Merry Christmas

I am finally getting around to adding a small addition to our very outdated blog.

I took Kalia to Walmart. We went in a side door and there sat Santa, completely asleep. He really was - it was pretty funny. After he woke up we got Kali's picture with him. I must say, this is about the cutest baby/Santa picture that I have seen!

Carving Pumpkins

Ahhh . . .The much awaited pumpkin carving day. I love carving pumpkins! A few years ago I discovered those awesome pumpkin carving kits that make tight cuts so much easier. I also discovered that it is much easier to carve a pumpkin as an adult then when I was a child. This year Bronson wanted a Darth Vader pumpkin. Don't ask why, he has never been a Star Wars fan. We found a fun pattern online. Mike's pumpkin was really thick so we tried to find an easier pattern. His is a bat hanging upside-down. Matt wanted a pokemon and we found Charizard. The pumpkins look really cool with the light on when it is dark, but I took these pictures outside and the street light was shining on them. Loren refuses to participate in the pumpkin carving festivities. However, Grandma Mercer popped over and was kind enough to hold Kali while we were carving away.

Anyway, the boys are getting pretty good at carving their own pumpkins (except for Bron, who did manage to dig out all the guts).

We went to a neighborhood costume party last night. The boys are being Alvin and the Chipmunks this year. Matt - Alvin, Mike - Simon, Bronson-Theodore.
Loren won $50 for his great costume. Kristy loaned me her Malificent costume, which I was planning to wear. A couple days before the party Loren saw it and said that he would wear it. I was completely shocked, as he has always refused makeup. He told me this was the only time he would ever wear a costume like this. I would love to post the photos, but I'm sure Loren would not appreciate it. Loren would not make a very pretty woman. He definately has a very manly bone structure to his face. He looked like quite a drag queen!

A Snowy Day In October

When Loren and I lived in St. George we planted a Globe Willow tree. It grew very fast and we were sad to leave the tree behind. Just after moving into our house here in Bountiful, we planted a Globe Willow tree. That would have been probably in May of 2002. This is a beautiful tree and we have loved watching it grow so quickly. The crazy, heavy snow storm we had just a week ago destroyed our tree. We were so sad. :(

Kalia

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

A couple more baby photos

This is the dress that we bought for Matt 10+ years ago when the Doctor told us we would "probably" be having a girl. I only bought one outfit because we really were unsure, but I have saved it all this time. This is the dress that Kalia will be blessed in. She is such a pretty girl.

With a Wink and a Smile!

These are not my favorite photos, but I figure I had better get something on here.
Here she is with all sorts of cords attached to her. Needless to say, I was a wreck waiting to see if she was going to be okay. Long-story-short, we are home now and all is well. The boys adore her!

It's A Girl!

I am sure you are all anxiously waiting for pictures of our darling baby girl. We have taken many, loading them on the computer is taking some time. . . or should I say caring for a new baby is taking some time.

Kalia Star Mercer was born August 6, 2008. She was much bigger than our other children, weighing in at 8 pounds 12 ounces. She is beautiful and looks like all the rest of our babies, with very dark hair. Of course the hair will probably fall out and then we will see what color hair she will really have. She had some problems with her breathing in the hospital and we ended up staying a few extra days, but things are going well now. We all love her and are so happy to have her as part of our family.

We do realize this name was not on the list of names voted for. Thanks for you votes, it was fun to see what everyone thought.

I will post photos soon!

Playing Catch Up

As most of you know, Loren does a little yard care with the boys during the summer. It is great to have the boys doing some work and earning some money. I told them the other day that I am so proud of them - Mike is 8 and Matt is 10. They can get out the mowers, fill them with gas, dump the grass in the garbage and completely finish mowing the yard all on their own!

I love this picture of Mike. The mower is self-propelled, but he is such a hard worker.

This is such a great neighborhood. There are a group of ladies in the ward that get together four times a week. Monday is park day, Tuesday is free movie day, Wednesday is water games, and Thursday is field trips. Being pregnant, I have not made it to all of these events, but have really enjoyed the ones that we have made it to. The kids loved playing in the streams at Liberty Park and the fountain at the Gateway.

We also visited the Aquarium with some friends. They have a place where you can pet the stingray. The kids loved this part. They were a little scared but all took their turn touching the stingray.

We have a six month pass to the Children's Museum at the gateway. We have really enjoyed that. The Sesame Street exhibit was awesome. Now they have an invention/discovery theme. Mike and Bron liked pretending that they were hosting the news.

The Curse Of The Toilet Paper

About four years ago our yard was toilet papered. At the time we only had one tree - so I am sure this was not really a very excited thing for the kids involved. It was the start of August and my flowers were just beginning to look beautiful (I'd have to say this was the best flower garden I had ever created). I had used a lot of white petunia's. The kids toilet papering decided to pull out all of the white petunia's and throw them around the yard. When I realized what they had done I was heart broken. Ever since then we have not had luck with any flowers that I have planted. They

all die, or don't blume well and we grow just way too many weeds. Someday I will have a beautiful yard again. Until then I will live under the "curse of the toilet paper."

These pictures are of the few really pretty flowers that grow in our yard. Of course, they just come up by themselves and have nothing to do with the hard work I put in every year!

Only 5-1/2 Weeks Left!

We are so excited for our new little baby. I have moved all the boys downstairs. They are temporarily sleeping in the preschool room while we paint, re-carpet and wait for our triple-bunk bed. Yes, all three boys will be sharing one room. I hope they don't kill each other. The upstairs room has been turned into our little girl's room. I thought I would share the pictures with you.




When we get the bed and carpet in the boys room I'll show those pictures! Let's just hope we don't end up with a boy sleeping in a pink butterfly room!

These are all her size 1 shoes. I must say, that seems like a lot of shoes for a tiny baby who won't really wear any. I didn't actually buy them, but Kristy and Angela gave me tons of stuff. I can't wait to put these clothes on her. Loren says it's ridiculous, that it's like I am playing dolls. But I figure when the guys play with the kids and toss them around, it's just like they are playing ball. I haven't had the chance to dress up a doll in a long time.

I feel like I am just waiting the hours away until she comes. Sometimes I will just go and sit in her room - the rocking chair is rather comfortable - and these days, usually I am not.

Figuring out the Blog

Heather came and stayed with me while "the boys" were out of town. Among other things, she taught me how to better use my blog. Apparently I had posted most of my stuff through the Layout menu, but I should have been using the Posting tab. I have now made some adjustments, but that means that the next few posts are nothing new, just done in the correct format! Thanks Heather.

Bron

Bronson is amazing. Before he was 4-years-old he could read full sentences, and now can read just about anything you put in front of him. He still has one more year of preschool before kindergarten. I don't know what his teachers are going to do with him.

With my other children I have been able to "convince" them to see things my way. Bronson is not like this. He knows what he wants and there is no way to change his mind. I think he is so smart he can see past my "convincing". Anyway, it definitely makes things more difficult.

I won't complain though. He is darling, full of energy, can play and read by himself for hours and is a joy (most of the time). He says, "I love you" all the time and often says, "I adore you."

Mike

Mike is our extremely energetic 8 year old. He lost his two front teeth in December and still hasn't had his new ones come in yet! This year Mike was baptized by his Dad in February. Dad took him to Petco and bought him a white bird - much to Mom's surprise. I have to say I wasn't thrilled at first, but have grown to enjoy the birds (Matt got a green one for his birthday).

Mike loves to be silly and play with friends. He is our family comedian. He also is earning money for his own motorcycle (although Dad couldn't wait until the end of the summer so Mike got his now). You should see Mike pushing the lawn mower. It's about as tall as him, but he does a great job.

This year Mike was accepted into the Spectrum program for elementary school. This means he will be going to the same school as Matt this September. It will be so nice to only be part of one PTA and only be driving for one carpool.

Matt

I can't believe I have a 10 year old. Matt is getting so big. He will be in 5th grade this year. During the summer Matt works hard with Loren mowing many lawns. Last year he earned enough money to buy himself (with some help from Dad) his own motorcycle.

Matt has a great singing voice. Last year he had one of the leads in Bye, Bye Birdie and this year he was one of the Wickersham Brothers in Suessical the Musical. He got to wear his own microphone and sang a solo. He's quite a performer.

I love this last picture of Matt. I think he looks so handsome. This was for a class program about "Prominent People in Utah."

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