Woodruff Family

Caught ya!

2011-03-04T08:19:00.000-08:00

Someone got into my camera. Can you guess who?

For Shawn

2011-03-04T08:17:00.000-08:00

We got horrible news that Shawn has leukemia. We feel helpless clear across the country!! To show our support the boys all shaved their heads. Kenley and I offered - luckily Shawn told us to keep our hair. Not so sure we could pull it off Kenners!!!

WE LOVE YOU SHAWN!!!!!!!!!!!

Snow days

2011-03-04T08:16:00.000-08:00

School was cancelled, of course. They had a great time and the best part is the hot chocolate when they are done!!!

New Year's Eve

2011-03-04T08:14:00.000-08:00

We sure know how to party!! The kids love to dance - so dance we did. We called it our dance a thon and boy do they have some cool moves!!! I was laughing my head off. Apparently it is a must to take off your shirt when bustin' some moves.

DC Temple

2011-03-04T08:12:00.000-08:00

We made it down to the temple to see the lights, even if it was after Christmas. We had a great time. It was beautiful, but nothing tops Salt Lake!!!!!

Christmas

2011-03-04T08:10:00.000-08:00

We had a fantastic day!!!! The kids are at such a cute age! I will never forget how excited and appreciative they were this year. I had to work that evening so that was a major bummer!! All in all I would say it was a raging success!! They played with their new leapsters all day long and they only stopped to pee or eat!!!!!

Christmas Eve

2011-03-04T08:08:00.000-08:00

Traditional Christmas Eve picnic and jammies!! It never gets old, even after 30 years!! I love it!! Can't wait until we can join the rest of the crew in Utah!!!!!

Fun at school

2011-03-04T08:07:00.000-08:00

While my parents were here we got to go to Kenley's class and help her decorate a gingerbread house. The next day mom and dad went to Kade's class to read them a book and bring a treat. They have the coolest, cutest grandparents ever!! Most of the pictures from the trip were taken with my dad's phone - I only have a couple :(

Build a bear

2011-03-04T08:04:00.000-08:00

My mom and dad were able to come out a week before Christmas. We had a great time as always!! For their present they all got to chose an animal and outfit at build a bear. They have never been there before and the absolutely loved it!!!!!! They are already talking about the next time they get to go there. Thanks grandma and grandpa!!! It was so much fun to see them so excited. I love that they love stuffed animals still- it makes me feel like they are not growing up too fast!

Gingerbread fun

2011-03-04T08:03:00.000-08:00

The kids just love decorating gingerbread houses each year. Miles, he just loves to eat!!!

Thanksgiving

2011-03-04T08:01:00.000-08:00

Just a little behind! Kitty Grandpa came over Thanksgiving for a visit. We had a great time and he really spoiled us rotten!! It was so nice of him to come. Justin and I both had to work some during the holiday and we couldn't have asked for a better sitter!!! The kids love him to death and so do we!!

Soccer and Preschool

2010-11-10T10:03:00.000-08:00

Kade decided he wanted to give soccer a try. He was super shy, but with a little bribing and yelling- I mean encouragement from the sidelines he ended up doing great. There team was called yellow lightning. Go KADE!!!

First day of preschool this year. We had the addition of two new girls in the ward. He loves it and so do I!

Pre halloween fun

2010-11-10T10:01:00.000-08:00

For family night we got out all of our Halloween stuff and had a party! Miles loved trying on all the costumes. Aren't we scary??

Preschool and the big 30!

2010-11-10T09:59:00.000-08:00

For my turn to host preschool we had the letter "D". So we got out all the dress ups and had a good time. Don't they all look so cute? Marcus is the black spider man. He was very disappointed you couldn't see his face. He told me that he was doing a great smile for the picture!

I turned the big 30 this year. I had to work on my b-day - so we celebrated a day early. The kids were out of school and Justin had the day off. It was really great to be able to hang out all together. We went out to dinner and did a little shopping. This was the cake I made. It was delicious! I drool just looking at it! The bad news is that I ended up eating most of it over the next week, but it was worth the calories!!!

Happy Birthday Miles

2010-11-10T09:54:00.000-08:00

My baby is two and I am totally depressed! He is so stinkin' cute and such a BEAST!!!!!!!!!!!!! He never sits still and always getting into trouble. Just the same I love him to pieces and wouldn't trade him for the world. Heavenly Father knew not to send him first, because I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have wanted to do it all again. That is saying a lot considering I had twins first!!

WE LOVE YOU MILES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rocky Ridge

2010-11-10T09:49:00.000-08:00

The weather has been gorgeous and the leaves are even better!!!!! There are so many trees in PA making for some beautiful scenery. We went on a walk one Sunday up to a local park. I just love autumn days and this was just a perfect way to spend the day together!

Halloween

2010-11-10T09:38:00.000-08:00

All tired out before the fun even began!!! It was my weekend to work so Justin was a trooper and got all the kids ready to go trick-or-treating. I met up with them as soon as I got off work and we had a great time!!

Latest pasttime

2010-11-10T09:35:00.000-08:00

Why is watching TV in my room so much better than the big screen downstairs? Don't ask me, but this has been a frequent occurrence lately. Miles has just started being interested in TV. It may make me a bad mom, but I'm glad he will sit still and let the tube entertain him for a while. A little down time for both of us is good!!!!!

From 4 to 2

2010-09-08T08:39:00.001-07:00

OK. So it's not so bad having only two kids at home. The house stays semi clean and I can actually get some things done. Grocery shopping- lets just say is much easier with two. I miss Kade and Kenley like crazy, but we are managing just fine.

Making cinnamon rolls. Of course Miles is just eating the filling.

1st grade

2010-09-08T08:37:00.001-07:00

First day of school. They were so excited and looked so stinkin' cute!!!!!

I did cry some, but nothing extreme. A phone call to my mom for some reassurance did the trick!!!!

Fashion show

2010-09-08T08:35:00.001-07:00

Our annual fashion show did not disappoint. Marcus and Miles even had a few moves of their own!!

Not so thrilled about all the teasing and comments from the "annoncer"

I love these little twiners so much!!! I was freaking out the other day because I realized I will really only get to see them like five hours out of the day. That is crazy!!!!!! I think Kade was nervous too, he asked me when he will ever have time to hang out with me anymore. I will make the time Kaders!!!! Not so sure I'm ready for the first grade.

Back to school

2010-09-08T08:33:00.001-07:00

We had so much fun on our back to school shopping this year. They are definitely starting to form opinions, so shopping is a bit more complicated, but so much fun! I think this is my favorite tradition ever.

Kenley chose to eat at Olive Garden. While we were waiting for our food she informed me that she was going to work there when she grew up. That way she could eat all the breadsticks and white dip that she wants!!

Kade chose McDonald's. The food - not so great - the total experience with my buddy - awesome!

This was before the back to school night that they had. They built a new school and it is AMAZING!!! I really do love the school district that we are in. The entire building is just for kindergarten, !st, and 2nd grade. Their teachers were so nice and it made it seem doable to let them go full day- well, almsot :(

Marcus D

2010-09-08T08:30:00.000-07:00

He turned four!!! Big D - you are so much fun! We all love you so much. You for sure keep things interesting around here! Love ya!

Last day

2010-09-08T08:25:00.001-07:00

The last day in Utah was a total bummer. Of course most of us got sick. I'm talking throwing up so hard and so much that you think your eyeballs are going to pop out sick. It started with me and Nicki, then spread to Justin, Kenley, mom, dad, and Brad. We had planned to have an early Bday party for Marcus and I was determined to carry on. Luckily, I had it pretty easy and threw up the least. We had a pinata and cake and ice cream. I was so glad that everyone still came over even though we all felt like crap! The kids had a great time!

This picture is at the airport in Baltimore. We had to wait FOREVER for Justin to go get the van. Everyone was spent and this sums up how all of us felt. We had such a great time being with our families!!! It always goes by way too fast. We love all of you so much! Thanks for showing us a great time!!!!!

Willard Bay

2010-09-08T08:24:00.001-07:00

Boating at Willard bay

The best part had to be when Brady had Kade, Kenley, and Kate out on the tube. My worst fears came true. Somehow the tube went under and everyone except Kenley got thrown off. I have never seen such scared kids in my life!!!!! Kenley was screaming bloody murder for Kade and Kate. Brady was a trooper and calmed them down in the water while Kenners hung on for dear life while grandpa circled around to pick up the crew. I must admit that it was scary, but after we knew everyone was safe I was laughing so hard!!! We have to talk them into even going out on the tube because they are afraid it will tip over. What better way to overcome your fears, right?! We did make them go right back out and see that it was safe. Good times!

Everyone minus Justin and Miles- who was home sick with strep throat. Wouldn't be a trip home if someone didn't get sick!!

Brigham City pool

2010-09-08T08:20:00.001-07:00

This was another fun day we spent together. North Ogden has a brand new pool, but I prefer traveling a bit further. That way we can stop at Maddox and get a turkey burger! We had a great time. The kids were all real nervous to go down the slide, but once we started, we didn't stop!!

Snow basin

2010-09-08T08:10:00.001-07:00

I have lived in Utah 24 of my 30 years. I had never been to snow basin. I am not a fan of skiing - I just hate being cold ( it has nothing to do with the fact that I snow plow so hard every time I've been that I can barely walk the next day). It was amazing!!!!!!!! The views from up top were so beautiful!! Going in the summer is for sure something I can do!

Riding up the tram. We stayed on this and rode it a couple of times. The kids had a blast!!

I have the cutest mom and dad in the whole world!

We packed lunches and enjoyed some amazing views. All of us had flip flops on - not really hiking shoes, but managed to walk around some of the trails.

Miles thought we were back at Lagoon!!!!! I was laughing so hard I almost peed my pants!!!

I love these kiddos so much its scary

splash park and dinosaur park

2010-09-08T08:08:00.001-07:00

This was a fun splash park in Riverdale. Reminds me of the good old days in AZ where there is a splash park around every corner! We could use some around PA for sure!!!!!

Dinosaur park- this is a must every visit since Nicki introduced the kids a couple of years ago. We all packed lunch in our own lunch box and had a great time!

The beasts!!!!

Lagoon

2010-09-08T07:57:00.001-07:00

I know people have mixed emotions about Lagoon. I for one, happen to love it!!!! I have such fun memories of going every year and having the best time. Yes, the lines are long and the people are strange, but I LOVE IT!!! I have never smiled and laughed so hard in my life!! My whole family was able to go plus my aunt Karen. We packed lunch and dinner, saved us a picnic table and stayed ALL DAY and NIGHT! The kids just loved it and were surprisingly brave. Kade wanted to go on everything. I never would have guessed - he was super brave!! Miles was a trooper. He showed little emotion on the rides so you couldn't tell if he was having fun or not. You did find out when it was time to get him off the ride and he started screaming at the top of his lungs. He loosened up throughout the day and even smiled a few times. My favorite moment was when all the kids were riding on Bulgy the Whale and he breaks into a huge grin and raises both arms straight into the air like he is on some giant roller coaster. All the kids joined in and it was hillarious!!! We used our bounce back passes and were able to go again when Justin came. We had such a fun time and yes, I would do it again!! Thanks to my family for the help keeping track of the kids and waiting with them so I could go on some bigger rides too!

Utah: Bear Lake

2010-09-08T07:54:00.000-07:00

We made it to Utah in one piece!! That was my first time flying alone with all the kids and it couldn't have gone better. They are such troopers!! Kade and Kenley sat in a row with a stranger and part of why they were so good is probably because they have major stranger phobia!! Marcus and Miles were with me and did great.

We headed straight up to Bear Lake to enjoy some relaxation and sunshine! I needed both desperately!! I picked up tons of extra hours to help pay for the trip and needed some downtime!! This was my favorite Bear Lake excursion ever! It would have been perfect if only Justin could have been there!! We sure missed him!

Lots of beach time and boating! My favorite part was when we loaded up all the four wheelers and took a picnic and went exploring. We drove up to bloomington lake and hiked in. It was beautiful!!!!! Miles was a trooper and hiked himself all of the way in. There was a huge rope swing and I was the only adult who did not participate. I had no desire!!! I never have been too adventurous! What can I say? I am a huge wimp!!! I have no pictures of us on the 4 wheelers or at the lake :( It was an amazing day!!!!!

Nicki's mad sandcastle skills

The moms out for a leisurely stroll around the lake

Brady is a trooper! Of course all the kids want to ride with him!

It was the big girls turn. Nicki likes it crazy! I think they got their moneys worth!! I have to admit I was a little nervous at times! I think their faces show that they were too.

Aquarium

2010-09-08T07:45:00.001-07:00

The aquarium was by far my favorite thing we did this summer (until we went to Utah anyway!) It is down in Baltimore right in the harbor and it was fantastic!! I seriously felt like we were on some kind of vacation. The setting was just so much fun. There are lots of pictures!

This is us watching the dolphin show

They had a 3D Dora and Diego movie that was so much fun!

Dinner at a pizza joint with a view to die for, not to mention awesome food!!

I really wanted to do the paddle boat. I was instantly sorry because I had to do all the peddling and my legs were BURNING!! We didn't travel too far on these babies - I think they still had fun though.

When we were about ready to leave there was a huge storm!! We waited it out for a while but decided to just go for it! We parked in a parking garage several blocks away so we took a run for it. I have never seen such big raindrops in my life!! The streets were flooded and we got totally drenched!!!! It may have been my most favorite part of the day. We were all laughing so hard, trying to run, but not doing a great job. People were looking at us like we were crazy, but we didn't care!! What an awesome little family I have. It was a perfect day!!

Slip and slide

2010-09-08T07:40:00.001-07:00

One of the things we did to try and keep cool this summer. Who knew that a slip and slide could be so much fun. They just loved it and only had minor injuries after plowing each other down the slide several times!!

Miles had issues keeping his pants up and this is what we saw most of the day. I couldn't find the bin that I had the rest of the swim suits packed away in. He didn't seem to mind much :)

Another butt shot, I pretty much thought it was hillarious!

Blueberries galore!

2010-09-08T07:30:00.001-07:00

Lots of friends told us that we need to go blueberry picking, so we did!! It really was a lot of fun and now our freezer is full!!! We will for sure plant a blueberry bush in our garden next year. They were so big and delicious! Oh, and it smelled so good while we were hard at work.

Parks and Movies

2010-09-08T07:11:00.000-07:00

I wanted to have somewhat of a schedule this summer. We had a family night and planned it all out. Summer is such a fun time for kids and I wanted to make sure they weren't planted in front of the TV all day everyday. Heaven knows that is what Kade would choose to do if I let him!! My mom did lots of fun stuff with us when I was a kid, so I stole some of her ideas! We chose Wednesday as our park day. Every week the kids would take turns picking a park to go and play at. We packed a picnic lunch with basket and all and hung out until they couldn't play any longer. I will for sure do this every summer. We had so much fun exploring the city and finding lots of great parks.

I remember being able to sleep out on the deck when I was little. Not only did I get to sleep outside, but they would bring a little TV out so I could watch a movie. So Friday night became movie night. They would all cram onto a blow up mattress and we hooked up the computer and they were set!! Most nights it got way too hot and humid for them to do it on the deck, but then they would just choose another room to have their sleepover in. I think this one we will continue all year round. They have a great time together!

Here they are on one of the nights that wasn't hot and sticky!!

Some pictures from some of the parks we visited

Coming from Arizona, you think that we would be semi used to the heat. The heat here is a whole other ball game!!!! I think I would take hot and dry any day over hot and humid!! Look at their bright red cheeks!!

SUMMER

2010-09-08T07:03:00.000-07:00

Marcus asleep in time out

This pretty much sums up how we are feeling around here after our crazy busy summer!!!!!!

School is finally in session and we are all trying to recover from all the fun we have had. Justin was super busy like always slaving away for less than minimum wage! He puts in so many hours - thank you!!!! I worked TONS of extra hours trying to earn money for our big trip home to Utah. The kids could care less about work and had a ton of fun this summer - as they should!!! Catch up this time is going to take a while.

6 YEARS?????

2010-05-24T12:12:00.000-07:00

Movie time

2010-05-24T12:05:00.000-07:00

We had a fun time this weekend. It started off with the kids taking in a birthday treat for school. They wanted to bring rainbow cupcakes, and rainbow cupcakes they got!! Justin and I were both able to go in and have the treat with them. It was so much fun! I just love Kindergarten. It's hard to believe there are only 2 weeks left of school. Here are the lovely cupcakes.

Miss Kenley

Mr. Kade

Perfect shirt for this guy!

That night we had movie night on the deck. I used to do this a lot when I was a kid and I loved it! We all ate dinner out there and watched a movie. I think they thought it was pretty fun.

Miles spent most of the time trying to unplug the computer and any other mischievous thing you can think of!!!

Bad news is that the kids were fighting like crazy. They ended up in big time trouble and weren't allowed to sleep out there as planned. Maybe next time!!

Great day

2010-04-14T07:28:00.000-07:00

This is how we started our morning today. Marcus and Miles were running around downstairs. Marcus was coming out of the bathroom and flew the door open. Miles just happened to be right on the other side and got smacked by the doorknob. Marcus barely has a mark, and the angle of the picture makes him look freakishly weird. Miles got the best of it and has quite a lump.

This is him saying "cheese" after he was feeling better. What a ham!

Night on the town

2010-04-13T06:55:00.001-07:00

Saturday started out with everyone pitching in to do some major yard work. OK, basically we all watched Justin do some major work, but we were all very good supervisors!!! Then we had some pretty fun things planned. Kenley and I were going to princesses on ice with our good friend Elina. Then we went to Olive Garden for dinner - Kenley's choice of course. We had such a fun time! She was so excited to be all dressed up. She had a grin on her face the whole time!! Thanks Elina for the tickets and the invite! Here are some pictures before we left.

The boys decided to go mini golf and have pizza. Justin was a champ taking all three of them!! Miles was a maniac like expected, but they had a great time together. I love this picture of the three of them!

Mr. Kade

Do you think Marcus' shirt could get any longer? It's basically a dress!!

Nice smile

Trying really hard! Look at the concentration on his face!

When all else fails, just pick the ball up and put it in the hole!!!

It was Miles' first time to nursery Sunday. Boy are they in for a treat!! He looked SO handsome in his church clothes. Of course he wouldn't hold still - these are the best of the pictures. He had a great time and certainly enjoyed the snack the best! I can't believe how fast he has grown up!!

Obviously the two little boys got buzz cuts! They look so darn cute!

Catch up AGAIN!!!

2010-04-07T05:49:00.000-07:00

Here is some of what we've been up to - the shortened version!

Every year we have chocolate covered strawberries on valentines day, I think Miles really enjoyed it!

Getting into anything he can!

Valentine's party at school

Best of all grandma and grandpa came for a whole week!!! There was a lot of fun going on in this house!!!! The famous Jenkins trick! Miles was a pro by the end of the trip and I'm sure grandpa's arm was tired!!

Like always, I have a personal handyman at my service when my dad comes. My mom and dad surprised us and put up a back splash in my kitchen. This is before....

...and after! I just love how it turned out! It feels like a whole new kitchen! They really do spoil us!! Thanks mom and dad!

Why do the trips go by so fast? Only 3-4 years until we are back where we belong! Heck, we might just move in with them to make up for all the years we've missed! I'm sure they would go for that!!

Miles gets the worst diaper rash I've ever seen in my life. His big old bum really starts bleeding it gets so raw. Here we are trying to air it out for a while. These are Marcus' underwear, and they are way too little for this tank!! I should take a picture of Marcus to show the difference between the two. They are night and day!!

Every Wednesday Justin is at the hospital all night for their weekly education. The kids and I decided that this will be the waffle night at the Woodruff's. After two years of having waffles or pancakes once a week for dinner you'd think they would be sick of them, but no- they love it! This is Miles literally after licking his plate clean. What a sticky mess!!!!!!!

We have been enjoying the 80 degree weather here! It is so nice to be able to go outside! This little guy loves it and throws a major fit every time we have to go inside. Here is the classic cozy coupe!!

Easter came a bit early at our house, since Justin and I both had to work that weekend. The kids didn't care, as long as they got to color eggs and go on their egg hunt.

Just chilin'

The hunt

Scary family picture!! I had been working in the yard all day and I am a mess! Hope everyone had a Happy Easter!!!!!

Snow days!!!

2010-02-11T09:55:00.000-08:00

We got dumped on again!!! School was cancelled Wednesday and Thursday. Justin also got to stay home since the roads were so bad. The kids had so much fun out there in the freezing cold! A snow day wouldn't be complete without a cave, right? I don't know who enjoyed it more, Justin or the kids!!

This is crazy!! It doesn't snow often here, so people are so funny about it!! I'd call this a good storm!!!

Our attempt to let Miles in on the action. He didn't make it two steps out of the garage before he was saying "all done!" We had a better view from the front door anyway!

Warm inside and we had snacks while we watched the show!!

What a cutie!!

Snowed in

2010-02-11T09:52:00.000-08:00

So it was my weekend to work and this is what we woke up to!! I was three hours late to work, but we made it. Justin and the kids took me in, because I was too scared to drive by myself!! We loaded up the van with food, water, and lots of warm clothes just in case we got stuck. Thank heavens we didn't!!! I just ended up sleeping over at work - what an adventure that was!! Everyone was having a hard time getting into work so the ones that were there were working around the clock!! I did get about two hours sleep in between my long shifts! Boy was I glad to get home Sunday night!! The rest of the fam had a great time enjoying the snow while I was gone!

Christmas

2010-01-30T07:16:00.000-08:00

I think I did like 10 posts in the last 3 days!! I just wanted to get all caught up!! I thought that all of these pictures got deleted off or our camera. So even though there is a lot to look at, I'm just glad we still had them! For almost six weeks straight someone in our family has been sick. We are sick and tired of being sick!!

Christmas was awesome! The kids got more than enough and we just had a lot of fun hanging out together. Kids make this time of year so magical - I just love it!

Don't mind the crazy mom in the background trying to get out of the way!

Christmas Eve

2010-01-30T07:08:00.000-08:00

We had some goodies to deliver so I bribed the kids to help me and promised we would go to Chick-fil-A after. They wanted to dress festive and boy did they!! I even had a red shirt on. We were the hit of the fast food chain!! I think everyone we passed made a comment. Though I was kind of embarrassed, the kids loved it!

We had a great time having our traditional Christmas Eve picnic. Nothing special - I have just done it every year for my whole life and I love it!!! It would be even better if we were home with everyone, but we still know how to have a good time!!!!!

The kids got to open two presents on Christmas Eve this year - the traditional pj's and the awesome blankets that grandma Lu made them. They were both a hit!! The kids drag those blankets everywhere!! They are so warm and cozy!!

What a cheeseball!!!

Just hanging out in the lazy susan!

Christmas party

2010-01-30T07:07:00.000-08:00

This is the only picture I took at the school Christmas party. I had the two little guys with me and they kept me pretty busy. Between Miles escaping the classroom several times and Marcus knocking over his hot chocolate everywhere we managed to have a great time. They had a sing a long for the whole school after which was so fun! It brought me back to the good old days of elementary school when we sang together every morning in the gym. Shannon - do you remember that? Good times.

Now this is snow!!!

2010-01-30T07:02:00.000-08:00

This storm was much better than the first. They even cancelled church! Wahooo! They had a blast and froze their buns off. Everything looked so pretty. With all the bare trees here it really looked like a winter wonderland!!

No! No! No!

2010-01-30T07:01:00.000-08:00

This guy sure is cute, but man oh man does he keep me busy!!!!!!!!!! He doesn't talk much and since putting up the tree he has been able to add no no no to his vocabulary!! Any time he is by the tree, ripping an ornament off, or sneaking back in the corner he screams his new words NO NO NO! This was sure a long month, I was glad to get all the decorations put away! Too much temptation for a mischievous little explorer.

Pennsylvania snow

2010-01-30T06:58:00.000-08:00

We don't get much snow here, but when we do it is a BIG deal!! I swear the whole town shuts down. If there is a storm coming people run to the stores and clean out the bread and milk shelves. Kind of funny to me since it is nothing like Utah snow!! Schools even shut down if there is even a possibility of snow. The kids love it since we came from Arizona where it never snows. Even a couple inches and they are in hog heaven!! Miles is the smart one staying in and having just as much fun!!

Must be Santa

2010-01-28T06:57:00.000-08:00

Justin went downstairs to find this. He was santa sitting in his sleigh, holding the reigns and calling out reindeer names. My favorite part - the awesome cup holder. Who knew Santa had it so great?

Thanksgiving party!

2010-01-28T06:55:00.000-08:00

It is so much fun to be able to help out at school once in a while. One of my friends was nice enough to watch the younger two so I could enjoy the visit a little more. They looked so cute in their pilgrim hats!!

Visit with Santa

2010-01-28T06:53:00.000-08:00

Lets play some major catch up! I'll keep the comments brief so I can get through all the pictures I have and get to the present time here!!! Visit with Santa sums it up!!

2009-11-10T06:53:00.000-08:00

Yeah for Miles!!!!

2009-10-29T06:21:00.000-07:00

Our big guy had a birthday last month. We had such a fun day together! We had a very fancy dinner at pizza hut - Miles ate two whole pieces plus a bread stick. This boy love to eat! Then we came home for the cake. First birthdays are my absolute favorites! I am not a mom that makes a white cake with white frosting so it won't be messy - no sir. The messier the better!! Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting! I want him to go to town and get it everywhere!! Well of all my kids, I knew Miles would not disappoint!! I think that the pictures speak for themselves. We love this little man so much! He has been a great addition to our family. He is so different than my other kids. He is an animal. He is walking all over the place getting into everything!! He gets into the cupboards and pulls anything out he can. He chases the kids and growls at them and joins in the wrestling matches like he can take them all. He is just hilarious! He is a big tank full of smiles. We love you Miles!! Happy Birthday!

corn maze

2009-10-28T11:29:00.000-07:00

What a day to go to the corn maze! It was raining the whole time. We had fun anyway though! We were very lost, but had a great time.

Preschool

2009-10-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

Marcus has started preschool. We get together with some kids from the ward and boy do they have a great time! Here is little Marcus on the 1st day of school. I love that the backpack is down to his knees! What a cutie!

teddy bear parade

2009-10-28T11:24:00.000-07:00

So the kids have an awesome school and do some really fun things!! They are right next to the high school and get to have a teddy bear parade every year with the marching band. They all bring a stuffed animal to school and walk around the track. It is a big deal and the whole town practically shows up. It was freezing cold that day with hurricane winds ( at least it felt like it!) We had a great time anyway.

They wouldn't even stop to get a picture taken :)

Fun with fam

2009-10-12T11:35:00.001-07:00

I know this is a hideous picture of me and all my chins, but pretty funny of Miles. We were at Brady's house and the kids wanted to have a fire. We borrowed some of Kate's pj's and Miles is looking good!! These are some of the pictures that we took while we were in Utah.

Fun around the campfire!

Here are the Woodruff crew. They have so much fun playing together!!! I just love how they have their arms around each other :)

CRAZY kids! The noise level when they are together is enough to drive you nuts!!

What a goof!!

The bouncer at grandma Lu's. They just love it!

And of course they have to play the Disney BINGO every trip home!

We went to Gardiner Village and they had all of their Halloween decorations up. This is my most favorite time of year. We had so much fun looking at all the silly witches!

Here is the crew with my grandma Jenkins. We all love "great grandma"!

We had a great time, and like always, it went by way too fast. We are blessed to have the greatest families who love and support us in everything that we do. Love you all!!

The wedding

2009-10-12T11:33:00.001-07:00

The wedding

This is the reason we were able to go home. I seriously only took like 5 pictures with my own camera. I was a little busy dealing with four crazy kids running around the temple grounds. It was just a perfect day and I'm so glad we were able to go! You seriously need to check out this website: heathermickey.com

Go to her blog and you can see some pictures of the wedding day and the reception.

She is our cousin and is super talented!! Scroll through some older posts too to see Erin's engagement and bridals. I seriously hate being her sister - she is ABSOLUTELY gorgeous!! Congrats Erin and Shawn! We love you both!!

On a side note, Kenley got sick after the temple. She threw up every 15 minutes the whole night. We tried setting up camp in the backyard with a blanket and barf bucket, but that totally didn't work. I guess the guests weren't too thrilled about seeing her blow chunks. We tried to make it inside once and she totally threw up all over the back porch, right in front of the wedding line. Good times. She was such a trooper and even let us dress her back into her cute little dress and have some more pictures taken. She really was a trooper through the whole thing. She told me that she was probably sick because we had to take too many pictures at the temple. I didn't have the heart to tell her that we were also getting our family pictures, Woodruff fam, and Jenkins fam pictures taken in the next two days!! What a cutie!

BACK TO SCHOOL

2009-09-03T06:35:00.000-07:00

I just have to tell you right up front that there are a ton of pictures in this post!! Some pretty important things are going on and I want my family to see.

I have so many fun memories of back to school time. My mom (and dad :)) really made it a great time for us. My mom would take each of the kids out on a separate day to do school shopping. We also got to pick our favorite restaurant to eat at. I remember being so excited and felt so special that I got my mom to myself for a whole day. This continued on until I was a senior in high school - and I loved it. I think I may have chosen to eat at El Matador 99% of the time!!! So I wanted to do the same for my kids.

It was Kade's turn first. Of all places to pick to eat - he chooses McDonald's! He was thrilled to get some alone time and had a permanent grin on his face the entire time. It was so fun to see, and reminded me that I need to do this way more often - you know, in my spare time!

Here we are before our big outing

A couple of nights later it was miss Kenley's turn. She was much smarter about the food selection and chose to go to Olive Garden. She just loves the bread sticks and white dip!! We both stuffed ourselves on the salad and bread and didn't even touch our pasta!!

Kenley was much more opinionated about the whole shopping thing, which made things a tad more difficult, but what can I say, that's my Kenley!! We had a great time together!! She says we should go out with just the girls more - and I agree!

Then on Friday we had kindergarten orientation. They go to the cutest school ever. It is set up so awesome. They only have kindergarten and 1st grade at the school, which allows for really great class sizes. I think they have 14 kids in their class. We met their teacher and got to take a look at the classroom. It really made me so excited and really panicked at the same time. I love their teacher and I think it's going to be a great year! Here are some pics before we left.

We even got to take a practice bus ride to get ready for Tuesday. They were loving it!!!!

So then on Saturday we decided to go have some fun before school got started. We went to a children's museum and had a great time!!! Here is Kade making grandpa Mark proud!!

He had a great time driving the tractor!!

Marcus ringing up some groceries

Kenley at the cash register

Face painting

So then Monday night we also carried on a tradition from my childhood....... a back-to-school fashion show!! The kids really got into it, I was laughing my head off!!! The best of all though, was Justin. I expected him to just sit there like my dad did and act like he was interested and oooh and aaaah in all the right places. He shocked us all by being the best fashion runway announcer I have ever heard. He was hilarious!!!!! It was so much fun and is sure to be a Woodruff tradition!! Here they are striking a pose

Then we ended the night with father's blessings. They were so cute and held so still, I think they felt really special. Of course I was crying the whole time. I'm so happy for them to go to school, but so sad that they are growing up so fast!!!! I love them so much!!

Then finally ( I told you it was going to long!!!!!!!) Here they are on the first day of school

Getting on the bus. This was the hardest part for me, it was breaking my heart!!

Have a good day!! Remember not to pick your nose, or fart with your armpit, or hit other kids, or any of the other embarrassing and weird things that you do at home - PLEASE!!!

Then I ran inside and cried my eyes out and called my mom. I'm trying to stay positive and it's only half day, so I know I will be fine. They just grow up so fast. I have to stop now or I will start crying again.

Happy Birthday Marcus!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-08-27T06:32:00.000-07:00

Marcus turned three on Monday. I can't even believe he's three. He is such a spunky little addition to our family!! He is the life of the party and is always making us laugh. We had a great day together - he was loving all of the attention. He got to choose what we ate all day and of course for breakfast he chose doughnuts and chocolate milk. Then after Justin got home he wanted to eat at Chick-Fil-A. When we got home a couple of the neighbor kids came over for some cake and ice cream. They were so cute to him all day - they kept making him cards and bringing over some of their old toys to give him. He was thrilled!! Here are some things about my Marcus that I don't want to forget

1- He absolutely loves spiderman

2- His imagination is incredible

3- He still sleeps in his crib and never climbs out because he is too afraid he will fall. My favorite part of the day is when he wakes up and calls out to me "I'm ready to get out!"

4- He loves to beat up Kade and does a pretty good job when they are "boxing"

5 - He tortures Kenley to no end just like a little brother should

6- He says that "Miles is my best friend I ever sawed"

7 - Thanks to dad he frequently reminds us that he is the "only golden child in the family"

Justin seriously gives Marcus anything he wants - it is really pathetic!

8 - He looks sweet and innocent, but is the most mischevious one in the family!

9 - If I beg him, he will sit on my lap and sing me songs - it just melts my heart

10 - If he thinks he is in trouble, he looks at me with his big blue eyes and says " I love you mom!"

I could go on and on, but I think you get the point - we love this kid!!

I love you Marcus, I honestly love you!!!

Here are some pictures from the day.

2009-08-20T09:36:00.000-07:00

We have been busy busy busy! I swear time goes by so fast these days. We are now just recovering from a lingering cold/flu bug that has finally cycled its way through all six of us. Marcus got hit the worst and had to have some neb treatments. He actually thought they were pretty awesome, so that worked out nicely. Not so nice- sitting in the doctors office for two hours with four sick kids. No- they weren't terribly busy- they forgot about us. The doctor showed us back to an exam room and said she be right back. Really two hours later she comes back and asks if he is feeling better after his treatments. What treatments? Are you kidding me? All four of them were screaming their heads off and I'm sure I did a little screaming myself and no one heard us? I don't buy it for a minute!

This seems to be a frequent scene at our house. DIRTY FEET!! No one likes to wear shoes so we get the wipes out and get to work. I guess its my fault, I never have shoes on either!!!

Miles had his late 9 month appointment. He and Marcus both weigh 25 pounds. At least he is now on the charts, that's a first!! Look at the difference in these two. It cracks me up!

He is pulling himself up to everything! It is so much fun ( and work) to watch this guy discover and explore every square inch of our house. He is so much fun to watch.

And of course everyone is willing to help take care of our little beast!!

2009-07-31T06:18:00.000-07:00

A few updates on Miles. He can now do the army crawl. He drags his big body everywhere - including down the stairs twice!! OOPS!!!! He is a maniac and into whatever he can get his hands on. He is such a happy guy, but he sure keeps me busy!! He literally is out of breath when he moves around - I would be too carrying that kind of weight around :) He also is now taking bottles. After an incident that involved new teeth, nursing, and blood I decided that we better move on to formula for my sake!! The kids love to feed him and are all such great helpers.

We are coming to Utah in September for about 10 days. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it!! With me working now, and the kids starting kindergarten I am afraid the trips home will be even fewer and farther in between. Can't wait to see everyone!!!!

Bashed up foreheads and gardens, oh my!

2009-07-19T04:41:00.000-07:00

I have been telling my mom for a while now about this garden that we planted. We have no experience whatsoever, but it has been really fun! The kids and I love to go out every day and check on the progress. Here are a few pictures.

The start of our tomato plants

Peas!!

This is one of the watermelons

The garden

The only flowers that we have planted this year! We are hoping to have more landscaping next year :)

What is it with summer time and constantly bruised foreheads? This is after he took a face plant on the neighbors sidewalk and then again the next day in a parking lot

This picture does not do the injury any justice!! Kade was swinging on the swings that we have from our deck and ran smack into one of the wooden supports. I have never seen something so big in my whole life. The bump was 5 times that big right after it happened. I must admit that I panicked pretty bad! I didn't even put pressure on it because I thought it would just pop! After a couple of minutes it started to "deflate" and we put a cold rag on it.

Lucky for us the exact same thing happened to Marcus two days later. Not as big, but just as traumatic! Hopefully all wounds will heal in time for us to have some family pictures in the fall, or maybe some wedding photos? Who knows? Erin - do you? Her missionary just got home this week :)

An eventful week!

2009-07-06T04:54:00.000-07:00

This week has been interesting for sure! First of all, on the way to work a 30 hour shift, Justin's car broke down on the freeway. So we went to get him and took him to the hospital, which is an hour away. We had the car towed home and kept our fingers crossed that it wasn't too bad. Having one car really stinks!! Especially since we both had to work that weekend. Our friend was nice enough to let me take her car since she was stuck at my house watching our four kids the whole weekend!!! The dryer broke the next day and it was three days before someone could come and look at it. A lot of laundry had piled up and we were running low on clothes!!! Well, all is well and we have a working dryer and our car needs a new engine. Still having one car is really a pain, but we are getting by.

Here are some pictures of each of the kids. They are getting pretty tan (well, tan for us :))since they practically live outside!

Kenley is my little helper! She thinks she is the boss, so sometimes I just let her have a turn!!

Kade really has the cutest smile, but if you tell him to smile for a picture - it just doesn't happen! This is the best we could get.

This is Marcus for you - mischievous. He loves to cause trouble lately. This is after eating a doughnut. We were stressed out and needed a treat!

What a happy baby!!! He is such a fun boy to have around!!

We went to the zoo on the 3rd since Justin would be working on the 4th. The kids had a blast and couldn't get enough of all the animals. For a non animal lover I actually had a great time too!

They let you go in pet and groom the little goats. No way in heck was I getting in there, I offered to take care of Miles outside of the gate!!!

We have a picture of the kids on this lion from last year, minus Miles. Hopefully it won't be a tradition to add another kid each year to the picture!!

The kids before we left for a BBQ with friends on the 4th. Miles, as you can see, was not thrilled about having his picture taken. Justin ended up working all day and didn't get to join in on the festivities. The kids weren't sure about the fireworks at first, but by the end they loved it! Hope everyone had a Happy 4th of July!!!!

New goals

2009-06-24T05:55:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of catching up to do! The reason I even do a blog is so that everyone back home (wherever that may be) can see what we are up to. Well, that really doesn't work unless I actually keep this thing updated. So, I am going to try and do a post a week. I would like to print this out as a journal/scrapbook someday so that the kids can remember this adventurous time we are having. I don't want to just skip to present time, because a lot has happened. Mom, make sure you scroll down to see all the new posts, I know at least you will appreciate it if no on else does!!!! Hold on and enjoy the ride!

Happy Birthday part 2

2009-06-24T04:31:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of the kids opening some of their presents. We had a fun day, despite the fact that Justin was on-call and gone the whole day. He got home in time for us all to go to Chuck E Chesse. Lucky him! They had so much fun and could spend all day there. They got bikes, and were having a blast riding them in the driveway. I know I could ride a bike without training wheels before I turned five, but I guess better late than never! They were so nice to even let Marcus in on the action! I can't believe that my babies will be going to Kindergarten this year. The time has flown by and I'm just trying to enjoy the summer with them before they are officially "grown up."

Frog Park

2009-06-23T04:36:00.000-07:00

We have found this awesome park with a big pond at the end of a beautiful walking trail. Well, the pond has tons of frogs and of course the kids want to catch them. Look closely and you can see the poor things. Kenley actually caught one all by herself. Who would have thought that she of all the kids would dare to do that?

My dad came for a quick trip and of course they wanted to show him the "frog park"

Picnics

2009-06-22T05:14:00.000-07:00

We are loving the summer weather!! Most days you can find us outside on our lawn having a picnic lunch. Lots of fun and clean up is a breeze!!

Crazy boys!

This was the best I could get of the four little munchkins!

The big haircut!

2009-06-21T04:44:00.000-07:00

OK. So his hair was getting really scary! It was falling out on the sides and the top was just out of control. Here are some before pics

And after!!! He looks so much better, don't ya think?

All the boys after a haircut

Random

2009-06-20T05:16:00.000-07:00

The kids wake up and immediately want to go outside and play. They stay out there all day and only come in for two reasons: food and potty breaks. They stink so bad by the end of the day! Seriously they smell like wet dogs! I love that they have so much fun together and they love playing with the next door neighbor too. I love summer days and the imagination of kids. These pictures don't capture the true filth or smell, but you get the idea!

A view from one of the walking trails we have discovered

I couldn't get a good picture, because it was dark, but this is Kenley out one night catching fireflies. This has to be one of my favorite things about living in PA. I love to just sit on our porch at night and watch the fireflies. They are so enchanting and the kids just love it too!!

The scoot

2009-06-19T04:47:00.000-07:00

This is so funny to me. I have never seen a baby get around this way. He has a gigantic bald spot because of it, but he sure gets where he needs to go! Who needs crawling when you can get around this way? Don't mind my annoying voice in the background :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KADE AND KENLEY!!!!!!!!

2009-05-27T06:05:00.000-07:00

More pics to come! They've come a long way!!!!!!

Visitors!!!

2009-05-05T07:44:00.000-07:00

So this is way late, but I wanted to post about some special visitors we had in March. This is my friend Alicia and her darling baby Afton. We met in AZ where are husbands were both going to school at Midwestern. She was still my friend despite the fact that every where we went we had my three kids with us. I seriously love this lady and was so excited to finally meet her cute girly!! She was all smiles and lots of fun to have around. We did a whole lot of nothing, but had a great time. We stayed up until midnight or later every night gabbing and I watched her make crafts for me :) I know I gained at least 5 pounds because we also ate ice cream every single night - no lie!! Aren't they just so cute?!!!!

Not sure how this picture ended up in here, but I can't figure out how to delete just one!

This is us decorating St Patrick's Day cookies. Kade had a little issue with the frosting.

And this is later having a serious issue with the frosting!!!! Kade and Marcus both ended up barfing that night. I have never seen such awesome throw up in my life. You know you have a true friend when she stays up with you and 1am to clean up your kids barf while your husband goes back to sleep because he has an early morning presentation to give!!!!!!!

This is Miles and Afton. He looks like he could take her out. She is two months older than my guy!

All of the kiddos chillin on my bed!!

So happy!!!!!

It was sad to say goodbye, but I think both of the mom's were ready. The babies slept in rooms right next to each other and kept waking each other up throughout the night. I was sick of waking up every three hours again!!!! My kids were sick the whole time and despite Alicia's best efforts to keep her baby healthy, she caught the same cold. Even better, Alicia reported that she threw up her entire plane ride home :( Thanks for coming even though we caused serious problems for the two of you!!!! Love you!!

A big thank you to Travis for keeping your promise and letting me have your sweet girls for the week!

2009-04-13T04:09:00.000-07:00

I hope that everyone had a Happy Easter!! We had a good time and enjoyed the festivities. Justin's work had an egg hunt last Saturday that we went to. It was freezing cold!!! We did not dress warm enough and we all froze! They had a good time anyway. A little cold won't stop my kids from grabbing as much candy as they can! A picture with all of their loot :)

This was before we started coloring our eggs Saturday morning. Justin was on call all weekend so we figured we would hurry and do it while he was home!

A few of our masterpieces

This is our attempt of taking some pre-church photos. Getting four kids plus myself ready with no husband is not an easy task! Justin got home in time to help with all the last minute chaos and took some pics for me. OK - so are hats appropriate for church? It was too cute to pass up and it's only once a year, right?! He is not amused as you can tell by the look on his face!

My pretty girl

What a handsome group of boys I get to live with!!!!!!!!!!!!

At church it was so cute when I was picking the kids up from primary all the leaders were telling the kids Happy Resurrection Day! I loved it! I was especially glad since amid our crazy morning not a lot of real meaning of Easter talk was going on :)

5 month update

2009-03-26T07:49:00.000-07:00

Miles is five months and is still as happy as ever! He is such a good boy and is doing lots of fun new things. We went in for our four month appointment last week ( a little late!) and surprise, surprise, he is off the charts again! He weighs 21 pounds 11 ounces. I don't even remember what she said about the height. So we have started baby food and cereal and he absolutely loves it!!! He sure knows how to eat and makes quite a mess in the process. This is one of my favorite stages ever! For some reason I just love feeding them baby food. He loves all the veggies and isn't quite so sure about fruit. We set up this bouncer for him and he LOVES it!!! He is a bouncing fool!

First time having cereal was not a real success. He does a lot better now, I promise!!!

Now for the sad news: his hair is falling out!!! I was hoping so bad that it wouldn't, but every time I get him out of bed there is more hair stuck to his blanket. It really is depressing to me, the exact same thing happened to Marcus. I'm thinking about collecting the hair and trying to glue it back on the sides. What do you think? He still has a mop on the top, but it is looking stranger every morning. I'll have to get some good pictures to show what I'm talking about. I guess I'll just enjoy the kitty hair for as long as I can. Why do babies have to grow up?

Good times

2009-03-26T06:55:00.000-07:00

So we've been home now for a couple of weeks and I thought it was about time to post some pics from Utah. We had such a good time!! We ate at all our favorite restaurants, went to some fun new places, but most of all just hung out with our families. That is my favorite part, just chilling at my mom's with everyone I love most in the whole world!! The kids did awesome on the plane!! They seriously were so well behaved, I almost didn't recognize them :) Thanks to grandma Lu and grandpa Mark for the suitcases! They were a hit! We were a bit like a three ring circus through the airport! Lots of comments and funny looks. I should have just made a sign that said "Yes, they are all mine!" Keeping everyone together and going the same direction was definitely the hardest part.

Sleeping arrangements at Grandma's. Yeah, just what you think - not a lot of sleeping going on at night. I thought they would crash since we stayed up until at least 11:00 every night, but no! They would play and play. Funny the first night - not so funny night two through fourteen :)

Grandma and my happy baby!

Marcus and his own gallon of chocolate milk. This kid can pack the cm away!!!!

All the cousins at breakfast

How is that for a six pack?

OK. So I put the pictures in the wrong order! I'm retarded, what can I say! Kenley has been wanting to cut her hair for a while and we think she looks so dang cute!!! I must admit I got choked up a bit. It makes her look so grown up. We even cut a little bit more off after this picture because Kade informed her that it was still touching her shoulders and he thought she should cut off a little bit more.

Bye Bye!!!

Before with Nicki - our live in hair dresser!

One of many pizza parties!

Kenley with Great Grandma. She seriously loves her and talks about her all the time. I happen to be a little fond of her myself! Love you grandma!!!!!!!!

Riding the front runner to Gateway. The kids thought it was so cool to ride a "train"

We went to Discovery Gateway and had a blast! There were so many fun things to do!

We thought Miles was big enough to pull out the tigger bouncer. He loved it, but mostly just loved chillin.

We had such a fun time! And of course everyone got sick, except me. A trip to Utah wouldn't be complete without Justin barfing and all the kids getting horrible coughs and runny noses!! Thanks to mom for putting up with us in the middle of a remodel! Like you needed more mess, right? Just so you know we did hang out with the Woodruff's too, I just don't have any pictures to prove it :) They just love going there and playing with everyone. We love you all!!!

HAPPY DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-02-16T08:32:00.000-08:00

Why the happy face? We are coming to Utah in 3 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are so excited we can't even stand it. Miles really is such a happy boy and we can't wait for everyone to meet him. He is just too much fun to keep all for ourselves. So get ready Miles for lots of hugs, kisses, and cheek buffage!!! (you might need to be a Jenkins to appreciate the term buffage!)

I couldn't resist putting a flower in his hair - I think I need a little girl before we're done with the baby making business. The clothes and accessories for girls are so much more fun, but for now this will have to do. He does make a pretty cute girl!

I promise I didn't make them dress up like this. I do draw the line at a certain age for dressing my boys up like girls!!!!! Look out Utah here we come!!

Checkups

2009-01-12T06:55:00.000-08:00

Miles and Marcus both had checkups a couple of weeks ago. Just wanted to show the numbers.

Marcus Miles

23 pounds 16 pounds 4 oz

33 inches tall 23 inches long

3 % for weight not even on the charts for weight

I just thought it was so funny. These boys are like night and day. The doctor told us that we need to start giving Marcus ice cream every night to fatten him up. I'm sure that will fatten us all up, who can pass up ice cream? Hmm... maybe I should just start nursing Marcus again! What do you think? I think I may have just thrown up a little! :)

Holidays in a nutshell

2009-01-12T06:26:00.001-08:00

We had a great holiday and hope that everyone else did too!!! This is the first time that we have not been able to go "home" for Christmas. I had very mixed feelings about the whole thing, but it turned out great!! Of course I missed being with my family and doing all of our traditional Christmas activities. We did all the same things here in PA and even started a few new things of our own. Thanks to lots of packages, letters and most of all for Skype I wasn't AS homesick as I thought I would be. My family is awesome and just wanted to say thanks! We felt your love clear across the country!!!!!!!!!!!

We always have a Christmas Eve picnic. We decided to put some sheets over our table and have our picnic in the manger. The kids loved it and it really led to some great discussions about Christ through our dinner.

Then we of course opened our Christmas Eve pj's!!!

We let the kids all sleep together on a blow up mattress downstairs in the family room. They were so excited about their "kids party" and kept asking me and Justin when we were going to leave. Believe it or not they stayed up really late and Marcus even made it until about 2am. The funniest thing was that Marcus kept sneaking upstairs to sample some of Santa's cookies. Here are a few pictures of the kids with their Santa gifts.

Our happy little boy!

I think this was the boys' favorite present! It is hilarious to watch them run around the house in these!!

We had a great time and just relaxed at home all day. We didn't even get dressed - just lounged around in our pj's. Who am I kidding! That is what I do everyday, right?! We had the kids in bed by 6:30 that night and they all slept like babies!!

What a tank!!!!!!!

2008-12-15T08:42:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to add a few pics of Miles and the kids. He is so dang big! I love it and wouldn't have it any other way. He is so squishy and lovable!!! The kids just absolutely adore him and love getting right in his face! He doesn't seem to mind, he just grins and deals with it. Last week I took him in for a quick hernia check and he weighed 14 pounds 12 ounces. He is only 8 weeks old! Of course he is a hit everywhere we go, between the chubbiness and the hair people can't seem to keep their hands off him. This first picture is almost 2 weeks ago. He has double the rolls now! Love it!!!!!!!!!!!

Catching up!

2008-12-15T08:30:00.000-08:00

We had an awesome Thanksgiving! We just had it with our own little family, and had a great time. We missed everyone at home, but made the best of things! We didn't waste any time getting out our Christmas decorations!! In fact we didn't even clean up any of the dishes after we ate, the kids were just too excited!!! We got our tree up, and we think it looks pretty great. The kids have been getting ornaments from their great-grandma every year for Christmas, so we decided to get a real tree for them to decorate. We went to a tree farm where you can cut down your own tree. The kids thought that was so awesome!! It was pretty cold, but they were troopers. We just got a tiny tree, we don't have too many ornaments yet:) I have to admit, it does look pretty ghetto, but the kids had a great time and I definitely think we'll do it again next year.

Back to Reality!!!

2008-11-25T03:55:00.000-08:00

A big thanks to this guy for giving me another beautiful baby boy! Love you Justin!

This post is late in coming, but I am adjusting to four kids, give me a break!! I just wanted to thank my family for coming out to help, especially my mommy!!:) I seriously don't know what I would have done without her. Recovery after my third c-section was much harder than after my first! She took care of everything around the house, including the kids. That really allowed me to have some great bonding time with my not so little anymore Miles. Now that she is gone I appreciate even more the quiet times we had alone, because now I still have time with him-but they are not alone or quiet!!! She did all the cooking, cleaning, bath times, play times, laundry, and still found time to take care of me and the baby! Not to mention the crafty touches she added to my house!!! I really love my mom so much! She is my best friend and I am her #1 fan. My kids are so lucky to have a grandma that loves them so much. I don't know how I got so lucky to get you as a mom - love ya!

(Please come back, we need help!)

OK this is a crazy picture, but one that describes my family perfectly!! Did you ever do this when you were little? If you can't tell they have taped their noses up. We were laughing so hard I was crying! It made them look like the Who's on the Grinch. Sad to say this is the only

picture I got of the three of them!

This is also the only picture I got of Nicki, what was I thinking? I think all the other pictures are on my dad's camera. She is so good with my kids, and any kids for that matter. She is so creative and always had something fun for them to do. One day they were watching "The Bee Movie" and she had them all make bee wings out of brown paper bags. They were so excited to show us and were buzzing around the house all morning. She is going to be the best mom and I love her so much! Thanks Nicki, we love and miss you! We especially miss all your energy! Thanks to her husband Brad too for letting her spend the week with us:)

This is my dad. He was so kind and generous to give me his wife for a month. Dad, I will be forever grateful for that!! He was my personal handy man while he was here, fixing all the things that Justin doesn't have time to do. My kids love and adore you, but not as much as I do!! Thank you so much for everything!! A special thanks for teaching Kade what you did! (wink,wink!)

Well this has turned into quite the tribute to my family, hasn't it! What can I say? I really have the most amazing family and I love them so much. We will take visitors anytime!! We love and miss you all so much and can't wait to see you again! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Blessing Day

2008-11-14T05:56:00.000-08:00

First of all, I know there are two of the same pictures on this post, but I'm retarded and couldn't figure out how to change it! We blessed Miles on Sunday and just wanted to share a few pics. It was a great day and so fun to have some of our family here with us. I can't believe how fast 3 weeks has gone by already and how much he has changed. I wish they could just stay little forever! He is such a good baby and he has brought so much joy into our home. We love you Miles!!!!!

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-01T06:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics from our adventures last night. The kids had a great time and got loads of candy. This is the best picture of the three of them, despite Kenley's closed eyes. They had had enough picture taking by now and trick or treaters were starting to come. Huge difference from Halloween last year-the kids were not shy at all. They actually spoke to people when they answered the door! It was a lot of fun and no complaints about the walking from any of the kids. I was especially impressed that Cinderella walked the whole time in her high heels without any problems:) I think you could hear the click clack of her shoes in the next county! She loved it though and even got to wear a little bit of mom's make up. Mr. pirate had a permanent grin on his face the whole time. He was so proud of his whiskers! Our not so baby anymore giraffe wanting to eat every piece of candy he got as soon as they put it in his bag. Thanks to grandma for staying home with Miles so we could go out together!

More photos of Miles!!!

2008-10-31T14:08:00.000-07:00

Really not much to say, just wanted to add a few more pictures that we've taken since we brought Miles home. We are all still amazed by his fuzzy head. He has been such a good little baby so far, and he sleeps a ton!!

Welcome to our family Miles Scott Woodruff!!!!

2008-10-22T15:56:00.001-07:00

He's here!! Miles Scott Woodruff joined our family on October 21st at 7:31pm. He weighed 7lbs 15 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. It was a long day, but well worth the wait and the 12 hours of contractions!! Justin and I were both about ready to kill the doctor on call. Even though I was contracting every 2-3 minutes there was no change to my cervix, so she refused to deliver, even though I had a c-section scheduled for Thursday. Two days early- give me a break. I've had contractions throughout most of my pregnancy, but nothing like these - needless to say I was a mess by midafternoon!! Sorry! I guess maybe I needed to vent a little:)

Here is our handsome little guy with Grandma Lu - finally opening his eyes

Look at all that hair!! It is so soft and fuzzy. The kids were in heaven "petting" him every chance they could. And check out that double chin and chubby cheeks. Love it!

Trying to catch another shot with his eyes open

Here is our new family of six!! A little crazy, but we wouldn't have it any other way! We love you Miles and we are so excited to have you in our family!!

More to come.... you can never have enough pictures of your newborn, right!?

Two weeks and counting!!

2008-10-09T10:22:00.000-07:00

So - I am not the best at keeping my blog updated. Things have been very boring around here! I have two weeks to go before we become a family of six and we are taking it pretty easy! I have gone early with my two other pregnancies and so far this is the longest I have ever stayed pregnant. It has it's good and bad points. I'm sure it is better for the little guy to be cooking, but boy what I wouldn't give to have my body back right now. I actually do love being pregnant, just not for the full 40 weeks I guess:) My mom comes on Tuesday and we couldn't be more excited. She gets to stay with us for a whole month. I don't know what we would do without her!!! I am scheduled for my c-section on the 23rd. With contractions coming like crazy our goal is to make it at least until grandma comes!

Justin is crazy busy at work, and we don't get to see a whole lot of him. The kids were having the funniest conversation about him the other day. The ortho guys take turns being on call and they can come home, but just have to keep their pagers on. So this is how the conversation goes:

Kenley: When that thing starts beeping that means that someone is in trouble and dad has to go to work to help them.

Marcus: Yeah, he goes to work at the hospital

Kenley: That's right, cuz he's a doctor now

Marcus: He's not a doctor, he's daddy

Kenley: I know Marcus. He doesn't really look like one, but he is!

I know the kids miss him as much as I do. I am sure they are pretty sick of watching movies so mommy can rest. When Grandma Lu comes she is going to be kept busy to say the least!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARCUS!!!

2008-08-27T10:50:00.003-07:00

This post is all about Marcus. That's right, we celebrated his 2nd birthday on Sunday, August 24th. We can't believe it's already been 2 years. We all had a great time and even made a trip down to the zoo in Baltimore. It was his first time at the zoo and he really enjoyed seeing all of the animals. He especially loved seeing the monkey "go potty in the tree".

On Sunday we all got up earlier than expected thanks to Kenley (who was apparently more excited than Marcus) and opened his gifts. Our biggest struggle throughout the day became settling disputes about who the new toys belonged to. We all had a good time though and Marcus really liked the chocolate ice cream he picked out.

Marcus has been such a blessing in our lives and has always been very well-behaved. He is so fun to watch as he plays with his brother and sister. Maybe we are a bit biased, but he's the cutest little boy we've ever seen. Thank you for the last two years "Bartus" (for those who don't know, this is how he pronounces his name).

Marcus' (or Mom's) favorite cake??

He really enjoyed the chocolate ice cream

Excitedly opening his gifts!. Notice the new Crocs, he finally wore out his old pair. He has an obsession with these shoes, and they're usually the first thing he looks for when he wakes up every day.

Here he is showing off his new church shirt.

Marcus and Daddy at the zoo

2008-08-07T18:45:00.000-07:00

Because it's been so long since I updated this blog I've decided to post a bunch random pictures of things we've done over the past month or so. Whenever Justin is off work we make an effort to do some fun things with the kids. We have learned, or should I say been compelled, to find FREE entertainment. If any of you watch "Jon & Kate plus 8" then maybe you'll recognize some of the pictures. This park is called "Cocoa Castle Park" and it was on one of the episodes, so thanks to my obsession with that show we took a trip there today. The kids had a great time, and the park is pretty cool!!

We have settled in and are enjoying living here in PA. The ward has been great as well as some of the wives' of fellow residents. Justin is doing his Emergency Medicine month now and is the lucky resident who gets the 3pm to 3am shift. We miss everyone and hope you enjoy our blog!

Still best buddies!!

It got a bit warm after lunch and Marcus was pooped!

Kade at Perry Dell Dairy

"dirt-sliding"

Kade at Cocoa Castle

Kenley helping me make peach cobbler for family night

Notice who's closer!!

A day at Lake Redman

We let them get dirty on the hills behind the house

One of the slides at Cocoa Castle

Marcus and his favorite hippo

Marcus and Kade love playing blocks together. Marcus' favorite part is "bonking" them down.

Wearing Daddy's hat

Marcus is probably the bravest of them all with the baby cows

Lake Redman watching the ducks

Family Pics

2008-07-22T11:10:00.000-07:00

Here are some of our family pictures we got taken before we left Arizona. Of course I have to be super prego and fat, but other than that I think they turned out OK. After I figure out how to make a slide show, I'll have to post some more!

Its about time!

2008-07-16T07:58:00.000-07:00

So we are here in Pennsylvania and things are finally starting to settle down a little. My mom and I drove cross country with the three kids. Lets just say that we will NEVER be doing that again. I can't thank my mom enough, there is no way I could have done it without her. It took us four days with only minor brake problems. Thanks to "Bilawn" we got those fixed and back on the road. The kids were seriously awesome and they behaved way better than I did!! We are in our new house and we just love everything about it!!! It feels like home (thanks to the HARD labor of my mom and dad!) and we're excited to see what York, PA has in store for us! My camera battery is dead and who knows where the charger is (obviously we haven't unpacked everything yet!) but I'll have to post some pictures of the house and all the improvements my parents made while they were here. My friend Erika reminded me in a comment that I never shared our exciting news! Thanks Rik! We found out that were are having another boy and we couldn't be more pleased!! I was so nervous when I saw the little boy parts on the ultrasound, we had the rest of the kids with us and I was sure we were going to have a serious melt down by you know who! She was so awesome!!! She said "that's OK mom, I guess Marcus just needed a little boy friend to play with!" I was shocked and totally pumped that she handled it so well. We are all excited and Oct/Nov can't come soon enough. I don't know which is worse: being pregnant in Arizona during the 120 degree summer, or here in the sticky, wet 85 degrees. Yes, we are still adjusting to the lovely humidity. Anyway! That is all for now, some pictures will hopefully be on there way soon!!