Gordon is Crawling!!

It is happening! Gordon can now crawl. It is still slow going so far, but he's getting around and he loves the freedom to be able to move and get where he wants to go. I'm having to really get on the other two kids to keep things off the floor so Gordon can't get them, but it is worth it to have a happier baby! He wants to do everything his older siblings do, so he is well on his way!

Erin's Wedding

We had a CRAZY weekend this weekend, but wonderful for the whole Hunter family. Erin and Spencer got married. A year and a half ago Erin wasn't sure what she thought of Spencer and boy has that changed. She is happy and looking forward to the future, wherever it may take her. Friday evening we spent the evening meeting Spencer's family and decorating for the reception at the church building. Kyle, Brandon, Jason, and Stephen spent time up on the ladder stringing lights and making sure they worked. During that time we also spent time wandering the church building trying to find where the round tables were kept just to find out that they were locked away in a closet. (Apparently they are afraid there will be a theft of large round tables or something!!) We decorated and moved things around and actually got home at a reasonable time of evening so the kids could go to bed and be ready for the next morning.



Saturday morning we got the kids bathed and fed and THEN got them dressed. Celeste was a flower girl with her cousins Kyleen and Tamsen and Spencer's niece. Eddie was the ring bearer and Gordon got to spend the morning with Uncle Jason. Michelle was asked to be the Matron of Honor, although all of us were there to help Erin in every way we could. We wouldn't have been able to pull most of it off without Cheryn there anyway, so it didn't really matter what any of us were called!! Erin also asked Kyle to walk her down the isle. Kyle and the twins have always been close. They had their fights growing up, but they have always been close, so it was an honor for Kyle to do that for her.



The wedding was short, but beautiful. The background of Multnomah Falls was spectacular and with the falls there was a cool breeze even though the heat was coming. We only started a half hour late too, so I was impressed overall!! Can you imagine a more perfect place for wedding pictures? During the ceremony the bishop encouraged us as their close friends and family help Spencer and Erin prepare to celebrate their first anniversary at the temple and I think that was the best thing he could have ever said. They want to be sealed and plan on working towards that over the next year, so I'm really excited to celebrate their first anniversary with them at the temple.

After the wedding we had a family luncheon and nap times and then got ready for the reception. Erin loves kids and fun and wanted this to be a party, and it was!!! She read that it is sometimes fun to have cotton candy and popcorn for kids at a reception, so they ended up making it a carnival theme complete with pizza, hot dogs, candy as decorations and to eat and of course, the cotton candy and popcorn. Erin also wanted to play songs that their siblings and other family members danced to at their own weddings, which made it even more memorable.

Over all it was a great day and so special for everyone. The Hunter family loves Spencer and is so excited for him to be an official part of the family! He's been around for a while now and the kids sometimes love him more than Auntie Erin, so we are glad that he is a part of the family now!!

We love you Spencer and Erin. Congratulations. In one of the pictures Spencer just told her that they were going to Maui for two weeks on their honeymoon, so she has her arms raised while cheering. Have fun in Hawaii you two!!!

Newport Family Vacation

Well, we made it! We decided to go to Newport for our family vacation this year. We had originally wanted to go to Utah so Mike and Brooke could meet Gordon and we could visit our friends and family there, but we just didn't have enough money to get there, so we decided to take a trip to Newport and visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium instead. I posted a slide show of the aquarium pictures. You can notice that Celeste was "floating" with the animals and fish in some of the pictures!

This is a picture of camp at Seal Rock. We didn't get many pictures, so you get several of Grim, but it was gorgeous and the perfect spot to camp.

On Monday we went to Newport and walked along the waterfront where all of the shops and boats are. We watched the boats come in from fishing and cleaning fish. The kids complained about the smell. We couldn't see the sea lions very well without paying a lot of money, so we zoomed in the camera and got a kind of fuzzy picture of a sea lion lying on the rocks. It ended up being a beautiful day, so we went to Nye Beach on a whim and let the kids and dog play. They were soaked and sandy and loved every minute of it! They actually didn't want to leave, but we finally pulled them away to go back to camp and make a fire for dinner.

Kyle also took pictures of the kids for the aquarium in case we lost one of them. He took pictures of Gordon so he wouldn't feel left out also, but these are the pictures of Celeste and Eddie. So, if we ever lose one of the kids somewhere, we have current pictures!!

4th of July Festivities

Well, the Hunters had a great day today. We started by going to Corbett for a pancake breakfast. We were afraid that it would be really crazy/busy and it would be a long wait for breakfast, but not for us!! We got there and got in right away and had an amazing breakfast.

After that Corbett had an old fashioned parade. Our ward extends into Corbett and some of the members of our ward live right on the parade route, so we parked at their house and watched from the base of their property on the highway. It started with the classic car show driving through throwing candy for all of the kids and then the parade of kids on horses and tractors and all sorts of atv's coming through throwing candy for the kids yet again. I don't have a picture of the candy, but let's just say that the kids have candy for the next year and Winco must LOVE the Corbett parade because we have a lot of their candy in our home now!!

After the parade we made our way over to the Corbett School grounds for a FULL day of playing. Kyle entered a pie eating contest and Celeste enjoyed the blow up toys all day long. She kept going and going and going all day long. Every once in a while she would come back for something to eat or drink and then she was off again. However, I forgot to bring new batteries and my camera died, so I didn't get pictures of the day. Casey recorded Kyle in the pie eating contest though, so I will post that soon. Kyle didn't win, but he sure had fun and enjoyed trying!

They also have a mole contest because moles are such a problem up in Corbett. They give prizes for the largest, the best dressed and all sorts of other prizes. It was quite strange, but fun to see at the same time. I couldn't do anything but laugh and the silly things that go on in small towns!

The fireworks were great as well. I tried to capture them as best I could. The batteries held out just long enough to get a few pictures before the camera had no power what so ever!

Over all, it was an extremely wonderful day. We've decided that we wouldn't mind at all doing it again next year. We set up s0me canopies and played games and just had fun all day long. Some of us got a little more sun than we had planned and we are all horribly exhausted, but what a fun way to celebrate the 4th for July. Happy 4th everyone!!

Hope at the end of the rainbow!

Well, as you have read in the past, my life has consisted of potty training a very stubbern little boy. Well, today I have to say, there is hope at the end of the rainbow! We went to the zoo with my mom, sister, and two sister-in-laws plus all of our kids. Eddie wanted to wear his Elmo underwear so badly that I told him he could, but if he pee-peed in them, then he would have to wear a diaper. After many bribes and forcing, we made it through the entire trip to the zoo with no accidents. Wahoo!!! I was so proud of him and he was pretty proud of himself. We unfortunately had a pretty big accident after we got home, but he didn't like it at all and I'm not sure he'll do it ever again because he hated how it felt! I think we have broken through and potty training can't get anything but better from here!! I post pictures when he gets his new underwear with Grandma!

Potty Training Stress

Well, after the first three days, hope is not lost, but boy has this become stressful!! Even candy isn't working on this little boy all of the time. On Sunday evening, Eddie pee-peed on the couch and we yelled at him and told him that he couldn't have candy unless he went in the potty chair and he said "no thank you". So, I tried again on Monday and we had another "accident" on the floor in the kitchen while I was feeding Gordon, so no candy and I was done for the day!! Diaper went on the rest of that day and the next with no candy for him. Today I thought we would try again and he pee-peed on my leg while sitting on my lap, so the diaper went back on until this evening. Finally, we may make a breakthrough (okay, maybe not, but at least I can wish!) He didn't want to wear his diaper any more, so he went in his bedroom and took the diaper off while we were in the other room. The next thing we know, he is in the bathroom and we hear, "I did it, Eddie did it!!" We did a dance and yelled hurray and gave him a piece of gum. He was so proud of himself, but we'll see if it will last for another day tomorrow. I'll keep you posted!

Going Strong on Day Three!

Day two went well, although there was no way for it not to go well when he was naked all day for potty training! He didn't have any accidents though and that is the point! Today, however, he has on underwear and still made it to the bathroom, so we are hopeful. We have plans this afternoon, so the challenge will be to see if he can make it while we are out and about! I think it's almost time for Eddie to go shopping with Grandma!!