BREEZY FIELDS

Today Sadie went to a birthday party at the roller skating rink. It was the birthday of my running buddy's daughter, Olivia. It wasn't the shortest party ever, luckily we had three hours at the rink. The first hour was spent trying desperately to keep Sadie on her feet. I have never seen long skinny arms and legs flail in so many directions. Not to mention the painful sound of elbows, knees, and butt bones (there is no padding there) smacking into hardwood floors. However, after the first hour I am pleased to say Sadie finally started getting the hang of it. She only fell on average one and a half times per lap around the rink. She was determined, she broke only for a quick bite of hot dog and for cake (gifts to be opened later). She had a blast. I skated slowly along behind or at arm's length (so she wouldn't lean over onto me which would cause her to begin falling as her skates turned haphazardly in a counterclockwise sort of direction thus resulting in Sad...

The past two days have been much better. Yesterday Ellyn's Neurologist said that Ellyn is officially seizure free and there is no need for us to come see him anymore. Hurray! I think I have a solution for my renters if the management company will work with me. I'm hoping they can work off the debt doing home improvement projects (my tenant is handy). Grout, paint, what have you. I would cover supplies. I think it is a great idea where everyone wins. We'll see. Sadie and Sawyer are using me for a springboard as I crouch over my lap top. I think I should be done before any of us are permanently damaged.

Today was a "blah" day. Another day of cloudy skies and drizzle. I need some sun. Ellyn's horseback riding can no longer take place due to budget cuts, that stinks. Our tenants in our house in Oklahoma are going to have to be evicted, we've tried to make it work for them for months now because they take good care of the house and have two little girls. It makes me really sad. Mike is going to be doing homework until 2 or 3 and so I will not get any "Mommy and Daddy time." Just a day for yuck. On a positive note- Ellyn has slept through the night for the past several nights. We have started giving her the sleep meds later and making sure she gets a nice long walk every day. I think it is working. She was so happy on her walk today, she ran for over half of it. I think it helps to have one person on each side holding her hand, makes her more comfortable with her own stability. Isabella and I are making it a part of her after school sessions. Sadie ...

Posted by Mike We are now recovering from a lot of days of rain. I know, "wah wah", from the NW crowd but it really was constant and the wind was 30-40 mph the whole time. Fortunately, the power never went out for longer than a minute. Last weekend, I finally got our garage cleaned out. This was something we have been wanting to do since the move last summer. Well, we got it done in one day. This was dual purpose: 1. Park my new VW GTI out of the elements and 2. Set up our home gym. For now, our home gym is just a SoloFlex we picked up off Craiglist, a treadmill, and some gymnast rings, but we hope to expand it over the next year. It sure has been nice. Jane is doing well in school, really well. She is busy with that and saving up her half of the her first EFY with many babysitting jobs. She just got a terrific new haircut from Brooke. I am sure pictures will get posted. Sadie has started Drama (real, actual Drama) at school. I believe she just memorized her own soliloquy thi...

Meags says there are way more pics of stuff with the Stinchfields vs. stuff with the Bennetts. Yeah, that's because I cheated and stole all of their pics. We, however, spent equal time with both families. Some of the Bennett highlights included an entire day at Kid's Club, an indoor playground. It was awesome, Sawyer and Ellyn climbed everywhere. I was thrilled to see Ellie wanting to do it all. Grandma took a turn or two with her as well. All of the kids were sweaty and worn out and so were the adults. We followed that up with some 5 Guys- Cheeseburgers sent either from Heaven or from Hell. It depends on your point of view. We also took the kids to a great indoor pool with a water slide and that was a blast. I was not a huge fan of the day we went to the park and it was 29 degrees. I am a wimp and I hate being cold. Oh, a huge highlight had to be going to the water treatment facility. Not the most exciting but we were looking for activities to get the kids out an...

Jane wanted the makeup kit from Estee Lauder. Sadie was dying for a Belle doll. Everyone received their heart's desire. Mike spoiled me rotten, new Kitchen Aide, new blender, new stainless steel pots and pans, new griddle. Don't worry, I got him a Battle Star Galactica movie:(. We Had A Deal! Christmas Night at Stinchfield's The 'kid table' Barb's impression of Kenn on his iPhone Brent - just a big kid, really. The day after Christmas my niece, Morgan, was baptized. It was a really neat time for all of us.

Every year on Christmas Eve mom does The Nativity with the grandkids. Not too long ago it seems, Mike and I were playing Mary and Joseph and Jane was baby Jesus. Now we have an abundance of angels, shepherds, wise men, and a few choices for baby Jesus as well. It is beautiful and chaotic and very fun. It is a wonderful way to spend the evening, putting our minds in the right place for a few moments before the Santa frenzy begins. Tristan is the cutest shepherd ever. All of these angels are highly suspect. Samuel Grandma narrates, she starts with the prophecy of Samuel the Lamanite. Sawyer, Daddy, Pa, Ruby, and Violet all enjoyed the show. Jane played our closing song. And to all a good night.

The day before we left Mike played Santa for Ellyn's school. He did such a great job and the kids were so cute. Ellyn recognized his voice but was a little put off with the beard and costume. Mike and I spent our 16th anniversary keeping each other company on the twelve hour drive to Washington. We were supposed to leave Friday at noon and drive up to Mike's buddy's house. We stayed up until 1:30 the night before getting packed and then I got up at 5 so that Beth and I could fit in a final seven mile run before we left. Mike and I weren't worried about not having any sleep because we were only driving as far as Sacramento. Then... Dave texted- kids coming home from school sick- it ended up being strep. So Mike and I started our journey with three and a half hours sleep (Mike had been up with Ellyn all morning). But, we made it to Washington and the party began. We ate our way through the holidays and loved doing it. The Montage, a delicious Cajun restaurant. Ke...