Emma Jemma

This is our sweet Emma Kristin Hales. She was born on August 16,2004. Yep, that's right, she will be going to Kindergarten this coming year and she is very excited. She is a social butterfly who absolutely loves people. When we found out we were expecting a baby, we were so excited, nervous and scared to death. She came after many prayers and fasting. We had two miscarriages before she came and to be honest, I didn't think that she would make it full term, but,I had to believe that she would. On August 16th, the hospital room was filled with excitement as we anticipated what this little baby would be. The doctor even teased us a bit as he slowly revealed that she was a beautiful, perfect, little girl. Oh the shades of pink adorned her room in clothes, blankets and photos. How fun this was going to be to play with a girl. Now she is sweeter than ever and has such a fun personality. She loves to sing, dance and be the center of attention. She is very good with her cute little sister, Gracie. This funny little Emma says some of the cutest things. These are a few of my favorites: "My eyes want me to cry" "My legs are too tired to walk" "Are you strong mommy?" "yes," I reply, "Then you can clean my room for me" "I'm prasticking my song" instead of practicing "I just ate breafixed" instead of breakfast "The Pink Panther snuck in my room last night and made a mess" We had her sing the song "My Heavenly Father Loves Me" in sacrament meeting and she did it without be scared. After church she was sitting with her dad and said, "I was just a little bit shy of all those people." Oh, if I only had her courage. She has a great self-esteem and a love for everyone that I would love to emulate. What a sweet heart. She is truly a blessing in our lives and she is loved by everyone she meets.

It's Finally Christmas

We must first start off with Christmas Eve, because that is really when all of the excitement really begins. Here is a picture of my mom as she is unwrapping a brand new computer. We were gathered together at my house and Kate was here with her family, Sean and his family, Eric and his family and then we can't forget J and his family. It was a great time and lots of noise and fun. I really would like to add on to the upstairs with a family and dining room to accommodate this kind of entertaining, but Tom keeps telling me to save my money. Ha Ha.
Anyway here is a picture of my cute dad who was as excited as a little kid on Christmas morning.

We had a ton of food and lots of joking and goofing around, mostly by the adults. Here are some of the pictures of the gang.






Every year my kids get homemade pajamas. There has been only one Christmas that they actually got store bought ones and they were not happy with me. I repented and as you know that true repentance means that "you're sorry that you did it and you promise that you'll quit it and you'll never ever do that thing again." For the past 3 years I have also made them neck socks to match their jammies. They wear them while out in the cold, sleigh riding, air soft shooting wars and messing around. These pj's also come in handy for the Klondike Derby. My boys claim they are the only ones who stay dry and warm, because of the pjs. It makes a mom so proud. So, here are the kids in their pj's. First Matt, Bryce, Tyler, Emma, and then Gracie.


Matt is wearing Black Ninja Pajamas with a Hat much like an elf's.


Bryce is sporting a great look with Snoopy. His favorite character.


Tyler has Soccer balls with camoflauged colors of black, blue and white.


Emma is showing us her cute Pink Panther pajama pants with a pink shirt to match.


Gracie is being a bit shy, but she also has Pink Panther pants and a pink shirt.
Originally, I had made pink silky pants with flannel lining that had a hot pink and white snowflake print. But they both love Pink Panther, so those are the ones they chose to wear.

Then came Christmas morning. I loved that the kids didn't come in to wake us up until 8:00 am. The boys slept in the shed in their man hut.(I'll blog about that man hut in the future.) The girls were wiped out from Christmas Eve and so everybody slept in. It was a very Merry Christmas!

TJ Tyler T-Rex Jesse Tommy TyTy

This is Tyler Jesse Hales, born on October 31, 1996, Halloween! When he was born, there were jokes that went on and on in the delivery room, like is this a boy or a ghoul? or Let's name him little Spook. This has been the funnest day for a birthday for a little kid. He loves to dress up like whatever he wants for the whole day, get candy from everyone he visits and get presents, cake, ice cream and a party at school and at home. Who could ask for more fun in one day? Tyler is so full of fun that he often finds it hard to get busy working. However, his teachers say that he stays on task and is very responsible and always gets his work done on time. Wow! Because when he is at home, we need to remind him to stay on task and remind him what we sent him to do fifteen minutes ago. I love him to pieces though. Here are a few good reasons why.......
His real name is TJ Tyler T-Rex Jesse Tommy TyTy Oobie Doob Scooby Doobby Benubi Hales. I love his big beautiful oops I mean handsome blue eyes. A smile that is as big as his heart and a laugh that makes me smile. He is amazing on the piano and if you give him a pencil and a piece of paper, he can create a masterpiece. His favorite sport is Soccer and this makes his dad soooo proud. He loves people and enjoys making others happy. He is a Big Tease and loves to try to tease his older brothers. He loves attention and will often poke or dance around you if he wants you to play with him. He loves his family and especially his mom. He is soooo creative and has such a vivid imagination. His costumes for Halloween often come from his wonderful imagination. He also loves inventing games with his older brother Matt. One day we found lego people and star wars action figures and other action figures spread out across Matt's floor and they were having a huge "Risk" game with all of their guys. He is creating memories that we will always remember.

Bryceter Buddy

This is Bryce Rodney Hales. He was born on July 7, 1993. He has been the most stubborn kid I have ever met, yet the most loving and responsible one as well. He really challenged me when he was a tiny guy, but those dimples could melt my heart especially when he flashed his big brown eyes at me that were so full of mischief. Some don’t remember what he was like as a little tike, but those who do may say he has become a great young man. When he was little, I told Tom that all we had to do was make him want to always do what is right and he would never stray from it. This has become what he is today. Here are the reasons I love him:
He is talented in many ways, music, art, friendship, and the ability to always be the first one to help out when needed. He has a great smile and handsome brown eyes that still melt my heart. He loves his little sisters and has always had a nurturing way of taking care of them. He has a testimony of the power of prayer, His desire to be baptized on the same day as his Grandpa and the prayers that followed to get Emma and Gracie here are a major part of that testimony. He has always done well in school and is never one to be nagged about getting things done. He has an inner strength and determination that are amazing. One day he will be a great leader and a great strength for others to follow as I am following his example now.

Matt Man

This is Matthew Thomas Hales. He is the glue in the family that sticks us together. He was born on March 16, 1991 and has been a lot of fun to be a mom to. He always has a smile on his face unless he is getting his pictures taken. Then it becomes awkward and forced. We then tell jokes until we get him laughing and a natural smile comes.
Since the day he was born, he has always been able to sit still and listen intently. Now whether or not he hears every word is questionable. He is the reason for the phrase "You are so out of this conversation". He tells me everything and I love it. Tom always tries to get in on the conversation halfway through and that's when Matt makes his famous statement.
Reason why I love him,
He's funny, awkward around girls, loves life, loves the scriptures, loves to serve others.
He has an amazing way of talking people into doing things for him as well.
Imaginative, Calm in the stormy sea, Patient, an Amazing Artist.
Always trying to be better, Always helping me to be better, Loves his mom.
Respectful, Caring, especially with Emma and Gracie, Takes time to enjoy life.

I'VE BEEN TAGGED

I read my sister's blog while on the phone with her and she tagged me, so I need to pull the 6th picture from the 6th file on my computer.....................
This is a picture of Gracie last year just after the new year and we were putting things away from Christmas and she happened to find the Santa hat and put it on. Only she actually thought that she was pretty funny with the pom-pom in her face. She was waddling around and watching it swing in front of her and just giggling. So, we snapped a bunch of pictures of her and that's the story. She is still just as spunky and fun as she looks.
If you have read this, consider yourself tagged, and pull the 6th picture from the 6th file on your computer and write about it.

Thanksgiving

We made it to Kate's house for Thanksgiving and got to see her beautiful baby and wild, fun and crazy girls. We had a great time and WOW! We got to have our pictures taken. Yippee! The boys don't get very excited about having their pictures taken, but the girls love to pose. We couldn't keep Emma's head up straight and get her smile just right with all the head bobbing she was doing. At one point she had completely turned her back side to the camera and still had a smile for the camera. At least she was having fun. Every time we told Gracie to smile, her eyes disappeared behind her cute cheeks. I think that Kate took over 20 pictures of our family and here is one of my most favorites. This will be posted in my front entry and Christmas cards and calendars so enjoy! You have to have some idea of how hard it is to get everyone looking all at once for one good shot.