Newest Member!

This is the newest member to the Sharples clan. This is my mom's baby African Grey. My mom loves birds that talk. She has had him for a couple of weeks and hasn't posted him on her blog so I thought I would. His name is Harley and he is a very nice bird. He loves my mom and she spoils him. He doesn't talk yet just whistles alot. African Grey's don't start talking until they are 18 months. Harley is just 4 months old. African Grey's can live up to 50 years.

Babysitting!!!

Zach and Kelly are off on their cruise. We are watching Simon while they are gone. He seems to be doing really well, lots better then what I expected. He loves Brett and the girls. This picture is Simon sitting in our Princess booster seat, having a snack. It's been different having another baby in our house but it has been fun. He's a good boy and has a really cute personality.

My BIG Family!

This day and age you don't find really big families as much. I am the second oldest but not by much, Audrey is only 32 minutes behind me. Zach is the oldest of the six, Me and Audrey came next, then Heather, then Aaron, and last but not least Melissa. My mom always said that her and my dad only wanted 2 kids but when they had twins it changed their plans. For some reason they decided forget the 2 and we'll have 6. Makes sense right?!? I have loved having a big family. It's NEVER a dull moment. We are all really close and it's always been that way. The only thing that is a pain is going out to dinner with the whole family. This use to be an easier task until spouses and children became a part of this adventure. Now, trying to get a table for 19 and two high chairs can be a challenge, and most of us aren't done adding to this madness and one hasn't even started yet. We all love to laugh and have a good time. We love to tease each other, but our teasing is always in a loving manner. My husband has even said a number of times. If you can't stand being teased you will never make it in this family. I would do anything for any one of my brothers or sisters and I know they all feel the same.

Why Buy Clothes!

This is why I don't buy a lot of normal clothes. My kids can't keep them on for very long. It's always the summer dresses or dress ups that we wear all day long. Evie has done their make up today. Brett hates the make up! I don't really enjoy it either but I know it's a girl thing. Lydia and I go the rounds everyday because she doesn't want to wear pants.

Make the Best of It!

We got alot of snow yesterday. I hate the snow after Christmas. Audrey thought we would do something fun with all the snow. So we decided to take the kids on a sled being pulled from behind my Pilot. I remember my dad doing this to us when I was little. It was our kids first time and they loved it. We weren't dressed quite for the occasion but it was still fun. Ayana went to but for some reason I don't have a picture of her. Lydia was the only one who didn't try it, sounds about right!

Holy SNOW!!!!

This is a pile of snow that was plowed from the parking lot of Bouncin' of the walls. This all is from the one snow storm. Mikayla thought it would be fun to climb to the top of the snow mountain. She sank in to her waist and Audrey had to climb up and pull her out. Than she used her coat as a sled and slid all the way down.

Emmy's Bouncin' Birthday!

It was Emmy's Birthday party yesterday. We went to Bouncin' off the walls. It was alot of fun. We finally talked mom and dad into having a couple of turns. I love my parents! They still love to have a good time. This first picture is Papa taking a turn. Nice form Papa! The next picture is Nana and Mikayla going together. I didn't have to help Lydia as much as in the past, so that was really nice. Evie of course loves it and goes all crazy. Zeke had a good time jumping around. The last picture is of Audrey and Lydia going down the big slide together.

Isn't He Pretty!!!!

YUMMMMYYYYYYYY!!!!!!
What more can I say? Look at him, come on, you know you think he's hot. Maybe some day I will wake up and start acting my age, Hmmmmmm............ maybe not!!!

When Does Maddie Get Here!!!

That is all I have heard from my girls for the past 4 days after I let it slip that Maddie was coming up to Salt Lake. Brett's brother moved to St. George over a year ago and my girls have really missed playing with Maddie. They were so excited for her to be here, finally. The only problem was if Maddie could be split in two. Than one side could play what Evie wants to play and the other side plays what Lydia wants to play. It would sure save a lot of tears.

In an Instant!

As of yesterday it has been 8 years since the accident. In this case I don't think time has healed much. I am still as angry as I was the first day and I still break down in tears when thinking about it. I will probably cry through this whole entry. Every one has had that time in their life or will, when you receive devastating news. Most people it's an unexpected death, Cancer, car accident, a serious illness, etc. I remember when I got the call 8 years ago at 5:00 am. I was at home making Ayana a bottle. Heather was staying with Brett and I at the time and she was in a car accident a week prior. I was helping her out with some everyday things. The phone rang and I quickly picked it up. My mom was hysterical on the other end. She said, "Aaron is in critical condition at the U of U hospital. They aren't telling us anything until we are all up there." My heart sank. This couldn't be happening to us. We all raced up there as fast as we could. We met a detective in the the hallway and took an elevator up to the burn and trama unit. In the elevator we got the new that Casey Dugdale and Chris Osuegara were killed. It took a couple of days to get all the information straight and find out all the details. Aaron, Casey and Chris were out dancing and were heading to take Aaron home. Aaron was a sleep in the back without a seat belt and they were hit from behind by Paul Upwall. Paul was drunk and after hitting the kids ran from the scene. Aaron was ejected from the vehicle. Which is why he is with us today. Casey, Chris and their families are in my thoughts everyday. Aaron has been through so much and has had a hard time. I believe he will hurt everyday for the loss of his friends. He is doing good these days. He has a girlfriend that he loves and cares very much for. He is working and seems to be happier. We love Aaron so much and thank God everyday that he is still here. I am so proud of him this last year for all the hard work he has done. I love you Aaron!

WHY?!?

Why do they put these right in front of the grocery store. I usually park on the one side so that we can get in without the kids seeing it. I had to go to the grocery store the other day and I wasn't thinking clearly (Which seems to be a problem lately). As you can see, the kids spotted it from a mile away. I don't mind doing little things like this to make my kids happy or to see them smile. They just always want to do things like this at the wrong time. I wanted to get in and out of the grocery store fast. Plus as I watched my kids go round and round I was wondering what kid last coughed or sneezed on the handles. Was I going to be dealing with some nasty virus within the next two weeks. Oh well, what can you do?

Our Gaming Buddies!!!

We are good friends with Brett's boss and his wife. Brett has worked for PEPG for 12 years. Before we had kids the four of us would go on trips together. One of the funnest vacations I have been on was Atlanta. Nanette and I laughed the whole time. We now have kids and will do game nights at their house, and sometimes will get out just the four of us for dinner and a movie. Our kids all play really well together, and get really excited when they know we are all getting together. We always have a lot of fun together. Darrin and Nanette have a little girl Evie's age and in December of 2006 she was diagnosed with Lukemia. Her name is Reagan and she is doing really well. She has a blog if you would like to check it out. www.caringbridge.org/visit/raegansmith

My Best Memories of 2007!!!!

Evelyn

This morning Evelyn saw some of her friends that live next door playing in the snow. Of course that meant she wanted out too. She ran in her room and started throwing snow clothes on. Lydia of course didn't want to go out in the cold. Evelyn is so free spirited and adventurous. She loves to try new things and is not afraid to either. When we went to Disneyland 8 months ago she got on every ride she was tall enough for. She would get upset if she found out she wasn't tall enough to ride something. We took the kids to the ocean for the first time on that trip and of course Evelyn didn't waste one second before she went running into the water. I have a video of Evelyn when she was just 8 months old crawling into the Bear River, water clear up to her face and she just kept going.

Most Thankful For in 2007

I am most thankful this past year to be cancer free. Those who don't already know on October of 2006 I was diagnosed with Melanoma Clark Level 4. I went to a normal OB/Gyn visit and my OB suggested that I see a dermatologist. I went and they took a mole off of my back. I got the call two weeks later that I had Melanoma. I made an appointment with the top Oncologist for Melanoma, Dr. Dirk Noyes! He removed a couple more moles (I looked like swiss cheese). Dr. Noyes got a second pathology done on my mole and it came back the same diagnosis. All of this happening over a 45 days, which drove me and my whole family and friends nuts. The waiting period is so hard. Luckily I didn't have to have a lymph node biopsy or chemo. I had to have surgery on my back to remove all of the cancer. This is a picture of the incision it's about 3 inches on the middle of my back. All for one mole a little bigger than the size a pencil eraser. I go every 3 months to the doctor to have my moles checked. So far everything has been fine. I am smarter about being in the sun now. I always wear 45 sunblock, try to stay in the shade and I never go to the tanning salon.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

My mom has a huge party every New Years Eve. We get together and have appetizers (a meal) and play games. It's a family tradition to have Sour Kraut and Pork at midnight for good luck. My whole family is there and some extended family (the Soffe's). We have a crazy hair contest every year. All the girls try to do a different crazy hair do. This year Me and my girls were flower POT heads. Here are some of my favorite pictures.