Merry Christmas

Well I never thought in a million years that we would have a self timer family Christmas Picture...BUT TADA, this year were lucky to all be in the house at the same time. Merry Christmas!
Goodbye 2011, you have taught us much!

The nicest SHS students EVER!!

PS I took 20ish pictures of this fast little shaker and mover and this is as good as it gets!!! P.S.S. she has decided to suck her thumb ALL the time!!!!

THIS IS FOR YOU GRANDMA EARL

Let it be known that this is as good as it gets! I took around 20ish pictures of Hadley and this is it We had Hudson's Court of Honor and it went well! Sadie was given this adorable Christmas dress!! I am in survival mode with the holidays!

Hudson's Eagle Scout Project

Where to begin...for years I have been begging and pleading Hudson to do an Eagle Project, he had all the merit badges and his Eagle Project was the only thing left..he resisted BIG TIME...finally I gave up, it started to ruin our relationship. Mid July while I was doing the dishes he said he wanted to try to get his Eagle Project and he asked if I thought he would have enough time (his bday is September 20th) I got on the phone with the scout office right then. He was pushing it, but it was possible. Next step: A "substantial project" my head was spinning on what he could do. Then I thought of my friend Kathy who I met through the Yakima Valley Museum, I was going to be seeing her the next day, so I asked if she had any projects...she did and they would pay for everything. WHEW...so Hudson got right to work with his project. There is a lot of paperwork, he also needed to get it approved, like anything this all takes time. We needed a miracle under good circumstance a big curve ball was thrown our way when Hudson started getting sick...real sick, when he met the scout committee to get approval for his Eagle project he had fever and chills going on big time, his head was pounding, I felt horrible for him, but they approved his project. Wellllll Hudson got very very very sick. TO make a long story short, he lost 12 pounds in one week and he got pnemonia. He missed the first week of school...yah his Senior year, he is ASB President so he has a ton of responsibility and a ton of fun things to do and he was deathly sick, it was scary, he came to me and he couldn't breath and he was scared. Anyhow he lost over a week on working on his project because he was sick. We are now in Septmeber, and nothing has started. My Mom came and helped us clean up the area(thank goodness). We learned that venka is a horrible ground cover. In a week the trees were trimmed, the ground roto-tilled, the rock path put down, tulips planted, water-bath cleaned up and painted. NOW he had a bench to build. Let's not forget that this is homecoming week, which involved guys drill and Homecoming. We picked up the supplies on Monday, as we were driving away from the lumber yard with 2x4's sticking out of the front window of the van, Hudson said "I am so screwed" I have to admit I was nervous. His Scoutmaster saved the day with his intense skills with wood and his love of others saved the day. Of course as they were cutting the boards to size Hudson would find out he is allergic to sawdust and he came home and barfed for hours. I have never seen him so wore down. Getting his strength back from being so sick was not easy. Monday night September 19th at 9:00ish pm( 3 hours to spare) Hudson DeVerl Smith was done with his Eagle Project, the Bench is beyond georgous...it is spectacular, the museum was floored!!! I am so grateful that Hudson had a change of heart to do his Eagle Project. Many lessons were learned one thing is for sure, he learned some great leadership skills. I am proud of my boy!!!!
p.s the pictures are all out of order...me and my mad computer skills cannot figure it out.
the first picture is the completed project
the second one is the "Before" shot
the next three are his troop and him working :)

Back to School

I love to watch and see the excitement my kids feel with going back to school...so grateful they have the opportunity to learn and grow from others. So far so good! I have had two funny random conversations with Shad and Sadie. This is how it went with Sadie, she had just woke up from a nap and she said to me
Sadie: "are you thinking what I'm thinking?
me: "no..what are you thinking?"
Sadie:" I'm thinking about kitty cat's"

I died laughing...my least favorite animal has got to be cat's.

Shads came on day two of school.

shad telling me a story from the bus ride home yesterday:

shad: "A girl on the bus wanted me to sing to her today"
me: "Ohhhh did you?"
shad: "no I told her I was to shy"
me: "ooooohhhhhh"
shad: she said she would tell me a secret if I would sing, so she did"
me: "whats the secret?
shad: she drinks from a tea pot sometimes
me: wowwwwwww!! Did you sing?
shad: "YES, she said I sing better than her Dad who is in a band"
I laughed so hard....and his music teacher says he is tone deaf....whatever :0

I love these random moments!!!

p.s. we have a Senior at our house. Hud got super sick with the virus that Dave and Madison got (nasty) but he started having a hard time breathing and it got scary. To make a long story short. He got pneumonia, missed the first week of school. We LOVE LOVE LOVE our Doctor, he is amazing!!! He is feeling much better and now is just trying to get his stamina back.

Summer we love theeeeeeee

Summer, I have always loved it, it's my birthday and the sunshine just makes everything BETTER! We have enjoyed a safe and fun summer! We went to Utah so Madison could go to BYU Soccer Camp, it was amazing for her, the one day that she attended, we got a call that she was super sick and that we needed to take her to the ER, total bummer. Lets just say Urgent Care was fabulous, they took good care of her and after a bunch of tests, she just had a nasty virus...and when I say nasty I mean 2 weeks of being down, totally down! She had a fever for 1 week, and chills. Yuck, not fun for her! The sad part is that Dave got sick a week after that and he was DOWN for a whole week, double yuck!
We got to see my family and it was fabulous! My growing up years were so close to perfect it is scary, BUT at the time I thought every girl had a life like mine, but as time and life experiences go by I realize how BLESSED and LOVED I have always felt. Love my family!
We have went swimming, although it took until August to get hot enough! We have went boating (thank you Hesselgessers!) we have went hiking, but the funnest thing that Talon and Shad have done is riding their bikes on the greenway. I drop them off and meet them. They smile from ear to ear, those smiles I love to see their smiles!!! We also joined a central WA group with the Yakima Valley Museum. we have rode the train and trolley, visited a planetarian, toured a historic home, went to the Raptor house, and the interpritivecenter for the wind mills...totally fun...oh except Sadie and tours are tricky :)
Hadley is adorable and travels well, her biggest glich is at home, she tends to be a screamer, but time will heal that I hope. Hudson and Madison went on Trek, it was amazing for them. Hudson submitted his paper work for an Eagle Project today, he is cutting it close and we are praying for a BIG miracle.
Last week sitting at church, i looked to the left and then to the right and I was filled with gratitude for my hubby and kids, we have one year left with Hudson, that blows me away! I love him!
I never thought I would have six kids and I never thought they would be spaced in sets of two's with 17 yrs from start to end, but I love them and we are striving to be an eternal family, with bumps and bruises and peace and joy along the way!
p.s. Dave was released from the Bishopric, he served six years...bless him!

Extreme Close-up!

Summer is offically here! We are still waiting for some serious sunshine. But for now the garden is planted, we have a family trip planned, we grill a lot. With the four younger kids we are doing cool field trips around the valley for the next 2 months. We went to the Yakima Valley Museum, it was so cool! Did you know that in the old days when horsed pulled the fire truck to the "FIRE" that they took goats to be with the horses so they wouldn't get spooked and run away....yah It was an AHA moment for me too. So more fieldtrips, sunshine,Netflicks and popsicles and all will be well on Oakwood Lane.

Spring Break & Miss Hadley's Blessing Day

If your gonna make it...make it BIG

I had the best laugh when I came home and saw this sandwich sitting on the counter, my first guess was Hudson made it, NO...my second guess was Talon made it...NO...Shad made it, he was as proud as a pickle. Some things just make me laugh. BOYS!

Hadley Wadley Piddliey Paddley HITS 3 months

Well this is a exciting week here in the Smith Home. On May 25th Hadley hits the 3 months mark AND Dave and I will be celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary. How can that be????? IDK???? I can say without hesitation he is the BEST decision I have ever made. WE are feeling blessed in every way!!!! How will we celebrate...don't laugh but we will probably stay up late watching "Numb3rs"on Netflicks..
We are totally addicted, we never like to watch the same things BUT this show has us. I told him last night, I don't need to rent any movies all summer because we are only on Season Two....Glorious for us, are we not the most exciting couple ever???

Spring Break&Hadley's Blessing

Spring Break has come and gone, it was a little on the chilly side BUT I think Shad said it best when he said "this has been the best week ever" The kids built forts, we went to the skate park, watched movies etc. Simple nothing out of the ordinary, but nice. I was nervous on how I could keep everyone happy and busy with the fun nights that I have been having with Hadley, the key to our success is really simple...and I have known this secret for years but I was reminded how IMPORTANT it is to have prayers and scriptures FIRST, breakfast and then jobs. I could feel a difference in attitudes and helpfulness when we did this.
Dave's parents were able to visit us. It has been 3 years since they had been here as they have been on chemo. We enjoyed them!!! I am so grateful for their goodness. They are loved!!! They were able to be with us as Dave blessed Hadley. It was a lovely day!!!
Hadley is 2 months old today. About a week ago she turned into a different baby. She is doing great at nights and the colic is gone...what an experience, my love for her is endless, she is a sweetie!!!! Hudson is running for ASB President... Go Hudson! Soccer is over for Talon & Shad, it was a cold to the bone season BUT I am going to miss it...BIG TIME!

March Madness

I love March! I love March Madness, and my husband is obsessed with "Jimmer" I mean seriously obsessed, he has to read/watch/every article about him. He is even texting in votes and using his phone and mine....ADDICTED I SAY! We enjoyed our first outing last Saturday with Hadley. We went to Shad & Talon's soccer game, the sun was shining it was perfect, we came home with pizza and we watched BYU play Gonzaga in basketball, It was a tough game, I love Gonzaga...I loved seeing John Stockton watching his son...I LOVE LOVE LOVE John Stockton. BYU pulled through for the win and it was just a perfect day. Hadley is hitting her one month mark tomorrow. I totally love her. She is a serious eater, I mean serious. YES she is a bit of a screamer. Dave and I were talking about Colic and if she has it, he thinks she is just "high maintance" and I think he is right, another fiesty Smith girl...oh great. My Mom and sister came last week and the timing could not have been better, it was fun, helpful and I seriously would have sunk without them. I am in no routine yet and it is driving me nuts, as the real world swishes before me, I am feeling a day late and a little confused

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My cousin Quinn is having surgery on his shattered heel tomorrow, please pray for him, he is such a great guy, I totally love him. He will be in Texas for 3 months.

We LOVE her!

YES, we love her! Hadley like all the others bring such a sweet feeling with them! Since we are talking about sweet. Don't you love the Gigantic chocolate chip cookie, my friend Lisa made this, it says "Welcome Hadley" it was so yummy(I really mean YUMMY), that in 5 minutes it was gone. I am going to give the big cookie a try and love the idea of making it for special occasions! We have had some of the yummiest meals brought in, it helps so much! Thanks to everyone who has helped us!

Final Score Boys 3 Girls 3

Hadley Smith entered the world on Friday February 25th, 2011. She came quickly, and I survived. I had been having contractions for an hour starting at 5:00 am and at 6:00am they stopped. SO I thought I was just having some braxton hicks. Dave went to work and Sadie and I cleaned and cleaned all morning. At around 12:30 I put Sadie down for a nap and went and tried to nap myself when the contractions started again. They were not intense but they stayed consistent. I texted Dave and told him they were 8 minutes apart and he said I am leaving work right now, I told him don't leave yet, but it was to late. He picked up Madison from school, and they announced "Madison your Mom is in labor hurry to the office" so that was lovely. When they got here Dave was hyper and wanted to head to the hospital asap, they don't want to see you until your contractions are 4 to 5 minutes apart and no way was I going to risk being sent home, he was driving me nuts about leaving so I told him I would go but we would sit in the van until they were 4 to 5 minutes apart...THANK GOODNESS DAVE WAS ANXIOUS(he was so RIGHT)!!!! Traffic was heavy with school getting out, while we were driving my water broke and everything was intense. We got to the hospital to check in and they have a new law that you have to have id, mine was in the van and the lady was not going to budge so he ran to get it, in the mean time I told her I just need to go upstairs now, no luck she made me wait. She escorted us upstairs. They took me to pre-delivery room to make sure I was really in labor at this point Dave said "this is her 6th baby and she has them fast"...to which they smiled and put me in a room with another lady(seriously) they pulled the curtains, I couldn't get my gown on, to many snaps! So I had to have the nurse help me, at this point I was scared I was not going to make it to the delivery room. I was a 9 and ready to go, so they got me in a room and 3 pushes and Hadley was here. They barely got an iv in me and I dont really remember them putting it in, but in looking at my arm it took 5 to 6 jabs and I am still really bruised from it. Dr Harrington was out of town, so I had his partner Dr. Mackley (sp?) she was great(I had never met her but had heard she was awesome, she was)It was intense and fast and when it was over I couldn't believe it. I had tested positive to Strep B, so we had to stay an extra day. Sarah was working and gave Hadley her first bath, that was so cool! We worked really hard on a name, and didn't name her until the next day. Dave & Hudson really wanted Kira, but when Heidi told me the name Hadley I loved it.
Hadley had some hard nights at the hospital, she right away was a great eater, but she cried a lot. I found myself making deals with the Lord...if I could just get 1 hour of sleep...ok. 1/2 hour o.k. 10 minutes. Dave stayed with me but he has had a wicked cold, so had I. The 2nd night he stayed with the kids because Hudson went to Pullman and Madison was not comfortable being alone. We survived. I was so ready to be in my own bed, and Hadley did much better once we got home. Yes I have still had some fun new born nights, but she is so precious and sweet that I am enjoying every minute with her. She has hair but it is short and light. I find myself emotional with her because of her journey getting here. She was so close to not making it. The kids love her and all is well! Now if we can get settled back into the REAL world that will be a bonus!

Happy Valentines day! I went to grab a picture off the camera and holy hannah, I havent taken any in 2011....whoa that is pretty lame.
We are on the countdown for baby #6, this month seems to go so slow. Sadie told me the other day she just wants to play with her baby sister right now. I am guessing/feeling we are having a girl, the kids all want a boy. I must admit to the world my lack of "being in touch" with my babies...I have never ever been right. Yep you heard it NEVER have I had it right. SO a baby boy I am sure it will be. Which is lovely and fine, I am going more for healthy, good natured, and a great sleeper. SO much is ahead and I catch myself hoping that I can do this yet again. I think I can....I think I can :)

January

The sun is shining today and not much snow is left. It feels good! :) 2 months left for baby #6...can't wait! Hudson is having a great time with Knowledge bowl. Madison is doing indoor soccer. Talon & Shad basketball. Sadie tells me every day that her Dad is taking her to dance class. I stopped by Dave's work and as I waited for him he was working with a patient who had a hip replacement...a young guy. It was so interesting and made me so grateful for the opportunity he had in going to school. He is so good at what he does and he cares...I am grateful he has been blessed with health and strength and a love to help others. He's the best decisions I ever made.
I am working until the end of the month. I have left February open so I can deep clean and get ready for the baby. I am so sad to not be working, I have had the perfect schedule and the perfect clients. I enjoy my clients so-ooo much.