for katie

Just some picts of my living spaces in my home. I don't think we'll be living here much longer as we are trying to sell our home to start a new adventure with Mitch in College. If you know anyone who is looking to buy a SUPER home in the Pasco area, please email me: nanciemathews79@yahoo.com

Kate: I hope they work.

utah trip

Jack and Vince at Boodocks
Mitch hittinga homerun


Liberty park

Racecar drivers

Cam at Ikea, getting a boost by uncle Dave

Dersh

Older sis Jen, and hubby Dave

Kate (baby too) and Dan

Confession: I never take "professional" pictures of my kids...even at Walmart. Yup I'm super lame. I just always see the trouble of it instead of the GREAT payoff after they're done. But I finally got them into a friend of ours who owns his own photography business.

Dang, my kids are cute.

Shameless advertising pitch: Call Damon Fairchild Photography! He does a great job with kids and families (and its that time for your high schooler's senior portraits). His studio is close by, on Gway in Richland and has a number of cool backgrounds, or does beautiful outside shots too! I also heard he is running a sale, 30% off in the month of March. Call him TODAY: 509-727-3671.

Definitely Worth It!

SPY party

Camden turned 7 at the end of January. I wanted to post this and show how talented my mom and sister are. Mom and Hollie did a "SPY" birthday for Cam and he loved it. Kids showed up to a spy training facility and did activities that had anything to do with spying. They made these cute brief cases out of pizza boxes and the kids took home their loot inside them. The boys took fingerprints, drew chalk bodies on the driveway, searched for lost jewels, tracked animal prints, and a treasure hunt.

It was a success! The kids loved it and especially Cam.
That party he will remember for sure. And he might even remember that his own mom made it up, I might get the credit for that one. Ha ha.

Mi muy bonita hermana

( I realized I don't have very many pictures of Katie when she was growing up because I'm 7 years older than her and wasn't really around then. But in spite of that Katie is still one of my closest sisters.)

KAT is 23!

Happy Birthday to my little sis. I made little list of talents that Katie has been blessed with and that I covet. I love her and is a genuinely great girl who I want to be just like when I grow up.



*PURE.
*an awesome DECORATOR. She knows the newest trends and can throw things together and paint a piece of furniture, put it in a room and bang! instant beautification.
*an awesome THRIFTY DIGGER: She has regular haunts where she visits and she finds the BEST stuff EVER. It helps that she lives in a super big town where everyone buys "new"....(send some stuff my way Kate.)
*a super great FRIEND. Always worries if she has said anything to offend anyone and always has positive things to say even if everyone else doesn't.
*a GREAT LISTENER- you always feel that she heard everything you said and adds some kind of comment or advice to let you know she has.
*has CUTE FASHION. I always wanted to see stuff through her eyes. She has a LOVE for the neutrals and always looks classic!
*such a awesome LEADER- In high school she was "regional/state/president of everything FFA" and she had to put together a Leadership Retreat. I went to help with the food because I wanted to be associated with the RAD activity she put on. It turned out so good. Its still LEGEND in Hermiston.
*BRAIN POWER- She can memorize like nobody's business. She did the FFA creed in record time and was in a couple school plays where she was the STAR!
*A super great TESTIMONY, and she's not afraid to share it. Baptized and brought many to the gospel during her short years in HS and after. I am always jealous she can talk so freely and people can feel the spirit so easily. Katie was KNOWN for her awesome youth talks at church. She can totally take any gospel principle and make a random analogy for it. Again: LEGENDARY. (Ask her about "pig and the Oreck vacuum")
*so WISE. (see above)
*A GREAT MOM- she lives far away from her family and can't rely on family like I do and she's still survives (imagine that). She loves to do family outings with her boys and is patient and kind. I learn from her example.
*She is BRAVE- when Dan went to boot camp they were apart for 6 months, and then moved to Buloxi, MS to be close to him while he was in training for another 6 months. He couldn't sleep at home during that time, she was a single mom in a strange place and she survived that too. Soon Dan will be deployed to Iraq and again she will show bravery by loaning her husband to serve our country in the war.
* a good ATHLETE- I don't care what you say Kate: you did good in all the sports you played. She had Heart, which is hard to come by these days. Besides she had my thighs, and she couldn't be the best at everything...right?
*PENMANSHIP- Kate has honestly the best handwriting in the world. Also, she would draw these cute little stick figure people families- even BEFORE it was cool to stick em on the back of your expensive SUV. I know she came up with it first. I still have a few pictures, framed that she drew of my little family and I still LOVE them.
*PREPAREDNESS- she has a ton of food storage and if something happens I'm headed to phoenix to drink her water and eat her food. She will save my life. Good girl Kate.
*POPULAR- for lack of a better word, she always attracts a crowd and her and Dan were the life of the party in their Boise college ward. They loved their time there and have many friends to show for it.
*Makes CUTE BABIES- what? they are, even if they weigh close to a cinder block when they are born.
*STRONG- (see above) she packs those boys around for the first months of life and thats NOT easy.
*WELL ROUNDED- as mom would say. Fits her to a "T".

I love you Kate. Happy Birthday.

click here for her blog.

Year in Pictures.

New Years resolution: no more lame posts.
so here are some pictures of some things that happened this year. We have been busy!
(Darn blogger makes them out of order)

Me and Kate in Phoenix at some fiiiine shopping in September.
Jacks dirty face in December.

Brady bathing at seven months.

Levenworth trip in October.

Dan and Nan admiring some cacti on Mesa Temple grounds.

Halloween

Cam at pumpkin patch.

My Ricks pals at Education Week in August. (Ashleigh, and Amanda)

Fall Volleyball, sister Darc BLOCKIN'.

4th of July parade (auntie Jen and uncle Dave came)

Blessing of baby Brady.

Brady at his first dust devils baseball game (grandpa holding).

Poolside with aunt Marilyn, and Denise.

Farm Chicks Antique show in Spokane (coming up soon!)

Swimming at Grami's pool.

Annual Memorial Day at the Hermiston Cemetery.

Grandkids at Papas Ranch in Ione, OR.

Cams 6th birthday (Jan 21)

Cam holding a yukky reptile

Brand new baby in May

boys at the last day of kindergarden.

A New Year

Yup its that time again. The bain of my existence, the thing that makes me want to punch myself in the neck, drum roll please....

TAXES

Man, most people are excited to start a new year and make great resolutions- lose weight, be more organized, more patience. I could use all of these qualities to keep sane during this horrid time of year. Sorting through stacks of files for each month and receipts, oh the receipts! Every year I vow to keep up on it. Every year I fail.

But this year is different. Without Greyhound and UPS it should be easier right? This coming year will prove to be a NEW challenge learning what is a write off while you have a husband in college. So pray for me and call every once in a while to see if my kids are fed and I'm not dead underneath my fallen filing cabinet.

Happy New Tax Year.