Him's a cute boy

While looking through old pictures for Father's Day I came across my school picture from kindergarten.  When I pulled it up Sophie said "him's a cute boy" .....  ummm Sophie that's me.  That girl kills me - she is always telling me I have boy hair and that I wear boy clothes.  And yes I realize I am wearing yellow and have boy hair.  Don't blame me I was only 5.

Flashback

I just found these on my computer and they made me smile.  My family right after I was born.  It's funny to look at these pictures and this about how full my family feels with 4 kids and how tiny the family picture looks with my mom and dad.  It's weird to think of them only having 4 kids. 

Steve (3 1/2), George (5), Sherry (2), Me (2-3 months)

Sorry Sherry but I had to put this one in because Steve is looking at the camera.

I love how young my mom and dad are in this picture!  

Looks like us kids did turn my mom gray and make my dad lose his hair.  Ha ha. 

Flashback - Washington DC

When I was going into the 8th grade my dad took me, Danny and Heidi on a business trip with him to Washington DC. That is the first time (that I can remember at least) that I went to DC. We drove the van to DC and one of my dad's co-workers drove with us instead of flying (I guess he got to pocket the extra cash....otherwise I don't know why you would ride in a non air-conditioned vanogen with 3 kids).

Most of the days I remember my dad spent in meetings so Danny, Heidi and I were on our own with subway passes, packed lunches and $20 (which I was in charge of since I was the oldest). I'm sure we went to see some of the sites but the things I remember the most are:

• The bum at the mall (you know the big grass park one) who pulled a half eaten hot dog with mustard on it out of the trash can and ate it. I'm pretty sure that is the first thing we told my mom about our trip to DC.
• Sitting outside of the museums as still as we could to see if bird poop would land on us. The game was whoever didn't get hit with bird poop won. For the life of me I can't remember the outcome but I remember sitting there forever with poop all around us.
• Eating pizza with my dad at some underground shopping mall.
  

These pictures prove we actually did sight see.

Me & Heidi at the Air & Space Museum
(that was my favorite outfit - I even bought it with my own babysitting money)

Heidi posing on a light post outside the capital

I have so many fond memories of that trip. I hope Tayson remembers his trip when he's old like me.

Flashback Friday

It's been a while...but I found a sweet Christmas picture and HAD to do a flashback. First of all, what is up with my mullet hairdo? My bangs are SO short and it's long in the back. Why would I do that? Second, that is quite an outfit I'm sporting for Christmas morning.


Do you think Heidi looks like Luke? I do. And get a look at Jeannie with her bald head all covered in bows. What a silly girl.


We were in Spokane this year for Christmas and I think we were at the Grandpa Schultz's for Christmas morning.

Christmas Flashback

It has been really cold this past week (and I mean really cold... -2 a few mornings when I've gotten up). The other day when I was freezing in my car driving home from work I remembered my first Christmas driving home from BYU. My freshman year here there were 4 of us attending BYU (George, Steve, Sherry and I). They all lived at the Raintree apartments and I was in the dorms so the night before we went home I slept at Sherry's apartment so we could leave early. It was about a 24 hour drive back then when the speed limit was 55 mph and we wanted to drive straight through. So Sherry and I stayed up almost all night then we left early in the morning and the boys were in the front driving while Sherry and I slept in the backseat of the Chevy Sprint (one of the smallest cars ever made). Then at night the boys slept and it was our turn to drive. Since I was "too young" they wouldn't let me drive. I remember being mad at the time - now I will do anything to get out of a driving shift on a long trip.

The most memorable part of the trip though was that it was soooooo cold. The car was never warm enough to take off our coats and the windows were icy the whole drive home. We had the defrost on high the whole way and it still didn't get the back windows or the edges of the front windshield. And then at home that year we had to use the blow dryer to get the door open one day. I also remember sleeping 14 hours straight 2 days in a row when I got home (I guess I played a little too much at school instead of sleeping).

ah the memories.....

Flashback Friday

Tayson - 2002

I love this picture. Tayson and Sophie look so much alike to me and honestly they act so much alike too. Tayson was a bit more intense and Sophie is more spazzy...but they are both very active and very fun kids.

Flashback Friday

Just because it's fall

2003

Oh how I love fall it's my favorite season. It might be the cool nights, wearing sweaters again, the beautiful leaves, peach season, my birthday or school being back in. All I know is that it has always been my favorite.

Flashback Friday - Cross Country

My freshman year of High School I ran cross country. Not because I loved running only because Sherry ran. Looking back I had potential but once Sherry graduated running didn't excite me anymore. Tomorrow I'm running my first marathon and Sherry will be there with me. She said she is actually going to run with me. We've never run together in a race....I'm always behind her. I have a feeling that tomorrow might be her hardest marathon yet (and she's run Boston twice) because she'll be running for at least 4 hours if she stays with me. Even if she decides I'm too slow for her having her at the starting line and cheering me on at the end is all I need. I'm so nervous for tomorrow. But I shouldn't be because I have awesome running partners to support me and my big sister will be there with me.

Flashback Friday - 1st grade

Today I got a call from the office that Luke didn't get off the bus (2nd time this week and he's only ridden it 3 times). Apparently unless Meggan is there waving him down he doesn't know where to get off.

This reminded me of my very first time riding the school bus. In California we didn't ride the bus because we lived a few blocks away and had to walk. So when we moved to Missouri I was SO EXCITED to ride the bus. I was in 2nd grade when we moved and George, Steve, Sherry, Danny and I all went to the same school that year. My mom told us that she would pick us up from school the first day until we learned where we lived. I was so excited about my new school and friends and riding the bus that I totally forgot and got on the bus after school. I had no idea where I lived and there were a few other houses that looked like ours (plus the bus didn't actually go past our house it dropped us off at the top of the hill) so I just stayed on the bus. My mom said she could see my little pig tails bouncing in the front seat of the bus and kept honking trying to get my attention but I of course didn't notice. Finally she got the bus drivers attention (knowing my mom she passed him and flagged him down in some crazy move with the other kids playing shake-n-bake in the back of the car) and he pulled over and let me out. Then I got to ride the bus WITH the older kids after that.

Another funny bus riding story happened my Senior year in high school. Normally we carpooled to school after seminary but on this particular day my car and my friend Tammy's car were both unavailable so we had to ride the bus. We were not excited to ride the bus - it just wasn't cool enough. So we get off the bus in front of the school and we hear our friend's mom from church who is one of the school bus drivers honking the bus horn and yelling our names waving at us. Now, I don't know why it was a big deal, but when you're in high school everything is a big deal. It was so dang funny.

And here is a picture I found of myself in 1st grade in a school parade.

I'm the one in the front wearing a VERY short red dress with socks and tennis shoes. I'm not sure if that dress is supposed to be 3/4 length sleeves...I have a feeling it was just way too small.

One more flashback...

Tayson on his first day of Kindergarten. SOOOOOOO CUTE!

Flashback Friday - Luke

All the focus is on Luke right now since it was his birthday and first day of school so I thought I'd do a flashback on him just to round out the week.

Luke was a very big baby 9 lbs 3 oz and I was HUGE when I was prego with him. Luckily I don't think I have any pictures during the end. Right from the moment he was born he was a sweet baby. After having such a hard baby with Tayson we couldn't get over how easy Luke was. For a long time I thought he was just like most babies but because of Tayson we thought he was the best. But now that I've had 2 more kids and they have been normal kids I realize just how easy Luke was. He was honestly the easiest, happiest, sweetest baby. He ate like a champ, slept even better and smiled all the time. He LOVED his binky (it was quite a challenge getting rid of it when he was 3).

He would always just hang out in his car seat as happy as could be. He and Tayson are only 2 years apart so most of my energy went to keeping my high energy 2 year old happy and since Luke was content to sit in his car seat smiling that's where he could always be found.

Like I said he was pretty easy to take care of. This is how Todd and Luke could be found most mornings while I was either at the gym or getting ready for work. For some reason the nickname Bubba stuck with Luke. We still call him Bubba most of the time. Maybe it's because he was such a big fat happy baby.

Tayson loved taking care of Luke. The day I brought Luke home from the hospital Tayson wanted to play with him and ended up scratching the side of his nose and Luke still has a scar from it. Also, the jammies Tayson is wearing in this picture were still worn by Luke until 2 weeks ago when I finally took them away :)

Luke loves the computer and always has. Right now he is trying to decide if he should be a doctor or work on the computer like his daddy does. He's pretty good with the computer so I don't think it would be a bad career move for him.

Luke is such a lovable kid. He loves to cuddle and is very sweet and sensitive. He is a total perfectionist and loves to make people happy. One of my favorite things is that Luke and Tayson are pretty much polar opposites which makes them perfect brothers.

I love you Lukey!

Flashback Friday - Tayson

Today my baby turned 7 years old. It's crazy to me how old he is. He has been looking forward to his birthday since school got out and I think this morning in the 1 1/2 hours between when he woke up and when I left for work I heard "I'm the birthday boy!!!" at least 30 times.



We did the traditional Schultz birthday pancakes and sang to him before I left for work and tonight we are taking him out to a restaurant of his choice - he chose Olive Garden because he can't get enough of their fettuccine alfredo. Then tomorrow he is going to the pool with lots of family and a few of his friends for a few hours.

Tayson is one silly boy. He makes us laugh all the time and is very dramatic. He got my quick temper and emotions and Todd's sense of humor which combined into one crazy kiddo. He has grown up so much and is a very good helper around the house.

Now for the flashback...

7 years ago I had my first baby. WOW - what a learning experience. I had no idea what I was doing. I thought I was in labor for 10 days before he was born. I would have hard contractions at regular intervals for several hours at a time...then they would just stop for a day. It was so annoying and I was so miserable and grumpy and HUGE. Finally on the 13th I went into labor and about 6 hours later I had a perfect beautiful baby boy. He was 8 lbs 5 oz and 19.5 inches long.



We should have realized in the hospital that first day what a handful he was going to be by the amount of crying he did. Luckily, we didn't know any better and just thought that was how babies came. When he would nurse he was like a little puppy - he would growl and take his little fist and push my boob to get the milk to come out faster. He was a very loud eater and I couldn't really nurse him in public. He also made a habit of having blow out diapers at least once a day while nursing which meant both he and I were completely covered. Yuck. He kept up his crying and we would swaddle him sooooo tight and play his white noise (a 6 minute waterfall on repeat) on a boom box turned up really loud or he wouldn't sleep. He loved to be bounced on the exercise ball and our rocking chair didn't get much use with him.

Coming home from the hospital

I can't believe my baby is already 7 and even more that I have had 3 more since then! Time sure does fly.

Tayson's Blessing

I love you so much Tayson. Happy Birthday!!!

Flashback Friday

Tayson and I at swim lessons 2003

I think Sophie looks so much like him.

Flashback Friday - Future Missionaries

Mark

Timmy

These were taken when we dropped Heidi off at the MTC. Neither one of them went to where they pointed (but they both went to So. Cal). I can't believe how little they were!

Flashback Friday - 4th of July

One year ago....

Todd had very long hair

I was VERY prego

Claire was young and sweet

Luke was always happy (and he still is)

And Tayson's clothes fit
(he still wears this outfit and it's way too small now)

Happy 4th of July!

This year we are spending the week in California and will make lots of great memories I will miss the Schultz/Johnson fireworks and the neighborhood sidewalk of fire though. :)

Flashback Friday - Mark and the Chairs

There are so many great things about this picture:

• Mark is too cute and so little
• The Cookie Monster chair is mine (I got it for Christmas when I was 8)
• Big Bird is Heidi's
• The eyeballs are already missing and these chairs are probably just under 10 years old in this picture.
  
• I remember seeing the big box with the chair in it hidden in my mom's shower the Sunday before Christmas when my mom was fixing my hair
• The mini-tramp in the background. My mom would do her exercises on it, but we kids really knew how to have fun with it.
• The awesome pink pictures on the wall in the background. Especially the fact that the big one has some award just put on top of the frame. Classic.

These pictures were taken Easter 2009
28 years and 2 houses later the chairs live on...

you really can't beat little tikes for a long lasting product.

Flashback Friday - 1st grade

That's me on the far right in the awesome red shorty short dress with black shoes leaning into the cute boy.

Flashback Friday - Family

I'm 4th of 10 kids. When George was on his mission Mark was born then Steve left for his mission before George got home. Then Sherry left for BYU when Mark was 3 months old. One summer right before I left for BYU the whole family was together living in the same house. We've never all gone on vacation together and we rarely get the chance to all be together - someone is almost always missing. Mark comes home from his mission in one month...seriously it's in 32 days! Can you tell I'm excited? (Steve keeps making fun of me for being so excited about it...but seriously I can't wait!!!!)

So for this week's flashback I found a few old pictures of us as a family.

This was Christmas in our front yard in Missouri.
All of us together with no-one on a mission right after Sherry got married.

This was the same Christmas. We got dressed up for pictures and then who knows why but we picked up Brandon. Too bad Steve, Timmy, Mark and my mom are missing

We always have so much fun together as a family. I can't wait until next month when we are all together hanging out...and we're getting pictures taken.

Flashback Friday - Roadtrip

Sherry in the back of the Cav

This was on our way back to BYU after being home for the summer. Sherry, Steve and I all went back with all our stuff and as you can see there was NO room left in the car. The best part was that when we brought our stuff out my dad was not happy with how much stuff we were bringing and in order to get it all to fit in the car he had to shove our shoes in all the small crevices in the trunk. I remember how mad Sherry and I were that he was doing that - hilarious now.

Another funny thing is that the Cavalier had no A/C so we had to ride with the windows down. As you can see this made for great hair and improvised hair accessories.

That awesome luggage was my high school graduation present. I still have some of the set. :)

Flashback Friday - sisters

Sherry and I

Don't we look cute in our matching outfits playing so nicely together? I think we had that dresser until about 10 years ago.