Ward Campout

This past weekend was our ward's campout. Where we went was only about an hour from our house. We got there about 5 got ourselves settled and talked with many people. It was definitely a good way to meet people.

Maeley made friends very easily and had a great time.

Zoe was happy most of the time.

In the morning when she woke up she wanted nothing to do with the tent and wanted out ASAP.

Chase was a good kid the whole trip. And just like expected he couldn't stay awake past his 8pm bedtime. He slept through the program the boy scouts put on.

the kiddos with mom

the kiddos with dad

I can't get over how big she's getting.

It was beautiful! I can definitely see us going back there to camp again.

Company

It seems that we are getting more company now than ever before. We've had family in town every weekend since we've been here and there's still more to come. We really don't mind though.

Days after moving in Derek's brother Phil, wife Stephanie and boys Parker and Braden stopped by on there way to Gilbert from Denver. Then stopped by the following weekend on there back home. We hadn't seen them in over a year so it was wonderful to spend some time with them. The kids had a great time together.

Please ignore the bad lighting

Zoe, Aunt Steph, Maeley, Parker, Chase, Braden and Uncle Phil

Parker playing on his mom and dad's iPhone which was a huge hit with our kiddos.

Wondering what they are looking at? The iPhone of course.

All the Jones cousins

This past weekend my Aunt Cherie and Uncle Mel were in town from Tucson. They are big time Hallmark collectors and a store in Albuquerque was selling an ornament that was only being sold in 10 stores. We met them there to purchase some for them because there was a limit. Also the artist that designed the ornament was there signing. We ended up being in the Hallmark store for 2 hours before going to lunch. After lunch Maeley was begging to go back to the "ornament store". It was hilarious. I think my aunt and uncle have passed their passion onto Maeley. It was great to see them and our kids had such a fun time with them.

Now my sister and her boys will be coming soon. Then Derek's parents will be here for the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, our kids have been talking about that for months. And later on in October my parents will be here. We sure are busy but we are having a great time.

Our backyard

Sadly our backyard currently is just dirt and weeds. That doesn't stop the kids from having a great time. They chase each other around the yard, make dirt angels, use their buckets and shovels, load up one of Chase's many trucks that are now outside only toys. I love that in the afternoon our backyard is shaded. Often the kids will play outside while I'm getting dinner ready. Its works wonderfully.

Maeley and Chase just kept running around and wouldn't stop so I could take a decent picture.

Zoe on the other hand did. Seriously I don't think she can get any more adorable!

Look at that cute face. She was so happy to be sitting next to her daddy.

Cheese!

Kiddos

Maeley sure has been a huge help around here lately. Most of the time she plays nicely with her younger siblings and definitely watches out for them. She is a very happy kid. She tells us often that she loves this house and never wants to move again. She reminds me of myself a lot...which is scary. She has the top bunk and has dolls and stuffed animals lined up on most sides. I remember doing that as a kid. Awhile back she drew a floor plan of a house, complete with the kitchen set up and everything. It made me smile. I have a weird fascination with floor plans.  She loves to talk. That's probably an understatement. She will talk your ear off if you let her. Maeley still tries to push our buttons and get away with something she knows she shouldn't. She is such a little girl, loves dolls and her Amercian Girl books. We happened to find the first two Rebecca books on clearance at Target this past weekend. Rebecca is her second favorite doll after Molly. She enjoys doing the somersault and other dancing but her big passion is singing. She sings so many primary songs and makes up a lot herself. Maeley is a sweet little girl.

Chase is so much happier now that he has his own space away from the girls. In fact he tells so many people that, "I have my own bedroom without the girlies." He does not call girls girls instead girlies. He loves his new bedroom and puts a stack of books on his nightstand and looks at them in bed. Chase loves all the quilts my mom makes and sleeps with most of them. He is completely into Buzz Lightyear and now Woody. If you tell him he's getting so big he'll get defensive and say, "I don't want to be big I want to stay little." He is a very sweet kid and can be a bit sensitive. He loves to take care of his baby sister. It's the cutest thing when Chase and Zoe hold hands while crossing the street together. She always seems more eager to hold Chase's hand then mine. Next week in our ward Chase and Zoe will no longer be in nursery together. Our ward has over 30 nursery age kids. Chase will be in the big kids class while Zoe in the younger class. I think I'm the most sad about it. He always points with his middle finger, drives Derek and I crazy. He is always willing to give me a great big hug and kiss. He always gets sad in the morning when he wakes up after Dad has already left for work. I love my Chaser Racer.

 

This was the best shot I could get of her today.

The best way to describe Zoe is she's a goofball. She knows she's silly and can get us to laugh. For so long she would only say that she loved her dad, then only mom. The other day I got her saying I love dad again. I think she knows she's teasing us and enjoys it. Zoe thinks she's a big kid. She tries to do everything Chase and Maeley do. She has even been difficult taking naps lately. She sings Five little Monkeys, Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam, and I am a Child of God. If you ask her to sing them she won't. After getting her dressed in the mornings I tell her its time to do her hair. She runs to the kids bathroom and stands on the stool while I do her hair. I think she enjoys her pigtails just as much as I do. Zoe loves all animals but dogs and horses seem to be her favorite. Zoe gives the best hugs ever. She's normally the first to run and give Dad a hug when he comes home.  She's talking more and more. I love listening to her or watching her. One of my favorites is to watch is when she tackles on of the other kids. It's always such a fun game to her. Zoe loves to eat, pasta is still her favorite. She calls Maeley, Mae Mae. That's exactly what I wanted Maeley to be nicknamed as its one of mine. I love you Zoe!  

What Zoe might look like with hair...

Ha ha! She looks so silly its hilarious!

So when we moved into this house I told Maeley that she could play with my dolls that I kept from when I was little. While she was going through the tub she told me that one of the dolls hair fell out. Immediately Derek and I wanted to see what Zoe would look like wearing it because it was too small for Maeley. Just today I tried it on her. She thinks its pretty funny herself.

Moving in

A few weeks before we moved while the kids and I were at Target we came across a Duplo Lego farm set on clearance. Maeley and Chase love Legos and they all love animals so after a little thought we decided it would be great for them to have something new when we move in before the truck came. We did not let them open it until we got to our new house. They couldn't wait to play with it. It has been played with every day since, by all three of them.

Isn't she just the cutest little girl!

While the truck was getting unloaded they wanted to watch but we did not want them in the way. Their camping chairs worked perfectly. It ended up being too cold for them and I had to go in and get their blankets. Yes I did say too cold. It was about 7 am and maybe 65degrees.

This is the truck. And no we did not fill the whole thing. There was someones eles's stuff in the very front over the wheels. We still didn't fill the back section. We were so happy it came the very next day.

Unpacking wasn't too much fun. It took about 2 days and a couple more getting things a bit more organized. They use so much paper it's crazy. That huge pile of paper was after only 1 box. Finally we decided to flatten the paper and stack it. That worked much better and took up a lot less space. Nothing was lost or broken during the move. I'm so grateful Derek's company pays for movers.

This is the girls room right after the movers left. Their huge bunk bed looks so small in their huge room.

This is Chase's room. It doesn't look at all like this anymore (more on that later). He loved having his train table in there and shut the door often while playing. It's now in the loft for everyone to play with.

The kids are so much happier now. Everyone has space something we've lacked before. There aren't half as many fights and the kids play together better now than ever. We love our house!

Traveling

All packed and ready to go. Had we not purchased the roof top carrier we would not have fit everything inside our Expedition. There was a bunch of stuff on the "non-allowables" list that we had to take ourselves. Things like paint, spray paint, matches, batteries, our propane tank just to name a few. Plus because we had to have it cleaned after everything was loaded we had all our cleaning supplies including the vacuum, mop and broom. Plus we weren't sure until Tuesday and they were loading when it was being unloaded at our new house. So be brought sleeping bags, air mattresses, camping chairs, etc.

The kids didn't have much leg room because of their pillows, blankets, toys and stuff below their feet.

The first half of the drive was probably the hardest and its wasn't half as bad as we were expecting. We had to stop to fix a strap on the roof top carrier. Then stopped to take a picture in front of the New Mexico sign. Zoe was off and on fussy and then fell asleep for maybe 2hours before stopping in Hatch for gas and lunch.

It was pretty windy and was overcast.

When we stopped for lunch we had Subway and the kids wanted cookies. I choose chocolate chip for them and saved them in my bad for later on in the drive. Didn't think about the messy factor until I was handing Zoe her cookie.

By the look on her face I'd say she really enjoyed it.

After lunch we decided that because Zoe had already taken a nap it was probably the best to turn on a movie. They enjoyed that and everyone was happy. We never had to stop after lunch until we got to Albuquerque and had to stop at the title company to pick up our keys. We were all happy to get out of the car.

Imagination and moving

The Saturday before we moved Derek and I were doing yard work in the front. Maeley discovered that the iron in front of their bedroom had a door and climbed in. Of course Chase and Zoe follow. They then pretended it was a boat and they were pirates. This was very helpful keeping them contained and off the street.

A few days before the move we stayed at a couples house in our ward (thanks again Diane). Had we not done that I think we would have ended up in a hotel because with the whole house packed there was no room to sleep.

While they were enjoying their backyard Maeley found the goggles and then Chase and Zoe had to try them on. These pictures seriously crack me up. Silly kids.

We had so much help during the move that made it much easier on me. A huge thank you to everyone that helped.  Monday August 23rd my parents came down to help with the kids while the movers were packing. My mom took them to her sisters house and later in the afternoon my cousins house. My dad stayed with me keeping me company. 

Monday night Derek's parents came down which we didn't know until that afternoon that they were coming. I can't believe I did not get any pictures. This was our first time seeing them in 18 months. It was so cute to see Zoe give Tama (Derek's mom) the biggest hug. I wasn't sure how she was going to react because she was only 4 months old when they left on their mission. Maeley and Chase were definitely excited to see them as expected. Blaine and Marylee helped with the kids while I went to the house so the movers could get everything loaded on the truck. They got started just before 7:30 and was finished loading by 11:15. The kids came for about the last hour and was mesmerized by the huge truck. Then we had just enough time to go grab a bite to eat before a couple people from the ward came to help me clean. Cleaning took just over an hour with all the help.