a blog yet I will add them to ours for this Post.

The Tradition that Jolene started with Mark was from when they were kids is making Home Made Donuts and Root beer on Halloween. We have done this with them for the last 3 years. Roy helped as well.

Jolene made them with the help of Kami, Becky Jones & Sarah Rawls. Logan Tanner had the task of feeding the kids. That was a load off mom. Sarah and John Ralws transported the donuts out side where Mark fried them and Roy frosted them. Pat, Jordan, Logan, Bryson Jones, Kaitlyn & Blake (for a few minutes before he went to a Haunted House) manned the table were they handed out the Donuts, Candy, Hot chocolate and water (root beer did not turn out this year). Garrett was off with his friends. Tristan, Allyson and Gavin just got to be kids. Mom took the kids with the help of Becky Jones, trick or treating with Savannah ( friend from day care) Her sister Crystal and parents Debi & Patrick.

After about 1 hr Gavin was done. He wanted mom to carry him and go back to Aunt Jolene's. So we all made our way back. Tristan and Allyson were not done so they went off with Savannah and her family for about 30 more minutes. Back at the Tanner's where we had made somewhere around 650, from what Mark says), the donuts were going fast. The kids came home with a combined total of 4 bags of candy.

Every one had a great time. By the time we got home from helping clean up it was well after 9pm.

Here are some pictures that I got of the last big rush.

This week October 21-25

Well we are just about up to date on our shots. Tristan and Allyson both got theirs last week. Tristan's of course in true fashion welted and bruised. Allyson just got hers on Friday so time will tell, so far not to bad. Gavin got a runny nose and cough the end of the week. Hope it does not get any worse then that.

Friday October 25Th was our Church Halloween party. Mark made salsa, and it was great. Sweet at the first taste then the kick at the end. Allyson was Princess Aurora from Sleeping Beauty, Tristan was Spider man and Gavin was Batman. All had a great time. They love to dress up. This year we had a carnival with games that the kids had to play to get candy.

Random Stuff

Here are some random pictures from this weekend.


Tristan jumping up the slide.

Allyson jumping up the slide.

Gavin just trying to hold on.

Gavin not big enough for the scooter.

Tristan loves being able to ride his scooter again!

Allyson loves her scooter but would rather be in the pool.

The kids all have some words that they love to say. Gavin's favorite word is peanut. He calls everyone and everything peanut. He also says yah baby! He had his 3 year check up and got some shots on Saturday. He is 32.8 pounds only about 2 pounds lighter then the Twins, and he is just over 3 feet tall. Which is in the 88th percentile for his age. He is all caught up on his shots and the Twins are behind. Mom needs to get on the ball and get them caught up since they will have to register for school soon. Allyson's new word is ridiculous, however she says it ri-dic-a-lus. Tristan loves to say Never, inseatd of NO. He also says stop teasing me. So he seems to get teased more.