Downing Family

Christmas Time 2011

2011-12-24T22:23:00.000-08:00

Well its the time of year that everyone does an update on there family. Krisi and I a have not done a Christmas letter in years, and I don't know how many people read this blog but I will do an update for those who do. (Side note. Krisi is the one who usually writes on the blog not me so if I have messed something up its all my fault she has nothing to do with it.)

Weston is 5 years old now. He is growing up fast. He is in kindergarten and loves to go to school. Most days I drop in off and he rides a bus to the sitters. On Mondays he rides a bus to school from my mom and dads house and then a van back to there house in the middle of the day. He is busy trying to do everything Krisi and I are doing. He is a great big brother and is very good about showing Mason how to do things no mater if they are right or wrong. Weston played baseball and soccer this year and did well at both. Krisi coached Weston's Tee ball team and I helped when I could.

Mason is a busy 3 year old. He is almost as big as his older brother and thinks that he should do everything Weston should do. Mason is enjoying preschool and has many friends at his daycare. He is very busy and has to be moving and doing something all the time. It's a very rare occasion when he is still and quiet.
Mason loves to be out side on is bike or playing in the dirt and is very much the rougher of the two boys. My dad says the is going to be the football player and the one that won't use a helmet.

Krisi is the best wife and mom ever. She is still working at Powder River Corrections as a dental assistant. She is busy keeping the medical office running when she is not helping the new dentist. The new dentist is the same dentist she worked for when she got out of college. She is enjoying being with a dentist that works on more then one patient an hour. Krisi works four ten hour days and the other days is a loving mom and wife. She keeps busy making cakes and goodies for friends and family. She does so much for all of this I could not even start to explain it. I could have not been blessed with a better wife and friend. Krisi and I will be expecting a little girl in April and have named her Kinley. The boys are very excited and can not wait to have a little sister running around the house. She will be very well protected growing up I think. So far the pregnancy has gone well, however, Krisi has been the most sick with this one, but is 22 weeks now and feeling better. Krisi has started to feel the baby moving around mostly in the evenings. We are both excited to have a girl this time.

I have changed jobs this year. I quit driving school bus full time in June and went to work at Oregon Trail Livestock Supply (a local feed store) and I love it. I get to see people I grew up with and have known for a long time all the time. The new job is 5 days a week and 8 hours a day. I gives me a chance to spend more time at home with Krisi and the Boys and get to take the boys to school and daycare most days. I still work at Baker 911 Dispatch Center when I'm needed and sometimes it makes for long days but I enjoy it and the extra cash is nice. This coming year I'm running for Justice of the Peace for Baker County and will start the campaigning in the next month or so. I have ventured into this field a little over a year ago when I was sworn in last August(2010) as Justice of the Peace Pro Tem. I enjoyed it so much I decided to do it full time and get my name on the ballet. The election is in May and if a win I would take office Jan. 1 2012.

As you can see we are all very busy and living life to the fullest. We do get a chance to do a little traveling here and there, and always try to stop and see family and friends when we can. We are very thankful for our Heavenly Father and all of the blessings he has given us this year. We hope that the new year brings many blessings to your family and that everyone is safe and healthy. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from our family to Yours. The Downings.

P.S. Sorry no pictures were included because I wrote this at work and didn't have any pictures available.

Downing, party of five

2011-11-09T20:53:00.000-08:00

Holy cow I have been a slacker. Mike has been after me for awhile now to update but I just haven't been in the mood. Not that I really am now but it just can't wait any longer. It is getting overwhelming with all that has been going on.

I will probably never catch up with all that I need to update so I am not going to try tonight. I just have a few minutes before I need to go to bed.

The biggest announcement and probably the reason I haven't been feeling like posting is that I am pregnant. I seem to have been much more sick with this one and haven't really wanted or been able to do a lot of extra things.

I am due in April, I am leaving the actual date out due to the fact that I always deliver really early so I just hope to make it until April. I will have the same game plan as with Mason, I will have to start getting a shot once a week, which Mike is way to eager to start giving. I think he may enjoy that too much. I will also get an ultrasound every other week to try and keep this baby from coming too soon. Now I remember why I thought we should be done after Mason was born. Funny how you forget some of the finer details. Can't argue with the heart though, when you feel it is right then you better go for it. This will be the last time though. It will all be worth it because I am going to get a girl this time. I am so excited. The boys have known since the beginning that they were getting a sister so they weren't surprised when we told them. I think Mike is a little worried.
I have a lot more to update but that is it for now.

summer update

2011-07-26T20:52:00.000-07:00

This is my second attempt at this post. I somehow managed to erase my post while I was editing. I am sure that the first one was better and I will probably miss a few details.

This summer is going by so fast it is hard to keep up. I will have to space it out over a few posts.

At the end of June the boys and I headed to Utah to visit my family. We picked my sister Denise up in Boise and drove to Centerville. Mike flew in a few days later and stayed until after the fourth and then we drove home and dropped Denise and her youngest Lydia off in Boise.

We had a busy week but it was so much fun.

We started out with shopping in Park City. Since Mike wasn't there I had to do the driving. I was a little nervous but it all turned out fine. I was resistant to Mike putting the GPS in the car, I said I wouldn't use it but it actually came in handy a few times.

We took a brake from shopping to let the boys play.

My mom is always getting the grand kids together for a slumber party so this time the boys got to be there too. They had soo much fun with their cousins. They built forts in the basement and wanted to sleep in them. Mason did end up sleeping down there but Weston came upstairs.

Playing games in the backyard

I ran in the freedom run again and improved my time by 40 seconds from last year. It helped that Kevin wasn't "racing" this year so he ran with me and "helping me" along the way. If you know my brother Kevin you know he is very competitive and his theory is if you don't throw up at the end then you didn't go fast enough. Needless to say he has graced a few gardens at the finish line in his time. How ever you look at it he must have helped because I did go faster. He was lucky I was too tired to hit him at the end. My sister Debbie and my two nephews Cole and Tyler also ran.

We watched the parade afterward and we were impressed with the actual floats. We are used to the small town stuff where they may or may not wash the truck, put a number on it and drive it down the road. The boys got a ton of candy. By the end they didn't even care about candy.

On the fourth we got together at my sister's for a BBQ. We all got there early to have a water fight. Debbie spend a better part of her morning filling water balloons and they were gone in 10 minutes. It was so much fun. Kevin made a balloon launcher and the rest of the day was spent launching balloons to the field across from their house. When it got dark we sat in the field and watched as the neighborhood was alive with fireworks. They called it the neighborhood of fire. It was really cool. This year Utah allowed the kind that go in the air so it was quit a show. Mike was disappointed that I would only let him buy small stuff. I figure why waste our money when we can watch someone else.

We couldn't have asked for better weather. It was hot the whole time. The one day that we had planned on going to the water park ended up being the coolest day which was mid 80's. As far as I go that is too cold for a water park. It was overcast and it even ended up raining really hard for about 15-20 min and then it got hot again. It cleared out the park so the lines went way down. It also helped that it was a Tuesday.

The boys with Lydia

Over all it was a great week.

Happenings

2011-06-12T15:52:00.000-07:00

I am happy to say Tee Ball is over for the year. It was fun but it will be nice to be done. Not that I will have much more time. Softball for me starts this week so I won't be sitting at home wondering what to do.

After the last game we had a BBQ at our house. It is times like this that having a garage bigger then our house comes in handy.

The boys this morning wanted to have spiky hair for church. Mason's hair is too long really for spikes so I made a mohawk. Weston liked it so much he wanted one too. They actually managed to keep them through most of church.

Free to a good home

2011-06-02T14:46:00.000-07:00

8 or 9 month old Black Lab/Basset Hound named Abby

Almost 2yr old Beagle named Jake

The dogs were barking in the backyard this afternoon so I went to the window to tell them to be quiet. This is what I saw.

Mike and I had forgotten to put the panel back up to keep the dogs out after checking the plants in the "greenhouses", yesterday. All the flowers I hadn't planted in the ground are ruined and the peppers and tomatoes I had planted were ruined. Weston was sitting here wondering why this is all such a big deal until he found out this is also where I planted carrots for him, he got a look of deep disappointment. He loves carrots. I reassured him they would be fine since they were still in the ground and hadn't sprouted yet. So much for starting my own plants. I will have to buy them again. Oh well I guess.

This is what it had looked like. This picture is the other corner but they are basically the same. The one they had gotten into is just a little smaller.

This has been a bad week for the dogs. Last Thursday I had some chicken on the counter thawing and while we were in the back yard putting up these "greenhouses" the dogs got in the house through a door left open by a little boy and got the chicken. We ate at Mc Donalds that night. Come to think of it that may have been the plan of that little boy all along. Then a couple days ago some friends brought by some cupcakes and the dogs again came in unattended and ate the cupcakes. I thought dogs were allergic to chocolate, not mine I guess, they were still alive the next day. Anyway they are not making me happy right now.

Of course I am not really trying to get rid of the dogs but they are walking a thin line.

Memorial Day Weekend

2011-05-30T19:25:00.000-07:00

We had a great long weekend. I was hoping to go camping but the weather was rainy all weekend. Nothing new for eastern oregon for memorial day but disappointing just the same.

We started out with a trip to Island City to put flowers on my dad's grave.

Sunday we went to Mike's parents to visit with some friends that live by Mt. Hood. We don't get to see them very often.

Monday we went on a morning bike ride. We had been trying to do the bike ride all weekend but this was the first time it wasn't raining when we could go. We were needing to use the GPS to see how long the trail was. The boys and I had ran/walked it a couple days earlier and I was curious to see how long it was.

When we got back from the bike ride I decided to mow the lawn before it rained. Mike took the training wheels off of Weston's bike. I knew he was ready but was scared of what might happen if he crashed. He took right off and loved it. No crashes.

Then I planted my garden spaces. Mike had put some plastic up on Saturday and I had moved my plants outside to aclimate to the weather. I haven't bought any plants this year except a couple hanging pots that we get every year for the front porch. I don't know how my plants will do but I guess I haven't lost anything if I end up buying some. I planted a cucumber and about 30 greenbeans in one corner and in the other I planted 4 pepper plants that I had started inside along with 2 tomotoes that I will thin to one since we don't really want very many. I just have to see how well they do. I also planted some carrots on that side.

We all had naps and then bbq'd hambugers for dinner. Mike was called in to dispatch so he had to go to work after dinner. It was a good weekend relaxing with the family.

Opening day of T-ball and Easter

2011-04-24T20:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was opening day for T-ball. It turned out to be a beautiful day. The sun was shinning and fairly warm. Considering a couple days ago it had snowed. It was great.

Mason Waiting for the opening ceremony to start. He got to go on the field with the rest of the team.

The team did a great job, they looked like they knew what they were doing. I was very proud. The sponsor of our team came over and talked to the kids and let them pick out something from the concession stand when the game was over. I thought that was really nice of him.

Weston and his cousin Camber waiting for the ceremony to start

One hour is definitely the limit of these kids. At the beginning of the game when I would tell them to run home they would be like "my house". At the end they were asking when they got to go to their "real home". I thought it was very funny. I think the best part for them was the treats at the end. I was constantly telling them where they needed to run or to pay attention in the field that my mouth was so dry by the end of the game. It was a lot of fun though and I am glad Mike and I decided to coach. Mike is more the silent partner and likes to be seen and not heard so I had to make up for him. I worry about what kind of parent I would be sitting on the sidelines.

Weston on first base

After our game our nephew had a game so we stuck around for that and then I had to work in the concession stand for a couple of hours. It was the only time our team has to volunteer so that wasn't so bad. It turned out to be a long day at the field but that's OK.

While I was working in the concession stand Mike and the boys went to his grandparents house to color Easter eggs. I think they had a lot of fun. We colored eggs when my mom was here so I am a little tired of hard boiled eggs but who can have Easter without coloring eggs so I now have another dozen to eat. I am the only one that will eat them. I may have to persuade the boys to give them a try.

Coloring eggs

Easter day was fairly low key compared to some years. Our church times kind of conflicted with when the rest of the family could meet at Mike's grandparents house so we missed most of that. Mike had to give a lesson and Weston had a talk in Primary so we felt like we needed to stay.

Even though we didn't get to see the whole family the real meaning of Easter was still understood and we are so grateful for our Savior and for the resurrection and that we will all be resurrected. That really means a lot when you have family that has passed away and you know that you will see them again someday.

Happy Easter!!

Glimpse of Spring

2011-04-17T17:30:00.000-07:00

Spring in Eastern Oregon can be frustrating. One day it will be 60 degrees and the next it snows and is cold. I have started my flowers inside this year, maybe I won't have to buy as many as I usually do, we'll see. I do have a few sprouts so far. The cold weather doesn't seem to be bothering the usual spring flowers. The tulips and daffodils are still getting ready to bloom . These purple flowers grew up out of the snow. They were there long before I even realized it.

My mom usually tries to make to visit around the boys birthdays but that didn't work out this year so she came the first part of April instead. The boys had a blast playing with her i-pad. They wanted to play with it the whole time she was here. Now they want to play with Mike's i-pod but it is kind of a let down since it is so much smaller.

We went to the Bingham's again this year for the Easter egg hunt on horseback. We didn't make it last year due to a snow storm. It was still cold and very windy but the boys still had a lot of fun.

Stay tuned Mike and I are coaching T-ball this year. Opening day is coming up this weekend. We started practice this last week. The first practice was a bit crazy but I think I know what to expect now.

March Madness

2011-03-13T20:32:00.000-07:00

March starts out kind of crazy for us. Both boys have birthdays in March. It wasn't planned really but they are two years and five days apart. It is nice because they are the best of friends. Of course with that also comes fights but it would be too peaceful without a few arguments.

Weston turned 5 this year. It is really hard to believe he can be that old already. He is so excited about learning and can't wait to start kindergarten next year. He definetly has a sweet spirit and likes to make everyone happy. I can be getting frustrated with things and he will out of the blue tell me that he likes my hair or tell me that I look pretty. It just makes my day.

Mason turned 3. He is full of spunk. He is the rowdy one of the two. He will even introduce himself sometimes as Rowdy instead of Mason. That is what Mike's dad has always called him and he has lived up to it. He likes to be in the middle of whatever is going on and wants to do everything Weston does. Just when I am at my witts end with him he will smile at me and show me that he has a sweet side too. We did finally get him potty trained but it had to be his idea not mine. Once he decided then it was as good as done.

This year Weston got to have a friend birthday party. He was so excited. He wanted to go bowling, 11 kids at the bowling alley was a bit much though. Thankfully we had some good help with Mike's parents and brother. I could never have held my sanity without them. After bowling we came back to our house and had cupcakes and icecream.

I feel bad because I am always making cakes for other people and when it comes to my own family they kind of get shafted. I had another birthday cake to make that day so Weston got cupcakes. Don't start feeling bad for him though because when it was Mason's birthday I made one for the two of them.

On Mason's birthday we had the usual family party. He was so excited that it was finally his day.

Both he and Weston are really into Spiderman right now. That is the cake that they requested. So instead of making the cake twice I just waited and make it once for both of them. They loved it.

2011-01-29T19:25:00.001-08:00

I suppose it is time to catch up again. Where to start. I guess I will just hit the highlights. Not really a lot to tell.

Christmas was fun. We went to Utah to visit my family. We were able to take a little bit more time this trip which was nice. We took the boys ice skating. It was a good thing my sister and her family came too, Mike and I hadn't skated for who knows how long. My sister's boys and husband play on hockey teams so they are on the ice a lot. They really helped the boys have fun.

We still haven't replaced our camera so we didn't get a lot of pictures of Christmas. We picked these shovels up at the last minute.

The boys are always wanting to help shovel the snow but we haven't been able to find any their size. Mike's parents have some but we couldn't find them. Anyway, Walmart had them so we couldn't resist. Too bad Centerville didn't get any snow until the day before we left. The boys had to shovel leaves in the backyard instead.

On the way home we were making good time which should have been our first clue that trouble was coming. Just outside of Mountain Home our water pump went out. I was glad we had onstar. Just a couple months before I was trying to get Mike to cancel our subscription. I thought it was just a waste every month. Mike called to cancel and they gave us three months free. We were on our last month free. It was a good thing we still had it because it paid for the tow to Mtn. Home. The dealer could fix it but it would take three hours and they were only going to be open for two. Mike's dad and brother brought his dad's flat bed trailer and brought us home. It made the trip the longest one back from Utah so far, 13 hours. We only had to sit in the car for the last half hour. It was a fun adventure but I was happy when it was over.

The first week in January we added a family member. I would like to introduce you to Abby.

Mike was dropping Jake off at the Vet to get fixed and they had just gotten a new puppy. She is a black lab and basset hound mix. Kind of a weird combo but it seems to work for her. The funny thing is Mike and I hadn't been able to agree on another dog because I wanted a lab and he wanted a basset hound. We both kind of got what we wanted. Other then the fact that she is not a big dog. She looks like a lab but has really short legs.

Long time no posting

2010-12-04T21:22:00.000-08:00

It seems to be hard to keep up these days. Again I find myself doing catch up. October came and went and I am not sure there even was a November.

We went on our annual trip to the Oregon coast the first part of October. Our good camera broke so we just got a couple of pictures with Mike's phone. Surprisingly better then I thought they would be. It rained more this year then ever before. Oh well it was still a good time.

On the way to the coast we stopped at Multnomah falls. It had been a long time since we had both been there and this was the boys first time. They loved it. Part of it may have just been a chance to get out of the car and run for a little while.

The boys had a good Halloween this year. More candy then two little boys can handle.

A few days before we carved pumpkins courtesy of Aunt Corinna. We went to Keating to pick from her garden. Then I got to meet Katy's baby. Soo cute. Weston and Mike carved Weston's. By the time we got to carving pumpkins Mason's had gotten a little soft on one side so I had him paint his. I thought it might be a fight since it was different from what Weston was doing but he thought it was a lot of fun.

Since Halloween was on Sunday there were many days of fun. On Friday we went to the downtown trick or treating with Camber and Tanner.

First I had to drop off my latest cake. A sweet 16. It was by far one of my best. I was really proud of it. Thanks to Mike for all the help rolling out the fondant. I am so glad there was no school that day. It didn't go as planned but nothing I plan ever does. I should be used to that by now. It all worked out in the end though.

Saturday we went to the ward's trunk or treat. This was a first for Mike and I. Of course they had a contest for the best decorations. We couldn't go just half way. You can't see it from the pictures but there are lights in the windows. We even had scary music playing. Thank goodness for satellite radio. We got second place but have bigger plans for next year. We just kind of threw this together last minute.

I don't have pictures from Thanksgiving this year. Our old camera is just so slow that I hate taking pictures, but a new one just isn't in the budget for now.

We stayed here and went to Mike's parents for the day. It was a good day.

We seem to have hit winter full bore. Snow came and hasn't left yet. The boys are really enjoying it. I think we have had more snow so far then we did all last year. And it has been way colder too. It has already been -10. I really hate winter. This is not the place to live with that attitude.

I will save the pictures of Christmas decorations for another day. I am really looking forward to Christmas this year. The boys are really getting into it now. It is mostly Weston but it should be fun. We are headed to Utah so hopefully the roads can thaw out by then. Not in the near future though. Yuck.

Loss of a generation.

2010-11-14T16:41:00.000-08:00

This has been a rough year for my family. This spring we lost my great Grandma Corwin. This was my grandma's mom. She had been widowed for 31 years. She worked and drove until she was 92. She was an amazing woman. I was very close to her and I miss her a lot. We have many pictures with her and I was very lucky to have her in my life as long as I did. We have a bunch of pictures with her of five generations. This one was of her at her 97th birthday party in Madras. She wanted to go to Dairy Queen.

On Friday I lost my other great grandma. This was my grandfather's mom. Great Grandma Markgraf was also an amazing person. She lost her husband 10 years ago and has been living with my grandparents for the past 3 years. We would take the kids out to their house and the boys would play games with her and got to know her very well. It was very special to me that not only did I get to know her but my Boys got to know her. Now that she is gone we have lost the last of the fifth generation in our family.

Growing up we would go and visit both of these great ladies and spend time with both of them. When I moved to Portland to go to college I would make the trip to Madras across Mt. Hood at least once a month if not every weekend to go and see them and spend time with them. I would take them to the store because they both got to the point where they did not like to drive. We would watch the Portland Trail Blazers games on TV. We would work on family history and they would tell me stories from our family. We would go on drives and go to the little town of Antelope OR. and see the homestead and how much it has changed. These are the times that I will remember with both of my great grandmas. I will miss them both very much.

Is Summer really over already

2010-09-10T14:50:00.000-07:00

It seems like summer went very fast this year. I haven't even blogged the whole time. I guess that means it is time to catch up. I will hit the highlights.

Mike was working for the Bingham ranch again this year. As usual lots of brake downs and lots of hay and ocassionaly getting stuck.

I played softball again, which took up most wednesdays and thursdays. It is fun but it sure makes the summer kind of hectic. Lucky for us the boys love to go to the games. There is alway a lot of kids around to play with. They don't actually see much of the games themselves. I think they just like having peanutbutter sandwiches for dinner. That seems to be the favorite right now. We didn't take any pictures this time. I will have to talk to Mike about that. Softball started in June and went until August.

For the 4th of July we went to Utah for a Wilde family reunion. It was a lot of fun. The first day we had a rodeo at my Aunts house. The boys had fun shooting bows and arrows and riding a bull (see pictures for more details). Of course they loved riding the horses too. After the rodeo we went to Heber Canyon campground where the church does a lot of girls camps. Families can rent the campgrounds for reunions. We had dinner there where a moose walked through camp and then drove back to Centerville.

On Saturday my brother Kevin, brother in-law Dan, nephew Cole and myself ran in a 5k. After the race we headed back up to the campground for games and lunch.

Later in July we went camping on the burnt river. We went there last year and had a good time so decided to go again. We got a different camp spot that was perfect for what we needed. The water was freezing but those that were strong enough to stand it had a lot of fun. It was nice and hot outside so the water felt good.

Both boys got to show steers at the fair this year in the peewee showman class. This year they got belt buckles which was really neat.

Last year I had gotten an idea that I wanted to go backpacking this summer. We invited Mike's parents to come since we knew they would be bringing horses and would make the trip fun. So we had all year to plan and plot where we would go. We ended up deciding on a short trip to twin lakes which is a 4 mile hike from the Deer Creek side. The website classified it as the most difficult but I wasn't worried. I felt like I was in pretty good shape so I could handle that. It was only 4 miles. Well let me tell you I wasn't prepared. The boys were riding a horse along with Mike's dad. His mom, Mike and I all had packs and were hiking and we had a horse to pack the heavy stuff, so we thought. Both Mike and I had to pack for one of the boys so we had pretty heavy packs. We barely made it up the mountain alive. It was totally worth it. The scenary was beautiful. The weather wasn't too bad, a little windy the second day but we survived. The horses tried to go back to the trailer once so Mike ended up almost half way down the trail again to catch them. On the way out the pack horse decided her load was too heavy so she stubbled on some rocks and fell and won't move. We unloaded her and ended up carrying some of it out ourselves. Mike's pack ended up weighing 60 pounds and mine was 51 pounds. I triped on on some rocks and fell, Mike had to pick me up by my pack because I was too tired and the pack was too heavy for me to stand up. Mike vowed never to do it again on foot.

After we got back from the hike Mike started a new career oppurtunity. He was sworn in as a Justice of the Peace Pro Tem. He is hoping to run for election in 2012.

It was a fast summer but we managed to have a lot of fun and made good use of the warmer days. I can't say hot because it didn't seem to get really hot this summer like I would like but the boys still got to play in the pool a few times.

Trip to the Zoo

2010-05-23T19:55:00.003-07:00

Mike was driving a bus of kindergartners to the Boise zoo. We got to tag along. We went a couple years ago when Mason was a couple months old. Both boys enjoyed a lot more this year. We have been to the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake a couple times so they actually weren't that interested in the animals. They were more entertained by anything they could climb on.

This is the only wild animal I took a picture of.

Weston checking out the big ears of some animal that we don't even know what it is. Like I said we didn't really pay attention to much of the facts.

Mason trying out the turtle shell.

This is the only one I could get with both of them. They were moving too fast. They would get to an animal and look for a couple seconds and were ready for the next.

Sandbox

2010-05-23T19:35:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we finally got the sandbox done in the backyard. The boys love it. They haven't had a lot to time to play in it though, since we got it done the weather has turned cold and rainy. At least there is less mud for the dog to track inside.

The boys really wanted to help us dig out the dirt.

We used the dirt we dug out for the vegetable gardens, it was enough for the smaller one and a little bit for the bigger one. We ended up having a lot of sand left over so the bigger one has a mix of sand and dirt. We had to buy some top soil for that one too. It will be an experiment to see which one does better.

This is the bigger garden.

This is the final product. We spread some extra sand anywhere that was mostly dirt and spread some grass seed in hopes that most of it will end up grass. If not at least it isn't mud.

Success

2010-05-03T20:13:00.000-07:00

We don't have a lot of room for a garden so last year I made some room in my flower beds for a few vegetables. Nothing that I planted came up. I don't know what I did wrong but it didn't work. Even the tomatoes and peppers that I bought didn't really produce much.

This year I decided I would start early and plant inside. We are going to put a raised garden in the backyard so I will do more this year.

I don't know what has happened but it seems everything in the flower garden has bloomed a lot more and bigger then last year. When we bought this house there was a large garden in front with tons of strawberries. We wanted to use that area for yard instead so we moved some of the plants up by the house and planted grass. Ever since then we haven't been very successful with them. Every year we have had to replace some. This year we have twice as many as last year and they are all doing good. Hopefully the good luck continues and we will acutally get something this year.

This is the future home of the raised garden. We will do the same thing in the other corner. We will be digging out under the swingset to put in sand so we can use that dirt in the gardens.

Snowman in April

2010-04-26T20:36:00.000-07:00

This year we didn't really get a lot of snow. Every time it did snow Weston really wanted to make a snowman. Unfortunately the snow wasn't good enough to make one. Until this last time. It was April 2ND and we got a pretty good snow storm. Just in time for Easter. The boys were lucky to get out and make the snowman. It didn't last very long. This was on a Friday and by Tuesday it was all gone. Weston was satisfied. Now he can enjoy getting out and playing outside in the nice spring weather when we get it. I don't think my flowers know what to do. They came up but then they get snowed on or it is just really cold. That's what happens in Eastern Oregon I guess. Got to love it.

Birthdays finally

2010-04-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

I am finally getting around to posting about the boys birthdays. Both Weston and Mason have birthdays in March. Actually they are only five days apart which means lots of birhday fun in a short amount of time. My mom was here the first weekend of March so we had a combined party for both of them and then on their birthdays we just had a smaller party.

We went bowling for their birhdays. It had been a long time since we had bowled. We all had a good time.

On their cakes this year I didn't get too creative. I had big plans but in the end it didn't work out. I had made some cupcakes for Weston's preschool but the day he was going to have the party most of the kids were out sick so we decided to do the party the next week. So since I had a bunch of cupcakes I didn't want to make another cake. I made an icecream cake instead. It didn't look near as good as it tasted.

baby lambs

2010-03-19T13:49:00.000-07:00

To catch up we ended February with a visit to the "lambing sheds" at Mike's aunts house. They have hundreds of sheep and we got a small glimpse of what work they had to do for all the baby lambs. We didn't make it out last year so this was Mason's first time. Of course baby animals is nothing new for either of our kids. Their babysitter has sheep and pigs. So they know all about feeding the babies. Here are some pictures of the fun. The boys loved it.

In the mix with all the baby lambs they had one baby goat. Mike really took a liking to it.

After the babies are born they are brought to the sheds to keep them warm and make sure they are eating enough. When they are ready to go back outside they are numbered along with the mom so they know who goes with which ewe. They got to paint some of the numbers, with dads help of course.

This was just a really cute lamb and it's mom.

Mason was holding this lamb and when he was done he gave it a kiss. I of course didn't get the original kiss on film so we had to reenact it a few times to get a good picture. It was very cute. He was so sincere the first time.

Weston was helping out by feeding the hungry lambs that had to be bottle feed.

2010-02-20T14:58:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I Posted anything, I wish I could say it is because we have been so busy. It is just the opposite and we really haven't been doing much worth blogging about.

We ended the month of January with the loss of another dog. Tucker was my dog before Mike and I got married. He got sick and died very quickly. All in a weekend. We don't really know for sure what it was but the vet thinks he probably had tumors all over.

Tucker is the black lab

The first weekend in February we headed to Utah for a visit. My nephew Tyler was baptized on the 6th and on the 7th my niece Elyse was blessed. Mike and I also celebrated our 6th anniversary. We were able to watch a couple of Cole and Tyler's hockey practices and a game while we were in Utah. Mason really liked Elyse. He wanted to hold her all the time.

Mason wanting to get Elyse out of her car seat

After the blessing we went to my brothers house for lunch. Before we left Weston was on a swing and fell off, the swing came back and hit him in the face.

This picture is a couple of days later.

The boys had a Valentine's Day party at daycare so they wore the shirts my mom gave them. When we got home they couldn't wait use the sunglasses she also gave them. They enjoyed posing for pictures.

Weston wanted to show his mean face.

Valentine's Day weekend we went to Madras to celebrate Mike's great grandma's 97th birthday. We all had fun in the pool and hot tub.

Weston and Mason with great great grandma Corwin and Great Grandma Markgraf

Playing in the pool

After a couple busy weekends it is nice to just be home and doing nothing really.

The boys birthdays are coming up in a couple of weeks. They are getting excited for that. Every time I make a cake for someone else Weston wants to know when I will make a cake for him.

New Year brings additions to the family

2010-01-03T13:11:00.000-08:00

We would like to introduce our newest family member Jake. We have been wanting to get a beagle for a long time now. We just didn't want to pay much for one. Since we lost Ashley to a farming accident this summer we had decided that one dog would be just fine for a while. That was of course until Mike got a call on New Years Eve about a five month old beagle that needed a home. He immediately said yes and then talked to me. The price was right(free)so we now have a beagle named Jake. Tucker is happy to have another dog around again. The testosterone level is just keeps getting higher in this house.

Jake

Tucker and Jake playing tug of war

The boys had a great Christmas. This is the first year they were excited for Santa to come. They got some sleds and were anxious to use them. We went out to Mike's parents house. They have a good hill and a lot more snow to play in. On New Year's Day we went out with some friends to sled some more. We had gotten a lot of snow the day before.

The boys Christmas Eve with their new PJ's

One of the new sleds

Trying out the sleds

New Years day sledding

I have already done my first cake of the new year. I was called a week ago to do a cake for the 2nd. I knew I would be around and not really doing anything so I agreed. Lucky for me the bride wasn't too picky, actually she didn't care what it looked like. So I showed her a picture of a cake that I thought looked really cool and she agreed. She had two cake tops and couldn't decide which one to use. When I delivered the cake I showed them a picture with each of the cake tops one the cake. They chose one so I put it on. As I was getting in the car ready to leave someone came out and said the the cake top fell off and broke. I went back in and they wanted to try and super glue it and still use it. I went home to get super glue and some toothpicks. When I got back they had tried to super glue it but it wasn't working. So they decided to use the other top. It was the one that I liked the best. I think it turned out really nice. It is probably one of my favorite cakes so far. Maybe that is because it was really easy but it looks really good too.
So far I have one cake scheduled for the Summer. Hopefully this a good sign of the year to come.

The first try

The finished product

New Christmas Tradition

2009-12-19T22:17:00.000-08:00

We started a new tradition with Mike's family this year. When I was younger we always make a gingerbread house for Family Home Evening during Christmas time. Last year my mom was here for Thanksgiving so she bought us a kit and we made one. This year Mike's dad wanted to make one that looked like their log home. I told him if he designed it I would make it.
Well Mike had surgery on his knee on Wednesday so while we were waiting his dad started designing the house. We had to scale it down because it was going to be huge.
I have never actually made the gingerbread. It was always my mom that did that. I didn't really know what I was getting into when I volunteered to make the gingerbread. After some unnecessary stress and worry it all worked out just fine.
We had a lot of fun doing it and have hopes of adding more next year. His dad wants to add the hay shed and maybe a horse barn next year. Eventually he wants the whole ranch. We will see how that goes. We had our hands full this year.
It did take a lot longer then I thought so the kids were up late and hyped up on sugar for awhile. I was sure Mason would have a stomach ache since he kept eating the gingerbread dough as I was cutting the pieces. They both slept well so I guess no permanent damage was done.

THE LAY-OUT

THE KIDS ARE PATIENTLY WAITING TO PUT CANDY ON THE HOUSE.

YOU MAY NOTICE THE CORNER IS "GLUED" TOGETHER, MY DOG TRIED TO SAMPLE THE WALL BEFORE WE STARTED. WHEN HE WAS CAUGHT HE DROPPED IT AND THE CORNER BROKE.

FRONT VIEW

THE VIEW FROM THE BACK

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

2009-12-15T20:55:00.000-08:00

We got the most snow of the winter today. When I woke up there was maybe an inch and by the end of the day there was probably nine inches. At work one of the nurses would go out every hour to measure the snow. When I left it was 8 1/2.

Weston has been waiting for there to be enough snow to play in. When he woke up this morning I told him it snowed. He looked doubtful until I opened the blinds. He was so excited. When I picked the boys up from daycare all Weston wanted to do was play in the snow and make a snowman. We did play in the snow but we couldn't make a snowman. We tried but the snow just wouldn't stay together. Mason wasn't as fond of playing in the snow but he did eat his fair share. It was deep enough that he had a hard time walking in it.

This is what the front sidewalk looked like until Mike cleaned it off. I had to take a picture because it looked pretty.

Weston made several snow angels.

Mason just enjoying the snow

A look at the lights in the snow

Ready For Christmas

2009-12-12T15:04:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas tree. This is the first tree that we have bought in a long time. Mike is having another knee surgery this week so we knew we wouldn't be able to go get a tree. It will probably be all dried up by Christmas but we are enjoying the smell for now. I made some ornaments with Cinnamon but those don't smell anymore unless you stick it to your nose. The boys are doing really good at not bothering the tree. The train going around the bottom is a different story.

Mike was smart this year and put up most of our lights before Thanksgiving and before he had knee surgery. The rest were put up later.

We are staying home this year for Christmas. Last year we went to Utah and the drive home was horrible. It is nice to be home. My mom will be joining us. It's too bad she has to drive.

Catching up

2009-12-05T21:51:00.000-08:00

Boy time is just flying by these days. We headed to Centerville for Thanksgiving but before we could do that we had a busy couple of days. On Monday Mike got braces on his top teeth and will get the lower later. On Tuesday he had knee surgery on his left knee. They were cleaning out some scar tissue that had torn from his previous knee surgery a couple of years ago. He will have another surgery in a couple of weeks on the other knee. On Wednesday we left for Utah. It was a longer trip then usual since Mike had to stop every couple of hours to get out and walk.

Mike showing off his new braces

Weston enjoyed playing football, I don't know that he caught on to the point of the game other then to pull the flags regardless of the team. My brother got a little tired of the kids pulling each others flags so he implemented a 5 yd penalty if you pulled a flag and the person doesn't have the ball.

After dinner the kids settle in to playing the Wii.

This is what the rest of us did, admire the beautiful new neice, Elyse. The fifth girl for my brother Kevin.

This picture has nothing to do with what we did, just a cute picture of the boys after church showing their new ties.

Halloween and Fall

2009-11-02T20:56:00.000-08:00

First of all I am pouting because the Yankees lost tonight. Not that I am worried that they will lose the series I just wanted it to be over tonight.

Anyway the rest of the family has been busy with other things while I have been watching the games. Weston has finally caught on to what Halloween is all about. Candy. He was so excited to go trick or treating downtown. Mason still hasn't gotten into the spirit yet. Mason rode on Mike's dad's wheelchair most of the time so he missed out on some of the fun but he still came home with plenty of candy. The last couple of blocks he got down and walked and I think he realized what he had been missing out on.

This year Mike and I were too busy and tired to carve pumkins so we just let the boys paint them instead. They had fun but I think next year we will go back to carving. Even though it is messy it is fun to see them lit up on the porch.

The boys with their artwork

Weston had fun with the pile of leaves Mike made in the front yard. He was really disappointed when the day that Mike made the pile, I made him go take a nap and while he was asleep a big storm blew in and it started to rain. He had to wait until the next day to jump in it. Even then it was pretty cold but how could I say no again. Mason didn't like the leaves as much. He had fun until Mike put him in the pile and then he wasn't so sure about it.

Mason wondering why he was being thrown into the pile of leaves

The boys in their costumes flexing their muscles

The cousins after trick or treating downtown

Every year Mike's family goes elk hunting in the same spot. Since they have been doing it for 30 plus years they have perfected the camping site. They all bring their trailers up and put plastic around them. It already has a roof so they put a couple of wood stoves, one at each end and they stay warm and dry. It is quit the set up.

The downtown trick or treating was on friday. Saturday we spent the day at Elkcamp so the boys got in their costumes that evening and trick or treated the campers, then we headed home because I had a game to watch. I am a slave to the yankees when they are on tv.

Seaside

2009-10-16T20:48:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went to Seaside for a fun weekend with family and friends. Mike and I both got off work early on Thursday and headed out for Seaside. We were lucky to get really nice weather. We bought some kites to fly but there wasn't even enough wind to get them to fly very well. Can't complain about that. The boys loved playing in the water and sand. I think they liked the pool at the condo the best. This year Mason could walk so that made the beach a lot more fun for him. We stayed until Sunday and had to go home. Some of the others were staying for the rest of the week.

Me and the boys

Weston and Mason with their cousins Tanner and Camber

Our new family picture at the coast

Mason and I catching the Yankees game. Go Yankees!

Mike and the boys

Roosevelt Lake

2009-09-13T19:31:00.000-07:00

For Labor Day we got together with some friends we hadn't seen for awhile and went to Roosevelt Lake up by Kettle Falls, WA. We are lucky to have friends to have fun with. The only thing that could have been better was the weather. We knew going at the end of the summer would be risky but we just didn't have a chance anytime sooner. It was a really busy summer this year. Anyway, at the beginning of the week I started looking at the forecast. On Monday it said it was rain all weekend. By Tuesday it had changed to just a couple of days. In the end it wasn't so bad. We got to the lake on Friday and it was sunny and warm. Probably mid 70"s. Saturday it was nice but started to cloud up. Saturday night it poured and Sunday the wind picked up. It was a little tricky getting off the lake with the wind. The waves were pretty big, it just added to the experience. We would go back in a heart beat. It was so much fun. We were told that we would be staying on the beach. I don't have a lot of experience with beaches other then the Oregon coast so that is what I expected. That's not what we got. It was perfect sand. Not as comfortable for sleeping we found out but nice to play in. We took our shoes off when we got off the boat on Friday and didn't put them back on until we got back to the dock on Sunday afternoon. The boys loved digging and building sandcastles. Ok, Weston tried to make a sandcastle but Mason kept smashing anything Weston put up. Mike helped him get one side made before Mason could get to it.

The houseboat

Tent on the sand

Mike and Weston on Mike's new love

Weston burried in the sand, he thought it sounded fun until we put the sand on him. I had to take the picture fast before he sat up.

Mason wouldn't lay down so this is all we got on him.

Mason posing for the camera

This is what Weston liked to do the most. More then going on the "small boat" (Jet ski)

The cast comes off

2009-08-27T21:29:00.001-07:00

It's been a month so Weston got his cast off yesterday. At the two week mark I didn't know if we could handle the smell but we somehow managed.

Last picture before the cast comes off.

The "saw"

After a good scrub it was time for the first picture without the cast. Weston wanted to save the cast but when we got home he decided to throw it away. I guess he's not too sentimental.

Baker County Fair

2009-08-18T20:43:00.000-07:00

This year we signed Weston up to show a Hefer at the Baker County Fair. At first we were thinking a pig because obvioulsy it is more his size, but after seeing them run around the ring we decided it might be a bit too crazy. Mike's cousin Nikki was showing her hefer so we asked her if Weston could use her's in the pee-wee class. It was so cute. He walked into the ring full of confidence. I think we may have a future 4-H'er on our hands.

This is Weston leading "Jesse" into the ring.

Weston posing for a picture.

The boys watching Nikki show

Summer Catch up

2009-08-16T21:38:00.000-07:00

This summer has been going by so fast I can't keep up. Check out the next three post to see what we have been up to this summer.

Yankee game

2009-08-16T21:03:00.000-07:00

This year for my birthday I wanted to see the Yankees play in Seattle. We got the tickets in April but had to wait until this weekend to go. It was so much fun.
Mike's parents took the boys so we could go.

Mike and I at the game. As you can tell there is a difference of opinion. Before the game we went downtown Seattle and walked around. We got a few comments on our shirts. I think more people agreed with me though. We saw a lot of yankees fans.

This is the view of the field from our seats. We had good seats but next time we think we will try for about 10 or 15 rows closer. We were under the second deck and we would rather be out from there.

This is Mariano Rivera pitching one of his warm up pitches in the last inning. The Yankees won the game 5-2.

For more pictures of the game or any of the other post check out Mike's facebook page.

Last cake of summer

2009-08-16T20:48:00.001-07:00

I made my last cake of the summer at the end of July. Mike's cousin Katy got married in Halfway. I couldn't finish the cake until I got to Halfway. Our babysitter's husband has a house there so they were nice enough to let us finish the cake there. I did what I could at home and then we loaded it in the Envoy and headed out.

They wanted cream cheese frosting, which tasted really good but it was a very hot day so keeping it cool was a challenge. I think it turned out pretty good.

The cake in the Envoy headed for Halfway.

The finished product.

Summer camping

2009-07-27T17:39:00.000-07:00

In the middle of July we went on a camping trip to the south burnt river with Mike's family. This is the only time we got to go this year. We have just been too busy this year.

Weston hitching a ride from Camber

Weston in the river. It was freezing cold.

Mason collecting pine cones in the school bus.

Hanging out in the hammock.

Mason enjoying s'mores.

The Trip to the ER

2009-07-25T21:14:00.000-07:00

We got a set of bunk beds from my aunt. The beds are old. My mom and aunt slept on them, my brother and I slept on them then I think they went back to my cousins and now we have them. Weston has been sleeping in one of them for the past year and half. Last night we decided to put the other one up and let the boys get used to having bunk beds. Mason is still going to use his crib for awhile and Weston is still sleeping on the bottom bed. So we set both beds up and the boys were playing on them. Weston decided he wanted down and on his way down he fell to the floor. When he hit the floor he broke his left arm midway between his wrist and elbow. We took him to the hospital and had him checked out and they confirmed what we thought.

He got two X-rays showing a "green stick break" then we went to the exam room and waited for the doctor. Weston fell asleep waiting.

Doctor Dave Richards did a great job putting a soft cast on his arm and he will go see Dr. Lamb on Wednesday or Thursday to get a hard cast. He will have it for at least 4 weeks.

We think Weston is the first one in both families to have a broken arm. This doesn't seem to slow him down much. He likes to show off his cast, and he uses the excuse that he can't do something because he has a broken arm.

New Swing Set

2009-07-05T21:13:00.000-07:00

We have been planning on making a swing set for the boys for a while now. This weekend ended up being the only one free. So for the 4th of July we built a wooden swing set in our backyard. It's not completely done yet but we ran out of screws so we couldn't get the railing done. I will feel much better about it once that is done. They both are having a blast. It hasn't been without it cuts and bruies though.

After we thought we were done Weston was ready for the first ride down the slide. He climbed to the top and looked down. He looked nervous and said it was too scary. Both Mike and I said it would be fine and he wouldn't get hurt. So he trusted us and went down.

To my suprise he ended up landing on his face. I felt horrible. It appears it was too steep and needed some adjustments.

We built a lower platform for the slide. It took a lot of coaching and a couple trial runs by his little brother to get Weston to go down again.

We will post more pictures when it is all finished.

Krisi Does It Again.

2009-05-30T20:38:00.000-07:00

Well Krisi did it again. This is a picture of 4 of the 8 Cakes that Krisi made for a wedding this weekend. She started at 8am on Friday morning and pulled the last cake out of the oven at 11:30 that night. She decorated all but the last one as she cooked the next one. The last one was decorated this morning and we delivered them at 9am. We then came home and she started the next cake for a graduation party tomorrow afternoon.

While Krisi cooked I took the boys to Tanners baseball game. Then after naps we played outside. It was 80 degrees outside so we played in the water.

Mason tried to drink the water and did get some. He doesn't mind the water at all. Weston on the other had just had to step on the sprinkler and get everyone wet.

Wedding cake madness

2009-05-16T15:20:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what you would get if you add 21 cake mixes, 63 eggs, oil, 36 cups powered sugar, shortening, and milk all together? A wedding cake to serve 300+. That is what I did this weekend. This was the first of three that I am doing this summer. This was my first solo wedding cake without my mom nearby to help if I panicked. I was terrified but it came together a lot better then I had thought. Mike convinced me to take the afternoon off on Thursday so I could start baking. I had to make 14 cakes. I was surprised to get it all done without staying up all night. The boys weren't happy about the baby gate keeping them from "helping". Mike made the sheriff's office happy when he took the left over cake tops to work at dispatch. It came in handy working the night shift.
We have one weekend which will be spent in Utah visiting my mom and then we start this process all over again for the next cake.

Boys and their toys!!

2009-05-04T20:45:00.000-07:00

Mike finally got a new motorcycle. He has been trying for years to convince me he needed one I guess he worn me down. It is strictly for commuting(ya right) he was given the instructions that he is not to have fun. I don't think that is possible. The night that he picked it up he went for a short ride, when he came home he had the biggest grin on his face. I think it is still there a couple of days later. The boys are really excited too. Everytime we go in the garage Weston wants to ride the motorcyle. It has been raining all weekend so finally Sunday afternoon it cleared up enough for Mike to take him for a ride around the block. Today has been nice enough that Mike could ride it to work. He is like a little kid on Christmas morning. I'll get back to you when the excitment wears off.

Not much more going on in the Downing house. We are hoping that summer will be coming soon. I am tired of the rain and cold weather.

Easter Egg Hunt on Horseback

2009-04-05T09:22:00.001-07:00

Spring just my be here. Yesterday we went out to the Bingham ranch and participated in their "Easter Egg Hunt on Horseback". It was so much fun. We took out 12 eggs and hid them out in a field that was next to the house. They had a Few big bales, Old tractor Tires and water troughs to hide eggs around. Others also hid their eggs as well. I bet we had 12 or 13 dozen hid for all the kids. Then they had 8 or 10 horses saddled with kids saddles. A few of us parents led the horses and the kids took turns telling us were to go find an egg. Both Weston and Mason had a great time. Both didn't want to get off the horse. After all the eggs were found they had a great lunch setup. We all had a great time and hope to do it again next year.

So Much For Spring

2009-03-25T20:54:00.000-07:00

Well so much for spring. It snowed all day today. It really didn't accumulate until late afternoon or early evening, and we only got an inch or so. My parents had 2-3 inches up at there house tonight. I guess this is typical spring break weather for Baker County. We sure are looking forward to the 70 degree days when we can get out and play outside with the boys. Spring break is going very fast this year. I'm really enjoying the time I get to stay home with the boys. Its great to have the father son time. The only thing that could make it better is to have Krisi there with us.

First Day of Spring!

2009-03-20T19:25:00.000-07:00

For the first day of spring we celebrated by loading the boys in the bike trailer and going for the first bike ride of the season. This was Mason's first ride in the trailer since he was too small last summer. They both had a great time. The day was sunny at 63 degrees with some wind. We started out a bit too ambitious though we had the wind to our back going but on the way home we had to fight it. Mike and I will both be a bit sore tomorrow. I guess no pain no gain, right.