Buchanan Family

~ I am thankful for my blessings ~

2010-11-25T19:30:00.000-08:00

Over the last year we have gained a greater appreciation for our blessings.

We are thankful for our FAMILY . . . for a Dad who works to support us and never lets us loose our way . . . for a Mom who is always there when we need her . . . for our beautiful children who are good, thoughtful and kind to others, who make each day so much more joyous to us all . . . for brothers and sisters and the closeness that they share . . . for parents and in-laws and family around us and far away that love us for who we are . . . for ancestors that endured much and taught us by their examples . . .

We are thankful for THE GOSPEL . . . I honestly don’t know where I would be without it. It is hard to contemplate how some people can go through hard times without the knowledge of it. We are thankful for the Plan of Salvation, to know that we can be together forever, that death cannot separate us cause we are an eternal family . . .we are grateful for the blessings of the temple . . . We are thankful that we are able to have the Priesthood in our home.

We are thankful for THE WORLD WE LIVE IN . . . for every season and the beauty it brings . . . for sunny days and greenery all around . . .for spring showers and beautiful flowers. . . and fall colors . . . for glistening snow and glittering trees . . . and for all the many creatures of our time and their purpose on this earth . . .

We are thankful for our HOUSE . . . it may not be our dream home but it is a haven for our family . . . a place to rest . . . a place to learn . . . a place to draw closer together as a family . . . a place of shelter from the elements . . . a place to share precious memories that will live on in the hearts and minds of our children long after they leave to raise families of their own. Where we love is Home, Home that our feet may leave but never our hearts.

We are thankful for SMALL LUXURIES . . . for a warm shower, a pillow to lay our head on, a soft bed to crawl into, Heat in the winter, cold water from the tap, Shelter over our head, transportation that is more than just our own two feet or at most a buggy and horse like our ancestors, Light at the flick of a switch . . . among other things. We are fortunate to live in these latter days.

We are thankful for our FREEDOM . . . We are so blessed to live in a free country that we live in and the people who fight to protect that freedom . . . We are thankful that we have the right to choose our way of life and that we have the ability to pursue our dreams.

We are grateful for KNOWLEDGE . . . for the opportunity that we have to gain a testimony and knowledge in this life . . . for the books that have been written for our benefit and use.

We are grateful for our DIFFICULT TIMES . . . because without them we would not be who we are today
. . . each of us has a journey and trials will come and make us stronger and we are thankful to be able to learn from them and grow individually and as a family.

We are thankful for OUR TALENTS . . . Each of us have many different talents that we have been blessed with and because of this we can help others and that is a blessing in of it’s own.

We are grateful for NEW OPPOURTUNITIES . . . because of them we can learn what we are capable of and new challenges build and strengthen us . . .

We are grateful for FRIENDS . . . for them being there to share triumphs and failures with . . . to laugh and cry with . . . for the relationships that we have built and the knowledge that we have as friends
. . . that they really know us and we really know them and they love us and we love them in-spite that we all are not perfect is priceless.

We are thankful for WORK . . . for the opportunity that Dad has to work in a field that he loves . . . that he is contributing and helping children which was his ultimate goal in choosing a job in the first place - to help people
. . . for the experiences that we have to help others and teach our children to work for themselves, not only to follow Dad’s example, but the Saviors example also.

We are grateful for OUR SAVIOR . . . that he loved us so much that he was willing to give his life for us so that we can live with Him and Heavenly Father again . . . for his great example to us that we can learn to become like Him . . . for His love and His guidance in all we do.

Hope this finds everyone Happy and Healthy and that you all Have a Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!

Brooklyn Blessing Day

2010-01-18T13:07:00.000-08:00

What

a

cute

Bunch

!!!!!!!!

Brooklyn was born August 29, 2009

2010-01-18T12:58:00.000-08:00

Here is her announcement that my best friend Alicia did ~ isn't it awesome!!! Thanks leesh!!!!!

Some more pics of our Precious Baby Girl when she was oh so tiny ~ 7# 3oz !!!! ~

our newest Buchanan !!!!

It is rough being a princess!!!!!!!

Kitchen Remodel ~

2010-01-18T11:26:00.000-08:00

Here is our New Kitchen!!!!!!!

Much better than before -- Our Awesome Tile was just done in these pics ~ Love it!!!! In these pics we still have to put the cover plates on everything but other than that it is finished. I can now put a cereal box and other tall objects under the cabinets!!!!! LOVE IT!!!

We decided to go with a flat top and double ovens . . . Love it!!!!!

A dishwasher that is sleek and has all the buttons hidden at the top and that doesn't have to be hooked up to the sink and make the sink unusable, LOVE IT !!!!!

The opposite side of the kitchen with my Tall pantry, Garbage hole, Garden window
and Double ovens.

I love My Garbage Hole ~ yup the hole in the counter is for garbage and the trash fits right in the cabinet. It is SWEET!!!!! Plus it is handy when you are chopping up stuff !!!!! And my Tall Pantry in the kitchen that is ever so handy!!!

My Double ovens !!!!! Love and in each corner of the kitchen are corner cabinets with Lazy Susans!!! this one holds all of my small appliances.

Lot of work in part of my Husband and It is finally finished Thanks honey!!!!! Did I mention that I LOVE IT????? ha ha ha.

Wow does TIME FLY!!!!!!!

2010-01-15T09:54:00.001-08:00

8 months has went and gone lot has happened and I am going to be better at this whole blogging thing!!!!!!!!!!
Man things that have happened in the last 8 months ~

1. Finished our Kitchen Remodel ~ Pics soon

2. Our Precious Baby Girl ~ Brooklyn Angelis was Born August 29, 2009 ~ Pics Soon!!!

3. Brooklyn was Blessed by her dad ~

4. We had another addition to our family in the last 8 months ~ our Exchange Student Gaby from Linares, Mexico

5. We had a litter of 5 puppies ~ 1 week after Brooklyn was born. All sold and glad that is over for now. We will do it again as long as it is summer when they are born!!!!!!

6. Connor tested positive for the Swine Flu ~ Luckily no one esle got it!!!! Scary with a newborn infant!!!!!!!!!!

7. Parker was Baptized and is now in the Senior Primary ~ wow does time go fast!

8. Grant is now a Sunbeam and in Junior Primary (He turned 3) !!!!!!

9. Kenzie turned 5 and is so ready for Kindergarten! She is still the princess and has us all wrapped around her finger!!!

10. Trevor and I (well mainly Trevor cause I just had Brooklyn ~ I oversaw and helped a little and so did Gaby) We canned 66 pounds of peaches. We also canned 20 pints of strawberry jam, 12 pints of raspberry jam, we canned 55 pints of plum jam also. Way too much pitting!!!!! That dyes your hands purple for awhile. Our house was about 20 degrees hotter than outside. FOOD STORAGE BABY!!!!!!!!!

10. We butchered our 1st cow ~ we now have a freezer full of meat!!!!!

11. We went on a Vacation with out the kids to Alaska for a week that was so fun!!!! Thanks mom for watching them we had so much fun!!!!!!!!

12. Trevor and I celebrated our 10 year Anniversary ~ what a great 10 years it has been!!!!!!

13. NEW YEARS RESOULTIONS ~ I will be posting more later on this subject!!!!!!

A lot has happened in 8 months these are just the main points of life the last 8 months !!!! I will try harder not to wait so long to post!!!

Quiet doesn't always mean they are being good . . .

2009-05-07T13:24:00.000-07:00

I just have to post this I think it is so funny!
Yesterday Trevor got the heartbeat monitor out to hear the babies heartbeat and it was fun for us all. The kids were all mimic-ing the noise the baby's heart made. (koo - koo- koo- koo :) ) IT was cute. Anyway, this morning I was in the kitchen finishing up the dishes and I hadn't seen Grant for awhile. I don't know about any of you, but when I don't hear or see my kids for a period of time I know I need to go check on them cause quiet doesn't always mean they are being good. So, I went into my room and guess what I saw ?? -- Grant was completely naked -- He took off all of his clothes and his diaper -- Not only that he had gel everywhere and the heartbeat monitor on him trying to hear the baby's heartbeat! I couldn't get mad at him -- It was so funny!

Baby Buchanan's Reveal

2009-04-29T11:32:00.000-07:00

We just had our ultrasound and are excited to ANNOUNCE -
that they say the baby is a GIRL!
So it is cool that the gender identity test was right that we took awhile back --
All 6 of us were in the small room and surprisingly it wasn't that bad. We were just worried the kids would be restless or act up the way kids sometimes do and we didn't want that to ruin the experience. They loved it though and were really attentive and good the whole hour. Thank goodness. The ultrasound tech asked us all what we thought it was and all the kids wanted a baby sister so they said 'girl' and she said 'looks like you all are right!' The kids loved watching the baby and they kept saying "I can see it, I can see it" We all are really excited to have a precious little baby again. It seems like it has been a long time since we have had an infant. This will be our farthest gap between our children, which is 3 years. Which isn't that long to some, but to us it is our longest gap so we are really excited. We didn't care if it was a girl or a boy, but it will be nice to even things up a little since we have 3 boys and 1 girl now. I was hoping to put up a pic of the ultrasound but I am not sure how to scan it in -- I will see if trevor knows and try to post it later if we can.

She's got to be crazy!

2009-03-26T11:20:00.000-07:00

Some of you may be thinking that I have got to be crazy. Being pregnant and sick, babysitting full time and undertaking a kitchen remodel project all at the same time ~ You might say "she has got to be crazy!" I would have to say it has been challenging. But I keep telling myself there is a end and it will be so worth it!

I know I have been posting a lot about our remodel lately -- but that has been our crazy life for awhile now. So, hopefully the next post I will be showing the finished product. Yay! So exciting! More pics to come . . . hopefully sooner than later (kitchens are kind-of essential to everyday living -- it has been an adventure without one:)! )

Getting there. . . Part 3

2009-03-25T07:20:00.000-07:00

A few video clips of our Remodel going on,
thanks to your ~ MC Trevor . . .

Kitchen Remodel . . . Part 2

2009-03-17T13:48:00.000-07:00

The demo is finally done and the electrician came and wired our kitchen -- We love our new can lights! It is now ready for sheetrock! More to come . . .

The hard work is finally done --Trevor spent until 2 am stuffing garbage bags full trying to get rid of the mess. He filled 50 garbage bags full! It was a mess.

Our Kitchen Remodel . . . Part 1

2009-03-16T14:09:00.000-07:00

This is our kitchen ~ One of my favorite colors is Plum -- so I painted my cabinets Plum and cream. The pictures make it look really dark almost like black. Trevor Put in the garden window when we re-did all of our other windows in the house so that is new. The lighting left much to be desired. Old floresent lighting Yuck! We put up a makeshift breakfast bar a few months ago and it really didn't get put to much use so we threw that out of the new plans and by that we had a console table holding all my cookbooks. We have a food cabinet in the corner storing our appliances and cereal and anything that is tall cause nothing will fit under the cabinets they are too low and the shelfs in the cabinets are fixed so they don't move and they won't fit anything tall in them either. The one thing I did like about the kitchen was the base of drawers. There is another pic of my oh so fabulous dishwasher that sounded like my washing machine -- It did clean good that was a plus. Also my oven that is still in really good condition. The contractors said that the kitchen must have been built for little people cause it is like 3 inches too low (counters) you can see in the above pic the counters don't even meet the dishwasher and stove height. The last pics are of some of the demo --- all the walls were made of solid wood slats so we didn't have the mess of sheetrock to deal with which was a plus. More pictures to come . . .

Our Family Photo

2009-03-16T13:21:00.000-07:00

We are hoping that it gets easier to take pictures as a family as our children get older. We consider it a success if we can get out of the shoot with at least one picture that is decent! There is always at least one child always looking away or not smiling. Why is it that children find it so hard to look at the camera and smile? These ones actually turned out pretty good ~ I think it totally depends on if you have to wait an hour before your appointment because the photographers are running late. My kids aren't happy if they have to wait a long time in the waiting room and then are told smile for the camera! Say cheese! They are just ready to be done and want to leave. This time we didn't have to wait so it was fast and I do think that makes a difference with little children.

Update . . . IntelliGender Results

2009-03-05T12:38:00.000-08:00

Update . . . .
Here is the IntelliGenger test that we took.

Now keep in mind this isn't 100% accurate ~ Actually the lab tests were 90% accurate and since 2006 in real life studies it is about 86% accurate. So this was just for fun. It will be neat to see if the results match the ultrasound results (which will be the end of April)
So here it is, the Results . . .
The test said it was a . . .
GIRL
Stay tuned and I will tell you if the test was right!

Everything is an adventure with boys!

2009-03-05T11:43:00.000-08:00

Raising Boys ~ Wow what a subject to tackle. Everything is an adventure with boys. But, My husband cracks me up. There isn't a day that goes by that my boys don't race to the door to see Dad when he comes home. And that starts the spiral of events. The boys jumping on him, one on his head & one on his back, chasing and tickling and yelling and jumping. What I call 'rough housing'. And inevitably it always ends in screams and crying (mostly cause mom is watching and should save them). I'm sure I should be running interference but occasionally I am sitting on the sidelines just repeating the phrase "find your happy place, find your happy place!" :)
Anyway my husband cracks me up cause he isn't afraid of getting them all wound up. Being a pregnant woman and all that goes with that I am just thinking has he lost his mind? At this point in the day I am ready for a break and he has just let the lions loose! I guess boys will be boys! And I can't help but love them! Even the big kid at heart~My husband.

So Excited! OH Yeah!

2009-02-27T11:40:00.000-08:00

What we are up to these days :
We are going to be remodeling our kitchen soon! We are getting several bids this week and I am so excited. I can't wait to have cabinets that actually stay shut! And a regular dishwasher that I don't have to hook up to the sink (I always need to use the sink after I have started it why is that? and not to mention how loud it is~ It will be so nice to have a quiet dishwasher. I went to my friends house and she had her dishwasher going - I could barely hear it. I couldn't believe how quiet it was, but this is coming from me having a dishwasher that sounds like my washing machine!) There are so many other things that will be nice about it also. Then there is the remodeling process that will not be so fun. I am worried about being without a kitchen until it is done. We will set up a mock kitchen in the dining room and that will be an adventure in itself. Not to mention the dust from the demolition and from the taping and texturing sheetrock BUT . . . WE HAVE SURVIVED BEFORE - with all of our other remodeling projects in this house and we can do it again! I would say that the outcome is worth the annoyance of those things. I will post some before and after pictures of the remodel, so stay tuned . . .

Summer pics

2009-02-18T11:12:00.000-08:00

Another Destination from our Summer Vacation : Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma, Washington

Catching up ~ More to come. . .

2009-02-17T12:51:00.000-08:00

I am trying to play catch up ~ SO here are some more pics of this summer and our
Trip to Multnomah Falls in July.

Hiking up to the top of the Falls

P man waiting to go get Ice cream

C man showing off his rock while we wait for Dad to go get some Ice Cream

Taking a little break while hiking up to the Falls

Mom and Grant eating Ice cream

Almost to the bridge by the Falls

Mom taking a rest with the older kids

Dad and kids outside of the Falls ~ what a huge water fall!

Dad and the kids just below the bridge where mom got queasy

Just arriving at Multnomah Falls in Oregon

Moss grows everywhere in Oregon & Washington -- The trees at the falls were all covered like this ~ it was really fun to see for us all.

Funnies

2009-02-12T08:31:00.000-08:00

Growing up I remember reading the funnies with my grandpa ~

This isn't the traditional funnies, but it is the Buchanan funnies!

I thought everyone would get a laugh at the things kids do.

Kenz and her souvenir from the redwoods ~ she wanted to take a piece of the tree home ~ how cute.

Go fish Go! Connor posing for the camera!

Grant dressing up in kenzies dress up clothes

Grant playing in the pumpkin seeds.

Kenzie dressing up her little brother for the first time. He loved it.

Connor and his posing again

Parker and his impression of Mickey mouse.

Connor and his goofy poses!

Mackenzie looking through her pretend binoculars

Grant and the bball ~ what was he thinking?

Grant and his dressing up into the boys hats and shoes.

Kenzie and her spontaneous poses!

Grant and his pucker lips!

Grant in the toy basket -- Yes he dumped the whole thing :)

Kids can be so funny --- in their words and their actions. I might have to post some funny things my kids have said over the years in a future post.

We are expecting #5

2009-02-11T11:28:00.000-08:00

Recently I was thinking back to when I was pregnant with my children. I can remember being sick with each one in the early stages. Feeling sick all day was the norm for the first trimester. Then it got better throughout the pregnancy. I can remember saying several times, "I wish I could just throw up so I could feel better!" Now, I wish I would have never said that! I can't help but think that the reason I am so sick and throwing up is because I needed to realize that I had it pretty good with all my other children. I have tried many suggested "remedies" from many different people, but no cure! I wish I knew the cure -- not only for my sake, but I would be rich! I don't know any woman that wouldn't pay to not be sick. If you have any suggestions, they are appreciated. (yes,I am willing to try anything! within reason) It makes me sick to hear the women that love to be pregnant and aren't sick one bit -- Maybe they are the ones that have horrible birthing experiences and are spared from the sick part -- I don't know, but no fair!
We are super excited for the new addition to our family. The kids want to know if it is going to be a boy or a girl so bad -- and so do we! We are planning on doing the intelligender test in the next few weeks. I am really excited to do that to see if it really works. If you haven't heard of it youtube it and you can see some results. We want to do it before we have the ultrasound to see if it is right. The earliest you can do it is 10 weeks. Which I am right now. We will probably wait until 12 -14 weeks. We usually have the ultrasound around 20 weeks so it will be exciting to see what happens. I will post more about it when we find out.
September once again is the due date! --- we will have 3 birthdays in september! Unless I am 2 weeks early which is realistic for me and my babies and then It would be the end of August. More updates to come...

We are alive I promise!

2009-01-29T14:10:00.000-08:00

So, we are just getting off to a slow start. Hopefully I can get the hang of this blogging and do it more often. We have had a lot going on though. Thanksgiving then Christmas -- then a trip to Vegas, then sickness struck our house and we have just never got online to update! But here are some pics to share randomly from this summer of the kids and our vacation.

Trevor and grant eating ice cream at multnomah falls

Connor had his gone before anyone else -- our little ice cream monster!

When will kids learn that you have to go around the cone? She finally got it. ha ha.

Parker and his million dollar smile

ha. ha. funny pic.
Can anyone really give someone else a bite especially a child
without sticking their tounge out too? Honestly?

Here we are at Multnomah falls in Oregon. The fall was so beautiful -- we walked up pretty high and it was an adventure for the kids. It just made mom queasy cause she is scared of heights. It was a blast though.

Parker, Connor, and Mackenzie -- except grant who is on daddy's back in the hiking backpack -- he loved that thing -- he didn't want to get out of it - so funny

Our little angel ~ Kenzie

Grandma and Grandpa Burton's flowers are a great spot to take pictures or to just smell the flowers!

Kenzie had so much fun posing in the flowers and by the pond.

She is growing up so fast. I have a little girl now and not a baby girl. She is our little princess. She definitely defines the word angel. She is such a blessing to have as a daughter. We love her sweet personality and with only brothers she is definitely the ruler of the roost!

Playing in the Sand

2008-10-30T14:13:00.001-07:00

A few pictures of the kids playing in the sand.

Parker and Connor ~ Best buds!

We learned the song:

Sand it tickles

I laughed so hard I thought I'd die

die I did die
they buried me in sand.
and it REPEATS over and over again!
HOW FUN FOR PARENTS! :)

More pictures to come .......

Grant and his obsession with the sand

2008-10-28T22:08:00.001-07:00

We were trying to walk to the water to show the kids the waves and literally every step Grant had to stop and pick up the sand or lay down and play in it. He LOVED the beach. Especially when we got to go in the water later on ~ he outdid his brothers and sister by staying in the COLD water the longest!

Oregon Beach fun

2008-10-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

We had a blast on our Vacation this summer!
This is from one of our many destinations.
Seaside, Oregon

Mackenzie playing at the beach

That bucket was toted everywhere

At one time it had 10 crabs in it!

Hey Everyone!

2008-10-24T22:01:00.000-07:00

k ~ I decided to go ahead and do a blog for our family since I have been getting a lot of invites from friends and family. I do think that the concept of the blog is great but 1/2 way through my day I was trying to figure out how to add background and how to put pictures in the header which I hadn't fully figured out how to post on the background yet & I was beginning to think differently!!!! So, unless by some magical force they come up with a click button (like the staples EASY button) for backgrounds or it becomes way easier I don't think I am going to be changing that anytime soon! Ha. Ha. Pictures to come -- I am beat! :)