We The Whitneys

Third time's a charm.

2012-01-23T13:00:00.000-08:00

I potty trained Sydney at 19 months and Jackson just a few weeks before his second birthday.

Sydney after her first "success"....before I became so shameless and started posting pictures like...

...this. Haha. Jackson's first "success".

It took Sydney about 6 months to be accident free without me reminding her to go to the bathroom throughout the day. It took Jackson a full year.

The dreaded day finally came for Carter.

We started training Carter on Saturday. Two months after his second birthday.

He had several accidents in the first few hours of day one.

After going through all 8 pairs of underwear I had on hand, he caught on and only had 1 accident the rest of the day.

Since then he has had NO accidents AND the best part of all...

He tells me when he has to go!!!!

Just look how proud of himself he is!

Can't rotate this on...grr!

So, WHY was it so hard for my other kids to catch on?

Both of them were old enough to communicate and understood what was happening. They could go "on command" but for some reason were not interested in making the effort on their own to get to the toilet in time.

The only thing I can think of that's making a big difference this time around is Carter's good ol' love of FOOD.

I think I could make this boy do just about anything for a chance to reach his chubby little hand into this jar of candy.

Three down, one to go! Whoo hoo!!

"Procedure"

2012-01-07T09:00:00.000-08:00

Carter had his little "procedure" done yesterday.

What procedure you ask?

Well, let's just say that the doctor who performed his circumcision didn't get it quite right.

Well, not right at all.

So, we had that little problem fixed.

Poor guy.

The doctors swear he'll thank me for it when he's older.

I dropped Reese off at my mom's house the night before so we could get up bright and early to go to the hospital.

We got there about 7:15am and got busy waiting.

And waiting.

An hour later they called his name and pulled him to his little room in a wagon.

I texted this picture to McKay who was getting the big kids off to school. He showed them the picture and they quickly forgot how concerned they were about their little brother and became more concerned about if the wagon would be coming home with him. :-)

His surgery was not at a pediatric surgery center. It was just at the hospital with all the other people getting every kind of surgery. Carter was the only child at the time and he got so much attention from all the nurses and other patients.

All the attention (along with the bag of toys and books I brought along) kept him happy and occupied for about another hour.

But after so much waiting...

...and waiting...

...and so on...

...he was not happy.

No food or drink is a lot to ask of a 36 pound 2 year old who lives to eat.

At this point it was about 9:20am.

All he wanted was some chocolate cheerios.

And a drink.

And some pancakes.

And fruit snacks.

And any other food he could think of.

He couldn't believe I wouldn't let him have breakfast.

So out came my last resort.

Angry Birds.

Finally the nurse came in and we wrestled Carter down to get his ankle band on.

We decided to wait on the hospital gown until they put him under....

I'm sure the other patients thought he was being tortured.

And off he went. Thanks heavens for the wagon, he didn't even notice that I didn't follow him back to the surgery room.

The surgeon told me it would be at least an hour and half before they came to get me so that I should go to the cafeteria, have some breakfast, and relax.

Relax? Me? By myself for 2 hours?

YES PLEASE!!

It was so nice. I sat and ate in peace, people watched, used a small stall in a public bathroom rather than hauling all the kiddos into the handicap stall.

Then I sat in a big comfy chair in the waiting room and read.

It was great.

2 hours later they came and got me.

I walked into the recovery room and there was my huge baby in just a diaper.

How did he get so BIG?

I was able to hold him until he woke up.

Then I gave him a drink and he didn't let the thing go until it was gone.

He was already worn out after drinking, but he noticed the crackers on the counter and had to have one.

It was funny watching him try to eat while his head was bobbing and he couldn't keep his eyes open.

Waking up a little more.

Ready to go home.

The anesthesiologist gave him a spinal block (similar to an epidural) to help with the pain.

This made his legs not work for several hours.

We wheeled him out to the car in a wheel chair and home we went.

He laid on me on the couch and we watched Tangled until the kids got home from school.

Today he's up and running around. I'm able to manage his pain with just Tylenol and he's back to his normal 2 year old self.

The end!

SIX new posts!

2012-01-05T15:16:00.000-08:00

The last couple of months have totally gotten away from me!

My last real blog post was almost 2 months ago!

So, I finally found some time to go through the hundreds of pictures from November and December and document them.

There are 6 new posts below...ENJOY!!

From 1 to 4

2012-01-05T15:14:00.000-08:00

My mom has made bath towels for each of my kids.

I love fresh-out-of-the-bath kids. Their big wet eye lashes and clean faces.

Mmmm.

First there was one.

Then two.

Three.

And now four.

Brain Head Getaway

2012-01-05T15:10:00.000-08:00

The week before Christmas we planned a last minute trip to Brain Head to play in the snow.

We got on Priceline.com and booked a Holiday Inn Express the night before we left.

When we got there we ended up in a Jacuzzi King Suit for only $49 per night! It was awesome.

We didn't tell the kids until the morning of.

McKay says I always get pictures of him driving, so he had to take one of me.

McKay and the kids went tubing. Even Carter got to go! He only made it down the hill twice when he decided it was too cold and came and hung out in the warm truck with me and Reese.

The big kids LOVED it.

After their 2 hour tubing pass expired we stuck around and played in the snow until everyone was wet and cold.

Such a fun trip! I think we'll take some sort of snow trip every year before Christmas.

Balloons, Winterfest, and Camping

2012-01-05T15:04:00.000-08:00

We had a baby shower for my sister-in-law Becky back in November.

The balloons entertained the kids for HOURS the next day.

We took the kids to the Henderson Winterfest.

Face painting, cookie decorating, ornament making, and a carousel. Fun stuff.

Shopping at The District.

McKay took Jackson on a scout camp out.

Christmas Morning

2012-01-05T14:51:00.001-08:00

Waiting on the stairs to see what Santa brought.

(I remember doing this all growing up and it's pretty fun to have my own clan now and be on the other side of the camera!)

Playing with new toys.

I think Carter was most excited to have his OWN candy to eat BEFORE breakfast. :-)

Opening gifts from under the tree.

VIdeo of coming down the stairs. I wish I would have kept filming!

*This last part is Sydney opening up her first bras. Too public? Maybe, but I just had to catcher her reaction. She's been asking for a bra since she was 3...she thinks they are "SO beautiful!!".*

The 12 days before Christmas

2012-01-05T14:51:00.000-08:00

Setting up the Christmas Tree.

Visiting Santa.

The Nativity.

Haha. My sister Jacee was a wise man.

Carter opening his Christmas Eve present.

New Jammies!

Christmas goodies.

We bought tickets to the Boulder City Santa Train over a month in advance.

Sadly, the day of everyone but Sydney had the stomach flu.

She went with my mom and sister and they snapped a couple pictures.

Springs Preserve, Mermaids and MY BABY'S GROWING UP!!!

2012-01-05T14:50:00.000-08:00

We took the kids to the Spring Preserve the week before Christmas.

The week after Christmas we went to see the mermaids swim at the Silverton Hotel.

They were so fun. They interacted with the kids through the glass and tried to steal kisses from all the boys.

My sweet baby Reese is already 4 1/2 months old! WHAT?!?

He's such a cutie.

We gave him his first taste of rice cereal on a spoon a couple weeks ago. Our other kids all gobbled it up at 4 months...Reese wasn't so interested so we'll give it another shot in a month or so.

(I can't rotate these pictures for some reason...)

Watching the big kids play at the park.

He's trying really hard to get his fingers figured out.

Jackson came to me one day and said he was a lawyer monster.

I guess because he's wearing a bow tie??

This was Carter's first night out of the crib and bunking with Jackson.

He does great going to sleep, but now wakes up at 5 every morning.

WAY too early for me. Ugh!

Cowboy Carter.

There's just something so cute about kids falling asleep while eating.

We pulled the Bumbo out to let Reese try it out.

Carter had to test it out first.

And Jackson.

Finally Reese.

Sydney and Jackson got to go shooting in Logandale the day after Christmas.

I'm Getting Nothin' for Christmas!!

2011-12-19T09:18:00.000-08:00

Last night was our annual Gifford Christmas Party.

My sister Sherri surprised us by teaching the older grandkids this cute song.

Now onto Christmas break with all the kiddos home.
I'm going to try to make the best of it and enjoy all this extra time with my little noise makers. ;-)

Snow Camp

2011-12-17T15:20:00.000-08:00

We took the scouts snow camping this weekend. We captured some of the cold moments

nice warm bed

this is just like home

creepy dog statue we found

McKay and Jackson double jump. It's not a soft landing...

Blake launches over them

Jacob dislocates his jaw

Blake goes over the cliff

Cody can jump too

Dane flies over

Blake over again

Christmas Baking

2011-12-14T09:52:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't done any actual baking this year.

But we did work on these beauties last night.

I even let the big kids get in on the action.

Mmmmm.

Tonight we'll finish dipping cashews and whole dried strawberries.

Two nights ago McKay and I laid all the kids Christmas presents out on the bed to evaluate.

After gathering gifts throughout the year and shoving them in my closet I forget what I have for each child.

I'm happy to announce my Christmas shopping is DONE!!!!

The only thing left is to take everyone to the dollar store to buy for each other.

I wait all year for October, November, and December.

I love the cool weather, the activities, music, and smells.

It makes me sad that in less than two weeks Christmas will already be OVER.

I'm going to enjoy every second of the next several days and I hope you do too!!

Merry Christmas!

Protecting YOUR Rights!

2011-12-09T10:23:00.000-08:00

Last night at McKay's work Christmas party we captured this little gem. ;-)

All the attorneys.

Protecting YOUR rights!

Haha.

Newborn Reese

2011-11-30T15:06:00.000-08:00

Diana did these precious newborn shots of Reese when he was just 10 days old.

So sweet.

Family Pictures November 2011

2011-11-29T18:48:00.000-08:00

We got together with my cousin Diana again a few weeks ago.

She did an amazing job! Thanks Diana!

Did you know...

2011-11-21T10:15:00.000-08:00

...that McKay picked himself up this beauty a few weeks ago?

Now he doesn't have to feel embarrassed pulling his awesome four wheeler around with his wife's not-so-awesome minivan.

Carter is TWO!

2011-11-17T13:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Cater turned 2 years old.

It's just too weird having my kids grow up. Where did my baby go?

We've been talking about his birthday for a few days now and he knew it was coming. He was spoiled with hugs, kisses, and happy birthday wishes from the second he woke up.

He kept saying "Happy birthday to you!" to remind me that it was his birthday.

It was such a fun day.

For breakfast the kids helped me surprise him with a birthday poptart.

Once the big kids were at school Carter got to help me make his cake.

He had so much fun in the kitchen with me.

Crushing the cookies.

After crushing cookies Carter took his nap and I finished it up...keeping it a surprise for that night.

I had McKay pick up a pizza (Carter's FAVORITE) on his way home from work.

Carter always gets excited when he hears McKay get home, so I thought I'd catch it on camera.

Eating his pizza.

After dinner we had family over for cake and ice cream.

Then he opened his gifts.

He got a pillow pet from Grandma.

Sydney has one from her 4th birthday so she grabbed it to show Carter how to use it.

Cute.

Two is a fun age. It was great to see him understand what was happening and watch his eyes light up over and over again.

I love you Mr. Carter!

Super Citizen

2011-11-17T11:40:00.000-08:00

Sydney was chosen as the Super Citizen in her class for the month of November.

This morning we got to go see her get her award. She was so excited for Mom AND Dad to come.

After the ceremony they had Krispy Kremes and juice for the students.

Sydney "snuk" (is that how you spell that word??) one for Carter too.

Time Out For Women 2011

2011-11-17T11:20:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I got to take a mini vacation with my mom and sisters!

We headed to St. George, UT to a two day conference called Time Out for Women.

It was wonderful.

Here are a few pics from our adventure.

Ooooh man. Christie is a music major at SUU and is currently learning the flute.

Sherri played flute in middle school so packed her flute along and during our lunch break on Saturday they played their little hearts out. SOO funny....and cute.

Such a great weekend!

Random Novemberness

2011-11-17T11:01:00.000-08:00

One day after school we had Conner and Evan (my brother's boys) come over and hang out.

They played Just Dance and I just couldn't get enough of watching them all dance together.

It was ADORABLE.

Then they all lined up and played Super Mario Brothers. It's so fun to see them all so close in age and playing together. I love it!

Then there's this cutie. Reese is changing every day.

He's SO smiley and now does the cutest little laugh.

At two months he started sleeping TEN hours straight at night and it is WONDERFUL!!

Between that and getting a new mattress on our bed I'm a new woman...one that actually feels refreshed in the morning. I feel like I'm finally pulling out of the fog of pregnancy/newborn craziness.

And to top it all off my birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are all right around the corner!

Ooooh, life is good!

Reese trying out the high chair while I made dinner

Still a little too early for the Bumbo...but I just had to give it a shot.

During Sunday School.

Last weekend I went out of town with my mom and sisters.

The kids got to stay home with Dad and roll in his truck all weekend.

They agree with most of the world that his truck is SoOoOo much cooler than Mom's minivan.

Whatever.

;-)

So there you have it. Another month flying by.

I'm getting better at keeping up with everything and enjoying the little things.

Life is good.

It's been one of those days....

2011-11-04T14:26:00.000-07:00

...but isn't Reese's sad face SO cute?!

I love my little boys.

:-)

October is OVER?!?

2011-11-01T13:56:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that November is already here! I've been waiting for Fall for so long that now it's kinda stressing me out that it's flying by!

Below are a few posts of our October happenings and in this post are some random pictures to wrap up the month. Happy NOVEMBER!!!

We roasted hot dogs with some friends and cousins.

The kids were testing out the new motorized trains and Reese laid in the middle of the track watching them go around and around for over an hour.

Reese turned TWO months! He's starting to get chubby cheeks and thighs to show for it.

Carter was playing with Mr. Potato Head and thought it was SO funny to stick the parts in the wrong places. Here he is with an arm in the nose hole.

He was a little confused as to why the glasses didn't fit...

We had a little chunk of dry ice left over from when we made root beer for the ward party. The next morning McKay helped the kids play with it.

Sydney said,

"Mom, if we're ever being good and you want to give us something, don't give us money, just get us some dry ice to play with!".

Ok Sydney...note taken. :-)

Ooooh, in these dry ice pictures you get a sneak peek of some remodeling that's going on in our house!!!...notice the new flooring??

Pumpkin Carving

2011-11-01T13:18:00.000-07:00

McKee Ranch

2011-11-01T13:16:00.000-07:00

Right off the strip here in Vegas there's a little family ranch. It seems so out of place.

They had a little pumpkin patch complete with pony rides and hay rides.

When we got there (an hour before they closed) the pony was being put away. She was tired. This meant the kids got to ride a "real" horse. Haha.

They loved it.

We had horses while I was growing up and I can't wait until we own some property where we can have them again!

Right after the horse ride the big kids climbed this huge stack of hay.

They were up there for just long enough to take this picture and somehow ended up with handfuls of hay in their underwear...

Sooo, they walked around for the rest of the time very uncomfortable....shoving their hands down their pants trying to get it out. Oh man.

Bonnie Springs

2011-11-01T12:55:00.000-07:00

Bonnie Springs did a cute little Halloween Haunted Town for kids. We met up with my brother and his family and gave it a shot.

Sydney is the only girl cousin on my side....but not for long!!! My brother Michael and his wife Becky are expecting their first girl (after 3 boys) in December!

Here are all the cousins, minus Reese, waiting to take the train to Haunted Town.

On the train.

Think Carter was excited?!?

Sydney and Evan.

Conner and Jackson.

It got dark shortly after this picture was taken and then it was too hard to keep track of everyone and take pictures at the same time...but the kids had a blast. I love that we live so close to family and get to do fun stuff like this!

Pumpkin Patch

2011-11-01T12:45:00.000-07:00

To start off our Halloween/Fall festivities we visited a pumpkin patch near our house.

I've been looking forward to this for months and was very excited to get out and enjoy the cooler weather.

The temperature ended up being over 100 on this day....oops.

We still had fun.

McKay thought the shape of this pumpkin was just hilarious...

Sydney wasn't too sure.

Carter was totally creeped out by the warts on the little pumpkin.

The place was pretty busy, but somehow Carter got the bouncy house to himself for about 5 minutes.

~~Some~~ Most of our outings feel like failures these days. As much as I prepare and plan before leaving the house something always seems to go wrong. I can't count how many times I've walked to the car carrying a screaming baby, chasing a crying 1 year old, and pushing an empty double stroller. I'm worn out by bed time and often wonder how I'm going to face another tiring day (following a sleepless night)....but it's always better in the morning. Life is hard right now...REALLY HARD...but I'm able to enjoy moments of each day and look forward to watching my kiddos grow up.

Big smile for Dad

2011-10-10T08:48:00.000-07:00

McKay sent me these pictures that he took of Reese sometime over the weekend.

He worked up to one huge smile. So cute!

Reese's Baby Blessing

2011-10-07T09:44:00.000-07:00

On Sunday October 2nd McKay blessed our baby Reese.

It was so nice to be close to our family and spend the evening visiting and eating.

I had the chance to sit back and remember how truly grateful I am for each of my kids, my husband, my parents and in-laws, siblings, and close friends. Everyone is so supportive and makes my life so happy.

Thanks to all who came. We love you!

Reese with Grandma and Grandpa Whitney.

...and Sydney.

With Grandma and Grandpa Gifford.

So awake and alert.

Grandma and Grandpa Gifford, Reese, and Aunt Jacee.

Our (not so little) family.

Mom, Dad, and Reese.

McKay's nice way of saying, "Enough with the pictures!!".

The 4 kiddos.

For dinner that night we made a massive pot of chili. After opening a few cans my wrist was tired and I put McKay on the job. After just a couple cans he went out to the garage and came up with this idea.

Genius! ;-)

Lots of cans!

Halloween House

2011-10-07T08:57:00.000-07:00

McKay snapped a bunch of pictures of me and the kids working on this Halloween house.

I've got to get a better "concentrating" face...

We kept Carter contained and far away from the mess...with some candies to keep him company.

Also, Carter and Jackson got some new shoes. They thought it was cool that they (almost) matched even though they are from different stores. They asked me to take a picture.

And lastly a couple pictures of Mr. Reese.

He's working on his smiles these days. Sometimes I'm able to capture them.

But usually as soon as I get the camera out he just stares at it...like this.

Haha.

I bought tickets to McKee Ranch for their pumpkin patch for our family. It came with 2 pony rides and I'm very excited to go!

I don't know about you, but after a very LONG and painful Vegas Summer, I am SO happy to welcome this lovely cool weather!

Happy Friday!

Jackson is 5!!

2011-10-05T10:01:00.000-07:00

For a while there McKay and I thought we were only going to have 2 kids.

Jackson was our baby and we thought that's how it would always be.

Needless to say, he's not our baby any more, and although he now has 2 little brothers, to me he'll always be my baby...or at least one of them ;-)

SOOO, it's a very weird feeling to have my "baby" turn FIVE!

Five is OLD!

Jackson wanted to invite friends to his party, so we combined and invited friends and family.

We had quite the bunch! It was tiring shopping, preparing food for, and throwing a big birthday bash with a 4 week old but it was totally worth it.

He chose to have a vampire party.

I forgot to take pictures until the party was almost over, but some are better than none I guess.

The pinata.

The presents.

The cupcakes.

I didn't get a good picture of them.

They were red velvet cake with white frosting and purple sprinkles with this little guy

cut out and stuck on top with a tooth pick.

On his actual birthday, a few days later, we went to Red Robin where he got his free birthday kids meal, and the servers sang to him and brought him his own ice cream sundae. He wasn't too sure about them singing to him...his face was priceless, but he loved eating up his ice cream!

It's not always easy to get a full family shot these days....so we had to settle for these.

After dinner we headed home where Jackson got to hunt for his presents.

He got a couple new motorized trains for the train set along with a few other little toys.

But apparently his most exciting gift was...

his new underwear! Haha.

It's going to be SUPER weird when my real baby turns 5!!

Yikes.

5 Weeks Old

2011-09-28T16:54:00.000-07:00

I wish I could say the time has flown by, but really it seems like forever ago that I was in the hospital having baby Reese.

Not necessarily in a bad way, life with 4 kids is just hard

and tiring,

and rewarding all at the same time.

Sometimes I'm a crazy woman...

like the day I roared at Jackson.

Ya, you know like in Shrek 4 when everyone is making noise and everything is going wrong and the little kid is telling Shrek "Do the roar." and then he reaches his breaking point and does a massive, angry

ROOOOOAR!

Ya, that was me. Ogre Mommy.

Only my roar was more of a low pitched scream.

I'm not proud of that moment.

I had some apologizing to do that day.

Nevertheless, there are also lots of good moments. I know these hard tiring times where I have 4 kids ages 6 & under will not last forever and that someday I will even miss these days. (or so everyone at the grocery store tells me...)

So here are some pictures of little Reese.

He's still skinny, but I'm expecting him to start plumping up any day now....like all my other kids did.

On Sunday we got a few shots after church.

The boys.

Sydney, the second mommy.

Funny faces.

Me and my employers. ;-)

That evening I also helped the kids make this spooky Halloween house.

Now for a few random pictures of Carter.

On this day McKay made him a Nutella sandwich.

When Carter saw the picture he said "Eww! Cake?"

He must think it's cake all over his face.

Helping Dad with some yard work.

Hanging out on Mom and Dad's bed.

Today is Jackson's birthday.

We had his party on Saturday, and after his birthday dinner at Red Robin tonight I'll post pictures of my

FIVE YEAR OLD BOY!!!

Back then

2011-09-25T19:29:00.000-07:00

I just came across this video from a couple years ago.

Sydney was 4.

We lived in Virginia.

Crazy how fast time goes and how quickly life changes.

Back to school, back to life.

2011-09-13T10:10:00.000-07:00

*Warning*

Lots of words in this post! Scroll down if you're just interested in pictures!

Six days after Reese was born school started.

Sydney started first grade, and Jackson all day Kindergarten.

It was a day I had very mixed emotions about. I knew I'd have a 6 day old baby, and a needy almost 2 year old at home. I wasn't sure if the big kids being gone all day would make things easier (cuz, hey, 2 is easier than 4 right??) or harder (cuz lets face it...those big kids do A LOT to help me out!!)

I also worried with Jackson being so young that he'd have a hard time adjusting to being in school ALL day. He only meets the deadline to start school this year by 2 days. He's a boy, he's full of energy, and he's very social.

McKay took the kids to back to school night since I had just come home from the hospital. It was hard for me to not be there to meet their teachers and get a feel for how the first day of school would go...but braving a crowded school in 110 degrees 3 days after my c-section didn't seem like the best idea.

Monday was the big day and Sherri, my sister, came over to watch the 2 little kids so I could take the big kids to their first day. It was HOT, and just the little bit of energy it took wiped me out, but I was so happy I got to go.

Jackson did great. He wasn't at all emotional and seemed excited to get into the classroom.

Sydney was emotional. She really wanted to be there, but was nervous. She had tears, but tried to hide them. She's been excited to go back to school since summer started, so I think she surprised herself when the tears came.

They both had a great first day. Jackson has only had good reports from his teacher. He fits right in and listens well. His teacher is very strict (which he needs) and he loves her. Every day when he gets home from school he reminds me that he needs to do his homework. He gets a months worth of homework at a time and he had it finished in about 6 days. I can't even explain how relieved I am that things are going so well for him. I really worried that this year was too soon for him to start and that I should wait until next year, but he's doing SO well.

Of course Sydney is doing great, too. She's made for the classroom. She's not as excited about homework as Jackson...She gets to complaining when I tell her it's time to work on it each day, but the thought of turning in an incomplete homework packet stresses her out enough that she always gets it done. ;-)

So, all my stresses of back to school are gone. It was a crazy few weeks leading up to, and following the big day, but it's come and gone and it couldn't have gone any better. Phew!

Sydney and Jackson in front of the school.

They wear uniforms and I LOVE it!

I thought it was cute that they held hands walking in.

Sydney trying to smile for one last picture before going inside.

It was not easy!

So, now the majority of my days are spent with just 2 kids. It reminds me a lot of when Sydney and Jackson were little....except I have to keep up with the chores of a family of 6. Lots of laundry, shopping, food preparation, etc. It's good to be busy.

Carter gladly lets the kids leave in the mornings. He loves his alone time with me.

He also found this little back pack in the dress ups and puts it on when the big kids put on their back packs.

I stay plenty busy during the day...but sometimes I get a few seconds to myself.

As much as Carter loves his alone time during the day, he's very excited when the big kids get home to play with him.

Last weekend McKay went on a scout camp out and picked up this tasty treat to feed the boys.

You can only imagine Carter's excitement when he laid his eyes on it!

Remember how much Carter likes to eat!!!

While McKay was gone me and Sydney gave Reese his first bath. Sydney took pictures for me. It wasn't the most enjoyable bath, but his second one was much better!

All clean.

And one last picture. This has to be one of my favorite pictures of Carter ever.

I think I'll have it blown up and hung somewhere.

McKay snapped this on Labor day when just he and Carter went for a little joy ride.

SO cute, and SO Carter!

Reese McKay Whitney

2011-09-02T10:26:00.000-07:00

Born August 23, 2011 at 7:55am

8 pounds 9 ounces 21 inches long

Jackson and Carter's middle names are G, after my maiden name Gifford.

Since Reese's first name is already after me, we decided to have his middle name be after McKay.

We arrived at the hospital at 5:30am. I walked into the operating room at 7:30 and Reese was born at 7:55.

The doctor performed a text book c-section. No complications and I didn't even throw up during the surgery (I saved that for after...)

This recovery has been by far my best. I felt as good on day 2 as I normally do on day 5 or 6.

The doctor used dissolveable stitches and super glue to close my incision. No staples to deal with like my other 3 c-sections. Hooray!

Reese has been our most calm baby. He eats every 3 hours during the day and every 4 during the night. He loves his swing and it's a life saver when I'm trying to make dinner, help kids with homework, and keep Carter occupied. That last hour before McKay gets home from work has always been hard, but man oh man...I'm a crazy woman with 4 kids!

Now for some pictures!

Fresh out of the oven.

My first time holding him....a few hours old.

It always surprises me how swollen my face is after my c-sections. Maybe it's all the IV fluid?

Daddy getting a look at his little tiny legs and feet.

Dad, happy that baby Reese is finally here!!

The hospital surprised us with this lovely treat.

Aunt Jacee visiting the hospital.

Grandma Gifford and baby Reese.

I brought this pacifier to the hospital hoping he'd like it more than the Soothie kind the nursery gives them.

No such luck. This is probably the only time he kept it in his mouth.

Soothie it is.

Cousins Evan and Conner visiting.

All dressed and waiting to be discharged.

Not too happy about the car seat.

Finally home...and wiped out!

The three older kids stayed with McKay's brother and family in Logandale while we were in the hospital.

They were pretty excited to get home and meet their new brother.

It gets crazy around here, but I feel like I'm doing pretty well. Sydney and Jackson love to hold him any chance they get, and Carter is adjusting to sharing his mom with the baby.

Here's Reese one week old.

Stay tuned for a back to school post!

He's here!

2011-08-23T20:01:00.000-07:00

You want me to do what?

This is the first child I have ever cut the cord for.

The doc tricked me, and I'll bet I don't even get a discount for doing part of the work. I'll itemize this bill and dispute any line item description like "cut cord" or "sever umbilicus cordicus."

Hello World!

Welcome!

Reese McKay Whitney

Born 8-23-11 at 7:55am

Weighed 8lbs 9oz, 21 inches

He is named Reese after his mommy Keresa (care-REES-uh).

He is named McKay after his daddy McKay (mugh-KAY).

The only thing left to figure now is how will we put the FOUR car seats in?

One Last Summer Post

2011-08-19T07:57:00.000-07:00

I thought I should clear the camera off one final time before the baby gets here.

I'm sure McKay will post a few pictures from the hospital next week, but there's no telling when I'll make it back on here to update things.

Baby #4 will be here on Tuesday!

We have a huge box of old dot matrix paper...you know the old-school printer paper with the little rip-off edges? Well, that's the paper the kids use for coloring and crafts. Every month or so I pull out a huge stack and rip off the edges and separate the pages so it's easy for the kids to just grab a sheet when they want to use it. I had my stack of edges ready to throw away and thought hmmm...the kids could have some fun with these. So...

...they did.

Did you know Carter loves food? I seem to get lots of pictures of him with food. Here are a some from the last couple of weeks.

Here he is trying cotton candy for the first time. His face looked like this after every bite.

How can something taste sooo good, but feel so nasty in your mouth?

I was laughing so hard.

One evening while I was gone last week McKay helped the kids build a giant fort.

Dads are SO much more fun than Moms!

We left it up for a couple days and the kids even had dinner in there one night.

Carter's really into doing whatever the big kids are doing.

Lately they think it's so funny to dress him up and send him in to show me.

I love when they all play together. It's fun to just sit back and watch them interact.

Even if they're just watching tv on my bed.

It's so weird to sit back and think about that fact that I have kids.

I still feel like my 18 year old high school self....how can I have 3, almost 4, kids??

It's weird. I don't know how to explain the way it feels...but I find myself just staring at them and feeling so happy that they are mine.

Until next time!

Separate Vacations

2011-08-10T13:46:00.000-07:00

This past weekend McKay took the boys to his parent's cabin in Circleville, UT.

McKay took the van since it has a DVD player, but Jackson chose to ride up front with Dad for most of the trip. I wish I could have listened in on their conversations.

They got to spend lots of time outside...something they haven't been getting nearly enough of here in Vegas.

McKay, Carter, Grandpa Whitney, and Jackson bouncing on the bridge.

Carter throwing rocks in the river.

Jackson was so excited to tell me about the dinosaur cranium they found.

"Do you know what a cranium is Mom? It's a head bone. And a despicable cranium is an ugly head."

Jackson playing in the cold water.

More bouncing.

They spent Friday night in Circleville and then headed home after dinner on Saturday. I was worried about McKay driving into the night...I figured he'd be pretty tired after chasing Carter around for 2 days.

I texted him around 10:00pm to make sure he was staying awake.

Here's his reply.

"Yes thanks to 1 mt. dew 1 water 2 pb snickers some jalapeno cheetos and a cafe rio burrito enchilada style. I have more stuff too."

My response.

"Sounds painful..."

Needless to say, they made it home safely and we were all happy to have 1:00 church the next day. ;-)

So, what did me and Sydney do with no boys in the house?

Friday night

-Went to Aunt Sherri's salon to get Sydney's hair cut.

-Shopping at Old Navy

-Dinner and dessert at Applebees (because it is "romantic" according to Sydney)

-Red box (Justin Beiber Never Say Never)

Saturday

-SLEPT IN!!!

-Shopping with my sisters

-Lunch at In-N-Out

-Swimming

-Watched TV until 10pm.

Sydney loved riding up front with me.

We had lots of fun. Sydney's already asking when our next girl date will be.

Summer Stuff

2011-08-09T17:20:00.000-07:00

Last week we had a huge storm blow through our back yard. It lasted long enough to grab the umbrellas and go outside for a few minutes, then load up in the car and go for a short drive in the rain (one of my favorite things to do).

It was SUPER windy. Sydney's umbrella blew inside out as soon as she stepped outside. I stood inside the sliding glass door and just laughed until they begged to come back in...after about 1 minute.

The next day I took the kids to a splash pad early in the morning when it was only about 90 degrees outside.

We stayed for about 45 minutes until the temps climbed to 100 then went home. I wish I could last longer out there...but no.

Every couple of months the kids remember about their zebra tent and ask me to set it up.

We leave it out for a few days and they play and play, then it goes back on the shelf until they remember about it again. It's like having a new toy each time. I love it.

This past weekend McKay took the boys to his parent's cabin in Circleville, UT while Sydney and I had a fun girls weekend. Stay tuned for pictures from our adventures.

Need a good laugh?

2011-08-04T11:19:00.000-07:00

Jackson found these in the dressing room at Target.

I can't help but laugh every time I see this picture.

At 36 weeks....

2011-08-01T16:41:00.000-07:00

...the baby is about the size of a crenshaw melon.

Ya, that feels about right. HUGE!

At least he'll be here THIS month!!

Jackson just saw this picture on my computer screen and his eyes bulged out of his head when I told him that's how big the baby is. I told him to go hold a gallon of milk out of the fridge to see about how much the baby weighs (or will weigh in a couple weeks). He told me he's happy he doesn't have to carry the baby in his belly.

Each of my kids has weighed more than the one before. With Carter weighing in at 8lbs 13oz I'm prepared for a 9 pounder this time around. Bring it on!

Help me out!

2011-07-28T08:59:00.000-07:00

McKay's been hinting that he wants a new suit.

Not just any suit.

One of these.

I told him he has to be somewhat, no, A LOT cowboyish to wear a cowboyish suit.

McKay is not cowboyish.

I told him once we have a couple horses, and he actually rides them...then he can get his cowboy suit.

Who's with me?

Or who thinks I should let the man wear what he wants to court...?

(I'm still not sure if this is a joke McKay's playing on me to get me all riled up...)

Summer Update

2011-07-27T11:01:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have mostly been spent in the comfort of our 75 degree house. I rarely venture out during the day and only with McKay's help in the evenings. The heat makes me SICK when I'm pregnant and I'm so scared of getting stuck in it with 3 kids. I feel like such a recluse...but it's all good.

So what have we been doing?

We made our way out to Boulder City to see the mountain sheep that make their way into the park in the evening. Very cool.

Grandma & Grandpa Whitney came to visit on Sunday. I had been sick for a few days so they helped McKay to church with the kids and I stayed home alone and had a nice 2 hour nap. It was great. They came home with some pictures Sydney drew.

Grandpa.

Grandma.

Jackson made himself a fancy bow tie. He was not happy that I wouldn't let him wear it to church.

During the weekend of our loft remodel we ventured out to the mall.

Someday our kids will learn that your supposed to put quarters in these toys....

Here's a picture we'll hold onto for when Jackson's a teenager. Haha.

(Using the words Jackson and teenager in the same sentence just put a pit in my stomach.)

Usually we leave the pancake making for the weekends.

The kids were so excited when I agreed to make smiley face pancakes on a MONDAY!

Sydney has a reading game she plays on the computer. Sometimes everyone joins in.

Carter is finally in the stage where he'll play with Sydney and Jackson, rather than destroy what they're building. It's fun to sit and watch them all play together.

If Carter ever sees me on my phone, he comes over, climbs on my lap, and says "Eeee!" I have tons of these pictures on my phone. ;-)

And some days we don't even make it out of our pj's before nap time.

This morning while I was at my doctors appointment Jackson made me a flower bow for my hair.

So sweet.

I've been measuring about a week big for the last several months. This morning I was 2 weeks big...is it possible this baby will come early?? I'm not counting on it...but I can wish.

For now, I'm just big. Full of baby and big.

Only 3 more weekly doctor visits and I'm DONE.

Until then we'll continue hiding out in our house and waiting.

Waiting for baby.

Waiting for school to start.

Waiting for the temperatures to drop.

The waiting game.

Desert Adventure

2011-07-26T03:15:00.000-07:00

I went out with Keresa's brother and some old guys (her dad and other old guy) to check out the countryside last weekend. We parked at the Carp Elgin exit off I-15, then drove the four wheelers from there. We went 96 miles. It was 115 down in the valley. It felt much cooler (though probably only in the low 90s) where we had lunch up in the mountains near Clover Creek. Highlights include seeing little pea-size frogs and tadpoles, checking out a pioneer grave, letting the old guys eat our dust, and getting back to the truck just running on fumes (even though we brought extra gas!).

We couldn't read it. I wonder if that defense will hold up in court.

Now only home to rats and jack rabbits.

We took the liberty of cooling off in this desert oasis.

The "river" where we had lunch. Nice moss in the water.

Maybe our next ride won't be as long. 96 miles is a long way on quads, and we were too tired when it was over. Maybe we will use our brains next time and not make a trip like this in the MIDDLE OF THE SOUTHERN NEVADA DESERT SUMMER HEAT. :)

Loft Remodel

2011-07-20T09:29:00.000-07:00

When we were shopping for houses we were looking for 4 bedrooms upstairs, and one bedroom downstairs. This would give us plenty of room for sleeping upstairs and a playroom downstairs. When we found this house it was listed just that way...but really one of the "bedrooms" upstairs was a loft looking down into the living room. We liked the house enough that we bought it with plans to close in the loft before baby #4 arrived. This past weekend it happened!

I just have to laugh wondering what those workers thought with these critics watching their every move.

The kids thought it was the coolest thing to watch the transformation.

Here are some before pictures of the loft.

And the project begins.

Friday was framing.

Standing inside the loft looking out towards the hallway.

Looking up from where the kids sat watching.

From the top of the stairs.

Saturday was drywall.

Looking into the new bedroom from the hallway.

Top of the stairs looking down the stairs and into the new room.

Monday they never showed up...that worried me a little, but yesterday they came and finished up texturing and painting and it's DONE!!

The door was installed very last.

So, now once the overwhelming smell of paint clears out a bit it's time to get this room set up for our little man!

Watching this first project go so quickly and smoothly we are very anxious to get moving on our next projects.

First will be the backyard. Sprinklers, grass, patio & patio cover, trees.

Then the major remodel...ALL new flooring (upstairs and down) along with new light fixtures downstairs and a new kitchen (including adding an island)!

Pretty exciting stuff!!

4th of July Weekend

2011-07-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

We spent 4th of July weekend at our Smith Family Reunion in Pahrump, NV.

We stayed at a little RV resort and got to enjoy the little lake, swimming pool, and lots of time visiting and hanging out with family. It was HOT, but McKay was a good sport and took the kids out on a boat ride while I watched from the shade.

Check out those red cheeks...and don't mind the second set of cheeks in the background... ;-)

Right after this we threw all the kids in the pool to cool off. It was so refreshing and we spent several hours splashing and relaxing.

The only other picture I got of the whole reunion was during the family auction.

Jackson had been eye-balling a squirt gun. You know, a regular ol' dollar store squirt gun.

We bid up to $12 and I called it quits. Jackson was devastated. After a day full of running, boating, and swimming he was tired and due for a meltdown....and oh boy we got one! Sydney even joined in the drama because she was so sad for Jackson.

Luckily the next items up for auction were some little micro machine cars.

Here's a picture of Jackson trying to see them through his tears.

We scored a micro machine for $1.50. Nice. Meltdown ended.

We headed home from the reunion on 4th of July morning.

We caught a matinee of Cars 2 then spent the evening at home with a box of sparklers and a surprise fireworks show right out of our bedroom window.

All Carter wanted to do was splash in the pool...he leaned in a little too close and got a nice cool surprise.

On Tuesday following 4th of July weekend I sat down to look at my calendar for the next few weeks. Other than my regular baby doctor visits and a couple other regulars (such as Bunco!!) my calendar is EMPTY until the baby comes. We've had a crazy summer so far, but it looks pretty smooth sailing from here.

We're having our loft closed in to become the 4th upstairs bedroom for our new little man. That project starts tomorrow then I'll officially be able to "prepare" for baby #4.

Just 5 more weeks...yikes.

1:00 Church

2011-07-10T09:23:00.001-07:00

means lots of time for relaxing and watching movies in the morning.

Whitney Reunion 2011 - Bryce Canyon

2011-07-05T09:12:00.000-07:00

Another Whitney Reunion has come and gone and as always, we had a blast.

This year we took a break from the beach and headed to Bryce Canyon. We got to be "outdoorsy" while sleeping in a lovely hotel room each night. Sydney told everyone we were going camping in a hotel...my kind of camping!!!

There are more than 20 cousins in the Whitney family and our kids enjoyed every second running, playing, laughing, eating, and being crazy.

Several of these cousins we only see once or twice a year, but it only takes a few minutes for everyone to get reacquainted and start playing.

I did not take ONE picture. Thank goodness for my mother-in-law!

Frosted graham crackers.

Carter loved all the attention he got. He could roam free whenever he wanted, and catch a free ride when he got tired.

SO many cousins!!

Hmm...don't think I was ready for this picture to be taken...haha.

The kids had their first experience fishing.

Sydney caught one!

We had a great time and are already trying to figure out what to next year for our family reunion when it's our turn to plan it! Disneyland anyone!?

Carter

2011-06-28T11:35:00.000-07:00

Carter's not going to be the baby for much longer. It's weird to think that we'll have another child in just a few short weeks.

Another baby boy.

Carter has stayed a "baby" longer than my other kids did. I guess it's because there's a 3 year gap between him and Jackson. There's the "big kids" then the "baby". I think he recently got the memo that his reign as baby of the family is coming to an end. He's decided to grow up.

Although he's had a small vocabulary for a few months, he's just started using words to actually communicate with me.

Mostly one word sentences.

Eat.

Drink.

Book.

Go.

Down.

Up.

Bite.

More.

Please.

Thank you.

Night night.

Yay.

Wow.

Etc.

He'll say what he wants and then giggle with excitement when he gets the thing he asks for.

The switch finally turned on in his head that there's a reason behind me trying to get him to talk. It's not just another trick like waving bye or blowing a kiss. This trick actually get's him the things he wants!!

It's really cute watching him communicate more and more.

Carter is a HUNGRY boy.

When I get him out of bed in the morning I'm usually greeted with an excited

"Mommy!!"

Followed by

"Eat?"

"Cookie?"

"Bite?"

He'll continue to ask me until we finally eat.

This morning I guess I took too long. He came to me squealing with excitement saying

"Eat! Eat!"

with a waffle in his hand.

From last nights dinner.

Out of the garbage.

(Yes, sometimes we have breakfast for dinner.)

All I could do was laugh....and then think about how differently I would have reacted to this when Sydney was a baby.

Needless to say Carter got a yummy crunchy waffle to start off his breakfast.

It's sure fun watching him grow up. I hope having this fourth child doesn't push me over the edge to insanity. I want to be able to enjoy moments like watching my kids eat out of the garbage.

I want to be a happy mom...a nice mom.

Maybe this next child won't ever cry or want to eat or be changed or held.

HA!

I'll try not to complain these next few weeks as my body stretches beyond belief ...because no matter how hard it is to be pregnant... soon I'll have another little one and I can't imagine the craziness that my life will become....when I'd pay a million dollars for moments like

this.

:-)

Circus

2011-06-17T08:39:00.000-07:00

Last night we went to the circus!

I got a coupon in the mail a few months back for $10 tickets and thought it would be a fun summer activity.

We invited my brother and his family along with two of my sisters.

For most of us it was our first experience at a circus, and it was really good!

We had great seats, but not great enough to get any good pictures. I took these off Google.

The elephants were amazing. They are so huge, but remind me of little puppies.

I had told my kids all about the tight rope. Sadly, our seats were positions so we saw the rope straight on, rather than from the side, so we didn't see much....but it was still cool.

The horses were beautiful! They had three different "rings" of horse acts going on at the same time. One of the rings was actually zebras, and they were so well trained. Very entertaining!

Of course they had tons of clown stunts and cool bikes and vehicles....but the animals were by far my favorite part. I think this will be a tradition for us. The kids loved it!

Carter's poor broken tooth smile...

It didn't get over until 10pm and after a long day of swimming and playing the kids were totally wiped out....amazingly none of them fell asleep....that is until we got int he car. ;-)

It's just too hot out there!

2011-06-15T14:44:00.000-07:00

Right now it's 103. Google says the high today is 107.

Last night we picked up a nice little pool for the kids. I went back and forth between getting a $20 kiddie pool, and this $50 pool with a pump and chlorine.

Last year I had to dump and refill the pool after just 2 days....partly because the water would get so hot, but mostly because it would turn green...sick.

So, we opted for the 8' X 2.5' chlorinated pool with a pump. The kids can stand on their knees in it...so I'm comfortable sitting inside the sliding glass door reading my book while the big kids swim. SO nice!

Maybe me and Carter will join them out there some time....I dunno...I'm sure enjoying my 75 degree house.

Fun Stuff

2011-06-14T10:34:00.000-07:00

We got to spend the weekend with cousins! Swimming was definitely a highlight!

Then last night we used an idea my aunt gave us.

We called it "Ice Cream Fire Drill".

A few minutes after putting the kids to bed, we ran into their room, turned on the lights, and yelled

"ICE CREAM FIRE DRILL!!!!"

We yanked them out of bed, threw them in the car, and drove to 7-11 to pick out an ice cream treat.

Jackson putting on his slippers.

Carter, along for the ride.

They were SO excited!

Trying to decide....

Yummy!

So fun, and it only took about 20 minutes. The kids will never forget it, and I think we'll be making this a tradition!

School is out, let Summer begin!!

2011-06-10T11:05:00.000-07:00

Sydney with her teacher Mrs. Smith.

My little girl finished Kindergarten. How did this day come so fast?

We got to go to a little assembly where they sang some of the songs they've learned and some awards were given out. Dad even surprised her and showed up during his work day, and then took her to 7-11 afterwards to pick out a treat. I love how the simple things make kids SO happy.

So, today is the first day of Summer break. I know once the new school year comes rolling around that it will seem as if it's flown by, but today I'm feeling a little overwhelmed trying to think of ways to keep the kids busy each day.

This morning we headed out and went swim suit shopping!! Sydney tried 6 suits and had the hardest time choosing. She modeled each one in front of the mirror in the dressing room. We both agreed on the last one. Gone are the days of picking out my favorite suit and just throwing it in the cart.

Jackson has worn the same swimming suite for the past 3 summers. I had him try it on this morning before we went shopping and it was TINY! He's gained 9 pounds and grown about 5 inches since September when he had his tonsils taken out. CRAZY! So, he got to choose a new suit, too.

We're going to a swimming party later this afternoon, but the kids couldn't wait that long to get ready.

Let the Summer begin!

Gifford Grandkids

2011-06-06T13:57:00.000-07:00

While cleaning off my desktop I ran across this photo and realized I never posted it.

This is a picture we took of all the Gifford Grandkids to give to my mom for Mother's Day.

Evan, Conner, Sydney, Jackson, Levi, and Carter.

There are 2 more on the way so far. I'm excited to see this group of kids grow each year!

Another new post below!

A picture update

2011-06-06T09:35:00.000-07:00

I'm still totally slacking in the picture taking area. I left my camera at my mom's house for over a week, then brought it on a trip to the cabin...but it was dead. So, most of these are old, but here you go!

Sydney had her first school project due in May. They learned all about dinosaurs then had to make a diorama. She had so much collecting just the right rocks and "trees", painting, cutting, and gluing.

I LOVE the school she's in. We're living in an older part of Henderson, and it really has the "small town" feel. The school is 52 years old, and every year the Kindergarteners do a square dancing performance. They work on it for months, and Sydney got there just a couple of weeks before the performance. They found her a spot and she fit right in with all the kids. It was so fun to watch all those little kids dancing their hearts out.

The best shots I could get were of her back, but she did peek over at me a few times.

Pretty crazy that today starts her last week of Kindergarten!

Jackson has learned to love his "alone" time while Sydney's at school. He does crafts and projects (as he calls them) constantly. I'm not sure what gives him the ideas for the different things he makes, but they never end.

I usually text a picture to McKay when he's finished. Sometimes McKay emails them back to me, and this is one of them.

The banjo.

We had a little too much fun shopping at Old Navy this past weekend.

Oh, and that trip to the cabin, here we are ready to head out...the only picture of the whole weekend.

So sad. We had a blast.

Sydney has a cousin who loves Justin Bieber....so now Sydney loves Justin Bieber. She asked me the other day if I'd take her to a Justin Bieber concert.

Uh, you're SIX Sydney!

I pulled up his song "Baby" on Youtube and told her that would have to be good enough.

Now the kids ask me to play it ALL the time

Whenever it's time to clean up the house, they want to listen to it.

Now Carter will walk up to my computer, point, and say "Baby?"

It's pretty cute.

June is going to be a busy month for us. We have the end of school, 2 family reunions, the circus, and my doctors appointments are every 2 weeks now....along with the normal craziness of our lives.

I like being busy. Life is good.

Randomness

2011-05-09T10:31:00.000-07:00

McKay's been pushing me to do a blog post the last couple of weeks. I've been lazy with my picture taking and have mostly snapped pictures with my phone and sent them to McKay throughout the day.

He sent me a few emails full of all those picture from the last several weeks, so here we go.

My youngest brother, Jared left on his mission in April. He'll be serving in the Argentina Resistencia Mission for the next 2 years. We met him early in the morning at the airport to say our last good byes.

The kids already have a huge envelope of pictures and letters they've made for him.

*Note to self....get that in the mail this week!!

Sydney was very emotional about her last day of Kindergarten at her old school. She LOVED her teacher Mrs. Barrett and she'd been out on maternity leave since November. Luckily, we ended up staying in our old house a week longer than planned and Mrs. Barret came back that week. Sydney got 3 full days with her teacher and she was so happy.

I didn't snap any pictures of Sydney on her first day of her new school, but she LOVES it.

It's all day Kindergarten and she can't get enough.

Her teacher is Mrs. Smith and she's young and cute and Sydney's made lots of new friends.

Hard to believe there's less than 5 weeks until the school year is over and then Jackson will be starting, too!!

Our first week in the new house was Spring Break and Sydney didn't know what to do with herself being home all day.

I had to remind her about all the fun toys we had. The kids have loved having lots of extra space to play in. Trains were the toy of choice for about a week and they made some pretty intense tracks. It was nice having them occupied for a few hours at a time....at least until their little monster brother would wake up from his nap...

Carter's personality is really starting to come out. He's finally decided to give talking a shot and it's fun to hear. He'll repeat the things you tell him to say and the older kids take full advantage of that.

He also loves to tease you. He loves to run and hide when you call his name....a not so cute game that he's quickly learning doesn't go over so well with Mom. While trying to escape last weekend he tripped and fell on the side walk, scraping up his face.

Here he is after a few days of healing.

Our new house has a loft that overlooks the room with our tv.

The kids think it's so cool to watch tv and play Wii from up there.

We got free tickets to a LV 51's game this past week. We got to eat some yummy barbecue and sit and watch the game for a while.

Turns out it was $1 beer night...let's just say we only sat in the bleachers for about 10 minutes before packing it up and leaving.

The kids had fun and were happy to get their free hats.

I think I've mentioned before that our new house is just around the corner from my brother's house. It's also right on the edge of town which means we can ride straight out into the desert from our garage. We've had lots of fun hanging out with them more, and the kids LOVE having cousins so close.

Last weekend we went for a ride. Fun, but SUPER windy.

I'm sad that in just a couple more weeks it will be too hot to ride during the day.

Jackson has had to adjust to having Sydney gone all day at school. Usually our mornings would fly by and before we new it, it was time to go pick her up.

He's finding things to keep himself busy.

The other day he came to me with little clips on his toes and said,

"Look at my dinosaur foot claw!"

He's been doing lots of "color by number" worksheets. He'll also draw pictures, cut them out, and "frame" them. He loves hanging his art on the wall and having me take a picture to send to Dad.

So there's a random recap or our last few weeks. Our house is all put together and we've had lots of people over. I have one more wall of pictures to hang and then I'll be ready to take pictures of the house and post them.

McKay got lots of yard work done on Saturday so it's starting to look like someone actually lives here again.

Work is going great for McKay, I think he loves his job more every day.

He settled his first case and got his first bonus this past pay period. (Hooray!!)

I'm 24 weeks into this pregnancy. I've just started feeling pregnant this past week. I'm having some back pain and a growing belly to show for it. Jackson has felt the baby kick several times, but the little guy holds still every time Sydney tries.

That's all from the Whitneys for now.

Pure Joy

2011-04-28T11:06:00.000-07:00

A few months ago Jackson decided he's Spiderman.

"See Mom, my fingers are sticky, that's why I can climb so well."

"Sydney, I already knew that because I'm Spiderman."

"Ya Mom, I'm so sneaky because I'm Spiderman."

A few months ago I made a comment that maybe we could look online for a Spiderman suit.

5:00am whispering and the side of my bed - "Mom, can we go get on your computer to find me a Spiderman suit?"

At lunch - "Mom, did you go online for my Spiderman suit yet?"

A week later while checking my email - "Now, Mom?"

OK, FINE.

Ebay...from China. Spiderman suit plus shipping $9.00. FINE.

The next day we get news that we'd be closing on our house that week...4 days later, we move.

Oops.

Do packages from China forward to a new mailing address?

Why yes they do. It just takes 3 weeks.

PURE JOY.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T08:36:00.000-07:00

Gifford Family Easter Egg Hunt

Floyd Lamb Park

Update on the update

2011-04-09T10:47:00.000-07:00

Jackson is still doing well with his breathing treatments and antibiotics.

He has his energy back and seems to be his normal self again.

When we got home from the fair the other night, both Sydney and Carter had fevers.

The next morning I looked in their throats and found white infected tonsils....again.

Carter was on day NINE of his second ten day antibiotic.

Really? Again?

I took them into the doctor...again. Her jaw dropped...literally.

She said, "I'm going to have to go read some stuff, I"ll be right back."

Both of their strep tests came back negative this time...so it's some other infection....that apparently is harder to kill than strep. Also, both kids have double ear infections again (assuming the ear infections ever went away...)

She decided to shoot them with "the biggest gun" of antibiotic she had.

Those shots were so painful. Both kids are limping on their poor legs today.

Both kids woke up fever free, but their throats are still nasty.

All three kids have a follow up appointment on Monday.

Until then, Carter's feverish self prefers to rest on the nice cool tile.

While all this sickness is taking it's toll on our family, we are being blessed in many other ways.

McKay is loving his new job. He comes home happy at the end of the day.

We managed to switch jobs/insurance without a single day lapse in pay or coverage.

Our house buying process has gone through almost without a hitch. We're just fingertips away from getting the keys.

When it seems like there won't be enough money...there always is....and extra.

SO, although it's tiring being home with sick sick kids, I'm seeing blessings pour in every day....and I'm happy to tough through the hard days...as long as it doesn't last another 7 weeks. ;-)

Clark County Fair 2011

2011-04-08T10:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon we braved the ridiculous winds and went to the Clark County Fair. This year we bought wrist bands for the two older kids and McKay so they could ride the carnival rides all they wanted.

We've been talking about this for weeks and the kids couldn't wait to get there.

We met up with Chris and Summer and kids and had a blast.

Sage, Jackson, Sydney, McKay, Summer, and Maddy.

Carter and I hung out and watched all the big kids ride.

Carter's favorite part of the fair was seeing all the animals. He's laugh every time the goats, chickens, or cows "talked". He loved touching all the animals he could get his hands on.

Sydney thought it was so cool watching some eggs hatch.

Jackson and Sage waited patiently to get back to the rides.

I spent most of my time walking them around to the little kid rides while Sydney got to go with the "big kids".

The wind was a major pain, and it got pretty cold after dark, but the kids had a blast...and that's what it's all about... right?

Update on last post

2011-04-07T09:42:00.000-07:00

Jackson is doing AMAZING.

His cough is almost gone.

Before, when he'd cough he wouldn't get the "junk" out. He could cough for 5 minutes and it did no good.

Now, he hardly has the need to cough, his chest is finally sounding clear.

Those breathing treatments are a miracle!

You know what else is great? The doctor prescribed enough medication to give 75 treatments! He only takes 4 a day, so I'm guessing that was the doctor's way of saying

"You crazy lady, please don't ever let your child's cough go for so long...here's some extra meds for the future..."

Thanks Doc.

Something I didn't mention before was that McKay started a new job on Monday.

Something that happens when you leave an old job is you also leave your old insurance.

So, this lovely pneumonia episode happened during the short uninsured period.

In two days I spent $570 between doctors visits and prescriptions.

Yesterday we got an email from McKay's new employer stating that our new insurance has been processed and our effective date is APRIL 1, 2011....5 days prior to the doctor visits!

All I have to do is send in a copy of our new insurance card, and I'll get a reimbursement for all my out-of-pocket expenses.

What a blessing.

Poor kid

2011-04-06T09:15:00.000-07:00

After two years of chronic ear infections, Jackson got tubes in his ears last April.

I thought for sure I'd finally have a healthy little guy.

Not so.

About 10 cases of strep throat later, he had his tonsils out in September.

He's been so healthy since those tonsils came out.

He's gained EIGHT pounds and grown FOUR inches in just SIX months.

Aside from the night time growing pains, he hasn't suffered more than a cold since those huge tonsils were removed.

Until now.

You might remember my post about all the kids being sick. We had strep, sinus infections, ear infections, and nasty coughs all around. Everyone was put on antibiotics.

Sydney got better right away.

Carter seemed to be doing better, then had an allergic reaction on day 9 of the amoxicillin and got horrible hives.

When the hives hit he lost all the progress he'd made and had two ear infections and strep again.

He's now on day 8 of his new antibiotic and is just showing progress.

Jackson finished his round of antibiotics about two weeks ago.

His cough lightened for a few days, then came back.

I figured it was allergies.

WRONG.

He woke up yesterday and couldn't swallow his breakfast.

I took him in expecting strep, and he had strep all right. A nasty case of it. The doctor had me come look in his poor throat and mentioned that she wished she had a student there to show...it was pretty disgusting.

Then she listened to his breathing.

"Did you know he's wheezing??", she asked me.

"Uh, no...just the never ending cough..."

She put him on a breathing treatment right then.

It didn't fix the problem.

He has pneumonia.

So, we now have a lovely nebulizer machine and some very intense antibiotics.

Let's hope this kicks the sickness before it starts to go around our house again.

Love, the frazzled pregnant mother of three, going on 6 weeks of never ending sick children.

;-)

Salt Lake City Trip

2011-04-05T20:11:00.000-07:00

This past weekend McKay and I were able to go to Salt Lake for General Conference.

You wanna know one of the best parts??

It was a KID FREE trip! We haven't had one of those in a while, so it was very nice.

We dropped our kids off at McKay's brother's house in Logandale on Thursday afternoon and enjoyed the long quiet drive.

We had a nice quiet dinner before heading to our nice quiet hotel.

Are you starting to get the theme of the weekend?

Nice and quiet!! ;-) It was great.

Friday we visited the Jordan temple, followed by 4 hours of our very first visit to Ikea.

WOW.

Probably not the best place to go when we're buying a new house that I'd just love to remodel and refurnish.

Again, WOW.

Friday night we met up with our good friends Jake and Angie Rice.

They were students with us in Virginia our first year of law school, but then ditched us and transferred to Utah. ;-)

We ate at a place called The Training Table where you look through the menu and then call your order in with the phone on the table. It was yummy and fun and right next door to the play we saw afterwards. We walked over to the Hale Center Theatre and saw A Tale of Two Cities.

It was great. Long (3 hours), but great.

After our late night we got up early and headed to General Conference.

It was nice weather (high 60's) which made the long walk enjoyable.

Conference was great.

After conference we visited The Great Salt Lake.

It was SUPER windy, but not cold, so we braved the winds and messed around for a couple hours.

McKay enjoyed drawing pictures in the sand.

Then Jake and McKay had jumping contests while Angie and I laughed and laughed.

They both took a fall or two which resulted in more laughing from the girls.

Then McKay insisted in me taking this picture. ;-)

Later that evening we decided to hit up the bowling ally.

Only one problem, I was wearing flip flops...no socks.

So, we stopped in at the dollar store and I somehow convinced everyone to join me in buying beautiful socks for our outing.

Haha. Totally felt like high school.

We spent the rest of the evening chatting in our hotel room until late, then said our good byes.

We woke up Sunday morning to this.

From 70 degrees to a couple inches of snow. I guess we got to truly experience Salt Lake.

We watched the temperature rise to the 70's again as we pulled into Logandale to pick up our kids.

They cried when we got there....because they didn't want to leave.

Who would want to leave when you get ride four wheelers, wagons, and horses all weekend??

(Sydney's pretty sure we'll buy her one of these....like today.)

We somehow talked them into leaving, but not before promising to return in just a few days for the Clark County Fair!!

What a great weekend!

I had plans

2011-04-05T10:26:00.000-07:00

to do a lovely post of our trip to Salt Lake this past weekend. I went to grab my camera from my purse and realized I left it in the door pocket of our car....which is at work with McKay.

Darn.

So, stay tuned and we'll see if I find another spare hour to work on that later this week.

It's a

2011-04-04T16:32:00.000-07:00

LOL

2011-03-25T08:09:00.000-07:00

It seems like after the longest "mommy" days when I'm most worn out and ready to send the kids to bed with no good night kiss (let's just say that's my worst offense)

is when the kids say the funniest things that make me laugh until I cry.

Last night, we are sitting down for family prayers, Jackson is sitting on McKay's lap looking lovingly at his Dad.

"Dad, (while staring at a little mole on McKay's forehead) so, is that where a mole bit you?....cuz they sure do have a nasty mouth!"

Just think of our little four year old Jackson picturing

THIS

munching on his daddy's face.

I laughed until I cried,

the kids got their good night kiss after all,

and everyone went to bed.

Being a mom isn't so bad. ;-)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

Jackson picked out some green socks and flip flops.

"Why did you choose to wear flip flops with socks?"

"Duh Mom, so you can see my green socks! Oh, and so the bees don't sting my toes."