What's the Wheat???

Ways to kill a boring new years day

2012-01-03T16:08:00.001-06:00

We had a great time yesterday when Jed came up with an idea to have a dessert contest. We had to go to the store with no recipe and come up with something. Claire and I bought puff pastry and got vanilla pudding and whipped cream. Then added some fresh strawberries. Jed and annie made a cherry dump cake. It was a dark chocolate cake mix made with a can of cherries and butter. We had a blast and it was a great way to kick off my diet.

Cause I'll Forget this One day

2011-11-15T16:50:00.003-06:00

Annie quotes:

"Mom, this year I really can't wait to go see the peanut cracker"

Annie getting ready to go somewhere- "my booty feels like a skirt today"

Some of Lucy's first words/phrases- "open dis" open this
shelby- abby
folds her arms for prayers and shuts her eyes tight. Its so dang cute I have to get on video.

50 day

2011-10-29T08:50:00.001-05:00

This year has been flying by. Claire is loving kindergarten and is doing great. She was tested for her reading and she is reading almost two grades ahead. Annie just turned five and is still so funny and smart. She loves to spend hours playing barbies alone. Lucy is a mess she is currently in color all over everything mode and point and grunt and stuff she wants. She says lots of words like mommy baby I wanna milk (sounds like ick ). She loves the story good night gorilla and goggies. (doggies). Jed and I recently have had a nephew born to my brother it's fun to see how people change when they have kids.

Blogging on the iPad

2011-10-05T21:34:00.001-05:00

10 Year Reflections

2011-09-23T13:24:00.003-05:00

Senior Photo. July 2000

This weekend I am going to a football game to celebrate 10 years since I graduated High School.

For me, ten years is marks many important events in my life and I thought I'd share with you.(or my mom who may be the only person reading this;)

1. May 2001- The sweetest baby I've ever seen came to earth. I got to know her for two days. What a joy! She turned 10 this year. AMAZING!

2. Aug. 2001- I met Jed Wheatley. NUFF Said!

3. Sep. 2001- September 11, 2001. In a dorm room, headed to class..... watched tv for hours. What a different place the world has been since then.

So much changed so quickly for me in a few months......those events shaped the next 10 years I've had thus far and they have been my favorite thus far.

Tonight, I'll run into old friends , I wonder if for them.... so much has happened in 10 years.? (other than come on, lets be honest, I hope some people got fat... like really fat...)

Also here's a few pics just for the heck of it! ( see above!)

Once Upon a Time I had a blog.....

2011-09-08T17:03:00.002-05:00

Once upon a time I had blog.... a blog I updated..... then...............

Summer came and went

Claire started Kindergarten

I was asked to become Primary President (for all the non mormons out there.. just a funny title to say I am in charge of running the children's sunday school program now)

Once upon a time I thought I would play catch up.......... then...........

Dance Recital UP

2011-07-12T13:19:00.003-05:00

More Easter Pics

2011-05-17T09:17:00.005-05:00

Coming Soon: The girl's dance recital

Happy Easter Ya'll

2011-04-26T14:57:00.002-05:00

As usual, blogging has not been #1 or #13 on my list of things to do. But I know I have a few faithful readers out there so I thought I'd do a quick update!:)

Things are going great. Jed just spent a week in San Antiono for work and brought back pink sheriffs hats. Claire chose the hot pink one and Annie said her's was the cold pink one.

Lucy really likes Candy! She has been eating it with the paper and all. We are getting ready to head out of town again for the Nashville Half marathon. I'm so blessed to be this busy and hope you are too! I'd like to think along the way I'm doing some good too.

Much love,
Val

Pictures One at a time!

2011-04-05T18:15:00.006-05:00

I finally got pics up but had to load them one at a time! What a pain. Above is a cake I made a few weeks ago just for fun. It was soooo good. Devil's Food with real buttercream and choc. ganhance.
My cousin Danielle made the cakes for Lucy and Grandpa Hiatt. Lucy's matched her birthday shirt.
Grandpa Hiatt's cake had some interesting problems later but still looked amazing!

The very special birthday buddies. Lucy wasn't to keen on taking this photo but we managed to get one in before she screamed! haha! More pics of the birthday to come... stay tuned!:)

Blog Difficulities

2011-03-21T15:16:00.003-05:00

Well, I have tried to upload pictures twice now and its not working! So I hope to get something up soon! I guess I'll lean on my amazing writting skills to recapture the last couple of weeks.

Jed and I did go on our week end getaway to Greenwood, Ms. The Alluivan is a great hotel. The rooms are really big and it had the best bedding ever!! The Viking school was across the street. We cooked a Benihana style menu. It was very good. We honestly didn't feel like we learned a ton of new tips or tricks but we did really enjoy the experience. No one called my mom for a few hours and it was peaceful!

Also, 2 weeks ago (WOW, I can't even beleive it was that long ago!) My cousin Dani came down from Nashville to party it up with us. We had a double birthday celebration with our Grandpa Hiatt (82) and Lucy (1) who are both born on March 8. Dani made awesome cakes! I couldn't have pulled off Lucy's party without her. It seems like the 3rd time around came and went so fast that I didnt have time to get to fussy about a theme or anything. Of course Lucy is adored by many so we had a great time as well!!

So I guess I lied

2011-02-16T15:10:00.003-06:00

Yea, I thought I was totally going to do that picture thing I stole from Dani...but... right now that is not happening but I thought I would tell you why.

Here are a few things that i have been doing that keep me busy....

www.bikramyogamemphis.com

Bikramyoga is also know as "hot yoga". Its 90 min in a very heated room. Its been really fun.

Also this weekend I will be here:

www.thealluvian.com

and learning to cook food like they make here:

www.benihana.com

stole from Dani's blog

2011-02-03T16:16:00.001-06:00

Day 01 - A picture of yourself with fifteen facts.
Day 02 - A picture of you and the person you have been close with for awhile.
Day 03 - A picture of the cast from your favorite show.
Day 04 - A picture of your night.
Day 05 - A picture of your favorite memory.
Day 06 - A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day.
Day 07 - A picture of your most treasured item.
Day 08 - A picture that makes you laugh.
Day 09 - A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most.
Day 10 - A picture of the person you do the most ridiculous things with.
Day 11 - A picture of something you hate.
Day 12 - A picture of something you love.
Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist.
Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without.
Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die.
Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you.
Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently.
Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity.
Day 19 - A picture of you when you were little.
Day 20 - A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel.
Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget.
Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at.
Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book.
Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change.
Day 25 - A picture of your day.
Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you.
Day 27 - A picture of yourself and a family member.
Day 28 - A picture of something you're afraid of.
Day 29 - A picture that can always make you smile.
Day 30 - A picture of someone you miss.

Ideas for future posts! Feel free to use!

PIctures as Promised

2011-01-26T15:47:00.005-06:00

Mr. and Mrs. Levi Fearnley (and me of course)
5 flowergirls

Getting your hair did is hard work.

Leaving the temple ceremony. So happy!

Merry Christmas ya'll
Gosh Darn Pillow Pets (as I call them)
zhu zhu pet tunnels from oma. Santa was nice enough to put it together.

Welcome 2011

2011-01-13T13:23:00.002-06:00

All Right. All Right. My blog guilt has caught up to me! There will be no pictures. I'll upload those later. If I can remember right ... Here is a summary of December.

1st weekend of Dec. Ran half marathon.
2nd Weekend of Dec. drove to Jackson to have my bridesmaid dress fitted.
3rd weekend of Dec. spent all Saturday with Jed's brother who was leaving to got to school in Utah.
4th weekend of Dec. Christmas Chaos
5th weekend of Dec. Levi and Jenn were married in the Memphis Temple at 11:00 a.m. 1:oo I am at the hotel getting ready with the other bridesmaids for the ring ceremony. No ones dresses fit! One of her friends from Holland who works on runways fixed all of them. 5:00 its picture time. 7:00 its reception/ceremony time! 10:00 its time to take my sweeties home.

Next post will be the pics! :) Love Val

2010-12-16T10:37:00.002-06:00

A sampling of What the Wheat is.. Sleeping.......
Being too cute but trying to get in the fireplace with a pretzel in her mouth.
Running the St. Jude half. My Cuz Dani and Uncle and Jed were all running too. But this was the best picture. The race was so much fun and hard! If you asked me right afterwards if I would ever would do it again I would say no... but after having some time to recoup I'm totally up for another one! What a great feeling to accomplish something!

This is us celebrating the night we Jed called on his way home and said he passed the final part of the CPA exam. The kids wanted to throw a surprise party (cause that's logical right?) it was very last minute but we did have his favorite spaghetti and he went and bought the best German choc. brownies! When he gets the official paperwork from the state then I think we will go and have a high class dinner and spend his 401k (Just kidding but a girl can dream).

This holiday is coming up fast and we have my brother Levi's wedding to get ready for on New Years Eve. Life is fun! :)

Lets Get Together and be All Right

2010-11-26T10:19:00.002-06:00

All right this about the closet I'll ever get to being political guys. so here goes....

My kids are watching a show on PBS about Hanukkah(don't even know if I spelled this right). They are TOTALLY into it. I actually should be in their watching it too so I can learn something but it just got my thinking about tolerance. We need much more tolerance in this world. We are so quick to judge, so eager to fight each other about issues, not willing to see the other side of things. Yes, there are times when you have to stand up for what is right but there can be way of doing this that doesn't involve anger. I am disgusted with politics because people just bicker at why the other side is wrong. I have no solutions to our nations big problems. However, I believe that our nation is a better one because we have the ability to speak our hearts and minds. So, before you go and call someone a Uptight Republican or Hippie Liberal, realize that some of us are a little of both.
In your personal lives at home, with friends, with your kids are you creating an environment of critical thinking or an environment based on you do what I say because I say. I believe strongly in the power of choice. God gave us choice because He expects us to use it wisely.

With so much to be for grateful for this Holiday Season, you must take away the negative and focus on the positive of life. You will change be doing this. Running this half marathon has taught me about the power of choice, the power of attitude, the power of what is inside. It has literally slowly begun to change the way I see the world. It is a blessing. A strange and wonderful blessing to see so much beauty in all things. I know some of you feel the same way and I know some of you are struggling to find it but you will. Enjoy your decorating today! Love to all!

Val

Blog to Book

2010-11-18T12:31:00.004-06:00

I was wondering if any of you bloggers out there know of a way to turn your blog into a book. I just joined Shutterfly and they have a program where you can make a book but I was wondering if anyone has made a book out there using Shutterfly or Heritage Makers?

Let me know please!:) Also, if your daughter tries to put her hat back into the van before going into the zoo try not to crush her hand and give her a small wrist fracture. Thanks!

Finally accomplished some blogging...

2010-11-04T15:31:00.002-05:00

Annie Turns 4. Wait, What?! I love this little girl! She is so smart and silly!
Happy Halloween! Jed and I attended an amazing party this year! We even won a game for collecting the most rats! I love to win!
Lucy trying to be a pea in the pod. I assumed she would fit into this and didn't try it on before the festival at church. O well! She's in our third Pea in the Pod.

Annie opening her very cute headband from Oma.

This month went by so fast! I'm running every weekend and that is taking up alot of my free time. I'm up to 8 miles now. Lucy is great but doesn't like to sleep at night which is kinda hard on the rest of us.

Here are the kids stats:

Lucy 8 months 16 pounds 27 in
Annie 31.1 pounds 3912 in
Claire 29.8 pounds 40 in.

Yes. it happened Annie is slowly starting to outgrow Claire. Hope this won't be too traumatic for her! at least she has that 1/2 in height (for now). Busy season coming this year with a wedding at the end of the year for my brother!

October 2010

2010-10-28T21:18:00.003-05:00

Annie wearing her birthday outfit she picked out. More pictures of the birthday later. I'm trying to catch up! :)
We celebrated the life of a good friend of ours on Oct. 9. Derrick passed away in December 2005 at the age of the 25. This year would have been his 30th birthday. Jed was a band with Andrew Hyde and Derrick. They are wearing their band t-shirts. Jed had an original t-shirt and we new ones made for his family and some friends.
His sisters and mother in the middle. We love them!
Oma and Opa with the kids

Playing Catch up?

2010-10-11T15:45:00.002-05:00

Do you ever catch up? I used to all the time. Lately, I have barely had time to figure out what to do the next hour! But for the last hour today, I have read all of your blogs. Guess you could say I was catching up on you. If I had time I would have commented on all of your blogs but instead I'll just leave a few comments here!

Amanda Boo- I hope your baby comes soon! Your going to handle two little ones like a champ no worries!

Dani-I'll see you soon! Your trips are making me exhausted just looking at them! ;)

Erin- Congrats on the new house!

Sarah-I checked out your husband's new blog. I can only understand half of it. ;)

Its time for me to get my running shoes on now. Catch ya'll later!

Post 150

2010-09-16T13:32:00.004-05:00

3rd children will fall asleep anywhere.

Read Below for more info!

Wow, I can't believe I've been doing this so long. This time you will be seeing a hodgepodge of pictures from August.

Clarie turned 5. I am so lucky to get to keep her an extra year at home! She is reading lots of sight words and I think she is really enjoying playing with Annie more than ever. Its almost like they know this is the last time they will be together all the time. Claire is my most stubborn child but also my brightest star. I love her and all the good things about her!

My sister in law, Megan, and was married August 21. They were married in the Salt Lake Temple. I am sooo happy for her and her daughter! They have landed themselves a great guy, Andrew. We were only in Utah for 3 days. We left the big girls behind at Grandma's. Lucy was her usual angel self. She slept the entire flight home (3 and half hours) and then in the car till we got to our final destination. I was shocked!

I'm thinking its about time for fall to start! I have been "running" walk/running for the last 6 weeks. I am doing the St. Jude Half Marathaon Dec. 4. It will be so much nicer when the weather will cooperate a little better! Also, we have weekend planned of Cooper Young Festival and a family drive to Shiloh. Maybe if your lucky I'll take some pictures. For now enjoy the old photos!

Courage

2010-08-26T15:30:00.006-05:00

I hope you will take the time to watch this video. As a member of the Church of Latter Day Saints, I am so humbled to "know" Stephanie. I hope to be as beautiful as she is one day. Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father want us to return home. They will guide us there as we have faith and the courage in their plan.

Update

2010-08-16T15:02:00.003-05:00

I feel as if I've been leaving the blog world hanging for a while now. Here's whats new:

My brother Thomas left July 26 for the Santaigo Chile Mission. He will be serving there for the next two years. He is currently learning Spanish in Utah and will be going to Chile in September. I can only imagine how amazing this will be for him! This his him at his Farewell Open House. The missionaries serving in Memphis came by to say good bye!

Clarie Bear turned 5. I'm hoping at her next check up she will be big enough to at least not have to sit in a regular car seat anymore. But who know? at 4 she was still only 28 pounds so we'll see. She won't be going until the end of October. She is the smartest girl! She can read some sight words now like cat, the, dog.... I guess her preschool is going to have to keep her pretty busy this year. She doesn't seem upset that some of her friends are starting Kindergarten this year. I will be so sad next year without her.

Annie continues to change her outfits at least twice a day. She also continues to be the comic relief in this house.

Lucy and Daddy are bonding alot these days. He often comes home from work, eats dinner, and then takes her upstairs. Sometimes he is on his laptop studying for the 4th Cpa exam and sometimes I have no idea what they are doing up there but I'm glad they get their time in.

Myrtle Beach (and other reasons I haven't been blogging)

2010-07-28T09:55:00.004-05:00

Since, I always upload my pictures backwards. I guess I'll take you on the trip backwards as well. Okay so this is day 5. Monday. That day the boys went and played the World Tour Golf Course and the girls went shopping. That night we did the special beach pictures. In the rain, and wind, and kids were screaming (okay just Claire was screaming) these are a few we took with my camera then the professional got there and thats when all hell really let loose. (more pictures to come on that). Missing the the big group shot is my Levi's finance Jenn and Vance's girlfriend Rebekkah. (more pictures of that to come too)

Day 4- Beach all day. Seafood Buffet at Night. Best crab legs EVER!
Lucy is not a fan of the beach.
Day 3- Children's Muesuem and Date Night. (not pictured) but we went to a the Flying Fish.

Day 2- Beach in the morning/Ripley's Aquarium in the afternoon
Day One- Quick Beach trip and then Cirqu de Sole type show (not pictured!) and then Boardwalk on the Beach and a Bennihanna type restaurant (not as good though.. but funner chefs)
My cutie baby on a plane! Day 0 ( boo for travel days but yea for Travel T Tyedie style!)

Also as soon as we got back we had

1. Swimming Lessons everyday ( YES THEY SWIM!!!!) so awesome
2. Helped with going away party for my brother Thomas. He is going on a two year Mission to Chile. Going to miss him crazy bad!

Summer Time...

2010-07-01T16:00:00.002-05:00

Okay ya'll where is summer going?! Its already almost July 4th!! What!?

Well I don't know about you but my summer is flying by and yet I feel like I've accomplished very little. Maybe that is what being a housewife is all about, running around till your crazy, only to realize it starts over tomorrow? Sometimes I know I make my life harder and stress about things that don't matter much. Also, I hope its not just me, but don't you have the fear of being bored?! So then you try to cram as much into each day as you can. For instance here are things that I am currently doing virtually all that the same time: Reading The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, Watching BostonMED on Hulu, learning how to cook better and loving it. I have a major back log of recipes already waiting for me, thinking about how i haven't printed any of Lucy's pictures out yet ever... but I did buy her scrapbook, oh yeah, taking care of those little people around here who call me mom, wondering why I haven't taken to Claire to the dentist yet ever?! Its that terrible or what? She is almost 5 but we don't have dental insurance so I haven't quite got around to it.... o yea and Jed needs physical he is 30 now.. That is something grown-ups do right? WOW. Thought I would feel better if got this out ....maybe I will later..... for now..... I think I have a long weekend and a Family vacation (with my WHOLE Fearnley family-14 people total, including both my brother significant other ladies in their life) to prepare for.

Okay how about you? Whats on your mind? I know you have something!:)

Happy Early Father's Day Baby!

2010-06-17T13:46:00.007-05:00

Well, As you can see Jed loved babies from the start! That cabbage patch doll might be a lion but come on its still a doll! and I love it!

Q and A with the Girls for their Daddy:

1. What is your Dad's name? Jed

2. What does your dad do for fun? Annie- said: work and fish Claire said: Ask me what does daddy does for fun after dinner? Hold Lucy!

3. What does your dad like to eat? Claire: Fish Annie: sometimes daddy likes to eat fishes when we go to the fishing hole.. Claire: we've never been to the fishing hole

4. How old is daddy? Clarie-we dont' know
Annie- 3?

5. What does do daddy do that is very fun? Claire- Play with me and Annie
Annie- Kiss me

6. What does your daddy do all day? WORK!

7. When does your daddy look handsome? Claire- On church days

8. What is your favorite thing about daddy? Annie- Just swinging Claire-that he likes his girls

Annie- hey that was supposed to be my answer

Love you Happy Father's Day!

I love you just the way you are

2010-06-02T19:55:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I had one of the first ever moments where I really wanted time to stand still. Claire and I were sitting on the couch just talking about her school, her friends, and just other four year old stuff. It was great. and I realized she is 4 going on 5 and suddenly I'll look up and she will be saying those three little words every mother longs to hear from their teenager: I HATE YOU! So dear Father Time can you please stop time for a little while, I promise to spend extra time with my girls while they are little if you can just keep them small. Annie thinks I am her best friend. Lucy adores me. I have so much fun playing with them. Also, while your at it, I would prefer to stay 27 and wrinkle free for a little while longer.

God Blessed the Broken Road

2010-05-22T19:01:00.003-05:00

After listening to that song in the car the other day Claire and I had the following convo:

Claire- Mom, why did he say God blessed the broken road?

Me: Well, he's saying that the road he was on was broken and he was blessed because God showed him a better way.

Claire: No, but Mom, WHO broke the road?

Me: Well noone broke the road, i mean, okay, so like its a metaphor, like he's saying the road it like life and his life was broken and then God helped him find a better life. So the song uses the word road but he really means life.

..... a few minutes go by and then we are listening to Hannanah Montana ... the song its called "Lets Do This"... all the moms will know what I'm talking about and Claire said, " So Mom what is this song really about?.....

She's one smart cookie!!

2010-05-20T14:11:00.002-05:00

May is SOO Busy!

2010-05-18T16:34:00.003-05:00

Lucy smiles!

Lucy was blessed on May 1st. All three girls wore the same dress!
Ballet Recital the weekend of Mother's Day. Hope to be posting the video soon.

The month is only half over and already we've done alot! Celebrated our anniversary at Mellow Mushroom followed by a movie. My mother is a saint and watched all three kids !! Also Happy times on both sides of the family with engagements and my brother Thomas ran the Nashville Marathon! Summer is coming and I'm not looking back!

I Won!

2010-05-03T13:46:00.004-05:00

Thanks so much to Amanda Cantrell (http://lukeamandacantrell.blogspot.com/) for giving me this award! Its awesome! I'm supposed to pass it on to seven blogs that I think are beautiful too! But first... I need to see who out there stalks me! ( Just kidding) but seriously if you read my blog and your not on my sidebar leave a comment so I can add you! I love how the internet keeps us in touch!

A Message from the Heart

2010-04-26T15:17:00.003-05:00

I'm writing from the heart today so I hope I make sense. I've had some experiences in the last few weeks that have made me look at my children with gratitude. Watching the heartache of people who want children and can't have any has touched my heart. Most people out here who read this know I got pregnant in high school and placed a child for adoption. If you didn't know, well I'm sure your surprised! This is not normally not something I would put out there on the world wide web, but, as time goes by I realize this is part of ME- it makes me who I am, My point in sharing this information, is that I feel I have a unique perspective on the topic of adoption. My heart has been broken, reformed, and healed. Part of the healing comes from watching couples who sit and wait for children and it makes what I went through worth it. Because I know my sweet first baby went to the right place at the right time to a family that had been waiting for years... to add to their family. Then me, a confused 18 year old, got a chance to start over in life, gain a new relationship with God, and improve myself and I ended up with This:
Who could ask for more? Hug your babies tonight and pray for those families and girls who find themselves in situations they never imagined.

Slideshow for Opa and Jed ... I figured out how to upload it!!

2010-04-15T13:36:00.003-05:00

Don't forget to turn off the player at the bottom!!

I Love you Jed!! Even if your 30!!

2010-04-13T13:52:00.002-05:00

For the actual real day of Jed's birthday, we didn't do much except have our photos taken by the amazing Linda Prows. But little did Jed know that his mom, sister, and I had been planning a surprise party for the 27th of March. It was pulled off to perfection! His dad turned 60 on March 17th so the party was in honor of both wonderful men! He was totally surprised and didn't suspect anything till we got to the parking lot at which point he just said How did you pull this off? I'm very very sneaky! I'm hoping to share the slideshow I prepared for them if I can figure out how to share it on the internet!

Food

2010-04-01T15:18:00.003-05:00

I confess I started watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. Much like the small town Jamie steps in to help, I was skeptical about what he would do. For those of you not watching, basically, Jamie goes into a small town in VA and works in a local school to improve and educate both the quality and types of foods that they are eating. At first, it seems like he's really saying that these people are ignorant or something, and yes, of course they show him going into a class of Kindergarten kids and some of the kids thinking tomatoes are potatoes. I highly doubt every kid in that class actually thought that but it makes good t.v. to show the kids who really were clueless as to what the vegetables were.

Anyways, I fee like I am rambling here... My point is this..... I love Food. I've found that the older I'm getting the more interested I am becoming on improving my skills as a cook. I could watch Food Network all day and love it. I am beginning to really enjoy cooking and find it good therapy for my soul. So, as I have begun watching this show, it has made me think about what I feed my family. How much processed foods do we eat in a week? in a day? and I think we should all start becoming more aware of what we are doing to ourselves and our families. Now, I am not suggesting that I will start shopping at whole foods every week or that I am banning chicken nuggets ( although seriously people at least I hope your buying the kind that is made out of real chicken breasts not rib meat!!) but what I am suggesting is that you start becoming aware of what you are eating and feeding your children. In the show, the school system was feeding kids pizza for breakfast and only had flavored milks! I mean seriously, We can do better than that for our kids and we should be. So, all this being said, watch this show.... it comes on ABC on Fridays or you can watch it online and start thinking about how you can educate your own family about good eating habits! and then if your children are in school, find out what kinds of food they are serving at lunch and take action if there needs to be changes made.

My new goal is that our family will be eating at least one meal a day that involves real cooking not reheating something that was processed or already cooked and frozen or packaged (like chicken nuggets, frozen pizza, etc...) and I think you should take that challenge too! I plan to buy Jamie Oliver's new book and hopefully I'll be able to share what I'm learning with you! The end and good luck. Another great post about this show can be found on Rachel's cooking blog on my side bar. :)

Adjustment Period...

2010-03-27T10:26:00.004-05:00

Just a little update on us...

So far my girls have:
1.Cut their own hair
2. smashed playdough in the carpet
3. poured out an entire bag of chips while mommy was napping
4. clogged the toilet with toilet paper
5. Cut a hole in one of those balls full of little tiny beads

You can also guess the Fugi is responsible for most of these. Although Clarie did tell a pretty good lie about how her hair got cut, and later we found the hair in her shoe because she was hiding it from me. At least she just gave herself a trim and not bangs.
Lucy is doing well. She eats alot!! Also she poops alot!! But these things are all fun I have in my day! I'm looking forward to the day when we can debut as a family of 5 somewhere. Hold on world... We're coming....

Everybody Loves Lucy

2010-03-13T13:02:00.004-06:00

Lucy Denise Born March 8, 2010 at 4:02 p.m. She shares her birthday with her Great Grandpa Hiatt! How fun! He also shared his birthday with his Great Grandma! Guess its a family tradition.
Grandpa Fearnley
Oma, also there but not pictured are Opa, Aunt Megan, and Tessa
Thomas-my escort to the pediatraction yesterday. Jed had to work and I'm still not driving.. they wanted to check out her weight and her jaundice. Everything checked out fine.
Shelby all my other siblings have been by in one way or the other to visit
Grandma Fearnley

We are so blessed to have another little girl at home. I can't describe the joy she brings us!! Thanks to everyone for all the love and support! Now, someone please explain breastfeeding to Annie.!! She thinks the baby is "eating me" again.

Just Because I haven't posted in a while...

2010-02-23T21:12:00.002-06:00

I've seen a few people do this and because I need to amuse myself.. Here's our life interview style:

Q: So, Valorie, is it true that being nine months pregnant is the most uncomfortable thing ever?

A: Yes, Yes it is.

Q: Is it also true that you finally figured out you could lock your girls closet door and keep Annie from getting all the clothes out?

A: Yes, you would think I would have noticed this earlier but I did not.

Q: When is that baby due again cause I know people are always asking you?

A: March 12.

Q: I've heard your husband's birthday is coming up how old will he be again?

A: His Birthday is March 20 and he'll be 30..... hahahahaha

Q: Have you read any good books lately?

A: yes, thats all fat pregnant people do. Percy Jackson and the Lightening Thief and book no. 1 of Fablehaven

Q: Do you actually think people are still reading this?

A: I really don't know.

Q: Are your girls super excited about a new baby?

A: What do you think!?!!

Now, this is What I call a Snow Day!!

2010-02-11T14:57:00.002-06:00

Yeah, okay all my west coast readers, now you can be jealous.

Nothing Like a Memphis Snow?

2010-02-02T14:05:00.003-06:00

If we gather up enough snow/ice off the car we might have enough to throw at each other! Yes!!!
All in all though, the ice was really pretty on Sunday driving to church. It was like being somewhere else for day.

Slow January...

2010-01-21T13:42:00.002-06:00

Well so far January, has been slow one. After the hetic holidays, its nice for a change but I'm kinda over it ya know! Jed is studying for the CPA (part 2) he passed the 1st one! Did I ever mention that? Yippie! Anyways, this has left me with more time on my hands than normal. I have learned a few new things this year already though... 1. I love my Kitchen Aid. Its amazing! Thanks to the help of La Fuji Mama (see the link to Rachel's Cooking Blog), I have learned how to make homemade bread in one hour! Yea suckers!!

2. My kids are delightful when they are sweet and horrors when they are not! Claire did say something that was pretty funny the other day. ... While taking some clothes to the Goodwill, she said "Mom are you getting rid of all those clothes cause your belly is too fat for them? "

3. Being pregnant is not my favorite. 8 Weeks,,, 8 Weeks, 8 Weeks...

Annie's Sense of Style

2010-01-12T08:23:00.003-06:00

She'll grow out of this right? Everyday she changes her clothes around 3. I'm always too late to catch her in the act. If it wasn't so cute, I'd go crazy!

Christmas in No Particular Order

2010-01-04T16:07:00.003-06:00

Santa brought them a Real barbie house. Needless to say I wish I had two...
We couldn't get a good photo of Claire during the performance so we stopped by her room on the way out.
Performing at Preschool with 500 other parents and grandparents watching.
Preparing to go to the Nutcracker. My cultured cuties sat through the whole thing.
The Angels in the Nativity at Church. Looking good in pillowcases as dresses made by Grandma

Infinite Power of Hope

2009-12-30T08:49:00.001-06:00

Infinite Power of Hope

Click on the link above for a message for a great video about Hope. Its my wish that your Christmas season was full of Hope and Joy this year!

Love Val

For your blog enjoyment

2009-12-17T22:41:00.002-06:00

My Kids Really Love Santa

2009-12-08T13:42:00.004-06:00

Overall, I think compared to last year's pic. This one is much better. Annie still looks confused like why are you making me do this.

ME 2

2009-12-04T08:12:00.003-06:00

Last night, we were talking to Clarie about her future ( as you do with your 4 year olds all the time right), and we have been trying to decide if we will send her to Kindergarten next year. She will be techinally old enough but... I had my doubts as to her size and overall ability to function in a school setting. After talking to her preschool teachers, they agreed that being the smallest and the youngest would most likely be a difficult path for my sweet girl. So, all that being said, she will most likely be doing another year of preschool next year. But anways, as Jed and I were getting her feelings on this..... she responded with quite the attitude: " I just want to be a princess and do nothing all day" AMEN Sister! I guess I have done something right.....

Sorry to Skip to Chirstmas

2009-11-19T15:37:00.003-06:00

I just wanted to say. No, I'm not listening to The River nor do I have any Christmas things out yet, but I wanted to change my blog. I am also lazy and decided to go ahead and go with Christmas so I don't have to change it for awhile. Also, speaking of Christmas, I need all the true bakers to tell me what kind of mixer I should get this year. All I ever owned is hand mixer so I am excited that Santa thought I should get a good mixer this year. So, I want to hear from you , especially if you have a brand like Bosh or Kitchen-Aid.

November At Glance

2009-11-15T09:44:00.003-06:00

After many things preventing our camp out with the George's this year. We finally decided it was a great idea to camp out in their backyard instead. No neighbors complained about our fire in the backyard so camping we went! I think I can all say we all had a good time and slept very little.
Here are the kids in the PJ's having fun in the dark

The next thing we tackled this month was Daddy completing the first part of 4 of the CPA exam. After he got done we spent the day at the Memphis Bontical Gardens. Here are two cute birds we found.
Two cute worms
Two cute swingers and one Smart daddy. We won't find out the results of the first test till Christmas. So guess you'll have to wait till then to hear if he passed. Until then, we will start planning for Thanksgiving and more importantly see NEW MOON. We might even start thinking about the fact that we are having a baby and work on her room.... but that seems too far into the future right now. All right George's and Sparkmans... Can't wait for next years campout!

Reasons I love Having Girls

2009-11-01T08:43:00.003-06:00

1. Princess costumes at Halloween. Claire is Alice in Wonderland not Cinderella! Come on people!

2. Barbie Cakes- This was super easy! Annie was super happy about the way it turned out! I may not be the best at this.. but I make the most mess for sure! Annie turned 3 on October 26! Happy Birthday sweet girl!

3. Adorable Ballet poses. In these photos they are showing you a tondu ( to point) and a pile (pronouced plea ah to bend). We love taking lessons with Miss Starla!

Stats 2009

2009-10-27T21:51:00.002-05:00

Okay because I know you REALLY wanted to know this:

Claire weight: 27 and 3/4 pounds (3rd percentile)
Height: 3'foot 2

Annie weight: 26 pounds (35th percentile)
Height: 3 feet

Dr. Chris said Claire is the size of an average 3 year old... wow... I guess she'll be in a real carseat forever. The rule is 4 feet tall, age 4, and 40 pounds. At this rate of growth she'll be in carseat goin going the 1st grade!! O well!! Clarie has begun to realize she's smaller than all her friends at school and this is a hard fact. I never remember having to hard of time with it growing up .. I always thought being small is what made me different than everyone. Guess thats hard for a 4 year old to see.. O well, next time you see her tell what a big girl she is!

IT's a...........

2009-10-20T15:07:00.003-05:00

GIRL! Yea. I think almost everyone who reads my blog is also my facebook friend but in case you didnt know! Jed is NOT disappointed! How could we be! We are so blessed to get another person in our family! I'm happy to get all the clothes out of the attic and re use it all! Now can someone please tell March to not take too long to get here....

Disney Cruise Part 2

2009-10-13T12:54:00.005-05:00

Minnie Mouse ( Pirate)

Our little room

Disney's Private Island

Nassau Bahamas
Inside the Atlantis Hotel on the Bahamas
Okay I would love to explain in detail every little thing but honestly, it seems like I am running out of time (as always). Overall, the cruise was amazing. I was little nervous the first day, feeling a little trapped, but after I let myself relax I ended up having a great time. It always seems like you enjoy things more after they are over doesn't it? Its the very frustrating thing about being a person I think! Anyways, I think when I go on another cruise I will spring for a window in my room. Just so so I can know if its morning or not! We got some better pictures of the characters with the professional camera so don't worry our kids don't have the crazy eyes in all the pictures.

Disney Cruise

2009-10-05T15:26:00.003-05:00

Our amazing trip started with a two day drive to Orlando. We left on Friday at 12 and got to Atlanta around 10. I started to get a little worried when our first stop was Desoto Co. but things seemed to get better after we hit Tupelo. People who live around here will now about 3 weeks ago it rained everday for like a week and it did not let up to get us to our hotel. The next day, we left Atl around 9 and arrived in sunny Orlando about 5. Thanks to Catherine we found a great deal on a hotel across the street from Downtown Disney. Here's a pictures of us enjoying Downtwon Disney.

Sunday morning we reached the ship terminal. Now, going on during this time Annie had been expierencing some diaherra. She had been fine all day Saturday but got sick minutes before we go on the boat. But I said forget it. We made it this far, we aren't stopping now. Later that night when she started running a fever I thought maybe we had a made a mistake. Needless to say many prayers were said that day. None the less, Here is us with Mickey Mouse. As you can see Claire (or can't see) she really likes when strangers take her picture. So , most of our family photos with characters involve the back of her head. There are more pictures to come. I just didnt feel like uploading them all. So stay tuned for part two....

A Party, a Goodbye, and Some Bump-its

2009-09-17T15:23:00.004-05:00

NOTE: You might want to start at the bottom and read up. I always forget to load my photos in backwards of the way I want them to appear. Even Mommy got in on the bump-it action! You know you want one too!
Annie attemping to wear the mini bump-it.
Claire saw the commerical for a Bumpit one day and asked me now and again if we could get one... and then one day I saw one at walgreens and Well, when your four year old asks you for a bump-it. You just go with it right?
This is my Goodbye. Devree Hambiln came into my life in Jan of this year. She is a 15 year old girl with a type of cancer that I can't spell something like medoblasma... The cancer was in part of her brain and some of her spine. After being at St. Jude for 9 months she has shown no signs of cancer and gets to return home to the rest of her family. Talk about amazing. Shana , her mother, was an incrediable source of postive thinking and I can't imganine the things they went through together! I love them and will be glad to see them on their check ups but hopefully won't be being seeing them for any other reasons!
She might be really happy in this photo.
Claire getting a pedi. French no less!!
For Claire's birthday she had a combined Glamour Party with Callie. Based on the smiles I think she had a great time! I wish someone would pamper me like that! (HINT HUSBAND). I love having so many friends and family close to make my lil girl feel special !

Visitors From Utah

2009-09-08T16:02:00.002-05:00

My lovely Anut Shannon came to visit for my cousin Katie's Wedding! This is her with my dad (on the left) and my Uncle Tracy.
This our kids at the zoo. We had a blast. Her oldest son Ethan is 12 and proably thought he was too cool to be in this silly picture!
Here we are feeding the birds. It was really fun because the birds would land on your sticks and just peck away at that food. Great entertainment for a dollar!

Cheese girls! I love that Shannon came to visit. We only get to see her about every 4 years so it was super exciting!

Pictures from Trek

2009-09-01T14:41:00.002-05:00

That us pulling our handcart down the first of many hills.
This is what they call the girl's pull. During the migration of Saints out west many men died along the trail from fatigue and others were sent to serve in the Mormon Battallions. (which was basically the mormon troops because we were being forced out of the United States) Thus it was not uncommon for the women to pull all alone. It might be hard to tell from the picture but it took about 4 extra girls per cart as compared to when the boys were helping. We had to push all 12 handcarts up this giant hill. The men were not allowed to help or talk during this period. It was humbling to know that the women had the faith to continue.
That is me in the blue bonnet leading the girls in my family up the hill.
This is our family. I'm in the pink. Jed is the super tall guy in the hat.
Our family eating lunch on the first day! Bread, apples, and warm cheese.

Guess what though! I'll do it again in 4 years!:)

Mom,Where does the baby grow?

2009-08-22T21:59:00.004-05:00

Now some people might think we are crazy for wanting another baby but I mean take a look at Annie, she's got ice cream on her face, she is wearing both a glove and a fire hat, and she's got a toy. If that doesn't make you smile then I just can't help you!

So yes, its true we are expecting Mini Wheat 3 in March. Now, the kids are fascinated about how the baby grows and how it comes out, etc... WOW... when I had Annie Claire was one so she didn't care at all. Today, Claire asked to feed me goldfish so that the baby could have some. She's pretty smart. Also, they really seem to understand where the baby grow as you can see below. Pray for our family as we prepare for the Trifecta!

When Good Ideas Go Bad

2009-08-14T20:50:00.003-05:00

Claire Turned 4 on August 7! Hip Hip Hooray! I love my sweet girl!
This is my good idea gone bad. So ya know when your watching an infomercial and your like I need that. Well this is not the BIG TOP Cupcake but something I bought off ebay for half the the price. I think I need some practice on filling the to pans. Obviously, it was a little off.
Claire was still happy about it but sadly this cake doesn't travel well so it ended up upside down on my feet. Needless to say, she had a pink round cake instead by the end of the day. O well!

Whole Hog Roast

2009-08-09T08:36:00.003-05:00

For a church activity, we roasted a whole hot in our backyard. I tried to spare you the pictures of the actual hog cause it was disgusting but , just in case, you ever decide to try this. Here are a few tips we learned along the way. TIP #1 The night before the we had about 7 guys come dig a giant whole in backyard. The tip is don't let them cut the phone line whilst digging.

Tip #2 Don't get rocks that will explode at 5 am when you start the fire. Its not very safe and your neighbors start to wonder what the heck is going on. The picture above is what the fire looked like after about 2 hours of trying to die it down. Apparently the men did too good of a job making the fire hot. At one point, the flames were like 6 feet high.
Tip #3 Make sure to where gloves while digging said ash out of fire pit and try not to singe your leg hairs.

Tip #4 Don't look at whats inside that foil... It is nasty. At least the meat was so tender that one of the rib bones just slipped right out.

Tip #5 Don't stare at this photo too long if you are weak like me. Make sure when the men pull it apart there are lots of latex gloves for them to wear. Also, latex gloves make great balloons for the kids later.

Overall, I thought we had alot of fun. Almost our whole church group came and I loved having a reason to clean my house. The weather was awesome. It was during the week in July where it was like 70 at night. I wore a long sleeves just cause I could!! I love having friends over and can't wait for the next party. What should we do next !! ??

2009-07-30T07:33:00.001-05:00

This is from So You Think You Can Dance. It is supposed to a tribute to breast cancer. I thought it was beautiful and think it could be about any pain that women expierence in life and the men who are there the catch them. (and he's a nice strong looking one eh?)

Summer Pictures

2009-07-20T13:16:00.003-05:00

Annie and Claire getting their graduation certificates from swimming lessons. However, Claire is not in this picture.....she's hiding on the side. Overall swimming lessons went well. They first day I was worried my kids might literally claw the concrete of the side of the pool when I had to drag them back in for their turn. By the 3rd day, though, there was much improvement. They were even sad when it was over and now have taken to playing swim class in the bathtub. Tigger bounce, Tigger Bounce, Tigger Under...

Also, this picture is random but is from when we went to Mud Island at the beginning of the summer.

A Wicked Question

2009-07-15T21:20:00.003-05:00

After going to see Wicked, last week, I was thinking..... certain types of people probably identify more with different characters. For instance, Glinda the Good Witch had a certain quality that I really admired , I felt more like Glinda then I did the "wicked" witch (which I can't quite remember how to spell cause I've only seen the play once!!)... So my question is? Which Wicked girl did you feel you are more like? (YOU CAN"T SAY BOTH!!!!) Leave a comment and make it interesting. Much love and hopefully a pic or two coming soon of the girls swimming lessons! (ahem.. Cat.....)

"Do Your Girls Ever Fight?"

2009-07-07T11:23:00.002-05:00

Well, what do you think?

Summer Keeps on Flying By

2009-06-25T13:09:00.003-05:00

I love the above photos because the first one is like the cute photo and the second one is their true personality (sad and angry)

Enjoying the Doobie Brothers Concert! Not too hot! It was actually really nice. It was even nicer when we drove across the golf green to get out of the crazy parking area.
Why am I holding my hand like that?
Pampered Chef Party with Liza. Last call if anyone wants to order anything I'm turning it all in to her on Friday!:) We had a good time eating and using the chopper.

It's hard to believe it is the end of June already! I'm glad because I hate summer. Its hot, the kids get bored, and I'm the palest person in the world so its not like I really love to hang out poolside. O well! We still have a lot summer to go but at least I have swimming lessons for the kids to look forward to for the next 2 weeks. (I am pretty sure my girls are going to win for most terrified). I am also looking forward to maybe.. finally getting around to ordering a bed for Jed and I so we can get our mattress off the floor. Besides those great events here is the rest of the fun stuff we did last week! ( okay I realized now the pictures came first but whatever)

Finishing Off the Trek

2009-06-21T09:21:00.002-05:00

The Trek got rained out one night early and so we didn't get to enjoy the apple cobbler. Jay, Shelby, Jed and I decided we would go ahead and make in the back yard just for the heck of it. We were able to salvage all the ingredients so in this cobbler are: dehydrated apples, whole wheat flour, honey, and a very small amount of brown sugar and cinnamon.
Jay looking natural while tasting it. It was pretty good but without butter or something clobber is just not the same. On the Trek, I would have imagined it would have tasted alot better!

Claire got into the spirit by putting on a bonnet.

Pioneer Trek

2009-06-13T21:37:00.007-05:00

I decided to write tonight while things are fresh in my brain! No idea if I ever will have pictures to post of this or not but you can just imagine. Below I have included a video that hopefully explains a little about the Mormon pioneers. We took our youth on a 2 day camping trip in which we dressed up like pioneers and pushed handcarts, ate pioneer food, etc. And let me tell ya I know it might sound awful but it wasn't!! Jed and I acted as Ma's and Pa's and were parents to 9 teenagers and one fake baby! (who unfortunately "died" on the trek and we had to bury our corn filled baby). Our kids were excellent! They were super excited and made the whole experience fun for everyone. They got up on their own and started building the fire for breakfast and everything. They were always willing to push the handcart and worked together as a team. We were really blessed to have such good teens! While at the trek, basically, the point is for the kids to realize how lucky and blessed we are not only to have the modern conveniences that we enjoy everyday but also, that the Lord has blessed us with an amazing legacy of faith. These pioneers were not really pioneers by choice but by force and yet, they still were able to keep their testimony of Jesus Christ and restoration of the Gospel on earth. We know we all have challenges in this life and how easy it is for us to forget God in our everyday lives. Yet, if we could have just the faith of a pioneer how much richer our lives will be. Hopefully, these kids increased their faith as they walked this week. Another interesting side note to this story is that we were out in the field setting up dinner when the storms came through on Friday afternoon. It was really something, one minute it was fine, next minute sheets of rain falling all over. We all went running to safety, and I could explain this all much more interest, in person, but needless to say there was a quite alot of excitement and chaos as 150 people tried to gather together and wait out the storm. Luckily, no one was hurt. Unluckily, our camp site was ruined and the Trek was cut short one day. Hopefully, I will be able to gather some photos together so you can check out our pioneer outfits.! There is so much I could say but you guys are done reading this by now!!! Please enjoy the video and feel free to ask questions!

Project Gazebo and Other Stuff

2009-06-05T16:02:00.005-05:00

Chandler doing some awesome nanja moves in the playroom.
What the Kids did during Project Gazebo.
After it was all finished, I also added some cute sparkling lights that look like palm trees. I'm quite proud of it. We couldn't have finished without Cat and Dave's help! Ask Dave about his Sponge Bob Square Pants Behind!

Annie really likes Makeup! As you can see, I can't leave the play make up out anywhere that she might find it!
Claire looking mature.
When did Annie get so grown up! Yikes! Pretty soon we will start the potty train and I will be diaper free!

It's the Best of Both Worlds.....

2009-05-29T15:42:00.003-05:00

Today is one of those days that I will most likely remember forever..

So, Its summer, I decide the girls and I deserve a treat. Thus, I give them a choice of what they want to do- play at the park or go to the movies. My wise children choose the comfort of a movie. Then we get a choice of UP of Hannah Montana. Now, I figure, they are going to pick the cartoon and Clarie barely knows who Hannah Montana is. Anyways, they both say the must see Hannah Montana. Okay fine, I will enjoy that more so we go for it. We do everything right : 1. sneak in snacks
2. go potty before the movie and have a Pull up change for Annie.

Great........ so right when ol' Miley is about to start the Ho Down scene .... Annie is like mom I gotta go potty.. I'm like whatever you don't know how to go yet.... then of course I notice she smell like ...well... crap.... so I'm like Clarie come on we gotta take Annie to the potty ...I'm hoping for just the run of mill stuff that and I figure I'll just throw the pull up away and hope she can do comando for the rest of the movie. Well, I realize quickly that her pants def. can not be put back on... Now what... okay first , Clean her up , Take of the pants and shoes.... I tell Claire we just have to go home because Annie is all dirty and I don't have anything clean to put on her except possiably a spare jean skirt in the car. Clarie says No , we Can't I must finish watching Hannaha Montana. Okay fine... now what.... then I say " Claire give Annie your underwear" (WHAT!! is this really happening!!) Claire is like no, then I won't have any.. I say Fine then we have to go... so regretfully we put the panites on Annie, luckily she is wearing a long t-shirt so I'm hoping it looks like a dress minus the jeans she came in with.... Okay so what do I do with the jeans.....um yes.. They are in the garabage along with the pull up in the Stage Cinema. So we go back into the movie and I just pray the whole time that Annie doesn't pee because forget it if she does... Of course she does when we are mostly outside and where it mostly goes in my purse and on my clothes. (Because of cousre I am holding her so that people can't see her lack of pants). ...... Claire said Hannanah Montana is the best singer in the whole world.

May Madness

2009-05-27T13:52:00.004-05:00

This is some of the boys at Loren McKenzie's Wedding.
Annie Before the Wedding
Claire posing both before and after she got stuck in the tree!

Claire with her Ballet Teacher- Ms. Starla
Some of the crew that came to see Claire perform. Oma was there too but we failed to get their picture together!
Um, My kid is adorable.
Claire Getting her Award of Completion for this year. Annie is very excited to get her turn next year.

Overall, May has been a wild and crazy month. We have had various obligations each weekend which have kept us not at home and thus, less time for me to think of clever things to blog about! O well! There are more pictures to post but I thought I would break them up a little bit. Hope your getting ready to kick off your summer! Its here already!

Recital 2009

2009-05-17T15:15:00.005-05:00

I think I might die from Proudness! ( not a Word) and don't forget to turn off the music player at the bottom so you can hear this video! :)

A Mother's Day Post

2009-05-07T15:56:00.004-05:00

I've been doing some thinking lately. I think it's because I've seen so many of my friends in the last few weeks give birth (Okay I haven't actually "seen" that but you know what I mean) and become mothers, fathers, big sisters, etc.. for the first time. Its been really amazing.

Today, Clarie's preschool did the "mother's day" craft that they sent home. It included a cup that had some little stones and candy in it. Claire informed me that I could have just one of the candies. and ya know what... I didn't care not one bit. On some days it might bother me to have my kids eat my treats or fall on a slushie in a store. But today, I don't care. My children are happy, healthy, and full of heaven and thats about as good as it gets. Some people say motherhood is the hardest thing in the world but sometimes I feel like it is the most selfish thing I've ever done.

Love to all of you -Mothers, grandmothers, greatgrandmothers, and anuts.

Easter Pictures ( no promises that anyone will have their eyes open)

2009-04-29T08:52:00.002-05:00

You Belong Among the Wildflowers........

2009-04-17T08:35:00.004-05:00

Last Wed., we were outside playing in the backyard and Claire announced she needed to run in the house and get a few things. When she came back she had all the pillows and blankets from their rooms. She said she really needed to lay in the grass and rest. Its hard to argue with that!

Things I'm the Best at accoring to Claire

2009-04-16T16:49:00.001-05:00

1. Getting napkins.
2. making sandwiches.

Can I put that on my resume?

Spring Back Into Blogging

2009-04-09T15:37:00.003-05:00

Spring brings .. a relaxing conference weekend. Snuggling with Shelby aka Shellfish, Sugar, Bee, and She She.

Spring brings Easter Egg Hunts!!! Guess how much candy they ate that day!!

Spring brings a room makeover.

Spring brings a funny nose!
My favorite Annie smile... eyes shut..teeth cheesing
Spring brings Daddy taking a day off to take his two favorite little girls to the zoo!

What a great spring its been! It seems as if summer is already knocking on my door telling me its time to sweat! Hope you and yours have a lovely Easter season. !

Why I heart the Mall

2009-03-28T10:29:00.003-05:00

1. It smells great! It smells like all my favorite food put together into a super food.
2. I love watching the people who are walking around. I like to imagine stories about them.
3. I love watching the awesome new mall cops drive in those sweet robo things.
4. As Claire pointed out, there are giant barbies (mannequins) that wear beautiful clothes.
5. There is a an indoor play area for kids. I wish Memphis had more like it. I mean besides McDoanald's where else can your kids play inside.
6. I have good memories of going there when I was a kid with my Grandma Hiatt. We used to go like every week. I would ride the merry go around and then eat some Chick-fil-a because that used to be the only place you could get Chick-Fil-A. Then, we would look at this one store that all kinds of little statues of carousels, swans, and people. That was my favorite!
7. I like seeing what other people are buying. and Then wonder how the pay for like 4 bags from A and F .. Does anyone still wear that?

Okay... What am I missing?

This Time of Year....

2009-03-26T15:05:00.003-05:00

This is the Time of year when:

1. I find myself listening to sports radio!
2. I find myself wearing T-shirts outside of the house.
3. I find myself getting sick to my stomach all day when my team has a night game.
4. I try to sneak the radio on at work.
5. and Lastly, I prepare myself for heartbreak or victory! I mean I'm really going for Victory this year but those dang Tigers ripped my heart out last year.. I still can't talk about ........

GO TIGERS GO!

Grandpa Hiatt Turns 80!!!

2009-03-18T17:47:00.004-05:00

These might be a little out of order but you will get the feel of the party from the pictures. My mom's dad celebrated his 8oth birthday on March 7. ( His actual birthday was the 8th). All the extended family came in town for it. Here is Grandpa opening his presents.
Danielle and Baby Caleb going for a ride in the old car! Hooray!
Me and Claire going for a ride! Don't tell the police .. no car seats!! Caleb enjoyed the ride the most and cried after it was over!
Jed and I standing up on the coupla. I've never been up there before. My grandparents have lived there for 40 years and I've never been up there .. Can you believe that!?
Grandpa blowing out all 80 candles.
The kids mostly played outside. This was a good thing because there were alot of people in and out of the house and they would have been in the way. We all agreed that Grandpa could beat most of his friends in a race!

The best part of the whole party was seeing my mom, uncle, and anut play and sing some songs after the party was over. It was something I don't think I will ever forget. I love all of you!

Tagged for My Eight

2009-03-08T21:46:00.002-05:00

I was tagged by Cousin Dani! I love you girl!

8 Favorite T.V. Shows

1. Lost
2. The Office
3. How I met your mother
4. Rules of Engagement
5. Everybody Hearts Raymond
6. Eli Stone ( which they pulled!)
7. Friends
8. The Food Network (anything and everything on it)

8 Things I did Today

1. Went to an early morning church meeting
2. Taught a lesson to my all girls Sunday School class
3. Heated up leftovers
4. Sent out about 4 different emails to 4 different people
5. Went to my mom's for Sunday dinner
6. Tired to clean the house
7. Did this list
8. sleep

8 Things I am looking Forward to

1. Hanging with my bff at Benihana!
2. Bring a friend dinner who just had surgery.
3. My Brother coming home from his Mission.
4. The Pioneer trek I get to go on in June
5. THIS IS NOT AN ANNOUNCEMENT BUT I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO ADDING TO our family with another little person SOMEDAY NOT NOW!!!
6. Taking the girls on a Disney cruise in September!!!!!
7. Working with a new group of girls in my church class
8. My Anniversary May 17th.

8 Favorite Restaurants

1. Benihanna
2. Formosa
3. Chick-Fil-A
4. El Porton
5. Red Robin
6. Bonefish Grill
7. Jason's Deli ( even though I never go there!)
8. Baskin Robbins

8 Things on my Wish List

1. More housekeeping skills
2. a swing set for the kids
3. More time with family
4. a cruise ( ok I'm going on one but not till September)
5. Learn how to make cute stuff that I could give people
6. more kids
7. wishing had more I wanted but can't think of anything .. I'm truly blessed.
8. that I can be the kind of person my kids can be proud of

So Much Partying Such Little Time

2009-03-05T15:37:00.004-06:00

Jed on his way to Bishopric Meeting at Church before he found out it was cancelled.
Sarah's very cute Cake! Made by Jamie!

Helping Sarah Celebrate her Big 30 Birthday!

Helping Iwa celebrate her big 4 birthday!
Attending a play of Sleeping Beauty at St. George's.
P.S. Callie is not standing on something to make her taller. Claire is just that short.

All these events went on during a 48 hour period! No wonder I'm so tired! I wouldn't have it any other way though!

Ladies to get this treatment you have to ask....

2009-03-01T20:21:00.006-06:00

All right, before everyone starts saying what a perfectly lovely husband I have (which I agree), Ladies men don't read your minds so if you want something ask:

So the day before Valentine's day, Jed sister came over to babysit so we could go out to dinner. Jed promised me a surprise after dinner and honestly, I wasn't expecting much because the surprise I asked for would involve someone watching the kids over night and I knew Megan wasn't staying over. I figured , O well, so we went dinner at Oskaka. It was great and just want I wanted. So, then Jed asked me if I was ready for my surprise, I began to get a little weary as we started driving out of the Collierville City limits. I started asking him questions, like you didn't name a star after me or something right? Well eventually, I was told to close my eyes and not peep till he told me. This went on for about 5 more minutes. Then, when I was allowed to open my eyes, behold the Courtyard Marriot. I just looked at him and said "if we aren't staying here this isn't even funny!" I'm really good at accepting gifts! (NOT). Needless to say I was super surprised especially when I walked in in saw the suitcase with my bathrobe (which I noticed was missing that morning but figured one the kids was playing with it). !

Of course, I asked him how he pulled this off. He said he went during his lunch hour and checked in and had packed our things the night before when I had been out at a church outing! He's sooo sneaky!! It was a wonderful surprise and I wish we could have stayed longer!!

I've Never Heard of a "Book Trailer" before. but. I LOVE this Book!

2009-02-20T17:44:00.002-06:00

Funny

2009-02-17T15:43:00.004-06:00

Whenever they wear these coats people are always asking me if they are twins? I don't get it. Maybe I'm missing something.

These are things the kids say lately that are making us laugh:

Claire likes to sing this song. Its something she is learning at church. I think its is called The Family is of God. I'm not sure... but anyways the lyrics are this:

God has a family, its me, its you, all others too, we are his children.
He sent each one of us to earth through birth to live here in families.

Claire's version goes:

God has a family, its me, its you, and you are mothers too , we are his children.
He sent each one of us to earth to birth here in families.

Annie's new thing is goes like this : When i get the camera out ... " Cheese me , mommy, Cheese me" or when she is reciting the poem One to buckle my shoe , three four shut the door, she says: One two buckle shoe Me, three four shut the door me.

Beating the Winter Blues

2009-02-07T15:17:00.003-06:00

That's Savannah K. in this pic. Annie's very best friend. They turned the water on during this little stunt and both had to be changed.
Enjoying our Tea party!
Pinkies Up!!!
Claire is really having a good time!! I promise!!
We call this game Hop on Pop, Hop on Top!

UMMMM>>

2009-01-30T21:14:00.003-06:00

I'm really sorry to post this after the emotional post I just posted but I can't stop thinking about this video. My freind Liza had a link to this on her blog and I just can't......

Yea. Liza I'm creeped out!!!!!

Get out Your Tissues

2009-01-29T15:28:00.002-06:00

Can you believe I know this girl! I wish all birth mothers could speak as beautifully as Tamra. She was an inspired person that came into my life!

I wish I could speak as wonderfully at Tamra! I love her and all the inspirations she was to me.

2009-01-23T16:09:00.002-06:00

I don't have any thing exceptional to post about so I thought I would just do some journaling on here about the girls.

Okay- Claire is 3. She is still shy but not even half as bad as she used to be! I used to be super worried/annoyed about everyone asking me if she was shy or not! She has grown into quite the little child. Some of her favorite activites are the following: baby dolls (still!), she has also graduated to Barbies, she still has an amazing ability to recoginze letters--- I really think I could have her reading a little bit by the next school year, she loves to go to ballet and play with friends, she is ready to start going to pre-school 3 days a week. Some of the cutest things she says right now are : yours (she says it funny like "oars") and I love everyone better than my family ( i think she means the opposite of that), and mom tell me about when I was baby... Her favorite foods are PB and J, chicken nuggets (NO ketchup), pizza, SWEETS, fruit (only certain kinds)

Annie- 2 ... Annie was never shy! What I love about her is that she can light up people's faces right away with her happiness. Leaving preschool she is always saying GOODBYE Friends! The teachers laugh everytime! She can also silence a room with her fits! She is more like me! She grew into being a daddy's girl when she turned about 1 and 1/2. Annie's favorite activites are: stealing Claire's toys, Little people, painting, asking for snacks, annie plays with all kinds of toys- I couldn't really say what she likes the best though. Her current best freind is Savannah Klepko. She is "engaged" in my mind to Max Jonkman! She likes to be more rowdy than Claire and she is more likely to get hurt ! She loves her Grandpa! Her favorite foods are: PB and J, spaghetti, chicken nuggets with Ketchup, fruit cups, fruit snacks, suckers, Annie is willing to try more food than Claire but still sticks to her favorites. She says a lot of words and mostly ask for what she needs but still has some fits. Annie academic skill are getting there. I need to work with her more! Good thing I will have 3 more years till she is in K!

Sometimes I think they are growing a little faster than I thought they would! Also, Why can't I remember the last like 3 years?!!!!!

Survey!

2009-01-14T13:07:00.003-06:00

All right, Last night Jed and I were having this discussion and it brought up an interesting question that I want everyone to respond to:

Did you marry the first person you started dating after your/his/her mission ( for my non-mormon friends out there what about the first person you started dating in college?) ?

I know random right? In case you are wondering, yes , I am the first girl Jed dated when he got home from his mission and even though we did break up in between once or twice ....

It's the Small Things

2009-01-13T15:46:00.003-06:00

Well, I have nothing to exciting to report on right now...but I do have something to say.

I've had the best couple of weeks and I just want to tell everyone about it! I can't explain all the little details that have made my life so wonderful. I just have had so many things to be joyful and happy about and I'm SOOO grateful. I know there are people who might not be able to say those things about their life but I can. I also know that are times in my life in which I haven't felt that way about my situation. Its true you can never know the good without the bad.

The things I am most grateful for now, at this moment, are not my material things. They are my family and by that i mean all of them. The kids, my siblings, my mom, my dad, my sister-in-law, they are just people who my life just couldn't be the same without! Also my friends : some old , some new, and some who are old but new again! Honestly, I don't know how I functioned before I got to really know them! (By the way, if your are reading this, your likely one of them:) Not to sound cheesy or anything but God is good and He can make it so easy for us to see it if we are looking!

And a quick surprise for Jed, who I know reads this, I love you and thanks for working so hard for us this week! ( sorry i know that is a little online PDA but I can't help it I told you I'm feeling grateful). I can't wait to see what 2009 has in store! Much Love, Val

Annie's First Hair Cut!

2009-01-07T16:34:00.004-06:00

Annie's hair was beginning to get a little mulletish (that's a word right) so, I decided she need a little trim in the back but I didn't dare try it myself! So I called on the help of the trusted hair Stylist "Stine". Annie really liked it!
Claire was just happy it wasn't her! She has yet to have a haircut! Her hair grew in a more evenly so I haven't wanted to cut it. I am considering talking her into a trim this summer though.!

Thanks Christine! We love your mad skills at hair cutting and bowling!

The next movie to look forward to....

2009-01-04T21:15:00.000-06:00

2008-12-29T14:29:00.003-06:00

This picture is Random but cute.. Its My niece and the my girls playing dress-up.

We also had a treat this year from some Christmas Elves! The girls loved all the girly things that were delivered by the elves. I wonder if the elves like cottage cheese?

Christmas Elves and 2008

2008-12-29T14:17:00.003-06:00

Wow. That is all I can say about the last couple of days. We have partied hard the last couple of days! We have done alot of fun stuff including but not limited to the following: Enchanted Forrest, minor medical for my ear and then another trip a few days later, Christmas eve movie marathon, Christmas Day which involves driving between Millington and Germantown at least twice., practicing our Rock Band skills, shopping with Oma, playing the Wii with freinds, preparing a lesson/or talk each for the following Sunday, exchanging and/or returning gifts.....

I don't think the kids have gone to bed before 9:00 for like 5 straight days! I love it though! and I will miss every mintue of it until next year! Luckly we have some good new years eve plans to look forward to! Now enjoy the pictures!

Parents Dance Day

2008-12-15T15:16:00.003-06:00

This is the reason people have kids. (P.S. You might want to turn the playlist down at the bottom to hear the music)

My Kids Can Dance if they Want to..

2008-12-11T14:05:00.003-06:00

Claire said...

2008-12-05T20:36:00.002-06:00

Jed: Hey, Claire do you want to hear me sing the blues?
Claire: No, I want the reds.

The Pepper is almost out

2008-12-04T15:27:00.003-06:00

The other day I was getting ready to make something in the kitchen and I went to get the pepper canister. I was very surprised ( and a little sad) when I realized I only had a little bit left. You might wonder why I felt this way about a can of pepper...but that pepper has lasted for 5 and 1/2 years. Remember when you first get married and you move into your very own house and then look around and realize you have NO food because both of you have been living with your parents before the wedding. Well, I do, and I remember going to the Walmart grocery store on Ridgeway and Mt. Moriah with a very long list on the essentials. I mean I had to buy everything you need to start a kitchen... and one of the things I bought was this pepper can. It has a good memory and feels like the pepper is telling me that a new part of my life might be starting.... (mmm.. maybe someone should come and check on me) anyways.. that brings me to my next point... Tell a funny a story about something dumb you did when you were newlyweds that involves preparing/making food... (if your not married then you can still share:) My grandpa Fearnley tells a funny story about my Grandma .. I'll have to get him to tell it to me again...

For example,

On the first night that I was going to make dinner for us, after our honeymoon and after we had gone back to normal life, I was going to make Jed's favorite: spaghetti. I was getting the water ready and had the meat all cooked and ready to put into the sauce when I realized that I don't know if we even have a can opener. I start to panic because I think this means our first dinner is ruined but luckily my grandparents lived less than 3 min. away... I called them asked them if they had a can opener I could borrow and 5 min. later Grandpa Hiatt was at my door with a handheld can opener! Whew! Now if only I could have figured out how to use it after he left.......

This One is for Rachel....

2008-11-25T15:51:00.006-06:00

So my best friend from when I was like 11 wanted to see some pictures of my side of the family. We used to play together with her family every Sunday. Our parents would play games and we would have a blast doing crazy stuff! The Martins had a kid that was the same age as each one of my siblings and couple extra too. It was pretty much awesome!
Okay- This Levi- Elder Fearnley right now. I took picture of his picture. He is serving in Oakland, CA. He will be home July 2009.
Grandpa and Annie are BFF! Sometime she calls him PAPA... and she always cries when he leaves.

This is Mom and Vance just had to get into the picture too!
Shelby -13 Claire-3
Vance-23
Jay -15 (right?)
Thomas-17 He thought he was too cool for this! ( He might be right).

Okay Rachel your turn!! :)