The Washington Hokansons

Happy Birthday Frans...

2011-11-09T08:02:00.001-08:00

Frans turns 9 today! Wow time really does fly by. Frans is such a fun boy to have in our family. He is so full of joy & life you can't help but smile at him. He played football for the first time this year and just loved it...then again Frans loves everthing even if he isn't the best one out there. I have a feeling that this attitude is going to take Frans very far in life. Frans' team was the Connell Eagles and he played on the line as he is one of the bigger kids.

Frans got his wolf badge in September. He loves cub scouts and has a great time with all the other boys. He is always excited to pass off things and earn new beltloops & badges. I hope this continues as he gets into Boy Scouts and works toward his eagle.

Frans is always joking around with his siblings and playing pranks. He has grown 4.5 inches since June this year. We hope he will be tall but you never really know.

Frans and Bode are best friends. Frans always is asking for Bode to come over to our house. They pretty much have been this way since Kindergarten.

Even when Bode accidently cut Frans & he got 4 stitches...Frans still said Bode was his best friend. I am glad Frans has such a good friend. Occationally Frans and Bode get into a little mischief but I guess that is to be expected Boys will be boys I guess. These two boys will be fun to watch grow up together & see how they turn out. Happy Birthday Frans--we love you!

Molly gets glasses!

2011-10-02T19:52:00.001-07:00

Molly got glasses last monday, she absolutely had to have these glasses...good thing our insurance paid for most of them. They are purple & pink & have a diamond heart on the side. Molly was so excited. I will give her another month or so before she doesn't think they are so great. The eye dr thinks she may stuggle with her vision...apparently taking after me with my terrible eyesight. He said it was genetic...great. She is pretty cute in them & having a great year so far in first grade. Molly definitely keeps us & her brothers on our toes!

"I did it!"

2011-09-14T14:14:00.001-07:00

Haylee did a Trek this year with our Stake & the Pasco Stake (which used to be our stake until we split). I have to admit that we (ok me) were really worried about sending Haylee. Most of you know that she has some learning disabilities and with that some physical limitations. We asked Haylee if she really wanted to go before hand & she told us yes. We then started having her walk 2 miles everyday (begining at the end of June). Then I found out that they would be doing about 7 miles a day for 3 days. I began to get worried again. After much thought we decided to go ahead and send her on the Trek. Her "ma" called the night before the trek & I cannot thank her enough for calming my fears. Oh, how very glad I am that Haylee went! She had to come back one night early as my grandpa passed & I wanted her to go to the funeral. When she got home--dirty from head to toe & quite frankly a mess--she said, "I did it! I did it!" "No one had to pick me up and take me back to camp! I walked the whole way." As I think of the very good lesson Haylee & I learned from this tears come to my eyes. Yes, she did it! And through Jesus Christ we can make it back to our Father in Heaven & say, "I did it! I did it!"

Haylee & her Trek "ma"--I cannot thank her enough for being there for her.

Mikaydi is in KINDERGARTEN!!

2011-09-06T11:15:00.001-07:00

Today is Mikaydi's first day of Kindergarten & she was so excited. Owen (in 6th) was like "Oh, man if only she knew what homework is really like...she wouldn't ever want to go." I had to laugh what a typical kid response. Owen was excited to help her on to the bus though. Molly was very excited Mikaydi gets to go as well. I can't believe my baby girl is going to school...time seems to be flying. I only have one more at home & Jax thinks its great. He has been lying around in his underwear all morning watching his movies. In a day or two I expect he will be bored of that and looking for me to start playing with him. Mikaydi is so excited to be able to ride the bus with her syblings--in fact she did not want me to take her today. She wanted to ride the bus with "Molly". All I can do is hope that I have taught her everything she needs to know from "Momma School" & she can be a good student & friend & example.

New School Year 2011-2012

2011-08-30T08:47:00.000-07:00

Frans, Molly, Owen....Frans 3rd grade, Molly 1st, Owen 6th...Mikaydi starts kinder next week. Everyone is so excited for school to start. Frans & Molly the most excited. Owen excited to be a 6th grader not excited for homework...neither am I to tell the truth. I am a mom that HATES homework. For some reason I have to sit right next to each child (with the exception of Frans) and make sure they do it. When you have 5 kids in school that is a lot of time. Jeepers--that is a depressing thought. On the good side I get to have all my kids in school & I get to entertain Jax all day (Oh, wait is that supposed to be a good thing?) ! It is amazing how life keeps progressing and moving forward--if we are ready or not!

Here is Haylee on her first day of 8th Grade.

She is panicked because she is late...

Apparently, this year will be like last year...no matter what time I wake her she is always late. Ahhh teenagers! Haylee has decided she really like boys...after the guys camping next to us this summer showed an interest in her. Wow--big difference in how they care about appearance when they are interested in boys. In February she will be 14 and gets to go to dances (really are we really talking about that already?) Well I know it is a good thing for her but a tiny part of me is scared out of my ever living mind!! Who knows what else this year will bring?

Update

2011-07-24T15:51:00.000-07:00

The closer we get to August the closer the summer comes to an end. We have been so busy this year. I can't seem to keep up with everything that has been going on. Right now I am working cherry harvest & working at the library & kind of sleeping during the day. The only slow day is Sundays--which is a nice break from the grind. The nice thing is that Cherry's only last around 2 weeks & I get a nice big check at the end to (of course) pay for school supplies and our AC being fixed. Yes our AC was broke for awhile...actually now that its so cool in the house I don't think it ever worked right since we've been living here. The kids are good though--surviving the insanity of mom working so much. Haylee is getting ready to go on her Trek & I am glad that we aren't going as a family this time (I don't think I've got it in me). Jax turned 3 on June 30th I was going to post pictures but somehow I have no idea what happened to them and I don't have time to look right now so I will try to post those later. The biggest problem at our house right now? Jax keeps beating up Molly & Mikaydi--seriously those girls need to learn to defend themselves. I am not saying we should just have an all out brawl but Jax is quite a bit younger than they are & probably wouldn't hit them if they should him he'd get hurt back. If anyone missed Owen, Frans, and Molly's talent show videos they are on my facebook page & youtube. They were also in the paper--a picture of Owen playing the guitar & a nice article about how Frans's enlargerator machine (and I quote) "brought down the house." It was fun to have them in the paper. So as bugs bunny always said, "th-th-thats all folks" (it was bugs bunny right?--I am way too sleep deprived!)

Looking for...

2011-02-24T14:54:00.000-08:00

Ok so Owen and Frans both want to do the talent show in their school this year and I think, "Great I have to come up with something for them to do." (I know bad mom moment) Anyway I was looking on Youtube and on the net for ideas. So far not much that I can think of...I was thinking maybe of doing the "Dance Evolution" (if you have not seen it just Youtube it--FUNNY) and asking to see if any 5th graders want to do it with Owen (it would be a little much for Frans). Am I crazy?? Or do any of you out there have any ideas on what we could do that would be fun and not boring? Owen will be playing his guitar, but thought it might be fun for him to do the other too. I am looking for your opinion so please post!! Thanks!

Mikaydi's Birthday Party

2011-02-20T20:15:00.001-08:00

Mikaydi is turning 5 this week! I can't believe it. She invited four of her friends over to help her celebrate. She was so cute and had such a good time. She is ready to go to kindergarten, she says "I am five now so I get to go to kindergarten with Molly, right?" Of course I had to explain to her that she had to wait til September to go to school. Mikaydi is growing up to be such a sweet and kind girl. She is always helpful and loves to play with her siblings. Her and Owen still share the very blonde hair, and blue eyes. I just can't believe how much she has grown up and changed this year. I also can't believe that 4 years and 50 weeks ago we almost lost her and she was life flighted to Sacred Heart in Spokane--it seems like just yesterday. How blessed we are to have been able to keep her with us. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIKAYDI!

Trying out Couponing

2011-02-20T19:57:00.000-08:00

Okay so I keep hearing about how people get these amazing deals by couponing so for 2011 I am trying it out. I have to say it is awesome! It is great how you can really get so much with out spending a lot. I am trying to get my year supply in "household" items this year completely by couponing. Hopefully I will remember to occationally take a snapshot and post a blog about my finds. Yesterday (Saturday) I got what you see pictured here, which includes, 20 Axe deoderants, 16 bars of dial soap, and 3 dial body wash--and I spent a whopping $12 out of pocket and recieved $25 in register rewards (I get to take that amount off my next purchase). Isn't that AMAZING?!!

Mikaydi's Goes to Preschool

2010-09-09T09:44:00.000-07:00

Mikaydi started preschool on Wednesday. Her teacher is Mrs. Gray and she is so excited to be going to school (I think she like's being away from Jax too). She is hoping her friend Kali will be going too, but we don't know yet. Being without Molly has thrown her for a loop--she isn't used to being boss. It is nice to see how much Molly and Mikaydi love each other and how excited they are to see each other at the end of the day. I am amazed at how fast my kids are growing up.

Molly Starts Kindergarten!

2010-09-07T14:07:00.001-07:00

I feel kind of bad for Molly--she has these two older brothers that won't quit teasing her. She wanted to take a picture (just like Haylee Owen and Frans did earlier) and they couldn't stop with the bunny ears...she was almost in tears. Once we got over the teasing boys she is here waiting for the bus--so excited and nervous. She had to sleep with her shoes in her bed, so she didn't lose them! She was very cute and Dad even came by to watch her get on the bus, that made all the difference. Dads are the best!

School/Football Begins

2010-09-02T13:54:00.001-07:00

Frans 2nd Grader!!
His goals for this year: Get baptized, have Bode over to spend the night, get his AR prizes (advanced reader)
Haylee 7th Grader Her goals for this year: Wear make up everyday, play volleyball, make friends, have a social life (go figure) :)
Owen 5th Grader His goals for this year: Play Football, wrestle, and baseball. Learn to rock the guitar for talent show (in the spring), play trumpet in band. (Obviously this kid has some Hokanson musical talent--and Yorgesen athletics)

Owen's first Football game he is number 12. He is working hard to catch up to the other players that have been playing for 2 or 3 years. (Of course its all my fault I wouldn't let him play when he was 8!)

And I thought the Summer was busy...

2010-09-02T08:20:00.000-07:00

The summer just flew by and I really thought, "man the summer is so busy it will be nice when school gets in." Well let me just tell you what we have going on right now...Owen--Football, piano, guitar, band, scouts, school. Frans--soccer, piano Haylee--Jr. High, volleyball, young womens. Molly--school, soccer. Mike--work, scouts, domestic water Me--work, kids, house
Okay how did I think the summer was busy?? I am not sure how I am going to be everywhere all at once this fall--too bad I am not Mrs. Incredible!

Reptile Man @ BC Library

2010-06-30T14:13:00.000-07:00

Had so much fun with the kids watching the reptile man. Molly was so excited about touching everything it was funny--she even told her friend Preston "hold my hand if your scared, I'll protect you." Such a fun thing to do at the library--in a couple of weeks they will be having the WSU Raptors and I think that is with different kinds of birds and stuff.

Update...

2010-05-25T11:11:00.001-07:00

Okay so here is an update on everything that has been going on. Owen, Molly and Frans are all done with baseball. Owen is pretty sad about that but oh, well. If you will notice the pictures of Molly in T-ball--my daughter the dandylion smeller! I finally put her on 3rd base and all she does is sit down. :) Frans got a mosquito bite and it swelled his whole eye. We bought more repellent. Haylee went to her jr. high orientation and talk about excitement we almost couldn't contain it ("did you see how many boys there are?"). Haylee is definitly noticing boys but Mike makes sure to tell her how disgusting boys are. (Lucky for us mainly we talk about Edward or Jacob). The whole crying because "my shirt I want to wear isn't cleaned" is about to drive me insane but I am hanging in there. Jax still isn't talking too much but really why should he when he's got 5 siblings to bend to his every need? He is definitely the king around here. Molly is all registered for Kinder and she doesn't understand why she can't bring her blanket. I asked her well does Haylee carry a blanket to school? Her reply, "Haylee doesn't NEED her blanket like I DO!" I guess she's a little nervous about school. Mikaydi is loving having Dana around because she doesn't boss her around and they play really well together. She is always asking if Dana is coming today--too bad they are moving at the end of the week to Vegas.

Owen Gets Contacts

2010-04-01T09:49:00.001-07:00

Owen has contacts now. Sorry I have two of the same pictures but I cannot figure out how to delete it so oh, well. Owen has finally joined the ranks of contact wears. He told me last night before he went to bed: "I'm a contactor now!" He is loving it. I think it make him feel more grown up. I am happy to report it only took him 30 minutes to get them in this morning. Haylee tried to get contacts but was unable to put them in so she gets one more chance next week to tried to put them in (in front of the contact lady) or she won't get them for a couple more years. Many people might ask why get Owen contacts at age 10 1/2...well he will need them for football in the fall and he doesn't like wearing glasses while he has a helmet on for baseball this spring. I will tell you what he needs to see in order to have any change to hit a baseball. Mikaydi came up to me today and said, "I can touch my eyeball!" Then she proceeded to touch her eye. Molly says that she wants to be like Owen--"he's so cool!" It has been a fun experience to watch. Congrats Owen!

Jax, Poop, Molly and Mikaydi's Room

2010-01-31T18:42:00.000-08:00

Okay if the title doesn't scare you--well you should be scared to read the following it is not for the faint of heart. I was gone on Jan 22 to mom's house to scrapbook for Friday and Saturday. Just know that I did not go to sleep until 4 am. I got home on Saturday at 2:30 pm. Mike was in bed--sick (he says). I knew it was going to be bad but nothing could of prepared me for what was waiting at home. I walk in and the dinning room floor has cereal (I mean like a whole bad) all over the floor, dishes piled everywhere...just imagine the biggest mess you've ever seen and triple it. Not to mention it smelled like fish through out the house (I can't stand the smell of fish). Even though I am tired I roll up my sleeves and dive into cleaning the kitchen all the while talking calmly to my children encouraging them to clean the rest of the house while I am cleaning the kitchen (Okay you know and I know that it wasn't quite like that). I pinesol'ed the kitchen and soon had it smelling like lemons instead of fish. As I was finishing the kitchen I told Owen to go and help Molly and Mikaydi pick up their room. Owen says, "uhmm, well what about the poop?" WHAT?!! I tell him to clean up the poop spot and move on. A few minutes later Molly and Mikaydi are playing in the dining room and I tell Molly to get in her room and pick up all the toys. She says, "Well theres like kind of a lot of poop around." I decide that maybe I should take a look. Let's just say Jax had his diaper off probably for awhile. There was poop on the bed, poop on the floor, poop on the bouncey horse and I think you get the picture. I asked Haylee and Owen what happened and they told me: "Well Jax kept taking his diaper off so we just let him." Are you kidding me? It was not like Molly's room was even closed to being clean in fact it was just as big a mess as the rest of the house. I got the pinesol and scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed down the girls' room. Completely disinfected--so I guess it has come to the stage where poop is the new play-doh. All Jax does is give you his cute smile and pulls his diaper off--cute is definitely deceiving!

Mikaydi Sleeping

2010-01-13T15:14:00.001-08:00

Okay just a quick funny...Mikaydi likes to crawl into my bed in the morning (mostly because she is cold). A lot of the time I will get in with her (after the kids have gone on the bus) and never fail every morning she falls back to sleep. The thing is when you sleep with Mikaydi she has some serious leg moving going on. She throws her legs around like little feelers (you know feeling around for stuff) and once she feels your body, with her feet, then she sucks herself close to your own body. She pushes her little bum into your side and wiggles til she gets comfortable. The thing is its generally the most uncomfortable thing for you though. Oh, if she weren't so cute I couldn't handle it.

New Floors

2010-01-10T20:23:00.001-08:00

First of all I can never figure out how to get pictures on to the blog the way I want so if it seems like my pictures all in weird order then its because I am retarted. Here is the new office flooring. It makes it alot nicer for moving around in our chair. The kids actually helped out a ton--really they weren't always in the way. Mike thinks the must be union workers though because they kept asking for a break...it was funny. It was nice that the project got finished so quickly. Not a big space but I think Mike learned alot by doing this. Now maybe I can scrapbook more...

Directv Stinks!

2009-11-30T18:33:00.000-08:00

Okay so all of you readers out there I want you to know if you have a choice between Directv and Dish please choose Dish network!! I am currently stuck in a contract with Directv. The only channels Mike and I like are TLC, Discovery, Food Network and Hallmark. Should I have to pay $55.00 for four channels?? Apparently! Oh and by the way you will get MTV and all sorts of crap channels that will distroy your kid's lives. But hey you can lock the channels (why pay $55 for four channels?) kids these days can't break the codes. I have been told that Dish Network will swap channels so please go with them. Plus Directv's support is seriously lacking. First I call and talk to Harrison (real names are used if you want badge numbers please email me) who tells me that his supervisior is way to busy to talk to me--WHAT? I tell him if they are too busy then your company has a problem. So I take his name and ask for his badge number and tell him I am writing down that he won't let me talk to a supervisor. Hey guess what I got to talk to his too busy supervisor Ashley (yes real name). She tells me she can help me and I am very grateful but in the end she can't she gives me this package that cancels the good channels like food network and hallmark and gives me channels like Comedy Central (dirty jokes and all) but it does have TLC and discovery. We discover this after I hang up the phone. So I call back and of course there is no possible way to talk to the same people even if you have their names and badge numbers. I get to talk to Mark who gets me to his supervisor right away (one good point), Nancy. Nancy can't help me out at all they don't do anything like that the only channel they offer alacart is some obscure channel like outdoors man. She can't give me any help all she repeats to me over and over again is "contact directv at directv.com" and leave some suggestions. Or she can send me a list of channel packages and prices--are you kidding me!! Please people go to DISH NETWORK!!!! I will be the minute my contract is up and trust me if I could afford to I would cancel today! If anyone would like to leave comments about their directv experience I will forward it on to directv.

The Honesty of 5 year olds!

2009-10-26T20:34:00.000-07:00

Okay so Molly turned 5 this month and along with it apparently she has found the wonderful tact only a 5 year old can have. You all know it things like--"Uh, oh that lady is in big trouble she drew all over her arm!" (Tattooes) Of course she doesn't say this quietly. Then there is always the people who are smoking outside the stores, "Oh man smoking is BAD! That means he is a bad man, gross!" Of course the guy was actually nice and said, "your right smoking is bad." On our way into the store. My personal favorite---we are at Wal Mart in the cold section. The next thing I know Molly yells (and I mean yells) "Hey that guy's crack it showing!" I look up and see this guy bending over trying to choose eggs (like its a tough decision or something). I am trying not to laugh while thinking to myself "more like a half moon" lets just say I quickly turned the cart around and went the other way. Trying not to laugh the whole time. I shouldn't forget that just this evening Mike told Molly she needed to pick up the dining room. Her response "I don't want to be Cinderella---she's a cleaning lady!" Apparently asking her to clean is treating her like Cinderella. Ya gotta love this stage in childhood it brings lots of embarassing looks but also lots of laughs for later years!

Frans and his spider trap!

2009-10-19T18:10:00.001-07:00

Okay so the other day Frans starts making a checklist. He comes and tells Mike and I that he has a "spider checklist" Of course being the awesome parents that we are we say, "uh huh," and don't think another thing about it. Then the next thing we notice is Frans gathering up all sorts of stuff. A chip, piece of pop tart, peanut butter and at this point we start asking some more questions. Frans what are you doing? "I am making a spider trap" he says. Mike and I look at each other and are like oookay. Then the next thing we know he is climbing up on a chair and picking flies off the fly strip (yes we have fly strips the only way to get the flies under control) Mike follows him and he sees Frans putting all the spider trapings together and asks Frans to explain. I didn't hear the explainations but Mike said it was pretty funny. It ended with Frans putting his spider trap in the laundry room--so spiders won't get into his bathroom. Mike took pictures and then decided to catch some spiders and put them in his spider trap...so far two spiders are stuck in the peanut butter! There is just nothing like a child's own invention. Yeah for imagination!

What was he thinking?

2009-09-13T20:37:00.001-07:00

Okay so I guess start with the bottom picture first! Owen thought it would be funny to put all of his pencil top erasers on his face. It was kind of funny and we all had a laugh until he took them off. Oh, yeah they left like little hickey marks all over his face. The bottom picture was like 3 days ago and the top two pictures are today. Yeah, he still has the marks and they are not fading. I am glad that picture day was last week other wise he'd have picture of pock face boy. I am sure that the school will be calling me tomorrow asking what is wrong with Owen. Good grief I do not understand boys sometimes. What a goof ball!

First Day of School Picts

2009-09-13T20:27:00.001-07:00

Here are some first day pictures of the kids. We are starting on our 3rd week of school tomorrow. Finally the kids are getting into the routine of homework, practicing guitar (owen), and riding the bus. Frans is in 1st grade and a very responsible student--always gets his homework done fast...he might get in trouble if he doesn't. Owen's in 4th grade and trying to deal with the major increase in homework load, he is also excited because he made the top reading group (which also increases the homework load). Haylee is in 6th grade, her last year in elementary school, she is much more into her looks this year. I guess this is a good thing but I am having to adjust to the mom just doesn't understand attitude. She has gotten pretty tall over the summer she is now 5'1 I only have 4 1/2 inches on her! Life keeps moving on at a fast pace for us.

A string of Bad Luck

2009-08-16T22:47:00.000-07:00

Okay so I guess lately I have been feeling like I have a rain cloud following me around! Seriously I have had a huge string of bad luck. First, I woke up in the middle of the night to get Jax a bottle and trip on my brand new laptop cord...it fell and broke out the dvd drive! I had only had it for a total of 3 weeks. I hadn't even tried to use the dvd drive yet. Then a week later I break my brand new cell phone...only had it two weeks! (I get to send the phone back though) Then I read in the newspaper that they found west nile virus on pump access road...the road I LIVE ON! Not to mention the fact we have more moisquitos in our house (Mike takes a fly swatter and kills them every night before bed)--ya think we are at risk?? I mean please what else could go wrong. I haven't dared touch the new ipod I accidently bought off ebay for fear that I will ruin it. I must say I have been obeying the speed limit and such as I am afraid I might get into an accident or something next--or maybe a ticket. Good grief! Here's to hoping I will be much more lucky in the next few weeks--I could use it!

Work, Work, Work!

2009-07-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

Okay so today is really the only day that I have been coherent in the last week. I have been working nights for Cherry harvest. I work from 7 pm til 6 am and then on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays I work down at the library for about 3 hours a day. It hasn't really been too bad staying awake at night. It is just letting the kids go wild all day long that is kind of a problem. As I now can sleep through just about anything during the day. I am glad that it will only last two weeks. Hopefully the kids will survive and me too. I better get to sleep as I have to start work at 1:30 am Monday morning.

Vegas 10's!!

2009-07-10T22:50:00.000-07:00

Okay here are my Vegas 10's:

Top 10 things you must do in Vegas: (Okay I actually have 11 because of a tie)
10. Go to the Buffet at the Wynn
9. Watch the Volcano errupt at the Mirage
8. Walk the Strip at night--people watch
7. See the Bathroom in Le Paris Hotel (and the Hotel is pretty awesome)
6. Walk through the Forum Shops at Ceasar's Palace
5. See the celebrities at Madam Tousouses(spelling??) they are shorter than they look on T.V.
4. Watch someone gamble at the tables--its amazing when you see someone throw down $800
3. See a Cirque Du Solie (spelling?) preformance
2. Tournament of Kings--knights fighting--pretty awesome
1. See the Las Vegas Temple/watch the Fountains at the Belligio

10 Things to Beware of:

10. Traffic on the strip--took us 2 hours to go three miles
9. Casinos are mazes on purpose--look for a map in each lobby
8. If you hear a taxi honking get out of the way or it will run you down.
7. The dealer ALWAYS wins--always! I saw lots of people just waiting for their luck to turn trust me it won't.
6. Be prepared to smell smoke...and smoke...and more smoke-from cigars to pipes to cigarettes
5. Realize that driving a moped, motorized wheelchair, or trike while drinking is a bad idea especially for the other people on the sidewalks!
4. Girls in swimsuits and stillettos--everywhere--give me a break ladies its really not that flattering--seriously (maybe if they were sober they might realize that their butt cheek is hanging out flapping around--gross!)
3. Realize that sometimes its just best not to watch the ads on all the video screens everywhere--ignore it.
2. There will be slimy guys and girls trying to pass out pictures of topless--ugly (I think didn't look so I am just guessing by the amount that was discarded on the ground) women
1. When you sit down at a table take into consideration that it has been known that at some establishments women may have been dancing on said table--therefore wiping their thong clad butt all over said table. Plus the chair you are sitting on has probably been sat on by some chick walking around in her bikini and stillettos when she ate her lunch. I am just saying--not the cleanest part of someone's body being swished around on the table or chair!

For the most part Vegas can be a lot of fun. If you want to find bad it is definitely there but there is also lots of good things to do and you can avoid the bad if you choose to do so. If you decide you would like to take a hand at Blackjack or gambling--do so realizing that you will eventually lose and it is best to try the night or day you leave and bring to the table a dollar amount you are willing to lose and nothing else that way you don't spend you entire vacation trying to get back what you lost. It is best for most of us to just enjoy watching others lose their money and keep yours in your pocket!

Jax's First B-Day!

2009-07-03T09:44:00.000-07:00

Jax is 1! I can hardly believe a year has already gone by. It seems like yesterday that Jax was born and we were so worried he wasn't going to make it. What a miracle it was! He is not walking yet! He is too chicken. We finally got him to stand and Jerry tried hard to get him to walk at his party but no go--he just folds his legs like an accordian. Oh well in his own time. Jax loves cars and he plays like they are cars, with the sound and everything! He even tried to make my water bottle a car. He loves balls--ever since Brick tried to get him to throw him the ball at the Hokanson reunion Jax has been all about throwing and playing with balls! I can't believe this is our last winnie the pooh cake! No more first birthdays for us and I was a little sad at the thought on his birthday but I look forward to so much more fun as our family begins to change from being full of babies to full of pre-teens. What a wonderful life we have!!

$50, 23 Loads, clean laundry...priceless!

2009-07-03T09:32:00.000-07:00

I am finally back to the land of the blog!! We had the Hokanson reunion and in our preperation for everyone to show up Mike loaded all of our dirty laundry into garbage bags and threw them in our room. Really ( I should of taken a picture but wasn't sure I really wanted that picture floating around for postarity) it was so bad that I would walk in our room and think a mouse must of died because of the smell. It was seriously bad, so I had enough! It was time for me to take control of the madness of Laudry. After a discussion with Mike (where we seriously contemplated if our junky washing machine could handle it) we decided I would take all the laundry to the laudry mat in Mattawa and do it all at once! With the help of my angelic mother I was able to complete 23 loads of laudry! All washed dried and folded! It was awesome!! The only sad thing is that when I came home I discovered another 5 to 8 loads left amongsnt the junk in the house! Still there is nothing like the smell of clean laundry!!!

Litttle League Tourament

2009-05-16T18:40:00.000-07:00

Okay so I am not sure how to rotate this picture so look sideways. Notice his dirty face.

Here is Owen's team they took fourth. They did a great job and they were the youngest team there.

Owen did a great job at catcher--I wish I had a picture of him diving for the ball, he did it a couple of times today. I think it must be in his blood! This is why he had such a dirty face in the above picture--a true ball player!

Here is Owen batting and running to first, he had a few good hits today. I think next year we need to work on getting him to relax more at the plate. When he is relaxed he does awesome! He is a very fast runner and a great slider. He gets his toes pointed and was called safe. Todays tournament went smoothly and I thought it was a great day. There were a few things that came up but nothing unmanagable. I really enjoyed the ball today--I love BALL! If I could go back and do it again I would make straighter foul lines. (Ha!) I don't think I will be volunteering to run the tournament next year. I want to coach Frans and Molly in T ball. Ball for the Hokanson's is over for the year. If you want to see more picts check it out on facebook I will put them all there.

Toilet Surprises!!

2009-05-13T19:30:00.000-07:00

Everyday is a new adventure. In fact each time I go into the bathroom its a new adventure...what kind of surprises will be waiting there for me today? Yes, the bathroom the place of choice to play for Jax, Molly and Mikaydi. Of course it might not be so bad if it were in their bathroom but no it has to be the master bath. After all Mom, "its got carpet and its soft!" as Molly tells me many times. The plants are apparently like a jungle for their barbies--oooh what fun. Whats the big deal you say? Well, Jax likes to grab everything and anything and put it into the toilet...its really bad when you really have to go to the bathroom you run in there look down and oh, gee there's a candle, toothbrush (mike's--I hope), candle holder, lego and something that looks like it could of been a card but is now starting to fall apart its really hard to tell. Before you can do your business you have to get everything out of the toilet-which is gross in itself. By the time you get done getting everything out your not only about to pee your pants you also feel like vomiting! Oh, I can't wait for tommorrows toilet surprise! Next time I will take pictures for those of you who don't believe me!

Little League Disclaimer

2009-05-13T08:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, so my blog is intended for family and when I blog a lot of the time I vent out frustrations. Mostly these frustrations are about my kids and the many different troubles they get into. Occationally I get frustrated with other things as well. I am not out to get anyone or make people mad. The little league tournament has made me a bit frustrated but thanks to my writing it is gone over- done -with. Next time I will be more careful what I write or I will make my blog private.

Little League

2009-05-12T20:40:00.000-07:00

Okay so I understand competition, I mean PLEASE, I am a Yorgesen after all. Our family lives for competition so I understand it. But even I don't get some of the crap that goes on in our small town. So heres whats going on...I volunteered ( I know crazy) to organize the L. L. tournaments this year. No problem right, well apparently not. First let me tell you that last year I coached and my team made it to the tournament and we took 3rd. While we were there my team was playing by different rules than all other 3 teams (hard to explain but it has to do with infield balls and "stations") so I get upset everyone tells me 'oh, well you should of known.' Thus this is why I volunteered to run these tournaments as I felt everyone should be told up front.
Back to my story, supposidly I am in charge. I guess that means that everyone that is a coach can call me and tell me who I need to get to ump, because they "know people that know the rules". What the H is that supposed to mean? Like I don't? The problem is that this particular coach had a problem with me umping one of the games her team played. Apparently all she has to do is call the President of the L.L. and that means it all goes her way. What am I doing wasting all my time for? I just have a problem when people start calling me out of the blue and telling me they were told I needed umps that know the rules. I personally thought it would be best to get umps from another town so that there were no favorites being played. Come on...people I coached last year, got all the memos from this years meetings, and I have been ump for a whole bunch of games this year...I think I know what I am doing. Good grief...I guess this is what I get for living in such a small competitive place.

Good Grief--not again

2009-05-01T09:59:00.001-07:00

Okay here we go again...(I tried to publish this and it keeps getting erased!) SO remember when I first started blogging. Molly and Mikaydi and their toilet episodes...well I guess its Jax's turn. He pulls himself up to the toilet and then likes to play in the water--yuck! It is so gross I want to vomit!! I mean it is a miracle that kids don't get diseases with this kind of stuff they do. Jax still isn't standing on his own--he is way to chicken...but he is a crawling machine. He has finally gotten some more teeth up top. Only now he grinds his bottom and top teeth--annoying! It is like someone running their nails down a chalkboard--ugh! But then he gives you this amazing smile and it just melts your heart--how can you possibly get mad at that! I think this little boy has me wrapped around his fingers.

Easter

2009-04-21T09:22:00.000-07:00

Here is Haylee cleaning her room...the kids had to get their rooms cleaned before they could dye easter eggs. (She got to do a few) Owen, Frans, Molly, Mikaydi all had a blast dying eggs.

Owen was consentrating so hard, to get the eggs to look just right--it was pretty funny. Molly and Mikaydi just loved putting the eggs in all the colors. It was a fun day. Later on we had the cousins come out from Mattawa and we all got to run around and play. The kids all got to go and find easter eggs. It is fun to see the older boys, Tyler, Jens, Brayden helping the youngers and then finding their own eggs.

We chained up bear (the dog) and the kids were out there getting him riled up. Mikaydi got caught in the cross fire and bear knocked her into the pond outside...very funny. She didn't think it was too funny until we took her picture. We had a fun day.

Wal-Mart Mayhem!!

2009-04-06T17:20:00.000-07:00

Today Haylee had theropy in Tri-Cities (she has this twice a week) so we are running late, as usual, and Mikaydi would not stay in her car seat (yes, she has learned the hudini tricks). For about 5--okay more like 15-miles I thought of all the possible excuses I could give a police officer. Not feeling like any sounded good or would even work I pulled over and gave her a spanken and told her to stay in her seat. Things got progressively worse throughout the day. A few miles into Tri-Cities Molly starts barfing all the while wailing that she is not sick its the seat belt that did it--"see I shouldn't have to wear it, it squishes my tummy!" I get Haylee to her appointment and tell her to go up on her own while I clean Molly and find the dirty spare shorts that are in the car. I was supposed to do my monthly shopping today but decided against it because of Molly--we will just make a quick stop at Wal Mart for the essentials. From the moment we walked into Wal Mart to well after we left Mikaydi cried, and cried and cried! IT WAS TERRIBLE! I tried to ask her what was wrong and she was crying so hard I could never understand her. This may have been barable or even tolarable except for all the people that kept asking me if these were all my children! I wanted to tell them no I had two more that were in school, but I kept my mouth shut. Of course I was trying to be patient because after all between Molly running down the aisle and Mikaydi crying people were acting as if we were lepers or somehting...I mean woman would squish up against product to avoid us as we walked by--seriously. Haylee whom normally is a big help and her own issues today. No matter where we were she kept running into me--once I even triped over her nearly falling. I kept telling her--you know in a perfectly controlled voice--"stand back away from me!" I tripped over her at least four times while trying to put the groceries into the cart. Then once again-"Are all these your children?" UGH!!! Finally we get to the parking lot and I think 'a last home free!' Until of course Mikaydi, who is still crying, refuses to get into the car. I tell you I think I showed great restraint--I simply said, "okay, stay here then." Walked around got into the car...I knew she had a high pitched scream but I tell you she reached new octives right then, the dogs were howling in the neighborhood--if that gives you any indications. Needless to say she decided to get into the car. I thought for sure she'd go to sleep on the way home--no such luck. She just sulked--but at least it was silent!! Next time I think I will wear a t-shirt that says, "yes, they are all mine and yes I know how to prevent it". People are noisy. One of these days I'll probably be reported to CPS--good grief!

Granny vs the Billy Goat

2009-04-03T10:27:00.000-07:00

Okay this has got to be the funniest thing ever! Peter and ShaRee have this goat...a big goat. In fact it is so big had I seen it before I came into their house I wouldn't have left the car. Its got horns and will charge you. As we were talking about this monstrous goat, my mom (granny) tells us her confrontation with this goat. When the goat came up to her and tried to ram her she just reached out and grabbed the horns! The whole time she's thinking, 'okay, now what do I do?' Then the goat goes up on its hind legs! Its front hooves swinging and yet she is still holding on to its horns! Okay, just close your eyes and imagine this--too bad we don't have video. So back to the situation, not knowing what else to do she kicks the goat in the nards (you know what I mean)! The goat runs away...I can hardly stop laughing as I write this...I can just picture Granny out there doing this...it is way too funny. Way to go Granny!!

"Spring" Break?

2009-04-01T14:40:00.000-07:00

Okay so this is how our spring break is going...cold weather, wind lots of wind and SNOW! If we were in Idaho it wouldn't be that big a deal but we're not! Notice all the junk in the back yard, well we were supposed to be cleaning all that up and doing yard work this week--yeah right! So it looks like we'll have to wait some more before tackling the yard....I bet you can hear my children crying because they wanted to do it so bad (more like cheering)! I could barely get Owen to stay out there long enough for the picture--he was freezing...Mikaydi wouldn't stay outside. I guess this is further evidence of Global Warming...you know the temperature is supposed to actually increase not decrease, right?

Jax

2009-03-18T13:19:00.002-07:00

Here is Jax...yes our sixth child...do you think he likes attention? He loves everyone and anyone who will pay attention to him. Jax has Haylee wrapped around his little finger. All he has to do is wimper and she is right there ready to pick him up. She rocks him and he falls asleep in her arms, she changes his diaper, she feeds him baby food, makes bottles, and makes sure that he doesn't choke on whatever he vacuums up off the floor.
Yes, his wish is Haylee's command. I am not sure what we would all do with out her. Jax is in this stage of eating anything and everything thats on the floor (if you need example look at Mike's blog a few times ago). This wouldn't be a bad thing except no one seems to want to clean the floor so there is lots to choose from for Jax.

He is crawling everwhere...luckily he hasn't discovered the toilet yet. That is definitely a blessing! He loves to rip apart our old VHS tapes...no kidding the other day he had one completely torn apart with tape everywhere! He must get his inginuity from his dad. He definitely looks a lot like Mike, even more so than Frans. It has been fun to watch his personality develop and it is awesome that he is doing much better these days (happy wise). He reminds us of Owen as Owen was a pain in the rump until he could crawl and get around then he was the happiest of kids--seems to be the same with Jax. He is even sleeping in his own bed instead of the swing! On the 30th of this month he will be 9 months old--crazy how time flies.

An update

2009-03-14T16:14:00.001-07:00

Frans had his surgery yesterday. He is doing very good. The doctor said that the fluid he sucked out of his ears was like a thick glue. (No wonder he couldn't hear anything!) He is now bouncing off the walls. Haylee, Molly and Mikaydi had a blast at granny's house. Molly cried and cried because she didn't want to come home (gee I feel great about that). After all the time I spent trying to convince Mike we needed to go on a cruise, and he actually agreed to it, I decided not to do that this year. I know- what a woman I am always changing my mind. There are a few problems with Mike getting time off and us not being able to find the cruise we want, and we decided to do something else with the money. If we want to be able to go to Thanksgiving in Idaho (for the Yorgesen reunion and stay long enough to see the Hokansons) then Mike really can't afford to take a week for a cruise. I am not sad though as we decided I should finally do a program to lose weight and get healthier. So thats what is going on with us and hopefully I will blog soon with picts of Jax.

Strange Visitor

2009-03-11T09:11:00.000-07:00

Okay so we had a strange visitor this morning. First let me say that last night Jax was awake a lot. This morning I was resting on the couch (and talking to Trish) when my little girls woke up came into the family room and start crying. Crying in the morning is not an unusual thing for Molly and Mikaydi as they generally wake up grumpy. Then Molly yells at me, "Mom, LOOK!" I turn around and see a TURTLE! I give a little yelp as I wasn't sure what it was at first. Mikaydi is just crying because she is scared and Molly can't decide if she should be scared or just go pick it up like she really wants to do.

I walk over to the turtle, not wanting to touch it (I guess I'm a weenie, too), and when I look back at the girls they all look like this peering over the couch! Molly kept saying, "Mom, don't let it poop on the floor!" Then she'd say, "MOM, it's POOPING!" anytime the turtles tail and head popped out. Mikaydi cried the whole time.

The turtle was moving pretty quickly. I finally decided to wake Mike up (who'd been sleeping because he'd worked all night) and he came and got the turtle and put it into the tub. How did a turtle get into our house? Well, apparently Mike brought it home when he worked all night and put it in a box in the laundry room. It got out and had crawled, who knows how long, around the house.

Date Night?

2009-03-08T10:38:00.000-07:00

Last night Mike and I had a little bit of a date night before going to our stake meetings. We went to the Red Lobster (for those of you who know me--they do have steak). We get there in plenty of time for us to make our meetings (Mikes priesthood meeting a little earlier than the combined adult session). However, after the waitress brought our salads she seemed to forget about us. I am not sure how she could have as Jax was completely bouncing off the walls, being nosy and talking and eating all the cheese rolls. It took like 45 minutes from the time we got our salads before we got our meal! At this point we know that we are definitley going to miss Mike's meeting. We get our meal and I bit into my steak...and it is like RARE (I guess the sawing through the hide and hearing the "moo" should of gave me a warning). I finish my potatoe all the while looking for our waitress to let her know that my steak is not done. By the time she showed back up I'd decided that if we wanted to make our next meeting then we'd better just go. She boxed it up for Mike (as he likes his steak rare). Then we get to the stake center-early we thought the meeting started at 7 but it didn't start til 7:30. As we are waiting for the meeting to start I start to feel really really sick. I excuse myself and spend the next 15 minutes in the bathroom trying to decide if I should sit or kneel before the toilet. It was terrible! Finally, I get enough courage to go back out and get Mike. I tell him that we have to go home now--I feel way too sick to stay. On the way to the car I heaved several times. With a quick stop for some sprite at Wal-Mart we went home and I spent the rest of the night moaning and in the bathroom, in between Jax being awake as well and Mike being frustrated because he is not sleeping.

Is Santa Coming Tomorrow?

2009-03-06T11:59:00.000-08:00

Okay so what month is it? Oh, yeah MARCH...and yet Molly seems to think Santa is coming. I wonder why she might have this strange idea when we are so close to spring and summer? Perhaps it is the christmas tree still up in our family room? Mike has decided to leave it up all year--"you could decorate it seasonally, you know like with Easter eggs or something." The problem with this is that he is entirely too serious about this. Has anyone ever seen "Everybody Loves Raymond"? For those of you who have, remember the episode with the cheese in the suit case? I'll explain for those who haven't or don't remember this episode...because it has become a symbol of my life. In this episode Ray gets home from a trip for work and refuses to put away his suitcase. Debra thinks he should put it away. So for like two months the suit case stays on the stairs in their house. Each time one or the other passes it they are upset their spouse doesn't put it away. Finally Ray thinking he's going to teach Debra a lesson puts cheese in the suitcase. About a week or so goes by and it starts to smell really really bad. Debra notices and opens the suit case then get mad because there is cheese in the suit case and realizes what Ray is up to. Ray asks Debra if she smells that smell and she says she doesn't and so on so it goes on for quite sometime and is very funny. So apparently the Christmas Tree is our 'cheese in the suitcase' at our house. Mean while Molly keeps asking when Santa's comming with her presents.

Cruise or Hawaii Results...

2009-03-05T14:53:00.000-08:00

Okay so after a long pow wow with Mike we (thanks to you guys) have decided on an Alaskan Cruise if we can get it for the right price. Yes, Mike has relented (after much proof that we can afford it from me) and has given consent to go somewhere...preferably a cruise to Alaska. YEA!!! Can I say it again--YEA!!!! Thanks for your imput and very fun comments. It is always nice to know that someone is reading my blog. Oh, yeah you guys should check out Mike's blog--his latest writings about Jax is pretty funny. YEA! I get to go somewhere with my husband!!! YEA! (Now watch some sort of finacial tragedy will pop up!)

Wrestling Time Again...

2009-03-04T15:15:00.001-08:00

Okay to this first picture is of Frans in his second match in Mattawa last Saturday. His first match he pretty much just rolled over and laid on his back. Before his second match I told him I would give him a dollar if he stayed off his back. He went out there and totally went after it! He got his first pin! Yeah Frans! In his third match he lost on points but he stayed off his back for his second dollar. I guess he needed some motivation besides just winning (whats the fun in that)apparently the right kind of motivation is money for Frans.

This is Owen in his first match, same tournament as Frans, and he did a really good job. It was a tough match up and he won by one point. He went on to lose his second and third matches. He did really well at the begining of both matches but then something happens and he gets frustrated then its all down hill from there. He got pinned the second time and the third match he lost by one point. At the end of the day he had a huge scratch down his face and his eyes hurt from not being able to breath (he got a little choked on the last match). I keep trying to help him learn how to shake it off and move on but its hard to teach that I guess. I am really pleased with both boys and how hard they worked all day. After the second match Owen wanted to quit wrestling, "never do it again!" After a little pow wow with me he deceided that he could go ahead and keep wrestling. I told Owen that if it wasn't fun he shouldn't do it...he still thinks its fun and in fact asked if we could go to the tournament this next weekend. Unfortunately we can't because I have to work and these tournaments are way too much stress for Mike.

Hawaii vs Alaska Cruise

2009-03-04T11:50:00.001-08:00

Okay I am putting this out there so everyone can vote! Which would you prefer an Alaska Cruise or Hawaii, both for 7 days? I am in now desperate attempts to convince Mike of one or the other. If he still won't budge--I think I will just go with my friend Shelly and my Mom! Here's your chance to chime in on which you think would be best!

Blue and White Day

2009-02-27T07:37:00.000-08:00

So here are the boys on Blue and White day! They both wanted to have their faces painted like Bobcats--our school mascott. I think I did a pretty good job considering I used the school T-shirt to do it from and I did it all in about 10 min each kid. I took me longer on the first than the second.

Frans is probably too little to get his face painted like this because he is so wiggly.

We have purposefully not cut their hair because we wanted it to stick up for today. I think its funny that Owen's hair is actually quite curly--and yet all the girls are pretty straight. We hardly ever let his hair get so long so normally Owen's hair appears straight. I personally think his hair looks cool. We had fun!

Spirit Week

2009-02-25T13:00:00.000-08:00

Owen and Frans are participating in their elementary school's spirit week. Today was costume day and they each came up with their own get-ups! I love their imagination. They could of gone as like spiderman or batman but no they came up with this stuff out of our costume bag. I thought they did a great job. These two boys always make me laugh. They love spirit week! I will have to post pictures of them on Friday too as they have some impressive plans for wacky blue and white day. I sure have to be on my toes these days.

Mikaydi's Birthday!

2009-02-24T10:15:00.001-08:00

Yesterday we celebrated Mikaydi's Birthday, she is 3! It seems like just a few days ago that we were so scared that she wasn't going to make it. I am so glad and blessed that Mikaydi is here and part of our family today...we love her! She is always so happy and smiling. She has the sweetest personality ever--always wants to play with everyone and pleasant to be around. She is very imaginitive and loves to get "into things" with Molly. Those two are best friends or not talking to each other. One of her aunts says, "she reminds me of the sun, she is so sunny and bright all the time." It has been fun to watch kaydi grow and her personality develop...she is an important part of our family! Happy Birthday Mikaydi we love you!

Too Tired!

2009-02-23T14:23:00.000-08:00

Okay so I have been recovering from my death cold...at least I hope I am on the recovering end of things. The problem is I am still so tired that I keep making little mistakes through out the day. Like I left a comment on Pearls blog and spelled stuff wrong, forgot where I put my cell phones, forgot where I put Jax's diapers (I just bought) so I had to buy some more, I think I forgot to add something to Mikaydi's cake because it is flat--oops! I can't remember which bills I paid on line and which I haven't...oh and don't forget to put sugar in the juice--it tastes bad I know from experience. I have apparently forgot how to do math--can't seem to help Haylee today--its pretty bad when you stare at 7x8 for twenty minutes trying to figure out what the answer is. I only hope that my cold is gone sooner than later--for the sake of my family....I hope I don't food poison anyone!

Tag Your It!

2009-02-22T21:47:00.000-08:00

8 TV Shows I enjoy watching:
1. Biggest Loser
2. Grey's Anatomy
3. Gilmore Girls Reruns
4. Man V Food
5. Amazing Race
6. The mentalist
7. Man vs Wild
8. Private Practice

8 Things that happened yesterday:
1. Came home early from work because I was sick.
2. Slept--took a nap
3. Read a book
4. Watched my kids completely destroy my house.
5. Tried to figure out the "challenge" for primary kids
6. Went to Wal-Mart to get medicine for Jax and I
7. Laughed
8. Tried to calm Mike's worries (scout pies, messy outside, reunion...etc.)

8 Things I am looking forward to:
1. Mikaydi's Birthday on Tuesday
2. Reunion this summer--seeing the Hokanson's
3. Starting a new book
4. Jax feeling better and sleeping through the night
5. me feeling better and sleeping through the night
6. Summer
7. Going to Jens' play next week with Mike (ooh a date)!
8. Thanksgiving in the Fall---getting together with the Yorgesen Fam.

8 Things on my wish list:
1. to find my missing shoe (perhaps Mikaydi or Molly did something with it?)
2. to find my missing cord for my phone (two girls I predict hid it)
3. Finding time to scrapbook
4. an Alaskan Cruise with Mike
5. a family vacation to disneyland
6. maid service (I'm with Sally on this one)!
7. a scrapbooking weekend with my friends
8. my laundry to be all done at the same time--I don't think this is possible

8 Things Mike did yesterday:
1. watched TV
2. fixed washer machine
3. fixed girls light
4. tried to get the tractor going
5. fixed the a/c heater unit
6. cleaned the utility room
7. watched a movie with me
8. made the kids lunch!

8 People I Tag:
1. Kattie
2. Trish
3. Mike
4. ShaRee
5. Debbie
6. Stacy
7. Karlee
8. Pearl

Molly's Question

2009-02-15T18:59:00.000-08:00

So today for Sunday dinner we were sitting at the table and talking about just everything. Suddenly Molly asks, "is this the cow's butt?" (she was holding up a piece of roast). Everyone gets quiet, except Owen who is trying hard not to laugh. We tried to get her to tell us where she heard that from but she did tell us. She kept asking over and over and finally Mike told her, "its the cows rump, yes." Molly takes a big bite and says "yumm." Who's crazy kid is she?

Valentine's Tag

2009-02-15T18:41:00.000-08:00

♥ How long have you been together? 12 years in April
♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating? A few months
♥ Who asked who out? He asked me.
♥ How old are each of you? He is 37 and I am 32.
♥ Whose siblings do/did you see the most? Mine just because of location.
♥ Do you have any children together? Six
♥ What about pets? We have had several...cats...cows...dogs...fish.
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? Colors of walls
♥ Did you go to the same school? Yes College
♥ Are you from the same home town? No
♥ Who is the smartest? I am...sometimes
♥ Who is the most sensitive? I don't know
♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple? Chinese
♥ Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple? Hawaii
♥ Who has the craziest exes? He definitely does...I only dated sane people.
♥ Who has the worst temper? Me
♥ Who does the cooking? Me
♥ Who is more social? Definitely me...he gets anxious
♥ Who is the neat freak? He is inside but doesn't complain because he doesn't want to do it himself.
♥ Who is the more stubborn? He is.
♥ Who hogs the bed? He does.
♥ Who wakes up earlier? He does when he has to work...I do when he doesn't.
♥ Where was your first date? Watching movies in the cold shed at the land...he wanted to warm me up.
♥ Who has the bigger family? He does 8 siblings tons and tons of cousins
♥ Do you get flowers often? Very rarely...he thinks there a waste
♥ Who is more jealous? If I have to pick someone probably me...but neither really.
♥ How long did it take to get serious? A couple of weeks...we knew it was different right from the start but I was in denial as I was kind of dating someone else.
♥ Who eats more? Him.
♥ Who does/did the laundry? I do--he tries and shrinks clothes.
♥ Who’s better with the computer? Me
♥ Who drives when you are together? He does the control freak.
Tag! You're it!

Spa Day

2009-02-13T19:30:00.000-08:00

Today I took Haylee to the spa for her birthday--which is tomorrow. She got a facial and her eyebrows waxed. She also got her ears pierced! She was so cute all day long--a bit nervous and excitement mixed together I think. I have to say I thought there would be more dramatics when she got her ears pierced but she handled it really well. She just squeezed granny's hand and there was a little teary eyed but no crying or anything. After she got her eyebrows waxed we asked her what hurt the worst and she said "getting my ears pierced". I was glad to here that because she is going to have to go back and get her eyebrows waxed again someday and I don't want her to remember it as the worst thing of the day. We also went and got a pedicure and manicure...it was a fun girl day! I can't believe how much Haylee is growing up and how well she handled everything.

Cheerleading

2009-02-09T20:27:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of Haylee's last time to go to cheer camp for Connell. She loves it and would like to take a cheer/dance class so we will see about that later. Haylee turns 11 on Saturday...I can't believe how big she is getting. She is such a sweet girl...beautiful on the outside and the inside too. We always have such a good time going to the basketball games--I think next year we may have to get a family pass. I love to watch the football too. Go Connell!

LUCKY YOU!

2009-02-08T18:23:00.000-08:00

Lucky you!The first FIVE people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2- What I create will be just for you.
3- It'll be done this year. (might be a little while)
4- You have no clue what it's going to be.It may be a story. It may be poetry, shoes, bags, or a little invention of my own! I may draw or paint something. I may bake you something and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5- I reserve the right to do something extremely strange. Believe me... it may blow your mind!

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must repost this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it!

Grandma's Gift

2009-02-06T14:21:00.000-08:00

So Grandma Hokanson is visiting. She does this point reward system that when you earn enough points you get a prize. Owen's prize was a screw driver. Mike said, "Just don't take anything apart." Next thing we know Owen has unscrewed the sheet rock in Haylee's room (we are just building it). I caught him in the act when I realized they weren't going to bed...I open the door and there Owen is with an incredibly guilty look. I am just glad he didn't get enough unscrewed that it fell down and broke...that would of been bad. The thing is Owen a few months ago got a pocket knife from Granny and Papa Yorgesen and the next thing we knew the strings on the bales of hay were cut...did he learn anything at all? Is this just a boy thing? Thank you Grandma for the gift....I think...or maybe not...I am a little concerned about sitting in any chairs-just in case Owen got them first.

Two Little Tornados

2009-02-04T08:24:00.000-08:00

Okay so Molly and Mikaydi--WOW! Who knew they could be so tornado like...all the time. Any of you having kids out there do not I repeat do not have two girls a year apart. I mean yesterday it was puzzles being knocked down from the closet then picked up and put into the same box. Do you know how long it takes to seperate 400 pieces of like 3 different puzzles? I'll tell you it took forever. Molly is the "boss" and Mikaydi hates it. After about an hour or two Mikaydi finally cracks and it is like WWF wrestling mania--except girl style. Then Molly always comes back to me and tells me, "Mikaydi doesn't like me!" I try to explain that maybe she shouldn't be so bossy but apparently that is just to hard for her little 4 year old mind to grasp. I feel like I bounce from mess to mess to mess! It is twice as bad when they seem to be getting along and their quiet...wait a minute they are quiet right now...Oh they are just playing with knives and matches (ha). Yesterday they decided to take all of the cans off the pantry shelf and make towers...like with blocks. Molly has also decided that if she takes someone's shoes outside with her she can throw it to the dog and make a run for it. Then he doesn't chase her...no wonder no one has matching shoes anymore.

Husband

2009-01-31T21:03:00.000-08:00

Okay so this is Mike's profile picture on his facebook...should I be embarrassed. I mean its a good thing I know his sense of humor and most of you do as well. The thing you all don't realize about those teeth he has is that the front tooth was loose and everytime he would talk or breath it would fling out. Just so you know this is how he dressed up for a host a murder game we had a while back. He was an english pilot. What a goof ball!

Mom, are you like a snake?

2009-01-31T20:53:00.000-08:00

The other night I was in my room enjoying me time. I put on a grape seed face peel you know it makes your skin really shinny and tight. Well there was some crisis with the kids and I come out and tried to deal with it...forgetting that I had this stuff on my face. All kids stop the moment I step out of my room. "Mom what is that?!" So I begin to start peeling it off my face...Frans sits and stares at me and stares at me. Finally he says, "So do you do that a lot?"
"Well, when I have time."
"Oh, well so are you like a snake?" I thinking WHAT? But I say, "What do you mean?"
"If you skin peels off like that then your like a snake...will that happen to me?" Needless to say I laughed and laughed. There he is my paranoid child.

Face Book Vs Blog

2009-01-27T14:11:00.000-08:00

Okay so I gave in and signed up for facebook. I am trying to figure out which is better facebook or blog? Any opinions out there...let me know what you think. I am leaning towards blog just because I know how to use it better. Oh, yeah we got internet so I will be blogging and such more often as time allows me to get to the computer.

Homeschool?!

2009-01-27T13:58:00.000-08:00

I guess the latest news is that I am home-schooling Haylee now. I was talking to the Special Ed teacher and I just had this feeling that Haylee was not getting what she needed at the school. She is so sweet and its easy to forget about her...I am sure that is what was happening at the school...so I called and IEP meeting and told them that I would be taking her out of school the very next day. Thank goodness for Ronda and her help with answering all my questions--or else I would be completely lost. She has been home for a week and a half and we are figuring it all out. I think she thought it would be easy at home and its not...Mom's are a lot tougher than teachers. She starts school at 8 and we finish about 1:30 everyday. Mike is taking care of her science on Fridays. Haylee is a little miffed that she still has to do school on Saturday too but until she gets caught up thats the way it will be. I have to say that this new development is forcing me to be much more organized and stuck to a schedule everyday...I guess that is a good thing. Molly and Mikaydi are a little bit more wild these days but I am working on that. I just feel this has added a whole new level of being busy.

Really Really Bad Week!

2009-01-09T15:06:00.000-08:00

So the WA Hokanson's have started the new year off with a bang! Do you remember in high school when you played sports and the first week (heck week) when they condition and push you to build up your endurance? Well this last week and half has been our own personal heck week. Where do I start...oh yeah. First on Monday (before new years) Mike got into a work truck and wrenched his back and then we went to Tri-Cities...his back getting worse and worse. We stop to get a perscription for Haylee and our Suburban dies...bad like we have to call Mom and Dad to come save us (and Jeff). Mike can't help us get the burb on the trailer so I have to help Dad...let me tell you it was like I was a teenager again...I smashed my thumb in between the chain and the trailer and comes over grabs my thumb, shakes it and says "its not broken," as I am howling in pain. We then take mom's car home and they haul the burb to Mattawa. Mike is laid up until Wednesday (new years eve) and then decided he's well enough to change the tires on the little car...HA! Next thing I know he is crawling into the house in great pain. So he's laid up in bed and I am now in charge of feeding the cows. On the 1st I am making my way to feed the cows and I realize that it is really slippery...I tell Frans and Owen "be careful its slippery." As soon as the words left my mouth I twisted my ankle and fell. I sat in the snow and laughed because I thought it was funny...until I tried to get up and walk. I soon realized I had hurt my ankle really bad as I couldn't walk on it. I had Owen run in and get Mike's walking stick and I still couldn't walk inside so I crawled on my hands and knees across the yard in the snow to get inside. When our home teacher got there Mike hunched over his stick me laying on the floor with a rapidly bruising ankle...we just started laughing...it was either that or crying. We must of looked insane! Okay long story short...I sprained my ankle really bad--Frans (big F) took me to the Doctor--I barely have started walking on it today with assistance from crutches still. The next night we were up at 3 in the morning getting Jax a bottle and Mike hobbled to the sink and turn on the water--no water! Our water froze...the next two night Jax didn't sleep and started having a hard time breathing...turns he has broncitis ( I am sure the spelling is wrong). Things are looking up a bit though. We are thankful for all the awesome ward members bringing us meals and helping us clean...how can anyone live with out the RS and hometeachers?

Family Slide Show

2009-01-09T15:02:00.000-08:00

Okay so the family slide show money and distribution of DVD's is being made by Patty (mom). She is the one that collected the money and is mailing the DVD's so if anyone thinks they need one--call Aunt Patty. I do know that she did give Ann 3 DVD's so (Debbie) maybe you can talk to her about one. Thanks! Jenny

Comments

2008-11-24T20:25:00.000-08:00

Okay so I got a few comments about my memories and I just want to say that nothing is in any particular order. The memories just happened to be what I was thinking about that day. I am going to add some sibling memories though today 1 week later.

I remember that Bret doing the whole Bill Cosby face (with the hands) thing while listening to his walkman...Kattie and I thought he was sooo cool!
I remember all the skiing with Jerry...I looked up to him so I tried anything he wanted me too...shall I say jumps...molgals (I didn't realize what they were when I agreed to go down the hill).
Peter and I have a lot of memories...so good some not so much but I will always remember him running down the hiking trails with me...he made me feel like I was the neatest person in the world that day. I also remember going to the fair with him...riding on his many many different rafts and trying out his forts.
Kattie and I have a lot of memories probably because we're the only girls...I remember racing Robert and we beat him...fun but only now do I realize how dangerous.
Frans...ahhh the pesky little brother...I remember scaring him and Tim to death on several occasions...or when he broke my arm...when we would watch a movie Frans, Peter and me (I think it was the Trinity or something like that trilogy) we would die laughing. I remember him snoring in church as a kid.
Yes I have a ton of memories and not all of them involve accidents. Just thought I throw these out there today.

Birthday

2008-11-17T11:24:00.000-08:00

So it was my birthday yesterday so I thought I would write a bit about me. Since I am 32 here are 32 things:
8 wishes

1. To get out of debt
2. Get Skinny
3. Go with my kids to Disneyland or World
4. Go on a cruise with Mike (no kids)
5. Get Haylee’s IEP team to actually get her what she needs
6. Have a scrapbooking weekend
7. Get all the kid’s scrapbooks up to date
8. Have the entire house stay clean for a week (as long as I’m wishing why not go for gold)

8 things I am thankful for

1. I am alive
2. My testimony
3. My kids
4. Mike
5. My house—even if its not clean
6. I have a car
7. My bed
8. My Extended Family

8 Memories

1. Playing on the Potato Digger
2. Riding in Popcorn (potato truck) with my Mom
3. Falling off the edge of the pick-up waking up with Dad taking care of me
4. T.P.ing with my friends and Mom
5. Leon falling on his back in the shop
6. Sleeping on the trampoline
7. Swimming in the pond…ditches
8. Dad’s annual hike of Death

8 things I look forward to in the future

1. Being a grandma
2. Being able to attend the temple weekly
3. Seeing my kids get married in the temple
4. Spoiling grandkids
5. Traveling with Mike after we retire
6. Going on a mission
7. A clean house
8. Seeing the bottom of the laundry bucket

After Church Mayhem

2008-11-17T11:22:00.000-08:00

After church is over we are always anxious to get home…so we race to the car. Well this particular Sunday (Nov. 9th) Frans and Owen went to get Frans’ birthday treat from the bishop and the rest of the kids and I went to the car to wait for them. We waited for awhile then I turned to Haylee and said that I would be right back I was going to look for Frans and Owen. After I find Frans and Owen and tell them to hurry I go back to the car (with a teacher in tow—as he was getting something from my car) as I turn to go out the doors I see Haylee. I ask her what she is doing and of course she had to go to the bathroom. I begin to run out to the car as this leaves Jax, Molly and Mikaydi alone in the car---TROUBLE! I get to the car and they had locked the doors. Of course I thought Molly would be able to open the doors after all she is four. I flag down Trish and so here we are: Trish, Stefan (teacher), me and the older kids all trying to get Mikaydi or Molly to open the door. Somebody should have been videoing this as we may have won ten thousand dollars on AFV. Molly would keep hitting the L button but not the U for unlock. I send someone in to get Mike and he comes out and commands Molly to hit the U button—okay she is only four and I know for a fact she doesn’t know what U is. Meanwhile Jax just starts screaming and I am trying to get Molly or Mikaydi to give him his bottle. Finally Molly just pulls the latch to unlock the back door…victory we got in. Never a dull moment in the lives of the Hokanson’s!

Disneyland

2008-11-17T11:00:00.000-08:00

Here are Owen’s Disneyland picts. He loved going with Granny and Papa. I told mom and dad that I wished they were my grandparents. His favorite ride was the tower of Terror and the Indiana Jones Ride oh and Space Mountain and … well you get the point. He had fun. Thanks Granny and Papa!

Halloween

2008-11-17T10:52:00.000-08:00

Here we are at Halloween. I went as a very tired Mom, Mike went as a KGB agent, Haylee was a witch, Frans was Darth Vader, Molly was a witch, Mikaydi was a princess, and Jax a pumpkin. We missed having Owen there but knew he was having fun at Disneyland. I love Halloween it’s the only time of year you can really dress like a freak and no even bats an eye!

Mikaydi the Artist

2008-11-04T16:49:00.000-08:00

Okay so since I've been working Mike has been babysitting. See what happens when Dad is in charge. Mikaydi the artist.

Don't you hate it when...

2008-11-04T16:42:00.000-08:00

Okay so its been awhile but I have been extremely busy. I have started working at the library three days a week and you'd be amaze d how much time 10 hours really takes up. As you know we have been trying to potty train Mikaydi. I wanted to take some drastic measures and hose her down if she had an "acident"...Mike wanted us to be patient and loving. I didn't buy this type at all. I hate to admit it but after two weeks Mike's method has worked Mikaydi hasn't worn a pull-up, except at night and church, for about a week. Don't you hate it when your husband it right...ugh! I much prefere the I told you so side of things.

Frans's Underbite

2008-10-07T15:07:00.000-07:00

Okay-so the last month I've taken Owen, Haylee and Frans all to the orthodontist. This Dr. Ostler's place seems to be the happening place. We always see someone there that we know...yesterday we saw Austin Ashton. He was cute...I couldn't remember his name and I said hey you look familar. He says "Me?" I say "what's your name?" "Austin" "Yeah thats right your dad is my cousin." Yes the orthodontist is the place to see and be seen appparently. Now why don't I have ortho Insurance??? Apparently both Haylee and Owen may need braces but probably not until 7th grade. Frans on the other hand has a underbite and they want to try and put him in head gear and a metal thing in his mouth...if I think he can handle it without too much anxiety--yeah right! We don't know what we are going to do yet. This 50% chance working head gear is only going to cost $2100 and that is only for stage one...if it works. Yeah we have to think about this. I am personally most worried about Frans's anxiety---of course this would happen to the kid that is so scared of everything.

The Phantom Urinater Revealed!

2008-10-07T15:04:00.000-07:00

Well, we have solved the mystery of the Phantom Urinater. On Saturday night (or maybe Sunday) Mike walked into the laundry room and started shouting. I came running in to see a Tupperware container filled with pee—GROSS! We immediately call Owen and Frans back to the room and start an investigation. Owen was very, very sure he didn’t do it—so he claimed. Frans was all denial too. What are parents to do when they know one of these boys did it but can’t be sure who? Mike asks Frans, “What is that?” “I don’t know.”
“Well, should you drink it?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“It’s yellow.” Frans is starting to move from side to side—suspicious!“Did you pee in here?” The truth begins to come forth as Frans shrugs his shoulders. Being the extremely paitent and loving mother that I am say, “Oh, just spank the truth out of the both of them! And when you find out who did this boy are they going to get it!” I then turn to Frans and Owen and speak strongly (never yell-right?), “This is your only chance to tell the truth and then…” Well, I am not sure if it was my threats or Mike’s kindness or maybe a bit of both but Frans said, “Okay! I did it!!” Ahhh finally the truth revealed! He was the one that did it all…pee in the shoe, the onion bucket (good thing we figured it out before we used any onions), by the front door, and on the floor in several different locations. Why did he do it? Apparently, Frans is afraid of the spiders in his bathroom so he just went where he felt like it. Mike was so livid that he told Frans that from now on he will kill any spider we find with his bare hand or foot. We are still trying to figure out his other punishment for not telling the truth right away. Poor Owen was given most of the blame up until then—we thought he was sleepwalking and doing it. We had made Owen clean the laundry room more than once because we thought it was him. I hope this is the end of the pee everywhere. Hand sanitizer anyone???

Praying the Smell Subsides Soon!

2008-10-07T15:02:00.001-07:00

We have had a problem with spiders in our house…and I mean really big spiders (about the size of a half dollar). Someone tells me that spiders don’t like moth balls. Thinking that I am just brilliant I get a box of moth balls. I bring it home and decide to put them around our laundry room…trial run right. Of course being brilliant that I am I put on rubber gloves and begin the project. That someone forgot to mention that the first smell is enough to drop you dead on the spot. After some choking and gagging I get the job done. Then I think…maybe I should read the box. I am not sure if it was the 10 different warnings about death or the thought that my kids might think these are candy (probably both) I suddenly didn’t think this was such a good idea. Then I get to the part about handling with extreme caution and being careful not to inhale the fumes…why am I putting this in my house? I guess it’s because the half-dollar size spider, that just crawled over the moth ball, doesn’t like moth balls. Needless to say I started to feel extremely nauseous and woozy so I begin the task of getting all the balls out of the house. By the way this is all at 10:00 at night. I get it done and my clothes smell so bad that I have to immediately put them into the washing machine. Then I go into my room sit in my chair and the ac kicks on and immediately there is moth ball smell infiltrating our room…the ac unit is in the laundry. Needless to say I got extremely ill—puking and all that. Now we have a moth ball smelly house, and a spider crawling on me in the bath tub—no lie, and its been three days…I’m praying the smell subsides soon.

Praying the Smell Subsides Soon!

2008-10-07T15:02:00.000-07:00

The Phantom of the Opera

2008-09-30T17:26:00.000-07:00

Haylee got to go to the POTO in Portland and see it live on the stage. She loved it. She is constantly asking if we get to do it again. I tell her that maybe we will next year. She had lots of fun with her cousins Clarissa and Abby. It wasn't quite so much fun for me as Jax cried most the time. I did get to watch it on the closed circuit tv in the lobby. Haylee also still remembers the Lion King in Australia. She really wants to take her friend Summer to see it. I think maybe that would be a good 12th Birthday--instead of a party? Maybe I'm dreaming. We will see.

The Phantom Urinater

2008-09-24T16:32:00.000-07:00

Do you ever wake up in the morning walk through the kitchen or bathroom step in a puddle of water and think...I wonder who spilt water? Well, I am here to tell you that it may not be water--it might be pee. Yes, I live in a house where children are afraid of spiders and will not use their bathroom because there could be a spider in there. Mike has caught Owen a time or two peeing in the trash can in the middle of the night. We think he sleep walks. Well lately we have been having these puddles appear in places. The other night Haylee was at a football game with her friend and it was getting late so I turned the light on in the front entry for her. By the time she came home there was a puddle of pee in the front entry way...Mike didn't see who and neither did I. We don't know if its Owen or Frans...pretty sure its a boy...if you know what I mean. We have decided that maybe we should use the motion dector Owen got in his spy kit (from Christmas last year) so we will know when they leave their room and we can catch them. We have been a little preoccupied and haven't moved on it yet but some day we will catch the PHANTOM URINATER!

Super Hero Strength and a Bread Tray

2008-09-24T16:12:00.000-07:00

I know he looks so innocent saying his prays but what you don't hear is that he is saying..."help me be strong and be able to beat up..." Okay maybe those aren't his exact words but Frans has been blessed with strength. On Sunday we are at church and just before the sacrament is being passed Frans whispers to me, "I want to pass the thing." I nod my head or something like that as I am trying to get Mikaydi out from under my skirt. Its amazing that the people sitting down the bench from us didn't get a terrible view (I mean terrible, have you seen my thighs). Of course I know that they didn't get a view because I am sure there would have been vomiting going on. Of course they may have been distracted by Molly who had suddenly become an gymnast and decided she can stand on her head...someone should tell her not to do that in a dress. Back to the sacrament so I get the girls under control and then the bread tray comes down the row. It reaches Frans and he grabs it and I reach over to help him and to move it passed me on to Haylee. Frans has apparently been taking lessons on how to shovel bread at break neck speed into his mouth. Oh, he did it with such expertise that I was amazed. Of, course as I tried nicely to take the tray and move it on he used his super human strength to hold on...I swear the kid has super powers. I pulled harder to no avail...all the while he is shoveling bread into his mouth with an amazing amount of ability. Me not realizing that Frans has super strength keeps pulling on the tray--hoping he won't suddenly let go and the tray go flying back three rows. Finally after a carefully placed pinch...the tray moved on. I think there were a few pieces of bread left--I am not sure as I used my advantage and quickly got the tray out of there. Frans has already mastered skills that many young men need to learn in order to be good deacons. He can out wrestle any unruly kid that doesn't want to pass the tray on and he'll be sure to clean up an spilt bread.

Puke, Computers and Jumper Cables

2008-09-24T15:44:00.000-07:00

Okay so I have not bloged lately because I accidently crashed Haylee's computer. I was trying to proctect us by putting on a internet filter...after all Haylee will be taking this computer places and if she or Owen gets on line I wanted them protected. Yeah--apparently it doesn't work with Vista or at least the current Vista I have. After being on the phone with the tech guys three different times I finally got it figured out. That was last Saturday...since then I have been having some bad luck. Like yesterday I went to the dentist to get my teeth cleaned. It didn't take them too long and they said I really didn't have too much tartar so I go and check out : "that will be $70 please." What! I have had the same dental insurance for 6 years and had never been charged for a cleaning. Well apparently they did some sort of periodontal cleaning on the five front bottom teeth and insurance doesn't cover that. When do people just do things like that to you with out asking?? I mean if they would of said, "Hey, I am going to do this special cleaning on five of your bottom teeth for $70, okay?" I would of said, "Heck No!" Did they ask me? No, they just did it and said pay the money. I am begining to think dentist are con-men...kind of like my brother Peter says--they're just out to get your money. Sure I might of really needed the cleaning but I should of had the choice to make that decision. I mean it would be like going in for a c-section and the doctor seeing that your over weight deciding to give you lipo and then charging you a whole bunch after wards because you needed it done. Come on. Then I go to pick up the kids from my mom--who is waiting for me at Wal Mart--turn off my car and it won't start. Oh, man! I get the jumper cables out and hook it all up...nothing works. I call Mike and tell him what is happening and that maybe he should of to the new battery I begged him to last weekend. His response, "Uh...sorry and oh yeah the jumper cables aren't the best so you might have to wiggle them and make sure you get a spark." I am sure you can imagine my words after I snapped the phone shut. I take three deep breaths and start wiggling jumper cables. Of course about five seconds later my baby starts screaming at the top of his head. Mom tried to calm him while I was wiggling cables. Finally, I grab the baby and take him out of his car seat. The minute I do he pukes all over my shoulder...so I am standing in the parking lot with puke running down my shirt trying to jump my car...while my mom is following me around trying to wipe the puke off with her emergency stash of paper towels. My dad finally told my mom that it could take 20 minutes to charge and guess what it took 20 minutes to charge. What luck! I won't bore you with any more details of the last few days needless to say it has been a challenge.

Hypercondriact

2008-09-17T21:38:00.000-07:00

Let me tell you a little about Frans lately. He has got some anxiety. "Mom, what happens if all your blood goes out of your body?" "I think my brains are coming out of my head!" "What happens when you touch your eye?" And then the 1 am screaming, "MY EYES ARE GOING TO FALL OUT!" Talk about get your heart going...have one of your kids come screaming that in your room. He worries about dying and what happens if he cuts his finger. Oh, yeah yesterday I asked him if he could hear again...he said he couldn't hear so we gave him some ear drops. He tells us, and I quote, "yeah the earwigs left my ears." WHAT? At first when had to pull Owen aside and tell him to stop feeding Frans the bull. Owen tried hard not to smile and said, "well I didn't think he'd believe me!" I almost busted a gut laughing. I shouldn't its not fun having Frans so freaked but at the same time I can totally see Owen's side of things after all it wasn't so long ago that I was freaking Tim and my little brother Frans out about stuff. Frans has gotten so bad that Mike and I have thought about getting him some professional help. He can't go through life being afraid of everything or thinking he is going to die all the time. Any advice out there?

Terrible 2's

2008-09-16T15:51:00.000-07:00

I know she looks so sweet and innocent...well she was. I don't know what is up but Mikaydi finally hit the terrible two's (she's 2 1/2 right now) and we are paying for it. She screams and fights and the entire time she looks so cute. Molly and her have some pretty interesting fights these days. And its that wonderful time again...POTTY TRAINING HECK! Yes, Mikaydi had us fooled this weekend she went potty and didn't miss except once or twice from Saturday until Today! Today it was as if she was back to the baby days as she pooped and wet her pants all day long! What is with that?? Needless to say Mikaydi got a dousing from the hose outside...I can't stomach the clean up other wise. Was is it only a year ago that I was finishing up with Molly's potty training heck? I am so over potty training its not even funny. Mike reminds me that I still have Jax after Kaydi's done....Thanks Mike! Yes, I guess this means that I will not be a professional potty trainer...even though after six kids I might be considered 'experienced'.

Back to School

2008-09-12T09:53:00.000-07:00

We're back to school!! Can you believe the summer has gone past already? I can hardly believe my little Frans is a kindergartener!! He was so excited to be able to ride the bus with Haylee and Owen. He is gone to all day kinder and Molly is now the boss...or so she thinks. Mikaydi and Molly have been going through some power stuggles...Molly thinks its her turn to be boss and Mikaydi disagrees. Jax doesn't care whose boss as long as he gets fed--he is a grumpy baby though and that has been hard. I am trying to trust Molly more as the helper. It has been an adjustment for us. Frans has had to get used to having homework everyday. Haylee has already typed her first paper (she did a good job) and she is busy working on her maps--she has to make a map of each state of the US by the end of the year. She is a busy 5th grader. Owen has already had to go and apologize to his teacher as he rolled his eyes at her...Mom and Dad were not happy about that. He asks for extra math homework...he wants stuff that's harder than what he is working on in class (nerd). I told him that if he moves up to the advanced reading group I would buy him whatever Wii game he wants. We will see if he can do it. He is excited to be in 3rd grade. I am just trying to cope with all the changes that come when kids are in school. I like them to be in school because they aren't constantly bored at home, but I miss there help at home and I like to play with them. Life goes on and seasons change.

Values

2008-08-24T19:22:00.000-07:00

I was watching one of my favorite "oldie" movie today, Your Mine and Ours (the old one--with Henry Fonda), and I was in awe of the values they taught in that movie. In today's movie we always have to be on guard because it always seems there's at least 'one bad part' or questionable part in even the G rated movies...yes there is a swear word in Disney's "Cars" movie. The one part in YM&O movie that I really liked was when Colleen, the oldest teenage daughter of Helen North, asks her step father, Henry Fonda's character, about what true love is. What he tells her rings in my heart as trueth, even though it is in a movie. He tells her that true love is not the making out part of life. He tells her to take a look around (they were getting ready to have another baby) and look at her mother. That this, having babies, was what true love is all about...its about the day to day routine, the making sandwhiches and washing windows and having babies that is what real love is...its looking at your spouse when their washing clothes or making dinner and loving them that is what real love is. He goes on to tell her that no amount of long haired boys will change that fact no matter what lies they are telling her, about how she is the only one no doing "it". I want my kids to watch this oldie movie and hear what he has to say about it. It is a true classic that premotes good values--I wish there were more movies like this one out there now days.

Family Picture

2008-07-27T22:59:00.000-07:00

Okay so here's the deal. Trying to get six kids to all be happy actually look at the camera is next to impossible. After about four pictures and lots of complaints, we ended up with this picture. I have to admit that I did say, "Either you guys be happy and look at the camera or we will sit here until you do...and if you think it will be fun to miss church--IT WILL NOT BE FUN TO STAND HERE FOR THREE HOURS!" Right after that is when we got this picture. I guess this is as good as it gets.

Vacation

2008-07-27T22:29:00.000-07:00

Okay so we are vacationing in WY. We are at the annual Hokanson Reunion in Star Valley. It has been a total blast. We rented this awesome vacation house (that has fast internet) and we have been totally enjoying ourselves. The only complaint I have is the heat. Its been in the high 90's with no AC! Mikaydi and the other girls had a blast today painting thier finger nails, doing hair and just being girly girls. It was fun seeing all the girl cousins excited and having fun. I have to say that Mike has been having lots of fun, just as soon as he finished the slide show. I think all the slide showing has burned his brain.

As you can see by his picture. Of course he does like to show off for his siblings. I have to say he is really in his element when he is with his family. I laugh so hard when I am with the Hokanson's they are hillarious.

Posing for Pearl

2008-07-27T22:19:00.000-07:00

These cute girls are so cute. We were at grandma's and they were posing for thier aunt Pearl. Molly has this leg model thing going on...not sure where that came from. Londyn (our cousin) and Mikaydi are posing as well. They have had so much fun together. It makes me want to be a kid again and not worry about anything at all just have to play and play and play.

Pearl is like the funnest aunt ever. All the nieces and nephews love her. Maybe its because she's young or maybe its because she pays attention to them, it could be because she plays with them, or maybe its because she it just awesome. I think it might be a little of all of the above. Thank You Pearl for being so much fun with the kids!

Jax Michael Hokanson

2008-07-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

After much labor and pains and a Saturday night start, Jax was born on Mon, June 30 at 10:39am. He weighed in at 10lbs 4 oz and 22 inches long. He looks a lot like Mikaydi. He has really long toes. He has had a little of a rough start. They think that Jenny developed diabetes later in the pregnancy and so his heart was larger than it should have been. Of course since Jenny hadn't eaten since Sat night at 7, she expect Jax to have to go to NICU for low blood sugars. He didn't disappoint just he added a lot of stress to everyone's lives. His heart is looking much better. They ran several tests and feel like it is related to the diabetes. His heart has improved today getting smaller. Jenny is in more pain then she remembers (good thing we forget). She hoping that Jax and her can move to a peds room so she can stay with him. She really hasn't gotten to hold him much and is looking forward to that. He is one of the biggest babies in the NICU. Alot of credit to the great drs for providing a safe arrival and quick thinking on their parts. We are grateful to those who have taken the time to study and learn about medical things. It benefits our lives greatly. There have been many small and big miracles that have happened in Jax's short life. We are grateful for the many prayers that have been sent heavenward for us, for incredible VTers, and good brothers who honor their priesthood to assist in giving blessings. And we are so grateful for Jax. I've often thought about how this love is in stint like we knew each other before, which obously we did know each other in heaven. I think it's a little like leaving our heavenly home and then returning home again. That deep love that our Heavenly Father feels for us, we feel for our own children. Again we are so grateful for the knowledge of the gospel and eternal families. Happy birthday, Jax!!

9 pound mass

2008-06-18T19:07:00.000-07:00

This is the first meeting of Hokanson #6 (Jax Michael, perhaps). Looking a little cramped considering that he's got 3 more weeks to go. Also bum down not head down. Can't deliver a baby that is over 9 lbs, breach. Have been scheduled (BOO HOO) for a C-Section on July 8th. Now we are praying for baby to turn and water to break within the next week before baby grows into an undeliverable baby, therefore also c-section. Trying to hold in my tears and fears while Mike is in his happy place, otherwise known as Scout Camp. Mike doesn't know this info yet but will be finding out tonight from the neighbor who drove up today. I didn't post the obscene boy parts because it might be considered pornography because they are definitely BOY PARTS!!

New Bike vs Dishes

2008-04-05T19:55:00.000-07:00

Two days ago Mike was out fixing all the kid's bikes and making sure the tires were great. He was looking at Owen's bike and says, "Is that the same size as Frans'?" We line the bikes up and sure enough its the same size as Frans' bike. I have been telling him that we need to get Owen a new bike as his is too small and the chain keeps falling off. Mike decides I am right (miracles of miracles!!). I tell Owen on Friday, "Hey if you load and unload the dishwasher then we'll get you a new bike tonight." He looks at me and does the "hummm" thing. Then he finally says, "I don't think so, I'll just ask for a bike at Christmas." I was shocked at first...what? Then I say, "Well, you want to wait until Christmas...when you won't even be able to ride it because its cold outside?" He looks at me with his amazing blue eyes, scratches his head, then says, "Well I'll just ride Haylee's bike." Pause. "The only problem with her bike is that its pink....maybe we can spray paint it blue!" His excitement rises until I tell him firmly, "You are not going to spray paint Haylee's bike. Its her bike and she likes to ride it too." Spray paint Haylee's bike!!! WHAT? I am thinking to myself. He would rather spray paint his sisters bike than do a few dishes to get a new one? He stood by his decision and so Mike told me he doesn't need a new bike apparently. CRAZY!

Boy Oh Boy!!

2008-02-20T17:23:00.000-08:00

Okay the result is here! Boy oh Boy!! Owen and Frans are very excited about the news that they are to have a new baby brother! Frans said, "I am so glad we don't have no more girls!" Mike and I would be happy to have any sex, we are just happy that everything looks good and normal. I told Mike that hey you get another one to add to the group at Father and Sons. I think he is excited. The Ultrasound tech pointed out that we have a family just like the Brady Bunch. 3 girls and 3 boys! Anyone have any name suggestions??

Nusery--A dangerous place...

2008-01-11T19:45:00.001-08:00

Mikaydi goes to nursery now during church, and well lets just say about two weeks ago we got to see what she was made of... All she did was run into another child and apparently she took the brunt of it because the other child doesn't have a mark. I guess she needed to prove how tough she is because Molly started Sunbeams. The picture above is about a week after it happened. The picture below is the day it happened. You really can't tell how badly it is swollen from the picture but it was swollen bad.

The funny thing is that they didn't even come get Mike or me because she didn't cry and so they didn't realized she'd been so banged up. I guess Molly better watch out--Mikaydi is going to start fighting back. It is absolutely amazing how kids bounce back...I think I'd be whinning forever if that were my face!

Owen's Baptism

2008-01-11T19:39:00.000-08:00

2007-12-31T22:39:00.000-08:00

I was out working in my shop today pondering polotices ,perticulerly global worming . It struck me after listening to all the crap liberals say about our curent President i.e. He was selected not elected ect. ect.ect. Well what does Al Gore have to complain about really since he lost the election he has single handedly saved the entire world from ourselves and has the award to prove it. He has given the left wing ingniopods there next cause which can easily be solved by ceaseing to exist yes if we all became extremely selfish and quit having children and only indulged in all natural ,organic, recycled, hallogen fun in only a century we could solve the global worming problem the pollution problem the endangered species problem OH! wait humans are a speicies and our extinction although the only apparent solution it is also a problem-Crap basicaly we are all up crap creek but not really because even crap creek has an endangerd fish in it these days so I recen im just going to keep poppin out kids and driving my big SUV and eating my geneticly altered super foods and guess what I AM HAPPY so leave me alone.

Volunteer Work

2007-11-05T12:17:00.000-08:00

I went to do some volunteer work at the school today. I am helping out with the yearly spelling bee--yeah (and I mean that with sarcasium dripping from every pore of my body). I have to make copies of the spelling list for every class from 1st to 6th grades. My first problem was trying to figure out the copy machine. Did you know the fancy copy machines they have now days is basically a computer that spits out paper...normally I don't have problems with computers. Apparently I need to take a class called 'running the copy machine' because I had bells ringing paper jamming and all sorts of things going on that shouldn't have been going on--if you know what I mean. I suppose it didn't help that Mikaydi was trying to hang on to the end of the copier--I count myself fortunate that the paper tray bends and doesn't shatter. Finally, I get a teacher to help me run the thing and everything seems like its going great. I am on a roll...then I hear a crash behind me---"oh, yeah I have kids with me" I think. I turn around to see that Molly and Mikaydi have emptied one of the cupboard's in the teacher's lounge...it only contained glass vases. Seeing that Molly was about to drop one of the vases--it couldn't have been because I shrieked at her...she should be used to that by now, right? I make a diving catch of the glass vase--who would of known that I would use my softball training as a mother of five? Luckily we escaped any tragic broken glass. I give the girls a stern talking to then get back to the evil--I mean nice copy machine. After about two grades done a lady comes into the room to make copies...I ask her if she has a lot to do and she say's yes. I look at Molly and Mikaydi who are shaking the candy dispenser to see if they can get any candy out, I say to the lady, "I will try to hurry." She waits and watches as I have to now pry Molly's hand out of the bottom of the candy dispenser (she thought she could reach some) and then huffs out of the room a few minutes later. I don't know what we could of done to hurry faster, I took care of the girls while the copier was running. It might of been that Mikaydi was sucking on the end of a highlighter--who knows. I just hope they didn't ruin her pants with the black sharpie. I finally get done with the copies...then realize I have to sort them out into the individual classes. As I am doing this a lady comes in and after about five minutes says, "Did you know we have parenting classes at the school? You should come its at 3pm." I says something like thanks I'll think about it. One question...why have parenting classes at 3? Shouldn't people actually be at home with their kids and parent? I suppose she thought I could use some help. Lady you have no idea what I go through. After I finish dividing all the papers into classes I breath a sigh of relief...I'm done! Oh, yeah I have kids here...I turn to discover the lounge in shambles. Paper is strewn everywhere, Mikaydi has taken all the marker lids off--thank heaven she didn't draw on the walls or floor. Molly has found the popcorn machine (do you hear the dramatic jaws music--if you don't you should) she has gotten down all the oils and things I don't even know what they are or how they go to the machine but apparently they do. I almost cried...but I forged on did my duty and cleaned it all up. I guess these are the reasons that when I show up to the school everyone looks at me and says, "Mrs. Hokanson....I see...you have brought your...ah...children. Will you be...staying....ah don't touch that...long today?"

Gossip...

2007-10-23T20:13:00.000-07:00

Okay so I have to just say "Gossip sucks!" People (women mostly) get sucked into these conversations with people and the next thing you know you are either gossiping or listening to the gossip thinking..."YOUR KIDDING!" The problem is the damage that can happen when people aren't careful about what they say. How many of you out there listen to someone talking about someone else and think, "Gee I wonder what they say about me behind my back?" Yes, I have been there and thought those things. I can't say I am perfect--I am sure I listen a little too much and therefore I am guilty. I occasionally listen to Dr. Laura and some of the things she says makes perfect sense. She tells us that we need to rid ourselves of poisionious relationships. I have to say that gossip relationships are probably the most poisionious of all. The damage that is done when someone ASSUMES something is irreverisble and then to top it off they go and tell someone else about what they have ASSUMED! When in all reality there is no truth to it. I am here to tell you today that I will not partake in these damaging relationships anymore. Whether it be family, friend or foe if you want to be around me, be invited to my home, be my friend know this: I will not be around this kind of damaging behavior. If you partake in this I will not be around you. That is all I have to say today!!!

You're Never Too Old To Learn From Your Mother

2007-10-23T19:52:00.000-07:00

Okay so I was talking to Mike and he told me the following story and I love the lesson we learn from this. My mother-in-law, Karlee, was doing some family history stuff for her mother. Karlee is like in her mid-60's and her mother is in her late 80's. Karlee was working on copying her mother's book of rememberance (or something like that). Well Karlee being as active as she is accidently misplaces part of the book. Instead of immediately telling her mother she goes and looks here and there trying to find it. After a couple of days of extreme worry and near heart failure she decides that she must go and confess what has happened to her mother. With a sinking heart and the weight of keen disappointment on her shoulders she finally tells her mother that she is terribly sorry but has lost this book. Her mother says, "No you didn't." Karlee thinking that her mother is old and not understanding, tries to explain what has happened. Then her mother tells her, "No you didn't lose it, its right over here." Karlee finds out that the book had slipped behind the computer and her mother had found it. Karlee spent all that time feeling sick about this mistake that really hadn't happened. If she would of just come right to her mother and told her what she'd thought had happened she could of avoided days of worry and heartache! It just goes to show us that we are never to old to learn from our mothers. So the next time you look in the mirror or say a key phrase and you think, "I am turning into my mother!" Maybe its really not such a bad thing, after all your mother raised and made you who you are today!

she is perfect

2007-10-08T22:11:00.000-07:00

hey this is the fart mister the bester of shrek the releaser of toxic fummmes and the bad speller i figured i better read the things my wife has been writing about me interesting! well what can i say about her as you may know she is perfect i cant think of a singel flaw becouse if i did she has got some kind of radar that instantly gose off then your cought no trapped is a better word for it forget about trying to lie your way out of it so i,ve learned over the past ten years to always tell the truth example me hey dear whats wrong with your eye wife what do you mean! me in my mind i think( o crap i steped in it up to my nostrils and am about to suficate )but i say o its nothing wife no realy what do you mean! me fear surges through me im not good with fear so i freeze and in an atemp to try to squeeze out of the situation i say you got same kind of a spock thing going on ( did i realy say that the pile o crap i steped in must have clouded my judgmet wife what!! its hope less by this piont eny explination eny bribery not even pritty stinky flowers will save me. no thats not what i ment your eyebrowes dont point up i just never noticed one of your eyes is lower then the other wife what!!!! ok truth is im not that bright can you tell eny way putting the rest of the night ion the line i go all out with the truth o it must of just been a smug on the mirror when you look right at me you look just fine

Seattle Freaks

2007-10-08T19:59:00.000-07:00

Okay no offense to anyone that lives in Seattle but there are some real freaks over there. I went with my friends to Seattle for the weekend and had a blast. The only thing that really over shadowed anything was the weird political freaks on the street corners. On one corner this man was asking everyone if they cared at all--I almost stopped and said "Yeah, I do and quite frankly your the problem!" Of course then I am sure I would have been flogged by the masses as my political views in no way matches probably anyone in King County. Oh, and by the way if you are ever going to sit outside a restaurant and beg for food and money then maybe you should: 1. Leave your pet at home or where ever--if you are starving eat the animal or better yet sell it for some food money 2. Don't sit their with your full pack of cigarettes and smoke all night long--kick the habit use the money for food 3. You might want to put the food you are eating away for later--you don't look like your starving when your poping food in your mouth every five minutes. 4. Maybe you should take out the diamond stud nose peircing and 5. Maybe you shouldn't wear next to new nike shoes! I mean really I don't have anything against the homeless but I am not going to help someone that is doing the above. Other than some of the freaky people it was a great trip. I went to this restaurant called "The Melting Pot" and it was awesome. It's a fondue food place. We had to pick a cheese, pick sauce to cook our meats and then pick our chocolate. I thought I died and went to heaven. I also really enjoyed a food tour that we went on called Savor Seattle. Of course I don't like fish but I tried to be a good sport and ate some salmon...wanted to puke but held it together. However, they had enough other things that it was well worth it to me. We went to a wine tasting place and they were very respectful of the fact that I do not drink alcohol and instead they put out a 100% concord grape juice and apple juice--it was very tasty. It was just a fun experience. Oh, yeah and I also went to the Science Center--I had forgotten how fun that could be. I want to take my kids there instead of getting them christmas presents. Well, maybe we'll go to the dollar store and get a few cheap gifts so they have something to open on Christmas day. I just think that would be fun. I guess I'll just have to explain to my kids about the Seattle Freaks before we go!

Father's and Sons

2007-10-02T10:19:00.000-07:00

These are pictures that Owen and Frans took of each other and their dad in June. They went to father's and sons campout and had a blast. I think both Frans and Owen did a great job on taking pictures. Maybe one of them will have a career in photography. Who knows? Well I have to say that they have a lot of fun camping and I guess its a good time for them to bond. I know that me and the girls have fun at home doing girl things like painting finger nails and such while they are gone.

Ewwww

2007-10-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

Mikaydi is our 20 month old baby. She is a lot of fun right now as she is starting to talk. Daddy always likes to teach her things she shouldn't say--fortunately she hasn't picked up on any of those words--yet. She is really into following the other kids around and tries to do what they do. Molly getting potty trained taught her to say, "good girl" any time anyone is on the toilet and she sees. Lately though her favorite word is "ewww". So she steps in something its "ewwww", she gets something on her hand its "ewww", she poops her pants its "ewww". She says it in the most funny situations too. Dad lets one rip its "ewww", and boy oh boy we all echo Mikaydi's words there. Someone burps its the same. Its funny because its almost like she is prim and proper with her "ewww" and yet she has no problem throwing anything and everything into the toilet and then picking it back out. About a week ago I actually about threw up when she took something out of the toilet and put it to her mouth. I washed her mouth out with soap and said, "ewwww gross!" Then the next couple of days she spent walking into the bathroom looking at the toilet and saying, "ewwww". Maybe with any luck she is done being a toilet player.