The Carney Family

Life Saver

2011-08-09T11:39:00.000-07:00

Seriously, Kindergarten where have you been all my "mom" life!? Today is Day 2 of my oldest's first week of school and it has been great for everyone in the family. It has solved his problem of being bored, wanting to be social, and to gain independence. His brothers are getting the attention that they need from me, and I now feel like I can balance the time now between 3 attention hungry boys. It has also given me more structure to my day, and the time to get all my work done with chores, yardwork, running, and more focus on our investments and getting our house sold. Oh, and showering and getting dressed before anyone else wakes up! It's nice having a calm mind and not having everything racing through it of what all you need to do. So, there are my 2 cents on the enjoyment of kindergarten.

Getting ready for a new school year

2011-08-06T08:30:00.000-07:00

We had to make some last minute changes this week, but we have decided to switch Freeman at of the local charter school and put him in a public school. We will be moving in the next few months, and it didn't seem fair to take up a spot that someone else needed.

So we attended the Open House for his new school and met his teacher and we are all excited about the start of the school year!

Happy 8 Year Anniversary!

2011-08-06T07:47:00.000-07:00

We are celebrating our 8 year anniversary this month!

In honor of our 8 years I would like to share

8 favorite memories from our marriage.

1. Well, this should take up 3 spots, but our 3 boys!
2. Our wedding in the Boise Temple. Words can't describe that day.
3. Awesome Honeymoon to Jamaica with Scuba Diving and unlimited food
4. My husband surprising me with our dog Tohbi! (He's turning 8yrs in October)
5. Laughing until we have tears in our eyes
6. Family walks
7. Big Freeman's first time at Disneyland
8. The Journey of it All...

Homeschooling Inspiration

2011-07-26T19:43:00.000-07:00

My friend Susan invited me along with her to our first Homeschooling Convention. We have both played with the idea of the possiblity of homeschooling, and we just enjoy learning about education. We went to a few workshops and they had products galore to better assist with Homeschooling. It was a great experience and a gave wonderful insight to the Homeschooling Movement and the reasons and how to make it successful.

Even though I am not choosing Homeschooling now for my future Kindergardner, it has inspired me to make some changes at home. I don't believe it is all up to the teacher at school to teach everything to my child, and that I can supplement at home with what they are learning. I am putting faith in the school that we have chosen for him, and that I can still take responsibility to be part of teaching my kids very valuable lessons before and after school, that will strengthen them while during school.

So one of the workshops we went to was "7 steps to Sanity." (Yes, I think most stay at homes are seeking advice like this...) So I'm taking her advice and applying it to our day. So far no changes in behavior with my kids, but... I feel like I am making it more fulfilling with the time that I am putting aside for Scripture Study. I have been using the Primary Manual from church which came with pictures to use, so I have the lesson already mapped out, visuals, and scriptures to refer to. I also can apply it to our
"challenges" that have been testing my own sanity and hopefully it will help. So it's pretty much a mini Family Home Evening (F.H.E.) daily with just mom.

Here is her advice below:
1.First thing to do is pray: before rolling out of bed, say your prayers.
2. Serve others; Serve our family
3. Stay focused. She comments on the success of homeschooling... "The answer isn't homeschooling, It's Jesus Christ. Seek Him first in your day."
So before teaching ABC's, math, reading, whatever, start with teaching your children about Jesus, the gospel. Whatever you may call it... Daily Devotional, Scripture Study, Bible Study, do that first because that is what Homeschooling's main purpose is and should be our focus in our lives anyway.

A. Set limits: They are the Priority: no phones/texting/computer allowed
during their time.
B. Say No: Focus on your children, your family first. If someone needs
help, and you just can't do it, say no. Also, let others say no to. (Don't get
offended if someone turns you down when requesting help, remember they
are focusing on their family 1st also)

4. Start Slow: The Journey is part of it. Enjoy this stage. Foundational for everything.
5. Stay Home: Dealing with Characteristic Issues at Home. Kids are so busy nowadays and add stress, so just stay home.
6. Start Laughing.
7. Sleep Well.

I'm Proud of Him

2011-07-12T14:56:00.001-07:00

Today I had the chance to be interviewed by the background investigator for a job my husband is applying for, and it felt so good to be able to proudly answer all the questions about him and that all I had to say were good things.

I have always been impressed with him since I met him. He is funny, charismatic, has high morals, and patient. My list of course goes on and on, but I just had to put it out there that I am grateful to be best friends with him, to be his wife, to have him as the best father for our children, to have him forever. He has taught me to be myself, he understands my wierd, corny humor (and laughs), and knows how to quickly turn my temper into hysterical laughing with just a look or funny comment, He has the magic of calming down a bleeding kid and worried mom, he loves his friends and will go the extra mile, he can turn anything into something fun, and is a great support for what's best for his family. He lifts me up and always says good things and never complains about anything... he will tell the truth though when asked! He is such a unique, special person, and I am so happy (and lucky) that he chose me to marry and to be with him forever, and I love him with all my heart.
-Tiff

Free Summer Sports

2011-07-08T16:45:00.000-07:00

A few months ago a friend and I were chatting about organizing a sports program, and after getting approved we were able to start a summer sports program for our ward and we are able to hold it indoors at our nearby church building. It has been great and everyone has pitched in to help run it.

My motivation for being involved stems from a few things. Sports and Exercise are high on my list especially with the obesity epidemic that our country is facing. Threats of cutting physical education programs and our country complaining and not doing anything to fix the problem. Another is availablity and money. I have always taken advantage of the programs the city has to offer and actually started Freeman when he was 6 months old in a mommy and me swim lesson. Next we went on to Soccer, Tennis, Flag Football and Gymnastics. Slowly some of those programs I was signing up for, the quality of coaching and the price I was paying for wasn't worth it. And maybe this is where kids lose out on the opportunity of being involved in sports. We shell out the money for something and then the quality isn't what we expected and we say to ourselves, "I could have taught that at home!" Well, I don't like to sit around and complain, I like to fix what I am complaining about. So instead of paying $50 a kid for 6 lessons for soccer, why not do it myself?

So, my friend Susan and I, combined our passion for sports and exercise, and are passing it on to our kids and to anyone that would join us. :) Everyone has been great with support and providing equipment for us to borrow and make this a free program for all those that participate. We have been able to teach T-Ball, Tumbling, and Soccer, which in the real world would have cost me about $300 for my 2 oldest kids. But instead I invested about $18 for 3 sports. I know I am not a professional, and I learn how to adjust my coaching each time I coach a class, and youtube has been a lifesaver, but there are so many resources out there that it is possible to make this happen.

I don't think sports and doing exercise should break the bank. I understand that it does cost money and I know that in the future it will cost money to have my kids join teams, but right now, if I don't think the quality is that great, that I could teach it to my kids and to others, well why not? I hope this experience this summer will start a new tradition and we can continue on throught out seasons. We are very lucky to have a church building to use in the Arizona heat, and wonderful parks that our close by for when it does cool down.

I am grateful for the motivation and ideas of others and learning that as a mom I am able to provide many opportunities and experiences to my children and not having enough money doesn't let them miss out. I do believe that it takes a village to raise a child and I am impressed with everyone who has stepped up to the plate to let this happen and to work together to provide this to all the children involved.

Stitches

2011-05-20T23:36:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday we were at a friend's house and we were getting ready to go and I was finishing up a conversation with one of the mom's. Nate came up and was trying to get my attention and I asked him to wait until I was done talking. The boy of the mom I was talking to also came up and she told him to wait, and then we noticed that he was upset and crying. At that moment, I hear Daddy Freeman say, "Freeman needs stitches." He walked in from the backyard and my sweet Freeman was covered with blood on his face and shirt and was crying. He had walked up behind one of the boys who was swinging a metal baseball bat and he got hit in the eyebrow.

We rushed to 3 different Urgent Care's that were all closed, before finding one right before closing in Avondale. They were very prompt and calm and got started. Freeman had calmed down as soon as dad put him in the car and I give all that credit to Daddy Freeman for being so calm and setting the mood for Little Freeman. (and mom) Freeman laid there and answered all the doctor's questions and even stayed real still for his shots in his cut. We took turns holding his hand so he could squeeze as hard as he could. One time he even calmly said, "oww. oww." and still laid still and maintained his composure.

The doctor was stitching him up and asked what his favorite number is, and Freeman answered, "One thousand." The doctor asked him if that's how many stitches he wanted and he told him no. The total count was 8 stitches and X-rays came back normal.

I am so proud of Little Freeman and being so tough and realizing how important it was for him to be calm and stay still. I am also grateful for my husband and how he is such a great father and leader. He knew he had to stay calm for Little Freeman and that he had that much strength and immediate response to do just that. I am proud of him and thankful for his example he is always setting and that he could be that strong for our kids. I am thankful that I wasn't alone when that happened, because that experience that Freeman went through would have been ruined by me because I know I would have broke down crying and freaked out if it wasn't for Dad.

Daily Gospel Teachings

2011-05-20T23:09:00.000-07:00

One of my goals as a mother is to teach the gospel to my children. At the end of the day when it is time for my personal prayers, I realize that I need to do better and pray that I may focus my goals as a mother and make teaching the gospel a priority. Well, this has been a repeated weakness that I feel at the day's end, and started to feel discouraged and couldn't believe that I could get so distracted by little things through out the day, and not accomplish one of my main goals...

Well, there is hope to this story... read on...

We were sitting down for lunch and Freeman said the prayer and asked that his food won't be hot. He then tried his soup and it of course was hot. He was confused and said he prayed about that and Heavenly Father didn't do it. I then told him that we have to do our part also in order to recieve help from him. I shared an experience and explained that Dad and I prayed about something, but then we went out and did all that we could do and then had to wait. Then we were blessed. Little Freeman then picked up his food and put it in the fridge. I then realized that I do teach the gospel in my home, it may not be formal sometimes, but we live it. We live the gospel and we come across obstacles that we can use as teachable moments to teach a principle about the gospel.

I am grateful for these moments and can't believe I've been overlooking so many of them. I am grateful for my testimony and the choice that I have to teach my children about Christ and our Father in Heaven and that they want us to return to him and that they gave us so many teachings to help us be happy down here and to learn so much and return back to them. I am grateful for all that I have learned and hope that I can have more moments to slow down and take the time to use it to teach my children some kind of gospel principle. I am grateful for prayer. I guess I have been hard on myself, but am grateful to close the day with a prayer and reflect on what happened, what I am grateful for, and all the blessings that Heavenly Father has given my family. I am grateful for the Holy Ghost that does comfort us and help us realize these special moments and that it truly cheered me up and pointed it out that I wasn't realizing.
-Tiff

The Power to Read!

2011-05-11T21:07:00.000-07:00

The past year Little Freeman's been working on reading CVC words and some word families, but we just didn't have access to the right books that were easy for beginning readers. After a frusturating day for me and the librarian not finding anything appropriate for easy readers, I turned to facebook for help. A good friend recommended "Bob Books" and the next day when I glanced at the Book Order form through Scholastic I was excited to find out they were selling them. We anxiously waited for our order and they have been a big hit ever since. They come with a set of 12 little books and it starts easy and gets a little more challenging. This has opened a whole new world to Freeman and his frustration with trying to read has been lifted, and he is so happy and proud. (So is Dad and Mom) Little Freeman loves taking his turn to read to me at night or to his brothers. I am so proud of him and his desire to read and figuring it all out.

Tonight I walked by his room after tucking him in and heard him talking to himself. I peeked through the crack of his door and he was reading aloud a new book and trying his best to read through. I love the freedom that comes with learning to read. If Freeman had his way he would have me read to him all day long, so for him to want to read a book, and not have to wait for a grown up to read I think really excites him.

Besides Bob Books, I also want to give credit for some great programs out there that really help with kids learning to read. So here is my shout out to them:

Starfall.com
pbskids.com
pbskids.com/island
SuperWhy
Between the Lions
Leapfrog DVDS (these are the bomb!)
WordWorld

The Start of a New Adventure

2011-04-19T21:29:00.000-07:00

So our family is hoping to start a new adventure... We decided to put our house on the market this past weekend. These past few months have been hard to make that decision, but you gotta do what you gotta do. Today our "For sale sign" went up and I had a mix of emotions. Happy, Sad, embarrased, excited, STRESSED. :) It's sad to sell the house where you have so many memories with your children, excited that there are new possibilities ahead for us, Happy to hopefully be free of being a slave to this mortgage, and stressed because we don't know where to go from here.

I'll keep you updated on our plans, as soon as we figure them out. Had to put my feelings out somewhere, and facebook just wasn't an option. :) I'll keep you posted and any suggestions or input is appreciated.

Thank you to our family and friends for all your encouragement, advice and just listening. It's amazing how your support really helps just put our minds at ease. (Extra shout out to my momma for all her time listening to my ramblings... LOL)

Nate's Speech Update

2011-04-19T21:21:00.000-07:00

So this past month we were able to start Nate in speech therapy. He loves going and looks forward to going to "peech" with mommy and have learning time. He is working with articulation and working on those tricky "s" and "r" sounds, blends (st, br). He shouldn't need too much therapy, but I'm looking forward to this help so he could feel like he is being heard and understood.

We have had moments where I could not understand what he was trying to say, and he is so determined to tell you sometimes and just to see the sadness when I have to say, "I'm sorry, I don't understand what you are trying to tell me," breaks my heart. I'm glad he is proud to go and that it is fun for him to.

Farm field trip for our Preschool

2011-03-04T17:05:00.000-08:00

October 2010

Some Mom's and I have started our own Preschool Co-Op for our 2 and 3 year olds and this is our first field trip together! We went to Tolmachoff Farms (Same farm as Freeman's first field trip last year) We were learning about pumpkins, fruits and vegetables this month so this tied in perfectly with our curriculum.

Freeman's foot got caught in a hole!

Preston loved these goats and according to him they were all "Doggies!!"

Nathan (Almost 3 years old!)

Some of the preschoolers enjoying the presentation on corn.

Here is picture of our preschoolers, along with some friends.

Nathan and Tiff picking our own vegetables!

October Break 2010

2011-03-04T16:40:00.000-08:00

California here we come! We enjoyed a great trip out to San Diego with our friends, Brian and Camille. We rented a beach house, went to Disneyland and walked around the boardwalk. We all loved it.

Disneyland Day 2

Enjoying the Parade at California Adventure

One of the Piers at Newport Beach. The kids love watching the fisherman catch fish and ran around checking out their buckets.

Beach Days

Daddy Freeman in the background Boogie boarding.

Nate loved trying to bury himself.

Yes, this baby will eat anything! Sandy pretzels? No prob!

Disneyland Day 1

The Face Behind the Mask...

2010-09-23T20:06:00.000-07:00

Who is the real Spiderman? Many have questioned this, and few know. Are you ready to be one of those few? Here is a candid video of someone, claiming the true identity of...

Spiderman.

(Remember to pause the music on the music player found on the right column.)

More Sightings of Spiderman...

2010-09-23T20:02:00.000-07:00

Spiderman comes out of nowhere!

2010-09-23T19:57:00.000-07:00

Nate's turn! He may be little but he sure if fiesty!

2010-09-23T19:45:00.000-07:00

Just a casual day in the Carney household, and who do we find in the bed???

Family Videos

2010-07-01T17:26:00.000-07:00

Below is some of our videos of the kids. Remember to put the music player on pause to hear the videos. (Music player is on the right hand side)

2010-07-01T17:20:00.000-07:00

First off, if anyone knows my husband you know he has a thing for pranks. You always have to stay on your toes around him, because he will get you. Well, I'm glad my kids have a good sense of humor because there is no mercy no matter who you are!

2010-07-01T17:09:00.000-07:00

This might be "funniest home video" worthy. This video is of a super sleepy Preston fighting sleep.

2010-07-01T17:04:00.000-07:00

Freeman has been going to Flag Football this summer and here are some fun drills that he performed. Looks like we have another football player in the family!

2010-07-01T16:51:00.000-07:00

Our precious Nathan loves to color, and somehow cannot control where. He is known for coloring on our walls and tables or himself. Here is a video of him cleaning up one of his messes. I thought this would be great to share in case anyone was missing his famous pouty face. Love him.

March for Babies 2010

2010-04-23T17:36:00.000-07:00

Leaping for Logan!

Last Saturday we walked for, Team Logan for the March of Babies. Our very good friends, Nikki & Seth, had lost their first child a few years ago, and every year organizes their family's team and we all walk in memory and in honor of Baby Logan.

Nate sliding down Spiderman's slide on the bouncy house

Waiting in line for the Spiderman bouncy house.

Aimee, Seth and Broox hanging out in the shade

The boys love to pick flowers for me

Pictures that make me smile

2010-04-14T22:02:00.000-07:00

My youngest is almost 7 months old! It is flying by so fast. Anyways, Preston was known as our little fussy furball and cried so much, but now that he can move around he is now our happiest child! I love these pictures and you can see our happy Preston's true personality!

" Look at me mom, I'm trying to crawl!"

Chubby Cheeks and Rolls

This is the look he gives me before trying to lean forward and give me a big wet kiss. Well, he actually isn't trying to kiss me, but to eat me since to him I look like food...

Easter Weekend 2010

2010-04-14T21:33:00.000-07:00

Easter Presents

So, when it comes to Holidays I'm not really a candy or toy person and I just get what my kids need. So, here is the look of quiet disappointment from Freeman when he got just shoes for presents. :)

Nate and Preston were thrilled about all the shoes!

Probably their favorite present, Watercolor paint! We ran out and these kids loooove to paint.

Preston enjoying all the shoes!

Wickenburg Easter Picnic

For the past 3 years we have been spending our Easter in Wickenburg with Grandma Pauline and the rest of the Carney family. Here are some pictures!

The cousins dancing to some great country music

Eggs!!!

Nate finding some Easter Eggs

I think we should look over there!

(No, Freeman isn't posing for a picture, he was serious about spotting some eggs!)

The kids hid their stash of lollipops in their shirt pockets.

Carney Family with the Easter Bunny

While we were talking to family, Freeman spotted the Easter Bunny across the park and told me he saw him. Not wanting to wait until the grown ups were done talking, Freeman took off and ran over to the Bunny himself. The funny thing was, was that another family was taking pictures and Freeman kept standing in for their picture. They kept moving him out of the way and he kept trying to get in their picture. I think he was a little confused...

Anyway, Nate is scared of the Easter Bunny, Preston was looking around trying to find the Easter Bunny and loved to just stare at him, and Freeman was on Cloud 9.

Exhausted!

I don't even think we were out of Wickenburg yet and these kids were passed out. Nate is covered in sticky, lollipop drool and is such a mess!

Tired Mom...
Tired Dad...

Wait!

Who's driving?

Nate's Surprise

2010-03-04T16:26:00.000-08:00

Over the last few weeks it has dawned on me that every child is different. My oldest loves to learn and is very cooperative. Nathan, my two year old cannot sit still when it's story time, he wanders around when I'm trying to teach him, and he just has an attitude. Well, when he is cooperative I come to realize he knows so much more than he shows. I think my expectations haven't been so high for him since he has struggled with speech and that he doesn't show interest in these educational opportunities. Oh, but I've been finding out that he does listen, and he is listening, just not in the same way my oldest does.

Today we were having learning time and I had Freeman working on something. Nate was begging me to show him flashcards and I was just thinking, this is way over his head. Of course with his attitude and determination I gave in. He laid them all out and on them there is a letter and picture that it goes along with. I would ask him to go pick up a card, ex: Mouse and he would bring it to me. For fun I asked him what the letter was and he said, M!!! It caught me off guard and we did another one. So I found out he knows a lot of the letters in the alphabet, and I had no clue. So, I am proud of my little man Nate and all that he has surprised me with.

This past week, Freeman and I have noticed a big difference in Nate's speech. He is putting sentences together and he has the sweetest little voice. I love to hear him talk and how he tries so hard to explain something or show us. Sometimes it's hard to understand him, and he now patiently tries to repeat his words or runs and shows us what he is trying to say. I love watching him progress, and love his surprises of what he really knows.

The Start of Storing

2010-02-27T16:21:00.000-08:00

So, we are all encouraged to have 72 hour kits, and a 3 month- 1 year supply of food storage. I have always started but, seemed to use up our "storage" right away. Well, thanks to a great friend (Amber) who organized a Family Home Evening Group dedicated to working on a 1 year supply of food, our family is motivated and educated each month on working towards that goal. So, these pictures may seem corny to some but my family and I are so excited for the start of our food storage and 72 hour emergency kits.

(I will try to add photos monthly)

February

top to bottom...

Canned Baked Beans and Ravioli (72 hour)

Diapers

and 3 Day Water Supply

Backpack of First Aid & Survival Kits (Blankets, Flashlights, etc.)

Our hall closet dedicated to Emergency Supplies/Food Storage

Canned Items from the Cannery.
These items are sealed and can last up to 30 years (except drink mix which is 2+ years)
We are hoping to go monthly so this is our February's purchase
(Potato Pearls, White & Black Beans, Sugar, Fruit Drink Mix)

For one of our own Personal Family Home Evenings a few months ago, we pretended that we got a phone call from the Fire Department saying we only had 10 minutes to gather up our things and that we would be evacuated and gone from our home for 3 days. We rushed around our home gathering up anything that came to mind. Well, let's say we would have FAILED if it was a true emergency. One thing that I learned is to store everything in designated areas so you can have it ready to go instead of wandering all over the house. So, our hallway closet is our starting point and once that fills up we will expand to another focused area.

Valentines Day

2010-02-27T15:50:00.001-08:00

The boys recieved some sharp looking outfits for Valentines Day from Grandma Donna, so here they are before going to church on Valentines Day.

Nathan looking so handsome in blue.

(2 years, 3 months)

Can I say, "PHOTOGENIC!!"

(3 years, 8 months)

Okay, here is my charming 3 year old.

Preston on his tummy

(5 months old)

Preston dressed up for church too!

One of Nate's classic faces he makes when I ask him to smile for the camera.

Oh, and let me point out that he picked out the outfit he is wearing! He is going through this stage where he has to have a say in what he gets to wear, or else it is a full on tantrum. Sundays are the hardest sometimes....

We asked the boys to stand closer together and this is what we got. Nate was done with pictures after this side hug from Freeman.

Who do you think you are? Ricky Bobby? Preston wasn't quite sure what to do with his hands...

Oh wait... riding a motorcycle? Bad to the bones..

Railroad Park Lights

2010-01-29T21:42:00.000-08:00

This year we were able to make it to the Railroad Park's Christmas light display. It's been years since I've gone and was impressed with all the lights they had. Going to the park always brings back so many special memories of my Papa and all the times we spent at the park growing up. I'm so grateful that I can continue these wonderful memories with our own kids and they can have that special connection with Papa when riding his trains.

Waiting to ride the carosel

All aboard! The kids loooooved Christmas lights this year and they were so amazed to see the light displays from the train. The tunnel was my favorite, because coming out they had snow falling on you!

They had every character you can think of at the park. Big Freeman was calling down Elmo and Cookie monster to come take pictures with are boys since Nate loves Elmo. Well, Nate didn't love this Elmo and was scared out of his mind. And like I said before, there were these characters all over the park so he would hide right behind my legs even while walking around.

Another character we saw (pretty sure we saw) was Larry Fitzgerald from the Cardinals. We weren't sure if it was him so of course we had to walk by to get a closer look. Well, Freeman walks by all casually, and then there is me who when I walk by and he looks at me I have this huge crazy smile on my face and give him the "what's up nod." (I was excited because he's my favorite player)

So it was an enjoyable night for all of us and can't wait to go again next year!

Grandma Donna's visit

2010-01-29T21:07:00.000-08:00

My mom flew out from St. Louis to see Preston for the first time

and to also celebrate Nate's 2nd birthday.

Here are some pictures from her visit.

Nate blowing out his 2 candles at Island's.

Grandma D and Freeman at the restaurant
Nate loves to look at books when he goes to bed and if you look closely he actually fell asleep reading... the book is on his face!

Freeman Jr. doesn't like it when dad leaves for work so this is one of his barricades that he put up. He was sitting in it and actually surprised Freeman when he was getting ready to leave. We think it's pretty funny, but Freeman Jr. is serious about it and get's upset when Dad gets by his wall/barricade.

Preston just hanging out.

Grandma and boys enjoyed the ride they just took at the Railroad Park

Phoenix Zoo

Grandma and the boys at the petting zoo.

I loved watching Nate being so careful and having to brush every goat in sight.

Zebras! It was feeding time and we had a nice view of them.

Ahhh... A sweet brotherly moment

Preston at 2 months

He started smiling this week and I was trying to catch it on film

Grandma Donna pushing Nate on the swings.

The kids loved playing with her at the playground. I truly wish I had a picture of my mom tumbling backwards off the teter totter and covered with wood chips. We had a good laugh about that moment. :)

Here we are hiking on a trail near Verrado. Yes, Freeman is carrying a sword. He brought it to protect us from Mountain Lions and bears. My mom pointed out some animal tracks, and after that, any indention in the ground had to be analyzed and assigned an animal. We didn't get very far on our hike.

Freeman Jr. wanted to not only pee off this rock, but wanted to pose and have me take goofy pictures.

10 years ago..

2010-01-28T13:18:00.000-08:00

So it's been 10 years ago since Freeman and I first met.

Here is our story...

It was my first week of college at Scottsdale Community College, and I was hanging out with my sister and her friends in the cafeteria. I looked behind me and saw the cutest guy ever, playing pool with some guys. He had dark hair, amazing eyes, great smile, and had freckles. I told my sister that I thought he was so cute and she was all, "Oh, that's Idaho. I can introduce you guys tomorrow." So this wasn't like me at all to chase after a guy, but I felt like I had to meet him.

So the next day, I waited 2 hours in the cafeteria for my sister (turned out she had a lab she forgot about) I was sitting at one of the tables and this guy, Jason, comes up and starts flirting with me and trying to pick me up. I saw the cute guy walk into the room, and told Jason, "that I wasn't interested in him and that I was actually waiting around to meet that guy over there." He turned around and laughed and said, "You don't want to date that guy, he's Mormon!" And I said, "Well, those are the best guys to date!" So anyway, Freeman walks up and says, "Jason, why don't you ever introduce me to the pretty girls?" He smiled and walked away. My sister finally shows up with her friends after that.

A few minutes later, Freeman walks up and announces that he was tired of losing to everyone in pool and he needed to beat someone. My sister told him that I stunk at pool (not true, we had a pool table at home) and volunteered me. Well we had a great time playing and I did beat him in pool. We exchanged numbers and he told me he'd called me. Well, I left for work and when I got home he called and asked me out on a date for that night. So we went to Fiddlesticks at Scottsdale Pavillions and played minature golf (I hit some live rodent living in one of the holes, and still beat him) We went over and saw the dumbest movie ever (Eye of the Beholder). And yes we had our first kiss. Oh, let me rearrange the last part. Before the previews even started Freeman made his move and kissed me!

So that is the story of our first day and I can't believe I truly married my dream guy. I think he is the funniest guy ever, and can always find humor in any situation. He is my best friend and will always be.

Nate's 2nd Birthday

2010-01-16T11:57:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Nathan's Street!

Our Nate loves Elmo so we threw him a Sesame Street Birthday!

We had the letter of the day: N

Number of the Day: 2

And sang songs, colored, and played games. We all had so much fun and Nate loved all his new presents... and became very protective over them too. (I think the word "Mine" entered his vocabulary that same day...)

Kate & Nate + 8

Yes, Best Friends Forever, these two are so cute together

What Up, I'm 2!
Cousin Miley, Nate, and Katelyn

The whole birthday crew

Megan holding our little Preston

Cousin Robby

Nate checking out a new Batman Backpack

Duck Hunt

Ernie and Burt lost their ducks so the kids are helping them find them.

Happy Halloween 2009

2010-01-16T11:36:00.000-08:00

Halloween 2009

Family Picture of us all dressed up.

For those of us who has known us over the years...

Yes, this is our 6th year in a row as Cowboys

Here is a pretty convincing Spiderman... but it is really Freeman Jr.

Nate had is face painted at our ward's Trunk or Treat

This is a wierd expression, I think he was just tired.

Nate, Pierce, Laif & Freeman

These are one of our boys best friends.

Guessing which cup the candy is under.

FHE Activity

For one of our family home evenings we all painted pumpkins.

(these were the pumpkins picked from our preschool fieldtrip)

Left: Nate's

Right: Freeman Jr. (Isn't that creepy coming from a 3 year old?)

Preston hanging out.

He didn't feel like dressing up, just watching some Halloween specials on TV...

Here are the boys going trick or treating in our neighborhood.

They were so cute saying "trick or treat" & Nate just growling at everyone.

Preschool Fieldtrip to Tolmachoff Farm

2009-10-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

For Freeman's Preschool we went on a field trip to Tolmachoff Farm. We were able pick some produce to bring home, a pumpkin and enjoyed a corn maze, petting animals and playing on the farm! It was a great learning experience for the kids and I think Freeman enjoyed seeing all the vegetables and fruits in their fields. (He's been my helper in the garden so to actually see something that really grows fascinated him.)

Here is our Preschool Group before entering the farm

Nate kept coming back to look at the baby pigs

How dare he! This guy came by to give the kids stamps on their hands for the train ride and Nate didn't seem to pleased

Out of all pumpkins... I try not to interfere with my kids choices but I had to tell Nate to find a "Happier Pumpkin."

Nate loved picking fresh produce

Nate, Free and Tiff

Petting the Chicks

Nate was so excited to go into the farm

Petting the goats

Corn Maze

Campout

2009-10-15T21:14:00.000-07:00

Freeman has been wanting to take the boys camping for quite some time, and after having the baby, Freeman thought it was the perfect time to take them and give me a chance to take a break and spend time with just Preston. Freeman found a great campsite in Camp Verde and him, Uncle Nick and the boys had a great time camping.

Nate and Freeman in their very own Sleeping Bags!

Off on their own quad adventure

Uncle Nick and Freeman

Mmmm.. Pancake breakfast

Dunking the boys

The night before they roasted marshmellows and made smores. I heard they loved them!

Father and Sons

Either Nick is helping Freeman across, or ready to push him in... He always has something up his sleeve so I'm not quite sure on this pic..

Tree Climbing

What's in a name?

2009-10-06T17:32:00.000-07:00

So here is the breakdown of how we picked out the name Preston Brooks.

Preston: Freeman was originally a twin, and before his twin passed on they were going to be name Preston and Thurston. When Thurston died, they changed Free's name to Freeman after his dad. So, yes Freeman has two kids named after him. He's like that one guy... George Forman.. naming all the kids after him. Just kidding. Anyway, we also wanted the name to end in a "N" just like his brothers. (FreemaN, NathaN)

Brooks: We would joke around with our moms about naming one of our kids after them, and we found out that both of our maternal grandmother's maiden name is Brooks. (No we aren't related) So Brooks is in honor of our mom's. :)

Preston Brooks Carney

2009-10-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

On September 15, 2009 at 1:04pm, Preston Brooks Carney was born. He was 8lbs 8oz and 20.5 inches long! I was induced 2 weeks early because he was measuring big and it was once way to lessen my chances of a c-section. They were going to call us in Monday night but the hospital was so busy we were going to have to go in the next day. Well, Freeman stayed up late playing XBox and what not, and as soon as he layed down for bed at 5:00am the hospital called and said we could come in! I was laughing so hard, but Freeman couldn't find what was so funny... ;)

I was prepared to have my labor as natural as possible and was looking forward to try the technique called hypnobirthing. My first nurse didn't seem supportive and was saying, "Oh, you are going to need this and that, you'll need potocin because we want your contractions to start and we want them to hurt..." Fortunately I wasn't a push over and stood my ground and said, "I want you to talk to my doctor and this is what I want. " Thankfully, the nurse's shift was ending so I didn't need to deal with her. I was already having contractions so all the doctor had to do was break my water and my contractions began.

The hypnobirthing worked for the first 2 hours, but at 7cm I was screaming for something to relax me! Yikes! Then an hour later I had to tell Freeman to get the nurse because my body was ready to push and get the baby out! The nurse didn't look convinced but as soon as she checked she said I was ready to go and I can't believe how fast those nurses could move! Okay, so for this next part I screamed until it was over, so, no hypnobirthing wasn't a total success but it did help!

Preston Brooks

Enjoying some phototherapy for his Jaundice.

He was Combs positive which is where the baby and mother's blood antibodies mix which causes the high level of bilirubin, causing jaundice.

Here is my welcome home cake!

The house was spotless and I had pictures drawn by my boys and husband as gifts!

Kisses from big brother Freeman

Freeman helping with the feeding

Daddy Freeman reading bed time stories to the boys.

Preston at 2 weeks

already at 9 lbs 5 oz

Grandma Jolene with the Carney boys

Summer Recreation

2009-08-15T21:25:00.000-07:00

This Summer Freeman was busy learning gymnastics and soccer. Here are some pictures of his last day of classes.

Gymnastics

Walking the Balance Beam

Nathan copying the kids in class. He can't wait to be in his own class!

Straddle Stretch

Body Positions

The kids had to go from a "tuck" position, and open up to a "Star," and then with their legs together and arms straight up in the air. Here is Freeman in the Star position.

Freeman recieving his ribbon!

Soccer

Practicing his kicks

Stopping the Ball

Freezing the Ball

Freeman recieved a soccer medal! He is sneaking in his thumbs up...

Freeman was so excited about his medal that he had Dad Freeman pin it up on his wall, along with his ribbon from gymnastics.

Game of Soccer

Freeman would run around with the other kids, but with his personality he doesn't like to take away the ball from the other kids. He was one of the youngest in the class, so next year we hope to see him steal the ball away more. He is a great listener and loves to do the soccer drills. We surprised him with his own soccer ball and cones that him and Nate use all the time.

Team Picture

Happy 6 Year Anniversary!

2009-08-08T21:53:00.000-07:00

August 5th, 2003

Boise, Idaho Temple

On August 5th we celebrated our 6th Anniversary together! We had a great time celebrating in La Jolla, and enjoyed a date night watching Transformers 2. It's fun to look back on the years and how much we have grown. It's funny how the day you get married you are so in love and don't know how you can love anyone even more. Well, it seems that each day you just fall more in love and grow even closer to that person. I'm grateful that my husband is my best friend and I can be totally honest and be myself with him. I think the world gives us so many negative ideas about marriage, and I honestly didn't think marriage could be this much fun and joyful( prior to getting married.) I am truly grateful for the gospel and that my husband and I share the same goals in life spiritually and eternally. I'm am grateful for our children and through them it brings us closer together and makes us work harder as husband and wife. I'm grateful for temples and knowing that our marriage can be for eternity if we keep working hard.

I love you Free and thankful that you truly are so good to me, that you make me laugh, that you still flirt with me, that I still catch myself checking you out and that I still get flutters in my stomach. I love that you are such a great dad and you put your family first. I love how you tell our kids you love me so much and that they know you do. You are such a great example and I am so proud of you being my husband. You are the best and I am so happy that you asked me to marry you and spend forever with you.

Lovies. Biff

When we were first announced as Mr. & Mrs. Freeman Carney

La Jolla July & August 2009

2009-08-08T21:16:00.000-07:00

La Jolla Beach

Jolene and Nate

Nate loved walking back & forth in the water.

He has been more brave getting into the water compared to when we first went out in May.

We were all playing in the water when we looked over and saw our "Boogie Board" walking toward us. Nate went to go get it and he looked so cute carrying it. We had strangers walking by, telling me to get my camera and take a picture of him. I agreed.. :)

Here is Nathan walking back from the ocean.

Wow! What a great wave! The kids loved the waves coming in and also jumping when it hit them.

The boys posing for the camera

Here is our view from the house!

At night you can hear the seals barking and the waves crashing.

Happy 58th Birthday John!

We surprised him with this beautiful cake!

Ha Ha. If you look closely you can see the frosting collapsing... But it still tasted great!

Enjoying an evening walk to the pier

Mission Bay Park

Freeman and the kids enjoying some calm waters at Mission Bay Park. This is the best place to bring kids (and prego ladies) since there isn't any waves.

The boys warming up before going back into the water

Great Grandma Baba got the kids this big pink bear... They named it Pinky

The boys loved playing with Baba's dog Pixie and was so much fun to watch them laugh and squeal

This is one of the reasons why I just love my husband! His sense of humor!

We were driving back to Phoenix and stopped to get some McDonalds. We were driving down the road and I looked over and he has this napkin tucked in his shirt with this serious expression on his face. I started laughing and he just acted like it was no big deal and didn't see what was so funny. He sure cracks me up.

La Jolla July & August 2009

2009-08-08T20:37:00.000-07:00

La Jolla, California

Poor Little Nate. Big Freeman was going to take the kids into the water and Nate ran back to get his toys. We told Nate that he couldn't bring his toys into the water and to put them down so he could go. Well, he couldn't part with his toys so he just stood here for 15 minutes pouting and looking out at Dad and Little Freeman once in awhile.

Little Freeman, Nate, Tiff (& baby #3) Free

Here we are at Balboa Park in the Organ Pavillion. Don't you just love Freeman's face he is making? He learned that from one of his good friends Ellah, and thought it was so funny!

The boys loved splashing around in this popular fountain at Balboa Park. It was a warm day so it was nice for the kids to cool off.

Birch Aquarium at Scripps

Freeman, Nate and Free

standing in front of the aquarium

Nate, Freeman, and Tiff

Look at the Leopard shark above Nate's head! Okay, so these are the type of sharks that you see off of La Jolla Cove when you go snorkeling... Friendly sharks... Hmmm.. I don't know how my husband and Grandpa John brave it out there while swimming with them.

In the Shark CageAhh! My nightmare from Jaws came true! Just kidding,

here we are all yelling and making scared faces.

Old Town San Diego

The Whaley House

haunted or not?

We took a haunted ghost tour of a historic home in Old Town San Diego. In each room we were told of it's history and of some ghosts that were seen in the room.... We were encouraged to take pictures just in case we caught a ghost on camera. Unfortunately, no luck for us, but we had a great time!

Nate enjoying the view on Grandpa John's shoulders

Ahhh! I see a ghost!

Oh, it's only mom..

Grandpa John, Freeman, Grandma Jolene

Enjoying a nice Mexican Restaurant

Nate loves salsa and chips!

Aunt Patty and Uncle Ken come to visit!

We learned a fun card game called Golf. Well, Patty and Ken had a different version so of course we had to try it out. Here is everyone laughing and having a good time!

John and Ken cooking up some Hamburgers

Freeman relaxing on the couch

Aunt Patty, Freeman and Nate

These boys loved to cuddle with her.

Nate's Late Night Visitor...

2009-07-20T13:50:00.001-07:00

One night I heard Freeman yelling for me saying, "Mom, I need help, I'm stuck!" He's supposed to be in his room so I was a little confused when I couldn't find him in there. I heard him say it again, "Mom, I need help!" I walked into Nate's room and lo and behold, there is Freeman stuck on the crib.

This was a few nights later when he successfully snuck into Nate's crib with out my knowledge.

June 2009

2009-07-19T16:42:00.000-07:00

We had a very busy month in June! Below are some pictures of Freeman's swim lessons and our June trip to La Jolla.

Swim Lessons:
Freeman had lessons for 2 weeks at the Buckeye Aquatic Center. The pictures are of his last day of lessons. To pass the class and move up they were required to float on their back, go underwater for rings, and jumping to the instructor from the side. Freeman loved his lessons and by the last day he floated on his back. One of the last pictures are of Freeman recieving his certificate for passing. Freeman can now swim by himself from our steps to the side. Currently he is working on lifting his head up for air so he can swim a longer distance.

La Jolla
San Diego Fair
We went to the San Diego Fair with Uncle Nick, Grandpa Freeman and his girlfriend, and the Gould Family. We had a great time watching the kids go on rides and seeing animals. Our favorites were watching Freeman going down a HUGE slide that he walked up all by himself with out an adult, and then also going on his first roller coaster with dad.

Beach
We spent the day at the beach and had a great time. Nate loved playing in the water with Grandpa Freeman which was a big improvement from our last vacation when he didn't even want any water to be near him. Little Freeman was brave and with a life vest, went out swimming in the water and loved being thrown over the waves. Tiff enjoyed splashing around with the kids, but hopes that next time she'll have a chance to go boogie boarding.

June 2009

2009-07-19T16:41:00.001-07:00

Birthday Weekend

2009-07-10T21:23:00.001-07:00

This past weekend, my husband surprised me by throwing me a surprise birthday party. Not only was I surprised by the party and everyone there, he also surprised me with a special guest... my mom. He had flown her out all the way from Missouri and she was the first person I saw when I opened the door to the party. I totally cried and for those of you who have it on video, I will track you down... :) Little Freeman picked out a princess birthday cake and we went swimming and ate pizza. The rest of the weekend we were able to hang out with my mom and sister and we had a great time. I can't wait until she comes back out in November!

Spying on Freeman

2009-06-20T21:49:00.000-07:00

The other day it was a little stormy out, and this inflatable raft flew into our backyard. Well, this is Freeman's favorite thing to play with now. Over the past few months I have caught Freeman just sitting outside quietly looking around at his surroundings. He doesn't talk during this meditative time he just sits and looks around. So anyway, here he is in the inflatable raft enjoying a quiet afternoon.

(10 minutes later...)

I guess he had his new Diego sunglasses tucked away somewhere because he is now my stylish, quiet boy chillin out in the sun.

Happy 3rd Birthday Freeman!

2009-06-09T22:31:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we celebrated Freeman's 3rd birthday! He was so excited to have a birthday party, and his requests were that he had balloons, cake, presents, and Diego tattoos. The kids made telescopes, made monkey noises, ran through an obstacle course to rescue an animal, and of course, swimming! We had a great time and Little Freeman enjoyed having all his guests come!

The kids making "Diego Telescopes" to help them find animals later.

Laurie and Gui

I found these three playing together away from the party.

Nathan, Pierce and Jackson

Nate enjoying the view of dad below

Little Freeman is a flirt!

Here he is cuddling with Camille and Ellah

Tohbi felt a little left out.

Here he is looking out from our bedroom at the party.

The Gould Family

Brian, Ellah, and Camille

(I think Camille was sad she didn't go swimming )

Laif and Freeman

Freeman, Nick and Kelly

Time to blow out the Candle!

Freeman wanted blue icing and he loved his Diego candle!

Here are all the kids checking out Freeman's new toys

(I've never seen presents unwrapped so fast!)

Father Son Campout

2009-05-30T18:48:00.000-07:00

Our Ward had their annual Father and Son Campout and it was the first time Dad Freeman and Freeman got to go. Little Freeman was excited the whole week and couldn't wait for sleeping in the tent and putting marshmallows in the fire. They went on a night hike to search for animals and Little Freeman was happy to report that they saw, "Deer Poop!" on their hikes. It was a muddy and rainy weekend, but that didn't stop my maucho boys, and they had a great time. I loved hearing their stories and that they had their "boy time." Little Freeman looks up to his dad sooooo much and I know that this trip made a great impression on him.

Little Freeman after roasting some marshmallows

Freeman holding a horny toad

Dad and Freeman were on a walk and Freeman suddenly crouched down and said to be quiet.

Freeman was so excited to finally use his new sleeping bag that Grandma Donna got for Christmas. He was so proud that he slept in it the whole night and "stayed on his side of the bed"

The Father's and Son's went on a long hike to look for animals. Daddy Freeman was so impressed that Freeman kept up. I guess it was a few miles.

Sitting on a fallen tree

Dad and Freeman enjoyed some 1 on 1 time with their own little hike in the woods.

Little Freeman (far right) and some friends at a Pioneer Village on the way home.

Making Bread with Mom

2009-05-30T18:26:00.000-07:00

Our friend Megan made some very yummy homemade jam and of course we had to make some great homemade bread to go with it! This was the best activity to keep Little Freeman busy. He helped pour the ingredients that I measured out, and I gave him his own dough to knead. We had so much fun and of course made a mess. Little Freeman loves helping out in the kitchen and I truly think it's important to teach my kids (boys or girls) to cook/bake. Here are some fun pics of our time together.

Freeman showing me his floured hands

Here is my little baker. He thought it was so neat to wear an apron. (It helped a lot as you can tell)

This is after our long day. Tohbi has started to sleep with Little Freeman in his bed and I thought it was so sweet!

La Jolla May 2009

2009-05-14T22:18:00.000-07:00

Renaissance Festival

2009-04-09T21:53:00.000-07:00

For years I have been wanting to go back to the Renaissance Festival and last month Freeman surprised me with tickets that he had recieved from work! We had a fun time there and saw some funny shows and some funny people. I think our favorite character was the, "The Booger Fairy." He (or she... according to Nick ;) ) was painted green and had green goo in a cup that when you pressed down on it it made a lovely sound. It was funny because he/she would ask the kids in this weird voice, "Do you want to fart?" It was hilarious.

Uncle Nick was popping some wheelies with the stroller that the kids thought was so much fun. Here they are posing for the camera.

Freeman took Little Free on an elephant ride and they both loved it. Little Free couldn't stop smiling.

Here is Freeman and I!

Nathan and Freeman

Nathan

2009-04-09T21:31:00.000-07:00

This post is all about Nate! He is our little goofball. He is always making us laugh and I love his personality. He is almost 17 months and I can't believe how fast it's gone. In a few months he won't be my baby anymore! Nate has been up to a lot the past few months. He has always been really quiet, but now he is just our little babbler. He has been interested in communication and all of the sudden is more into trying to talk and to sign. I love asking him what food he wants and he'll let you know by nodding or shaking his head. His first and favorite word was "Dadda" but now he is saying "Momma" a whole bunch more which I just love to hear.

Another thing that's new with Nate is that he loves to cuddle and read books! Ever since he was born he didn't not like to cuddle. He would never fall asleep on me, he would throw his body back if I tried to sit him in my lap, he just always was content to be near his brother or doing his own thing. Even when we would go to the Library, Nate was always the one walking around and actually trying to get the other mom's to read to him. Well, probably a few weeks ago, we went to the Library and he sat in my lap and stayed there! Ever since then he has to sit or cuddle with us for him to read a book. I just love it! Anyways, here are some great pictures, showing off our Nate!

This is Nate's before picture of his first haircut!

He was so excited and I couldn't believe that he sat so still.

Here is Nate's after picture of his hair cut. He was upset because I was, "All Done"

Okay, this was right after his haircut and all of the sudden he just turned into the hyper, daredevil kid. He loves this bike.

Okay, who does this remind you of???? I swear Daddy Freeman is doing this same move at work right now on his Bike.

Nate has discovered sitting!

He loves to climb in chairs and just sit. Here he is listening to our blog music.

Caught on Camera...

2009-04-09T21:15:00.000-07:00

These pictures are dear to my heart because the last few months have been pretty interesting with Little Freeman getting along with his little Brother. So, lately they have these special moments where they are playing nicely and not taking toys away from each other, or pushing eachother around. Here are some great moments caught on camera.

Freeman was sitting in the chair reading a book and Nate climbed up and sat next to him. Freeman decided to become "teacher" and read Nate his book.

I love this picture of all my boys. Nate used to wander around during the bedtime story, but lately he loves to sit in our laps and have us read to him. Both of the boys love it when they have their time with dad.

Okay, this was the sweetest thing ever. I was making pancakes and Nate gets really impatient waiting for his food to be served to him, so I gave him some raisin bread to munch on to hold him over for awhile. He was still being whiny, and Little Freeman all of the sudden goes to the fridge and gets out pudding and a spoon. He opens it up and starts feeding it to Nate! He fed him the whole thing! I was so impressed with Little Freeman being aware of his brother's needs and just helping out. This is now Freeman's favorite thing to do.

To Utah we go!!

2009-02-19T20:34:00.000-08:00

Mission Reunion

From August 2000-2002, Freeman served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Washington D.C. He taught about Jesus Christ and served the people in the community. When we took a trip up to Utah, we had a small reunion of other missionaries who served with him. It was great to hear everyone's memories of all the people they taught and everyone's progress. I am so proud of my husband for serving a mission. He had grown so much spiritually and was full of so much knowledge when he came home. His family was blessed while he was gone and I feel like our own little family is blessed by him serving a mission.

Elder Littledyke and Elder Carney

Elder Freeman Carney, Tiff, Brittany, Elder Littledyke and Elder Curtis
(Ok, I do have an excuse for my pudgy tummy...Baby #3)

Freeman's favorite missionaries

The McQuivey's

Grandma and Grandpa Erickson came down from Emmett, Idaho to visit with us in Utah. They surprised the kids with a new quad!

They even picked out a blue quad to match Daddy Freeman's quad!

Freeman's first ride.
After a few minutes he was standing up just like how dad does it.

Here is Nate admiring the quad. He was chasing it around saying, "Broom Broom"

Nate's first ride.

He wouldn't hold on to the handle bars(I don't know if he could even lift his arms in that jacket), but he kept his foot on the pedal and loved it.

Ryan and Greg Trader

AZ friends Reunion

We had made some really great friends in Phoenix, but unfortunately, they all moved! So we had a reunion up in Sandy, Utah at the Prestwich's home. We had such a great time. We had a tournament of air hockey, darts, foosball, 9ball, and fit Wii. Somehow everyone won, but the Carney fam, but we still had a great time! We even played rock band, and somehow convinced me to try the vocals. (First time ever in the history of tiff's life of ever singing karokee) Here are some pics of our weekend!

Bottom Row: Tom, Jessica, Kyla Toronto. Jake and Jeanne Prestwich. Little Freeman

Top Row: Monique, Greg, and Ryan Trader. Camie, Ella, Isaac and Jackson Draxler.

Nate, Freeman and Tiff.

Here we are at the Draper Temple Open House. This is where the Temple is open to the public before it is dedicated. We first met at the church where they had a video about temples, and then we were bused up the mountain. You quietly walk through the temple where they have signs explaining the different rooms. At the very end they took us in small groups and we were able to sit in the Sealing Room (where couples get married) and explained it.

After going through the temple, they had a church next door where they had beautiful pictures of Christ and a number of temples found throughout the world. Both the boys loved going through and I think their favorite was the huge chandeliers the rooms had.

The Carney Family

Rock Band

Freeman, Greg, Jake, and Monique

At Thanksgiving Point they have a great Dinosaur Museum.

Here is Freeman discovering fossils.

Playing with dinosaurs in their big water/sand table.

Prehistoric Shark.

Nate wasn't too happy about this shark attack.

Nate was all over the place. Here he is looking around at the dinosaurs.

Family Day

Free, Freeman, Grandma and Nate

2nd Cousins

Lincoln and Freeman

Cousin Amy and Freeman

Afternoon at Temple Square

Here is the view from the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. You can see the old Tabernacle and the SLC Temple.

Freeman and Dad

Celebrating Cardinals Super Bowl

2009-02-19T20:22:00.000-08:00

Freeman is one of the most dedicated fans of the Cardinals. So of course we had to throw a Superbowl Party in honor of the Cardinals greatest accomplishment. We had great food and games and just loved to cheer on the team. Here are some pictures below of the big day!

Little Freeman couldn't wait to have these football cupcakes.

He even snuck one to Nate who was covered with icing after we found out.

Cousin Laurie and Gi

Tiff and Free

The Carney Boys

Freeman, Nick, and Freeman Sr.

Carson, Megan and Katelyn Zierse

Dedicated to Aunt Alice

2009-01-23T19:23:00.000-08:00

Sadly, my Aunt Alice passed away today at 96. She was an amazing woman. When my mom was a teenager she took her into her loving home and made my mom feel like she was finally part of a family. In college we would visit her in Cottonwood, where she patiently taught me how to quilt and I thank her for getting me started in that hobby. She was always easy to talk to and was pretty funny. Last month we were able to go visit her and knowing her condition we were afraid she would only be able to handle 5 minutes. Luck was on our side and we were able to visit for more than an hour and a half! She was such a sweet woman and I'm glad that she was in our life. She will be missed. Thank you Aunt Alice for being such a great, strong woman!

Christmas 2006

Grandma Donna, Little Freeman, and Aunt Alice

Nadia, Freeman, Tiff and Aunt Alice

Tiff, Nate, Freeman, Alice

Freeman and Alice
Freeman was such a good boy sitting on her lap. I think this meant a lot to my Aunt and loved cuddling with him.

My mom, Free, and Aunt Alice

The Lion King

2009-01-21T19:32:00.000-08:00

This past weekend Grandma Stillman took us all to see, "The Lion King" broadway musical at ASU Gammage. It was a great experience and we enjoyed the costumes and the music. It was a nice family outing and the kids enjoyed it.

Little Freeman's comments on it: "It got really, really dark. Keizer shared his fruit snacks with me. There were drums! "( acts out the drummer and shows how the drummer put down his head phones)

Nate's comments: "Growlll...."

Nate, Free, Tiff, Nadia, Freeman, Keizer, Grandma Stillman

Aunt Nadia and her boys!

A Day In Flagstaff... A month ago...

2009-01-12T12:27:00.000-08:00

About a month ago our friends Ronnie and Richard and us decided to be spontaneous and go to Flagstaff for the day. We had a very adventurous trip up. We hit traffic on the I-10 and I-17, stopped for the kids to eat, then got off on an exit where we went down this one lane plowed road, where someone's car broke down, so to get out we had to go in reverse for 1/2 mile until we can turn around. But we went to the county fairgrounds and everyone was leaving so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. The boys came up with a great idea which was to tie the sled to the quad and be dragged around. (first I thought, "I don't think so... but then it was totally fun) So here is pictures from our fun day in the snow!

Here is Freeman who tried to fight his way through the snow.

The snow won.
Free and Freeman enjoying the quad. Little Freeman always has so much fun with Dad.

Freeman, Free, Tiff and Nate.

I was trying to get a picture of Freeman next to this snowman, but the snow was deep and Freeman sunk down into the snow. At first he thought it was funny, but then when he tried to get out and his hands got sooooo cold. This was the start of his first tantrum. I think after this he doesn't like touching snow.

And of course there is Nate. The first time I put him down he fell (think Christmas Story movie) so after that he just wanted to be held. So for this picture he was pretty upset that I had put him down.

Happily Married!

2009-01-01T15:51:00.000-08:00

About 5 1/2 years ago, Freeman took me to my favorite spot at the Temple and proposed. Every time we go to the temple, I just love to stand in front of the reflection pool. Anyways, here is Freeman and I 5 1/2 years later of where he proposed to me and we have our two beautiful sons with us. (Hopefully more to come!) I am so happy being married and that Freeman is my best friend. Growing up I never imagined how much fun marriage can be. I am grateful to have the knowledge of the gospel and to know that families can be together forever. I truly believe that living the gospel strengthens our marriage and our family. I am so proud of how far I have come and that when Free and I were married that we were blessed to be sealed to each other in a temple.

November Days

2008-12-18T20:55:00.001-08:00

Spagetti Factory in Phoenix

Left to Right

Freeman V, Free, John, Jolene, Nick and Nate

Nate trying to get the camera...

Happy Nate

Peter Piper Pizza

Nate's first ride

John's first ride

The battle of Air Hockey

John vs. Freeman

He shoots, he scores!

Freeman giving some tips to Freeman Jr.

Grandpa John and Nate hanging out

Stress of Robot or just sleepy?

We have this big Remote Control Robot that was scaring the beejeebees out of Nate. He laid down on my lap and we weren't sure if he was tired or if he was stressed over the walking/talking robot.

Here we are, all in the hallway.

I decided to lay next to Nate, and then Tohbi came by and put his head on mine, and then Freeman came and laid down to. So here are all of my kids and I.

Green Thumb... Sort of

2008-12-17T15:06:00.000-08:00

This past summer the leaders in our Stake for church encouraged us to start a garden. I was so excited about this new project and the idea of growing our own food. So I did my research and even recieved some advice from some pretty good gardeners. Well, the first try I made two rows of soil hills to put the seeds in. (I remember my grandmothers garden looking like that) Well, after watering it, the hills eroded and I decided to replant the seeds with out hills. Still no luck. I gave up and decided to try again around Spring. Well, we had a good rain and after a week, Freeman told me to go look at my garden. I thought he was teasing me so I never did. Another week went by and while we were outside Freeman said, have you looked at your garden, some stuff is growing! So I went to go look and my plants are growing. So all it needed was some neglect, a good rainfall and some more neglect and it worked. So now I've been watching it grow and I am so excited. Hopefully I'll know when it's time to pick them too. Here are some pictures of my little garden!

The Carney Garden

small but growing!

I know hard to see, here are some shots that are zoomed in

The start of some brocolli growing!

The little bunches are going to be Romaine Lettuce and then above them are some onion.

Nathan makes his debut!

2008-12-09T16:23:00.000-08:00

We go to our public library on a weekly basis for the children's program, and today the Librarian took pictures of the kids. Well, I went on their website to look up a book, and lo and behold Nate made it on the website! There is also a picture of a group of Mom's and kid's so Nate, Freeman, and I made it too (Bad pic. of me though, please ignore)

http://www.buckeyeaz.gov/index.asp?NID=77

So click on the link above and see Nate's super cute picture (He is the one holding out the purple ball) It's a little slideshow of pictures...

Happy 28th Birthday Freeman!

2008-12-04T14:58:00.000-08:00

I wanted to wish my hubby a Happy Birthday! So I love this idea I've seen on my friend's blogs about listing things about the other person, so here we go.

28 things about Freeman

1. He is the funniest person I know
2. He has the talent to turn anything into a game
3. He is sneaky and always has something up his sleeve
4. He is Claustrophobic
5. He is a germ-a-phobe
6. His favorite color is blue
7. His favorite number is 4
8. He was a fraternal twin
9. His favorite kind of food is Mexican food
10. He is very, very, very frugal :)
11. He has been skydiving
12. He has been arrested... prank gone bad.. ha ha
13. He is known in his highschool days as being a mooner
14. He has car surfed
15. He picks up on skills really easily
16. He is a Phoenix Suns fan
17. He has met Tom Chambers
18. Freeman served his mission in Washington D.C.
19. Freeman played football on scholarship in college
20. Freeman ran track on scholarship in college
21. When we met, Freeman gave me a pick up line (Hey, it worked!)
22. He is very charismatic
23. Freeman is self conscious about his left ear.. tee hee
24. Freeman has sprayed me with mace thinking he was shining a flashlight at me..
25. He doesn't like cats... something with their claws
26. After his mission, Freeman wanted to travel to Africa
27. He can dance if he tries... Latin and Swing
28. He is the best Husband and Dad!

Happy Birthday Freeman. You're the best.

Weekend at Gilbert

2008-11-14T20:30:00.000-08:00

My sister invited the kids to stay over Friday Night so, Freeman and I could have a date night, so we decided to invite ourselves over too! We went out to Gilbert and while Nadia watched the kids we were able to catch up with some our friends, The Gould's, who lived down the street. The next day we slept in and then went to the Mesa Temple, did some Christmas shopping, and even went out to eat! I don't think we've ever been on a date that long with kids! So thank you Nadia for that special treat!

So while we were enjoying a kids free day... My sister took her Godson Keizer, and our kids to the park down the street from her house. Unfortunately, the sprinklers came on so what do you think happens with a 2 and 4 year old?

Later that day (after muddy wet clothes were washed and dried), my sister took all 3 kids to the Phoenix Zoo! Above are some pictures from their day at the Zoo. Little Freeman just loved spending time with his Aunt Nadia and his new friend Keizer.

Monday Night Football

2008-11-14T19:51:00.000-08:00

Note to Megan: I stole this from your blog!

Happy Birthday to Kelly and Freeman! Freeman's good friend and Bike Partner, Kelly, had his birthday this week and Freeman's is coming up next month, so they celebrated by going to the Arizona Cardinals Monday Night Football Game. They arrived early to tailgate with some buddies from work and enjoyed watching the Cardinals win the game! Go CARDINALS!!!

Camera Man Litte Freeman

2008-11-12T21:19:00.000-08:00

Little Freeman grabbed a hold of our camera and started to take pictures of everything. Most of them were of his hand covering the lenses, but he did get some good ones in! My favorite is of Daddy Freeman!

Happy 1st Birthday Nathan!!!

2008-11-12T20:48:00.000-08:00

Freeman and Nate pushing around their trucks

Katelyn, Nate and Jackson checking out Nate's new books and toys.

Tiff filming Nate's first present opening

Freeman showing off his new shirt from Grandma Homenick

Nate and Freeman dancing to dad's singing of "Happy Birthday!"

Nate loves his presents!

Carson and Freeman eating cake and icecream.

Ashton and Brooklyn enjoying some too!

Nate's Birthday Cake! Yum Yum!

Freeman never eats anything, but he was licking his plate clean!

Old Photo

2008-11-10T21:03:00.000-08:00

So Freeman is at the Cardinals Game for Monday Night Football so here I am stuck at home a little bored. So I decided to Google my husband's name and I found a football picture from Phoenix College. Go Bears!

I also wanted to give an update on my husband. A few months ago he dislocated and broke his elbow in five different places so he had to go into surgery where they replaced the radial head. This is a very unfortunate injury, because it has taken away a majority of Freeman's favorite activities that he will no longer be able to do. (Lifting weights, water skiing.. anything that puts pressure on the joint.) Well, Freeman has been doing a great job going to therapy and working on his elbow at home and he has already exceeded the doctor's expectations of his progress. And just last week he was able to do 2 push ups! (That is a really big deal.. the doctor told him he didn't think he would be able to do that) I am proud of my husband and his determination to get his elbow to be at it's best. It hurts me that he had to go through so much pain, and then go through "the talk from the doc" when he told him he couldn't do his favorite activities anymore and possibly a career change. Even through all of this, I still think he has a good attitude and I'm proud of him.
So, for the record, Free I love you and your bum elbow! I still think your perfect-Lovies!

Freeman Carney

2003-2004

Phoenix College

photo from
www.pc.maricopa.edu

Halloween Night

2008-11-03T20:35:00.001-08:00

Halloween Night...

We had a spooktacular night! We went over to a neighbor's home who puts on a haunted house in her home! She has family, and some kids from the neighborhood volunteer to stand in her house to scare people. Of course, when there are little ones, they just stay still to not scare them (somehow I still got scared...) We then went trick or treating in our neighborhood, where Little Freeman thought it was so fun to go up to a door, knock and say, "Trick or Treat!" We chatted with our neighbors and then called it a night. Here are some pictures of our Halloween!

Bumble Bee Nathan

He loves to clap his hands

Attack of the Bumble Bee!

Tiff and Free

Howdy Ya'll

Little Freeman the cowboy

Tiff, Free & Tohbi

Trunk or Treat!

2008-11-03T20:06:00.001-08:00

Happy Halloween!

Last week our church held a trunk-or-treat in the parking lot which is a fun, safe way for kids to collect candy. Each car had a game for the kids to play where they could win some candy or prizes. Our game was, "Beanie Babies Toss" where they had to throw a beanie baby into 3 different size buckets. Some other games they had were, Skull Bowling, Fish for Candy, Shoot Hoops, Spin the Wheel and they even had face painting. Here are some pictures from our fun night!

Carney Family

Halloween 2008

Tiff and Nate

Nate, Free & Freeman

Beanie Babies Toss

This was our little trunk game

Freeman was so serious about getting his face painted. He thought the spider was so cool.

Safety Check

I always remember how we always had to check our candy to make sure it was safe and not tampered with, so we told Little Freeman we had to do a Safety Check. So here he is going through his candy to make sure it's safe!

Oh a Camping We Will Go...

2008-10-27T10:20:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we enjoyed a family campout up in Wenden, AZ at Alamo Lake. We camped with Freeman Sr., Uncle Nick, and Grandma Pauline. After not being to happy about our original assigned campsite by the State Park, the boys and Grandma went out searching for the perfect campsite. Our picture above is where we had our tent set up. We had a great view of the surrounding mountains, and we had a great time on the boat and driving around on the quads. The guys went on a ride around the Lake and Nick showed them an abandon town and also drove under a canopy of trees.

Grandma Pauline and the kids. They just loved cuddling with her.

Nick, Pauline and kids, and Freeman Sr. The wood that the guys gathered burned up really fast, so they found this log
that lasted awhile. I thought this was so funny
looking. It also looked pretty cool with the
smoke coming off the top.

Here is Freeman gathering wood.

We had a great time fishing. We showed Little Freeman the worms and how to hook them. Tiff caught 2 fish within 10 minutes of eachother! The other picture is of Little Freeman fishing and keeping an eye on the bobber. I think he felt really special being in charge of this fishing pole. He took it very seriously.

Big Freeman showing off the fish he reeled in. In this picture Freeman was holding the fish in

his hands and it jumped out. You can barely see

the tail on the bottom of the picture. I love this

picture of Freeman, he was laughing so hard

Tiff, Freeman, and Nate

Free and Freeman

Little Freeman showing off on the quad. He loves riding with dad.

The second picture is of Freeman after a quad ride with dad. They were riding behind mom in the truck and Freeman was holding up the glasses to keep dust out of his eyes. Well he fell asleep halfway through the ride so when we met up I took a picture of him (Still holding onto the glasses!) He was a little upset when we woke him up; I think because he realized he missed half of his quad ride and it was over

The Joys of Boys

2008-10-23T15:37:00.000-07:00

I was in the next room packing for our camping trip and I hear Little Freeman yell out, "Mom, look at what Nate do!" So I take a deep breath and go see the results... Well, it wasn't just Nate causing trouble (Freeman is a little tattle tale) Nate had pulled out 1/2 a bag of new wipes that was all over the floor, plus I noticed the smell of diaper cream.... Freeman had wiped it all over his legs, forehead, and diaper, and was smeared on the floor and his bed. I guess it's all starting now... these special moments of having two boys.

P.S. Any advice on getting diaper cream out of the carpet?

Obama or McCain

2008-10-17T16:04:00.000-07:00

Freeman and I have never been into politics until this year. We were doing our research and trying to figure out who we should vote for. We were leaning towards McCain, but liked some of the things Obama brought up, but we were still trying to do our research. We were undecided until the last Presidential debate. I had no clue how Obama felt on Abortion and that he is ProChoice. It made me sick to my stomach and confirmed who I need to vote for. I just have to share my two cents on ProChoice and then I'm done.

First of all... Regarding Pro Choice...
When a woman makes the choice to have sex she is choosing all risks and consequences
1. Possiblity on getting pregnant
2. Sexually Transmitted Diseases
3. Being Used

So, she already made her choice, so if she recieves any of the consequences that was the CHOICE she made.
A woman once told me that if it wasn't for abortion, she would have had 13 children! She only had 2 children living, so that is 11 babies that she chose to kill. I was outraged!
I'm sorry, but women already make their choice, so if they get pregnant, they can bless others who can't have children by CHOOSING adoption!

P.S. Freeman was all for McCain as soon as he mentioned the Cardinals... Go CARDINALS!

So You Think You Can Dance?

2008-10-16T11:42:00.000-07:00

Every night, Daddy Freeman cranks up the music to our blog and we all dance around. The kids have 2 favorite songs. So here are our kids showing us their skills.

Here is Freeman dancing to Uncle Cracker's song.

There is a video below also.

Dancing around

"Tuck you in at Night..."
Intro to song...

Our kids love the song, "Clumsy," by Fergie. Here is Nathan showing us his moves.

This song is from Uncle Cracker, and Freeman calls it, "Freeman's song." He will sing some of the lyrics and he will point to you and say, "Tuck you in at night..." It's pretty funny. This video shows his performance. It's a little toned down... he was being a little shy in front of the camera.

Soccer Practice

2008-10-16T11:33:00.000-07:00

Little Freeman has been going to Soccer for about a month. He gets so excited to go and just loves to kick the ball around. His favorite part of soccer is hanging out with dad!

Freeman running to kick his Soccer ball!

This is a game they were playing where they take turns trying to kick the ball through the kid's legs.

Freeman's friend Brooklyn is in the front. She is ready to go!

Freeman "Freezing" the ball.

Ward Campout

2008-10-16T11:14:00.001-07:00

This past weekend our ward had a Campout out in Tonopah. We had set up our tent in our backyard to make sure we had everything we needed before we went. Little Freeman loved it and was so excited for our camping adventure. We arrived just before dark and put up our tent.

We sang songs, heard stories of the Pioneers, and played some fun games.
(Big Buddah was a blast!)

We turned in for the night and it was sooooo windy that our tent shook the whole night. Nathan woke up during the night and while he was laying next to me he started playing with the tent since it was moving so close to our faces. It was funny.
In the morning we had breakfast and there was a hayride for the kids that brought us near the mountain. The kids loved it, and it was a great family get away.

Here is Little Freeman trying to put away a camping chair. We had such a great view of Saddle Mountain from our spot!

"I'm Number One!!!"

Nate was already in his car seat, so he didn't quite make it for the family picture. :(

Tiff, Freeman, and Free

Taking down tent!

Dad and Son

Box Time!!!

2008-10-01T15:14:00.000-07:00

This is one of the kid's favorite things to do. I brought home this box from Costco, and Big Freeman has a talent to turn anything into a toy... so this is what Freeman and the kids do everyday. He pulls them all around the house.

Also....

Little Freeman is obsessed with "Wonder Pets," so last night, creative Dad acted out "Wonder Pets" and the box turned into the "FlyBoat!" So they would go around saving stuffed animals all around the house and bring it back to an elephant mommy. I thought it was pretty creative and Little Freeman looooooooved it.

A day in Scottsdale

2008-10-01T14:55:00.000-07:00

We went over to Scottsdale to visit my Grandma and also to pick up our new car! My Grandma has been so wonderful to us and has blessed our little family with so much. She had a Honda Pilot that she wanted to get rid of, and a sister in need of a new car so we did a car swap and we are loving it. Our new Honda can seat up to 8 people, so when we have family come into town we can fit into one car! I also would always joke around with Freeman that we can't have another baby until we get a bigger car... boy did I jinx us! Just kidding!

I've already noticed a difference with mileage, and how easy it is to park, and also to get the kids out! I don't have to go on my tip toes to unbuckle the carseat! So nice for us short people!

Anyways, after we visited with my Grandma, we went over to the Railroad Park. Freeman is always amazed by the train and Nate liked it too. Here are some pictures from our trip out to Scottsdale.

Tiff and Nate riding the train.

Little Freeman is so excited to be on the train!

Nate's first time in a swing. He just loved looking around and swinging towards mom.

Hanging out at Great Grandma's House. Here is Pixie sharing her toys.

Dad and Freeman on the train.

Phoenix Children's Museum

2008-10-01T14:35:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, one of my friends invited us to go to the Children's Phoenix Museum. We had a great time there, and little Freeman loved it! I think his favorite was the grocery store and pizza parlor! He is getting into the dramatic play, so this place was perfect! They even had a place for Nate to get out and crawl around.

Here is Freeman being a typical big brother.

Nate was having so much fun with this ball!

They had this little house that the kids could paint. Freeman really enjoyed this.

Freeman is really getting into playing pretend, and he loved the miniature grocery store at the museum. He was very serious and loved to pick out food.

Here is his buddy Keaton who was shopping too!

As in a previous post... Nate likes to turn anything into a binkie!

Pool Time

2008-09-07T10:38:00.000-07:00

Here is Little Freeman jumping off the rock all by himself!

Busting Out the Moves...

2008-09-07T10:23:00.000-07:00

Nate's got the moves. When he hears music he busts out in a dance.

First Day of Soccer

2008-09-07T10:05:00.001-07:00

Freeman and Dad practicing their kicks.

Monster!

The coach was running around as a "Monster" trying to get the kids ball so the kids had to kick the ball away from her. Freeman was doing a good job kicking, but then stopped as soon as she came up to him... he got away though!

When the coach is giving directions the kids are supposed to sit down on their ball. Here is Freeman listening intensely to Coach D.
FREEZE! Here is another move the kids do. When the coach says FREEZE, then they stop what they are doing and put their foot on the ball. Freeman is showing me what he learned.

The kids had to run down the cones, kicking the ball. Here is Freeman doing a great job kicking. I think he inherited Grandpa Pete's soccer talent.

In this drill, the kids had to try to kick the ball and knock down their cone.

Here is Freeman's friend Brooklyn, doing a few stretches.

Happy Labor Day

2008-09-07T09:48:00.000-07:00

We had a serious game of Pool Volleyball. Here is one team with Kelly, Nick, and Freeman.

Here is Jordan and Gui ready to block!
Getting Ready to defend... Majid, Jordan, Eli, and Gui! Connor totally spiked the ball... Carson ready for back up!
Way to use your head! Freeman didn't quite catch the concept of using his arms, but his head worked just fine.

Freeman, Connor, and Carson

At the end of swimming everyone was lining up to jump into the pool. We had some good flips and great splashes! Here is Dad and Freeman getting ready to splash the crowd!

Little Freeman ready to jump to Miss Ruby!

Here is Katelyn striking a pose.

Laurie, Heather, Megan, and Ruby (and Nate & Katelyn)

We had so much fun with all our friends and family! It was great hanging out, and next time us girls will win in Catch Phrase!

Hanging Out

2008-08-28T19:48:00.001-07:00

Here is Freeman pretending he is "Grandpa John." He likes to put sunglasses on his shirt and say he is Grandpa.
So, I'm working on weaning Nate off his binky, and I think he was having binkie withdrawls and this is what I caught him with... A little rubber duckie as a new binkie! This is one of Little Freeman's favorite things to do. So, dad decided to put Nate in the wagon and ran around the house. Nate loved it!!! He was giggling non-stop.

La Jolla Vacation

2008-08-23T12:13:00.000-07:00

My grandmother rented a beach house in La Jolla for the summer and we were able to take a break from this Arizona heat and stay in Cali for a week and a half! We first met up with Freeman's mom Jolene, John, Nick and John's kids, Chris and Michael and had a blast. We went to the beach and bodyboarded and went snorkeling. The boys decided to go snorkeling one morning which I chickened out of... Why you ask? Well, because they heard of a great place where you can see some leopard SHARKS! If anyone knew me growing up, I have a great fear of sharks, and it took me a long time to not be afraid of lakes and swimming pools for the fear of hidden sharks in there... So the boys did their thing and saw some sharks, and fish and Nick even found some Dior Sunglasses that I got for a present. Thanks Nick!
Being in La Jolla, we were just down the street from the San Diego temple, so thanks to Nick again for babysitting at 6:30 in the morning we were able to go to a session at the temple. It was our first time in that temple and it was beautiful. The architecture was beautiful and I didn't know they had a Atrium on the top. It was so pretty and peaceful. Later that week we also took family pictures outside too.
We also went to Sea World and had so much fun! It was Freeman and the kids first time there and we loved it. Little Freeman is really into sharks, Shamu and Cookie Monster. (They have Sesame Street themes there) We learned a lot there and had a great time.
At the end of the week, our friends Megan and Kelly and their kids came out to visit with us. We had fun going to the beach, Science Museum, and hanging out. We saw some seals and went snorkeling too. (Hopefully no where near sharks...)
So now we are back at home and every morning Little Freeman asks if we can go to the beach. :(

La Jolla Vacation

2008-08-19T19:25:00.001-07:00

Happy 5 Year Anniversary!!!!!!

2008-08-05T15:00:00.000-07:00

Happy 5 year Anniversary Freeman! Can you believe that just five years ago, we became a family of two, and now we are a family of four? It's amazing how much we have grown and how strong we are. I remember 8 years ago, you took me to the Boise temple before I had to say my goodbyes to you before you went on your mission. That day you told me that if I wanted to, I could wait for you while on your mission. You left on your mission, and I wrote you almost every week... and you wrote almost every month... ;)

When you came home from your mission, I came out the next day... (Except the message didn't get to you that I was coming... so surprise! You had to come pick me up from the airport.) I remember you practically leaning out the car window you were so uncomfortable and nervous to be next to a girl alone. A month after you got home you moved down to Arizona, every weekend we would commute back and forth from Flagstaff to see each other. (Thank goodness gas was cheap back then...) After many, many, many months, you proposed, and we were married exactly 3 years after saying our goodbyes before your mission.

The day we were married, was the happiest day ever. It felt wonderful to know that we were living our lives the right way, and that we were going to be married in the temple. I wasn't just going to be married to you for "death do us part", I wanted to be married to you forever, for time and eternity. I wanted our future children to be sealed to us. I wanted to be happy and live wholesome lives.

So here we are 5 years later. I'm amazed how happy marriage can be and am truly happy and grateful that you are my husband, and how wonderful you are. I am amazed to see the blessings we have, just by being married in the temple and keeping our promises.

I love that you are my best friend, that we can be goofy and not care what the other one thinks, and just grow together. I love you Free. Happy Anniversary.

Getting So Big!!!

2008-07-29T20:44:00.000-07:00

Nate likes to scoot himself across the tile.

Nate likes to chase Freeman down. Freeman was teasing Nate. Soon after Nate reached the dump truck, Freeman and the dump truck took off... with Nate following close behind...

Freeman decided to join Nate in his crib, and Daddy Freeman attacked the boys with tickles. I have never seen these kids laugh so hard.

Freeman is being quite the swimmer. Here is Freeman getting rings of the step. He can hold his breath and go under water.

This is one of Freeman's favorite things to do. He climbs onto dad's neck and they hold their breath and swim under water. Daddy Freeman has taught Little Freeman so much with swimming. They go almost every day. That is our special family time when Freeman comes home from work.

We put Nate on this car toy and surprisingly stayed on. He loves playing with all the little contraptions on this car and was so happy.

Time to share... So Nate always wants to play with what Freeman has and vice versa... Except Freeman is always able to take the toy away from Nate.

Nate is crawling around so Freeman is copying him.

Here is Nates little "Mission Impossible" move. Or is "Downward Dog" pose.

We are trying to wean Nate off his binkie and this particular night I hid one underneath his teddy bear (just in case I needed to find it during the night)... well as you can see he found it and fell asleep clutching it in his little hands.

Dedicated Thought

2008-07-23T16:32:00.000-07:00

I was reading from a talk given by Thomas S. Monson from the Worldwide Leadership Training and was titled, "A Sanctuary from the World." There is someone very important in my life that I think this is important to hear, and maybe somehow will help reassess what's important.

"At times we may become bored or irritated with home and family and familiar surroundings. Such may seem less than glamorous, with a sense of sameness, and other places may sometimes seem more exciting. But when we have sampled much and have wandered far and have seen how fleeting and sometimes superficial a lot of the world is, our gratitude grows for the privilege of being part of something we can count on- home and family and the loyalty of loved ones. We come to know what it means to be bound together by duty, by respect, by belonging. We learn that nothing can fully take the place of the blessed relationship of family life."-Thomas S. Monson.

I know that my family may not share the same beliefs as me, but I want you to know that what the prophet counsels us in isn't just for the members of the church, it is for everyone. These teachings are for us all to learn and be strengthened by. This little paragraph in this talk hit home and I know that that is for me and my family to hear. I love my family member who this is dedicated to and I hope they will soon learn who they can count on.

What's with Scaring Me?

2008-07-10T17:01:00.000-07:00

Okay, I don't know why but I keep getting spooked. I just downloaded new songs for our blog, and I like to just crank up the music and listen to it when I'm doing stuff. Anyway, the song Coldplay came on, and there is a extra voice in the song so I thought someone was in our computer room singing along. Anyway, click on Coldplay-Yellow from my Jukebox to listen to see what I'm talking about. Ha Ha.

The Return of the Special Smile

2008-07-07T22:33:00.001-07:00

Here is Freeman at 1 year old. This is his famous "Special Smile." He has a great smile... but if you asked for his "Special Smile," this is what you got. Every now and then, we would ask and sometimes he would do it. Well, for my birthday, it was the return of the Special Smile!

2 Year old Freeman's special smile.

I wonder where he gets it from?

Nate's still working on his!

Sleeping Freeman

2008-07-07T22:16:00.001-07:00

The many different sleeping positions of Freeman...

Freeman likes to tuck in his stuffed animals, so you can see his pile of toys that went, "Night Night" with him.
Freeman and his froggy legs...

Okay, this was funny... I was going in to check on Freeman, and he was tossing and turning and all of the sudden he got out of bed and stood up, and then bent over and his upper body rested on the bed. We have found him a few times like this, so I don't know if he starts to sleep walk, and just falls back into bed?
And of course, in the car... I don't know how he breathes like this...

Okay, funny/scary story. We put a gate up in Freeman's doorway so he won't keep getting out while he is trying to fall asleep. Well, with the start of Potty Training I was thinking that eventually he'll need to be able to go potty during the night and that maybe I should try to not keep the gate up. So we did our bedtime routine and I went to my room. I was talking on the phone to Freeman, and out of the corner of my eye I saw someone enter the room. Little Freeman had quietly come in and scared me to death. So, the gate went back up. No scaring mom when Dad's at work. We'll try again later.

Sleeping Nate

2008-07-07T22:09:00.000-07:00

Funny Sleeping Moments of Nate...

Falling asleep after bouncing around like crazy on Exersaucer...

This is Nate's first time eating solid food! He was just so excited!

On our vacation in Palm Springs... "Time to Relax," was Nate's motto.

Bouncing Kids

2008-07-07T21:33:00.000-07:00

Summer Days

2008-07-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

Here is Freeman playing with his Sprinkler Fire Truck that Aunt Donna gave him for his birthday. He just loves this! Of course, shortly after this picture was taken we were attacked by those sprinklers!!!
Freeman loves helping Dad and cleaning the pool. Here he is empty out the skimmer.
What a hard worker.
Here is Freeman and his friend Carson. They were having so much fun bouncing on the fire truck.
Nate and Freeman hanging out.

The Shakes

2008-07-04T15:31:00.000-07:00

So, I filmed Nate and the "Ball Popper" because of Nate's reaction. This video only gives you glimpses of what happened earlier... When I first turned on the Ball Popper, Nate started to Shake and I thought he was having a seizure. As soon as the ball popper turned off, I realized he was just so excited and that is why he was shaking. So if you look closely, occasionally he starts to shake. But just imagine that for 20 seconds straight. Scary at first, but then it was really funny.

My First Tag!

2008-07-04T14:54:00.000-07:00

3 Joys
1. Having the gospel in my life and being happy
2. My 3 boys (Free, Freeman, and Nate!)
3. Having air conditioning

3 Fears
1. That my husband will get hurt at work.. Oh wait.. that happened..
2. Dolls scare me... funny thing once, my sister and I stayed at her friends house in Massachuetts, and the room I had to stay in... Filled with dolls on the dresser facing the bed.
3. Something happening to my children. They are my world.

3 Goals
1. I bumped up my goal from 1/2 marathon to full marathon. (Jan 31st anyone?)
2. Having a big family! I love my kids so much and it's so exciting to wonder who else is going to be in our family. I always picture Free and I as Grandparents and having all our Grandkids running around and spending time together.
3. Eventually I would love to participate in a Sprint Triathalon. But, I need a bike and be a better swimmer. (Yeah, I thought I was going to drown once at Lake Bartlett from swimming after our beachball... I had to just let it go :(

3 Current Obsessions
1. Working Out... has always been an obsession... Thanks to you Jane Fonda!
2. Of course, Blogging and letting my family know what's going on.
3. Trying to keep a clean house.

3 Random/Surprising Facts about Me
1. I had a short finger, but thanks to surgery it looks somewhat normal.
2. I think my husband is the only one who has seen my true, hyper crazy self... well besides my mom and sister
3. Even though shopping has never been my favorite thing to do, I discovered that I really like to shop for my husband and kids.

I tag, whoever reads my blog.

A Sad Blogging Mom :(

2008-06-24T21:13:00.000-07:00

I decided to figure out how to make our blog look more interesting and accomplished that, but still not knowing what I am doing, when I saved my original template it didn't work so I am devasted that I lost what I've been journaling about my kids. I was going to take the time to copy down everything I have been writing and add it into their journals, but I am a procrastinator and put it off. I now regret not following my instinct to write in a journal first and then put it on the computer. So, my advice to my fellow bloggers...

"Write down what you think is important before you try to mess with it on the computer."-tiff

Whoops...

2008-06-24T10:06:00.000-07:00

So.... my roots were grown out so bad, and it was going to be another 3 weeks until I had time to go into town to get my hair done... I just had to do something to my hair. Well, the FIRST time I colored my hair it was a light brown, but by the end of the day... Hmmm... My hair was looking a little red. So afraid to go lighter and the fear of making it orange, I decided to go with a natural brown to rid of the red... So my hair turned out reallllllllllly dark. The top still has golden tones in it, but then towards the ends it gets really dark. This is the only flattering pictures... the rest I look goth. Well, check out the blog in another 3-4 weeks and I'm sure I'll have a different haircolor.

SWAT

2008-06-21T23:27:00.001-07:00

We recieved some recent pictures of when Freeman went through 2 different trainings for SWAT. He learned how to mount on a helicopter and taking a ride on the skid, plus getting on/off when it is hovering off the ground, some repelling, and for another training they were able to practice building searches and negotiations. All this training is soooo Freeman and he has so much fun.

Freeman (on left) after getting checked in before Practice Scenario.
I think this is when they come up to the door to throw in the phone for Negotiation.
Freeman (on left) behind The Shield. They are going in to do a building search.

Freeman getting off helicopter

Repel practice

Getting off helicopter.

Freeman and Reggie getting ready to ride on the helicopter.

SWAT Team Photo

Ready for Take Off?

There they go!

And they're off!

During this drill, the helicopter will hover above the ground and they all have to dismount at the same time. (The chopper gets a little closer to the ground...)

This is another team photo after another training they did.