Oh Porter!!!

Porter, Porter, Porter, PORTER! What am I going to do with this kid? I know that my blog used to be all sorts of exciting with stories of Porter's antics. Just because I havent posted...doesnt mean he hasnt been the same crazy kid he has been since the womb.

This kid is the sweetest kid to the core. He is so happy, and has the most fun loving personality. However...(there is always a BUT)....lately, I am flying first class to Crazy Town, and Porter...well he is the Pilot. I hear about children who dont get into things, dont raid the cupboards, open locks, and crawl out second story windows helping their two year old sister out to the ledge..and think so myself...HOW was I so lucky to get a child that does all the above?! Anastyn I dont think is naughty by nature. But she is really smart and a quick learner...and well Porter, he is the teacher and she is absorbing everything.

I am in trouble people. These two may just be the death of me. Its not JUST Porter anymore. He has an accomplice. A partner in crime. Someone he quickly points a finger at when caught in the act...and well, its hard to prove sometimes who is at fault, resulting in two kids in time out giggling at each other from across the room. Have I mentioned how hard it is to discipline when they are both laughing at each other? Hard. VERY hard, I tell you. And it sorta kinda makes me a little looney. To the point when sometimes I have to take a MOMMY time out because all I want to do is scream.

Oh the joys of children. And people wonder and ask where number 3 is, I just dont know what to tell them. I want to respond...number 3 is Porter, and Anastyn...well she is 4,5, and 6! When they said the most spirited kids were saved for the last days, they werent kidding. Spirited they are.

But you know what? I love them JUST the way they are. They are hilarious, fun, and have personalities in spades. Is it a miracle I have any hair left on my head? Absolutely. You want to know how come I got two kids like this? Because I am lucky. Because I can handle them. And because they are teaching me things I never thought I would learn other wise.

And even if when I check on Porter at night before I go to bed I find this...

...After a quick picture, scream into my pillow, and 6mg of melatonin...I always say a prayer thanking My Heavenly Father for this sweet boy in my life!! Because lets be honest...how boring would life be without him?!

Rednexican Style!

A couple weeks ago Kameron had a shift change, and allowed him to have a 4 day weekend. It was fall break, and my brother and his family were up at the cabin, so my parents as well and Kameron and I made a trip so the boys could do some work. They had to reseal the outside logs to protect it through the winter. While us girls did some shopping, and the kids played!

Anastyn LOVED being outside, and Miss Lexie Lou was so helpful and played with her and watched her while they were out playing. They are watching the boys on the roof working!

Lexie, Anastyn, and Jadie Jadie pretty lady! Love these girls!!

We had the camera's on hand, because with the tricks these guys were doing, was a little scary, and well...it was a youtube video waiting to happen. Redneck style....Ghetto rigged, whatever you want to call it. I like to refer to it as Rednexican style!! The above picture the boys hang the ladder from a tree on the other side of the cabin so they could suspend themselves and get to a hard to reach spot....

...and this is the view from the bottom! Seriously, it was a little nerve wrecking. One snap, and they would have fallen all the way to the ground. It looks like the deck would catch them, but it wouldnt have. The picture is decieving...they would have gone straight to the ground. I kept 911 on speed dial just in case.

This was from the front of the house...yeah, Kameron was always the one suspended with his life in danger. Crazy men. Luckily no injuries were sustained during the re-coating process. It took 2 full days, and a lot of sore muscles later before everything was done.

Other fun tid-bits...Porter has been begging me almost every night, including mentioning it in his prayers to go visit his Uncles and Grandma and Grandpa Lee, or for them to come visit us. Since we were working on the cabin we couldnt stay up there, but Aunt Kamarie and Grandma met us half way to take him to play in St Johns for a couple days. He had so much fun with his cousins, and playing outside. I thought it might take care of that fix for a while, but he is already back to asking to go back or for them to come here. =)

I also got to meet up with a good friend of mine Tera for lunch one afternoon in Show Low! She just had a baby so I got to get a little baby fix, and man was Cashy boy adorable!! Makes me want one...kinda. HA. But as usual it was a couple hours full of laughing our butts off. We always have so much fun! So grateful for those kind of friends who you only see a couple times a year, but when you get together its like we never skipped a beat. Thanks Tera for coming over from Taylor, it was great to see you and your beautiful new boy!

And lastly, on Friday night we made the trip over to St Johns to pick up Porter and to watch my little brother in law Konner, be a Rockstar on the football field.

After watching him tear it up with 4 touchdowns and a touchback, we only got to say a quick hi before heading back to Pinetop! I love getting to watch him play, and am so glad we were able to make it to atleast one game since we live so far now.

Porter with his Uncle Nonner! =) Of course he is old enough that he actually calls him Konner now, but I still like to call him Nonner because...lets face it, it was a really sad day when Porter said it the right way. This little boys sure loves his Uncles! And I am so glad he has such good boys to look up to.

After settling back home I realized that I wish we werent 5 hours from the cabin, because there is nothing like hanging out in the mountains with the windows open, cuddling up in a sweatshirt and boots, and relaxing. I cant wait to make another trip once it starts snowing!!!

Slacker with a capital L-A-Z-Y!!!!

Hi there! My name is Gina, and I am the worst blogger in the world as of late. I seriously have no excuse other then..I'm busy, with Primary, kids, work, chores, preschool, soccer, potty training...etc, my blog has taken a back seat! Please forgive me. I can promise I will do better, but I cant promise to keep that promise. My absence is not due to a lack of excitement. We have had a fun and crazy couple months. Here is a little rundown of randoms!

Porter finished his swim lessons, and I am happy to report, that he can now swim. YAY! Anastyn also did swim lessons. It was a Mom and Tot class. And isnt Anastyn with her mom so cute?! HA. Ok, so it was a Dad and Tot day in this picture. I melt in water...no joke. I avoid it at all costs! She did really well and was jumping in all by herself by the end!

Anastyn's favorite move = Monster's Inc. However the beginning of that movie is a little scary, and its one of those moments where.you.just.cant.look.away!!! Love her!

My BABY boy started pre-school! Seriously? Can he really be old enough to be writing letters, numbers, and his name?! Unfortunately the answer to this question is Yes! He is so stinkin smart, and LOVES school!

And then another first...SOCCER! This is getting ready for his first practice. I just realized that I dont have any pictures of him in his uniform. I will change that when he has another game.

He has had a few games and really loves it. Its WAY more active then T-ball. He picked his nose and chased butterflies for the first game, but once he caught the hang of it he scored a couple goals. Apparently all the beating "You DONT take things from other kids" into his little head works because he doesnt ever want to take the ball from the other boys. We are working on him understanding that its OK to steal the ball from the other team. He is catching on, and its hilariously fun to watch!! P.s. And yes, I am one of those soccer moms that is a little too competitive for the under 6 league. Some of the kids on the other teams are just mean to the younger ones...namely our entire team. (they are all like 4) So I am working on the slide tackle with Porter. Jk! But I kinda want to.

Little Miss Sass-a-frassy. What can be said about this little Gem?! She is a hoot. Personality in spades! She has decided she wants to be potty trained. Ok, so she basically did it. I help her and remind her, but she has basically done it on her own. Independent to say the least. Did I mention she is a little parrot? She NEVER stops talking. And no, she did NOT get that from me. ;) Wink wink! But really she is hilarious and makes us laugh all the time with the things she comes up with. She is obsessed with chapstick...her reward for going potty is a little lip smacker, how great is that?! Easy to please, just how I like it.

Kameron's sister and her family came to visit over labor day. It was super fun and we took the kids to Tombstone, because lets be honest...littles dressed as gun slingin' flapper-esk adults from the west wearing flip flops and converse = priceless!!

Back in August my sweet Nana passed away at 93 years old! I have always been really close to her, since she lived with us or by us my whole life. I should dedicate a whole post to Nana stories, because trust me...she was hysterical. I know that she is much happier and in a much better place, but I was still sad at the thought of not being able to laugh when she would slap my hand away when I would touch her hair, and her big juicy kisses that would land straight on the lips if you were quick enough. But the memories of her chasing us with a shoe because we would make her mad...only to make it out the door. And if you made it that far, you better hope a neighborhood friend was home because you werent getting back into the house until mom got home from work, will last forever. When a bad thing happens, good always comes from it. I got to spend a few days with all my Gonzalez side of the family. I have so many FUN cousins, and I loved being able to hang out all together! (did I mention we are all mexican, and a lot are LDS...that pretty much equals breeding machines) Her posterity has equaled hundreds, and growing. What an honorable posterity she has left. And because of her, we all are blessed to have such a great and large family!!!

And lastly...we are house hunting. Can I just say I am NOT loving it?! The market here in Sierra Vista is not like the market everywhere else in the state. Its still high, and if you arent there when decent house for a decent price hits the market you dont get it. We also got approved for a mortgage. What a blessing! All the stress of the last year has really taken its toll, but it got us here where we know we are supposed to be, and we going to hopefully have a home to call our own before too long. We have found a few that we loved...and would lose it before we could get there, or get the house and have to pull out due to a bad inspection. But we are optimistic that the right one will come along. I just need to break my brain somehow to not automatically decorate an entire house before we get it so I wont be so disappointed when it falls through! But I am loving researching things online of how I want to decorate a house whenever we are blessed with one again.

Well thats it people. Thats where we have been, and what we have been up to! I wish there was more exciting news to share...maybe including 10 fingers or 10 toes...but not quite yet. Our kids are just way too dang cute to stop now. =) And since my OBGYN doc moved here this past week from Chandler, I am one happy camper and feeling like its time for Anastyn to cut the apron strings and learn...she aint rullin the roost forever. =)