Savannah's Christmas Performance

Our little singing star performs again.

Dewars

After Kaylie's performance we went to Dewars for a treat on Grandma. Kaylie was in the first grade choir in the Chrismas program. She sang loud and had lots of fun. Savannah also performed with her Tavaci group infront of Macy's in the mall, at the Nativity in the Friutvale building and also at Centennial for their big final performance. She did very well and at one point she was close to a microphone and did a non planned solo and she did very good. She loves being on stage.

Nate is 6!

Nate turned 6 (making our family have 3 6 year olds for a while) on November 28th. He had over some friends and cousins to play kickball and have some cupcakes. He got a helicopter from us and Jacob took it out with all the kids and crashed it in one minute. We took it back and got another one and that one lasted about 20 minutes before it crashed. I guess we are not ready for a flying toy.

Another Busy Day

I am about a month behind and I am going to just have to write about what is going on with us because for some reason I no longer have the option showing up to add a picture. If anyone knows how to fix this please let me know. Today we started off skipping the second parade for Kaylie this week so we could all make it to Savannah's performance with Tavaci at the mall. We got to relax for a couple of hours today at home before we got to go the the CSUB basketball game to watch Kaylie, Hannah and Savannah cheer with the CSUB cheerleaders through their girl scout program. They had an awesome time and they were just so excited. Savannah hoped that their cheer helped them have the courage they needed to win the game. She is also excited about the big cameras and hopes she made it on the news.
This week we had to get the Expedition fixed, that was not at the best time of year but it is fixed now and it doesn't smell like fish when we turn on the heater. I have been getting ready to be sister friendly tomorrow and also I am room mom for Savannah's class and even though she will already be in Georgia for their winter party I am still incharge. The girls were so upset they were missing their class parties that I gave in and told them we could invite them to our house for a party before they leave. Then there is chasing Paige around making sure she isn't getting into something she shouldn't and figuring out what is making her upset again. Life is a little crazy right now and the days are going by so fast. I find that some days I will finally sit down at 10pm and realize that this was the first time I had sat down that day. I will try to post more tomorrow and maybe the picture option will be fixed.

Veterans Day Parade

Kaylie was in her first parade on Veterans Day. She practiced her cheer to perfection and she loved being able to be as loud as she could. She is learning how to do stunts, back flips and cartwheels. She is loving cheerleading. Savannah had her last volleyball game that same day it was pretty busy.

12 babies

One of our five fish started getting so big that we thought it would explode. A couple of weeks later Grandma notices little tiny fish. They were just laying on the leaves and kind of floating at first but then after a couple of days they were swimming around and eating. There are twelve of them I think we can't seem to count them all together. The kids are so excited and they have lasted for a couple of weeks so far and doing good. We did loose Savannah's fish Molly this morning. We found her stuck under a shell. Savannah named one of the babies that are black Molly and took it really well. Here is a picture of five of the babies if you can see them. They are really small but they are there.

The Eye Gouger

Halloween

We had the most eventful Halloween this year. Our trunk or treat was on Halloween night and Jacob (Tara) was incharge of a booth. We made this booth called the Eye Gouger. We got white balloons and we drew eyes on them for the kids to throw darts at. Then they put there hands in mystery covered bowls. It was a lot of work but the kids all liked it. The morning started out with the school parade then the booth set up and the jump house. The carnival in the church was before the trunk or treat. Then all the kids wanted to go through the haunted house this year. They went through it a couple of times. Then we trunk or treated and hurried home to do some door to door trick or treating. We went around until about 8:30pm when we all were exhausted. The kids still have tons of candy and dad sneeks it when ever he gets a chance but that is the best part for the parents, well one of them. Savannah was Violet from the Incredibles, Hannah was a cheerleader, Kaylie was Sleeping Beauty, Nate was a storm trooper and Paige was a cute ladybug.

Pumpkin Day

This year we carved our pumpkins at school. Savannah had a lab with a pumpkin. They weighed it, checked if it floats, counted the lines and even counted the seeds. They picked the biggest pumpkin. It was twelve pounds and it had over seven hundred seeds. They had a fun time cuting it with the electric pumpkin carver one of the dads brought for them to use. I love that I am able to help the class with these special days in class, I have to thank my mom for that. Thanks mom!

Our little Chefs

The Monday before Halloween we decided to make cookies. The kids created their own from different colors of dough and we had a great time. Paige screamed at the stove the whole time they were cooking because she wanted them now. We had fun and we made a mess but that is what made it so much fun for them, not mommy.

I love Shoes!

Paige not only changes her shoes five times a day by bringing them to me and sitting down with her feet up in the air waiting for me to put on another pair, but now she wears all of our shoes. She puts on my heals, flip flops, even Jacob's shoes. Here is a picture of her flopping around in Savannah's shoes after church she is of course giggling and having a great time making lots of noise. Paige is lots of fun and there is never a dull moment. Jacob is a little afraid of her love for shoes, she gets it from her mom.

Savannah's Performance

(Savannah and her teacher Mrs. Gonzales) The third grade classes at Veterans Elementary put on a very entertaining show Oct 25th. Savannah played the part of one of the "She's a Maniac" girls. She was dancing crazy through her whole part and she was the craziest of all four girls in her number. The show was about all the popular music from the 50's through the 80's. They had an awesome time and Savannah learned a lot of new songs that she can't believe I know, to her that makes me old. I love listening to Savannah sing and watching her grow into a beautiful girl.

Fall Festival

The fall festival was packed with fun things to do. The kids loved the sack races and only a couple of them cheated a little. They liked the bike races and of course the candy they won. The booth I was incharge of was Tin Can Alley. I was told to use soda cans and put sand in them. I painted them and Jacob filled them with the kids right before it started he got it done though and managed to get the kids ready while I set up the booth. The booth was a hit and we had two going at the same time and we still had the longest line. Setting up the pins over and over and chasing the balls was quite the excersize. The cans got pretty banged up and by the end we couldn't stack them anymore but it was still popular. Hannah won at the cake walk and they all made sand necklaces and sand candy.

Volleyball Game

Savannah is improving in volleyball. Last game was her best. She got three serves over the net and she also returned one ball that was served to her. Her team is doing really well, they have won all of their games. There are only two games left and a week of practice for this season and she is getting ready for it to be over. She enjoys it still and she has learned a lot. She is a great teammate she encourages and gets excited about each point for the team. She enjoys the games the best.

Cake Decorating Day

This year for Cake Decorating Day at Veterans Elementary we stayed up late the night before finishing our masterpieces. Savannah made a cake that looked like a carmel apple and Kaylie made a cake that looked like a Jack O Lantern. We had a great time. They didn't win but it was fun for them to bring their cake to school. They loved making them, we had a good time. together.

Potty Chair

Paige was having a hard time going to she bathroom in her diaper today so I thought I would sit her on a potty chair and see if that would help. She had nothing to do with that so I put her diaper back on. The whole rest of the day she carried that potty around where ever she went. She would put it down, lift the lid and sit. She even carried it outside to watch Buck play.

Chalk Art Festival

Jacob and I escaped last weekend to go out together and we happened to go to the Market Place and there were a lot of artists making awesome chalk drawings in the parking lot. I guess they have been doing this every year but this is the first time I had seen it. The drawings were so good that we brought the kids back to see them too. They could not believe it was done with chalk and they loved looking at the pictures. They took pictures by their favorite chalk drawings. The band that played at Jacob's prom in High School played too and we got to hear their music while we looked.

Our Paris Girl

Sorry I can't figure out how to rotate the picture if anyone knows please set me know. Here is Paige's cute outfit she wears to church. She feels so pretty in it and she gets compliments all day. The funniest compliment was that they never knew Jacob would look so good in pink.

1st Grade Program

All of first grade at Veterans Elementary entertained the school and parents with four cute songs. Kaylie was singing all of them enthusiastically except for the part where they had to put on a baseball cap for "Take me out to the ballgame." Kaylie spent the whole song trying to get her hat on trying not to ruin her bow I had put in her hair. She finally got it on and sang the last sentence. She is so much fun and loves to make us laugh.

Buck

Buck came to live with us from Oregon last Thursday. The kids were so excited and they have loved playing and taking care of him. He is a good dog and he came to us well trained. He even can handle Paige and her attention. The girls waited up for his arrival on Thursday night counting the hours. Our family has grown even bigger and we are loving it. Buck was Jacob's puppy about five years ago and he moved with his parents to Oregon but now we have him back.

Disneyland Trip 2007

We decided to go to Disneyland with the cousins this weekend and we had an awesome time. Savannah's favorite ride was Space Mountain, Hannah's favorite ride was the Matterhorn, Kaylie's favorite was the Matterhorn, Nate's favorite was also Matterhorn but Paige's favorite ride was It's a Small World. Our favorite thing about Disneyland was watching the kids faces and having fun with them. They were all really good and Paige was entertained and good the whole day. We had a monkey leash on her so she couldn't run away and that worked good, she liked it and the kids took turns holding her tail. We didn't have to wait for more than twenty minutes for some of the rides even though there were so many people there. I am so glad that we were able to go and have fun together. We meet all the princesses, saw Fantasmic and rode everything we wanted to but Finding Nemo because it was never under a one hour wait. That will have to be for next time.

Volleyball

Here is Savannah at her first volleyball game. We are working on her serve but she is really enjoying herself. Her team won their frirst game and they were so excited. This is our first sports experience and I hope we have many more to come. I am just not sure we will have time for much else when everyone is involved. She practices after school every Tuesday and Thursday and her games are Saturday mornings.

Chearing on the Animals

Jacob was out of town and it was the last week of the fair so my mom and I took the kids to the fair on Wednesday. They all had a great time and here is a picture of them at the animal races. They loved seeing the animals get released and run to the finish line. Some of the animals needed a little help though. Paige loved seeing all the animals at the fair she wanted to hold and squeeze all of them expecially the baby chicks. We saw a baby cow and two sets of baby piglets and the kids loved that too. We saw the circus and spent lots of time in the kids center drawing, playing bubbles and experimenting with all the fun activities. They crashed that night they were exhausted. They have made their own collections in the playroom after we went to the fair. Savannah has a collection of horses, Kaylie has a collection of cats, Hannah has a collection of Pet Shop and Nate has a collection of knives (play knives).

Kaylie's Field Trip

Kaylie went to the Kern County Fair with her class this year. I was one of the chaperones and we only had two kids each to keep track of. When we got the the fair her teacher said OK have fun we will see you in three hours. It was really wierd that she didn't want everyone to stick together so everyone went their seperate ways. I took Kaylie and her friend and we saw everything including a circus and the animal races. It was a hot day but we got to see everything. I never would have thought Kaylie would have been so interested in all the collections we saw and the pictures people have taken expecially the pictures of babies and animals.

Las Vegas

Here we are in Vegas alone. We are with Jacob's boss and his wife too. Friday we left and got to Vegas around 9:30pm. We were already tired and it was raining but we still walked around the strip. We parked at Bally's and walked through Paris. I love walking through there the atmosphere is so relaxing. Then we walked to Ceasars Palace and saw the water show at Belagio on the way. We walked through the indoor mall and looked into getting tickets for Celine Dion but there were no two seats left together. We went to the softball game on Saturday and they one their first game but Jacob pulled his hamstring running to first base the first time he was up. He had fun though and he was the usual cheerleader for his team getting them all pumped up. Saturday night we went to a fancy restaurant called Lawry's and the food was so awesome. The place was very elegant and they even cut your meat for you already cooked at your table. When we went in they removed the table and let up sit before putting the table back to take our orders. We also went to New York New York to meet up with some of the Frito Lay guys and they took us to Coyote Ugly and it was horrible. No one was dancing they were just staring at the girls dancing on the bar it was pretty lame. Lanee (Jacob's boss' wife) and I were bored and decided to make it fun so we got up on the bar and danced one of the songs. Our husbands loved it and we had a good time. Then we all went to what they were calling the hottest dance club in Vegas called the Rain and that was much better. Jacob had to sneak in with his tennis shoes on(that wasn't the dress code). We danced the whole time we were in there for three straight hours until our bodies could take no more so we went home. We came back on Sunday and picked up all our kids.

Kick Ball

This monday we got to go play kickball together. We have enough player for all the bases to be filled. The kids didn't quite understand that when someone kicks the ball they needed to get them out they just ran to the nearest base. We gave up explaining so Jacob and I always played the outfield while they ran bases and kicked when they got back to home base. Maybe next time we can figure it out but we had a great time with our version of kick ball.

Red Light Green Light

The Bulkeley group in Bakersfield all get together for Sunday dinner every third Sunday now. We had an awesome dinner and then went outside and Grandpa Bulkeley played red light green light with the kids. Then they played mother may I. Uncle Thad also played mother may I but his things were a little tricky. They were trying to do cartwheels, skip backwards slide sideways and lots of other crazy things. They played for a long time and everyone enjoyed it expecially the audience.

Jacob is 30!

By the age of thirty Jacob has accomplished so much. He was a little bumbed this year thinking he was old and then I reminded him of what has happened in those thirty years. I asked him if he would have ever thought he would have five children living in Bakersfield with a Business degree and five years with a company. That is a lot to say for yourself. He has gotten to a place in his life that he feels like he is not young anymore. He is still young but I was thinking about when I was young and how I would look at families with five children thinking that their parents were old and we realized we are now those parents. It had to happen some time but we are still young at heart and our journey has just begun.
For Jacob's birthday he couldn't think of anything he wanted so I got him everything I have noticed he has wanted. Black socks (I had to wear white socks to work today because I couldn't find black ones). Chap Stick (do you know where my chap stick is?). Body pillow (maybe he won't need so many pillows to get to sleep, he has been using it to prop up his foot). New electric razor (my razor doesn't seem to be working very good anymore). His own brush (one without long hairs in it). Big Costco pack of gum (where did my gum go? He brings it home and we all eat it before he can have another one). Costco Jelly Beans of his own (we ate his Christmas stash for him). Dominoes (Jacob loves to play Chicken Foot and he is hillarious when we play but we didn't have our own set). Three polo shirts (I can't find any polo shirts that do not have Frito Lay written on them). I think that was all the gifts. But the fun gift was going to Las Vegas for his softball tournament together without kids!

Fishy Family Home Evening

This week for family home evening we all went to the pet shop and got our own fish. Savannah has a Black Molly named Molly, Hannah has a Sunset Fire fish named Sally, Kaylie has a Neon fish named Mia, Nate has a white with lots of black spots named Flick, and Paige has a Neon fish and she has not named it. They have been taking really good care of their fish and they get fed a lot. I finally got my waterfall sound in my front room too with the sound of the filter. The kids were really excited about their fish when they were picking them out they jumped up screaming when it was their turn to catch their fish.

Our family reunion in Mount Shasta was awesome! All the Krumms got together to go camping at Lake Siskiou. We had a great time cooking meals, taking walks, fishing, swimming in the lake, riding in the boats, doing crafts, riding on a train, and lots of smores. We all got really dirty and very exhausted while we created awesome memories. Jacob fell off his bike when he saw a deer one morning and that was the biggest injury so not so bad. Other than the bees, the deer that loved to eat our food at night, and the constant dust storm the campground was beautiful and big enough for our group. We didn't loose the tent trailer like we thought we would a couple of times because of the wind but our bikes fell and were hanging by a string 20 minutes away from home. Jacob caught it just in time and we got them home. We survived the drive but we couldn't have done it without our earplugs. Everyone had a great time and we got to see relatives we had not seen in a while.
Paige was the dirtiest at the campground. We would clean her off and then she would run and fall in two seconds. She also loved eating rocks and dirt. She did pretty good on the trail to our tent trailer. She even made it on her own following us on the trail. Thanks to everyone in our group we ate awesome meals and had a great time.

Hannah and Nate are having a great time in school. Nate is in Kindergarten and Hannah is in first grade. They are so excited about learning. They are practicing their reading and doing very well. Jacob was there for their exciting first day of school.

First Day of School

Savannah and Kaylie on their first day of school. Savannah started 3rd grade today and her teacher is Mrs. Rodreguez and Kaylie started 1st grade, her teacher's name is Mrs. Lewis. They are excited and a little nervous about making new friends. Both girls knew people in their class from last year and they are anxious to make even more new friends.

Father Son Campout

Nathaniel and I went on our yearly Father-in-son camp outting right before mother's day and we had a blast. Nate was hanging out with all the older boys on the surrounding hills in the campground and yelled at me from the top of the hill. He also enjoyed jumping from rock to rock crossing a little stream that went through the campground. We roughed it in a little tent and cooked on our camping stove for dinner and breakfast. Nate and I also had a chance to ride on a quad together throughout the campground. We had smores by the fire and got to look at the stars. Alder creek campground was beautiful at night. We also were the first ones up in the camp and Nathaniel got a chance to start the morning fire. I was in charge of breakfast for the camp...we had eggs, bacon, pancakes and Tang for everyone. It was a nice gettaway for us and Nate had a great time! I will always remember the Father-in-son outtings with Dad and how much I enjoyed them...I love carring on the tradition.

Artists

The kids will paint anything when I get out the paints. They painted a vase for grandma and that wasn't enough. They ended up turning a diaper box into a cave for their animals. They all joined in and painted, they did pretty good at working together. We are still learning.

Hannah's Open House

We all got to go to Hannah's Kindergarten open house. She had so many things to show us and we got to see how tanented she is. She learned a lot this year and we are very proud of her. She really loved her teacher this year and she was sad to leave the class on the last day of school.

Savannah's Party

This year Savannah wanted to have a sports party with a horse theme of course. We had it all set up the games were ready but the day was not. The party was at a park near our house and for some reason the weather got very windy and a little cold too. We had a hard time playing ping pong, badmitten, T-ball, and lots of other games but the kids had a great time. We had a relay with about twelve different sports and they all kept going even though there were what felt like tornado winds. I wasn't too surprised this happens to us a lot but the kids loved it so it was worth it.

Blanket

Paige is my fist child to get attached to a blanket. The blanket she always wants with her expecialy at nap time is the blanket Great Grandma Krumm made for her. When you give it to her she cuddles with it and laughs with excitement. Hannah's favorite thing to do is give her the blanket to see her reaction.

Family Picture

Here is our most recent picture of the Krumm family. We had our picture done in Grandpa Bulkeley's backyard with Brett's camera. It wasn't easy but we got it done. We have it up in our front room now.

Savannah's Baptism

Savannah got baptized today and we want to thank all that were able to attend and made her day so special. For all of you who were unable to come I wanted to write about the day. I will start with the bishop interview. Savannah found out that she needed to meet with the bishop to see if she was ready for baptism. The first thing she said was, "good am I going to have a test?" She was disappointed to find out that the questions were not about the pictures she knew from learning about the gospel. During the interview she answered any question that came her way. She was a little hesitant to say that she would honor her parents. She was asked who else was baptised that is our example and she said Jesus. She also knew who baptized him with a little more thinking. I know that Savannah loves the gospel and loves learning about it.
On her baptism day we got to the church first to find our outfit. Savannah was so excited from the moment she arrived. She wanted a bun so that her long hair would not have the chance to float above the water. After we got ready all of the six children getting baptised that day were sitting with her in the front row with fathers and grandfathers. Savannah never lost that smile on her face. When they did her spotlight she jumped up all smiles. They said that her favorite primary song was, "Love is Spoken Here", her favorite scripture story was the Creation and her favorite prophet was Nephi. After the spotlight they went back down to sit in the front row to wait for their turn. While we waited we watched a movie on Jesus Christ and all the miracles he performed. Savannah watched intently through the whole movie. She was baptised by her Grandpa McNeil and it only took once. Savannah said that it felt funny going into the water with pants on. She also said that she felt different. I asked why she felt different and she said because I am perfect now. She melted my heart at that moment. We got ready quickly and I gave her a heart necklace and told her that it stands for the love Heavenly Father has for you and to never forget that love.
We were able to have her confirmed that night and her blessing mentioned how Heavenly Father is so pleased with her. The day ended with a get together at our house and we had a great time together. This day is definately one to remember always.

The Cliffs

Frito Lay spoiled Jacob and I with an awesome weekend. Here is Jacob golfing and I was also golfing with him for my second time ever golfing. I had some lucky shots that were pretty good. We had a great time together golfing with the ocean view at some of the holes. We also got to stay at an awesome hotel called the Cliffs. We got to go to a dinner and dance also it was a nice break.

Pig Tails

Paige is already sporting pig tails. She is not minding it either she has never tried to get them out. This has never happened to me with my girls. I chose this picture because it also shows her favorite chew toy lately. Whenever I put her shoes on she takes them off and chews on them. I have to be really careful because she likes all shoes. She wants to chew on all of them even if you are wearing them.

Crack the Egg

Jacob taught the kids a game we used to play as kids and they loved it. They expecially loved it when he decided to play. He even tried to have a turn but the kids could not get him to move.

A visit from the Bulkeleys

Brittany and Andi came to play and we had a great time with them. We enjoyed watching Andi and Paige attempt to share. They were doing pretty good. We are looking forward to having them move to Bakersfield soon so we can get more practice.

Another favorite food

This pear was once a snack for mommy. Paige was not letting me eat it without her so she won. She started gumming away at this pear for a very long time and she thought it was the best thing ever. So much for a snack.

We have trees!

It took us about a year but we finally got trees in our back yard. Jacob has worked so hard doing the sprinkler system, laying the grass and now we are getting closer to being done. Jacob got his three pine trees and I got my shade tree I wanted. We also got some palms and a bradford pear. It is starting to look really nice and all the hard work is finally paying off. We hope to finish it soon but time is our problem the weekends are gone so fast. It will get done though. The kids are also enjoying helping when they want to for about ten minutes.