Five Fords

Meet Joyce

2012-02-18T16:24:00.001-08:00

Holy Cow its been FOREVER since I have blogged. I feel so far behind now, I don't know where to start. Soooo, I will start with the WORLDS BEST NEIGHBOR. Her name is Joyce. And I tell you what, the #1 reason for us not wanting to move would be her. She is the nicest lady. And we love her southern accent. She treats the kids like one of her own. For Valentines' day this year we got home and there on the door step were three large gift bags. Each kid got a pillow pet!!!!! and candy of course. They were so excited, that night they slept with there gifts and were on cloud nine. She is so sweet, and we hope to never have to move, the price of the house should go up, JUST because of Joyce. She is truly a treasure! We love you Joyce!!

My Favorite Pic!!

2011-11-03T11:45:00.001-07:00

Does this picture not make you smile?? We are so blessed to live so close to your dear friends The Robertsons. And they just happen to have a little cutie the same age as Joel. Her name is Ella and she is so much fun. We were able to watch Ella for a few days while Liz and Kevin went out of town, and boy did we have fun. Here they are eating their lunch together....no its not a date, I told Joel he had to wait until they were both 16....haha. But really I just love this picture of them together.

Happy Halloween

2011-11-03T11:36:00.001-07:00

I know, I am way behind in blogging, but life sometimes gets in the way. Here are my little trick or treaters. Sophie was a bee, Joely a cute little tiger, and Joseph, I will give you a hint... he is most famous for this Kentucky Fried Chicken. We went to the ward "Trunk" or treat at church and has such a fun time. And here we are ready to head out on the 31st. Joel was so excited. He yelled trick or treat at every house we went to. Joseph got so many complements on his costume. One house commented and said he was the best they had seen all night, so they gave him triple the amount of candy!!! Thanks Angie and Derek for the idea.

Happy Birthday Joel!!

2011-08-31T12:15:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it, but Joel is 3 years old ALREADY!!

We had a little birthday pool party at my moms...it was nice.

Last week our camera fell out of Dustins pocket and into the river, so we didn't have a camera to take pictures, so here are a couple from the moment he came into the this world.

A New School Year

2011-08-13T12:06:00.000-07:00

We can't believe how fast summer flew by!! But here are Joseph and Sophie on their first day of the school year. Sophie is in 3rd and Joseph is in 5th. They were so excited to know they got the teacher we wanted too. I can't believe how fast they are growing up....makes me sad. And for that reason, I didn't put Joel is preschool this year, he is our last little one, and I'm not ready for him to go to school just yet.

Temple Sqare

2011-08-04T14:41:00.001-07:00

We have never taken the trip to Temple Square, so on our last day of vacation, we headed south to see the temple. We had so much fun. At first I thought the kids would be asking for us to go back to the hotel, but never once did they complain. We tried to get everything in that we could. One of our high points....we went to the Church Office Building were you can go up to the 26th floor and look out over all of Salt Lake. We went up and were looking around, and when I looked at Dustin his eyes got really big and he nodded at me to look to the right. I couldn't believe it, it was Dallon H. Oaks. It was so cool. It was just our little family plus the tour guide, and Pres. Oak, his wife, and their grand kids. I stepped back and smiled, he looked back at me and smiled back. It was so cool. I wish I would have extended my hand, but I didn't want to interfere with there time together, so I left it at that. When we left the tour guide said they NEVER see any general authority up there. It was a first for them too. The kids at night at the side of the temple....they were doing work on the front, but the side was nice too.
A mommy with her angles.

And a daddy with his angles.

We had a wonderful day. Was so sad it was the end of our little vacation. Cant wait to go back next year!!!

Fun in Utah

2011-08-04T14:27:00.001-07:00

The first three days we were in Utah, we stayed in Bear Lake. It was beautiful!! We had rented three homes. Each home slept 22 people. We needed them all due to the fact that we had 63 family members there. Some came from Texas, California, Southern Utah, and Az. There were four master bedrooms with private bathroom, and the best room.....was a room with all bunk beds, so thats where the kids slept. The kids had a blast. There was a park right next to the house we were staying at with an in ground tramp, tennis court, hot tub (where the kids could almost always be found), and beautiful views. This is a view of bear lake in the distance taken from the upstairs of the home.living area

more view with hot tub and rock fountain where the boys loved to climb.

Downstairs living area. It had a small kitchen space off to the side, and a game table witch we took full advantage of.

The beautiful kitchen. It was so nice to cook in. One of the other homes which our extended family was staying in had soda on tap.....kind of glad it wasn't our house, otherwise the kids would have gone bonkers!!

I guess there is a two year waiting list to rent these homes. It was so much fun, I would highly recommend it.

We had such a fun time being witht he family we hardly ever get to see. It was one of those times where you didn't want the day to go by fast, but before you knew it the sun was going down and another day had gone by. I love Utah so much, by the end of the trip, I looked at Dustin and asked him to move us out there......a girl can dream cant she??

Summer Fun in Utah

2011-08-04T13:12:00.001-07:00

This summer we went to Utah for 4, count them 1,2,3,4, family reunions. It was so much fun!! This was at his Uncle Ted and Aunt Cindys house for some back yard fireworks.

Earlier that day we went to Utah State to see the fireworks from the stadium. It was amazing. They had live music to go along with the fireworks. I must say it was alittle hot. We had to get there early to get some seats, so the sun was right on us for about three hours. But the kids had fun being with their cousins.

Dustin was glad he remembered his sunglasses.....they were needed.

Dustins brothers.

Yes, and me. This is where I put on layers and layers of lip gloss because the sun was so hot. The next morning I woke up with a huge blister on my bottom lip. I was so mad!!!!

But we all had a good time at the fire work show. I want to go back to Cache Valley every year for the 4th.....so much fun and family, its worth the drive.

Summer Is Here.....Finally!

2011-06-21T18:24:00.001-07:00

Summer is finally here....no more cold June weather! This is the kids on the first day of summer vacation. School has now been out for for a few weeks, and we have gone from our front yard sprinkler, to swimming at Grandma's house EVERYDAY....and I mean EVERYDAY!!(except Sundays). I like to say the kids are changing back into their dark Mexican self's...haha.

Joseph Duran

2011-06-21T18:17:00.001-07:00

Joseph had a wonderful school year. It is so much fun to have a child who LOVES school. I myself couldn't wait for summer, but his little boy misses school so much! Right before school let out, Joseph's teacher called me and told me he would be getting some awards. So here he is with his 4th grade teacher. Three awards including a Golden Eagle Principals Award that came with a patch he can iron on to his backpack. Way to go Joseph!

Don't Ask....

2011-06-17T14:13:00.001-07:00

I couldn't not post these....

This is a taste of " how we roll" in our home.....

THIS ONE KILLLLLS ME!!!!!!

What kind of Mother Am I??

2011-06-17T14:00:00.000-07:00

What kind of a Mother doesn't blog her son's birthday until a month later.....me I guess. Yep Joseph Duran turned 10 this year. He is such a good and well mannered boy. We are so blessed to have him as part of our eternal family. He always had the warmest smile to share, and plays wonderfully with his little siblings. We love you Joseph, and happy be-LATED birthday!! Joseph ready to dig into those gifts....like any other 10 year old.
Super excited to find new shorts.

Joseph LOVES an Internet site called Club Penguin. So for his birthday I made cupcakes with "Puffles" on them. A puffle is a type of pet that the penguins have. In person they came out amazingly pufflish!! He LOVED them....and the gift card for another three months of membership on CP Aunt Brittney and Uncle Jason got him for his birthday!!! Don't' worry Brittney, I am sure Joseph wont let you forget about that!

First Place at Silver Dollar Fair!

2011-06-11T11:48:00.001-07:00

Joseph's art won first place at the Silver Dollar Fair a few weeks ago. ( haven't had to much time to download pics from the camera). Anyways, we were so proud of him. His art picture is much brighter in person....my camera doesn't do it justice. This ones going in a frame!! Way to go Joseph.

Is it to late for Easter pics?

2011-05-10T15:38:00.001-07:00

I don't know why it takes me so long to post, but here are our Easter pics. We went to the Henry's Easter egg hunt they have at their house. They invite tons of friends and family its crazy! There was probably over 40 kids there. We had so much fun. Here is Joel looking for an egg.

Found it!

I guess we took pics only of Joel because the other two took off running, and he had to hang back and help Joel.

The two that look so much alike

Dustin found these eggs. I'm not sure what kind they are but I promise you, there is no candy inside. Kind of cool he found them.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME. Yeah, this is our Easter pic of the kids. On Sundays I take Mamacita to church and then drop her off, so the kids and Dustin usually end up getting home first. Joseph changed his clothes right when he got home. Sooooo, when I got home and wanted to get an Easter picture of the kids, SOMEONE was not very happy about getting back in his church clothes. So this is what I got. Oh well, maybe next years will turn out better.

Opps!

2011-04-14T18:37:00.001-07:00

Am I a bad wife??? I didn't blog our wedding anniversary. Life gets so busy sometimes, things get put on hold, and then forgotten I guess. Sophies baptizm, Joseph in baseball, new callings in church....the list goes on and on.

ANYWAYS....

On April 2, 2011 Dustin and I celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary. I can't believe how the time has just flown by! My mom took the kids for us and we went to dinner and TJ Maxx. Here are a few clips of our time together.

Our wedding day Western Party with our friends

Temple date

Prom Party with friends

80's night with friends.

We do so crazy stuff me and my hubby, but we are so much in love. Can't wait to see what the next 13 years will bring us. Love Ya Babe!

Sophie's Baptism

2011-04-13T17:38:00.001-07:00

Our little Miss Sophia Marie was baptized on Saturday April 9th 2011. She was so excited, and a little nervous. The day started out alittle gray, but by afternoon, the sun came out, and it ended up being a beautiful day. My mom got her this amazing while dress that she looked so cute in. And my friend Liz helped out with a little white flower for her hair.

The gang. Everyone on both sides of our families were able to be there, except my older brother Jesus who lives in Idaho.

Our little family....I guess our new family picture.

Daddy-Daughter

Mother-Daughter.

All in all a wonderful day. Only set back.....Twenty minutes before the baptism was to start, what does Joel do, he decided to take a dip in the fount. Him and I had to RUSH home to change into dry clothes. I am glad we only live about 5 minutes away from the church, so we made it back in plenty of time.

Temple Pic

2011-03-04T16:34:00.001-08:00

We went to the Sacramento Temple in January for my cousin Nicoles' wedding. I was glad we got at least one nice picture of our little family. I just wish the temple was in the background. Thats ok though. Joely and Daddy waiting for Nicole and Eric to come out of the temple.

Three cute little kids waiting for mom and dad to come out of the temple. Thanks Grandpa David for watching them for us.

DoNE!

2011-03-01T16:03:00.000-08:00

The Ford Family is OFFICIALLY out of diapers!!!! YEAH!. It was really a surprise to me. The two older kids had last week off of school, and I just thought why not try and see what happens. So, we started that Friday when the kids got home from school. By Monday I was thinking to myself, " self, do I really want to do this....." By Tuesday afternoon something just clicked in little Joels' head and he had it! However I must confess he does wear a diaper in the night because the only way to get him to sleep is a FULL sippy cup. I am so proud of him. He looks so cute in his little underwear. All done just before he turned 2 years 6 months old. My youngest child potty trained. So happy we are done!

Christmas Time

2011-01-12T19:32:00.000-08:00

We have no idea what is up with Joels' eye in this picture, but no he doesn't have a patch on, its a glare from somewhere. We have a very busy Christmas day, starting at our home to see what Santa got us, then off to Grandpa Franks for breakfast, then off Grandma and Grandpa Meyers to visit, then to Great Grandma Meyers to end the day. We love being with our family during this very special day. Joseph and Sophie ready for Church the day after

Every year the kids ring the bell outside of Raleys. They love it and Dustin has a good time too. They only get to do it for an hour, but would like to do it all night. They think its fun to see someone they know walk by and drop a little money in the kettle.

We had an amazing Christmas this year. One we will never ever forget. Yes Virginia, There is A Santa!!!

2010 Christmas Tree Cutting

2010-12-03T12:14:00.000-08:00

Every year we head up to Buck's Lake to find the perfect Christmas Tree for our family. Due to the snow, and my gosh there was tons of snow, we were about 1000 feet short of Bucks, and the Christmas Trees. We went as far as we could, and ended up on the side of the road with about twenty other trucks. So we just got out and let the kids play in the snow. There was a family up there that had built a fire, and Derek brought his camp stove and made up some soup and hot coco. The kids and came getting ready to build a snowman.

Joel being pulled in the sled The ladies

Like I said there was tons of snow, and it began snowing even harder the longer we stayed up there. Now the snow suit Joel is wearing used to be Dustins. Yes, it is 36 years old. Bright orange, and it kept Joel warm and dry.

My three boys

Derek warming up the soup.

A view of the road at its worst

road not so bad

bottom of the hill.

Well since the roads were so bad, Dustin and a bunch of the group hiked up 300 yards to find a tree. They were all gone for two hours while the kids and I waited in the truck. I got kind of worried them being gone so long, but as the sun began to set I saw them heading down the hill pulling the trees behind them. All I can say is what an adventure!! Hopefully next year the roads wont be as bad.

Halloween

2010-11-02T19:08:00.000-07:00

Our friends Paul and Sarah had an adult Halloween Party. It was so much fun, good food, fun games, and my favorite....dancing!! Dustin was a New York Yankee baseball player, and I was....can you guess?

Me and my best bud Liz as a very good Pippy Longstocking.

We carved pumpkins the night before Halloween, this one is Sophies.

This one is Joels'

And Mr. Joseph did this one.

I loved how Joel wanted so hard to help carve. ( The hand holding the knife is the one with the graft....you can hardly see it....so cool!)

Sophie went as a clown

Joseph was going to be a rubics cube, but last minute had to be a magician

Joel as a lion. He hated the hood, so this was the best shot we could get.

We had a wonderful Halloween, and hope you did too.

Liz's Birthday/Mystery Murder Party

2010-10-05T14:42:00.000-07:00

So for Liz's Birthday we had a Surprise Mystery Murder Party. (Liz is the one in the pink skirt). What a fun night!! This is the "gang" outside after dinner.

Dustin's name was "Lenny" and I was "Linda".

Ummm, so why am I wearing that?? "Linda" was the drummer in a rock band. All the other girls were in poodle skirts....oh no, but not Linda.

Linda and Lenny.

My Twin

2010-09-13T16:40:00.001-07:00

Meet my twin.

Ercilia.

Everyone in our family says how much we look like each other.

Can you see it.

I can.

Ercilia is my prima....cousin.

This was at Mamacita's 80th birthday bash.

More pics of that to come.

Just thought you wanted you to meet my twin.

A Ways Back

2010-08-28T11:05:00.001-07:00

Back in May Liz and Kevin invited us to go to a Giants and A's game with them over in Oakland. We had such a good time, but it was alittle on the chilly side for me, good thing I brought my coat. The next morning we hit the Oakland temple to do some work. Both the Robertsons' and us we married there, but hadn't been back for a long time since now we have the Sacramento temple so close. It was such a beautiful day.

As you can tell, it was quite windy.

Angelee's 80's party

2010-08-28T10:56:00.000-07:00

We had such a fun time at Angelee's birthday party. It was a surprise party and we all had to dress in 80's attire. I went WAY out of control on my hair. My friends have never seen my hair without product in it. I washed it and let it do its thing.....its 80's thing. I was embarrassed, but hey for Angelee, I did it. Dustin is such a goof ball, and I love him to death for it!! Angelee and I had no idea what the other was wearing, but somehow we were thinking along the same lines. In fact we are wearing the same shirt from Forever 21.

CRAZY!!

Happy Birthday Joel

2010-08-27T20:38:00.000-07:00

Today my little man is 2. Can't believe how the time has passed by. Things have been crazy in our home lately. We had a birthday party planned for tonight, but canceled it, so when we can get around to doing a party, we will post then, but....I just had to put up the his first photo ever taken...two years ago today.

Love You Joely!!

My New Adventure

2010-08-12T11:39:00.000-07:00

Meet Patty, on the left, and Maggie. It may not really look like it, but they are twins. As you can see Maggie is much bigger. A few months ago my friend Rebecca, a school teacher, called me up and told me that she would be heading back to work when school started and if I would be interested in watching her girls for her. Of course I would! What a blessing for us!!! Lets see how Joel does with this addition. Rebecca is only going back part time, so I only have them in the mornings.

I just wish I had a third row....but I still love my little Honda.

First Day of School

2010-08-11T16:30:00.001-07:00

I can't believe summer is over!

Time to go back to school.

Get to bed early and wake up on time.

Joseph is in 4th....(that blows me away),

and Sophie is in 2nd.

Joel is going to miss them through out the day...me too!

Zoo and Funderland

2010-08-08T19:54:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how fast this summer has flown by. The kids start school in only three days!! So this being the last weekend of summer vacation, we didnt know what to do. We haven't done anything as a family, ( However, my kids have the best tans hands down!! Thats because we went swimming at Grandma Cliz's house almost every day!) due to work being so slow, Dustin and I were not sure what to do with this last weekend of summer vacation with the kids. Well we were very blessed, and he was called to do three construction jobs. Yeah for us!! So at the last minute we went to the Sacramento Zoo and to the little park Funderland. The kids had a fun time at the Zoo. Kind of bummed that all of the BIG animals, Lion, Tiger, Monkeys were all "hiding" and we couldn't get a good look at them. So no pics of animals. I think the San Diego Zoo would be fun to go to....maybe when we have LOTS of jobs lined up. Anyway here are some pics from our little get away. I think Sophie looks SO stinkin' cute in this pic.
Joel and Mom. He was actually really scared of all of the animals. Every time we got close to even the birds, he held on to me or Dustin for dear life. So here we are with a far view of the animals.

Sophie at Funderland

Joely driving a car with Dad

Someday this will really be them driving...scary!!

Darn, how did this picture flip?!?

On His Own

2010-08-01T19:19:00.001-07:00

Joel is finally swimming on his own! We have been having the hardest time with finding a life jacket that will keep him afloat....some make him fall face first into the water, some make him fall to his back. Joel is not scared of the water at all, and there have been three very scary incidents where Joel has jumped into the pool on his own and has gone straight to the bottom!! My friend Prenny goes over to my moms to swim all the time, and I noticed she had a life jacket I had never seen before. It has the arm floats, and then it has a float that goes around the chest, and snaps in the back. I asked if I could try it on Joel....it worked. He LOVES the water, and now we can enjoy having the peace of mind that he will be ok by the water. He gets in and just laughs and laughs.

Joseph loves to jump of the rock at the Carter's.

Play Date

2010-07-13T14:04:00.001-07:00

Its that time of year again, and we are back at the park with our friends for the weekly play date. Last couple of weeks the weather has been hot, but it was really nice this morning. So if you are in the area, we meet at 9:00 at the park for about an hour or so. We would love to have you. My little Mr. Joely

The twins, Sophie, and Jaydn going down the slide all together

Joseph was "clean up" and cleared the slide of all the little kids.

Ella....cute as ever!!

Grandpa is 89 Today

2010-07-06T11:31:00.000-07:00

Today is my Grandpa Sus's 89th birthday. I feel so blessed to be able to take care of him everyday. Joel and I head over in the morning and feed him his breakfast, and get him ready for his day. We take him downtown to do his errands, and the highlight of his week is when we take him to the casino on Tues, and Thurs. Growing up my Grandpa and Grandma were in Mexico alot taking people on tours, so as kids we really didn't see them too much. Now I get to spend every day with him, and hear many stories. The best yet.... when my grandpa was graduating from Oroville High School, his Senior class put the "O" on table mountain. I had no idea!! I think thats pretty cool, my grandpa help put the "O" up! Darn, I should of taken a picture of the "O" for those who don't live in Oroville.....maybe I will add it to the next post. Happy Birthday Grandpa, I love you!!

Going to jail

2010-06-30T08:27:00.000-07:00

With it being summer vacation for the kids, they have had to come up with some was to be entertained. They only get to watch an hour of tv and that goes by pretty fast for them. In the afternoons we head over to my moms to go swimming. So with no game boy or wii, they have had to really use their imagination. Last week they made cars out of cardboard boxes, the took more card board boxes and put on a puppet show. But yesterday takes the cake. Josephs wanted to be inmates. He said we were all going to jail, and we needed to take our mug shot. Joseph told us that we needed to look mean. I tried, but what he was having us do, I just kept laughing...."Mama', no, you need to look real mean." Here's how they turned out. Tough guy Joseph

Joely

Crazy girl Sophie

New York Dustin

and me trying as hard as I can not to crack a smile!

I love how they are coming up with things to keep them busy.

SuMmEr TiMe

2010-06-22T07:12:00.000-07:00

Seems like we head to my moms almost everyday to go swimming. Its not been too hot, but its getting there. I don't look forward to the 100's at all, so these 80's can stay as long as they want. Joseph loves to run and jump into the pool.....we just need to loose the life jacket!

He also like to walk under the water.

Poor joely is scared of the water, so he hasn't gotten in this year.....yet.

Princess Sophia loves the water.

Finally life jacket off!!!!!!!!

My Little Antonio

2010-06-11T11:57:00.001-07:00

Here is my little Antonio. He just graduated from Las Plumas last night. We had a dinner in his honor and it was wonderful. I went over earlier in the day to help my aunt Raquel clean up and get everything ready for all of the company who were to come over. Just driving over to the house I got teary eyed. I couldn't believe how the time has gone by so fast. It doesn't seem that long ago when I would be over at the house babysitting. I was there almost every day. Antonio had gotten so used to me being there that when I had to leave, oh how he would cry. We lived right down the street, and when I would walk home, Antonio would be a the screen door crying for me to come back. And who could forget when Antonio was about 18 months old in the car with his mom. He was crying for some reason, and my mom and I happen to drive up right next to them. Antonio saw me and quickly stopped crying and started smiling. And now toady, he had graduated from high school. I have a special place in my heart for Antonio, and wish him the best in what he had ahead of him. Congratulations Tonio, Te amo mucho!!

Nerdy Basketball

2010-06-05T10:11:00.000-07:00

I really don't want to post this pic, but I told Rae I would. Every Thursday night a bunch of us girls get together and play basketball at the church. We say its a nice break, so we can just be ourselves.....this night we weren't totally ourselves. We decided to dress up like nerds. We had fun being dorky, however I did have to take the suspenders off half way through the night.

He's 9 Today!!

2010-05-25T13:21:00.001-07:00

I can't believe that Joseph is 9 years old today. Joseph makes our family laugh everyday. Always dancing, telling funny jokes, and making silly faces. By this time next year, he may be the same height as mom. As of now mom has about 5inches on him, but by the way this guys eats, for sure he will pass me up by the time hes 11. Joseph is very caring, and is always wanting to please you. We love you sweet-pea, Happy Birthday. Always has a funny face to share.

Oh, hes just so cute. I think hes 5 in this picture.

Joseph at 6 months.

I can't believe how time flys by. The good old days, when we used to live in Mama's garage. Look at those skinny legs. This is Joseph a month old. He came one month early, but was a good 7lbs.

That Time Of Year Again!

2010-05-03T19:17:00.001-07:00

Yep, its time to plant the huge garden over at the Townsend Ranch. Our family is helping out by adding these starts. In all we have 279....could of made it an even 280, but as you can see in this pic, little mr. Joely wanted to dump one out. Oh well, Im sure we have more than enough. We have: carrots, tomato, peas, watermelon, cantaloupe, crookneck yellow squash, regular green squash, eggplants, and cucumbers.

A Super Special Suprise

2010-04-29T13:24:00.001-07:00

At the beginning of this month, my dad went up to be with my brother Jesus in Idaho. Jesus was just put into the bishopric in his ward. We were all very excited. My dad ended up buying a truck up there in Idaho to drive back to Oroville. Well, the Ford family received a surprise. Jesus sent back this play gym for Joel with my dad. Every morning Joel gets up and looks out the window, and and points....as to say," I would like to go outside and play with my new toy." Jesus' girls are now 11, 10, and 8, so they kind of outgrew this gym. cute closeup

he loves the slide

Thanks Jesus for the gym. He loves it so much, that when we get home from town, he jumps from the car and runs as fast as he can to his new toy. Congrats on your new calling!

doN't AsK mE??

2010-04-28T19:23:00.000-07:00

Two days till May and our lawn looks like...hail. A huge storm came in out of no where, and dumped on us. The kids were so excited when they came home from school....they had a hail ball fight.

Funny, the weather calls for high 80's in only four days.

Raeanne's Prom....And My First!

2010-04-28T13:56:00.000-07:00

First, thank you so much Leanne for sending me these pics of the prom. For Raeann's birthday she wanted to have a "prom". In high school, I didn't have the opportunity to go to the formal or prom....so this was my first. Dustin didn't want us seeing each other until he picked me up at Liz' house. When he came to pick me up, I was nervous. He was so sweet, and even got me a corsage. His shirt and tie matched my dress so perfectly. Dustin was an amazing date. When we got to the party, they had our picture taken. Our photo together

The girls shot....with the guys in the back ground making jokes....boys will be boys!

So much fun!

Our dates

Oh, how sweet
Thanks you guys for an awesome night. We had so much fun dancing, singing, and visiting!

Joel's Vocab

2010-04-21T15:05:00.001-07:00

This boy is just growing up way to fast for me. He is our last little guy, and that makes it even worse. I just want him to stay little. This month he has grown so much. He went from a size 5 shoe to a 7...in one month! And his vocabulary......

Mama
Dada
O-seph (Joseph)
Ama (Grandma)
Nigh Nigh ( Night night)
Up
Out
More
Dog
Bye bye
bottle
cookie.....thanks everybody ( Hes to little for sweets)
da-pub (bathtub)
MEN (amen) after prayer he yells it!
Hot... after being burnt, he knows hot means hot!
Vroom-vroom

This is such a fun age, he just learns something new everyday is seems.

Sorry No Pics!

2010-04-18T15:22:00.000-07:00

No pics, sorry. And boy how I wish we had a camera, especially yesterday. Our Primary had an activity day at the Sacramento Temple. It was so wonderful. The weather was perfect, the kids were reverent, and the spirit was felt. I only wish we had a camera to capture all of the memories. This was the first time our little family has been at the temple all together since Joel has been born. Our Primary Presidency did an amazing job organizing the trip. The children sang" I love to see the temple" on the temple steps, then went to four different areas of the temple to be taught a short 10 minute lesson on something significant about the temple. They had a sack lunch in the grassy area, then were free to leave. What a wonderful day. Afterwords our little family went to Roseville to visit Brian and Sandy. The kids had so much fun they didn't want to leave. The drive home was fun too. The kids were getting a bit board, so.....we played the car game. You know the one where you take turns, where the oncoming traffic is belongs to someone in the vehicle. I guess you really just had to be there on this one, but it was Joel's turn, and he was delt one of those travel buses that takes you from casino to casino. The kids laughed so hard we had to stop playing for a bit. Oh memories. If you have never played that game on a car ride, you should really try, it kind of fun, especially when dad gets a run down mini van and mom gets the camero right behind it!!

Twelve Years Ago Today......

2010-04-02T12:46:00.001-07:00

Dustin and I said, Heck ya' I do"!
Still madly in love with each other, we have had three amazing children. Have lived in three different homes. Together have had 6 different jobs, with Christina currently a full time stay at home mom. Dustin owning his own construction business. Looking back it seems it was just yesterday we were with our family in the temple, but as we think of the wonderful memories, it seems like we have been married forever. Happy Anniversary Dust!

Happy 7th Birthday Sophia!

2010-03-24T12:32:00.000-07:00

While taking the kids to school this morning, I told the story of the day Sophie was born. Both kids were really excited to hear how Sophie came into the world. They giggled when I told how Grandpa Frank was supposed to come over and watch little Joseph while Dustin and I went to the hospital, but FORGOT, and SLEPT IN! Silly Grandpa Frank! We can't believe how fast 7 years has flown by. Little miss Sophia loves to read. She will read anything she can get her hands on. You can usually find Sophie on the couch with a stack of books right next to her. She also enjoys riding her bike. We try to take the kids out at least once a week so they can ride their bikes at the park....they have a ball.
We love you Sophia. You bring such laughter and joy into our home. We are very blessed to have you in our family! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Trip To Idaho

2010-03-20T18:40:00.000-07:00

For months my older brother Jesus, has been begging for me to go see him in Idaho. His youngest daughter was getting baptized, and he really wanted us there. I wanted to go, but with Dustin not having work, we knew there was no way we would be able to pull it off. Jesus and my mom got to talking, and she decided to rent a Suburban and take us with her. We were really excited. However Dustin did stay home just in case some work came up, he would be there to jump on it. The kids pretty much played outside the entire trip. At our house they cant play outside because of the road we live on. To ride their bikes we have to go to a park, so with my brother living in a nice quiet neighborhood, the I could just let them play and not worry. Here is Sophie on a scooter.....where you could find her all day.

They have this really neat path called the Greenbelt. We went almost everyday we were there. So beautiful. I would go early in the morning and run it. I only wish my running friend from Oroville was there with me. It was so nice. I would push Joel and Sophie and Joseph would ride the scooters.

Water ran along the path. So relaxing.

Joel had a fun time watching the ducks.

We took an entire loaf of bread and it was gone in about five minutes.

Joseph sat so still to see if the ducks would come close....they did!

The kids had a fun time playing outside in the back yard, another thing they aren't used to doing at our house.

Jesus and his family. Always someone pulling a face.....VICTORIA!!!!!!

Now.....ANGELINA!!!!!

Here is the whole gang. Now you may wonder why is Christina in the back row?? Well, when packing for the trip, I was obviously not thinking. I packed a dress I hadn't warn in about a month. If you live here in Oroville you may have noticed I have gained a few......25 lbs in the last month and a half. Soooooo, everyone was getting ready for the baptism, and I just started laughing/screaming. I couldn't get my dress on. I was to small. My family said, "just come out and let us see." I walked out and they all just look at me.....no comments.......just thinking......finally someone offers," do you have some type of sweater or jacket you can wear over your dress?" Ahhhhh! It was to late to go out and find something else. So when this picture was being taken, I was sure to hide as best as I could. Thanks mom and David for the trip and taking us with you. We had such a fun time!

Go Nuts?

2010-02-13T14:42:00.001-08:00

I was changing Joel's diaper, and when I went to put his pants back on I couldn't find them. I thought I was going nuts.....was he wearing pants when I went to change him? What did they look like again? Sophie saw that I was somewhat confused and started to giggle. Yep! That is my very soon to be 7 year old Sophie wearing Joel's 18month old pants. She was always below the 5th percentile.

A Fun Day

2010-02-03T08:41:00.001-08:00

After soooo many days of rainy and dark cloudy weather.....we finally had one day of beautiful weather. On that Saturday if you drove by our house, you would find Sophie and I playing in the driveway with her jump rope and hula hoop. We had so much fun, I ran in the house to tell the boys to get their shoes on, and that we were headed to the park.

We went to Feather Riverbend Park.

I just love this pic of Joel. He was so proud he got up on the fence. He kept doing it over and over again.

Every time I see this picture I laugh. Dustin can always make you laugh.

Dustin showing the kids how to skip rocks. Poor Sophie would just grab a handful of rocks and toss them all out into the river at once.

It was nice to get a little bit of "spring fever" even if it was just for one day.I was so glad we were able to have the day of nice weather to get out of the house with the kids. Now we are back to dark cloudy rainy days.

Suprise Dance Party

2010-01-23T16:52:00.001-08:00

They got me! My family along with a bunch of my very close friends got together, and threw me a surprise 80's dance birthday party. It was crazy!

Definitely surprised!

Very embarrassed!

Oh, Liz, she had so much fun....love ya girl!

Did I mention I LOVE to dance?

Those who won the dance contest, had to sing.....I did not like that idea!

Thank you everyone that helped, I had sooooo much fun! I will never forget my 30th birthday, thanks for making it such a good one. Now.....who's next???

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTINA

2010-01-18T12:24:00.000-08:00

This is my(dustin) first time "blogging". Hopefully this post turns out. Christina always does something for her family's Birthdays on our blog, so this time it's her turn. Here is a list of 30 things that the kids and myself love about Christina!
Today, Christina Marinita Ford, turned 30. We are so excited to spend this day celebrating the birthday of such a wonderful, special, amazing woman.

LOVING

FUNNY

SWEET

DR.PEPPER LOVER

YANKEE FAN

BEAUTIFUL

AWESOME MOM

BEST WIFE EVER(I AM SO IN LOVE)

GREAT COOK

DANCING QUEEN

CONTAGOUS LAUGH

HER SMILE BRIGHTENS ANY ROOM

LOVES HER CHILDREN

SMOKIN HOT

INTELLIGENT

GIVING

UNIQUE LIKE NO OTHER

TRUE FRIEND TO EVERYONE

TRUTH TELLER

KEEPS A PROMISE

100% PUERTO RICAN MAMI

LOVES BAKED DESERTS @ 2:00 A.M

HATES SPICY FOODS

LOVES TO DANCE AND SING

A LITTLE MOUSE CLEANING THE HOUSE

SCARED OF THUNDER

SHORT ONLY IN HEIGHT

LOVES TO WORK

LOVES TO EXERCISE

A TRUE BELIEVER OF CHRIST

Happy Birthday Dustin

2010-01-01T19:43:00.000-08:00

Today was New Years, but even more important.....Dustin's Birthday!! We had a really nice day. Dustin is such an amazing Father and Husband. Here are a few pics of the Birthday Boy.

I wont say how young my hubby is today but I will list a few things that come to mind when I think of him....

1.) FUNNY!!!!!!

2.) Awesome Dad

3.) Loving Husband

4.) HARD worker

5.) Smarter than your average bear

6.) Can speak Spanish better than his Hispanic wife

7.) Can make you smile even when you are feeling down

8.) Can imitate ANY ONES voice.....its almost scary!

9.) The best dancer I know.....next to MJ

10.) Biggest Yankee fan on the planet

11.) A real thinker

12.) Can play the harmonica

13.) A real friend

14.) Honest

15.) sneaky

16.) Loves to drive heavy equipment

17.) Hates taking pictures

18.) Reads to his children every night before bed

19.) Makes it a point to have family prayer

20.) Works great with the Young Men

21.) Goes CRAZY for Celestino's Pizza

22.) Loves to go dancing with his wife

23.) Is a good example to his siblings

24.) Can't live without his XM

25.) Loves his in-laws

26.) Loves to break dance....and is really GOOD at it

27.) Young at heart

28.) Loves to hang out with friends

29.) Always has a stash of gummy cokes

30.) Gives the kiddos "superman rides" to bed every night

31.) Still holds his sweethearts hand in the car while driving

32.) Dr. Pepper lover

33.) still gets excited for his birthday

34.) Can build anything

35.) Can fix anything

36.) Loves to have a bowl of ice cream every night before bed!

Gingerbread Houses

2009-12-31T17:04:00.000-08:00

Our good friends Jodey and Dez invited us up to their home for dinner and to make these really fun gingerbread houses. We had a blast! There is nothing better than food, friends, and some fun. Thanks Jodey and Dez!! This one is Sophies......(ok, ok, Christina kind of sort of helped out)

And this one was Joseph's. Dustin helped out on this one.

oH BoY!!

2009-12-31T16:58:00.001-08:00

It seems if I leave the kitchen for a second....something like this happens. Over 800 soda tabs......everywhere!!!

But it looks like he had fun!

News To Come Soon

2009-12-27T18:19:00.000-08:00

Haven't posted for a while now.....lots of good and bad. Have had 3 deaths on our ward at church, one in my family, and one in Dustin's family.....so it has been rough since its happened during the holidays. Today I thought I would make it a day without letting the tears flow, but the announcement was made at Church, that a friend of mine had passed away.
It has been a hard month, but oh, how our family has been sooooo blessed! So many, many blessings. Its so amazing to actually see the Lords hand in your life. He has touched us and watched over us during this time in our life. The Lord has made it know to others and has prompted them to do acts of service and charity. The Ford Family is so beyond grateful for all of our loved ones and friends, and family. We are so grateful to belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints!
New Posts To Come Soon!!! (with pics.)

Happy Birthday Mom

2009-12-16T21:05:00.001-08:00

Today was my moms birthday. We had a surprise party for her at Scott and Raquel's. This is right when she walked in.

The little kids LOVED to YELL SURPRISE!!!!

Joel ran up to Grandma Cliz and gave her a big hug.

My mom is amazing!! She is so busy with work, seminary, and her home, yet she still has time every Tuesday to take all of her grandchildren to the movies. She is so much fun, you would never guess she just turned......hahahahah....Don't worry mom, I would never blab your age. Thank you mom for all you do. Time to start up you blog with the new camera David got you!!

2009-12-12T00:17:00.000-08:00

Last week I decided to see if Joel would watch a little tv so I could get stuff around the house. I got him ready and gave him a sippy. Decided laundry would be done. Walking back up the starts from the garage where our laundry is I had a horrible feeling. Yep! Out of habit, I had locked the door. I ran to the front window to check on him. There he was just watching tv. I ran to the back door, no luck, locked too. Now let me point out, I am in my bare feet in my pjs. And its been in the low 20 lately. So I am watching the clock and telling myself that if Dustin doesn't happen to come home within 5 minutes, I will go to the neighbors to use their phone. My luck Dustin pulled into our driveway a few seconds later. He got of his truck and say me sitting on the patio chair with a big smile on my face. I said," Isn't this beautiful weather we are having?" He looked at me funny because I was in my pjs and it was FREEZING! He went to go into the house and realized it was locked. "No way, did you lock yourself out?" I just gave him another smile. At least Joel had no idea I was locked out. If he would of seen me, we would have gotten mad that I was outside and he wasn't'. It was so nice to get in that house and sit right by that fire! Joel enjoying his sippy. He even crawled up to the table and got sophies cereal she didn't finish for breakfast. Good thing she doesn't like milk in her cereal.....that would have been a bit messy.

Cutie pie has no idea.

Thanksgiving

2009-12-05T19:46:00.000-08:00

This year for Thanksgiving we finally decided to eat with one family. In the past we have tried to hit all three of our families houses, and it is just not fun running here and there on Thanksgiving. So this year we ate with my moms. Next year we will eat with Dustin's moms, and then my dads the following year. We stopped by Angie and Vals to have our dessert, and see some family. Joely with Aunt "Rocky".

These two, I could take pictures all day of them!

The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, Joseph had scouts. I made these.....um, does anyone want to guess what they resemble? I had them ready to go, and Dustin asks,"what are those?"

Jesus, Rachel, and the girls came down from Idaho and surprised everyone for Thanksgiving. We had alot of fun, but I could bet the kids had an even better time. They never stopped playing, they kept going and going!!

Here they are being silly at Grandma Cliz and Grandpa Davids house. We had a bon fire that night, had left overs, and had a nice time.

Like Father Like Son!

2009-11-23T17:02:00.000-08:00

This one is for you Mikila!! hahaha!!

Mom, don't freak out, its not open! However, when Joel came out of surgery, they told me not to give him any soda for at least two days. WHAT?? He wasn't even a year old at the time. The doctor said the #1 drink for children under the age of 2 was.......soda.
MERCY!!

Uncle Derek's Visits

2009-11-23T16:54:00.001-08:00

The kids love it when Dustin's little brother Derek comes to visit. Sophie gets very shy, and keeps her distance until Derek sneaks up on her and gets his big, but usually very "wiggly" hug. This time I think Derek was a bit tired. He had just driven back from Utah and arrived home at 3am. Joseph wanted to read his new book to Uncle Derek. I walked in to the room only 5 minutes later, and this is what I saw.

Go Yankees!!

2009-11-17T22:33:00.000-08:00

You either love them or you hate them.......The New York Yankees. The Ford Family, we love em' Poor little Joel was so tired, but he was up to see them win.

Splish Splash I Was Takin' A Bath.....

2009-10-31T23:00:00.000-07:00

Joel LOVES his bath. As soon as the kids head out to school, I ask, "Joely...do you want to get in the bath tub?" He RUNS to the bathroom, pushes the door open, takes his pj's off, and puts his arms up at me to put him in.

Love em'......Love em'.......LOVE EM'!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Halloween

2009-10-31T22:45:00.001-07:00

At our ward Trunk Or Treat Sophie went as "Grapes". She looked really cute. When I was a little girl I was the same thing, it's super easy, and CHEEP!!! Sophie didn't enjoy the balloons to much, so for Halloween night, she went as a clown instead. Joseph went as "Black Hawk". He had a report in school this week, where he had to choose a person from history, dress up as that person, and talk in class AS that person. He did such a good job. A big thanks to Antonio for the costume.

And my little bumble bee. Should have gotten a little pic of his behind.....theres a little stinger on his tush.......so cute!!

I Gave In.....Finally

2009-10-31T22:33:00.000-07:00

I held on as long as I could. Even with all comments about him being old enough, I did my best! We went 14 months, 3 days, and then I finally did give in..... Joel had his first piece of candy! It was one of those little Dum Dums. You tell he LOVED it. LOVED it soooo much, hes on his tippy toes!!!! He ran around the house talking and waving the candy wanting everyone to look at what he had. When Grandma called to ask what kind of candy Joel might like on Halloween, I told her that he would be more than happy with an apple!!

A Fun Day

2009-10-03T21:33:00.000-07:00

In between conference sessions today we went to the fish hatchery. The kids had a really good time. We had gone last week, but this time there were much bigger salmon.

I thought Joel would be a bit scared, but he actually really liked the fish.
I got lucky and snapped that picture at just the right time. I hope we didn't blind that salmon with all our picture taking.

Mommy and the kids.

Daddy and kids

No Boys Allowed Picture

No Girls allowed picture

No Kids Allowed!

WARNING.....Skin Graft Picture!!!

2009-09-27T14:31:00.000-07:00

I know that my post says skin graft pics, but I wanted to put some pics up of Joel wearing some clothes my mom gave me that used to belong to my brothers. I can't believe she saved them for all of these years!

The picture of Joel's hand is the last one on this post, so if you don't want to see it...turn back now!!!

These pants used to belong to Jesus.
They have paint here and there, and some holes in the knees, I think they look so cute, and to think that Jesus used to be so little.

Now, check these out!! They came straight out of the 70's.
They used to belong to my big brother Jesus. All 5 of us got a chance to wear them...can you tell?
Joel's hand
I was going to post pics from right after the surgery, but they were not very pretty. I decided to wait until it was looking nicer. This looks 100% better than it did even two weeks ago. For those who want a close up, click on the pic.

Shriner's Circus

2009-09-26T06:50:00.001-07:00

Waiting for the show to begin.

Joseph's favorite part was were these two brothers that had a sword fight.
(At one point, one of the brothers almost fell....I think it was just part of the act, but I really thought he was really going to fall. I let out a big scream!!! And I might add, I was the ONLY one to scream. Dustin just looked at me and laughed. I'm such a lame-O!)

The kids were really excited to see the elephant close up. I think it was neat that they let the kids walk up to it....not so neat that it was $8.00 a kid to ride the thing.

Thank you so much Jimmy and Amy for the tickets....we had a blast!

Labor Day In Ft. Bragg

2009-09-20T13:09:00.001-07:00

Don't we all just look so......campish!
Shelby was a BIG help with the kidlets.

Here is a big group of us who all grew up together.

At a beach where at one moment is was sunny and clear, and then it turned foggy.

Joel with his little glove.

I'm a STRONG man.

Poor little Joel stuck in the pack-n-play. Sorry bud, but the last thing we wanted was to get sand on that hand!! He did good.

A happy ending to our trip. The kids did so well. We drive south and go through a little town called Bonneville where you don't have all of the windy (curvy) roads like you do when you go through Willits. You hit vineyards, and it is just a beautiful drive. It is ten minutes longer, but no car sickness!!

Joel's New Accessory

2009-09-11T20:58:00.000-07:00

Today we went back down to Shriners' Hospital to get Joel's compression glove. He actually got two. He has to wear it 23 hours of the day, so we can take it off only to take a bath. Dustin picked out one glove and I picked the other. In this picture he is wearing "Dustin's" glove. He doesn't seem to mind it at all. We will see how it goes. He will have to wear them for a year.

Joel's Birthday Party

2009-09-08T20:24:00.001-07:00

Joel wasn't quite sure just what was going on.
The look on Joels face was priceless. In great wonder...."why are they are singing? do they want me to eat this food that is on fire? what are they all looking at me for?"

" Ok.....they stopped singing.....now what am I supposed to do?"

With a little help from Mamacita, Joel enjoyed his dessert.

Yep, Joel started walking the day before his birthday party!!

(I will post video as soon as I figure out how to do that)

I guess it's not really a party without Ricky....right??

Joel loved this riding toy train so much! As you can see he didn't want to wait to take it out of the box.

Hmmmmm, yes, this is Joel pushing Sophie!

Thank you to everyone who was able to attend Joel's 1st birthday party!! I think everyone had a great time.

Thank You Uncle Ricky!!!!!!

2009-09-01T14:25:00.001-07:00

Smithy brought Aishwari over and gave him his birthday gift a day early. Even before Joel opened the gift Smithy said," I'm telling you now, your brother picked it out."

Ahhhhhhh!!! Why have I had soooooo many headaches lately???? Just wait Ricky, payback is coming.

15 Years To Go!

2009-09-01T14:18:00.001-07:00

Everyday Dustin takes Joel, and they move my car from the driveway, into the garage. This IS Joel's favorite part of the day!

I think in this shot, Joel is checking his blind spot.

Happy Birthday Joel

2009-08-27T08:36:00.001-07:00

A Year Ago Today!!
This is what we were doing a year ago today. I can't believe how fast this past year has gone by. We have been so blessed to have this sweet little spirit in our home. Birthday party is tomorrow, so hopefully someone brings a camera with them, and I will post party pics then.
Happy Birthday Boo-Boo Love!

Joel

2009-08-27T08:31:00.001-07:00

Our camera has broken, but I was able to upload this picture we took of Joel about three weeks ago. This was a few days after his surgery, and as you can see he is happy, and even able to put pressure on that right hand. He did not like that wrap too much. Now he has a much smaller warp, and is still as happy.

Skin Graft

2009-08-09T13:55:00.000-07:00

For all of those out there who get squeamish....this is good news for you. Our camera is broken, and I was not able to take pictures of Joel's surgery. I did do video, but I don't know how to add video to the blog.
He had surgery set for 1:00pm on Friday afternoon. He had to be fasting, and nothing to drink past 9am. So on the way to Shriner's I thought I should TRY to feed him. When we arrived they had told us that the two surgeries before Joel had gone quickly, and they could take him back to the OR at 11:30. They asked if he had had anything to eat or drink. "Ummmmm, you told me he could drink up until 9. I guess the rule is nothing in the tummy for 4 hours prior to surgery. So we had to wait. The little guy behind us was able to go ahead, and guess what.....his went over, so now we were pushed back even more. Dust was pretty upset, mainly because he was the one having to hold Joel.
Joel had a hard time coming out of the anesthesia, but is now doing well. They cut out the skin from his hand that was burnt, and replaced it with skin they took from his leg. I think the leg is causing him more pain than the hand. All I can say is, I thought the burn was hard to looked bad... his leg is 100x's worse!!!!
We go back to Shriner's on Friday to make sure the graft took, and from there they say it will take 2 months to heal. Maybe we will post a pic then....if I can get a hold of a camera.
Thank you everyone for all the prayers for Joel!!

So Sad!!

2009-08-04T06:37:00.000-07:00

For all of those who iron the clothes the night before.....KEEP IT UP!! Do not wait until the morning, and if you do iron your clothes in the morning.....DO IT THE NIGHT BEFORE!! Or like my mom, right when your done with the laundry, iron them then, and hang 'em up.
I was awarded the worst mom in the world award on Saturday morning. (try saying that 5 times fast....worst mom in the world award) The day was going sooooo nice. I was up early, and ran 4 miles with Amy and Lizzy. Got home, put Joseph in the shower, and started ironing our clothes for my nephews baptism that morning. I ALWAYS iron the night before!!!!! Sadly this time I didn't. Joel was awake and super happy. I had the kids' clothes ironed, and went to get my dress. Right then, Joseph came out of the shower. I gave him his clothes and told him to get ready, and to take Joel with him. I could hear them in the bedroom playing. I went to get my dress, and walking down the hallway, I thought to myself, "if I get in the shower right now, it will probably save us some time...me doing my make up and hair, while someone else is in the shower." Stopped in my tracks, and got into the shower....TOTALLY FORGETTING THAT I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF IRONING. So there I am, and all of the sudden I hear the worst screaming in all the world. My little baby Joel's screaming. All you moms know what scream I am talking about. Not the "he took the toy away from me, or she changed the channel I was watching....but the "hurt scream". I had chills. I yelled," Dustin......JOEL!!!!!" Dustin came in the bathroom yelling for me to get out, and that we had to go to the ER NOW!!!!
Still in the shower, I started praying. Then as calmly as I could asked Dustin what happened. He told me Joel had gotten to the iron. There went my clam. I pretty much lost it from there. I had to focus. Joel is screaming, pulling at his arms and hands, Dustin is running trying to get ready, because he wasn't just in the shower, I am standing in my towel, trying to hold my screaming little baby, trying so hard not to touch his arms or hands. Dustin called the Robertson's to get a ride to the ER....there was no way of getting Joel in his car seat, and thank goodness we only live two blocks from the hospital.
I got myself and the other kids ready, called my dad to come get them, and once he was there I took off to the hospital.
When I walked in the ER I saw our good friend Kevin who had given Dustin a ride. It was very nice for him to wait there until I arrived. (Here comes another plate of cookies guys). They had already taken Joel back and I could hear him still screaming. I was on my tippy toes trying to get someone to see me. I said," I need to get back there....the baby who is burnt." Now get this, THE GUYS SAYS," OK, IT WILL BE A MINIUTE, I THINK THE DOCTOR IS IN WITH THEM." I think this guy was no married, and had no kids. HELLO?????? GET ME BACK THERE NOW!!!! ( i didn't say that to him, but I was this close.) I think a light bulb went off in his head, because, he quickly changed his mind and took me back.
When Joel saw me he started screaming even more. I just wanted to hold him so tight, but I couldn't. I started crying, and Dustin had to take him back, and I had to leave the room. It all came down on me at once...why did I leave the iron....why did I get in the shower, when I was still in the middle of ironing.....why didn't I iron the night before....WHY DID I LEAVE THE IRON!!! The doctor came in and said he had to remove the skin. I had to step out of the room....just ran 4 miles + no breakfast + lots of tears= passing out. A nurse and I stepped out until I felt better. Just then my dad walked in so he and Dustin could give Joel a blessing.
We have to go back every morning to get his burns washed, checked and wrapped. On Monday, we finally got to see Joel's regular doctor. He didn't like the looks of one area that was badly burnt, so we are going to Shriner's Burn Center in Sacramento on Wednesday.
Right now Joel seems to be doing ok. He is taking Tylenol with codeine, so he has a hard time trying to walk. Can't crawl too well, so he is usually being held. Can't feed himself, so it is funny trying to give him food, and he just pushes it away and reaches for something else on the plate. I didn't want to post a picture because it was just to sad. He looks like he is going to go into a boxing ring at this point. So.....I have learned to NEVER EVER EVER leave an iron unattended!!!!!!!!!!!

Lizzy

2009-07-27T13:09:00.001-07:00

Jesus and Rachel's daughter Elizabeth came over this morning, and I thought it would be fun to braid her hair......

How cute does she look????

They leave back to Idaho tomorrow morning, so.......have fun taking the braids out Rach!
Love ya!

Sisters

2009-07-14T17:09:00.000-07:00

From left are Smithy, Anastacia, Me, and Victoria

It is real nice to have most of your sisters around. (Rachel, Jesus' wife lives in Idaho) It would be weird to ever be far away from family when you never have been. We girls have fun together. Smithy is my little brothers girl friend, and Victoria is my sister in law.

A Vacation?

2009-07-12T14:35:00.001-07:00

Joseph, Joel, and Dustin, (sophie taking the pic), took a walk outside Grandpa Ford's house.
A really nice man made lake was just a short walk away from the house.

Kids with Grandma Ford walking to the water show at the Bellagio.

Waiting for the show to start.

We went to the temple while we were there. It was very nice.....a little warm, but nice.

Joseph loved the fountain.

Mama and kids outside the temple.

We went to downtown to "New York, New York." The kids couldn't believe what they saw. Their good friends, the Robertson's, have this game at home.

Joseph with the life-size game.

Silly kids taking a silly pic.

On the way home Joseph yelled out," Joel needs a diaper REALLY bad!" Dustin started laughing. His Grandpa King had a dairy farm, and he knew that smell!! We told Joseph to look out the window. I think there were four HUGE dairy farms right next to each other. The kids couldn't believe how many cows they saw. Joseph asked why they smelt so bad. Well Joseph, a lot of cow=a lot of .......poo!

Happy Birthday Ricky

2009-06-28T21:43:00.001-07:00

My little brother Ricky turned 26 today. I truly can't believe it! I forgot to take pictures tonight at his birthday party, so this is the most recent one I have of him and his awesome girl friend Smithy. Ricky is such a good brother. He has a good sense of humor, and is always fun to be around. Tonight we had all of the family over at Mom's and had barbecued ribs. (I didn't know that ribs took 100 million hours to bbq, so I was STARVING by the time they were ready). It was lots of fun to hang out, and talk about old times. Happy Birthday Ricky.....and by the was, will you just marry Smithy already!!!!!!

My Little Fish

2009-06-27T21:42:00.001-07:00

Lexi, Sophie, and Joseph
Joseph always pulling a face

Sophie loved to look over the edge.

The kids took swimming lessons from Lexi for a week. They did well, and had alot of fun with Lexi.

Father's Day

2009-06-23T08:56:00.001-07:00

Just a picture of the World's Best Dad and his kiddies.

We had matching ties for Dustin and both boys, but Joels' was just a little to big, so maybe next year. We had such a nice day with all of our dads. Joseph and Sophie sang to Dustin in church. We went to my Dads right after church to spend some time with him, then it was off to Dustin's Dads' house. Lucky Val, it was his Father's Day and his Birthday.

Love you sweetheart. You are such a wonderful husband and father. Hope you had a great day.

Only 200 Left On Earth!

2009-06-21T14:38:00.000-07:00

This is totally amazing! This past week we were at my mom's when Dustin saw this beautiful bird being chased by two other wild birds. Well this bird that you see on David's head was missing for 4 days. I guess it was on the news and in the papers. I wont make this a long story, but my mom was able to find the owners who cried with joy when they found out that the bird was at my moms house. The story was published in the paper if you want to read all about it, you can go to the web site. Pretty crazy! There are only 200 of these birds left on earth, it was really neat to get to see it.

Fruit, Veggies or Eggs anyone????????

2009-06-19T07:34:00.000-07:00

How it started. Then it grew, and grew and it wont stop growing!!!!!!!

Tomatillos...to make green sauce with.

Artichokes

Sunflowers to make sunflower seeds

Fresno peppers

Tomatoes

Honeydew

Watermelons

Lettuce

Corn

Chickens.....30 Chickens!!!!!!!! That will give us 2 eggs a day each...60 eggs a day=420 a week!!!!! What are we going to do with all of those eggs???????

Zucchini

Squash.

Not pictured are the bell peppers, potatoes, bush beans, egg plant, cantaloupe, cucumber...and I am sure I'm forgetting something. Soooooo, if you want something, let me know, and I can get it for you. There is so much. We even harvested some veggies, shredded them, and gave them to the chickens, so let me know if you want something.

The garden is alot of fun to go look at and to pick from. We went over just before dinner last night and got some zucchini and squash, ran home, put it in the wok, and had fresh veggies for dinner. And the kids love going to see how their seeds have grown into food.

Family Visit

2009-06-19T07:11:00.000-07:00

Dustin's Dad Jack, step-mom Judy, sister Laci (holding Joel), her hubby Sean, and their little baby boy Ethen. (sophie looks like an angel)

Crazy pic. Boy how that angle changes in a heart beat. Every time I look at Dustin in this pic I laugh my head off.

Joel with his Aunt Laci.

Sophie with her Uncle Sean......or as I called him Chris Katan. (am I right.....remember the guy from Saturday Night Live....Night at the Roxbery????) Anyway, sophie had a new best friend last week. She had a fun time getting to know Sean.

Grandpa Ford giving rides to the kids. Joel decided not to ride this time.....maybe next time around.

We had such a good visit with Dustin's Dad and his family. They came up from Vegas for Brianna's high school graduation. There was a big after party on Saturday, and everyone had a blast!! It's been about 7 years since we have been able to get together, so it was a nice and way over due visit. Thank for coming up guys.....now it's our turn to head to Vegas.

Joseph's Baptizm

2009-06-10T13:52:00.000-07:00

The church's newest baptized member
Early that morning, Dustin took Joseph out by the river to talk about baptizm. Dustin brought along his scriptures to touch on some special verses. Joseph took along his new fishing pole he got for his birthday. (He takes that thing EVERYWHERE)!!!

Our little family after the baptizm. Yes...I know I look like one of the kids.

At the end of his big day.

I really can't believe my baby is 8, and now baptized. Time has flown by far to fast.

We are so proud of you Joseph for having the desire to be bapitzed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. You are such a good example to your little sister and brother. We hope you remember this day, and how you felt. We love you sweet-pea!

She's Done

2009-06-02T10:09:00.001-07:00

My sister Anastacia has graduated from Chico State!
Here she is with her husband Bob, and oldest son Cameron.
Not sure where Daniel was during this picture?

Melanie Domeyer has been one of Anastacia's best, most supportive friends since

I can remember. I haven't' seen her forever, so it was so nice of her and Gent to

come up from the Bay Area for the graduation.

Congratulations Anastacia....You Did It!

Happy Birthday Antonio

2009-05-31T22:39:00.001-07:00

I can't believe Antonio is 17 years old today! Crazy how time can go by so fast.

Antonio is one of my closest cousins maybe because I was around so much in his growing up years. I spent alot of time at my aunt Raquel and uncle Scott's home. I was even right there in the hospital when Antonio was born.

I was able to snatch this picture of him two days ago playing David's electronic drum set. (he is really good on them!)

Antonio is a very, and I mean very talented young man. He is very smart and it shows. Always reading and learning new things. Just to give you a taste......his fascination with language. Let me list all of the languages he is fluent in.

English of course
Spanish
French
Italian
Portuguese
Arabic
Russian
Hmong
Japanese
Chinese
Korean
Romanian
Catalan
Thai
Zulu
German
Indonesian

AMAZING!!!!

Happy Birthday Antonio.

Te Amo!

Congratulations Mom

2009-05-28T13:26:00.001-07:00

I would like to introduce you to Oroville's "Partner in Excellence"

in the Classified Field.

My mom is the Librarian at a local school. She does

a wonderful job, and we are so proud of her.

She was recognized last night at the district office, and

boy was she surprised to see all of us there to show our support.

Congratulations Mom.

Let's hear it for the #1 Librarian in all the county!!!!!

Happy Birthday Joseph!

2009-05-26T15:28:00.001-07:00

Joseph came into this world and an hour later was on his first

helicopter ride to UC Davis Medical Center.
4 days old. FINALLY released from the hospital,
this was my first time getting to see Joseph.

3 months old

6 months old

2 years old

With Dad on Table Mountain.

Preschool

Kindergarten

1st Grade

2nd grade

I can't believe Joseph is 8 years old!!!!! He will be baptized in June and we

are all super excited. Joseph is an amazing son, brother, and friend. He is a good example to his little sister and brother, always helping out with Joel, and always getting along very well with Sophie. Joseph loves to read, play games on the computer, and go driving with dad. I couldn't tell you what he wants to be when he grows up because it seems to always change. He's been a UPS man, the drummer in a rock band, an architect, and now wants to be a teacher. Whatever your profession ends up being, we are behind you 100%. We love Sweet-pea! Happy Birthday.

I Bet $100 Bucks!!!

2009-05-21T22:55:00.001-07:00

Who wants to bet $100 bucks that this is

sooooooooo

what Mikila's future son will be up to?!?!

Fun Feeding Horses

2009-05-21T22:23:00.001-07:00

One of the horses
My three farm hands

Joel's first time helping feed the horses

My two big helpers love to be in charge of letting us in and out of the property.

This past week our really good friends went on vacation.....and both Joseph and Sophie get so excited, because they know that when the Rockwells go on vacation, we get to feed their horses. We all have alot of fun up there. Since this was Joel's first time going to see the horses, I wanted to be sure to take pictures of the event.

Who Knew?

2009-05-18T12:47:00.001-07:00

Who knew;

That a red sock could keep an 8 month old happy for an hour.

Looks like he might give up the red sock for the yellow number 3??

Nope, ditched the yellow number 3 and is back to the sock!

I was folding laundry when Joel decided to lend a hand. He got a hold of Sophie's

sock and was in heaven from there. He was laughing and talking for an hour

with that sock. Who knew a simple red sock could do that.

So much for the baby toys.

Look At Our Garden Grow!!

2009-05-16T11:29:00.001-07:00

Here is the family garden the last week in April.
Here it is the second week in May.

My Mom came over and told me how well my

squash, zucchini, and cucumber were doing,
and that for some

reason there seems to be a lot buds on the plants.

(I guess more than normal.)
I told her that I planted five packets of each vegetable.
Her mouth hung wide open.
FIVE!?!?!?
Somebody should have probably told Christina, that
even one packet of seeds would have been more than enough to
feed all of the families who are involved in the garden.
I thought that one squash seed would give out one squash.
One cucumber seed = one cucumber.
One zucchini seed = one zucchini.
So now I guess now, not only will we have more than enough for our
families, we will have enough for every family living in Oroville.
Hmmmm, does anyone have any idea how to get involved
in the Farmer's Market?

Happy Birthday Jesus!

2009-05-13T08:09:00.000-07:00

What a cute little guy! Can you believe that back in the day

they didn't even have car seats? My mom just held him in the truck.

Little Jesus in Denver with Elvis...I mean Dad.

Jesus on a horse.

(somewhere deep inside, I know you love country music)

Why do all little kids hate the bath water in their eyes?

Look at those big brown eyes!

Here we have a picture

of Jesus checkin' out

the camera lady.

And, if you were wondering

we were filthy rich as children.

We had a lavish library in

each wing of our castle.

Jesus is trying not to smile in this one.
To this day
he still makes this face.
Inside, he is laughing like crazy.

I wasn't able to get all of his prom pictures.
Every year he took a different lady.
This one was with Christy.

The following year was Sara.
Wow! His black shoes with the
silver detail on the tips.
If I do say so myself...that
is country! But don't worry
I wont tell everyone
that all you have is
Tim and Faith on
your IPOD!
(hey, how was the concert, you
had back stage passes right)

Here he is today with his beautiful family.

His wife Rachel.

Daughters Victoria, Lizzy, and Angelina.

Happy Birthday Jesus! You are such an awesome big brother....wait, older brother, I think we both know who is taller. I hope you have a great day. I have always looked up to you. You were always there for me, and I am grateful for that. You are such a wonderful husband and father. We miss you and your family, but love the visits.

Happy Birthday

I love you!

Happy Birthday Dad!

2009-05-11T21:39:00.001-07:00

My Dad took his time to really think of a good wish.

Happy Birthday Dad. I hope you had a nice day. You are a wonderful Dad, Husband, Son, Brother, Papa, Uncle, and Friend. We all love you so much. You are always there to help out or just to listen. We hope you have a great year.

8 Months Old

2009-04-28T18:07:00.001-07:00

Joel at 8 Months
Joel at 8 months and one day.
(funny how a day after Joel turns 8 months, he starts to look like me)

I can't believe another month has gone by. I love this second picture of Joel. This was all Dustin's doing. When I am down and sad, he knows just how to pull me out of it. I was on the couch, and I heard Joel wake up. I heard Dustin's office door open, so that told me he was going to get Joel. I hear footsepts coming down the hall and this is what I see. Thanks for the laugh Dust.
Joel at 8 months is crawling and teething...again. I think we had maybe two hours of sleep lastnight. Four on top, and two on bottom.

See Ya, We're Movin'

2009-04-25T15:39:00.000-07:00

Joel is on the move! He has started crawling, and is EVERYWHERE!

His favorite thing to do is to try to get to the fire place. It's a good thing it's spring time, and not being used. I worry about this winter though when we use it everyday. So I am always saying," HOT JOEL, HOT." At first Joseph and Sophie thought that I had totally lost it, and went up to the fireplace to check it. I had to explain that when winter comes Joel isn't going to know that now the fireplace is hot, and he can't get near it.

Things sure change around the house when a baby starts crawling. I have to baby proof every room. He follows me around the house, and always finds something he can't have.

If I leave the room for just a second, and come back he's gone. When I'm getting ready, Joel finds himself in his crib playing with the toys. I guess no more 10 minute showers for me.

We Had A Concerte Pour

2009-04-25T14:42:00.000-07:00

Up and out of the house by 6:45 am, this was Dustin's picture before the pour.The new slab.

Joel had a fun time with his Uncle Derek. Way to rock the hat Derek!

Dustin on sliders finishing, aka "turn and burn".

All in a days work.

The Noon Day Rotary is building the snack bar for the new soccer fields down at Feather Riverbend Park. In the Rotary Club, there is one of any type of profession. Dustin's classification is General Contractor, so he has had alot of hands on with this project. The snack bar is going to be a wonderful addition to the park, along with the new soccer fields that will be up and ready to play on in 2110.

You have done such an amazing job Dustin. I am proud of you!

Easter Sunday

2009-04-13T12:12:00.001-07:00

Joseph 7 3/4 , Joel 7 mos., and Sophie 6.
Joseph LOVED that I was able to find him and Joel matching shirts for Easter. (Children's Place on line.....clearance section, $4.00 each.)

Sophie found spots a yellow Easter egg in a tree. Daddy helped her retrieve it.

Joseph found an egg hiding in the corner.

The Ford Family had a wonderful Easter Sunday. The weather couldn't have been better, BUT even better, the Easter Bunny remembered that I love TWIX!

Dustin's parents had everyone over for an Easter dinner and egg hunt. Angie is the best cook! I STILL have "my work cut out for me" when it comes to her Sunday roast and rolls. It was so much fun to visit with family and friends.

Joel's First Haircut

2009-04-06T21:45:00.000-07:00

This is Joel's before picture. (This photo that was taken two days ago. His actual before picture came out really blurry.
Here we are after our first haircut.
His first haircut, and my first time giving one!
In the past we have waited for their first birthday to cut their hair, but Joel kept all of his baby hair, and it was always in his eyes. I wasn't planning on cutting it, I was just trimming Sophie's' bangs, and thought...why not???

Another after shot a little later in the day.
Speaking of shots....Joel had his "well-baby" check up today along with three shots. He did well, and as you can see, seems to be quite happy. He weighs 19lbs. 5oz. and is 25 and 3/4 in.