CELEBRATE!

The Twins Are Potty Trained! Hip Hip Horray! I never thought this day would come. It is so embarrassing to say but this is the main reason I didn't want more kids after #4. But now that it is done, I am thrilled & I know I would have been so lost without these two little balls of life.

My terms of when it is official is;

#1- They have less than two accidents a day (combined)

#2- They can sleep through the night in their little undies w/o an accident for 3 nights in a row

#3- You can take them out & about without switching back to a diaper or pull-up

#4- When they do have an accident (#1) they deal with it themselves

I took this potty-training very slowing and didn't stress about it. I encouraged them and just kept reminding them. I thought I was confusing them by putting them in a diaper whenever I didn't want to deal with it but it didn't. More times than not they went potty in the toilet even when they had on a diaper. Lets just say, they were ready.

Our little mer-mans

Another reason to celebrate... SOCCER IS OVER!

When you have 2 in soccer and 3 in baseball and they overlap for weeks it is very easy to go crazy. But we did it and we finally have our Saturdays back (other than Eric is working most of them for the next few months until soccer starts up again).
Richie bored as goalie, decided to get a good stretch in
Tommy has control of the ball. He finally started to love soccer and decided he could actually play the last couple of games of the season. (he is the top right head)

The girls when it was all over.

Yum! Mint Brownies! Mom & Robin never should have sent me to get them. They should have known I would come back with as much as I dared, plus I was starving & we all know we shouldn't shop on an empty stomach!

President Monson: I don't have a great camera but had to take a picture. You should have seen all the flashes, it was better than the cell phones for Eclipse. When the Prophet walked into the room, the spirit brought instant tears and peace to my heart.

Ok, we had a blast. We picked up Robin at 3 on Wed. & found out Sandee missed her connecting flight and wouldn't get in until 11 PM. So we headed to Provo thinking we would come back to get her. We pulled into Helaman Halls. After registering we realized we had locked the keys in the car. Thank goodness for road side assistance. But while waiting, we found out a shuttle could bring Sandee to Provo. Other than Sandee not getting her luggage until 3 a.m. friday morning, everything else went perfect. Since we were 1 year veterans, we knew all the ins and outs. This is what we learned....

1.We learned one must do service to fully enjoy the concert on Thursday night. We got tickets on the 14th row. We laughed, screamed, sang, danced and relaxed with all our quilting buddies.

2. Staying in the MC all day Friday so we could get great seats for the Prophet was essential.

3. Once you park, never leave. We pulled in Wed. and didn't move the car until we headed for dinner Friday night. That was even risky since parking right by our dorm filled up very fast.

4. Always use the women's restrooms even though all male restrooms were converted over except one. More stalls equals quicker lines.

5. Red hot shoes from the BYU bookstore do not hurt you feet but will squeak in quiet dorms. Always carry moleskin just in case. That stuff rocks!

The BYU bookstore lived up to our expectations. Our dorm was very close to the MC which was heaven. We also learned it is impossible to go into IKEA in 15 minutes just to look at tables. Also, Thanksgiving Point has the best restaurant and one store is enough for shopping until the legs start to burn. The tulips were beautiful.

Women's Conference is now a Roe Girls regular get-away. I feel so uplifted when I get home. I can handle it better when my 3 year old Adam tells me, "You're Fired!" or when potty training isn't going quite like I planned. I came away with so much love in my heart this year for my family, a stronger conviction that President Monson is our living Prophet today, a better understanding to help my family, and a new determination to be the best mom I can be.

Thanks Eric for being so supportive. You know you have a great husband when the kids want him to stay at home. Thanks Mom, Robin & Sandee for making it great!

Chop! Chop!

"Before"
(this was 6 months ago after her last hair cut)

"After "
Our very brave Alicia had hair down to her lower back but decided to go dramatic. We told the girl to cut 4-5 inches but it ended up being more like 6-7 inches. She loves it although it was very hard for her to see it fall. I think it just shows off how dang cute she is!! She says she loves it because she can do so many fun things with it. No more pony tails day after day!

The Real Quicker Picker Upper!

This week helped me remember that I was going to do a review on my new cleaning machine. I tended 3 boys for my friend (who took a much needed vacation with her mom) for a day, I watched my cute nephew Daniel (while his little brother is in the hospital) and I actually baked lots of cookies and banana bread this week (which made extra messes for me). This morning I heard Benny get up around 6:30. I waited for him to come get in bed with me but he never came. I heard him come back upstairs and then there was silence. Finally, I got up to go run at 6:45 and peeked into his room. I had to muffle a laugh as I watched him down chocolate chip cookies in bed while he read books.

Electrolux Pronto 2 in 1

I got this for Christmas because I was sick of bending over and sweeping into a dust pan all day long. For those that know me very well, know that I can't stop cleaning. (I'm not a deep cleaner but just like things looking nice) With the twins and after installing new floors last year I was sick of sweeping and not getting all of the dust in the pan. I use this great machine on my wood floors and tile. I LOVE IT! There is a dust buster that comes off that I used to vacuum out Benny's bed this morning(I also use it for my stairs for a quick clean). It sits on a charger when I'm not using it and is very easy to clean. I just dump out the little container every 3 days or so and clean it out and let it air dry over night every couple of weeks. It even sweeps under the cabinets. It sweeps up rice! It has enough power to clean my whole kitchen & dining area & the portion of the living room that isn't covered by my rug.

For the negatives: You have to push on the button constantly when using the dust buster portion. Not a big deal but it would be nice if it was a switch. Also, it doesn't pick up bigger pieces but if it's a big chip or fruit loop, I just step on it and up it goes. You also need to make sure the little rubber wheels don't get stuff on them(like little rocks) or they could scratch your floor.

So I give this machine 41/2 stars!! It is a life saver. I got mine from Sam's after Christmas for around $70. They are $99 in Target and you can get them on Amazon for around $80 but after shipping it is about $94. I haven't looked for them in Sam's since so I don't know if they were just a Christmas item. Happy Cleaning!

Welcome Home!

My mom & dad are almost there! It's been about a month since they left their mission in D.C. After touring, driving across the U.S. and visiting family along the way they are probably just pulling up to their home as I type. They left my house this morning. The kids were so sad to see them go. They showed up yesterday morning and it only took a few minutes for the twins to be right in their laps.

My parents tended them while Eric and I went up to Logan b/c Eric received an award from USU as the "Outstanding Young Professional" in the HYPER department. But this gave the twins enough bonding time for Adam to cry and throw one of his fits when my parents were getting ready to leave. He got on his shoes and was insistant on going w/ Papa and Grandma. Only after Papa gave them each a quarter to buy a piece of gum did the tears dry and they were ready for picture time. We are so excited they are home & it almost feels like they never left.

The Blazin' BB

Richie's first derby was a great success. You can't tell by the picture but there are grooves on the back w/ tons of bb's pried in there. Rich painted it himself and designed it. After making all his cars by himself, Eric learned a few tricks. Also with the help of Uncle Jake, the axels were slick! Richie was the only one who broke the 4 second barrier. He made it to the finals. It was him against two brothers whose dad vowed he would learn to make the best derby car after their last car wouldn't even go down the track last year. For some reason in the finals, Richie's car only broke the 4 second barrier one out of three times (it might have something to do w/ them putting his car on the slowest track twice). But he placed second and he was so excited!

I was running out the door to go to work for 3 hours before the derby and remembered that I hadn't sewed on Richie's badges in the upper picture. One call to Aunt Cindi and she was here to pick up the shirt, went home and sewed it all on for me and returned the shirt in time for the derby. Thanks to a wonderful Aunt!!!

Richie loves scouts and works on something almost everyday.

Spring Break!

Tommy catching some rays!

Since our crazy district didn't give us a spring break, we took one for ourselves. I headed to Las Vegas with six kids. We dropped off Eric in St. George for a conference and then headed to the sun. The week was spent at Robin's house relaxing, chatting & controlling the kiddies! Oh, we can't forget the endless shopping trips we made. I bought some awsome shoes, a cute purse and a great outfit, and that was just my part. I also had to shop for a spouse and six kids. Let's just say Vegas gambling isn't the only way to deplete your checking! It was plenty warm for us but I think the Vegans thought we were crazy. Alicia and Tommy were the only ones that swam every day although Emily and Richie did brave the tipid waters a couple of times.

Emily & Alicia spent their nights at Mike & Michelle's. They loved tending Chasers and having Aunt Michelle do their hair.

(Emily holding Chase in her cute outfit from Holister & sunglasses from Michelle) Adam and Benny never really got all the way into the pool but had plenty of fun playing on the steps with their cousin Connor. Caden was their fun babysitter most of the time since their sisters were busy elsewhere.

(Ben, Adam & Caden)
This is one of the few times Michelle actually had to hold her baby. He is a tunk but so darn cute. He reaches for anyone that passes by. Love the glasses, Michelle!
(Chase, Connor, Michelle, & Caden)

The putting green at Robins house was a huge hit. The kids loved it and no one ever bonked anyone on the head with a club, that we know of.

(Dillon & Richie)

Robin's pool is gorgeous and it is just right for kids. It is a lap pool and the kids love doing cannon balls in the middle but can all touch (except the 3 year olds) bottom at both ends. The water wasn't real warm but that didn't stop them. The heater was on but it didn't click on until noon.

Caden thought all should join in on the fun! Our last day of partying was in Bloomington . There were five of our siblings there~ Dusty, Robin, Me, Jim and Mike. We had lunch and an easter egg hunt in a park. Robin treated all the kids to the ice cream man. She handed one of the older ones a twenty. I didn't think it would be enough, we did have 15 kids afterall, but it came to $19.75.

(Dustin, Caden, Alicia in her cute sunglasses & earrings Aunt Robin bought her, & Robin)

We ended the party at Cousin Sherrie's house. My Grandma and Grandpa Tebbs were there w/ the Bulkely crew. I hadn't seen them for so long and I miss them so much! It was so fun to see the cousins, Aunt Marilyn & Uncle Russell. We played in Sherries great back yard and had a bbq. I had had a rough day w/ bloody noses and having to say goodbye to the Vegans but I was surrounded by family which was all I needed. It is great to be home but I sure miss them all! Alicia said it all when it snowed yesterday...."I wish we could have stayed in Vegas just one more week!"