I just haven’t been able to get my little nephew Britton off my mind lately. He was born with Spina Bifida 2 1/2 yrs ago. He has had more surgeries than I can count and just recently was thrown another one. The shunt that was put in when he was born failed and last friday he had to have a new one put in. About a week before the surgery, he had learned to walk across the room with his crutches all by himself. So even though he has had this minor set back, he has made huge progress in other ways! This is a video of his journey learning to walk at a therapy center he has been going to. It reminds me to never take anything for granted. Just little things like walking across the room is something most of us do every day without even thinking about but for little Britton, it’s a huge obstacle it takes great effort to do. He is so AMAZING!!! Britton is such an inspiration to me and I love this little guy so, so much!

(Click here on his name to watch the video)
Britton Buckingham

I absolutely love this place!!! I’m sure people thought my kids were crazy when they said we were going to the beach in Montana. Montana-Beach? Yep, it’s true. This place is like a little paradise in the middle of nowhere. It’s a tiny town surrounded by mountains with a big, beautiful river and a beach within walking distance of their house. What more could you want!?!! Every time Jer and I go to Plains, we leave wanting to move there. It’s so beautiful and the lifestyle is so much more relaxed and laid back. We went for a bike ride every morning and every night. During the day we floated down the river and went to the beach. We saw TONS of deer, petted all sorts of animals, watched Uncle Larry saw down a tree, went for a drive up the mountains sitting in lawn chairs in the back of a pick-up. Sure can’t do that here! We can’t thank my aunt and uncle enough for letting us invade their home and feed and entertain us all week long. We sure did have fun!!!

Jared hosted his 2nd annual “Light the Night” party the night before we left for Montana. I’m not much of a party person but I have to admit, this was a lot of fun. We had about 120 people show up (including kids). Other than being a little short on food, I think everyone had a great time. When Jer announced the finale all the kids started chanting, “Light the night, light the night”. Jared wanted to tell a little story about how it all began but the chanting was so loud he couldn’t get a word in so he decided to just skip the story and finish off the fireworks. Thanks to all who came! We enjoyed your company and look forward to seeing you all next year!!!

Ok, so I know it’s been like 6 months since I last posted, but I’ve gotten to the point that blogging is just about the last thing on my list these days. These four kids of mine keep my life so crazy busy there’s just no time to waste sitting at the computer. But I know the grandmas and grandpas hardly ever get to see these little ones so for their sake I’m going to try a little harder to keep some pictures posted so they can see more of their cute faces. So here it is in a nutshell. Kaitlee had her kindergarten program which I forgot my camera for. Luckily my mom brought hers so eventually I’m sure I’ll get those pictures from her. Now she’s on to bigger and better things… like 1st grade (she is so excited to be in school all day). Ivy had her preschool program which was so adorable! She did such a great job!!! She gets to go to Mrs. Lindsay’s preschool next year too. She is such an amazing teacher and Ives loves her to pieces! Risa Roo is busy just being a 2 year old, although she will be having a big day here in about a week then it’s on to being a 3 year old! Lincoln is still just the cutest little thing I have ever laid eyes on. I love him soooooo much! He just turned 1 last week. Can’t believe it’s already been a year! My baby is growing up too fast! He’s walking and it’s seriously the funniest thing. He has the cutest little bowlegged waddle and his feet kind of stick out to the sides. It makes me laugh to watch! I don’t know how I got so lucky to have been blessed with all these little ones but I thank my Heavenly Father every day for them. They are my pride and joy!!!
Ivy’s Preschool Program
Some of her classmates
Thank goodness for Gramma Bita! She was the only family that was able to come besides me and Jer. My poor daddio was in the hospital with pneumonia earlier that week so he was too sick to come.
Jake and Marissa had their beautiful little boy about a month ago. His name is Beckett.
Lincoln’s Birthday
Enjoying his cake
Reesie on the 4-wheeler. Kaitlee bought this and the jeep below with her own money at my friend’s yard sale for $10 a piece. Great buy! She is so good to share with her sisters!
My maniac driver Ivy
Kaitlee and her friend Kimball
My boy up on two! You can see from the shiner on his forehead that he hasn’t quite mastered the art of walking but he manages to get around.