So if you didn't already know...we went to Walt Disney World. It was fabulous! We could have stayed for 3 weeks and not run out of things to do. It was a great time. Here are the kids inside of Cinderella's Royal Table. It was by far the best suggestion given to me by my friend Joanna. If you ever go, make reservations. It's pricey but well worth it. The kids loved it.

Disney World Highlights

Oh Yes....Mark was chosen to be in the High School Musical 3 show held outside the Mickey hat at Disney's Hollywood Studios. That was hilarious! I wish I had a video of it, but sadly a video camera is on my Christmas wish list. Mark asked the kids how daddy looked and Annie answered, "you looked sharp daddy". Bryce and Cade had no comments.

The ABC's of Phillips Life.

So Annie is trying so diligently to learn her name. She can definitely spell it. We are working on writing it. She wants to spell everything. Some words she can phonetically figure out. At 3 years of age, I think she's doing a pretty good job. Cade read at an early age, so maybe she will too. I nurture her interests, and words, letters, spelling, reading, and writing are definitely her interests. Of course so are princesses, pink, bows, and pretty dresses. LOL

So we don't have dental insurance......do you think I need to take the boys? Just Kidding! Meggan and I were at the mall and the boys chose these candy teeth as their special teeth. I took a picture of them to show them that this can happen if they don't brush. I

Catching up!

Okay so first things first. Bryce turned 7. Yes 7!!! I can hardly believe it. It was such a big treat for him to go to McDonald's with some friends. We also got to see Star Wars Clone Wars. He was really excited. He really missed having his friends from the desert there, but he was excited about his "new" friends celebrating with him.



My good friend Summer came to visit us in Simi on her way to the desert for her Master's class. It was great fun for Maddy and for Annie. The 2 of them didn't miss a beat.....neither had Summer and I. We went to go see House Bunny with Meggan. It was good times. This guy even tried to pick up on Summer. Meggan and I were in hysterics about this guy. He probably would sat next to us if there was room. He was a looker!!!!



Soccer Time!
Mark is coaching the boys again. It is really great because we are part of a Christian League. The players pray before the game, and it's just nice to not be soooooo competitive, but focused on FUN. Mark is the best daddy ever! I got roped into being the Team Mom. I no longer have Jody to rely on, I'm doing it solo. But Jody was a great role model for me, so all is good.




It's also great fun, because we get to see lots of our family at the games too. Here's Bryce and Cade with cousins Caleb and Joshua. Their cousin Steven is also playing in the league and Lauren and Danny are referees.

What were you doing?

I will never forget this day 9/11. I was nursing Bryce who was only 3 weeks old, and my sister calls to tell Mark and I that the Israeli's were bombing us. Not quite knowing what to do with that statement, we turned the TV on to see the most horrific historical events ever. Bryce's birth reminds me of this day. His small innocence, and how we as Americans at that point in time were completely innocent (or naive) to the cruelness of this world. Just as he has learned the harsh reality of life, we too have learned that we are not invincible and bad things happen. May this day give you hope for tomorrow, and a new outlook on how precious life is. God bless America!!

Slacker!!

Yes, I know I'm a slacker, but I haven't had internet access, except on my phone, and it's really hard to post from a little screen. As soon as we connect our internet, and I can actually post some pictures I will do so. In the meantime, please feel free to email us: marknmia@hotmail.com. In a nutshell, we've moved, we love being around old & new friends, the weather is FANTASTIC, the kids absolutely love it, and we completely know it's God's will for us to be here. A little hard for us at first, but God is sooooo good. He constantly provides, and has shown Mark and I the power of true Christian friendships!!! We feel like we picked up right where we left off 8 years ago! We love our 805 (sometimes 818) friends....ha ha ha.

We made it out to the desert last week for a birthday party, and Bryce and Cade were comedy as they stepped out into the "oven" (it was 107 degrees). They responded with, "this feels good". All 3 of the kids are freezing out here. If it gets down to 61 degrees at night, they want to wear their long jammies, and have sweats on while they play outside with the neighborhood kids.

Well that's all for now, my fingers can't handle the little screen on this phone. I'll post some pictures of our new house, and other stuff when we get our internet.

toodles

Annie's First Day of Preschool & Updates

Annie had her first day of Preschool. I was not too happy. I actually cried. She however, walked in like a champ, and told me to leave. She's been going to Rocky Peak with me. She is my traveling buddy. She really keeps me company in the car, and it's great to have a carpool friend. She sings and talks the ENTIRE time. I don't think I could've survived these last couple of months commuting without her. It's been hard being away from Mark and the boys, but we know that God has a special plan for us all at Rocky Peak. So much has happened in my last post, but the majority of you are up to speed on the move and the whole transition. I will try to be a better blogger, but my days have been filled with packing, working, and trying to be a mom.

Here are some quick updates:
1. Bryce did finally lose his bottom tooth.
2. Bryce and Cade finished up T-ball.
3. Mark is still taking classes.
4. We have not found a house or place to live yet. So as of July 1st we will officially be homeless.
5. I'm still trying to figure out if moving is the best thing. UGH!
6. We need prayer!

Thanks to all the peeps who are continually a support to our family. We love you guys.

Classic Bryce

Okay so this is just a little blurb about Bryce. He got in trouble at school for talking too much while the teacher was trying to teach. We talked about it, and his answer was classic Bryce: "Well you see my mind was being woo'ed by the thoughts of vacation, and I just couldn't control myself." YUP that was his answer. MAN that kid has witty answers....gotta love that about him, a chip off the old block. Also, his tooth is finally wiggly. And he had to point out that I was "incorrect", because I had told him he might not lose a tooth until he's 7 b/c daddy and I were older when we lost our teeth. He had to point out that he is 6 1/2 years old. Have a great resurrection Sunday!!!

Buttercup update

Apparently after being quarantined and checked out, she was put to sleep. She was rabid. So our choice to take her to the shelter was a wise choice. A big thank you to all of our friends, and their support of our decision. Bryce is okay, Cade is okay, and Annie is okay. And thanks to our friend Mike and letting us know before we had taken the kids to the hospital that they don't do the needle in the stomach thing any more-WHEW!!!! All they do is give the kids a tetanus shot, clean the wounds, and give antibiotics.....unless they get worse. Fortunately, the kids didn't get worse.

Bye Bye Buttercup....so sad!

So yesterday we had to take Buttercup to the pound. Here's the reasons: she started becoming very aggressive, nipping at the kids, and she started acting strange. We had "rescued" her from someone else, and did not know her background. She started off being a very sweet dog, but then something happened. We actually loved on her and paid more attention to her for awhile because we thought she was homesick or something. Then.....she viciously turned on us. This small little dog attacked Bryce-FOR NO REASON-I was sitting right there, and Bryce was bleeding and crying. It took all of me not to drop kick the dog across the room. My friend Summer referred us to a Chihuahua Rescue, but they told us we should take the dog to the nearest animal shelter because it had attacked a child, and they would probably quarantine her. We knew the best thing to do was to rid our family of this vicious little thing that turned on us when all we did was show it kindness and love. Well, except for the one time Annie picked her up and threw her....not far though. We still have Peanut. Peanut seems to have returned to her old self-lazy as ever! So it was a good lesson for the kids on how no matter how much you show something kindness or love it may turn on you very quickly.

Crazy Hair .....Crazy Kids!

So last week it was "Crazy Hair" at Awana. Here's our boys and the Busher boys together again. Thanks to Ali for going out and getting the spray. It was really fun putting it in their hair. They all enjoyed it. We thought they looked pretty crazy.

Park Day!

The boys & Annie had some friends meet them at Freedom Park. I'm sorry I didn't get everybody's picture....I thought I did. That's what happens when I'm too busy being the social girl....right Ali! We all had a great time, and I'm sure we will do it again.

Valentine's Day 2008

So last year my friend Tina told us about her great idea of spending the actual day of valentine's with her children at Chuck E. Cheese. We loved this idea and went last year, and hardly anyone was there. This year the word must have been out because EVERYBODY and their cousins were there. Hopefully, they'll go home thinking that wasn't such a good idea and won't go back next year. We'll see!!! This year the Pappas family joined in on the tradition. It was really fun! And of course Tina brought the most delicious cupcakes and chocolate covered strawberries!!YUM-O!!!

This is Tina's daughter Ashlynn. She's a cutie. I tried to take Arik's picture but he wouldn't let me.


Me & Tina laughing about the felony that was just committed.


Summer and I just hanging out.


This is what 3 hours of Chuck E. Cheese can do to you. I love this picture of them. Tim in true form.


Oh my!! This gave me visions of latter years.


Maddy & Annie not fighting. It had to be documented.


They were just too cool to smile.


Bryce had just asked Aly to be his valentine....don't worry she said yes!

Amy to the Rescue....Again!!!!

So my pal Amy cut Cade's hair-FINALLY!! He is so tough to take & go get a haircut. It's been hard ever since he was little. He was really good for her. She has the magic touch.


Here he is all smiles about his "Zac & Cody" hairstyle. He said "I want Mrs. Dahlstrom to always cut my hair, she didn't hurt me." That's a first. He looks like he won't get in trouble at school now.


Since I was taking a picture of Cade, Annie had to have hers taken as well. You would have thought it was a photo shoot the way she was working the camera. Typical Annie!

Bryce didn't want to be left out. This is his face right after he did a stinky. He didn't like the smell, but again neither do we.

The Pond is Gone!!

So our pool was looking like the local fishing hole. We were in disputes with our old pool guys who said they never did anything to it. They ruined our salt water system. So our friends pool service company came and cleaned it up.



Here's Bryce and Cade hanging in the deep end. It looks good now. It's filled with water and the boys wanted to strip down to their chonies and get in, but sadly they have to wait. For all you long distance friends, yes it's 73 degrees outside, and with the jacuzzi on, the pool wouldn't feel too bad. I'm not getting in though. I'm still working on swimming better.

Cade's Promotion

Ever since Cade was little we knew he was special. He walked early, spoke well early, and was able to comprehend things that were far beyond his years. It's hard for me as an educator because I knew he was smart, but it was hard too because when I would tell others he was smart they just took it as me being a mom. So for a long time, Mark and I just took his "smartness" as normal. Then when he was in Pre-K, his teacher really brought out the best in him. Then when we had him tested he tested like a 2nd grader, but because of his personality, we put him in kindergarten. His Kindergarten teacher has been in education for over 20 years, and said this was the first time he ever felt it was a good idea to promote a child who is really much younger than the average Kinder kid. He said Cade was extremely bright, and would benefit from a challenge. Mark and I prayed about it, we talked to Bryce about it (because they would be in the same class), and spoke to the first grade teacher about it. We tried him out in the 1st/2nd combo for a month, and the 1st grade teacher said he was smart. She was really impressed with him. But if you have spent time with Cade you would see that he is not pompous, arrogant, nor a show off. I've had "friends" try to test his abilities b/c they are in education, but he does not respond to that. He thrives in the classroom and in his sunday school class. I know every parent thinks their child is smart (and rightfully so), but it's just nice to have what we knew ever since he was small validated by someone else in the education field. We know God gave him these abilities for a reason, and we can't wait to see how He uses them.

By the way the 1st grade teacher says Bryce has been "taking care" of Cade in class. Making sure he knows what he's supposed to do, and Bryce is really excited to have his brother in class with him.

Annie Got Stitches

So Annie was doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing, and she fell and hit her chin. It was right on the clef of her chin. Since it was in a prominent position on her face a plastic surgeon was called in. She was really brave. All in all she received 3 stitches. She also told the doctors and nurses that she was the princess, mommy's the queen, daddy's the jester, and Bryce and Cade are the knights. The staff got a kick out of it, and from that point on they all called her "Princess Annie."

AWANA Sunday

So here is Bryce, Cade, & Annie outside of Family Heritage really excited about AWANA Sunday. Bryce and Cade were in charge of stating what the Letter K stood for and for reciting the verse. They were really proud of themselves. They did extrememly well, and they sang all of their bible songs quite well. We got to stay after church for a potluck and meet a whole bunch of people. It was really quite nice.

New Addition to our Famly

So here is Buttercup and Peanut. We just got her today. She is only 4 pounds, but is still significantly larger than Peanut. Annie was very excited when she was brought to our house. Thanks to our friend Joe who made this connection for us to give her a good home. Now we are officially a family of six.

Winter Fun!

Mark was raking the leaves, and he just couldn't resist letting them jump in it. Don't you remember doing that when you were little? They loved it sooo much. Mark was great too, he didn't mind cleaning up the very huge mess they made. Of course they all "helped" pick it up. We may not have snow, but we got sunshine and leaves.

Old Friends/New Friends

Wow! Our bible study has gotten huge! What a difference a few years make. The Browns, Phillips, and Langs together again. What fun the kids had playing with their "new" friends. Good times.

Is that you Santa Claus?

Every year Santa makes an appearance at the Phillips Family Functions. This year Bryce wasn't fooled. He came over to me when Santa was passing out presents and said,"I think that's cousin Dave, but don't worry mommy I won't ruin it for the little kids." I thought that was pretty funny.

Annie's First Hair Cut

My sweet friend Amy gave Annie her first hair cut. I was taking pictures and my friend Meggan was filming it. We even saved a curl. I was afraid it wouldn't be curly after the cut, but it bounced back curlier than ever. A big thank you to Amy and magic scissors.

The Theatrical Trio

Best Friends