Lasting effects...

Sharpie Eyebrows. 

Awesome.

Mia's first cast

On September 2nd Amelia had an insignificant fall off the swing in our back yard.

Insignificant except for the fact that it lead to a cast.

She was remarkably brave.

Cast color of choice?

Pink, of course.

Amelia was quite please with her new Pink cast!  

They lead to lots of attention and pampering!

But apparently casts also lead to frustrating situations such as this: 

(I'm still not sure how this happened, 

but I'm sure glad I had my camera ready!)

If ye are prepared ye shall not fear

For Family Home Evening we discussed the principle of being prepared, 

brainstormed some scenario's of natural disasters that could occur in our area, 

then pulled out our 72 hour kits to see how well we were prepared.  

I sent the kids to their rooms with their separate back packs 

and asked each of them to put on the clothes that we had packed in our kits for each of them

last time we 'prepared' ourselves.  

I think this picture adequately shows how well (or not) we are prepared....

The Wilcox family is officially FEARFUL.

School Pictures

Even if I had 200 extra buckaroos to give to the school photographer, I wouldn't do it.

But they ask me to. Every stinkin' year!

I could have my kids run around as if playing a heated game of soccer

until you could smell the sweat through the picture,

have them smudge some of their lunch on their face,

ask them to give me a fake smile,

and shoot the picture just as easily here at home

and KEEP the $200!

So I did.

We had our own 'school pictures' in our front yard.

Much more pleasant. Much more affordable. Much more real.

Eve, age 1.....

Always at mom's feet

Amelia, age 3....

Mom's little shadow

Seth, age 6

First Grade

Hayden, age 8

Third Grade

Aubree, age 10

Fifth Grade

Jacob, age 12

Seventh Grade

Group shots?... a different story.

I need to pay someone else to do this part.

The lighting...

terrible

The kids...

no one could look at the camera at the same time or keep their hands down

And Eve?....

... she was DONE!

I'm outta here!

Future Champion

Hayden had his first football game and I sadly missed it.

This was the conversation at home later that day:

Mom: "How was your game, Hayden?"

Hayden: "We played GREAT!"

Mom: "Yeah? Did you win?"

Hayden: "No, but we only lost by seven."

Older brother listening in: "Touchdowns, Hayden...

you lost by SEVEN touchdowns!"

"Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life,

the secret is learning how to loose.

Nobody goes undefeated all the time.

If you can pick up after a crushing defeat

and go on to win again,

you are going to be a champion someday."

~Wilma Rudolph,

the first American woman runner to win three gold medals at a single Olympics

(1940-1994)

Future Champion:

Hayden McConkie Wilcox