Reading to Baby R

J turned 5 on Monday (his party is on Saturday) and seems to have taken a bit more responsibility since then. He has always enjoyed helping me with everything but now is doing even more in small ways like this. He was showing her all the animals and their tracks and telling her what they said or did or whatever. They both had a great time. He got this book from Grandma and Grandpa F and loves it. He has all the animal names memorized and can tell you a lot about them as well as recognize their tracks. Baby R is trying hard to walk and just as I was typing this she was walking around an empty laundry tote and it fell over and she bumped (a tiny bump and mostly scared herself) into my trunk. Now she keeps looking at the tote like it's going to get her. LOL. She probably would walk already if we encouraged her, but we are not. We are not discouraging her either just letting her go at her own pace. She is finally in 12 months clothing and they fit her wonderfully.

Being Joshua...

I got these neat hair things awhile ago and this morning we found a new use for them. J took one look at himself in the mirror and proclaimed himself Joshua. As in Joshua who lead the battle on Jericho in the Bible. So I had 3 little 'Joshua's' running around here this morning!!!

Then again....

Really...

What else is new?? :)

Cold Weather fun.

We had really abnormal temp's for the month of December. Normally we are mildly cold with a little bit of snow and pretty nice weather all around. This year it has been -30F several times already but mostly -0F to -20F which keeps us on our toes. This weather is normal for us but in January/Febuary not December. The cold weather gives us challeneges we otherwise would not have. Like frozen pipes which means no water until Papa can get under there and fix it. (about 16 hours the 1st time and 10 the 2nd time). Two of our heat tapes that we plug in every fall have failed us this year which is why the pipes and cow water froze. Hopefully now we will not have to do anything but plug them in for a few years. The cow water float freezes shut every couple of days which can sometimes be cured with a swift kick to the bottom but if not we have a heat gun nearby just in case. The pigs have been borrowing deep in their bedding and fighting for the bottom spots. As they are beside the house we often hear these pig fights like they are happening in the living room. When ever this happens E stops stock still and says PIGS!!!! PIGS!!! PIGS!! with a very worried look on her face. I think she thinks they are loose and is worried. As soon as they stop though she goes back to playing without another word. I've tried to tell her every things fine and show her the pigs but she doesn't care to look which makes me wonder if she's really worried about it or just likes saying PIGS!! PIGS!! PIGS!!

Another fun cold weather thing is that the line to my washer in the entrance froze solid and I had to haul water from the kitchen sink. (6 three gallon pots for each cycle= 12 pots a load. One day I did 5 loads :) The line has a heat tape on it but that Rat and the cats took some of the insulation off it and it froze anyway. Papa did fix the insulation but it's not been warm enough since then to thaw the line and to take the insulation off the line and thaw it will take longer then he's had time for. One day it was the warmest we got in almost 2 weeks at -10F and the washer made some noises but the water never did come on. As it is I'm not doing much for laundry and the kids are living in PJ's. One unexpected downfall of not doing laundry is that I normally raise my buns and bread on the dryer when it's on. As J put it. "Why are the buns hard little round things??" I tried to raise them in the oven but it doesn't have a low enough setting or a pilot light. I can put them by the wood stove but can't get them close enough to raise properly. Papa did get the washer, line fixed and re-insulated with new insulation tape which the cats cannot get into, on one of his days off after Christmas which is a huge blessing!! My shoulders are still not the same after hauling 60++, one load was a really big load, 3 gallon pots of water on the 23.

One thing that is a challenge with the cold weather is the boys. Sounds funny really but it's true. It is much too cold for them to go out and play so they are inside with the rest of us all day. In such a small space as we have this feels really full. I've of set this with letting them play and be loud and goof off in their bedroom and watching more movies. We have also been doing more crafts and games and getting 'new' toys out. So far we are surviving and hopefully it will warm up for a bit soon and I can kick them outside again. The kids are also all in the same room now and so if Baby R is napping then their room is out of bounds. How, you wonder, did we fit 4 kids in 1 room?? Easy. Each bed has it's own wall. Soon Papa is going to build a 4 bed bunk bed and then we will have an extra bed as Baby R will go into E's crib. :) They all sleep 12 hours at night and rarely wake each other up in the middle of the night. Naps are a bit harder as Baby R sleeps from 1 to 4 and the other 3 sleep from 2 to 4 but we manage it right fine.

Pictures for you all!!

Thanks Becca for putting picture online for us!!

Sorry I can't move the pictures around so they make more sense. Becca very sweetly put them all on for me with her computer
and we both thought we could move them around but I can't.
And it would take a LONG time for me to put them on so
better on then not!! :)

L and E with their stick on mustaches. They loved them and they are reusable!!


J and L with their facial hair and their matching PJ's.

Smiling!! Papa's got a funny look on in the back!!

Our 2nd annual family Gingerbread house project!!

We build it close to Christmas and eat it on New Years.

We got a huge kit this year but had icing problems so this is as

done as it gets. E decorated the trees in the front. J and L did

a side of the roof each and Papa and I did the rest.

Baby R watched from her chair and ate Gingerbread cookies...

I think she has the right idea!!!

(from the one that flopped the icing :)

The boys decorating the roof!!

E, smiling as she happily stacked candies on the trees.

E in J's armour that he got for Christmas..

Papa reading "On the shores of Silver Lake" to the kids in their matching PJ's.

I think this was boxing day!!

J with his brand new 'kid guitar' which he's already learned a chord for,

and in his Knight outfit!! Boy is he growing up fast.

This was Christmas morning.

Note the ice on the window, it was only 0F that morning

and we could see out the window!! Bonus!!

E cooking with her new little kitchen on Christmas morning.

We have limited space so we got

her this little set that all fits into the pink box for storage.

She loves it and made all kinds of things already.

Papa is tuning J's guitar in the back.

L with his new log truck... playing with his sisters moose.

He does like his trucks

but they zip around so much I haven't got a good picture yet.

This was also Christmas morning.

The boys using their new swords to help E open her little kitchen!!

She was quite impressed!!

J and L with their armour and pirate stuff on Christmas morning.

They were both SO ecstatic!!

Note: What you see in the back is about 1/3 of our living space. Kitchen and dining room.

The boys are in the living room.

Oh and just in case you are wondering the curtains have new rods that

will cause them to fit properly... the old ones are too short and too brittle!

L looking very piraty!!

We disliked the skulls that were all

over this set so I took them off or colored over them.

Much better and he didn't even notice!!

J without his sword!!

I packed this all together in a box and wrapped his sword separately.

He was SO worried he wouldn't get a sword to

'protect the family!'

From what I know not!! :) But he loves us!!

E looking very pleased with her new horse from Auntie R.

When I took the picture she had just realized that the horse made noise!!

Taken Christmas morning.

Well that's our Christmas in a nutshell.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures and God Bless!!

~Christmas~

We are truly blessed and we had a wonderful Christmas. The kids counted down and ate their chocolates from their advent calenders and counted down some more. Then, all of a sudden, it was THE DAY. LOL. The pictures will pretty much speak for themselves but a few verbal highlights are: J, after opening his breastplate, helmet and shield, "Oh I really need a sword!! I really need a sword to protect the household. Mom is there a sword so I that I can protect the household." Then after opening his SWORD. " I GOT A SWORD!! NOW ME AND PAPA AND L CAN PROTECT YOU AND E AND BABY R" He was so excited he really did talk in capitals. E got a stick horse that makes sounds from Auntie R and she thought it was a sucker for ages and when we were opening it I'd ask her "what is that?" and she'd come back with "sucker". Then we got it open enough to see what it really was and she her eyes just LIT UP and she says "HORSE!!!" Then later I went to fix his crumpled ear and it has a button in it that makes noises and she LOVED it. It's so heavy for her 21 lbs that she can only play with it in short bursts but she always goes back to it. It was Baby R's 1st Christmas and she enjoyed the fun. She really liked her stocking and the chocolate that went with it. She's a real chocolate hound. L had a great Christmas and seems to really enjoy his new replacement "big Papa dump truck" and his new log truck.

We spent Christmas Eve with my family, those who could make it, at T&D house. They have a great big house which is great because our family is growing every year. There are 12 grand kids and 14 adults so far. The pictures of us in dresses and 'good clothes' as the boys call them, are from Christmas Eve. We all managed to match which was neat and one of these days I want to take a family picture in our "Christmas clothes." When and if I can find someone to take it I'll post it. We had a great time with the family and the kids had a blast playing with the cousins. One of the Cousins said a pile of verses for us all and J chimed right in and said his Christmas verse as well. L said his later when we were all leaving after his 'shy' had worn off. J's was Luke 2:10 and L's was Luke 2:11. E's was Heb 13:1. "Let Brotherly love continue" Which is the 1st verse our kids learn.

Papa and I got a wonderful Christmas present from an unusual source. A real blessing!! A friend of mine knew of our washer problems and also knew of a family who had just gotten a new washer and dryer set because their dryer quit. So she called us and asked us if we wanted it!! We did!! Our washer was 30++ years old and worked but not very well. It leaked oil out the bottom and had started leaking oil into the washer while it washed!! The new washer and dryer were in the 'big city" where our friend lives and her and her husband rented a dolly and loaded them up (turns out the dryer may be a quick fix) and brought them to us!!! He dropped it off yesterday and helped Papa take the old one out and the new one in. Papa crawled up under the addition and fixed my water freezing problem and now I have a "new to us" washer ( we think it's about 5 to 7 years old) with running water.

Christmas morning was spent at home reading the Christmas story from the book of Luke, opening gifts, taking pictures, playing and eating a great breakfast of pancakes, sausage, homemade syrup and eggs, thanks to Auntie R!! In the afternoon we went to the W gathering (my mom's side) and saw a bunch of Aunts and Uncles, my grandparents and my cousins and their kids. One of my cousins brought their 2 day old baby and we got to see him for the 1st time. We all had a great time and stayed late to enjoy part of the evening with them.

All and all we had a great Christmas Holidays. Boxing day was spent at home and Papa took the boys out sledding with their new sleds. It snowed most of the day and we relaxed and played most of the day. I read an entire book (390 pages of a mystery!! :) and Papa read a good chunk of his new beer making book. In the evening we watched "Finding Nemo" one of the kids Christmas movies and had a snack night. After the kids were in bed Papa and I had a 'Movie date" and watched "Junior" with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito. A very funny movie that Papa had never seen before and we both really enjoyed.

Baby R's 1st Christmas!!

Baby R, still tiny but not really a baby anymore as she is crawling and cruising and trying to walk!, and Papa on Christmas Eve. That red thing in front of her is a Christmas dress from Grandma and Grandpa F which was size 3 months and fit my 9 month old perfectly. The dress came with neat tights that had black shoe shapes on the feet of the tights so it looked like she was wearing little black dress shoes! Which is a real bonus when you can't find black dress shoes to fit or stay on her tiny little feet!! The thing that she is so excited about is a toy cow that makes a sound that is suppose to be a mooo but sounds like something else entirely!! She loves it!

The top picture is of Christmas morning and the pink thing in her hand is her "Baby's 1st Christmas" Ornament. The dollar store fish between her legs is a greatly sot after toy from the biggest to the littlest child. Strange things that kids just love!!

Merry Christmas!!

Well it's that time of year again and this year I've decided to email our letter and photo around to those who have email and print them for the very few who don't.

Our family has grown again and we welcomed Baby R Griggs into the family on March 10th 2008. She was 7lbs 15.9 oz and 19 3/4 inches long. Now at 9 months she is a healthy smiley if small girl who loves her siblings and BEAMS with love for every one. Papa and I both think she is our happiest baby yet. She weighs in at a mere 14 lbs and about 25.75 inches tall but is crawling like a pro and cruises along the furniture. She is a little joy to us all and we thank God for her.

E turned 2 on Oct 22 and is also a very small girl. She weighs in at just 21lbs but is a full 33 inches tall. She is our daredevil and climber. With 2 older brothers she has a "if they can do it, or even if they can't. I WILL TRY IT!!" attitude. So far she hasn't broken anything but I suspect she'll be the 1st one in the ER with a broken bone. She has scared us both several times and luckily scared herself as well so maybe she'll settle as she gets older. She is a little mother and cleans up after the boys and herself, loves to help with 'chores' and mothers her 'babies' and protects them from her brothers. E and Baby R seem to have the start of a great relationship and we hope and pray that it continues.

L will be 4 in April and is 32 lbs and 37.75 inches tall. L has turned into a little reader in the last few months. He loves to look at books and make up or tell the story in the book. He still loves his trucks but books are a close second. He is very reserved with people until he gets to know them then he loves them completely. He loves to play simple games like Simon says or round and round the haystack. He loves his brother and the two of them are great friends. L recently found that he likes to draw and he is often at the chalk board drawing families. We've also found that L is very talented with snow. He makes awesome snowmen with ears and everything all by himself.

J will be 5 on Jan 5th and is 45 lbs and 44 inches tall. He is a wonderful willing helper. He enjoys telling hunting stories or singing hunting songs he makes up himself. He often 'reads' books to his younger siblings and has several books completely memorized. He learns quickly and retains almost all of what he learns. He enjoys singing, adding numbers, crafts, reading, pretending and tea parties with E and L. He will not be starting school until 2010 when we will be homeschooling him. We legally have to start then and are planning on taking the next year to research our options.

We had some other big changes this year. Papa has started his commercial transport mechanic apprenticeship as of Oct. So far we all love it. It gives us a lot more time as a family and a regular schedule which is really nice. We eat supper together almost every night and the work is steady and interesting for Papa. He mostly enjoys the challenge of diagnosing problems. The only part that is frustrating for him is that he can only fix what the customer wants fixed, even if it really needs it. To Papa that is leaving it half done and he dislikes leaving anything half done. The hours are nice and the schooling can be done close by which is an answer to prayer.

We also did some changes in our farm this year. We had our 1st calf ever born on the place this spring and had fun with him and another calf that we were given as we tethered them around, figured out several milking problems and tried to keep them and the cow happy. All in all we enjoyed them and are looking forward to the beef. We also hand cleared 2 acres with a chainsaw and lots of hard work. We did leave some trees as a wind break and canopy but we think we took out about 3 log truck loads of trees. Then we limed and seeded it and watched it grow. We are really looking forward to spring and the new patch of grass. We plan on finishing the 1/2 acre that is still down, and taking a few more trees out, and clearing another acre or 2 this spring and summer. We also did 6 pigs for the 1st time ever this year and raised them up on milk. They were summer pigs so we still have them and will probably butcher in the new year.

Our house is on hold as we save money to start the next stage. We did get the trusses built and the next thing we need is tin for the middle roof. We have decided that it can wait until we have what we need. Papa is planning on making several things in the trailer to make our storage problems more manageable. He is going to make the kids bunk beds which will free up a lot of room in their room. We've also turned the back bathroom into a storage room with a toilet which helps.

I keep busy with crafts, farming and reading when I'm not busy with the kids, household stuff, baking, gardening, sewing, and a hundred and one other things that need doing. I enjoy it, for the most part ( I honestly don't know anyone who enjoys toilet training and all the mess that goes with it) and like to keep busy. I also keep up our blog which I really enjoy as I am a writer at heart and writing about our kids and lifestyle suits me wonderfully.

Our family is still attending home church with 3 or 4 other couples in this area. We switch from house to house and instead of Sunday school teach our children verses and read them the Bible nightly. Both the boys have a wonderful clear conceptions of who God is and what He has done for us and what He does do for us. They often floor me with their questions and insights and often supper time is spent teaching them God's ways.

Luke 2:10 and 11. Then the angel said to them. "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born for you this day in the city of David, a savior who is Christ the Lord. "

Merry Christmas!!!

Love

The Griggs Family.

The Tree!!

We got our tree on Sunday. Papa and I went on a walk-a-bout on the place and found one we both liked. We cut it to size and surprised the kids with it. Here they are with a ornament to place on the tree.

Christmas Crafts and Cookies

For some odd reason the Christmas season insists that you craft. I'm not sure why it does but it does. And I love it. Crafting with kids is fun. Crafting with BOYS is funner yet. The other day we did Paper Christmas trees and E got to make a pipe cleaner bracelet. Today we painted hanging ornaments for the tree. J had a bear, L had a star, and I had a moose. E got to color and Baby R was locked in her chair with a gingerbread "Mary" (the men are Joesph) as the kids call gingerbread woman. Christmas time also calls for cookie making and decorating and we made cookies last week and we were hoping to decorate them this week but we didn't have water for part of it and the week is getting away from us. Anyway. L wanted his star to be yellow so I got him a paper plate and put a little paint on it and off he went. J wanted brown for his bear and so we all started to paint. L covers about half of his star (the middle half :) And wanted another color, green. So green goes on top of the yellow. Still looks cool. Then J wanted red for his hearts under the bear. Fine. Great. I like how he paints. L perks up (painting so far for him is a tad boring but all these colors are fun) "I want red too." OK. No surprise there. "I want BLOOD!! I want blood on my star!" Then the two of them proceed to have a talk about how stars don't bleed so maybe the star was butchering something, chickens or maybe bears or something, and got covered in blood?? I just closed my ears after that and hoped L would want another color to cover the BLOOD. I'm still shaking my head. I've crafted, being a girl, with girls for years. Blood doesn't come up. EVER. It's like a taboo topic. But a Christmas craft with my boys and here we are having a, what they consider, perfectly normal and fine conversation about blood on their Christmas ornaments. He did pick another color and another and another and the blood got pretty much covered up but in the end his star was red but blood was not mentioned. We all had a great time. E actually colored 2 sides of her page from the coloring book quite well which is neat and we'll have to start coloring more. The boys have never been really interested in coloring but maybe with E coloring they will too. J did an awesome job on his bear and it is brown with blue eyes with a pink scarf and hat and red hearts hanging under it.

Another Pig Story.

OK OK I'll admit it. A pig has me for a favorite too. I'm not sure which one but one of our pigs really loves me. Or maybe it used to it hasn't done anything in a while. But I thought... fair is fair if I tell about Papa and Wilbur I'd better tell about The Egg pig. You see one day when Papa and I were moving the pigs this fall... I made a friend forever pig. Quite on accident I can assure you. I was waiting for Papa to be done messing with the wire and I found a egg in the hay. Now the chickens have been in and out all summer so I have no idea how old this egg is. So I have a bright idea. I'll feed it too the pigs. Good thing I did as it turns out it had been there for some time. Well one little egg shared between 6 pigs and no one gets much, if any. So I was just going to put it right in one pigs mouth. So I showed the egg to the 1st pig that comes along and sort of pop it in it's mouth and hold it there for a second until it chomped on it. Worked great. I was wearing gloves so I wasn't too worried about my fingers. The pig went crazy with pure joy!! At least I think it must have been pure joy, I would have thought from the smell that the pig should have been retching but the pig seemed to enjoy it very much. Actually I know that crazy pig loved it. Every time I went into the pen for a long time I would have pig follow me trying to get at my hands. The Egg pig was born!! He'd nudge me on the hand just like a dog does, begging for more eggs. I never did find anymore eggs in the hay, even though I looked for quite some time:)