The Happy Hauth's

Computer down

2012-02-06T21:32:00.000-08:00

This past week our computer said good-bye... well we think. I'm off to the apple store tomorrow to see if it's salvageable. Hopefully I'm at least able to get some things off it that are pretty important...PHOTOS! So we'll see. Erin & Bryan were gracious enough to hand it down to us when they upgraded their computer, so it is a little outdated for an apple computer, but we're hoping for the best! I am able to use Brandon's laptop when he gets home for the day... if I have time. Things always seem to get crazier after 5 pm around here. Sooo it's now 11 pm... but here's our little update.

We've had a very busy month of sickness in our house and we hope that it is finally going to pass. We're not 100% yet, but very close I feel. Baby Valerie is doing wonderful. She is so sweet and just changing everyday. I have some fun pics to post of her and will do that as soon as I can. She is so happy and smiley when she is awake, which still isn't very often. That girl is the best baby ever. Eats and sleeps on schedule everyday and is even sleeping 8 hours a night!!

It seems like the summer blues have already set in with Kaden. He is not too excited about going to school anymore. I'm not sure if it's because he has had to stay home for so many days from being sick and has realized how much fun it can be, or if he's just getting tired and burnt out? But we're working on his motivation by paying him to read! Yep, we're giving him $1 for every 5 books he reads... and it's totally working! He has started some piano lessons and is picking it up very quickly.... makes Mom proud! Although he had to miss 2 basketball games due to pneumonia, he is still really enjoying himself and has a few games left. He will start soccer this week and is very excited to try something new. It'll will interested for a few weeks while the two sports overlap.

Sarah has had not been herself lately... not feeling well and dropping out of dance may have had more of an effect on her than we realized. We decided to take a little break from ballet since she will be starting soccer tomorrow. He Daddy is her coach and she is so excited about it and has been wearing the shin guards her cousin Raelee lent her around the house all day. She still loves school, but seems to also be getting a little worn out. (I guess it's just about time for spring break or something?)

Mady has also been sick off and on throughout the month. She is soooo busy and talking sooo much. It is so cute. She is so stuck on her daddy and he eats every minute of it up.

School is going well for Brandon. Luckily this semester he is only having to go once a week. It makes for a very long day for him on Thursday cause he goes directly from work to school which goes until 10 pm, but then he's done for the week. We like it. I have to brag on him for a minute. Last month he started walking with some friends in the ward who he works with in scouts at church, and they have diligently met every morning at 4:45 AM!! to walk/exercise for the past month! Amazing! It has been very enjoyable for him and I continue to be very impressed!

It has been an adjustment and continues to be an adjustment to have four children now. I do feel that I am starting to get the hang of things, but know that will be a continuing process as the baby grows and changes. But for now, I'm hanging in there. I am truly grateful to be a mother and even though it is very challenging at times, it is what makes me the happiest. I appreciate all my mother/parents did for me more and more as I continue to experience motherhood. I am very grateful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and to the the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It gives me great strength and helps me through the most difficult of moments. I love it and don't know how I'd function without it!

Well that is our update for now. Sorry there are no pics... but I will get them soon.

Valerie's Newborn Photos

2012-01-22T20:02:00.000-08:00

Just a sneak peak, but just had to share....Thank you Aunt Coleen!

Baby Blessing... Valerie Update

2012-01-14T14:17:00.000-08:00

Our little Valerie Daisy was given her name and blessing on Dec 30th, 2011 at our home by her daddy, Brandon Glen Hauth. Her grandpa Russell, Uncle Trevon, as well as our good friends, Jeff Bishop and Doug Davis were able to take part in the blessing. It was a very special night for all of us. Great-Grandma Daisy was still in town as well as my mom, Grandma Cook and Brandon's mom, Grandma Jeanette. Aunt Erin and her kids and Aunt Coleen and their girls were also able to come, and Jill and Marcus. We had a little thought from Brandon on the significance of "a name" (Alma 5, Book of Mormon) and the kids sang "I am a Child of God" and Grandma Cook sang "Walk Tall, Your a Daughter" (it was so beautiful, I will include the lyrics at the end of this post.) We love our new little angel and are so grateful she is a part of our family.

We've had a lot of illness going through the family and unfortunately last night we had to take Valerie to the ER. She was diagnosed with RSV, which is like a bad cold but for a little baby it can be really scary since they are still developing their breathing techniques. She is doing ok for now and we are watching her very closely. She will be 8 weeks old on Monday, Jan 16th.

Walk Tall Your A Daughter Of God

Right now I have a prayer deep within my heart,
A prayer for each of you there is a special part.
That you remember who you are and him who lives above.
Please seek for him and live his way; You'll feel his love.

(chorus)
Walk tall, you're a daughter, a child of God,
Be strong and remember who you are,
Try to understand, you're part of his great plan.
He's closer than you know, Reach up; he'll take your hand.

Long before the time you can remember,
Our Father held you in his arms so tender.
Those loving arms released you as he sent you down to earth.
He said, "My child, I love you. Don't forget your great worth."

This life on earth we knew would not be easy.
At times we lose our way his path we may not see.
But remember always that you are not alone.
He'll take your hand, He loves you! He will guide you home.

(chorus)
Walk tall, you're a daughter, a child of God,
Be strong and remember who you are,
Try to understand, you're part of his great plan.
He's closer than you know, Reach up; he'll take your hand

Christmas 2011 & Catch Up

2012-01-09T17:17:00.000-08:00

Brandon and the kids setting up the tree.

Valerie-2 weeks old

In Little Elm Santa comes through the neighborhoods on a firetruck....here are some pics of us waiting for him outside.

Mady Mady

The little girls and I went to visit Sarah and Kaden's school for their holiday parties.

Mrs. Stewart and Kaden

Kaden sharing some goods with Madyson

Mrs. Woods and Sarah

Mady taking a bath at Grandma Jeanette's...she is sitting in the toy bucket.

We started acting out the Nativity this year. We invited neighborhood friends and family over and all the kids got involved. Brandon created the awesome stable and Grandpa Russell was our narrater. We had a lot of fun and hope it will now become a tradition for our family.

sweet Valerie...growing so fast.

Mady and Chase watching a movie Chrismas Eve together. They actually sat there for almost 10 minutes together. (loved that Mady let me braid her hair too)

Mady, Great Grandma Daisy, Sarah & Kaden (all the kids in their new pjs... Sarah and Kaden got robes this year)

Christmas Morning

Christmas Afternoon/Evening

at Grandpa and Grandma's (lots of fun with cousins!)

Grandma always likes to give the boys a fun toy to play with that day...here they are having a blast!

Brandon and Kaden

Uncle Trev

Uncle Bryan

Christmas Night

with Grandma Cook!

(she flew in that night....this is the next morning)

The kids received BuildaBear gift cards in their stockings this year and Grandma Cook came with us to use them! It was lots and lots of fun!

Sarah got her ears pierced. Every time we're at the mall, for about the past year or so, I ask her if she wants to get her ears pierced. (All of her girl cousins have their ears pierced.) She always says, "No." She even said no when Grandma Cook was with us after we finished at Build a Bear, but then that night she came up to me and said, "mom, I was just kidding, I do want to get my ears pierced." So 2 days later we went back to the mall with Grandma Cook and she did it!

BEFORE

AFTER

Grandma Cook and Sarah...love it!

We had a wonderful wonderful Christmas season and enjoyed lots of fun time with Grandma Cook and Brandon's family. We especially enjoyed our new little girl/sister, Valerie! She is so sweet and we are watching her grow and grow everyday so quickly. We look forward to the new year, 2012, and what it will bring!

Merry Christmas 2011!

2011-12-21T18:32:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas 2011

Anotheryear has gone by…so quick! We havehad a very eventful year, which is most likely why it has flown by for us. We started hunting for houses inFebruary and were officially homeowners by mid-May. We spent the hot Texas summer unpacking and spending lots oftime in the water at our neighborhood pool or in our new back yard! We feel very blessed to have such abeautiful home.

OnNovember 21^st, we welcomed our beautiful little Valerie Daisy to thefamily. She was 7 pounds, 2.5ounces and 19 ¾ inches long. Sheis healthy and doing wonderful!

Brandon has beenthrough a lot of change this year; job changes twice, working with youngmen/scouts again at church, still riding his bike and starting schoolagain. He is getting his MBAduring the evenings at the University of Texas-Dallas. He just finished his first semester andit really went well. He lovescoming home to play with kids, relax and work in the garage if he has time.

Kaden turned 6 yearsold in August and is enjoying another year of kindergarten. He is doing so well this year and weare very happy with the decision. Kaden started basketball this year and isreally enjoying that. He is such asweet big brother and such a joy to mom as well. He is still in love with swords and has just started gettinginto the “Lego” thing. He isespecially happy when dad allows him stay up late to watch a “John Wayne” movieor a “Mash” episode with him. Heloves to spend any time he can with his dad!

Sarah turned 4 thisyear and tells everyone she will be 5 in April! She attends Pre-K every morning at the same school asKaden. They ride the bus togethereach morning. She doesn’t reallyenjoy it though, because she says, “the bus goes in circles and takes toolong.” Sarah absolutely loves todraw, color, and craft; basically anything that involves paper, glue, markersand scissors. She is taking her 2^ndyear of ballet class once a week and really enjoys herself. She is in love with her new babysister, Valerie, and a great help to mom as well.

Madyson, our 2 yearold, is very busy and also enjoying her new baby sister. She loves to play on her own with herbaby dolls and strollers, but also wants to do exactly what her older siblingsare doing, whether it’s coloring with Sarah or building Lego’s with Kaden. Her favorite person however is herdaddy. If he is at home, most likely, Mady is sitting on his lap or right byhis side.

Themom, Maria,loves her job! It is challenging alot of the time, but so much fun most of the time. I have enjoyed attending a stamping club this year here inTexas and am playing the piano for choir and leading the children’s music inchurch. I have also startedteaching piano lessons and am thoroughly enjoying it. I am so grateful for an amazing husband, family and supportfrom so many. I couldn’t do my“job” without all of them. We areblessed to live so close to Brandon’s family and have been able to visit myfamily in Utah this summer, and have my sister Liz, and her two boys, and mymom visit as well this year. Welove our amazing family!

Wewant to wish each of you a very merry Christmas and happy new year. We are so grateful for the birth of ourSavior, Jesus Christ, and for all that He has made possible for us. We love Him and know that He lovesus!

Withlove always, The Hauth Family

More of Valerie

2011-11-30T17:46:00.001-08:00

The girls and Mom!

Our 3 sweet little girls. Sarah, Valerie and Madyson

My sister Liz has been right there after every one of my deliveries. I was sooo grateful to have her there again, especially since she has 2 busy boys of her own now. It was such a special treat to have them visit for so long. The kids had such a great time with David and James. Sarah adores James and just couldn't get enough of him. We are so extremely grateful for all that Liz helped us with; babysitting, cooking, cleaning, laundry and lots and lots of dishes. We didn't get to see her much at the hospital, but we got this one shot together. Love ya Liz...miss ya!

Valerie ready to head home

One happy sister

The kids and Liz made the cute sign in the window behind Sarah

Liz and I with our kids!
Maria, Valerie, Sarah, Mady, Kaden, David, Liz & James

Valerie Daisy Hauth...such a little angel!

Valerie is here!

2011-11-21T18:57:00.001-08:00

We are so pleased and proud and excited and overjoyed to welcome our little Valerie to the family! She is sweeter than ever!

Valerie Daisy Hauth

Born: November 21, 2011 at 3:10 PM

Weight: 7 lbs 2.5 oz

Height 19.5 inches

Very proud Daddy!

Very blessed Mommy!

Super excited sister, Sarah, who did get to hold her first after mom and dad

New big sister, Mady, such a cutie pie!

Kaden wasn't sure that he wanted to hold her, but he loved it...sweet and short.

The kids in their "big sibling"'s shirts...Aunt Liz helped Kaden make his. He wrote I like sisters and let Sarah decorate one sleeve and Mady the other one.

Time for Baby!

2011-11-19T06:35:00.001-08:00

Just a couple more days and we'll be heading into the hospital to have baby #4! We are sooo excited! My wonderful sister-in-law and mom-in-law threw me a little diaper shower last week and it was just wonderful! We stocked up on lots of diapers and a couple cute outfits and blankets. We are just about ready for this little one to join our family. Erin, Kirsten and Jeanette even helped me get my room painted and rearranged. I absolutely love it and can't wait to post pics of the finished product. Our funnest news going on right now is that my sister, Liz, and her two boys showed up to our house last Saturday night. We have had so much fun with them and Liz has been extremely helpful around the house this week. They get to stay until Thanksgiving Day so they'll be here for the baby too!

(new baby pics to follow!)

Kirsten, Jeanette, Maria, Sarah, Erin & Coleen

Here I am at 38 Weeks!

Great Wolf Lodge

2011-11-12T06:03:00.001-08:00

We had the opportunity to stay at this super fun hotel/water park in Grapevine, TX (http://www.greatwolf.com/grapevine/waterpark) for a couple nights. The kids had sooo much fun and it was so rewarding to see their excitement and joy. Here are a few pics from the event. Daddy even got to be there the whole time...took a day off work and skipped class too:) It was a great experience for all of us.

Mady, Mom, Sarah & Kaden

Kaden loved this little half wall and was up there a lot!

Madyson slept with us the first night...she is such a daddy's girl right now!

Ready for the water park!

Sarah coming down a little slide. She went on it over and over and Mady would just stand at the top and then sit at the top of the slide, but never would go down.

She went down this one once.

Sisters!

Daddy & Kaden were together most of the time and mom stayed with the girls.

The boys waiting for the big bucket of water.

Mady & Sarah letting mom take a break.

Kaden & Sarah waiting their turn to cross the pool on the lily pads.

Kaden loved the lily pads and went across several times.

Sarah enjoyed it too, but needed a little help from Dad.

Kaden swimming with the snake

Kaden played and played so much and had a great time. The morning we had to leave though he was sick with a fever and cough. Poor kid...found out later that morning that he and Sarah both had strep. They're feeling much better now.

Sarah and Mady actually slept together in the pull out bed the entire 2nd night!

Halloween 2011

2011-11-03T10:27:00.000-07:00

Here are the few photos I took from our Halloween experience this year. This was the first night of trunk-r-treating at our annual ward Halloween party. The kids also got to go to their grandparents trunk-r-treat night and we took them to the nearby church for a wonderful time as well. They got to ride ponies, play in jump houses, get toy balloons and free snow cones and cotton candy. It was so much fun and within walking distance. We were considering taking them door-to-door since we've never done that before, but we had so much candy already and were just worn out, so we called it quits. It was a great Halloween, but we are soooo happy that it is now NOVEMBER and that means a new little sister will be here shortly! Mom is feeling so great and almost prepared for the new baby to arrive! She'll be here in 3 weeks or less most likely.

This is Mady trying on the baby ghost hat...she's so hilarious.

and Sarah in her hat!

Our Strawberry Shortcake Princess, Ladybug and Cowboy (John Wayne)

Off to trunk-r-treat!

Sarah's Dance Class

2011-10-26T18:56:00.001-07:00

Sarah had a big dance class this week with all the classes at 4 pm on Wednesday. She's in the middle in the back (Strawberry Shortcake Princess!).

State Fair of Texas 2011

2011-10-18T09:21:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful time once again at the Texas State Fair. Kaden got to come home early from school and we headed down around noon with Grandma Jeanette and Aunt Kiki. We got in there about 1 pm and didn't leave until almost 9 pm. (yeah...we were tired...especially mommy!) We saw the ultimate dog show, the bird show, the car show, the petting zoo, the little hands farm, the racing pigs, the light parade, the big light show that evening. We of coarse ate lots and lots of yummy fair food. Kaden and Sarah loved their corny dogs, cotton candy and carmel apples. Mady loved the tater twisters. We had a wonderful time! Erin came later with her kids and went to the petting zoo with the kids.

Mady carrying her bucket at the little hands farm. She was so cute.

The kids planting their seeds.

Kaden sat in about 30 cars with his dad. They had a great time!

This is the Ford auto show. They had a real robot that interacted with the audience every hour for 10 minutes or so. It was so neat and the kids just loved it!

We brought glo sticks for all the kids and they connected them all together in a big circle for the light show (Illumination Sensation). It was great entertainment for them after being there for so long.

Mady got pretty tired towards the end and had a short nap. Daddy and Grandma took turns holding her.

Just some pics...of my girls!

2011-10-11T20:22:00.000-07:00

Haven't posted for a while and so I thought I would just post the latest snap shots I have taken. Of coarse, they are all of the girls cause we spend lots and lots of time together. Things are going well for all of us though. Kaden is doing so well in Kindergarten this year and really enjoys going every morning on the bus. He isn't usually too excited about going to bed the night before, but is getting better. Sarah also LOVES school...it just isn't enough for her. She only gets to go for a few hours a day. She is already asking if she gets to be in the same class as Kaden when she turns 5. Mady is our little 2 year old that we just can't get enough of. She is talking so much and has started potty training. Hope to have her all trained before baby sister comes, but we'll see?

Brandon(Dad) is just super busy, but school really is going great. We are just enjoying every moment in our home and so grateful to have a place of our own. I (Mom) is feeling pretty good, but getting to the extremely uncomfortable stage of pregnancy. Only 6 1/2 weeks to go! We finally found a great deal for Grandma Cook (my mom) to come for a visit after the baby and she'll get to be here an entire week during Christmas. We are all sooo very excited. Sarah can't stop talking about it.

Well that's our little update for now. We are very much enjoying this beautiful weather and preparing for the holidays. We are all very excited to celebrate all of them, especially because we get to welcome a sweet new spirit into our home during the middle of all of them. Here are the shots we're recently taken.

Madyson has loved playing in the backyard since it's gotten cooler while she's home alone.

Sarah and Mady having their own picnic in the backyard.

Picture day at school....I didn't get one of Kaden.

We had the "other Hauth" girls over for a few hours a couple of weeks ago and had sooo much fun!

Mady isn't a baby anymore...look how old she looks..such a big girl.

The girls have so much fun together during the day and are soooo excited for their new little sister to arrive in about 6 weeks!

New/Homemade Furniture

2011-09-26T06:43:00.000-07:00

Brandon has been working very hard to finish this beautiful table. I am sooo happy with it! We decided to purchase the chairs, mostly to save time. We are happy with them also though. My headboard was a surprise gift in August when I returned home from my trip to Utah. I absolutely love it! Someday I hope to paint the wall behind it...

I am so grateful for Brandon. He is so talented and also enjoys it sooo much! Thanks Babe!!

Just for Grandma!

2011-08-31T05:12:00.003-07:00

Had to post this cute pic of Sarah I took with my phone at Sprouts Farmer's Market. When I picked her up she asked if we could go to the store with the "white pretzels". ...she was so cute today(Tues8/30) after school in her new shirt!

The School Bus

2011-08-25T09:33:00.000-07:00

Happy 6th Kaden!

2011-08-24T18:30:00.001-07:00

We celebrated Kaden's birthday on Sat. Aug 20th with a big jump house water slide, chocolate castle cake, and all the family (pics to come)! But today was his actual birthday and we celebrated with a simple yummy cheesecake, which he requested, and pizza. He had a great day at school on his birthday as well! He was sad when he got off the bus because he left his balloon at the school :)

We love you Kaden! HAPPY 6th BIRTHDAY!

Here is a shot of the girls. They play together constantly after we pick Sarah up from school...crazy GIRLS!

2nd day of school!

Mady...1st day of school by herself at home! YEE HAH!

First Day of School 2011/2012

2011-08-23T07:53:00.001-07:00

Kaden & Sarah started school at Lakeview Elementary on August 22, 2011! They were both sooo excited and were up at 6:30 AM and ready to catch the bus at 7 AM. They are so excited about riding the bus. We live fairly close to the school but luckily they are still able to ride the bus so mom doesn't have to load everyone up in the van. Plus, they love it! School is from 7:50 AM-2:50 PM. Sarah is in the Pre-K class so she gets done at 10:50 AM. They had a great first day. Kaden was late getting home because of the number of kids on the bus, but he made it eventually.

Kaden & Sarah at the bus stop (so far they are the only ones at our stop)

Sarah ready to go! Mrs. Woods Pre-K Class

Kaden-Mrs. Stewart's Kindergarten Class

2011 Summer Trip to Utah Preview

2011-08-06T19:05:00.000-07:00

The kids and I had the opportunity to travel to Utah this past week...we had a blast! I have so much to tell and lots of pics to post but not the time to do it right now. We got in around 2 AM this morning so I'm going to bed. But I wanted to post my favorite, well one of my favorite photos, from the trip! Thanks so much to Grandma Jeanette and Aunt Susie Gray, who accompanied us in the car for 4 days of travel. We are so grateful!

Here is the photo...the kids are sitting on Aunt Liz's new front porch before we headed to Preston, Idaho for the horse parade. LOVE IT!

OK...2 photos! This is actually the one that is my FAVORITE!

Hauth Cousin Slumber Party!

2011-07-25T06:38:00.000-07:00

As a child I made many wonderful memories with my cousins having sleepovers at Grandparents and other places. It was such a fun thing for us as children and we built great relationships because of it. We have been wanting to have all the Hauth cousins over for some time. So since Ava & Violet are going to be moving shortly to Austin and school will be starting soon we decided to have it last night. We had lots and lots of fun. The kids played charades together, button-button, and London bridges. We had popcorn and chocolate milk and watched Tinkerbell. They all slept very well and there weren't any "accidents" during the night. They had waffles and strawberries for breakfast and enjoyed spending some quality time together. We love our cousins!

Violet, Kaden & Jeremy

Mady, Raelee, Ava & Sarah

Everyone at breakfast!

Ready for the movie...no, they didn't all sleep like this.

By the time the movie was half over, everyone except Kaden, was back in the bedrooms playing.

A Little Update

2011-07-24T06:21:00.000-07:00

This morning at 7:45 AM before anyone else was up, in walked Sarah to the side of my bed all dressed for church. She needed a little help doing up the back of her dress. Then she went in the bathroom and did her hair. She even has her shoes on. (Church doesn't start for 3 hours mind you.) It was so sweet and she is such a great example to her siblings. Here is a shot I took of her. She is coloring and making her own craft creations, which is something she does most of the day if we are at home. She absolutely loves it and can't get enough.

Here she is in her dress coloring at the table.

Kaden & Mady have really gotten close over the summer. Here they are sleeping in a box I had recently unpacked.

The girls love posing for the camera. Here they are ready for the pool again!

We can't believe that July is nearly over and that our summer will soon be coming to an end. We have had a great time the past few weeks, swimming, organizing at home, spending time with Dad, and hanging out with the family. Sarah and Kaden were able to have 2 weeks of swimming lessons with their cousins, Ava, Raelee, & Jeremy out in Denton. They had a wonderful time and learned a lot. I have been getting closer to being completely unpacked and organized...almost there, but not quite. Brandon has been very very busy with work and extra side work, but we have very much enjoyed the time we have been able to spend with him. The kids and I have already gotten most of the school shopping done and they are very excited about school. Kaden and Sarah will both attend Lakeview Elementary. Sarah will be in the Pre-K program and Kaden will be a Kindergartner (we feel very sure that it is going to be best for him). The kids have spent lots and lots of time with their Hauth cousins and families. Grandpa, Grandma and Aunt Kiki even took them to the movie yesterday. They loved that!

Baby #4 is GIRL #3!!!

2011-07-07T12:22:00.000-07:00

We let the kids come with us to the sonogram today so they could be there when we found out what baby #4 would be. Grandma Jeanette agreed to come help out and Daddy took lunch early to come be with us. After all the measurements were taken to make sure baby was good and healthy, we found out that we're expecting a little girl. Sarah got a huge smile on her face and Grandma said to Kaden, "it's ok you've got dad." And Kaden said, "ahh it's ok, someday it will be a boy." It was so cute. We are all very excited! Due date is still Nov 26th!

A Happy Weekend!

2011-07-05T07:28:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time celebrating the 4th this year with the Hauth family. We spent most of the weekend together, well at least every evening (Sat, Sun & Mon). Saturday, the 2nd we all met at our home and had a BBQ and let the kids play in the backyard with the new pool Erin brought. They had a great time. We all then headed over to the famous Double Dip on Main in Frisco and treated ourselves to some yummy custard. Afterwards we drove over to the see the fireworks in Frisco. They were awesome just like last year. Sunday evening after church we had a great visit and dinner at Grandpa & Grandma's. Monday, the 4th, Brandon spent some time over at Erin and Bryan's helping with the tile in their kitchen. The kids and I had so much fun during the day, swimming, planting flowers and making cinnamon rolls together. Later we all met up for dinner again at Grandpa & Grandma's and then headed over for the show at Erin's house. It was an exciting night, as most of the adults had to run over to a field to help someone put out a fire they had accidentally started. The kids loved the sparklers and we all enjoyed the night together after all the excitement. Happy Birthday America! We love you!

Sarah & Mady ready for the pool!

Helping Mom make cinnamon rolls

Daddy & Mady enjoying the fireworks in Frisco

The kids all watching the fireworks in Frisco

They were awesome! (thanks for the great pic Raelee :)

Mady didn't slow down once...she just loved all the excitement!

Here are a few from the photo shoot we took on Saturday before all the excitement started!

Daddy goes back to SCHOOL!

2011-06-27T16:30:00.000-07:00

GO BRANDON/DAD!

Brandon has recently been accepted into the Professional MBA Program at the University of Texas-Dallas. We are very excited for him and for this new journey...but also know that it will be a great challenge as well. He will continue working full time and be attending school part time. He will graduate in 2-3 years. He has met with an advisor and discovered that he DOES NOT need to retake Calculus as a pre-requisite, nor does he have to take a couple of other classes that he took at BYU which are on the list for the program. That was great news! So he/we will begin this adventure at the end of August. We feel it will be a great benefit to the future. We are very proud of him!

Happy 2nd Birthday to our Mady!

2011-06-23T20:42:00.000-07:00

We had such a wonderful time celebrating Madyson's 2nd birthday! She is such a joy in our lives and so many others. Grandma Jeanette brought bubbles to the party and that was probably her very favorite part. Brandon had the idea to make her a giant Oreo birthday cake, since she LOVES chocolate. So I made and baked it and he assembled it. It was delicious! I'm sure Madyson enjoyed it as well, but she mostly just wanted to lick out the frosting and eat her cookies n' cream ice cream. When it came time to open gifts she made it very clear that she didn't need any help from her sister or cousins. She received so many fun things. Mom and Dad gave her new play dough and tools, Sarah and Kaden gave her bubbles for the bathtub, Grandma Cook sent her 2 fun packages from Utah, she got play food with her $ from Great Grandma Joyce for her shopping cart, color wonder markers and paper from the Wales family, and the cutest hat and sunglasses from Ava & Violet. Thank you Everyone!

Lots of loves and playing with Uncle Trev

Grandpa was late but he made it and she was soooo happy!

Look at Me-Sarah's 2011 Tap Dance

2011-06-16T07:16:00.001-07:00

Sarah started her first ballet/tap combo class at Sheena's Dance Academy in Frisco, TX back in August 2010. She has thoroughly enjoyed every moment. She and the other 8 4-5 year old girls started practicing their recital dance back in February and have worked so hard. They did such an excellent job and it was just such a joy to watch her progress. She enjoys it A LOT.

This is her friend, Sarah B., that was in her class. They are good friends now.

I have tried and tried and tried to download the video I took from dress rehearsal, but I just can't get it to work. I will continue to work on it. Here she is in some photos from recital day, June 11, 2011. She did so amazing and we are so proud of her! She had such a fun time and had so much support from so many family and friends! Way to go Sarah!

New House & NEWS!

2011-05-24T15:26:00.000-07:00

We are sooo happy to be in our new house. It is a slow process unpacking but that's ok cause we are just so excited to be here. (pictures to follow). Here is a shot of the kids the last morning in our little condo...they were all asleep in our bed. They were so excited to move into the new house and are enjoying it a lot. Our new address is posted on the side bar.NEWS!

We are proud to announce baby #4 coming sometime around Nov 26th, 2011!

Thoughts on Mother's Day

2011-05-08T14:44:00.000-07:00

I needed to post a picture of my 2011 Mother's Day gift from Kaden. He was so adorable about it! Love you bud!

"When mothers know who they are and who God is and have made covenants with Him, they will have great power and influence for good on their children.
Mothers who know bear children.
Mothers who know honor sacred ordinances and covenants.
Mothers who know are nurturers.
Mothers who know are leaders.
Mothers who know are teachers.
Mothers who know do less.
Mothers who know stand strong and immovable."
-Julie B. Beck (General Relief Society Pres. Oct 2007)

I am grateful to have been raised by a mother who knew...and is still an amazing example to me. I am grateful for all the wonderful women in my life...grandmother's, aunts, cousins and friends who are wonderful examples of women who know.

I have been a mom know for almost 6 years. I remember when I was pregnant with Kaden, which was my first Mother's Day. Brandon got me a rocking chair for his nursery. I remember being so anxious to have that little baby so I could rock him in that chair and sing to him. It is amazing to me how fast time has gone by and all that I have learned since that day in May 2005. Now I have 3 beautiful children who teach me more than I could have ever dreamed. But not a day goes by when I do not appreciate all that my mother taught me. So many little things that I can not even begin to number, I learned from her, both by word and example. As my kids get older I continue to appreciate all she taught me. I am especially grateful for her testimony & faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, for He truly showed her the way. Thanks Mom! Words just can't express! Love you!

EASTER 2011

2011-04-29T05:51:00.000-07:00

We had such a wonderful Easter. Here are the photos after church in their new fancy clothes. I just love this first one!

Just the girls!

Mommy and the girls!

Kaden & Daddy!

We talked about the real meaning of Easter all week long. The kids really know now what it's all about, well Kaden and Sarah anyway. They did an awesome job singing "Did Jesus Really Live Again?"(#10 on playlist) with their primary in Sacrament Meeting. Kaden hasn't really ever wanted to go up there to sing since he's been in primary, and it was Sarah's first time. Together they both did great! Then in primary during their sharing time, the teacher was talking about the story of Easter again. She told about when Jesus' body was missing from the tomb and asked, "where was Jesus?" Sarah was the only sunbeam sitting on the front row and she shouted out, "he was resurrected!" It was so sweet! We are truly grateful for the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ and loved celebrating Him this Easter.

New Job & House Update

2011-04-25T07:12:00.000-07:00

I wanted to give a little update on Brandon's life. Towards the end of March he was offered a new job with a residential custom pool builder (http://www.artesiancustompools.com/) and started work on April 1st. He learned so much from his previous job and has enjoyed working with great people. He is excited about learning something new and is learning quickly.

He is in the process of applying for his MBA program still, but should have it in soon. We should know shortly what the results are.

As far as the new house goes. We are still in the financing process. It is taking quite a while due to the job change. But we are hopeful that sometime in the first week or two of May we should know the final results and hopefully close on it too!

Sarah's B-Day Photos!

2011-04-22T07:34:00.001-07:00

Sarah and the cookie cake we made for her and Raelee.

Mady and Sarah posing with their princess outfits.

Sarah and her new Tangled hair.

The birthday girl! 4 Years old!

(she's wearing the butterfly necklace Aunt Liz & fam gave her and the hello kitty shirt is new too...she's loves them both!)

The party!

Sarah is 4!

2011-04-18T19:24:00.001-07:00

Sarah turned 4 on April 10th! She has been sooo excited for her birthday. Mady and I got home very late from the airport on the evening of the 9th so she was already asleep. The morning of her birthday she came running into our bed with her cake mix and frosting and said, "I missed you so much mommy, can we make my birthday cake now?" We had a wonderful time celebrating with her. This is a photo of her with her present she chose to purchase with the money Great Grandma Joyce gave her. Such a cutie! (I will post more pics soon.)

Happy 4th Birthday Sarah Kay! We love you!

"TANGLED"-Our New Favorite Movie

2011-04-14T08:09:00.000-07:00

Chris & Karlie Utah Trip

2011-04-11T12:41:00.000-07:00

Madyson and I had the opportunity to travel up to Utah last week for my brother's wedding. I was so glad I was able to be there and that Mady was able to accompany me.

at the DFW airport we got a frozen yogurt. Madyson really enjoyed it.

We had such a wonderful time and the only thing that could have made it better was to have had the whole family there with us. But it was wonderful and I am so happy for Chris and his beautiful sweet bride, Karlie. We are anxious to get to know her better. We had a wonderful visit with so many family members. We stayed at Liz's home one night and had a fun time there.

We also spent some time with Grandma Daisy which we really enjoyed as well.

Most of our time was spent up in Ogden at my mom's. We were able to help her get the wedding cake ready and also spend a lot of time with my mom, my cousin, RaLauna, Grandpop Cook, and Chris's kids, Ally and Kaleb. It was so neat to be with Karlie as she went through the Salt Lake Temple Wednesday, April 6th and then such a treat to be there Friday for the temple sealing. The reception was that evening and we had a wonderful time. Madyson just ran and ran around having so much fun and making so many people smile.

Grandpa and Grandma Small w/little Bailey Terry(cousin's baby)

Mady licking frosting off the gym floor...yum!

Maria, Brenda, Liz and Ally

James McKay Dutcher(new nephew/cousin)

2011-03-30T13:58:00.001-07:00

Born: March 15th, 2011

Weight: 8 lbs

Length: 19 inch

Parents: Liz & Danny Dutcher

Get to go to Utah

2011-03-14T19:14:00.001-07:00

WOO HOO!!

Madyson and I get to take a little trip next month to Utah. Chris and Karlie are getting married April 8th! I am so excited that I get to be there for their special day. Wish the rest of the family could make it too...next time we go hopefully. Also, can't wait to see my new little nephew that should be here any day, second. Liz was due yesterday, March 13th!

(photo taken by Heather Allen: heatherallenphotography.com)

Moving along

2011-03-14T19:00:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed celebrating Grandma Jeanette's 50th and cousin Chase's 1st birthday over the weekend! Here are a few shots from the party. I made Jeanette's cake and Brandon helped me get it in the dish and ice it. It turned out great!

Aunt Maria & Chase ("big" 1 year old)

Sarah & Raelee

Grandma & cake

The kids got to have a balloon from the decorations and Kaden's flew away...

He got another one and was much happier.

Little Mady cheesing it with her cupcake.

We have a secure contract now on our home. We are soooo excited and hope all goes well with the loan now. We close April 15th!

Life!

2011-03-04T12:48:00.000-08:00

Just took the pictures off my camera from the last two months and there are soooo many cute ones. This is my favorite! It's from Brandon's birthday(Fri, Jan 28th..he turned 28!)... hopefully I can get some more on here soon!

Life is just cruising along for us. We've had some ups and downs in the last couple of months, but we are anxious and excited about the future. We have been looking at homes for about a month. We made an offer on one at the beginning of Feb and it fell through. We have found another one that we like. We made three offers before they accepted, so we are rolling with that process now and it is crazy but exciting! Here is a link to the home: http://www.mlsfinder.com/tx_ntreis/kw_92/index.cfm?action=listing_detail&property_id=11550309&searchkey=76f8411a-aeec-fc84-b998-18e855f3a333&npp=32&sr=1

We hope all goes well and that we can move into our new home towards the end of April. Brandon is working a lot and trying to get ready for the GMAT that is on March 26th! The kids and I are staying busy as well and loving the warmer weather. Kaden and Sarah ask me almost every day if the pool is warm enough yet. We spend a lot of time at the park. It is just a beautiful time of year hear in Texas.

catch up...

2011-02-09T12:32:00.000-08:00

****Life has been, well, busy I guess...just haven't had the time to sit at the computer and catch up on things...and of coarse since life has been busy, there is a lot to catch up on, which makes it even more difficult. Anyway, I need to post about our Christmas trip still and our trip to Kansas for Brandon's cousin's wedding. Those are the major events that have happened in the past couple of months...oh not to mention:

-Madyson is going potty some now

-Madyson started climbing out of her crib, which led to not going to sleep very well...ah! We took off the side rail and she is staying in bed better, but has now started to come into our bed around 5 am. She has NEVER slept with us her entire life at all, unlike the other two. It is an adjustment that we're all still working on.

-Madyson climbing up the piano, yep up on the keys...she likes to play the piano with her feet.

-Madyson climbing on the end tables and jumping onto the couch

So if you haven't gathered already, Madyson has entered the toddler phase of her life...she won't be two until June!

-Sarah amazing me everyday with her very intellectual self...("Mom, did you know that the sun was a great big star?"..."Mom, did you know that there are rocks on the moon?" ...Mom, why this?, why that?, why?, why?, why?) Mom: "Sarah, why do you always have to ask so may questions?" Sarah: "Cause that's how Heavenly Father made me."

-One day I was trying to help Kaden get a snack after school...he is always starving when he gets home. Sarah was trying to get my attention...Mom: "Sarah, I'm getting something for Kaden right now, can you just be patient please and then I'll help you?" Sarah: "Mom, Heavenly Father didn't make me patient!" (Yes, she is still just 3 years old.)

Kaden is happy and doing just great with all that life has to offer a little 5 year old. He has handled the all-day Kindergarten very well, but he does get worn out after those long weeks and looks forward to the weekends. He is also staying an extra hour after school once a week for some tutoring with his reading.

We are currently trying to buy a home...very exciting, but still in the works. We'll keep you posted on all of it! Brandon has recently registered to take the GMAT at the end of March. He would like to start his MBA part time in the fall at UT-Dallas. Hopefully he gets in. We feel like it's a great fit for him and he'll be able to continue working, so hopefully it works out.

Hopefully I'll get the pics posted soon!

Christmas in Maryland 2010...so much fun!

2011-02-01T19:34:00.001-08:00

We had a great trip to Maryland for Christmas. We were able to arrive Christmas Eve and spent Christmas with my grandparents, my mom, sister and her family. We had such a great time visiting so many of my family that we hadn't seen since we were married back there in July 2004. We were able to go back and attend the temple, see the lights at the visitors center, and take the older kids downtown to the capital. I will journal more as I post the photos.

The drive was really great! The kids did awesome and it was absolutely perfect weather in such a beautiful part of the country.

The Brenda Cook family...(Chris and his kids were unable to come...we missed them)

Brandon, Maria, Kaden, Brenda, Mady, Sarah, Liz, Danny & David

Sarah just opened her unicorn pillow pet

Sarah on the road trip...she was so much fun;)

My grandmother and mom, Brenda

My Grandparents (Leslie and Jean Cook)..love them so much!

We got to go back to the temple we were married in...so beautiful, wonderful feelings!

Madyson loved getting into Grandma Cook's purse...here she is under the kitchen counter trying to find some "bum" (gum).

Kaden and Sarah watching cartoons

Kaden and Jared Monn(my cousin's son) at the Christmas Party.

Madyson at the Cook Family Christmas Party

Madyson and David loved the bucket of blocks at Great Grandmom's

Kaden was in love with this train set...(there are so many memories for me as a child in this exact room. It hasn't changed at all...same couch too.)

Sarah and Grandma making rolls for Christmas dinner

Daddy and Kaden putting his new United States puzzle together

Mady really was so great during the trip...she got tired on the last day and just wanted to be home, but other than that she was super!

Our little place...we decorated even though we were out of town.

This is my grandparents home...in the woods of New Windsor, MD

Merry Christmas to all & a Happy New Year!

2010-12-20T18:46:00.000-08:00

Well, we've had a very eventful month and so I haven't had much time to update...so I will post photos from Thanksgiving and other stuff asap. We are moved and mostly settled, but are on the hunt for something else back in Frisco. We have had a wonderful Christmas celebration with Brandon's parents and sister Erin over the weekend. The kids had a blast. We met at Fuddrucker's Friday night for dinner, went to see The Colony Firehouse lights and then went to Grandma's & Grandpa's to open gifts...and have a slumber party. Yep, we all spent the night, played games and stayed up late. It was soooo much fun! Saturday we had a delicious breakfast and went to the movie together. Saturday night the kids got to sleep over again so that Mom & Dad could go have a fun time at Brandon's work party, which included a hotel room! It was lots of fun for us...thanks mom and dad for helping out!

We are sooo excited that on Thursday we'll be heading to Maryland for Christmas with Grandma Cook, Liz, Danny and David...not to mention all the relatives back east. So I'll be telling more about that next year! Until then, have a very Merry Christmas! Love to all!

Halloween-Oct 2010

2010-11-03T16:57:00.000-07:00

Halloween 2010 Fun!

We had such a great Halloween celebration. We went to Denton and let the kids trunk-r-treat with Grandpa Russell and Grandma Jeanette, Erin and Family! It was a little cold outside, but the kids had a blast.

sarah-our sleeping fairy princess

Cousins-Kaden, Raelee, Jeremy, Madyson, & Sarah

Daddy and kids

Daddy and our little Butterfly

Sarah's Princess Hair

Poor Sarah fell the day before and broke one of her new front teeth(crowns) and we had to rush her into the dentist. Unfortunately they had to pull it out because there wasn't enough tooth left to connect the crown too anymore. But she's still smiling and is just so happy about the $1 she found under her pillow the next morning!

Grandma Cook was here!

2010-10-22T12:18:00.000-07:00

What a treat it was to have my mom(Grandma Cook) here for a week! We had such a wonderful time together and enjoyed all the fun experiences with her. Here's a glimpse of our week...

Oct 8th, Friday-picked her up from the airport...girls were already asleep, but when we pulled into the garage Kaden came running out to greet her and didn't stop talking that night until he hit his pillow. It was so cute.

Saturday-Time Out For Women (http://deseretbook.com/tofw) My sister, Liz, found us a couple of tickets from a lady who couldn't make it from Oklahoma City. So even thought it was "sold out" we got to go and enjoy a wonderful time together.

Monday-Kaden was out of school this day for Teacher Day and so he got to stay home and play with us. We went to play at the mall and had such a fun time shopping and eating together. The kids all got to ride the carousel horses with grandma. They all loved it, even Mady going for her first time.

Tuesday-Sarah and Kaden both had school this day so mom, Mady and I did a little shopping together. We went to Joann's fabric store to get a pattern for a dress for Sarah...we never got to sew it, but Mom did several mendings for me...well for Brandon, Kaden and Sarah. Thank you Mom!

Wednesday-Kaden had school. Sarah had dance. She was so happy to have grandma Cook come watch...and after we went shopping at the mall and Sarah got to try on like 6 Christmas dresses and Grandma got her the perfect one. Can't wait for those pics! Then we picked up Kaden from school and headed to the pumpkin patches in Flowermound. We had sooo much fun with everyone!

The kids loved all the jump houses...even Mady

Mady watching the pony rides

Hay ride

Kaden loved riding the pony...he was so happy!

Sarah got on too, although she wasn't going to at first.

Sarah and Grandma after dance

Thursday-TEXAS STATE FAIR 2010 What else can I say? We had so much fun for 7 whole hours at the fair...daddy joined us for the last 2 or so. Mom really enjoyed herself too and I think will be back again for that.

Mady with her ice cream push up pop

Grandma and Kaden

Kaden and Sarah with the HUGE snow cones...after they had already eaten their icecreams!

So precious! Jeremy and Sarah watching the pig races.

Daddy and Mady...oh and Grandma Jeanette

Friday-We took my mom out to McKinney to see Brandon's park that is finally complete! Yeah...it is so awesome! The kids just never want to leave every time we go.

Saturday-Well we finally had to say goodbye after such and amazing week!

We miss you Grandma Cook and can't wait to see you in December "when Santa Claus comes." -Sarah

1st Camping Trip in Texas

2010-09-21T10:30:00.001-07:00

Ray Roberts Lake, Sept 17-18

Well, I survived my first camping trip in Texas...barely. Really it was so much fun and very memorable...just very very humid, even at night, which is what I really wasn't used to. We really enjoyed ourselves though, especially the kids. Kaden was in heaven and just didn't stop for one second. We had good food, except for the pineapple upside down cake that Brandon burnt. I was proud the next morning when I successfully baked cinnamon rolls in the mini-dutch oven. They were delicious. We have misplaced our tent that is large enough for all of us and all our stuff, so thankfully Brandon's aunt and uncle had donated some gear to us and we had a spare. However we all didn't fit in it. So the girls and I slept in it, Kaden slept with Grandma and Brandon slept outside our tent on a tarp, under the stars. It worked out fine. We cleaned up in the morning and headed to take a dip in the lake. That was wonderful. The water was so refreshing. We had a wonderful time with Brandon's mom and sister Erin's family.

New Posts...keep reading

2010-09-08T15:20:00.000-07:00

I just posted a couple of new posts but they are before and after the last post, so just keep reading and you'll catch them all. Here's the latest about us...

Brandon is currently trying to finish up the park in McKinney...hopefully just a week or so to go, if the rain will ever stop. We'll see what's in store for him next. He is still the cub scout master and enjoys working the boys. I think he looks forward to coming home to see the kids as much as they do. I love seeing his face when he walks in the door and they all shout "DADDY!"

I am staying busy at home as usual...just love the time with girls. We have way too much fun. I joined a local stamp club and am way excited to start that this month. I got to teach the 7-8 year olds at church until last month, when they put me in as the senior primary pianist. Miss my class, but so happy to be back at the piano again. Trying to get fit and stay healthy. It's going fairly well this time around.

Life is moving right along and we're taking it one day at a time, enjoying all the memories!

Here the photos from Kaden's 5th Birthday! We had such a great time celebrating! We went to Gatti Town where he played and played and played. He love the bumper cars so much. It was so much fun to watch his face. He received way too many gifts from all the family...but he loved them all and says Thank you!

Kaden got a new scooter from the Wale's so all the kids played outside...including Madyson.

Kaden on his bumper car.

Dad(Brandon) was out working late so couldn't make the cake like usual, so mom and Grandma tried to pull it off. We did pretty good if you ask me. It's a motorcycle.

Standing in line for the bumper cars.

Sarah starts Dance & Preschool!

2010-08-26T07:04:00.001-07:00

Sarah is missing her brother Kaden now that he has gone to school, but she is finding things to do while he is gone. She started preschool this week. It is with a couple other kids from our church. Each week they spend 2 days at one house for 2 1/2 hours and then rotate to another house the next week. The mom's are the teachers, so it works out for all of us.

Here are a couple fun pics of Sarah I took last month... Just had to put them on here.

Sarah and Madyson are growing closer and closer as Kaden is now gone to school all day. Sarah is having to adjust to her brother being gone, but is staying very busy. She started her weekly dance class at Sheena's Dance Academy, Aug 26th, which is a tap/ballet combo class. She absolutely loves it! Madyson and I hang out and watch through the little window for the 45 minutes she is in class. It is so much fun!

She is growing so fast and mom is grateful to have her at home for a couple more years. She and Mady have so much fun together. Love you Sarah!

Kaden's starts Kindergarten and turns 5!

2010-08-26T07:03:00.001-07:00

Kaden is officially our big Kindergartner. He was so excited to go and just loves it! His teacher is Mrs. Solomon and we've heard very good things about her. She's been teaching elementary school for over 30 years. Kaden is 1 of 10 boys in his class and there are 7 girls. He starts at 8 am and goes until 3 pm. He gets to eat lunch and everything. He just loves that part! We are very happy to be able to be involved with a wonderful school district here in Texas, Frisco ISD. It is really amazing!

Here are a few shots.

Kaden's new teacher, Mrs. Solomon, sent this poem home on his first day of school.

The First Day of Kindergarten

On the first day of school everything

is new.

It's your first day with me, and my

first day with you.

I've been waiting for today.

Have you been waiting, too?

You look just like yourself, so

I feel at home with you.

There's a hook for your backpack,

There's a tag with your name.

There's a chair and a place for you,

I'm so glad you came!

-unknown

Thursday, the 26th he had he 5 year checkup. He is a healthy little 5 year old with allergies.

Here are his measurements. He's a little above average kid!

Height-43 inches

Weight-46 pounds

-post of 5th birthday coming soon!

The rest of the summer...2010

2010-08-26T07:01:00.000-07:00

The summer has come and gone and I'm sure I'm missing something, but I thought I would try and get a few more posted before it was like Halloween or something. We had a wonderful summer and enjoyed the water several times. We had a great visit with The Trevon Hauth family in August while they were here in Texas, and the kids and I got to go the the Frisco Aquatic Center with Jeanette, Erin and kids. It was a blast! The kids had so much fun. They earned their passes from turning in their reading logs at the Frisco library. Here are some random photos as well as the ones from the swim park.

Madyson discovered the cabinet in her bedroom and now she and Sarah play in it regularly.

Madyson playing in the living book shelf

Sarah cheesing it

They had pretty strict rules at the aquatic center...Kaden couldn't wear these goggles or his arm floaties. He still had a blast though.

Here's little Mady playing

Kaden doing his karate moves on the fountains.

We made a chain for Kaden at the beginning of August to count down the days till school started. It was amazing how fast those 28 days flew by. Now we're into September and having the rain storm of the year!

Madyson and I

Raelee, Kaden, Sarah and Jeremy

Kaden posing with Mady..."take a picture of us, Mom"

Ava and Kaden

Ava, Sarah, Raelee and Bryan

Summer 2010....so far....

2010-07-15T07:04:00.001-07:00

4th Of July! We had a wonderful 4th of July celebration this year and the kids really got into it. We went to the parade in The Colony in the morning. Sarah went nuts over the candy and Kaden just loved watching everyone, as well as being with his cousins and grandparents. Madyson enjoyed sitting with Grandpa! After the parade we had lunch with Grandpa and Grandma and cousins at Chick-Fil-A...yum! We went home for a rest and then met up with everyone again at the Frisco Freedom Festival. There were bounce houses and puppet shows and firetrucks and lots more. Sarah actually slept in the stroller for like 45 minutes of it, but Kaden just had a blast and even attempted to do the climbing wall for the first time. The weight range was 40-250 pounds....Kaden weighs 45 pounds... so he'll try again next time to make it to the top. We were very impressed he even finally agreed to try it...Brandon was so proud!

We headed out to Russell and Jeanette's for a wonderful BBQ (just in time before the rain hit) and then went back to Frisco for the beautiful and amazing fireworks. We had amazing seats right near where the fireworks were being sent off, and just really enjoyed ourselves. God Bless America!

Raelee and Kaden (best buds) hanging out in the back of the car during fireworks.

Brandon and I with the girls waiting for the show to start!

Madyson absolutely adores sitting in these little people chairs....here she is posing for us before the parade starts.

Kaden, Madyson, Sarah, Jeremy & Raelee sitting on the curb....will the parade ever start?

Brother and Sister...Sarah has started calling Kaden "brother" all the time...it's so cute.

Madyson and Mom at Frisco Freedom Festival....love this girl! (thanks for the photo Erin!)

Grandpa Russell, Madyson and Daddy!

Sisters!

Love it! Aren't they just the cutest ever?

This is a photo taken a week after Madyson's birthday after her sister, Sarah, drew all over her face with a marker. They were laughing so hard and I knew they were up to something. I was in the bathroom and came running out to discover this beauty!

Madyson loves the little chairs we have, especially this little rocker. She sits in it all the time...and has a taken a couple tumbles out of it as well.

Ray Roberts Lake

June 24th

A friend of mine from church invited us out to the lake. It was our first time there and it was just loads of fun. The kids just had a blast and played and played and played. Madyson had her share of sand and Kaden is share of water, but we survived and had such a wonderful time!

Sarah eating lunch and getting lots of sun!

Kaden never came out of the water...I had to remind him to come get a drink and eat...we stayed for about 4 hours.

Madyson playing in the sand...a few minutes after this shot she dumped that bucket into her mouth...yep took a big drink.

June 23rd...Madyson is 1!

These next photos are of Madyson mostly. She turned the big "1" year old on June 23, 2010 and we all a great time celebrating her!

I can't believe my baby is 1. She has been the best baby in the world! WE JUST LOVE HER SO MUCH and can't believe how fast she has grown. She is walking all over the place and starting to become a little toddler getting into all kinds of stuff! She's such a sweetie though and we just adore her.

June 14th (Mon-Sat)

Liz & David visit

Aunt Liz and cousin David came to visit us for a week. We had sooo much fun with them and enjoyed having them stay with us so much! We miss them and will post photos later. Liz took all the photos that week, because Brandon had the camera at cub scout camp all week. So I'll put some on once I get them, but I didn't want to forget to blog about it!

Well that's about it for now. I'm glad I finally had a chance to do a little update. Everything is going just fine for us. The kids and I spend a lot of time in the water and Brandon is working like a horse trying to get the park in McKinney finished. It sure will be nice once it's all done though and we look forward to being some of the first to try it out. Kaden will start Kindergarten at Rogers Elementary on August 23rd and will turn 5 the next day (August 24th)! Time flies! Hopefully I'll get a chance to blog again before then cause we still have lots of summer left!

catch up...

2010-05-21T06:54:00.000-07:00

There have been a couple of things I just haven't found time to blog about, so I going to compile them all into this one.

Sarah Kay's 3rd Birthday-April 10th, 2010

We had such a wonderful time celebrating Sarah's 3rd birthday on Saturday, April 10th. Her cousin Raelee's 4th birthday was the week after, the 17th, so they had a very cute princess party together. Sarah is growing up way too fast and knows it too. She is too smart for all of us, but we love her so much. She doesn't let her daddy leave anywhere...or anyone for that matter (grandparents and cousins included)...without a "love and a kiss!" She is in love with candy, Dora, The Explorer, Barney, dolls, princesses, ponies, fingernail painting, make-up, and coloring. Just a funny story....She has been potty-trained for quite some time now, but when it's time for her to go there's no waiting around. We were driving from Orem to Odgen during our Utah trip and were in Salt Lake, when she said, "mom! I need to go poop!" I looked around for a good place to stop and there wasn't anything, so I told her to just hold it and "to squeeze her cheeks," and that we would be at Grandma Cook's house soon. So I looked in the rear view mirror to see her and she has here hands on her face and she is "squeezing her cheeks" on her face. It was so funny...and now anytime she really needs to go to the bathroom and can't right then we tell her that and she does it and it works. She made it all the way to Grandma Cook's house, which was another 20-30 miles at least.

So happy 3rd Birthday Sarah Kay! We love you!

Brandon's church assignment (Dec 2009-April 2010)- Stake Handcart Trek Coordinator

*during this time, Brandon was in charge of building and coordinating the handcarts for the Frisco Stake Youth Pioneer Trek that took place March 18-20th

*they needed around 35 handcarts, so he was asked to build 10 (with the help of others of coarse) and then bring in 25 more from other stakes

*it was an amazing experience for him to learn how the pioneers made these things, cause he was asked to build them the same way, or very similar at least. So no screws or nails were used and helped cut and assemble all the pieces of wood necessary to make 10 handcarts.

*they ordered the wheels from an Amish man who makes them for a living in Missouri...they were absolutely amazing and Brandon was very grateful he wasn't asked to make those as well.

*he had a difficult time finding the handles that were the right circumference so he ended up turning them on his lath, which required him to build his own extension ...I think he really loved doing that.

*after several hours and several of his Saturdays of help from others they were ready to go in time.

I wish I had more photos, but this is all I have for now. We should have taken them along the way so we could have seen the process...that would have been cool.

He was grateful for the experience and even though he spent a lot of time away from the family, we were grateful too. I was able to attend the closing dinner with him and all the adults that were involved and it was really neat to see the video they made of those youth pulling those handcarts. What neat experience for everyone!

Our March/April vacation

2010-04-26T16:51:00.000-07:00

I have been so excited to get these pictures posted and to blog about our trip to Utah that we had the end of March/first of April...but I haven't found the time, so hopefully I can get them all on here now.

On March 25th, the kids and I headed out with Grandma Jeanette in her car to drive as long as we could. Jeanette and I were blessed with food poisoning the day before so we were still recovering. Jeanette more than I. So I drove most the way and we made it all the way to Farmington, New Mexico...about 14 hours. It was really a great drive and day. The kids did soooo well and I was fine driving a lot, so it worked out really well. We did have several little pit stops, but they usually consisted of a stop of to the side of the road so either Sarah or Kaden could tinkle. After our long trek the first day we were only left with 6-8 hours the next day, which was also really great. Jeanette was able to drive the last few hours that day, and the kids still did just awesome! So we arrived in Orem, Utah at about 3 pm on Friday, March 26th...just in time for my Scrapbooking Overnighter in Sandy, Utah...one of the main reasons for the trip.

(I posted a link to the map...I think it's fun to see how far we went...)

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl

Friday night Madyson and I stayed the hotel in Sandy with Aunt Liz and little (big) David, and Uncle Danny was kind of enough to keep Sarah and Kaden at his house...he even took them to the Nickel arcade that night. I had a great time, as usual, scrapbooking with my family (mom and Liz) and cousins even though we were very small in number this year. It was just so great and worth every minute of the 22 hour drive. I even managed to scrapbook 12 pages in Sarah's scrapbook along with all the visiting and fun we had. (Big THANKS to my cousin Shauna!!)

Madyson and David hung out in the playpen for a while, until David grabbed Madyson's hear and tried to pull it off. He's 4 months younger than her...

Sarah and Kaden got to spend time with Grandma Jeanette, Ava, Violet, Kirsten, Coleen, Trevon and Grandma Daisy on Saturday while I was still scrapbooking. They loved that of coarse!

We spent the next 4 days at Liz and Danny's and just had so much fun with them and their cute little boy, David! Grandma Cook (mom) brought Chris's kids down to play Saturday night and Sunday and that was lots of fun. The kids hadn't seen each for 8 months so they were pretty excited. Kaden and Kaleb just played outside non-stop...luckily the weather was beautiful the first couple of days, and Sarah and Ally played with the babies.

On Sunday we were invited to Danny's aunt's and uncle's for dinner. Well, Danny got a pretty nasty bug that morning, so the kids and I went with Liz. It was very, very yummy food and Great Aunt Colleen had a talking bunny. It would ask questions and Kaden would answer back.

Sarah and I made a trip to Target...here she is trying on a stylish hat.

We got to spend an afternoon with Aunt Kiki (Kirsten) at the mall. We ate lunch, played on the new tree house and dinosaur playland at University Mall in Orem and shopped a little.

More pictures of us playing at Aunt Liz's...

David playing with Kaden's homemade gun...

Sarah crashed and managed to turn herself completely upside down on the love seat.

On Wednesday, the 31st of March we headed up to Mom's (Grandma Cook's) cause she was finally out of school for spring break. So we spent Wednesday night through Sunday night at her house. On Thursday we got to go up to Garland, Utah to watch the Herzog boys (Jay, Michael & Riley-my first cousins) play water polo. It was our only chance to see Aunt Jo. We had a wonderful time with them. I just can't believe how those boys have grown up and changed so much. It was so great to visit with Aunt Jo, Uncle Andy and RaLauna.

Uncle Andy holding Madyson at the polo game.

Kaden and Sarah watching.

We went to a local drive-in afterwards and had yummy burgers, fries and english chips! Here's Michael, Kaden and Sarah watching Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure...they watched the whole thing while we ate...even Michael!...Riley watched some too.

Here I am with my greasy goodness (ranch burger and english chips)...hadn't had it for so long...had to take a picture.

Aunt Jo and Sarah

RaLauna and I at the restrauant...it was sooo good to see her again.

Saturday, April 3rd Brandon(Daddy) flew in. We were so excited to see him. We missed him so much after more than a week apart. We picked him up in the morning and headed down to Provo to see Great-Grandma Daisy. We spent most of the morning and afternoon with her. We enjoyed visiting and watching General Conference with her and her friend Shannon. The kids were very well behaved and both got to pick a bear to take home from grandma's collection.

We were able to visit with so many people that day and it was great. We saw Grandma Daisy, our old neighbors Duffy and Rex, my cousin Ashley and her family, Liz, Danny & David for a minute, Trevon, Coleen, Ava, Violet, Kirsten for a minute, Paul, Jannet, Nate, Heather and Alayssa. Brandon and Trevon got to go on a "date" and were able to attend the Priesthood session together. The kids and I hung out with Coleen and the girls and had fun playing and visiting and eating pizza. It was great to see everyone even though our time was very short. After priesthood we headed back up to my mom's to spend the night, Easter and the rest of General Conference with her, Uncle Chris, Ally, Kaleb, and Great-Grandpa and Grandma Small (my mom's parents.)

Sarah on Easter morning!

Kaden slept in that morning...he was sleeping in the play room the night before, but woke up and went and got into Grandma Cook's bed...well he had no idea that Great Grandpa & Grandma Small were sleeping in there, but that didn't bother him. He climbed over Grandpa and got right in the middle. He and Grandma both slept in. Here he is finding his Easter basket.

Ally and Sarah had so much fun together.

Sarah helped Grandma take out her curlers and then she got to put some in her hair.

Ally too....here they are again.

Grandpa Small loved pushing Sarah's buttons and she talked right back to him...it was so funny.

Grandma Cook and the girls...(Ally, Sarah & Madyson)

We had such a wonderful Easter dinner and visit with everyone in between conference sessions. We even were able to celebrate great-Grandma Carma's and mom's birthdays. The kids played and played and played and played....they just loved being at Grandma Cook's. The decorated Easter eggs, hunted for Easter eggs and ate lots of Easter eggs...well Sarah at least, I think she had like 3 in the one hour. Danny, Liz and David were also able to come up for Easter so we were all together and it was wonderful.

We headed out early Monday morning (Happy Birthday Mom!)...like 6 am and so the kids slept for a bit longer, which was nice and we were able to have a great first day on the road back home. We stayed the night in Albuquerque and then headed home Tuesday, April 6th. The second day on the road was not so great, but we made it home around 9:30 pm.

Here's Kaden and Sarah in the car with their bunny ears.

The night in the hotel...Kaden and Sarah watching cartoons.

The kids got kites for Easter and were dying to fly them, so once we got to Texas where there was enough wind we stopped and tried them out. Here's Brandon and Kaden in Albuquerque trying to get Kaden's kite to stay in the sky. It was soooo windy.

We just wanted to say thanks to Brandon's parents for letting us borrow their car and helping make our trip possible! Love you!

Just some stuff...pics too.

2010-03-17T07:39:00.000-07:00

I haven't actually taken the time to write much lately, so I thought I would since this is really like my only "journal" right now. Let's see?..what's happened recently? Well, the biggest thing is that Sarah has been officially potty trained for over a month now. One day she just decided it was time and was done in like 2 weeks. It was so awesome and we were so thankful! She doesn't need anything at night either, she gets up and goes on her own. It's sooooo wonderful! Kaden is on Spring Break this week and is loving the later nights! I am also loving it, because he keeps Sarah more occupied than I do and so it has given me a chance to get some things done around the house. Brandon has been working dilegently on finishing the pioneer handcarts for the youth trek and completed them last Saturday. The youth leave tomorrow so he is still rounding up the carts that they are borrowing. Hopefully I can get some pictures of him with these things...they are amazing! We have a new nephew as of Friday, March 12th. Chase Michael Wales was born to Erin and Bryan and we are so happy that he is here and doing well. He will be in NIKU for a while cause he was pretty early...weighing only 2 lbs 12 ounces.

Well, here's the pics and more stories I have to share and hopefully I can get the videos posted too!

Kaden has been begging Grandma Jeanette to make gingerbread men cookies with him, so last week one evening she made it over. They had so much fun cutting out the cookies and decorating them. I'm going to post the video if I have time.

We have several animals around this little house. We live right across the street from a huge field at the park and also have several mature trees around the house with lots of acorns. So we have heard these small creatures several times...one we know is a squirrel because Brandon saw it jump at him out of his hole when he was trying to cover it. We thought we got all the whole covered that he had made, but we're pretty sure he is back and making new holes....great! But we did find out that the animal making holes in our roof was a RACCOON! Our repair man came and had the droppings tested and then set a trap on the roof. That night...sure enough...that little thing fell for the peanut butter and marshemellows. Here's his photo! They took him out to the lake to release him...hope he doesn't find his way back?

Here is Sarah and Madyson in the crib. Sarah loves to go into Madyson's room in the morning once Madyson is awake, and they play for several minutes together in her bed.

Here's Mady standing up in her crib. She can already do it all by herself. We had to lower her mattress a couple of weeks ago. She is crawling and pulling herself up onto everything. She won't be 9 months until next week! Ahhh!

Madyson crawled under the kids' bunkbed. Sarah had to go in to help her find her way out, although she was having so much fun...I have a feeling she is going to be our little dare-devil...

no fear.

Kaden's Pledge...he learned this all at school!

2010-02-25T10:02:00.000-08:00

Sarah singing her ABZ's....so cute!

2010-02-25T07:34:00.000-08:00

The Latest here in Texas!

2010-02-12T08:15:00.000-08:00

Madyson is so beautiful, especially in this turquoise color. She is moving all over the place, not quite crawling yet though.

February 11th, 2010. It snowed and snowed and snowed today. Sarah and Raelee are waiting to go outside. Grandma Jeanette and I were trying to get some gloves to go on Kaden and it just wasn't working. They were being so patient waiting here on the couch...oh and they have matching hats and gloves, well coordinating anyway. Here is Brandon with the kids in the front of our house with the snowman they built. If you look really hard, you can see Madyson watching in the window. They had such a great time, but were all red and cold when it was time to come in.

Kaden is now drawing people....I couldn't believe it when I saw this because I had no idea he could do it. He must have learned it at school. The line across the waist is his belt.

Sarah had to have a picture like Kaden with the polar bear...she was so funny. She even had to stand in the same place by the front door, although she doesn't have her pajamas on like he did for his pajama day.

Just some fun stuff!

2010-01-28T06:09:00.000-08:00

happy birthday daddy (brandon)!

We Love You!

This is a picture of the kids on the only Sunday we were all able to go to church together this month. Someone has been sick every other Sunday this month. I sure hope it's all over soon.

Kaden had a pajama day last Friday. He also got to take his bear, Howard, to hibernate in the cave at school. They talked about animals that hibernate all week and on Friday they got to read a story in the cave with their bears.

Madyson and her first pigtails...and she still has bangs. such a big girl!

Kaden got his pants dirty one day at Erin's. He put one of Raelee's belts on and loaded up with everything he could. There was something in every "slot"!

Holiday Fun!

2010-01-18T17:43:00.000-08:00

We had a great holiday...with "out-of-town" visits from Great-Grandma Daisy, Aunt Kiki and Uncle Chris. The kids loved every moment with each of them. It was nice to stay home and enjoy the time together. The kids are growing so fast and just really love the time of year. It is so rewarding to see their excitement. They loved hearing the story of baby Jesus and had their own manger sets they could play with to understand the story better. Hopefully we are helping them to know the "real" meaning of Christmas, but it is hard at their ages.

Aunt Kiki(Kirsten), Raelee & Kaden

Great-Grandma Daisy & Madyson

Uncle Chris, Kaden & Sarah

Kaden, Sarah, & Brandon with Santa at our ward Christmas party

New pajamas on Christmas Eve.

Here is our Christmas letter!

What a Year! 2009!

We have really had a great year. We’ve had a lot of ups and downs, but the Lord has truly blessed our family through it all. We recently moved from our apartment in The Colony into a 3-bedroom rental home in Frisco, which was just about a 15 mile move. It’s just down the street from Brandon’s office, so he is home frequently for lunch. We love it! There is also a park directly across the street, which is so wonderful for the kids!

Kaden is 4 years old and started Pre-K at the Early Childhood School here. It’s a public school that just opened this year. He absolutely loves it and they love him. He goes everyday from 8-11 am. His dad drops him off on his way to work and he rides the bus to the closest elementary school, where we pick him up. Kaden is such a great big brother and loves all the “boy” stuff. He wants to be a “superhero, builder, power ranger, and a missionary” when he grows up. He now sleeps on the top bunk and just loves it!

Sarah is a very mature 2-year old, and keeps mom on her toes. She can do her ABC’s and numbers almost as well as her brother and sings any song you want her to, even if she has to make it up. She loves her baby sister, Madyson, and is either mothering her or her own baby dolls, while she talks on her “play” cell phone. She also loves to sing and dance to her “wheels on the bus” CD.

Our little Madyson was born this year on June 23^rd and has been such a joy. It has been a very smooth transition with 3 children, because she is the best baby in the world. Really! She is 6 months old now and is the sweetest thing, sleeping 10-12 hours a night. She is all smiles and keeps us all smiling!

Brandon has had a pretty rocky “employment” road this year, with construction being the way it is right now and all. We are so grateful though for his current position here in Frisco at a small company called SFCC, Inc. They work with the Frisco School District on the schools and other public construction projects. He is so happy to have a garage so that he has a place to “build” things. It is one of his favorite places to be. He hasn’t had a lot of time to cycle this year, but he did squeeze in one hundred mile ride in August and did very well.

Maria is just happy to be wife and mom to a wonderful husband and great kids. It is so rewarding! I have been working in primary for the first time this year and love it. I also enjoy my stamping, scrapbooking, music and just “getting out” to the park, mall or wherever.

We are so grateful for all our family and love them all so much. We couldn’t have made it through this year without them! It’s really what life it all about…serving one another, especially our own families.

We thank our Heavenly Father for each of you and for his Son, Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year! Love, The Brandon Hauth Family

In Memory of Kiddie Kandids

2010-01-18T17:35:00.000-08:00

I have used Kiddie Kandids since Kaden was 3 months old for all three of my kids. I was so sad to hear that the company had closed. I was very satisfied with their service and loved that I got my photos in 10-15 minutes after I chose them. It was awesome! Here are the most recent ones we had taken at the end of December (caught it just in time). These are Kaden's 4 year shots and Madyson's 6 month. Sarah will get her 2 year taken in April so she is just in the group shot, which is so adorable!

(the images are real small but hopefully you can still see how cute they turned out!)

Madyson's First Haircut (6 mo's old) 01-05-10

2010-01-11T14:14:00.001-08:00

After Photo!

Madyson's bangs were in her face so we gave her a little trim to even things out a bit. She looks so grown up.

Before & During Photos

Kaden's 1st Day of School...Nov. 30th, 2009

2009-11-30T17:56:00.000-08:00

Kaden started Pre-K today at the Frisco ISD Early Childhood School. This is the first year that they have been in operation and it is so nice! He loved it. He even rode the bus home...that was his favorite part I think! Here are a couple photos of him and his new school shoes. He goes everyday from 8-11 am. Such a big boy!

Here are some of the notes from his teacher (Miss Seay) his first week.

-Kaden did so great today! We are so happy to have him.

-Kaden is doing so well!! He is such a good boy!

Fun with the Cousins!

2009-11-28T14:21:00.000-08:00

We had so much fun playing with all the Hauth cousins...here are some more pics of Coleen's awesome work with the photography! Take a look at www.indiepindiephotography.com ...!!!

MADYSON-3 month old photos

2009-11-28T14:16:00.001-08:00

I didn't get a chance to post any of these. Aunt Coleen took them while she was here in October...thanks so much! They are so adorable!

Life is just moving along great...!

2009-11-28T13:56:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving at Rani and Ronnie's home with the Hauth's. Here we are with the "Great Grandparents" (Grandma Joyce, Grandpa Hauth & Bonnie).

We are almost settled in our new home...it's so great to have a house, especially one with a 2-car garage. The 3rd bedroom, where Madyson sleeps, also has a ton of storage space. So Brandon has his space for his hobby...and all his tools, and Maria has a space for her hobby and all her STUFF for stamping and scrapbooking...it is so great! The park across the street has been wonderful since our yard is not fenced in...yet. The kids love playing outside, seeing how it is almost December and still in the high 60's. It's just gorgeous. The best part is that Brandon's office is literally 3 miles away and only takes him about 5 minutes to commute. It's great, cause we get to have him home for lunch almost everyday. We all love it!

The kids are doing great. They all love the new house.

Kaden is so grown-up...4 years old and starting school on Monday, the 30th at the public Early Childhood School here, just 5 minutes from the house as well. He will be in the morning pre-K program from 8-11 am everyday. He's very excited and so is mom...just a little nervous too. Dad gets to drop him off and his way to work and then he gets to ride the bus to an elementary school to be picked up afterwards.

Sarah is also just growing so fast. She is now in the a twin bed under her brother. Yes, they got bunk-beds. They love them, but somehow they both still end up in mom and dad's bed somehow before the night's over. She absolutely loves playing with all her baby dolls and her little sister. She's way too smart for all of us. She loves to sing and dance to her fun kid songs...every morning!

Madyson is just as sweet as ever. She's 5 months old now and is just so much fun! She started eating cereal in the high chair and is still sleeping 7-8 hours at night...yeah! She also has very much enjoyed having her "own" room. She loves her bed and doesn't sleep well anywhere else.

We are enjoying are new ward. It is much bigger than our last couple wards, but everyone is so extremely friendly and welcoming. We haven't been given callings yet, so we'll be excited to see where we'll be serving soon. Brandon is going to be helping the stake out with the handcarts for the youth trek in March, but it's a temporary assignment. He's excited about it though.

We are very much looking forward to the Christmas holiday here in our home and hope everyone is doing well also. Love to all!

August Trip to Utah

2009-09-29T07:09:00.000-07:00

We were all able to go to Utah at the end of August. Trevon, Brandon's brother, and his wife Coleen were sealed in the Draper Temple. It was so beautiful and we sure had a very enjoyable time. Aunt Coleen took these adorable pictures of Kaden & Sarah at the park. Thanks to Uncle Trevon, we were also able to go to the Seven Peaks water park for Kaden's 4th birthday celebration. He had such a great time, and even went down the big water slide with dad. We all had a great time!

HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY KADEN!! He's so grown-up...crazy! He will be going to Kindergarten next year. He loves to play, play, play, watch movies, pretend he's any super hero, pirate, cowboy, or ninja turtle. He was so excited about all his neat gifts from the family, especially for the golf clubs he picked out himself from Grandma Joyce. They go everywhere he does if mom allows it, mostly because they are never really used as golf clubs, but something else, like a sword. His favorite foods are pizza, PB sandwiches and hamburgers.

Blessing of Madyson

2009-07-09T17:04:00.000-07:00

Madyson Elizabeth Hauth 
was blessed by her father, Brandon Glen Hauth,
on Sunday, July 5th in The Colony LDS Chapel.

It was a beautiful day celebrated with family and friends.
We were glad that Grandma Cook could be there, as well as
Aunt Erin and family.  They weren't expected to make it, so we
were so happy.  Grandma Joyce Hauth, Uncle Rod & Aunt Becky
Hauth were also able to come.  We thank you all for your
support and love on this special day!!

MADYSON ELIZABETH HAUTH

2009-06-24T09:08:00.000-07:00

BORN: TUES, JUNE 23RD
Frisco, Texas at 2:31 PM CST
6 POUNDS 12 OUNCES
20 INCHES LONG

We are so happy to welcome little baby Madyson into our family. She is such a sweet little baby. Kaden and Sarah are so happy she's finally here. Sarah wants to hold her all of the time. She doesn't look much like her siblings did. She has so much dark, brown hair. It's crazy! Mom is doing great and everything went just great for her first delivery outside of Utah. The Baylor Medical Center of Frisco, Texas was so great! We had a nurse named Liz that has been in the field for 33 years. She was absolutley amazing. What a wonderful, incredible, miracle to bring a new life to this earth. Welcome Madyson and thanks to all our family and friends!

Mother's Day Gift!

2009-05-28T20:37:00.000-07:00

I have been meaning to post a picture of my awesome Mother's Day gift. Brandon made it himself, of coarse...and I just love it. I have used it almost everyday since I got it. Thanks Babe...love ya! (It's a cutting board if you can't tell:)

New "Temp" Job & Update

2009-05-27T08:12:00.001-07:00

We are pretty excited! Brandon finally got a job...well it's temporary, but it's going to be full time for a couple of months and could become permanent. It's with a company that works on schools...he will be a superintendent for various projects going on this summer...mainly at Frisco High School, which isn't too bad of a drive either. He started yesterday and really has enjoyed it and likes the company a lot. We are so grateful and appreciate all the support from our wonderful family and friends!

I start my weekly appointments on Monday, June 1st...so this baby will be here soon. We are all very excited..especially Sarah..she tells me to "take the baby out, I want to hold it" all the time. She and Kaden, both, are very excited to have a new little sister. I am busy getting everything ready and chasing these two around. It'll be much easier when I'm not 8 months pregnant.

The summer is slowly starting here in Texas, but so far we have had beautiful weather and lots of rain. It has been very nice not to have super hot heat yet. I've been very grateful anyway. Brandon is now serving as the Executive Secretary at church , which means mom gets the kids ready and brings them to church on her own, but we're excited about it and know he'll really enjoy it. I am now in the primary presidency, as well as the music chairman. I get to play the organ during Sacrament meeting and the piano for choir. I enjoy it.

We are all happy and healthy and hope all is well for everyone!

Family Trip to Florida

2009-04-29T11:57:00.000-07:00

We were lucky enough to go to Florida with the Wales Family and Brandon's parents for Jill's (Brandon's sister's best friend) wedding. We had such a great time. We spent time in Cocoa Beach, FL for 2 days and then spent some time in Orlando at a resort before the wedding on Saturday at the Orlando Temple. The temple was so beautiful. We decided not to attend any Disney attractions, but were able to walk through the marketplace. That was enough for our little kids...they were in Disney heaven. It was so fun to watch the expressions on their faces. The weather was wonderful and we just really had a great time!

Here's Kaden

2009-04-16T11:39:00.003-07:00

Kaden loves wearing dads shirts...here he is in one of his bike shirts, shoes and all.

Easter and Photo Shoot

2009-04-15T14:31:00.000-07:00

We had a really fun Easter weekend. We celebrated Sarah's birthday and also had a slumber party at Brandon's parents with his sister's family Easter Eve. It was a lot of fun. We decorated eggs, hunted for eggs, had Easter dinner and a photo shoot with the kids. Sarah got her 2 year shots and Raelee her 3 year, so they got the most pictures, but we also got some cute photos of the boys.

Happy Birthday Sarah!

2009-04-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

Sarah turned two on April 10th. She is such a joy for us and we just can't believe she has been around for 2 years already. Her brother helped wrap her birthday present and then helped her open it also. She is so into babies/dolls and princesses. She loves to dress them and undress them. She is going to be such a big help to mommy when the new baby sister comes. She is talking, talking, talking and shocks us with her vocabulary and use of words. She had her two year check-up and weighs 26 pounds (average) and is 37.25 inches tall (3'1"....off the charts.) The doctor told us to start thinking about upcoming Olympics. I asked him if he recommended a sport and he said to just try them all. She'll be tall, but I don't know if I am real excited about her being 6'2" like her height currently predicts? We'll see. For now, she is all girl!! We love her and had a fun birthday weekend with her! She got some princess shoes from G&G Hauth and is so hillarious on heels. Her cousin Raelee's birthday (she'll be 3) is one week after her so we sang to them together!

Sarah's 1st real haircut

2009-04-14T14:47:00.000-07:00

Bath before cut Before shot During cut shots, she was so good!

Sarah got her first haircut April 7th...she had lots of curls in the back that were getting way long, but we just had to even it all out so she looked like a normal child. She was so good during the whole thing and sat there so well while Eleisha Jabillo cut her hair. She looks so grown up now...the curls are still there though...it's super cute!

AFTER SHOTS!!

Maria's 30th Birthday!

2009-04-14T14:40:00.000-07:00

Happy 30th Birthday Maria!
I had such a great 30th birthday. My in-laws gave me a manicure/pedicure while they watched the kids in the morning. That was wonderful! We met Brandon for lunch. We got a babysitter and went out to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner with Jeanette, Erin and Bryan. It was so nice. Brandon made my cake and the kids helped decorate. I was also blessed with many other birthday wishes from so many and enjoyed the weekend in Utah with family for scrapbooking! Thanks for everything everyone!!

Sarah and Mom's trip to Utah!

2009-03-31T12:39:00.000-07:00

Sarah and I just returned from spending a weekend in Utah. We had such a good time. I was able to attend the annual "scrap-booking overnighter" and really enjoyed myself. It was great to catch up with so many and to also get some scrap-booking accomplished. Sarah got to spend lots of time with Grandma Cook, as well as her Cook cousins, Ally and Kaleb, as well as the Hauth cousins in Utah. She literally jumped out of my arms when she saw Ava so she could give her a hug, and she wouldn't stop hugging Violet. It was so adorable. We loved our visits with everyone and wish they could have been longer. (I will post pictures later, but just wanted to start updating my blog.)

Sarah did very well on the plane ride there and didn't sleep at all. On the way home she screamed for 10 minutes because she didn't want to sit still for take off. It was nice because we had 3 seats to ourselves, but she didn't want to sit at all. She was super tired as well. A lady in the seat next to us gave her a cookie. She took a bite and was sitting there for like 2 minutes and then her head just fell....she was out! I was so grateful. She slept until we were pulling into the terminal in Dallas.