The Trombleys DO Seattle

We went into Seattle today because I thought that the kids would love to visit Pike Place Market. I may have been a little selfish in that thought, be we did manage to have some fun and Stuart loved watching the fish be thrown. I have attached a picture of that, but have no idea in which order it loaded since this computer does not show me the actual picture. We also visited this arcade with the horse picture of Fiona. Macy loved being down at the water and kept wanting to go back that direction.

We also visited Grady's uncle's store today and I took Stu down the dock to get a picture of him and a big boat. We were hoping for some larger ones, but those ships must be out working right now, so he settled for the house boat. He also had some pictures in the orange overcoat like the fishermen wear. What a great day it was.

We lost our guide coming back from Seattle, so I had to turn into MOM-MOM. I did manage to get us back to Monroe, but I am not so sure that it was the most direct route. I had to skip the bed post since we took the day off. It should be assembled tomorrow so I can finish my photos and post. We're headed over the mountain for some visiting with the other side of the family tomorrow. I will try to get things updated again from there. I better get to bed. Good night.

Reptile Zoo

Macy has had a strong desire to see some snakes since we were at ZooMontana. While out here last year, we visited the Reptile Zoo here in Monroe. We made it back yesterday so that she could hold a snake. These pictures are of the children petting the tortoises and of Macy holding the snakes. She held everyone that they would let her hold. Stuart was pretty interested in the first one but would not holding any. Fiona did get in there to touch one too. The very last picture is of a large one wrapping itself completely around Macy. We really need to talk to her about snakes sometime soon...they're not all as fun and safe as these few were.

Grady and his uncle Tim are in the middle of making us a new bed. I have been taking pictures of the process, and will post them later when it is completed. We need to search for a trailer to haul it home now. We're off to Pike Place Market today and then heading back over the mountain for some swimming tomorrow. I'll try to keep you all updated, but am having some troubles adjusting to a Mac. Have a wonderful holiday week.

Saturday at the Zoo

We finally made it to the ZooMontana on Saturday. It is something that we've had on the "to do" list, but just never took the time. The kids had a blast and we now have a membership for it, so we'll probably visit more often. Here are Macy and Stuart showing off the Bald Eagle. What a pose they gave. Fiona really enjoyed the tiger. I didn't get a picture of her and it at the same time, but she thought it was neat.
And some fun posing of the older two.
One last photo to share of the peacock. There were a few running around. What pretty animals they are.
After the zoo, we went to a BBQ at some newly found friends' house. It was a wonderful way to get to know some families around here. The kids loved their time with other children and Grady and I got to visit with some other adults.

Grady didn't get a break from house duties this weekend though. He took out a few bushes in the front yard (what a great change that made), and is now digging out some of the backyard to level a spot for the trampoline. A couple of people have asked if we were putting in a swimming pool. I'll try to get some pictures to share of it later.

Our friends in Alaska have taken on a new family. As of Friday, they have become foster parents for two brothers. We're praying that it will turn out well for them and possibly an adoption. They have a newborn (as of the 21st), and his 15 month old brother. What a bunch of cuties they are. We're very excited for you Jeff and Deana. Keep us posted and call if you have any parenting questions....we've got some the same age!

Other than that, we're gearing up for our trip to Washington this weekend. I'll keep you posted on that too.

More Painting Pictures

Grady completed our bathroom today. Here is the before: And the after (we still need to get a new window covering):
Last night her finished Macy's bedroom while she and Stuart had a slumber party. Here is her before:
And after:

She loves it! I better go get a visit in with him before he goes to bed. Enjoy!

a RED kitchen!

We (actually, GRADY) has been busy today repainting some of the rooms in the house. The first one that was completed was the kitchen & dining area. We painted over the terra cotta/salmon color with red. I love it, and had to share it with you all. Here is a "before" picture that was taken prior to closing on the house.

And the "after".

Lots has changed since that first picture. It's amazing to look at it this way.

As the kitchen was drying, he put a coat of white on the master bath ceiling and is now working on Miss Macy's bedroom. She chose pink and purple for it, so I will post when it is done.

Slippin' Hill Slide

After church and naps today we took out the new slip n' slide for the kids. Grady actually went inside and changed into some shorts to join them. What an afternoon full of laughs we had. I filled the memory stick on the camera with pictures and had to take out the camcorder. Here are a few of the many that I took to share.

Let the races begin!

The Biggest Splash!

Fiona just hung around the edge for the laughs. She isn't quite sure about the spraying water deal yet. Stuart loves water and was running through the sprinklers yesterday as Grady was adjusting the new ones he put in. Macy took a few minutes to warm up the the spraying part, but in the end loved it. They rode on Grady's back down the slide a few times and just had a blast. I was tempted to try it out since it was so warm outside, but was very afraid to put on a bathing suit since the only thing I could have fit in was a bikini, and that just didn't seem quite right. Have a great week everyone.

New Kitchen

We've spent the past two nights installing the new overhead microwave and dishwasher. What a chore those turned out to be. I had to share the pictures of the "new" kitchen.

This dishwasher has the buttons on the top of the door. With Fiona and the last one, that will be a major benefit. It also came with a turbo wash option that will be nice for extra dirty things.
The stove and microwave are definately larger than any that I've ever had. Let's just see if I can actually cook that much at one time. The refrigerator is the "no print" type. Something else that will be wonderful with all of these kids running around.
That's our day today. Tomorrow we start in on laying pavers under the deck for some much needed storage area...to save on garage space. I'll update you later, I have to get some kids to bed. Have a wonderful weekend.

We're Getting There

We managed to unpack enough stuff yesterday and last night to make room for the suburban in the garage. We still have things taking up the other bay, but as soon as we can get some earth work done in the backyard, the trampoline will be out, and when we are finished with the babies, we can gradually get those totes cleared out too. Grady is so excited to have a garage to himself. He's planning to put a TV in there (we'll see), so I told him that he could move the recliner out too. Ha, ha. A week ago, I would have never thought that we'd have the space to get that sucker in, but ta-da, we did it. I had Grady hang a tennis ball so that I could park the suburban in just enough for the door to close and then we could still have some space up front by the workbench. The plan is for that to be our project area. All of the scrapbooking things are under there, in hopes to have my own space someday. We're getting tackled by some serious thunderstorms, so I'm happy that we've got cover for the car. The thunder woke us up before six this morning, something I've never experienced was thunder that early. I better go get some more house work done so that we can get pictures up before photos of the inside go out. Have a great rest of the week.

Trombley Beach

After a quick thunderstorm, we went out to the backyard today to play. I guess that everyone was needing some time off from the unpacking. The kids picked out this "swimming pool" at Target today for their yard. Unfortunately, the yard is so sloped that we had to prop the back up just to keep the water from flooding down the hill. Macy and Stuart had a blast with it, but Fiona was not so impressed with the sprinkler feature. She enjoyed the overflow splashing up and down the yard until I turned the hose off and then she ventured into the pool area. It took a few minutes, but she did eventually sit in the water.
It's a pretty neat set up, but took alot of hot air on my part. I promised to have it ready for them if they napped, so I had to sit upstairs and blow to my heart's content. I did manage to achieve the goal, although I was unsure of it at the beginning.
We'll see just how long this thing lasts, I have some wild beach bums on my hands. We may try the front yard tomorrow since it is a little more level. Either way, the babies told their dad that they played at Trombley Beach today and really had a blast doing so.

I don't know if you can tell from these photos, but Stuart managed to get bit by something last night (I think on our walk) that has his left arm swollen to twice the regular size between the elbow and the wrist. I have him on a Benedryl schedule right now with anti itch cream to try to knock it down. If anyone has an idea on what to do about this rock hard lump, please let me know. Hope you are all enjoying the sunshine as much as my babies.

Too busy for Pictures

Well, I have been meaning to give everyone an update, but have failed in the photo taking process. We have been busy unpacking the house, yes, even the boxes that have not been looked in since they were packed last fall in Ten Sleep. What an early Christmas we've had. The kids have found some projects that they made at preschool and then had to pack, and are loving seeing things from then. They were fortunate enough to inherit a swing set with this house. Fiona has fallen in love with it and can't wait to go out. She will crawl down the stairs and get her shoes and then take them to Grady or I and say "ooosshhs". We are adapting well to the deck, but have not taught her how to scale those stairs yet. Otherwise, she is a stairway pro now. We managed to get shelving in the basement storage room for food, and then transformed the coat closet into a pantry for more food. This kitchen is halfway updated with new appliances, we are just waiting on the overhead microwave and dishwasher to arrive this week. I've been cleaning and loving the central air. Grady has managed to figure out the sprinkler system and make some adjustments there, but wants to replace some of those too. This weekend is the first time that we've hit the new bed earlier than midnight. I've oiled all of the cabinets in the house and that helped give them a new look. The kids and I planted a few flower pots yesterday to pretty up some spaces. They are enjoying having so much space to themselves and are loving their own bathroom too. They run all the way downstairs just to wash their hands in it before dinner. I have to still make some adjustments in their rooms and get their decor up on the walls, but they don't mind.

We did get the Ten Sleep house closed last Thursday. Grady and I drove down for that and left the babies at home with Grandma Rose. I took my sugar test at the doctor's office then, and failed it, so I may be heading back down sometime this week for the three hour test. I also had a terrible eye sore that I had looked at while in Worland. I was thinking that it was a scratch, but it ended up being a swollen spot from allergies...something that I only thought I suffered from during barley harvest. I had to refrain from contacts for a few days and use an antibiotic drop to keep it from getting infected, but did wear the contacts again today. Macy sure missed me wearing them....but not as much as I did.

We've gone on a few walks down the paths that pave this subdivision. What a wonderful idea that was....a great developer with a great design. We met the new Ward today and they were very welcoming and reminded me of home. So excited for the kids and so friendly. It was meant to be. We have Sister Missionaries here and they are so wonderful. Macy loves them. Other than that, I have nothing else to update. I will try to get some pictures taken for you all and get them posted soon. I hope that everyone is having fun and staying busy....maybe not as busy as we've been, but enjoying life. Have a wonderful week.

Quick Visit, Shopping Ouchie, Eating Mud

We went bed shopping at the Select Comfort store last Thursday night. Grady has been wanting one of these since I can remember. While we were there, Fiona fell over a stool and split the corner of her eye open. It wasn't deep enough to need stiches, but it sure hurt the poor girl. The picture is not clear, but I had to share her wound. My mom came in on Wednesday night. My brother, sister-in-law, and nephew were her to pick her up. They visited Wednesday night, and I took her through the new house Thursday. We did some quick shopping and then she went down to Worland. She came back up Saturday night and stayed to visit before heading home on Sunday evening. Her plane was delayed for a couple of hours, but security closed early, so she had to be through there and wait for the plane so we were not able to even sit at the airport to visit. She did make it home though. It was wonderful to have her here, if only for a short period of time. Here's a picture one of the kids took.
Yesterday the kids went outside to play. I was in a rush rush to get out invoices before really starting in on the packing. When I finally brought them back in to the house, Fiona had decided she wanted some facial hair. Here is the best picture I could get of her before I threw her in the tub. She loves to eat dirt. YUCK!
And, Macy purchased some pretty princess fake nails. She was so excited that she could not hold still enough for a clear picture, but you get the hint. She puts on stickers as fake nails, so these fit her perfectly.
We're down to the wire on closing. I have been dreading the packing and have been battling some terrible heartburn (thank you hairy babies). We're still waiting on appraisals for both houses, which should be in anytime now. I hope that they do not delay closing. We've got tons of help planned out for Friday to get the move over. I'll let you all know what comes along.

100th Post & Mother's Day Gift

Here is a picture of my Mother's Day gift. It just came in today. Stuart colored the paper that was used to wrap it. He was so excited to give it to me. I love it. I haven't worn a necklace since Macy was born. Something about the babies pulling on them. We'll see how long this one lasts since Fiona is already opening her mouth for it. It has the birthstone and name of every child on it. Yes, even the fourth. What a great husband and children I have, it remained a surprise for over a week, and that's very rare in this house. I love you all! This is also my 100th post! Yes, Sandy, I'm quite far behind you. Amazing that I have blabbed on about things 100 times already. Cheers to another 100. Enjoy your Sunday.

Stuart's First Unanswered Prayer

So I awoke this morning to Grady hopping out of bed and trying to comfort Stuart. Grady was getting pretty impatient, and I was still half asleep and confused. I laid in bed and waited for him to come back. He said Stu had been awake for about 2 1/2 hours and was wanting me. I waited for a few minutes. Stuart started in on the crying again, so I went to his room. He asked me to lay with him. We moved him to the bottom bunk and then I laid down next to him. His legs were cold and he said he had a sore foot. I covered him up and rubbed on the foot. He was still upset, so I asked him what was wrong. Here is what was said:

Stu: "I'm mad because Heavenly Father didn't answer my prayer."
Mom: "Did you say another prayer tonight asking for help sleeping?"
Stu: "No, I needed to do some work on these people's roof so I prayed for a helicopter since I didn't have a ladder."
Mom: "Maybe Heavenly Father didn't answer your prayer because it is not safe to work on roof tops at night."
Stu: "But the helicopter has a light."
Mom: "I know, but it still isn't very safe to be up on a roof at night time."
Stu: "But the work needs to get done because lots of people need me to work on their roofs."

What is a mother to say about that? I could not get over the fact that he was so upset about it. He tells me now that he knows it isn't safe to work on top of the house at dark, but at the time there was no telling him otherwise. I just had to share that with you.

Sprinkler Saturday

Saturday was such a warm and beautiful day that we turned on the sprinkler for the kids. They had a blast. Here is our BRAVE Stuart. He loved the water! He was even sitting on top of the sprinkler. Macy finally decided to get wet. She spent lots of the time "painting" the light pole. I just love this picture of the action.
Fiona was not so sure about it. She loved it and would get very close to the sprinkler while it was being blocked by Macy or Stuart, but once the cold water hit her, she wasn't so happy.
SEE......
We also spent lots of time in the water at a park in Sheridan on Sunday. Grady's sister had the family over for a brunch and we walked to the park. It had those fountains that came up out of the ground (like the Gateway). There were kids everywhere. What a fun day that was. We walked over and had ice cream and played on the playground for a few minutes between the fountain show. On the final run Stuart fell on the concrete and has some pretty nice scrapes to show off. He wasn't too happy about that, but I think that he's over the ouchie stage and now is in the "look at these" stage. He's telling me that the scabs don't like him and they are leaving since they're healing now. What a fun weekend we had. We were even able to catch a few minutes of my brother's soccer game while over there. It was great to be able to see so many moms on Mother's day.

My mom flies in on Wednesday evening for a few days to visit, and then will head back to Vegas on Sunday night. We found her a flight for $99 each way! What a bonus. Sandy, Grady's mom, will be here next Wednesday to help us pack up and move. I'm not sure how long she'll be here, but we'll take all of the help we can get. We close at 9 on Friday the 25th! I'm getting so excited to have my own place again. I bought a refrigerator last night for the new house. It's so exciting to shop for new things when you move. That's the plans around here. I'll post some more pictures if I remember to take them. Have a wonderful weekend.

Good News, Good Smiles, Good Tears

It is a great day to create another post. We had an offer made on the Ten Sleep house, and after a million pages of faxing negotiations, we have it sold. We will be the owners of ONE house (in Montana) on May 31st. As I was searching for pictures to post of the house, I took a tearful trip down memory lane and have shed many tears before being able to type this. Here are a few (of the many that I wanted to) that I would like to share with everyone.
Stuart celebrated his first birthday in that house. It has come along way since this picture was taken. He does not remember the Worland house, but he has some very fond memories of this one and tells me quite a bit that he wants to go back.
We had many great days of playing in the spring snow. This picture reminds me of the storm that hit and took down many tree limbs. What a wet and heavy snow shoveling that was. The sidewalk was a birthday gift for me and it will forever hold the footprints of Macy and Stuart. I made breakfast burritos for the workers that poured it for us.
The kid's first sand box. They were so excited to play in it and spent every chance they got in it. Stuart was in the hospital when Popi filled the box with sand (while he was picking up Macy from Zent's house since we were only going in for a doctors appointment), and the first day that we had some sunshine they were out playing in it.
It was also the first house for Fiona Belle. She won't remember it, but it is always hard to leave the houses that the babies first called home.

We will also be leaving behind many good friendships (they'll have to continue to be long distance ones). We did kind of leave them a while ago, but now it just seems so much more permanent. That little community did a wonderful job of welcoming us into it and that makes it hard to leave. We'll miss the friends, the librarians, the daily walks to the post office, and the safety that was always felt there. Grady served his first (and hopefully only) political office there, and helped build the ever famous Fiber to the Home project and kept quite a few customers happy there. I began my church family in Ten Sleep and must say that it isn't quite the same without them. I was baptized in the creek in front of so many family and friends....a memory I will never forget. Macy was in her first and only parade on the Fourth of July. I was reintroduced to scrapbooking and a whole new form of it.

It's been a wonderful few years. I've got so many pictures that I've looked through today and they will be a perfect reminder to the place we called home for just over two years. I do miss that town, or more so the community there. I hope and pray that we will be able to make some friendships here like those that we've left. Thank you Ten Sleep for being so wonderful to us.

Happy Birthday Grady!

Today is the day....everyone but Grady was looking forward to. The kids and I made an extra large New York Cheesecake last night and begged for dinner all day just to cut into it. Grady had to go out to work for a while this morning, so we missed church. BUT....all of the kids got a nap! (and so did I) I mowed the lawn and found that our visitors last Sunday left us an egg. At 4 we started dinner because the temptation was soooooo strong. Here's the lovely meal that we had. (I did wake up this morning and make breakfast for everyone though--and ruined Fast Sunday for Grady...oooops) Here's the only picture of the cake that I got with the candles lit. Grady blew them out so fast that I missed it....and smoking candles weren't worth photographing.
And the shock on everyone's face after they went out. I only put six on the cake, it did stand for something, but I won't rub in his age in public. (I love you that much!)
I had to post this picture of Stuart eating the cheesecake. He about took out his eyes a couple of times stabing up the slice. We were joking that he needed to wear goggles just to eat cheesecake. He thought that we were pretty funny.
That's about it. We're still in the prelim packing state, so we're not doing much exciting around here. Have a wonderful week, and Happy Birthday Grady!

Updating Again

The following pictures are from last Sunday. When we left for church, we had these ducks in our yard, so when we came home we were very surprised to see them still here. I had to get a few pictures before these two ran over there to see. They were getting pretty scared and walking away, as you can imagine.
We went down to Ten Sleep and Worland on Tuesday. Grady had to work in Basin for a few days, so we went down to get some visiting and storage done. It was a great trip for us. The kids got to visit and play with their friends in Ten Sleep for a little bit, and then we were able to see most of the family. We had to come home to get some more paperwork for the new house and to attend to our animals. The kids went to bed at 6:45 on Thursday and slept all night until 6 on Friday morning. It was great!

Yesterday we took advantage of the nice sunshine and planted some pots of flower and herbs. We also made a gift for Mother's Day. One more to go and we'll be finished! Well, that sums up the week. I've been packing up some things in prep for yet another big move. Hopefully this will be it until the kids are big enough to do their own packing. Have a great weekend.