Spence and Rach and 4 Crazy Kids

Temple Square in Mesa

2009-12-15T20:26:00.000-08:00

Last night for Family Night we ate at Cafe Rio and then went to Temple Square to see the lights. It is slightly easier to walk around the temple grounds for an hour here in AZ than it is in Salt Lake, considering it was 65 degrees last night! It is a fun holiday tradition that I hope I get to do every year of my life (here or in Utah)!
It was kind of hard to capture the whole fam with the camera on my phone, so here are all of my lovies!!

Our trip back east

2009-10-21T22:09:00.000-07:00

Spence and I left the kids for 9 whole days last week to go on a trip back east. We left them with my mom for the first 4 days and then had our friends cousins babysit for the rest. They did awesome and didn't even miss us much, which made our vacation fun. (It would've broken my heart to hear them sad we were gone. But they never complained to us!) We went with Danny and Kasey Perkinson and had a BLAST! We flew into New York and saw the sights there for 2 days, then drove to Boston for about 2 days, then Montreal and then Palmyra. We had an incredible time and couldn't have without the help we received from our family and awesome babysitters! We feel so blessed to be able to go on a trip like this and enjoy time together, all the while knowing our kids were safe and happy.

So here are some pictures and I'm not going to comment much and explain everything because I'm totally tired and I'm a lame blogger anyway. So here it is.....
Rockafeller Plaza

At the MET, SO COOL! (To say the least! Just trying to keep it short)

Spence, Danny and Brett Crandall (Danny and Kasey's friends from high school who lives in Manhattan and met us at the museum) at the MET

Me and Kasey in Times Square

Freezing on the Staten Island Ferry at 1a.m. (My blood runs very thin now that I live in HOT AZ!)

And from New York we drove 3 1/2 hours to Boston, possibly the coolest city in our country, in my opinion. Spence grew up in Boston for part of his youth so we love any chance we get to go there!

The four of us in an area now known as "The Big Dig." It used to have a huge double decker highway running basically through the center of the city and in a effort to beautify (and probably more reasons than that) they dug an underground freeway that now runs under the city instead of through it. The area is now a beautiful parkway full of green grass and trees, fountains and places to relax, eat, read, etc. Fun fact: In the Big Dig project they used enough concrete to make a sidewalk from New York to L.A. and back 3 times! Crazy!

Paul Revere's Gravesite

In an old cemetery along The Freedom Trail in Boston

A Boston Landmark

There is SO much beautiful architecture there!!

We had the opportunity to go to the temple for our church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, in each of these four cities (part of the reason we chose each city). The Boston temple is stunning, of course.

And then we were off to Montreal. We planned our trip so we could see the beautiful leaves change colors. So we got to experience a week of fall weather and stunning scenery! IT WAS AMAZING!! Spence served his mission in Montreal and so that was our motivation behind going up there. It was so fun to see a little part of where he was.

Here is the base of a huge statue in a popular tourist area in Montreal. Like most everything we saw....beautiful. (I wonder how many times I use that word in this long post!)

Warming up and getting hot chocolate!

Check out the beard my husband was working on! Well, it was really just lack of shaving for a couple weeks. He doesn't usually have quite this much hair!

Eating at a fun pasta place. Too bad non of us were looking at the camera!

We made fun of Spence's lazy eyes....

....so then he gave us this.

A huge catholic church in Montreal. Again... beautiful architecture.

After enjoying chili Montreal we crossed the border again and arrived in Palmyra, New York. Palmyra is home to a few very sacred places in our churches history and it was an honor to be there. I'll post a few pictures but we have a lot on another camera that we brought and I havent't put them on the computer yet. So I'll post some pictures of the Sacred Grove and some others when I get them. But here are a few.

Inside the Peter Whitmore home.

Does it get more beautiful than this?!

At the Hill Cumorah.

There will be a few more to come when I get them from the other camera.

just catching up.....again!

2009-10-21T21:42:00.000-07:00

We'll catch up on the most important first.....kids! They are fun and pretty crazy.

Lincoln made this mask at his "Boys Will Be Boys" preschool class.
Quince is playing the piano and singing "on a mission" over and over again. It is his version of "I Hope They Call Me On A Mission." So cute!

Our Trip to Utah

2009-08-27T22:21:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of us on our trip. Thanks to Maggie and Mere for taking some for us!
Me and Linc at the Alpine Slide

Spence and Q at the Alpine Slide

Abe (my wonderful brother) and Lezlee at the Alpine Slide

Lezlee and her cousin Delaney going cowgirl style!

Linc, Q and their cousin Marc jumping on the trampoline at Grandma and Grandpa Critt's cabin. That's the back of Timpanogos and the Heber valley below. Very beautiful view from the ridge!

Some of the Crittenden grandkids climbing on the pro-hauler. We were taking family pictures that do so they were all dressed in white.

Four and Half Months. Seriousely, I'm Pathetic!!

2009-08-26T09:14:00.000-07:00

I keep thinking that I'm going to give a recap of what's been going on in our family since the last time I blogged. However, I have let four and a half months slip by without blogging so there is NO WAY that I am going to do that! We'll just pick up where we left off.

We were in Utah on vacation for the last two weeks! It was SO MUCH FUN spending time with our family. We swam at the Fishes, played at Grandma and Grandpa Hux's, jumped on the trampoline around the clock, celebrated Lincoln's 3rd birthday, went to the Alpine Slide and Coaster (the kids kept yelling "Faster, faster!!), played at Grandma and Grandpa Critt's cabin, swam, rode horses, rode 4-wheelers, and had the company of amazing family and sweet friends the entire time! We are so blessed!!

All the while on this fun summer adventure our camera battery died and we left the charger and proper chords at home in AZ. So, here is one of the only pictures that we took. It is one of Lincoln blowing out his candles at his birthday party. It was the first day we arrived. We went to the Fishes and had dinner and swam. SO fun! Thanks Mags and Ryan for opening up your home, again and again!

Another fun time was the day we left. Lezlee had come down with the flu the night before. I slept with her that night to comfort her, knowing that I would likely get it. So the next morning I woke up very nauseous, of course. We left to the airport praying that no one else would throw up. I had felt okay for a while until I got up to take Lezlee to the bathroom. I came back to my seat feeling like I needed to find the little bag in the seatback pocket in front of me quickly! Spence and the boys were in the row next to us and so Lezlee went and sat with them while I laid down on our row. Yes, that's right..... I was laying there napping while my husband was crammed across the aisle with our three young kids! When we stood up at the end of the flight an older, very kind man, patted Spence on the shoulder and said, "You are such a great dad!" Which he is, of course! But I think that the other thought running through this gentleman's mind was, "Why did you marry her?!" I'm so grateful that Spence is so kind and that he is such a great dad! About one minute into standing waiting to de-board the plane Lincoln (with NO WARNING) threw up all over the aisle. He managed to not get a drop on himself, just the floor. Spence and I hurried to clean it up with as many wipe-ups as we had left but the stewardess was kind enough to bring newspaper to put on the floor to cover it up so everyone could walk by. It made me laugh thinking about the movie Big Daddy when Adam Sandler covers up his kids pee with newspaper. Out of sight, out of mind, I guess.

We made it home safely and with no one else getting sick, thank heaven! And to the older gentleman sitting behind us on the plane, you are right, Spence is the Father of the Year!

I'm hoping now that I have posted once that I will get in the habit again. Sorry to whomever checks our blog wondering how we are doing on not getting jack from us!

More Head Trauma

2009-04-07T21:42:00.001-07:00

Last Thursday we took Quince to the emergency room and left with 3 staples in the back of his head. Kind of a crazy night..... He was in a booster seat that was buckled into a regular chair and he pushed himself away from the table and the chair tipped over backwards. So he went with the chair and hit his head on the back of the chair and split his head. It could have been so much worse, though. He got back to his normal self very quickly and doesn't seem to notice them now. Poor little guy! No signs of any serious head trauma, so we are grateful for that.

One Smart Girl!

2009-03-23T13:26:00.000-07:00

Last night Spence was putting Lezlee to bed and she started to tell him about a boy in her Preschool class. Here's how the conversation went.....

Lez: Daddy guess what! Yesterday, my friend Preston left his blankie in the mailbox for the "Blankie Fairy" and in the morning he went to the mailbox and there was a baseball glove!!

Spence: Really?!

Lez: I want to put my blankie in the mailbox and then the Fairy will leave me something cool!

Spence: But honey, if you leave your blankie then you will never see it again. The fairy will bring you something cool, but you won't get your blankie back.

Lez: Oh..... (thinking...) Well maybe I could just put in a blankie that I don't like very much and still get something cool.

Spence: (Totally trying not to laugh at our conniving 3 year old) Well sweetie, the "Blankie Fairy" knows if you don't leave your favorite.

Lez: Oh man!

Seriously! Maybe all other 3 year olds are this smart and I'm the clueless one! But really, she can find a way around ANYTHING!!

Oh My Sweet Lezlee!

2009-03-19T16:05:00.000-07:00

Lezlee and Lincoln were playing "Doctor" last night. It was very cute as they took each other very seriously. They came to the kitchen and asked if I had set up an appointment yet with the doctor and then told me that they could take care of that for me. It was sweet. So a little while later I asked Lezlee if she wanted to be a doctor when she grows up and she said, "No." So I said, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" And she didn't even hesitate when she said, "I want to be a mom. I want to be a mom just like you, Mommy!!" Oh it was so sweet! It made me feel like I might be doing something right sometimes. There was something in her tone that made it seem like she thinks it is a great thing to be a mom and I am so thrilled that she thinks that! If I can teach her one thing about myself it is that I LOVE being a mom! I want my kids to know that every day of their lives..... that being home with them is exactly what I want to be doing!

My Mother

2009-02-17T12:31:00.000-08:00

"A mother has far greater influence on her children than anyone else, and she must realize that every word she speaks, every act, every response, her attitude, even her appearance and manner of dress affect the lives of her children and the whole family. It is while the child is in the home that he gains from his mother the attitudes, hopes, and beliefs that will determine the kind of life he will live and the contribution he will make to society." -Eldon Tanner

Last Saturday (that's right, Valentines Day!) was my mom's birthday. My sweet dad decided that it would be fun to fly me home for a day so I could be with her on her birthday. I flew into Salt Lake on Thursday night and Mags and Ryan and Soph picked up me and Quince. (Q came because he could ride on my lap for free.) We slept over at their house that night and it was soooo fun!! My dad planned a little surprise luncheon for my mom on Friday and invited the women in our family and some of her close friends. When she came to the luncheon she was so surprised to see everyone! I stayed seated in my chair so that she wouldn't see me and had my sisters, Grace and Chlo'e, help Quince walk up to her. It took her a couple seconds to realize it was Q-ball, but when she did she looked up to look for me. So I went and gave her a hug and we both broke down. She was so surprised! She had told Abby and my dad earlier that day that all she wanted for her birthday was to see me, just to have all her kids there with her. She is so sweet!

Referring to the quote that I wrote above, it is so true of my mother and in the best way possible. My mom has impacted my life tremendously. I am so grateful for her example. She is a woman of faith, virtue, integrity and hard work. She gives her life to those she loves. She serves others with no thought of reward. She does it because she loves the Savior and she tries to see people through His eyes. My mom has set the bar high for our family. She believes in us all, and she tries to help us accomplish our big dreams however she can. I love her very much. She and my dad are an amazing team! I am grateful for them! Happy Birthday Mom!!!
I had the most wonderful weekend! Quince and I were there in Salt Lake with my family and were able to celebrate my mom's birthday with them! Then we flew home on Saturday around noon and I was able to go on a date with my sweet husband for Valentines Day!

2009-01-18T21:41:00.000-08:00

Quince is quite the "hefty" boy weighing in at 28 pounds. And he isn't very interested in walking, which is fine because I can have a little bit of control over where he goes. I know that when he learns to walk, he'll learn to run, which he'll LOVE! And then he is free to go wherever he pleases, which is a little scary. Quince's personality is similar to Lezlee's..... CRAZY! So I'm a little nervous. However, this rather large child has been attached to my right hip, (I just can't seem to ever carry him with my left, much to my chiropractor's dismay!)for months. He is a bit of a "mama's boy" and needs to be carried everywhere so that I can keep up with Lezlee and Lincoln. My point is this, we got him shoes that squeak with each step in hopes that he would like the noise each step makes and he might want to walk. We think it is working, but it's only been a couple days. And we're still at the entertained stage, not yet to the annoyed stage that I'm sure we'll get to as soon as he walks well. The makers of these shoes were genius and made it possible to take out the squeaky part so that they can wear them as normal shoes! Wohoo!

Another Quick Recap

2009-01-11T20:29:00.000-08:00

Our little family

Here is Lezlee on Christmas morning. You might ask yourself, where are her Christmas pajamas? Oh no, the girl won't leave her room still in her pajamas. Wierd! I could live in mine!

Linc thought he was so funny putting on his cousin, Addi Cate's bow!

Spence LOVES to tease the kids!! Here he is squishing Q's cheeks. They are just to irresistable!

Our trip home to Utah was OH SO FUN!! And COLD!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SPENCE!!

2008-12-05T12:34:00.000-08:00

I love my sweet husband very much. I love my life with him and am so grateful for his hard work. He works hard at work and he works hard to help the rest of us be happy. He is a wonderful husband! And an awesome, fun dad!

I made this for him for his birthday. My sisters-in-law, Steph and Kelli helped me because I had never done it before. So thank you!! Then when I went to Utah for Thanksgiving my mom helped me frame it just right! How is she soooo right all the time?!! LOVE HER! And her sweet friends at the frame store that do a lot of work with her did it for me in 2 days, over Thanksgiving weekend! They are so nice and generous! But we celebrated Spence's birthday early with my family last Sunday and I couldn't wait. So I gave it to him then. So here is Spencer's birthday project....

If you can't read the writing, it says,
"Whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall by my people, and they God my God. Where thou diest, will I die."
-Ruth 1:16-17

2008-12-05T12:31:00.000-08:00

My updates from the last 6 weeks all got out of order. Kinda weird. And also, my nephew Jackson was baptized so we made a trip out to Chicago. But somehow we didn't take pictures I guess. But that was a big part of the last 6 weeks too! Go Jackson! Also, I'm printing a retraction because I misspelled "handsome" when I wrote "Handsame Q." Sorry. Mistakes happen!

A Few updates from the last 6 weeks

2008-12-05T12:06:00.000-08:00

The Fishes and Abe bought Quince this for his birthday. Talk about a rocking present!!!

Lincoln and Auntie Grace on the "roller coaster!"

We went to Salt Lake for Thanksgiving. This is Quince and buzzin cousin Sophie at Jungle Gyms!

Quince turned 1!!

Handsame Q is happy at the zoo!

Me and the kids went to the Phoenix Zoo! LOVE IT!
Steph and Marcus blessed their new little baby Abby!

Dallas:We all went to a bounce house for Quince's, Jackson's and Marcus' birthdays since they were all in November.

2008-10-28T20:23:00.000-07:00

Here is Lezlee saying The Pledge. She says it each day in preschool. Go Mrs. Shawni and Mrs. Brooke!! I got the idea from a friend that recorded her girls saying it and it was so cute! Lez loves watching them, Poppy and Avery, saying it in their video and asked to do it herself. She is growing up way to fast for us!

I'm so glad she goes to a preschool that still say the pledge every morning. This is what we should be teaching our kids, that we have a country to be proud of. Their generation will treat it like it is special and strong if they grow up learning to respect it.

Early Halloween Pictures

2008-10-25T21:09:00.000-07:00

Quince is a bear for Halloween but you can't tell because he HATES the hat, which is the most adorable part of the costume. Oh well.

She had a rainbow painted on her cheek at our ward's Halloween party.

I swear she was just SCRATCHING her nose!!

Linc is a cowboy and Lezlee is Bell

2008-10-10T14:53:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-10T14:45:00.000-07:00

Just a few pictures of the kids to catch up for the month.

2008-10-10T14:39:00.000-07:00

Linc kissing Quince

Lezlee doing a handstand (I don't know where she learned to cheat and use the couch?!)

Quince squinting in the sun

Fun Time with Gma & Gpa Huxtable

2008-09-25T15:06:00.000-07:00

My parents came down to Arizona this week to visit and to do a little work. We had so much fun! We took these pictures at the mall by our house. They have an awesome 2 story carousel that the kids love, of course. Thanks mom and dad for the fun week!

Great Times!

2008-09-25T14:58:00.001-07:00

Kasey found this great place to take the kids to play and jump around. We had a lot of fun with them, of course! Lezlee was at school when we went, so it was just time with the boys.

Speaking of Quince being accident prone!

2008-09-18T20:38:00.001-07:00

He tried to climb out of his exer-saucer toy and wasn't entirely successful.

Our New Dog

2008-09-16T21:01:00.000-07:00

This is our new puppy. We have a chocolate lab now that we've had for 2 years. Our poor dog, Trip, has been in need of a friend for a long time. So we finally stopped talking about it and did it. We adopted Brutus from the shelter. He is a 2 month old rottweiler. He's too small to be much of a playmate now, but he'll catch up (and then outweigh) Trip soon enough! We are all crazy about him!

Everybody thinks we are crazy to take on something new, especially a puppy. But it's worth it. (I say that now. Let's hope I can say that in a couple weeks!)

Our Handsome Lincoln

2008-09-16T20:55:00.001-07:00

Dressed for church. Our handsome boy! We love him in blue!

I think Q is accident prone already!

2008-09-10T21:08:00.001-07:00

How can you not laugh a lot with kids like these? Quince was crying so I went into his room to get him and he was completely stuck. His chubby ankle wasn't going to budge.

Then 15 minutes later I put him in his swing. Linc came over to me at the sink saying, "Help me! Help me! Quince! Help me!" Q wasn't crying or anything so it was picture worthy. Linc had been swinging Q and he tipped him over. Silly boys!

I can't believe how big our baby Q is getting!

2008-09-08T22:53:00.000-07:00

2008-09-02T14:36:00.000-07:00

Lincoln and Quince are about the same size even though they are 15 months apart. We get asked all the time if they are twins. Silly. Two good looking boys!

2008-08-31T22:15:00.000-07:00

Okay Everyone. This is my mom's cookbook. You should all check out her website. It is the most beautiful cookbook ever! It's true talent and a lot, a lot of hard work compiled into one book. Check it out by clicking on www.thegatheringoffriends.com in my right column.

We are having a lot of fun (and yes, of course more hard work!) promoting the book. Good Luck MOM!!!!

Happy Lincoln!

2008-08-27T21:48:00.001-07:00

I'm not always the most patient mom, or the most loving wife, or the best best friend, or the most selfless servant. Nor am I good at everything I attempt to do. But I will say this.... I am happy. I'm happy for millions of reasons.... My amazing kids that have the capacity to think that EVERYTHING is somehow incredible. They appreciate the simplest of pleasures. Take the look on Lincoln's face for example, I asked him how his cracker was that he was eating and he gave me this beautiful smile when he said, "Really good!" It's just a cracker! But he has the gift of making it seem like he just won the lottery. There is a definite reason that we are told to be like little children.

May we all recognize the good in EVERYTHING and share it with others.

1st Day of Preschool!

2008-08-21T12:33:00.000-07:00

It seems crazy to think that our little girl has begun preschool! She has absolutely no reservations about going. She is just excited! It is the cutest place! A friend in our ward, Lisa, told me about it and said her girls were going there. Lezlee goes each morning from 8:30 to 11, then comes home and eats lunch and then crashes in her bed. It's wonderful for everyone!

Spence and I were going through her backpack on her first day (last Tuesday)and couldn't believe that we were looking at our daughters school work! Total cliche but my oh my, how the time flies!

Sweet Souls

2008-07-24T15:58:00.001-07:00

My sweet parents were kind enough to put two of my younger sisters on a plane last week and fly them down to see me. I'm a bit spoiled considering I had only lived in Arizona for 2 1/2 weeks when they came. I missed everyone so much though! So Grace and Chlo'e came to stay and play. The problem about playing here now is that it is 110 degrees on a daily basis. So going to the park just isn't what it used to be. (But it will be sweet in a few months!) So we went to the pool when we could, and we went to the mall and rode the two story carousel. And they came with me to swimming lessons every day. Lez and Linc took lessons for the last 6 days of a session. By the time we moved here most of the sessions were over. So we were lucky to get in 6 days. There were a few days that I was really sick and Grace and Chlo'e were so kind to me. Each night they would say, "Wake me up when the kids get up so you can go back to sleep." How nice is that?! I hated being a bit out of commission while they were here, but it really helped me to get better faster because I had extra sleep and extra help with the kiddo's when we were just hanging out.

Grace and Chlo'e are two of the loveliest souls to come to this earth. They are so kind, helpful, fun, goofy, and so quick to serve. They are always looking for opportunities to help someone. So imagine how great my life is just by being their sister! They are every bit as beautiful on the inside as they are on the outside. I love them so much and can't wait for them to come and visit again soon!

Licorice Face

2008-07-24T12:14:00.001-07:00

Screwball experienced licorice today in his car seat. Do you think he liked it?

2008-07-24T11:57:00.000-07:00

Quince has a big head normally, but this is ridiculous! He looks like an orange on a toothpick! (Not that he is even close to being a toothpick! But the orange part is pretty accurate.)

Cookie Monster's

2008-07-24T11:43:00.001-07:00

The kids had only been awake for 10 minutes this morning. I hadn't even fed them breakfast yet and I couldn't find Lincoln. He LOVES to play hide and seek, so I started looking in closets and the pantry and the bathrooms, all the usual places and still couldn't find him. I couldn't hear him either, which was unusual because he's always laughing when we look for him. Finally I looked over at the window to open the blinds, and Linc was sitting on the floor crouched in the corner with a bag of 3 dozen chocolate chip cookies. Lezlee joined him before I could stop her.

We Moved!

2008-07-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

We moved to Mesa. We've talked about it for a while but didn't know exactly when we would move. And then at the end of June, we did it. We packed up our little house that Spence worked his guts off in, the little house that we had all 3 of our little beauties in, and the first little house we ever owned, and we moved to Mesa, Arizona. We are happy here. Spence is very busy with work but loving it. He is working with wonderful people and has had doors opened to him and we are grateful for the opportunity. We miss our family, as we don't have family here. Although, the Perkinson family (Danny and Kasey and their families) have opened their homes to us and made us feel very welcome and comfortable in a foreign place. It is a small world here in Mesa, everyone knows each other! I get a kick out of it all the time! Most of the times that I meet someone new, someone that I already know comes up in the conversation and they end up being related somehow or grew up in the same ward, or went to the same high school or whatever. It actually has helped me to feel more comfortable here. I know it's been so long since I have posted, I'll have to get back to it again soon!

Cute Lezlee With Mama's Headphones

2008-06-10T16:31:00.000-07:00

2008-06-10T16:24:00.000-07:00

It was pretty funny to put this on Linc. He's just such a boy's boy. So to see him in pink..... it was just out of place! It was funny because he had it on and was laughing at himself saying, "I'm funny!" And then he took it off and tried to put it on my head. I guess he knows where it belongs.

2008-06-10T16:21:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite things to do is to walk to the park! Of course it is, we have 3 kids under 3 years old! They live for the park. And I love it because it's so fun to play, but they also come home and take better naps after playing hard in the sun. This is a picture of Lezlee and Quince in the swing together. She is so good to her little brother!

Q-Ball Eating Cereal

2008-05-13T14:19:00.000-07:00

Our baby is getting so big. He has started to eat solid foods, and surprise! He loves them! He has only tried cereal so far, but its a fun start. Sorry that you can see the food in his mouth. Kinda gross! We'll teach him to chew with his mouth shut later!

Sorry, I'm kind of obsessed with the day-to-day things that my kids do. That's just the stage of life that we are in. That's what is exciting in our family right now.

David Archuleta

2008-05-13T10:03:00.000-07:00

Waiting for David Archuleta

2008-05-13T09:24:00.000-07:00

2008-05-13T09:12:00.000-07:00

Many of you know that I am a big American Idol fan. I watch every week, and yes, I also vote! So does the rest of my family! So last Friday, David Archuleta came home to Utah to do a "Hometown Visit." So Maggie and I took our kids and Grace and Chlo'e to Gateway Mall where he was coming to sign autographs. We got there and realized that we'd never get through the line of people to get an autograph or meet him. So Mags decided that we wait by his limo so we could be there when he got out. Very good decision on her part! We were right there when he got out and we all got to see him. I know that Mags and I are a little old and way too married to be so excited about this. It's not like we have crushes on a 17 year old, it was just fun to be in the crowd who was all so excited! Seriously tons of screaming fans! Anyway, he walked right by us. My sister Gracie was holding Lezlee and he shook Gracie's hand and then touched Lezlee's shoulder and said, "Hi sweetie!" Wow! Lezlee, at 3 years old, hasn't stopped talking about it since! Here are a few pictures of him and the surrounding FUN and CHAOS!

2008-05-08T14:21:00.000-07:00

Our little (and by "little," I mean huge!) Q-ball got his first tooth! He grows faster than the other kids in every way! Although, his head is so big I can't imagine that he'll be on the move any faster than them. How can he lift it? Seriously, he is weighing in at 20 pounds at only 5 1/2 months. That's a big boy! Big and beautiful!

2008-05-08T10:20:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago I was driving with my kids and Lezlee and I were just talking. She was trying to figure out relationships. She asked me to name all of her aunts. So I did, and then I told her that when Abe gets married that she will get a new aunt. And she said, "Oh. I know who Abe is going to marry." I was a little surprised and asked, "Who?" She threw her arms up in the air and yelled, "He's gonna marry ME!!! We're going to get married in a church." (Very as-a-matter-of-fact-ly!) I said, "Oh. That's great. Are you going to marry him in the temple?" And she looked at me like I'm an idiot and said, "Yeah mom. The BIGGEST church!" Ever since, she is fully committed to marrying my brother! Kinda warped! But really sweet. When anyone asks her who she is going to marry she answers, "Abe." But if you ask her while Abe is around, she just shyly points her finger at him. Her little crush is so funny!

2008-05-08T10:13:00.000-07:00

Last week I was doing the dishes and talking on the phone, not watching my kids like a hawk like I should've been doing. And Lezlee came running into the kitchen and said, "Winkie got a marker!! Quick! Come on Mom!!" So of course I ran. Luckily he only covered the right half of his face and not anything else in the house. But it was done with a big, black magic marker. This was not a Crayola job! Thankfully the people at Huggies know how to make rockstar wipeups! It took it right off. Except around his eye, I couldn't wipe that area as aggressively as the rest of his head! So he kind of looked like he had a blackish eye for a week!
Just a side note..... Lezlee's "L's" sound like "W's" and so when she says Linc's name it sounds like "Winkie" instead of "Linkie." Lets hope that nickname doesn't stick!

2008-04-07T11:36:00.000-07:00

So if you look at our blog and wonder why everything is so out of order and odd looking, to say the least, I'm sorry. I have to reorganize it and just don't have time yet. But as soon as I get time, I'm all over it! So come back in a week or so! Rach

Another Funny Lezlee Comment!

2008-03-13T10:39:00.000-07:00

Last night as I was cleaning Lincoln up from a messy dinner, Lezlee asked if it was time for bed. I said, "Yes." She then pointed to the picture Christ behind her and said, "Mom. This is a picture of Jesus." I thought she was going to say something sweet about him. But no. She said, "And Jesus wants me to stay up!" She knows that I want her to do what Jesus wants her to do. So because of that, she is starting to use it to manipulate things, like bedtime!

Mexico 2008

2008-03-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

My parents took all of us to Peurta Vallarta, Mexico this last week. We stayed at a resort called The Grand Mayan. It was beautiful! Everyone had the best time!

I've posted some pictures that we took. We didn't take nearly enough to show how much fun we had. The fun just couldn't stop long enough to take lots of pics.

As much fun as we had, our little family has a little list of things that kinda went wrong for us.

1. Lezlee got sunburned on the first day. It blistered pretty bad and it was murder to put on sunblock after that!

2. Something funny (in a really sad way) was going on with Quince's stomach. He threw up almost everything and was extremely picky about food. He wasn't nursing well, nor was he taking a bottle well. Two things he usually does easily. So he was basically upset the whole week. As you can see from his pictures, he's not lacking for food. He weighs 16 lbs 12 oz and he's only 3 1/2 months!

3. We brought Quince's bouncy seat with the vibrations specifically because he lives in that seat. He sleeps in it every night at home and it's his favorite place to relax, other than of course someone's arms! I took it out to put it together on the first day we were there and 1/2 way through we changed hotel rooms. I guess that I left part of the seat in the old room. By the time I realized it, the maids had cleaned up the old room and the missing pieces are never to be seen again. So we were without Q's favorite thing and he had to be held the entire trip. We love the boy, but he needs to be set down sometimes!

4. Since Q wasn't eating well I got a breast infection on Sunday night. It basically knocked me out for a while. They are very painful. The best way to get rid of the infection is to nurse through it, but that didn't work very well because Quince wouldn't eat. So I was kinda sick for a couple days. But we had lots of help from my wonderful family and our babysitter, Shaleigh.

5. Linc had his usual cold. Just pretty stuffy.

6. Linc also had a touch of pink eye. Luckily I followed an impression to pack the antibiotic drops with all the other medicine, just in case.

7. Lezlee had a fever of 104.3 * one night and was miserable. We took her to the doctor at the resort. Turns out she had croup and an ear infection. So the last 2 days were even tougher than the first two for her. Poor girl!

Anyway, needless to say, we weren't the fun ones to be around most of the time. I kept appolagizing to my family the whole time. I know we didn't ruin anyone's trip, but we didn't make it pleasant all the time either. They were great though, of course!

Despite us not feeling well, we all had a blast!

My Mom's 50th Birthday Party

2008-02-18T21:25:00.000-08:00

My dad threw a big surprise party for my mom on her 50th birthday, Valentine's Day. It was so fun to pull one over on her. She was shocked. It was at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake and about 90 family members and friends came. People came because they love my mom and wanted her to have a good time. She is constantly doing for others and forgetting herself, so it was so great to work so hard planning something for her. My sister Maggie did most of the work, and my dad. They really did a great job. Mags should be a party planner!

Funny Lezlee!

2008-02-12T10:30:00.000-08:00

Lezlee is in her room right now having "quiet time." At least that is what we call it. It usually isn't quiet at all. It's just more quiet for me to have her playing in her room for an hour than it is to have her playing in the family room. She is knocking on the door saying, "It's just me mom. I just want to come and see you!" That is her way of coming out and not getting in trouble. That girl cracks me up every day. She certainly keeps life interesting!

Spencer and Rachael

2008-02-08T16:27:00.000-08:00

I've wanted to start a blog for a while because it is a fun way to keep updated on friends that you might not see often. It's fun for family to see, too. I'm moving soon to Mesa, Arizona and think it's a good time to get this thing going.

Here's what is going on now.....

Lezlee Ann is 2 years old. Potty training is the pits! At least for me. Lezlee doesn't care one way or the other. She's a smart girl, so we are kind of waiting for her to make up her mind. Lez talks up a storm all the time. It's really fun to know what's on her mind. It's usually pretty funny! Lezlee is a crazy little ball of energy. She doesn't stop running, jumping, dancing and talking until she is asleep. Even then, she talks in her sleep!

Lincoln Hux is a little goof-ball! He teases Lezlee relentlessly! He knows just how to get her! I'm not exactly looking forward to the teenage years because of the teasing thing. Boys never give up! He'll be teasing her until they are old and gray. He is trying to talk and adds new words to his vocabulary every day. No one really knows that but me and Spence, though, because he he won't show off his new skills to anyone. Most kids like when everyone claps for their new tricks..... not Linc. He just won't do it if someone is looking.

Quince Lewis is the newest little Crittenden. He came to us on November 20th. HE IS OUR ANGEL! He is a good eater and sleeper! He doesn't sleep through the night yet, but he only wakes up once. He is a cuddler, which is fun for anyone who holds him. Q is a happy boy!

Three kids under three years old is a lot of work. But is equally as much fun! I still need to learn to mellow out more, or I'll go in sane. But we are adjusting to having three. Lezlee and Lincoln are both crazy in love with Quince and that makes life fun!

Spence has a job waiting for him in Arizona. He and our friend Danny are building a town-home community on the Alta Mesa Golf Course. It is a really great opportunity for us and we are grateful for it.

Things I'm looking forward to about moving to Arizona....

The weather for 8 months out of the year.
Good friends down there.
Great shopping.
Awesome restaurants.
A bigger home. (950 square feet isn't much for a family of 5)
No more four months of cold, winter snow.
Mostly, all the times that family and friends are going to come and visit!!

Things I'm NOT looking forward to about moving to Arizona.....

I'll miss my family so bad, it will hurt every day!
Leaving behind good friends here.
The weather for 4 months out of the year.
My family.
The mountains.
The four seasons.
My family.
The beautiful snow.
And yes, my family. (Which means that I will be visiting Salt Lake pretty often!)

I hope, as I live in Arizon, that my list of things I love there will grow.

I love being a wife to Spence and a mom to Lez, Linc, and Q. I am grateful for so many blessings. Life is good!

We are finally finishing our little house to get it up for sale. Just a few details left to do, but still seems overwhelming.