A New Look

I havent used this journal in ages, but I've decided to use it to keep track of my journey to healthier cooking at home.

The Ledbetter House is TRAINING WHEEL FREE!!!

I've been trying to coax Caden into it for a few weeks now as he flys on his little bike and he's refused. He finally did it today!!! And, like I thought, off he went!!! He's out cruising back and forth with Megan (god I love megan on days like today LOL).

Yet another milestone is made in the Ledbetter house as the babies are no more!

I'd just like to point out that Conner and Colby both learned last summer at 8.5 and 5.5. Caden is 4. If that isnt a case of keeping up with the big boys, I dont know what is!

Caden Bike Riding

I'm thinking of switching

over to Xanga for this. I dont like that I cant see who is reading this blog :( Not when the main subject is about the boys.

On another note, I did all of their Back To School shopping today. Got some great deals, and the wrong size of shoes for Conner.. GRRR!!!!!!! I cant believe I did that! He is right in between kid and adults. I think I am going to have to just get him some New Balance and return the ones I bought (but that's a 30-45min drive).

Big Dog had 2.50 shirts. You cant beat that! I was a happy camper!

Conner has a friend spending the night tonight and Colby has a playdate tomorrow, and then we are getting back into school schedule in preparation for next Tuesday. The kids are at each others throats, so I am most certainly beyond ready!

So who is here and reading?

Just say hi for me.

Wow!!! What a difference!!

I am seriously amazed at the difference in skills Conner has this week. After 9 hrs at soccer camp, I am seriously not doubting the money spent like I was earlier this week. I watched him tonight at practice and the difference in his control of the ball flat out amazes me. He suddenly graduated to a "kid playing soccer" to a "soccer player" this week. I'm so proud of him!!!!

Some skills that he finally got- the first I've been on him about, but I'm just mom, so he didnt listen, but he obviously listened to the camp coaches, dribbling! He would get tired and just haul off and kick the ball as hard as he could. Not tonight. Tonight he was stopping, reversing, reversing, taunting, and going around. I mean..WOW. HE GOT IT!! The second skill was juggling the ball. Last weekend he was doing this and was getting 3-4 touches max. Tonight he was doing it and was getting 12+ !! (heading, kneeing, ankle, foot).

If 9 hrs can do this..imagine what competitive could do. .. besides break my bank account!

I am so very very proud of him. I'm excited he has a good coach this season too so we can really see how he's doing, but I'm so glad we also did the camp!!!

Boys updates

1 more week until school. Woohoo!!! Mom is very excited! And Colby and conner are ready to see some friends as well!

Conner started soccer camp this week and soccer practice last week. We love his new coach and he learned more in an hour than he's learned in whole seasons before. In fact, it's pouring rain today and the coach called to move practice because "I have so much to teach the boys and you cant teach in this rain, you just kick a ball." Soccer camp is 3 hrs and while he doesnt seem to be learning as much, it's wearing his butt out. He is very excited for school to start and to see his friends again, though he claims he isnt. He has Mrs. West, a teacher we know nothing about, but he does know a few kids in his class.

Colby saw the ped yesterday for on going tummy aches. It's been going on for over 2 months now. He's full of shit. That's what it seems to boil down to. We are glad it's not more as he has been pretty miserable on a daily basis, so let the clean out begin. He's on massive dose of bowel stimulant at this point and after we'll see how he is feeling. He also began occupational therapy last week to help him with his lack of balance and body awareness. *He* is very excited to be making this step as he is starting to notice his differences. Hopefully she will be able to help him be as graceful as his Mama ;)

Caden is just a stubborn 4yr old who isnt not looking forward to school starting to his brothers starting school. We are trying to figure out how to afford putting him in daycare here and there. He's really become a little boy as opposed to a toddler lately. I think he's going to have a tough time in 2 wks, but he'll get some good Mom/Papa time.

We are trying to avoid school shopping as much as possible. We have some wonderful neighbors who have graciously given us some clothes for Conner yet again. That boy has lived in nothing but hand me downs and I hope the day never comes that he notices ;). He is already in a size 12 (slim) and so we are buying 14. Can you believe it? Colby may not have the height but he's built like his papa, so he too is in a 10/12 in shirts and 8-10 pants. Luckily he has some hand me downs from Conner in shirts, but pants are another story and he will only wear elastic bands, so we're going to have to get some for him.... and after they've gone through first child, Conner, colby, we arent having so many hand me downs for caden who is wearing the same size this year as Colby was at the start of last year LOL. 5/6. Eesh he's a tall boy! They also all 3 need shoes. But could they wear the same sizing? No no. Conner is Regular to wide (4.5), Colby is Wide to XWide (2) and Caden is XXWide (12). Luckily I caught some good Caden sales so only 2 to buy for, but when you are having to buy W to XXW it gets spendy! Whatever happened to good ole payless?

I also figure that as soon as I finish school shopping, the much awaited growth spurts will happen :) They've all 3 been about the same size for quite awhile, though I swear Conner has grown lately even if the wall doesnt show it! Conner is now 58" and 80lbs, Colby is 48.5" and 78lbs, and Caden is 43" and 46lbs. I grow them big ladies and gentlemen, yes I do.

And there is the WAL update

Set Number 2- Sand Surfing!

This was by far the favorite activity of the week. Way too many pictures, but they were just fun.

Finally! Photo Set Number 1

Of our Newport, OR trip.

Over 500 pictures to go through ROFL

We had a great day at the zoo today with Brooke, Wyatt, and Aspen! The kids were all absolutely superb and the weather was gorgeous.. luckily there was a nice breeze, keeping it from being too hot.

The kids all got along fantastic and I was so proud of them. Too bad my flash was dead, hopefully Brooke got some good shots too..I'm sure she did.

Newport, Oregon

PICTURES TO BE ADDED SOON>> AFTER I GO THROUGH ALL OF THEM!

We just got back from 7 days in Newport. As mentioned in a previous post, we started at the Tillamook Cheese Factory and then on Monday we met Peter, George, their son Isaac (7), Niece Ashley (10) and nephew Chris (11) in Newport, OR. This is the first year we have been blessed with Isaac being with us.

It was quite a crew and the kids had their moments, but I must say that overall we were quite proud of all 6 of them. They played well most of the time, and are just a joy to watch have new experiences. We really enjoy all 3 of their "kids" and it makes for great memories.

We rented a house "on the beach". Unfortunately, it was a gorgeous view, but was actually across Hwy 101, so "on the beach" was not quite true. Fortunately, we were staying right on a bunch of tide pools, so the first day we took the kiddos and explored. Many of us fell on our rears and got soaked (it was sweatshirt weather the whole week until Saturday), but it was all in the name of a good exploration. There were many sea stars, star fish, anenomes (sp??), baby crabs, barnacles, and more. The kids had a blast going from rock to rock looking for things, and Calvin tried to continue his clamming expedition (unsuccessfully).

The second night Cal, Peter and George headed off to waste money at the casino, while the kids and I watched a movie.

The next day, we moved on to Whale Watching. It was a 90min trip on a big boat and $24ad and $12ch. Colby was immediately not happy about this great idea. He just cant handle not hving his feet on solid ground real well, but he toughed it out (with some bribery). We got to get really close to 2 blue whales and even were close enough to see the barnacles on them. It was really an awesome thing. The boat was a rocking so many people started to get queasy, but it was pretty exciting.

After exclaiming he never wanted to do that again, colby was ok and we moved on to checking out the Sea Lions at the docks and then headed off to go crabbing. The kids were pulling up the pots faster than Cal could get bait in them, but they enjoyed it and pulled in a couple of dungeoness crabs as well as a few red rock. They also walked the dock and saw what others were bringing in. Each of the kids held their crab and tossed it back in, except Ash who chickened out this year.

It was also about this point that Ashley, Isaac, and Chris started calling Cal Papa. I guess they decided it was just easier. He loved it.

Thursday we headed off to hit the lighthouses we had yet to see and Seal Cave. Seal cave was a "yup, good to see once." type of place. It's the largest (I think) natural cave. They know the seals have been using since I think it was 1880 as a living and breeding grounds. You have to take an elevator down to get there. No flashes were allowed so there was not really any good pictures...but then we headed to the lighthouse in Umpqua (there are 9 lighthouses on the Oregon Coast, this was the 5th or 6th one we've seen). The lighthouse is actually surrounded by Coast Guard Family Housing and sand dunes.

After the lighthouse, we had passed some natural sand dunes that run 50miles on the Oregon Coast and decided to go check those out. Cal remembered passing a place that had sand surfing out front, so we decided to go see what that was about...... little did we know we were in for the best part of the trip according to the kids.

Sand surfing. Snow boarding on, well, sand. What a kick! Kinda slow unless you find the right hill, but of course, our kids found the right hill. Mom was nervous since we had no helmets, but no one was wearing them. From oldest to youngest- Peter was a pro. He was the best of all of us and had it down immediately. Cal, well, I love him..but balance on ski or boards is just not his forte, but he did have his own cheering section from neighboring boarders. George was all gung ho day 1, but day 2 when we returned he became a big chicken. Suzanne shouldnt talk about chickens because she'd start going and promptly sit on her rear in fear of falling, but had a blast and has decided to try snow boarding. Chris had some serious issues with staying on his feet on day 1, but by the end of day 2 he succeeded in the whole hill. Ashley is a ditto to Chris, though found when she was tired of walking the board up the hill, she could leave it at the bottom and just roll down (quickly followed by other tired children). Conner was pretty darn good (I know I know, I'm biased). He had a couple of pretty good wipeouts but also has decided to try snow boarding. Isaac got the wipeout award. Woah boy that boy ate some sand.

I'm sure they are still cleaning it out of his ears! He also got pretty good with the balance. Colby quickly found his own way (remember the solid ground thing) and used his board as a sled. He thought this was pretty darn cool. And last but not least was Caden, leading the pack down the crazy hills and freaking us out.. until we realized his center of gravity WAS much lower to the ground than the rest of us. He had a total blast. Day 1 (late in the evening) was so much fun that we decided to return for more fun on Friday. Man we were beat though!

We were going to do more crabbing with the Zepcias but ran out of time and bonfired on the beach for the final night. I must say- 6 kids, including Colby and Caden, and no burns during hotdog or smore making. Pretty darn cool! I love beach bonfires! The kids did too.

Peter and George and their kiddos left on Saturday (the first sunny day of course), headed back for Cali, and will be sorely missed. We just zoned with our kiddos and packed up our stuff. We tried crabbing one more time but the wind was ferocious and the dock was packed, so we decided to pack it in. On Sunday, another sunny day, we hit some shops, the casino, and the arcade before we headed for home.

We are all beat, but fun was had by all. Between Gig Harbor and Newport, we have sand coming out of everything, a camera that no longer functions well and needs to see the dr, and kids that are still over tired 2 days later. But we look forward to doing both again next year!

Unfortunately we got home to Calvins brand new Playstation 3 being stolen from our house, nothing else, and the police believing it was someone we knew. It's really frustrated, angered us, and made us feel violated, but there is nothing we can do at this point. So for now, we'll look at the pictures of the time with friends we consider family and focus on the good.

I've decided to turn this into a Family/Friends Blog

This is the blog address we are going to give to family and friends who want to keep up with what is happening with us and the kids. Please leave comments if you visit.

Diary of a Trip So Far

It was a good trip with Chris, Zanne, Matt & Aaron.



Conner got to go fishing with Uncle Chris and was finally the right age to not drive him nuts and all to be happy. He caught a few bullheads and had non brother time, so he was a happy camper.

Colby decided he doesnt poop anywhere but home. Let's just say that we left Wednesday and by Saturday evening (and a little Milk of Mag) he was doing an interesting "keep it in" dance at my brothers hotel and finally after some pool swimming and peek a boo (LOL) had NO choice but to go. We've discussed that we are NOT having a repeat of this. He also is not the right age for chris, but he may never be with how much he talks. However, I was so proud of him the 4 days (all 3 of them really). He just listened the best colby listens. He also was tossing the crabs back in the water by the 3rd day.

Caden only had 2 big meltdowns. The first the first day when I realized he hadnt eaten all day and the second when he was exhausted and did not want to get out of the hot tub. Other than that he did a good job and lovvvvvved crabbing.

Calvin got to go clamming and unfortunately I do not have a picture of 1/2 of his body in a hole on the beach trying to keep a Geoduck clam from getting away. Let me just say that 1 pulled muscle (chris) and a big hole later the Geoduck won!! And I lmfrigginao! He had a blast though digging for freaking clams.


Matt being 3 had a few moments too, but boy, my children have a lot more energetic ummm rambunctiousness LOL. And aaron being 8mo was just cute (except at 545am)

We crabbed, clammed, hot tubbed, sand castled, played cards, ate, and laughed. It was a good trip and the weather was almost perfect. I really truly am proud of my boys.

We dropped them at the airport yesterday and crossed the street to the hotel my brother, sil, 13y & 10y nieces and 7y nephew were all staying 1 night before embarking on a cruise. They were all so excited about their cruise. We swam for a couple of hours then had pizza and dropped them back at the hotel. It was too short, but nice to see them. I really respect my brother and the way he and Joy parent. Their kids are great humans!

We got home at 9pm and the boys crashed. As did mom.

Got up this morning, unpacked some, repacked other, got the car loaded up (boy it's smelling fishy), and headed off for round 2 in Newport, OR. Today we drove to Tillamook, OR (with Colby again doing a potty dance..grr). We checked out the Tillamook Cheese Factory that doesnt really operate on Sunday. But we bought Ice Cream and "the best Chocolate milk EVER! according to the boys along with some Colby-Jack Cheese that apparently Colby didnt know existed - did he not wonder why he's called Cheddar? LOL- (and my 7yr nephew is Jack)..anyway he was quite thrilled with this.

Then we decided we'd stay in Tillamook and hit the Light House tomorrow on our way to our Beach House to meet Peter & George & Fam. We took the boys swimming tonight and now are paying for a $14 movie waiting for Caden to fall asleep (Kung Fu Panda..like that movie).

All in all it's been a good 5 days so far. The kids have had fun and are already exhausted. I honestly have taken few pictures because I was too busy making sure they were happy and watched out for. I do wish I had gotten to talk to Zanne more but we were too busy being Moms. Soon we'll get a child free trip.

Let's See What It's All About

As I leave town for 10 days to enjoy lots of laughter, love, and friends... I'll venture to this blogging spot and see what it's all about. Any cool tips of the trade for me?