I just have less and less time to keep up with this blog. I truly do admire those people who can keep it up, but I've found I can't do this and keep up a scrapbook and exercise and clean my house and mow this jungle we call a "yard" and put food on the table and play with my kids and keep Colby from dying an early death (yes, he still has an appetite for the inedible. Not to mention, an urge to climb on top of things). There are, sadly, only 24 hours in a day (sigh). I'll just add a blog here and a blog there.

Anyway, summer is in full swing. I can't believe it's already August! The first half of the summer we were extremely busy because we were out of town. Jay and I were a Ma and Pa couple for our stake's youth Pioneer Trek for church at the end of June. It was in Eastern Washington and boy, was it warm! We were dressed in full pioneer garb and we ended up walking for about 12 miles with our youth. They were pushing and pulling handcarts (we weren't supposed to help). The whole thing lasted four days and it was very difficult, but wonderful (and nostalgic--Jay and I met on a Pioneer Trek in 1992, after all). We had 11 kids in our group and they were fabulous. It truly gave me hope to see how strong the rising generation can be (they're not all going to heck in a handbasket--phew!). I wish I had some pictures--I'm still hoping to get a hold of some I can upload to the blog.

Moving on...A few days after we got home from Trek, we left for two weeks in Arizona to visit my family (well, Jay only stayed one--I have discovered he can't do without me and I'm not sure I will ever be able to leave him again. What a big baby! Ha!) I know what you're thinking--"Why would anyone in their right mind go to Arizona in the summer?" I'm not sure I had command of all of my mental facilities when I bought the plane tickets. It was 12o degrees almost everyday! Here's the next question: "Who in their right mind would live there?" That's the question I would like an answer to. My family is absolutely nutters! Anyway, most of the pictures I posted were taken in AZ. There's my mom with Maia and Carter in their backyard pool (which we spent a lot of time in). The kids loved it! Then, there's Colby soaking wet in his clothes at a water playground we went to in Tempe. He loved all of the fun puddles and jets of water. We were also able to enjoy my dad's fabulous talent for barbequeing. One night, he made baby back ribs, which were truly delish. The kids really liked them. Avery pretty much nibbled her's to the bone, with nothing to spare. She also enjoyed the ribs because she could get really messy! Maia said, after that meal, "Grandpa sure makes tasty meats!" I'd have to agree there. Another treat awaiting us in the desert was two new additions to the Lewis family. My youngest sister, Heather, had a baby on July 1st--they named him Landon. Then, on July 4th (the day we arrived), my other sister, Jenny had her baby, whom they named Elliana (they call her "Ellie"). They are so adorable, but look nothing alike. They look like their dads!

The last picture is from our 10-year wedding anniversary date. My turn to plan. We did a "Dr. Seuss" theme. Here we are, dressed up like Thing 1 and Thing 2 from "The Cat in the Hat". And, yes, we are, believe it or not, grown-ups. The grand finale to the date was a hot air balloon ride, which we never ended up taking because the weather was sorta crummy. I am determined to do it before the summer is over! I'll post pictures of that one (I hope).

We are having a great summer, but it's going too quickly. My brother, Ryan gets married next week here in the Seattle area, so all of the fam will be here. Carter has scout day camp and we plan on going to the Adams Family cabin for a visit. There are definitely things to do. Before we know it, it'll be "back to school." I hope you are all having a wonderful summer and keeping cool.

As you can see, I still haven't figured out how to rotate my photos in Blogger. My brother is probably laughing at me at this point and thinking I am a complete dunce. Laugh it up, Bobie! I barely make the time to post a blog, let alone taking the time to figure out all of the technicalities. SO, live with it! And get used to cranking your neck to the side so as to better view the vertical photos.

Anyway, I picked out quite a few tidbits to post this time. First, we have Maia dressed as Blossom, her favorite Powerpuff Girl. O.k., so if you ever happen to watch an episode of The Powerpuff Girls, you might think , "Hmm...this isn't exactly a kid show. " BUt, it's a cartoon, so...it's a kid's show, right? Actually, I'm not that naive. It's a pretty funny show and my kids love what they've seen. Maia decided she wanted a Powerpuff Girl birthday party this year. SHe was so excited to have her hair spray painted orange! I can't believe Maia is four already! Now, if we could just get here to make it to the potty every time...

I posted a picture of Easter Sunday morning. DOn't the kids look cute in their matchy matchy Easter outfits? Or did you even notice? Looking at the photo, your attention was probably first drawn to Colby's gi-normous head front and center. Colby was a little upset--now that he can get around on his own, he doesn't take kindly to being "placed" anywhere. SO, a posed picture with the siblings...out of the question! I thought it was rather amusing.

The rest of the photos were taken this past weekend at Jay's youngest sister's wedding. I stuck a picture of Jay and I in here because, well, I wanted you all to see how much we've grown! Just kidding. Not that you really want to see photos of us--you're viewing this blog to see pictures of our cute little munchkins, no doubt. So, sorry!

There is a picture of all the little nieces in their cute dresses and Marianna, the blushing bride. Don't you just want to eat 'em all up like a big load of cheese and bread? That was kind of a joke. Explanation: None of us had eaten dinner before the reception began, so we all pigged out on Mari's reception fare--cheese, bread, and cheescake! Unfortunately, no one thought to keep a plunger handy at the church! (HA, HA)

THe last picture definitely needs some explaining. Jay and his brothers thought it would be funny to put Beneficial Life bumper stickers (that they found in Ray's truck) on the backs of their parents during the family picture session at the reception. The funniest part of all is that Ray wasn't aware of his sticker, but fully aware of Anita's, as you can see from the photo. Joke's on you, Ray! We all thought this was uproariously funny. The Adams are not known for their maturity.

Anyway, hope you are all pleased with this very lengthy blog. Toodles!

I guess I never really made a New Year's resolution to be better at updating this blog, which is a good thing because, well... I STINK at keeping this thing!

...O.k....it's now three days after I uploaded these pictures and began this blog. Who knew this could be so challenging? Anyway, these photos capture just a few of the highlights of the last couple months in the Adams Family.

On January 13th, Carter was baptized. I can't believe he is eight-years-old. His baptism day was snowy (big shock--we seem to be getting a lot of wayward weather lately), but almost everyone we expected showed up, luckily. In characteristic Adams fashion, Carter's baptism started like forty minutes late because we were waiting for more people to show (another BIG shock). Anyway, Carter was so excited! After it was over, I asked him how he felt. He got an enormous smile and he replied, "Happy!" It was truly a wonderful day.

For Valentine's Day this year, the kids and I did an "M&M" theme for Jay. The picture I posted here is the one I had printed on a mousepad for him. Can you believe Jay didn't have a flippin' mousepad? Anyway, taking this picture was a nightmare. We used a tripod, but between having to set the camera, run back, grab Colby, put on his blue "M" and tell everyone through clenched teeth to "Smile, darn it!", I should have just gone to a studio and let them deal with it. The posted pic is the best one (despite the fact that we are all looking fairly ratty--Avery is even in her pajama bottoms). Whatever. I think Jay likes his mousepad, which is all that matters.

The last picture is of our Ghee Boy, which is now Colby's new name. THe kids rarely call him Colby anymore--he is always "Ghee". So, that cat is a troublemaker, with a capital "T". He has gone from being my best eater and eating all that is good and healthy and edible, to eating edible things as well as Polly Pocket shoes, chapstick lids, rusty screws, and crayons, to where he is at now, which is eating all the inedible things on the floor and then chewing his food and spitting it out. It's really frustrating. Not to mention wherever he roams (he's now entered the realm of the walking) is a virtual path of destruction! He literally goes from the trashcan in the kitchen, where he either throws things away that shouldn't be thrown away (like car keys) or digs things out that are meant to be in there, to the fireplace where he eats the soot (there's a lock there now), to the toilet where he likes to lift the lid and splash, splash, splash, to the toolbox in the laundry room (that's where he dines on rusty screws), and finally, ending up at the stairs where he enjoys going to the top and peering over the edge (he laughs as he watches me scramble up the stairs to try to save his life). Phew! That was a long sentence. FOr all that, we love him dearly. Oh, I forgot another of Colby's haunts--the dishwasher (hence, the picture). When the door is open, he stands on it and pulls things off of the top rack or just holds onto the rack and leans precariously backwards, until I pull him away (much to his annoyance). What a little stinker!

So, that's some recent news. Hope everyone is doing well. Another blog to come soon? Maybe.

A post two days in a row! Truly unprecedented. Don't get your hopes up, people. I'll do my best, really. But...my computer is still gimpy and I am still frustrated by it. Not to mention I can only blog when Colby is asleep. Take now, for instance. He's awake, and when my laptop is open, he's like a moth to a flame. He loves to claw the keys off of the keyboard. Currently, I am missing the "Fn" key and at one point, I was missing the "V", "1", and one of the "shift" keys. We managed to glue them back on somehow. Anyway, life is never dull.
So, I wanted to post at least one picture from Christmas. The Adams Family gets together every Christmas Eve to put on a little Nativity. Jay's Aunt Janice made a bunch of really cool costumes for the kids. They all dress up (luckily, there isn't much fighting about who gets to be what--the cousins all get along very well) and then Jay's dad reads the story of Christ's birth from the Bible (well, o.k...He does add a little, um, Adams embellishment to it. In the past, it's gotten a little out of hand, but this year, it was actually pretty mild). We also sing (or rather, bellow) Christmas carols and just enjoy being the crazy family that we are.
Jay's youngest brother, Peter was married two days after Christmas. They bought all of the nieces matching flower girl dresses--they all looked so adorable! I had to include a picture of my two little flower girls. Aren't they precious? O.k., so that's gonna have to be it for now. I am having to use my leg (while my hands are busy typing) to keep my Colby-hound at bay. He's reaching for the "Caps lock" key. Better go. Take care, all.

Happy New Year, everyone! Can you believe 2006 is over already? I decided to start this new year out right with a new blog (since it's been over a month since I posted last--sheesh!) I would like to say that I've made a new year's resolution to be better about posting--you know, something like, "I will now post a new blog every week. But...let's be realistic. It's probably not gonna happen. I will keep posting, but only when I darn well feel like it! Hopefully, I'll have a different computer to use soon, so I won't have to deal with the technical retardation of this one. Anyway, I have a lot of catching up to do! So, an explanation of these photos. October through December is birthday season in our house, not to mention loads of holidays! It's busy, busy, busy. I've included a birthday photo of each of our three birthday kids. First, there's Avery, who turned six on November 15th. She has been really into monkeys lately, so she had a Curious George party. Her Grandma Anita bought her a huge Curious George doll, which she was thrilled about. Carter turned the Big "8 "on December 14th. The power went out that night, due to the huge windstorm our area endured. It was out for 3 1/2 days!! We were lucky compared to some. There were some areas that were without power for a couple of weeks. Yikes! Anyway, we ended up going through with Carter's birthday party on Saturday morning, even though you could see your breath in our house. The boys all wore there coats for the festivities, that's for sure. Carter got roller blades for his birthday from Jay and I, which is what he had been wanting for awhile. He will be baptized on January 13th and is very excited about it. I can't believe he's 8 already! O.k. so, the last photo is of our little "Ghee Boy", as we all call him. Colby turned one on December 15th. We had to move the family party over to Jay's brother's house because they were the only ones with power. Colby really enjoyed his cake. Can you tell? Before he turned one, COlby wouldn't feed himself anything. As soon as he tasted his cake, that all changed. As you can see, he literally stuffed his whole fist in his wee little mouth. Now, nothing is safe. I find lint, chapstick caps, bells, Polly Pocket accessories, crayons, you name it--Colby will eat it!
We survived the birthday/holiday season! It was a good one. We are looking forward to another wonderful year. Hope you are all doing just grand!