Cute Story

We have been making a recording to send to Samuel. At dinner or just hanging out we set up the recorder to record our conversations and talk to Samuel. Last night at dinner we had it on and asked Kendall if he wanted to say anything to Samuel. He was a little confused, we told him to just talk. Anyway, the phone rang and James was talking for a minute and then hung up. Kendall started crying and said he wanted to talk to Samuel. He thought that it was Samuel on the phone. I started to cry when I saw how broken hearted he was that he couldn't talk to his big brother. I am really looking forward to Christmas so that we all can talk to Samuel on the phone!

The Crucible

Last weekend, Cameron was in the play "The Crucible" at Branham. He played the role of John Proctor. He had a very intense part to play. He wasn't very nice either! He cheated on his wife and he had a very bad temper. He got to push girls around and grab their hair. I was not proud of his character, but I was very proud of Cameron for his performance. He is another great actor in our family! In the end he is repentant. He shows a broken heart and a contrite spirit. His final scene was incredible, many were brought to tears by his confession. Cameron did an Awesome job!

Here he is with his good friend Dustin, who played the Reverend.And this is Michaela, she played his wife.

Gotta love Grandpa Cortez, he has always been so supportive of our kids and their many activities. Cameron's next performance will be in December. He is going to be Charlie in "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory." He is staying very busy with school, plays, church activities and lacrosse. Keep up the good work Cameron, we are proud of you!

Homecoming 2009

My son the Homecoming King Nominee! Cameron was excited to be on the Homecoming Court. He acted like it was an embarrassing thing to be nominated but I could tell he was happy about it. After all this was something that Samuel had never been before. At the game Friday night, the King and Queen candidates were escorted by a parent of their choice, during halftime. I was the lucky one that he chose. The kids were each given a box with a rose in it. They were told to wait until everyone had their box and the announcer would have them open them all together. The ones with the white rose were the King and Queen of Branham High 2009.

This is the medal that the Homecoming King candidates were given. The picture is very blurry, but you can see that it says King. The other words are: homecoming candidate. He wore it proudly.
Saturday night was the dance. The kids met at our house for pictures and then they went to BJ's for dinner and then off to the dance.He had fun all week participating in the Homecoming activities. We are proud of Cameron for the fun and positive attitude he had all week leading up to the announcing of King and Queen. He never felt like he was going to win, and he was totally okay with that, but he was happy to be the runner up.

We Are In Trouble Now!!

Kaelyn only started crawling last month just before she was 7 months. That wasn't good enough for her. She wants to keep up with the rest of us.

So now, she is pulling herself up anywhere and everywhere she can! She will be walking by Christmas for sure, maybe sooner. Samuel was an early walker, I guess she wants to be like her big brother:)If you ask me, she is growing way to fast! Why do they have to grow up so fast? I want to keep my baby, a baby, just a little bit longer :(

Samuel is off to Paraguay!!!

Today Samuel is on his way to Paraguay. I am super excited but the mother in me is nervous. I can't help but to worry about him getting there safely. I just got interrupted while writing this post . Samuel just called from the Salt Lake airport! Of course, I started crying, but I composed myself pretty quickly! He sounds great, he is anxious to get there! There are 19 of them flying to Paraguay together. I guess I can stop worrying now. He said that the pay phones weren't being cooperative, but there was a Ward Mission Leader there so he let Samuel use his phone to call home (thanks Bro. Smith). He has a lay over in Texas and from there he flies to
Argentina and then to Paraguay. He said that he will call back when he gets to Texas:)
These are just a few of the pictures Samuel has sent home so far. I am hoping that he sends pictures often so that i can post them. Study time

Taking a pic of himself in the mirror

Elders Ison, Batistich, Wright and Lau

I am so happy that I got to talk to Samuel today:) I thought this might be an emotional day for me with him actually leaving the country today. It really helped to be able to hear his voice. I am so Proud of him. He is going to be a great missionary! I look forward to getting his emails and hearing about the missionary work and how his Spanish is improving, and how his Love of the Gospel is helping to bring others unto Christ.

Kaelyn's Stats

At Kaelyn's 6 month check up in July, she had only gained about 4oz. since her 4 mo. check up. So her doctor had us start adding formula to her cereal and supplementing my breast milk with formula. Her weight in July was only 13lbs. 12 oz. She went from being in the 52% for weight down to 14% for weight. Now a month later, I am happy to report that she has gained 3lbs. We had a weight check appointment with her doctor today. Her weight is now 16lbs.2.8oz.

Kaelyn is such a happy baby! She is sleeping thru the night finally, and I think it is because she isn't starving anymore! She has learned how to crawl, which is driving Kendall crazy, because now he has to keep his little legos up off of the floor, or in his room.

We love our little Kaelyn, and are so happy that she is healthy.

Catching Up

A lot has happened since my last post, so for now here is a slide show of some of the events that have taken place since then. Cameron went to Mormon Prom, Kendall turned 4, we had a Cortez Family Reunion and Samuel left on a Mission. Sorry for not giving any details on any of them but it has taken me forever to put the slide show together and now I am very tired and I just want to go to sleep. I will try to be better at keeping up to date on my blogging.

4 Months Already?

I can't believe that Kaelyn is 4 months old today. She is getting such a fun personality! She loves all of her siblings so much, her face just lights up when they come and talk to her or play with her. She can sit and stare at Kendall for hours, he loves to make her laugh. I think that Cameron has made her smile the biggest so far. In fact, in this picture she is looking at Cameron.

At 4 months Kaelyn is 13lbs 8.6oz. and is 25in. Next to Shelby, Kaelyn is my smallest baby at this age. She is only in the 52% range for her weight, my boy's were always in the 90-95% range. I like having a little petite baby.

Kaelyn is a great napper, she takes 2 long naps and then cat naps in her swing or bouncer in the early evening. She had been sleeping through the night at 3 mo. but recently started waking up in the middle of the night, it is driving me crazy. I don't do well with interrupted sleep!

Kendall loves to stick his tongue out at Kaelyn to see if she will stick her tongue out also. Poor thing can't! She was born with a short frenulum, or in other words, she is tongue tied! She is having it clipped as soon as Kaiser gets back to me to schedule it. In the mean time Kendall will keep trying to get her to stick it out.

We have totally enjoyed these first 4 months with Kaelyn and look forward to watching her grow! Although, I do wish that she wouldn't grow so fast! I love to sit and cuddle with her, she is my last baby and I want to hold on to her a little bit longer. They grow way to fast for me.

I Hope They Call Me On A Mission!!

It's official! Samuel's call came yesterday and he was so excited! He had been waiting for the mail every day since getting home from BYU! He waited until we were all together to open it.

Before watching the video be sure to turn off the music below.
If you can't hear the video, because of the crying baby, he has been called to the Paraguay Asuncion Mission. He enters the MTC on July 22. This is the same mission that his cousin returned from last year.

We are so happy and excited for him! I am also happy that he will be speaking Spanish. Where has the time gone? These next couple of months are going to fly by getting him ready to go and then the next two years will probably feel like forever for me. I am so proud of Samuel and the Man that he has become!

Happy 17th Birthday Cameron!!

I don't think that Cameron would ever forgive me if i didn't do a birthday post for him! I can't believe that another year has gone by! He is such a great Son! There is never a dull moment at our house with him around! He is always trying to make us laugh! Tonight he is performing in "Footloose" at the high school. He plays the part of the Preacher. He is excited for this play. It has kept him very busy. I will be glad when it is over so that we can have him home more. He has also been busy playing lacrosse! His team is #1 in Northern California.

Over the spring break, Cameron was the lucky one who got to go under the house to run a gas line for our new gas fireplace. It was such a dirty job. He never complained about doing it, but he was a little nervous about it. I think that he is happy to have Samuel come home so that he can share in the odd jobs around the house.

Cameron has had a great year! He is driving, and loves the freedom he has with that. I love that I don't have to get up for Seminary. He is dating and enjoying that very much. He is looking forward to the Mormon Prom next month! He loves having a baby sister! He is so cute with Kaelyn, he is going to be a great daddy someday! He is also great with Kendall, the two of them love to quote lines from movies with each other.

We are so proud of Cameron and are very happy to have him in our family! Happy Birthday Cameron, We Love You!

Finally Some Pictures

Sorry this has taken me so long to post, but I have been going a little crazy with a colicky baby! Sure she looks sweet in the photos, but wow does she have a set of lungs on her! I have to admit that it is so nice having older kids who can hold her for me while I fix dinner or take a shower! I don't mean to sound so negative, I just haven't had a lot of sleep.

Kaelyn is now 5 weeks and is kind of getting a little easier. She is sleeping a little longer at night now but she goes to bed later than I would like. I guess I shouldn't complain. She is sleeping 4 to 5 hour stretches. During the day it is a little different. She cat naps, sometimes she surprises me and takes a 1 1/2 hr. nap.

Kendall is getting use to sharing me with her. He had a hard time in the beginning, but he is very sweet with Kaelyn. He loves to kiss her and to hold her.

I don't think that Kaelyn looks exactly like any of the others, but I have seen a little bit of a resemblance of them in her. I am so glad that we were able to have Samuel come home for the weekend when she was born. He was able to meet his new little sister and celebrate his 19th birthday. It is hard to believe that he will be going on his mission sometime this summer. It seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital. Where does the time go? I love my kids so much and I am thankful for each one of them. They each add so much to our family with their individual spirits.

Keep checking back, I might get back to posting on a regular basis.

Overdue Post

I know that most of you have heard by now that we welcomed Kaelyn Mary Wright to our family on January 28 at 3:36pm. She weighed in at 7lbs. 15oz. and is 20in. I was so excited to actually go into labor on my own this time. We went to the Hospital at 4:30 Wed. morning. So she ended up being my shortest labor. I am just so happy to have her finally here with us!

We are still trying to figure out who she looks like. Her hair is dark like Shelby's. I think i see a little bit of Shelby but i also think she has her own special look! I will post pictures soon, i am just trying to hurry and write this while she is napping and Kendall is at preschool, then i can go and nap! Check back later for pics.

Final Pregnant Photo

This is probably the last pregnant photo of me that I will post! It may not be the most flattering but hey I was like 34 weeks. I am now 37 weeks and I am feeling ready to be done. I have to admit, this pregancy for the most part has been pretty easy. I never had morning sickness, I was able to play volleyball up until November, I still made it to the gym for cycling, eliptical and weight training. But now I am ready to meet our new little girl! I am hoping to go into labor on my own this time. I have never done that before so I don't know if it is even possible, but it would be nice. I am also hoping for an easier labor than I had with Kendall (it could happen). But with my track record I don't know if it will.