CAT-aclysmic Changes

I am not a pet person. Never have been. We had 2 dogs growing up--first a cockapoo, then a rottweiler. Butch and Roxie. I petted them collectively about 10 times. A few years ago, I consented to letting my kids get some fish. I was thinking with my wicked little laugh (Wah, hah, hah, haa) that I was totally tricking them. They would think they were getting a "real" pet and be satisfied. In a few weeks, the fish would die and--wallah! No more begging. Well, after a few weeks, the fish indeed passed into a new and better place. I still ended up getting the raw end of the deal, though. Their nagging died along with the fish, but so did their desire to clean up pet messes. The tank sat. And sat. And sat. And I nagged. And nagged. And nagged. FINALLY, when the tank looked brown and disgusting, they started to fear that the tank was contaminating the air in their room. Concern for their very lives motivated Joseph to clean the tank. The problem is, he carried it a few feet and tripped. It's now like slow motion in my mind....NNNNOOOOOOOOOOO. All of the bacteria infested water, hundreds of dirty little pebbles, and the fish poo remnants sploshed out onto the carpet. As we sponged, picked, sucked, and scrubbed, I informed the kids that my pet days were OFFICIALLY over. For good.

A few months ago, a stray cat started hanging around. He was the neighborhood cat. McKenna called him Rosebud, Tessa called him Socks, and my kids named him Boots. He was constantly catching mice and leaving them as gifts under cars and by front doors. Several people on at least two streets fed him. An old couch sat in our garage waiting for a dump run, and he decided it was a comfy spot to catnap. I was so grateful for all of the mice he was catching I allowed him the privilege of sleeping on our holey couch. I even petted him a few times (running straight inside afterward to scrub my arms and change my clothes).

One night, I noticed he was in our garage when it was time to lock up. He looked cozy, so I decided it wouldn't hurt for him to have a sleepover. Then my kids started praying for him: "We're so thankful for our cat boots, and that he catches mice..." Oh bother. Now, I'm afraid he's become a permanent fixture. The other day I bought my first bag of cat food. I now feed Boots 2X a day. When our couch went to the dump, I sacrificed one of our soft blankets for a cat bed. I make sure to let him out first think in the morning, and I open the garage a crack during the day so he can come and go freely.

Last week, when a neighbor girl asked if we had taken our cat to the vet yet, I felt an anxiety attack coming on. I have definitely not hit that level of commitment yet. But with the changes I've made in the last few months, who's to say.

He's a smart little cat with a festive sense of humor. Just look at where he left his gift for us this morning.

Church Responds to HRC Petition

Church Responds to HRC Petition

Please remove last name!

Hi, Readers! If you happen to have a link to our blog which contains our last name, would you please remove it? I've tried to keep our identifying information out of the blog, but noticed that our last name is listed on a few connecting blogs. THANKS!!

Important Family News

TOP 10


1. We have finally documented our enlarged family of 7. (Thanks Lexie!)



2. Maxwell has been growing like a milkweed. He is almost 6 months old and full of fun energy.





3. Swen and I celebrated 13 years of marriage.




4. Our annual camping trip was a huge success, in spite of me having sinusitis and bronchitis (talk about nasty). We had a great time touring Flaming Gorge Dam, swimming, exploring, listening to books on tape, and eating yummy food. Two bonuses to being sick while camping are: first, I couldn't smell the bathrooms at all. And second, I couldn't taste the s'mores, so I had celery for dessert instead. I lost 8 lbs. over the course of the 8 weeks I was sick. There is a silver lining to all trials, folks.







5. Ike caught about 847 fish @ Flaming Gorge, enjoyed his first week-long Boy Scout camp, and he started Jr. High. His mom was a wreck on the first day, but he was his usual nonplussed self.





6. Lincoln ate a giant marshmallow that was almost as big as his head. He loves to help me while the 3 biggest kids are at school. He makes me laugh every day.



7. After waiting her WHOLE life, Alyssa started Kindergarten. We now have daily conversations in which I try to convince her that she loves it and she has to go or I'll get in big trouble (and she wouldn't want that, would she?).







8. After I spotted this photo on the cover of an important gossip magazine, Swen was forced to admit to a hidden life as a secret service agent.





9. Joe has launched a duel career as a professional wrestler and comedian. His pseudonym is "Flawless Diamond," as the shirt suggests. He has to keep a low profile, because the kids in his fifth grade class know him as an extra smart, extra nice kid. In spite of his busy lifestyle, he finds time to be helpful in the kitchen and with Max.





10. And last, but certainly not least, we have finally upgraded our couches. Nothing too fancy for our expert destruction artists. We got this baby off KSL for $125! When the arm of our old couch ripped and Swen applied the packing tape, I drew the line. It already looked embarrassingly bad, but packing tape? Seriously, honey. I know we've learned that nothing lovely lasts in our home, but we have to maintain at least a minimum level of dignity, right?

Lately...

I have been way too busy to post the last 2 months. Oh, you want to know what I've been doing? Pretty much sitting right here, nursing my baby.



BUT--my hard work has paid off. Maxwell is getting nice and plump.



Last Sunday, we enjoyed a triple baby blessing with his 2 cousins, McKay and Brennan, who were born within a few weeks of Max. We blessed them in order from fussiest to most content, which meant that Maxwell went first. He's the fussiest baby I've had, which has made life a bit frustrating at times. But, his smiles are so adorable and they make all of the difficulty worth it.











Sunday was such a wonderful day. Not only did we get to enjoy being near tons of family, but we were also able to experience something amazing with Isaac.

He received the Aaronic Priesthood and was ordained a deacon. Swen gave both Max and Isaac beautiful blessings.



Last weekend we also enjoyed a family reunion with my side. 6 of the 7 Tadje kids were able to come with their spouses and kids. We had 38 people staying in a huge cabin that we rented. 14 adults, 24 kids 15 and under, 18 boys, 6 girls! We really missed Carolyn and Nate and their 5 1/2 kids, which would have brought the total number up to 45.5. AWESOME!!! We went on a nature hike, played games, talked, and ate a lot of good food. I think the most memorable game we played was fear factor. In one of the events, each team picked one rep to lie on a plastic sheet and schmeer whipped cream all over his face. Then the team members took turns standing at their feet throwing Cheeto-puffs. The team who was able to stick the most Cheetos to the face of their rep. won the event. It was totally hilarious. It was also funny afterward to see the children without manners (mine) picking up wayward cheetos off the deck, dipping them in the cream on the reps' faces, and eating them for a little snack.








This week, we've been trying to figure out how to handle summer. Now that I'm an adult I admire my mom (and feel sorry for her) for the way she handled me during the summer. I was seriously a bump on a log. One time she asked me what goals I wanted to set for the summertime. Sprawled out on the couch with a book in hand, I answered, "Oh, I'm fine. I like it just the way it is." What a lazy bum! I'm afraid I'm not as patient with my own children. If they're not accomplishing something, I feel myself start to have nervous twitches. I'm trying to strike a happy medium between relaxation and productivity. The last few years, we've used the pouch system. I made pouches with 2 pockets--a "to do" pouch, and a "done" pouch. As soon as all of the cards in their "to do" pouches are in the "done" pouches, they can have fun for the rest of the day. That's not too harsh is it? The trick is to enforce it, which I'm hoping I can handle. My sis and her 5 kids are coming to stay with us tomorrow, so we're starting on Monday. Wish me luck! The silver lining is that we can hopefully go swimming every day once jobs are done, so the house can stay clean for longer than 5 minutes. We're usually good at keeping to a schedule for the first little while, but it slowly fizzles out as I get more used do the slow pace of summer. Just when I'm there, it's time for school to start again. :)

Do any of you have good ideas about how to handle kids in summer?

Our Little Sweetie

*Pics taken by Max's Aunt Amie--Thanks!

He's Here!

We are excited to present Maxwell David:

He joined our family on April 6, 10:48 a.m. He was 7 lbs. 12 oz, 21 inches tall. The significance of the day was overwhelming to us. Instead of sharing a birthday with his dad, like we had hoped, he is able to share a birthday with our Savior. Such a beautiful thought.

It was an emotional first meeting. He is so sweet and perfect in every way.

Here he is meeting the rest of the crew:

The kids have been looking forward to his arrival with much anticipation. Even before he began growing within me, they asked almost daily when they would be able to have a new brother or sister. He is very well loved already.

Meeting Grandma and Grandpa H.

Meeting Grandma and Grandpa T.

Today he is 2 days old, and we brought the kids home from their grandparents' house so we could be together. For a while, I have been feeling like someone is missing in our home. Now I know why I felt that way. Maxwell is here now, and we feel complete.