Dirty Baby

Yesterday I took the kids to the park down the street. The first thing William did when I got him out of the wagon was to walk a couple steps, blop down in the dirt and begin throwing it on his arms and legs. Pretty soon Joseph began noticed that he was missing a spot so he helped throw dirt on his head. I have never seen someone that dirty! I rushed home snapped some pictures and hosed him off in the bath!

Memorial Day and a Hectic Week

This week has been a very hectic and busy one for us and we are glad that we have an extra day off together because of Memorial Day. We really live in a very blessed place and we are very grateful for all those who have done so much to help our country become what it is. We truly are blessed!

It is a good time to reflect on all those who were "pioneers." Pioneers are those who have gone before to make the way safe. This of course refers to those who have defended our freedom, but it also refers to those in our family who have had to make tremendous sacrifices for us. Sometimes those sacrifices don't seem very big, but they can have lasting consequences. These small sacrifices are simple and receive no praise or notice, but in the end it is those small sacrifices and decisions that help make us who we are.

This week Jen had two bread classes in our Ward. She has been trying to help people in our Ward understand how to use their food storage. A lot of people have extra food stored, but don't ever use it or don't know how. So Jen tries to have classes each month teaching them something about Provident Living. This week she taught two identical bread making classes (same class just different times) to help them understand how to use their whole wheat. Good thing is the method of bread making she taught is very simple and doesn't take much time. With four small children the easy and quick are a must. She also finished her CERT training and they did a mock emergency situation and they had to go through a mock accident/disaster.

Peter continues to really progress with his reading. When Jen makes new foods she often has recipes up on the computer and Peter likes to read them to her. He needs some help but has been able to read fractions some too, which we think is very neat. He really likes to draw now and as a result his handwriting has been steadily improving.

Sam is doing well following in the footsteps of his brothers but more often than not is our little Chef. People reads the recipes but Sam likes to be in the kitchen help make the food. He does a good job and is always very eager to help. He is also more willing to try new things when we go swimming, which is nice to see how willing he is. We normally go swimming each week and hopefully Peter and Sam will know how to swim by the end of the summer.

Joe continues to be his brother's shadow most of the time. This week we have been playing with Legos and whenever his brother's build something, he always wants to make the same thing. I have been amazed at some of the things he has been able to build just watching his brothers. He also acts as a good big brother to little Will and sometimes the two of them with just laugh with each other.

Will is super mobile now and we have had to start being careful when things are close to his reach. Since he has learned to get up on stools he will also sometimes get stuck, meaning he doesn't know how to get down. He used to be that way with our stairs, he would climb up there after us but didn't know how to get back down. It is sad but funny at the same time. He also has started copying us when we pray which is very cute. As soon as you sit down at the table and tell everyone to fold their arms, he will instantly put his hands together for prayer. For us it is always neat to see our children do that because it shows us what a good example we are being.

I had the normal day at work although I should soon start working towards some Microsoft certifications for my job. I don't really need them to do my job but i was talking with my supervisor and we think they will only help us in the end (he is also getting his). I have also spent a lot more time with the kids making castles out of Legos. The kids always want me to build things for them which they normally use and copy. I am amazed that after building something a single time, it won't take them long before they are able to mass produce the same thing without any help. They also like me to build buildings for them and this week I mostly did this. They wanted me to build them a castle and so we worked on making a bigger and better castle this week. It was fun to spend time with the kids doing this.

That was our week and remember to take time to remember all those who have made sacrifices for you. Remember those who have made a a difference in your life just to make a better world for their children.

-Chris

Summer is Here!

Well again it has been too long since we have posted here. But hey we have 4 small children and it sometimes makes it a little difficult. Things continue to go well for us here in Houston. The weather has been getting hot but that also means we get to do one of favorite activities of the summer, which is of course swimming. We have already gone several times over the last few weeks and we normally plan for it at least once a week. Nice thing is that our subdivision has two pools and splash pad that we can use. The kids are also getting much more comfortable in the water and we are hoping to have Peter and Sam completely able to swim by the end of the summer.

Jen has been very busy with her calling as Provident Living leader in our ward and also making things from scratch. That is our in addition to her homeschooling activities which have also been going well. Jen recently was looking at some lists of milestones for grades and we learned that Peter is ahead in a lot of areas. He still struggles with his fine motor stuff but he is improving. Reading is going very well and he reads more and more each day. We are amazed at how much he progressed once we came home from my parents. She is teaching two bread making classes this week for our ward and she has been able to get a lot of practice and learn a lot over the last few weeks.

The kids also were able to get a pet turtle although we think it might have already escaped. We aren't too worried though because in one of the "greenbelts" near our home they find a lot of turtles. This time we want to set things up right because this one was just brought over to us from one of the neighbors down the street (she knew we almost got the boys one for Christmas). So once we get things set up right we will probably go turtle hunting again. Sam is cute with the turtle and always wants to check up on it. He really likes animals and bugs! Anytime he sees anything with a baby he says, "oh cute!" Will is now a good walker and he just took off once he decided to do it. Joe is the best of the kids at playing with him and sometimes they will both just laugh at each other. They are buddies just like Peter and Sam.

My work continues to go well and luckily our company hasn't been too badly hit. Hopefully it keeps up. Houston so far hasn't been hit as bad as a lot of the country. On the side I am trying to do programming for XNA Game Studio to make some games for the kids. That is basically an environment for creating games for Windows or XBOX 360 (although I don't own the latter). We'll see what happens since I don't have tons of time for it.

Well hopefully we can improve on blogging.

Chris and the Duffey Clan