At the end of August, our lease was up in our apartment. Greg and I were very worried that we wouldn't be able to find a place that would be big enough for our family, while at the same time fall into our budget. We searched and searched, and searched. Finally, I came across this four bedroom house not too far from where we are now. We went and walked through the place, and our kids absolutely loved the place. It has two living rooms, a huge kitchen, 1 1/2 bathrooms, and four bedrooms. The backyard is huge, and there is a walking path behind the house that goes to the park and the pond. The kids were involved in our final decision, and they told us that this is where they wanted to live.
We have been here since the beginning of September. This house has been an amazing blessing for our children, and for our family. We have plenty of room for kids to play, and they are so much happier here too. Preston is excited to finally have his own room again. He is getting to the age where he deserves some privacy. Anaya has her own room except when Aubree comes over. Presley and Aidan share the bedroom upstairs next to Greg and I.
Now a little update:
Greg is still at Nestle, down in Springville. He is a trooper for making that drive to and from work everyday. Greg is an amazing father and wonderful husband. He will go to any lengths for our family. I love him more and more everyday.
I am still going to school. I have just about a year of schooling left. I am finally beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I know that these last 7 years have been the most stressful, and challenging years for my family. The payoff in the end will definitely be worth it. When I am not in school, I am home with our kids, and absolutely love it. I wouldn't change this opportunity for anything in the world.
Aubree comes to visit once a week, and then every other weekend, and holidays. She is 10 years old, and the best big sister. The younger girls love to play with her, and she is wonderful to play with them. She also loves taking care of Aidan. She is always willing to play with him if Greg and I are busy making dinner, or cleaning. She is such a joy in our family.
Preston turns 9 on Saturday, October 10th. He is so excited for his birthday to come that he asks me everyday how many more days until his birthday. He is in the 3rd grade, and was asked to be apart of the gifted/talented program at school. He meets with other kids in his grade once a week, and they read and think of "thick questions" to ask and discuss with the other kids and teachers in the classroom. Preston is an excellent speller, and loves to read. He will read to his sisters, mainly Presley, for his homework. When his class goes to the library, he will always get a new book, and be halfway finished with the book by the time he gets home from school. I love that he loves to read!!!!! He will also be playing Jr. Jazz basketball starting in November. He is really excited about that.
Anaya....WOW! Oh the stories about Anaya. She is the funniest child. She is always saying things to me, or Greg, or even my parents, that just make us die laughing. Here is the latest....My parents were wonderful to watch my kids and our friends kids while we were moving to our new place. So, my dad took them on a walk. This wasn't no walk around the block. They probably walked at least a mile. And for four kids, that is a long way. They walked over to 1200 N, up to State Street, stopped and got food and frosty's at Wendy's, and then kept walking down through the neighborhood to get back to my parents' house. They stop across the street from the house, and Anaya-whose cheeks are beat red-says to my dad "Whew, that was quick!" That is our little Anaya, the wise girl!
Presley is 2 going on 20! She is my little mother, and will do just about anything for Aidan. If he starts to cry, she will come and tell me. She loves her siblings, and will do anything. One thing about Presley, is that everyone thinks she is a little angel. Believe me, she is WHEN she wants to be! HAHAHAHA! She is a little mischievious, darling, but curious little girl. When she is being quiet, that is when I get nervous. The other day, we were at our friend's house, and I was doing some homework in their computer room. It had probably been 10 minutes or so, and I realize that I can't hear Presley. I call her to come into the room, and she is COVERED in diaper rash cream. She has it all over her hands, in her hair, on her face, and all over her clothes. So I tell her to go wash her hands and I will be right behind her. Needless to say, I walked out of the room, and there was diaper rash cream all over the couch, DVD cupboard, all over the treadmill, and on the floor!!!! I was beside myself! I didn't know what to say, or how to react without going ballistic on her. I reminded myself she is 2 years old, and doesn't really understand what she is doing. So, I had Preston go wash her up, while I took care of the mess. I believe she is my hardest child right now, and that is because of her age. I love her sweet spirit, and the love she gives to everyone around her. Our family would be less without her.
Aidan is 10 months old, and a very happy baby!!!! He is crawling all over the place, AND he is FINALLY sleeping through the night!!!! I love it! I can actually get a good night's sleep and feel rested in the morning. Aidan is also pulling himself up onto everything, and before I know it, he will be walking. He loves to be around the family. If he can't see his brother or sisters, he just starts crying until he is in the same room, and being around them.
Our family is so full of life right now, and I am so grateful for them. They are the greatest blessings in my life, and love them with all my heart. My life would be empty without every one of them!
however, was not big enough to fit the bag of cheerios but she just kept dumping. Once they were all dumped out, she started to throw them. I was still feeding Aidan, feeling a little frustrated about the mess, but laughing so hard because she was having fun and laughing too. Instead of getting upset, which is my usual reaction, I took some pictures. I love Presley. She is such a character. She makes our home such a happy place to be. We don't know what we would do without her.
Presley is 22 months old and is actually growing. She is now officially over 20 lbs. She weighs in at 22.6 lbs and is 2 ft 8.5 in. tall. Can you believe it? She is still our munchkin and will definitely be the smallest of our bunch, but her temper definitely makes up for it. Aidan is 1 month old and he has gained almost 2 lbs since he was born. He weighs in at 9 lbs 12 oz and is 23 inches long. He is growing so fast. 
his car and puts me in and then rushes me to the hospital running a red light and all. Just so I wouldn't give birth in the car, at home or even in the parking lot (which was VERY close to happening). We get to the hospital, my water breaks as I get out of the car, I collapse to the ground and don't think I can move. Some ladies saw what happened. One went to get a nurse with a wheelchair and the other helped my dad get me to the wheelchair. We get up to labor and delivery and they are like you were just here. And I said yep! They take me to the room where I'm supposedly going to have a C-section and I have a nurse trying to put an IV in my arm, a couple of nurses getting the baby bed ready, and another getting me registered. Then one nurse, her name is Jeanne, she goes to check how far dilated I am, and she says "There's the head, go ahead and push whenever you are ready, Ali." This whole time my dear sweet husband is waiting to be let through the doors to the labor and delivery phone. He couldn't get in because all the nurses were in my room. My dear husband missed the birth of our son by just a few seconds, but was there to give the nurses the name of our beautiful baby boy. It was a rough and long day, but 
totally worth not having all the pain meds and epidural. The kids came to visit me and their new baby brother at the hospital later that day. They were so excited to see their brother they could hardly stand it. While the kids were visiting, Presley and Anaya found that it was fun to play in the bathroom. Presley figured out how to flush the toilet and then she would laugh and flush it again. It was pretty funny to watch. 
