Conner's 11th Birthday!

 

 

 

Conner turned 11 years old on December 1, 2009! We told him that he could open his present from us on his actual Birthday, instead of waiting 3 more days until his birthday Party. The rule was he had to wait until 7 AM to open his present. At exactly 7 AM he was in our room. We told him to wake up all his siblings! The picture of all the kids on the red ottoman was at 7:10 AM. Look at the anticipation on all the kids faces! The first present Steve gave Conner had a bar of soap in it! Conner immediately said, "Where is my real present?" I guess he knows his Dad way to well! The video shows it all! Conner, Derek, and Cameron were slightly exited to find out that the present was a Nintendo DS with three games. Conner was told he could keep the present and pay us half, or we could take it back and he could choose something else. Since we got it at the day after Thanksgiving sale for a great price, Conner was not about to suggest taking it back. He paid up very quickly! We also sent homemade oreo cookies with him to school for his Birthday. The kids liked the cookies so much, that some of them wanted to trade things for the left over cookies. Conner is a very good negotiator. He ended up trading the oreo for a burrito, and then trading his burrito for a Nintendo DS game that his friend didn't play anymore. Too Funny! A few day after his actual Birthday, Conner had a late night Birthday Party. He had 18 of his good friends attend the party. They had a great time playing Football, singing Karaoke, and Playing Basketball. We got 8 Little Ceasers pizza's, and they ate every last one of them. They also had lava cake,ice cream, and soda. I love the video of the kids singing! They were so off tune, and didn't even realize it! To say the least, Conner had a wonderful Birthday!!!

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Austin's Baby Blessing

 

 

 

 

Austin Jacob Reese was blessed in the Logandale 3rd Ward on November, 29th 2009. Steve gave him a wonderful blessing! He was dressed up for the occasion in a white tuxedo. We had many relatives and friends in attendance for the blessing. Afterwards, we had a luncheon at our house!

Alexa Can Count to 20!

The kids have so much fun with Alexa! Recently, they discovered that she could count to 10! Apparently, 10 wasn't enough so they taught her how to count to 20. Now at barely two years old, she is the master of counting.

Family Pictures

 

 

 

 

We had family pictures taken for Christmas cards. My brother Justin and his wife Kayla took our pictures. They have recently started into the photography business, and our doing great. Anyone who can get 6 kids under 10 to look at the camera and smile(all at the same time) are wonderful photographers! These are a few shots that we loved!

Kids Turkey Triathlon

 

 

 

Conner and Derek just competed in their very first Triathlon! A couple months ago, they heard some people talking about training for a triathlon. They have wanted to compete in one since they heard that conversation. I heard about a kids Triathlon in S.T. George, so I signed them up. When I told the boys I signed them up, they immediately had to call and invite their cousin Mason and friend Hunter to join them. The Triathlon for kids started with a 50 yard swim, 2 mile bike, and 3/4 mile run. The kids practiced one day running and biking, and we took them to Mesquite to the recreation center one day to have them swim the distance. Out of 31 contestants ages 7-12, Conner took 2nd, Mason 3rd, and Derek 4th. They did awesome. The funniest thing is that they were only seconds apart from each others time. From start to finish Conner's time was 25:09, Mason 25:26, and Derek 25:33. Each of them were strong in different areas. Conner's fastest time was with the running. He is super fast! Derek's best time was in the biking, and Mason's in the swimming. They had so much fun, and can't wait to compete in next year's triathlon!

Steve receives a Life-Saving Award

 

 

 

 

Steve and one of his partners from work received a Life-Saving award at a ceremony held in Las Vegas. It's not everyday that officers receive these awards, so I took all the kids with me. Steve's Parent's, and his cousin Johnny also attended. My brother Justin was there receiving a different award, so his wife Kayla and their son Joshua were in attendance. The incident that Steve was being recognized for involved two toddlers. Steve was in the newspaper the day following the award ceremony with a write up of the scenario. I am going to copy what the paper had to say.
On June 9, 2009 civilian Amanda Freeman called police when she heard cries from inside a storage garage at the Augusta Apartments on Spencer Street south of Pyle Avenue. When officers arrived, there were no longer any sounds coming from inside the garage, but Ms. Freeman was adamant that she heard children crying. Officers Curtis Lawrance and Steven Reese made the decision to have the Fire Department cut down the door. When the door was lifted they were met with a chilling sight. Two brothers, ages 1 and 2 were bound, gagged, hooded and strapped into car seats on the garage floor. Reese and Lawrence freed the toddlers and quickly identified their mother and her boyfriend. The June heat could have killed the children. Jonathan Weaver, the boyfriend of the mother of these two children, was arrested on several charges including child abuse, kidnapping, and attempted murder.
I was glad that I had all the kids there to see Steve receive this award. Going to these award ceremonies helps them better understand the hard work, and danger police officers go through each day.

Cameron's Soccer is over

 

It was so fun to watch Cam play soccer! Cameron is one aggressive soccer player. He takes his losses personally! Although he scored on average 3 to 4 goals a game, he felt as if he should have scored more. I'm sure a lot of his drive and motivation comes from having two older brothers that expect him to be at their level! I remind them all the time that he is quite a bit younger than them, but the reminders don't seem to help much. Well, if anything he is one tough cookie! The funniest play this year was when Cameron was playing the forward position. The other team had the ball and was about to score. Cam noticed that the kid playing goalie on his team wasn't paying attention. So, Cameron jumped into the goalie box and caught the ball that was kicked. After making sure they weren't going to score he assumed his position as forward! When I told Cam he needed to play his position only he said, "Do you want us to win or lose?" What can you say to that?