Where would we be without mothers?  Obviously not here.  Besides bringing us into the world, moms do so much for us.  I am so lucky to have such wonderful mothers in my life.

First of all the GG’s – the Great Grandmas.  My grandmas have been a wonderful blessing in my life.  I have great memories of visiting grandma’s house or having them visit us.  Whether it was bringing cookies or making pancakes with powdered sugar, there was always a special treat from grandma.  Of course before they were my grandmas they were my parent’s moms.  They did a great job raising them.  And now they are my kids great grandmas.  My kids love to see them.  To have a story read to them or just to show them their latest trick.  I am so grateful for my Grandma Jean and Grandma Nettie.  Love you both.

What can I say about my mom?  She has been there for me since the beginning.  Always there to encourage and support me and she continues to do so.  She has worked so hard for 30+ years to teach me things that will make me a better person.  As you get older you start to realize more of the things that were done for you.  I see how crazy our schedules are with our kids and I realize what it was like for my mom.  It’s understandable why she could have forgotten to pick me up from soccer practice.  Don’t worry mom, it was only a 3.6 mile walk home .  I distinctly remember that experience, but what I don’t remember is the countless times that she was there to pick me up.  I guess we tend to remember the abnormal situations.  That’s why moms get taken for granted so much.  They do so much for us all the time that we don’t notice, or just expect.  Thanks mom for all of the things you have done and continue to do for me.

My wife is a wonderful mother to all of us.  Like I just said, there is so much that she does for us that goes unnoticed or unthanked.  There is the eternal laundry, cleaning, taxiing, organizing, somtimes cooking , early mornings with the babies, checking homework, helping at school, and love and support for all we do.  Kristin is an incredible mother.  We are so blessed to have her.  She keeps the family on track.  I don’t know what I would do without her.  I love you.  Thank you for all you do.

Thanks to all the mothers in our lives.  We love and appreciate all you do.

And click here for a little Mother’s Day humor

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Going back in time a bit, I feel I need to cover some of our Easter activities.  We decorated eggs and had a couple of Easter Egg Hunts and all of that, but we also concentrated a little bit more on the true meaning of Easter.  One of our friends  is working on getting his book on Easter published and gave us a copy to try out with our family.  It went through and told what Christ did each day, the week of his crucifixion and resurrection.  It was cool to go over that with the kids.  They were totally into it.  Its fun to see them excited about learning the gospel (though I’m not going to lie, each Sunday Coop asks if we can just skip church one time.  “It’s so boring!”).  But they truly were interested in learning about what happened to Christ.  It was good.

Here are some pictures of our first Easter Egg Hunt at the little park in our neighborhhod. We have a really cool neighborhood called Walnut Knolls (which we may be leaving soon, but thats a different story).  The neighborhood gets together for different activities and holidays throughout the year.  The A. Wises joined us for this hunt.

Oliver and Meg

Easter Morning.  They look cute here, but after comments of, “Is this all we get?” and tantrums over not finding the “ugly” egg, our morning was ruined.  So much for a Christ centered day in our house.

Another hunt in the A. Wises backyard

Coop’s been having a hard time finding his “real” smile in photos lately

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Too busy?  Yes.  Too tired?  Yes.  Too many other priorities?  Yes.  Does American Idol count as a priority?  I think so.

Where do I start after I’ve slacked for so many months?  Perhaps I’ll start with my baby, who is quickly becoming a toddler.  My little Maisy is only 11 months old, but walks and climbs like a pro.  I put her on  the little trampoline at gymnastics yesterday and she was practically jumping!  Bending the knees up and down, almost catching air.  She is nuts.  Very cute and sweet and busy.  She loves laundry for some reason.  She puts it on her head and walks around the house.  She is into taking all the books off the bookshelf and pulling everything out of cupboards and drawers (I need those child lock things).  As busy as she is, Maisy also loves to be held.  She loves her mama!  Ok, she thinks Dad is pretty great too.  We are all in love with her.  The kids are pretty good at helping out with her.  Meg has become quite the big sister, since she is home the most with her.  She takes care of her and is quick to carry her to me at the first hint of a cry.  Thanks Meg!  Maisy is also saying mom, dada, Emma,  and I swear I heard her say Meg (minus a strong “g” at the end) tonight.  She has some lungs this girl.  She is starting to get a little of that Wise girl spunk that is so great…..no, I mean hard!  Oh, and she just finished nursing.  She lasted the longest of all my kids.

Loves her bear-bear

Loves cheerios and practically any other food given to her

Just discovered Elmo

Likes to get into the fridge

Doesn’t really love being dressed up in sister’s pj’s

Loves to read

Loves to be outside

Happy baby

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Oh, our little peanut, Maisy.  She isn’t chuncky like the other Wise babies have been, but boy is she cute.  She has brought much joy to our family and is very much loved by all her siblings.  Meg has been sick this week and cried when I told her she couldn’t pick up Maisy or kiss her.  She can hardly resist.  None of us can.

Maisy is a mover and a groover.  She has been crawling for two months already and has been pulling to a stand for about that long as well.  She has to keep up with her brother and sisters I guess.  She will also stand at the sliding glass door and watch her siblings play four square out on the deck.  She’s waiting for her turn, which will come all too soon.

She is saying “mama” and dada” and is starting to mimic other sounds we make.  She is so cute.  What a fun age this is.  She is quick to smile and to respond to , “How big is Maisy?”

So big!

Maisy loves to play with her toys and books and to stand wherever she can (doll house, fireplace).  She enjoys pulling all the magazines out of the holder and laundry out of the basket or drawers.  She is still pretty spoiled and really loves her mom and loves to be held.  She is often at my feet waiting for me to pick her up.  I would hold her all day if I could.  When things need to get done, its nice to have extra hands to help.  Emma is good about keeping her occupied if needs be.

Maisy is also a good eater.  She loves to feed herself.  She loves cheese (which I think she isn’t supposed to have yet, but she does) and all of her fruits and veges.  Still no teeth, though it seems she has been teething for months.  Maisy is not a great sleeper. How did that happen? Having some issues with that still.   Hopefully we’ll get over that soon.

Oh, and she does the dishes.  She’s amazing!

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January 17, 2009 was a special day for our Emma.  She was baptized and confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  She was very excited for this day and felt she had to wait forever for it to happen (her birthday was clear on December 4).  We were blessed to have a lot of our family and friends there with us to share and participate in this special day.  Emma and Sophie even did a musical number.  They sang, “Walk Tall, You’re a Daughter of God.”  It was really cute and they sounded quite good.  We are proud of our little Emma and the strength and example she is to us.  She has a strong spirit, this one.  Though sometimes rough and hard and difficult, she really has a tender heart and enjoys learning about the gospel.  She is now accountable for her actions.  A turning point on the horizon?

Afterwards, everyone joined us at our house for a little pizza, salad and dessert.  Thanks to everyone for helping make this a great day!

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So our lives have changed a bit since the last update.  First of all, we moved.  We now live in Walnut Creek, California.  We knew we were going to move here, but the way the final week in Vegas transpired it caught most of us off-guard.  Many people were surprised when our phone didn’t work and we were no longer in Vegas.  Sorry for not keeping you all up to date.  We will be sending out our new information in the near future.  If you need it before I get around to it, please email us.

So what have we done since Thanksgiving.  We moved to California that weekend.  We had a great Thanksgiving that included trying to stop a refrigerator from leaking water at my parents house and a turkey that wasn’t quite done in time for dinner.

I have continued to work in Vegas during the week and flying to California for the weekends until I start my new job.  This left much of the unpacking and getting settled to Kristin and the kids.  Fortunately there were only a few hangups: The moving truck getting there 2 days late, sewage in the front yard, a stove that had a leak, no washer and dryer, and shower that doesn’t get hot.  Fortunately most of those things have been fixed since then.  She got us moved in, the kids in school and herself signed up at the gym.  Everyone is adjusting well so far.

We had a great Christmas.  Santa was very good to everyone, surprisingly.  I thought those on the naughty list were supposed to get coal.  I guess Santa is forgiving.  Here is what Christmas looked like at our house.

One of Emma’s First Pictures With Her New Camera

The day after Christmas we headed to Utah to spend time with friends and family.  13 hours is too long to drive with 4 kids.  DVD players help, but it was still tough on everyone.  We had a few things slow us down; traffic in Tahoe, Maisy blowing out, a ticket outside of Elko, snow covered roads in Utah.  Yes, I got a ticket.  I was going 10 over the speed limit going downhill following a car going just as fast.  Oh well.  The kids passed their time with their Christmas gifts.  Here’s what it looks like from Emma’s new camera.

Once we made it to Utah we tried to pack everything in, but were unable to see everyone we wanted to.  We had time with the family to exchange gifts.  Thanks for the recipes and cookies, Dan and Shan.

The kids played in the snow.

We got to see some friends and go to McKenna’s baptism.  It was fun to hang out and catch up.  Everyone was happy to see eachother

even if some didn’t like to admit it.

Leaving was the tough part.  McKenna and Emma DID NOT want to part ways.  They still haven’t gotten used to living apart from eachother.  Seeing eachother once a year isn’t enough.  They were holding onto eachother and wouldn’t let go through major tears.  It was cute and sad at first and then it just got ridiculous.  We are going to have to get them together more often to avoid those scenes in the future.

Kristin got to hit the slopes with her sisters.  She hadn’t skiied in years, but had a good time.  She came back a little sore, but at least she didn’t end up like this.

I had to go back to Vegas to work for a couple of days so missed more of the fun.  Included in the fun while I was gone was a trip back up to Alta with the kids for them to try skiing for the first time.  They had a lot of fun.  They each started getting the hang of it.  The ski trip ended with fits being thrown by cold tired kids, but isn’t that how it always happens.  They also got to have sleepovers with cousins which was a highlight for them.

New Years was uneventful.  Emma wanted to be up, so I convinced her to go to bed around 1030 and then woke her up so she could count down.  She went back to bed and informed us New Years Day that that was boring.  Maybe next year will be more fun.

New Years Day we interrupted watching football to take family pictures in the white snow.  We got some cute pictures.

I recently got new glasses that included transition lenses.  They have been great.  I didn’t realize on this overcast day that there were so many UV Rays reflecting off the snow turning my glasses to sunglasses.  I therefore look like a blind guy in the family photos.  Oh well.

We then got to spend time with more old friends.  It was fun to see the Borgs and Rozeskis again.  Hopefully we can get together again soon.

We were all sad to get back in the car for another voyage across the salt flats and Nevada Desert, but we did it.  We made it home in about the same time (no tickets, but  a slower average speed).

So that’s where we’re at.  The kids are loving their new school.  Kristin loves the greenness of California.  I haven’t started my new job yet, but hopefully will on Monday.  So we just keep keeping on.  Hopefully updates will be more frequent now that we are a little more settled – for now.

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And now a new chapter begins.  Well, sort of, at least a prologue to a new book.  Or something like that.  A lot of change.

Details to follow.

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