Our newest member to our family!

Living out here in the country made us realize we need a great mouser! So here is our latest addition to our family. She is half leopard, half panther. Emma named her Ashley. She is still a kitten and very full of energy! Now we are ready to battle those mice!!

So Busy!

Life for the Moss family has been quite busy! We moved the second week of September! We live in a small town called Archer. We have really enjoyed it here and already feel like it is home. We live behind the local general store which is over 100 years old! It is the oldest building in Madison County! We have three bedrooms and a nice bonus room that is now the family room/kids playroom. Plus it has large kitchen and living room. The laundry room is very spacious with a double sink. There is a dark dungeon(what our landlords call it:D) that is very big and has concrete walls and a dirt floor!! I've only been down there once..and maybe we would only to go back down there if there is a tornado on the way(Hey, who knows what creepy crawly things live down there)!! LOL! The kids elementary is just a half a mile away. The school was built this year! It's quite nice. The kids both enjoy their new teachers and both of their teachers are in our ward! We love the country feel and how everyone waves to you as they pass by. Even though it is a bit longer commute for Trevor to get to work, we feel like this has been a great move for our family. We have lots of yard work to do, including putting in grass seed, but look forward to seeing the results of our labors. One of our sweet neighbors, Anna, has offered us some chickens. On the property, there is a large chicken coop already to go...so we have considered taking them in! We also have a large garden spot and I'm looking forward to learning how to plant and can lots of fruit and vegetables! There are also a couple of apple trees! So don't feel shocked if you hear me singing "Eieio!" We are grateful for the opportunity to be here at this time. We feel very blessed! Here are just a few pictures of the new place. I will put more up when the other rooms are finished being put together! These are just of the kitchen and living room for right now.

A view of the dinning area

A view of the living room looking into the kitchen.

The living room from the kitchen side


A view of the kitchen

Another view of the kitchen. The hallway on the right is where there is a bathroom and the kids bedrooms. Straight ahead is the laundry room and in there is a door to the mud room/back entryway. In the mud room, there is another door to the family room and large storage room.

Our first day with Annie

Yesterday evening we got to take Annie home. She is a purebred Walker Coonhound. She is four months old. The kids love her so much already! She feels like one of the family. She can already sit, stay, fetch, shake, and is house trained. Emma would like to get her a hula hoop and teach her to jump through it! On her evening walk with Trevor last night, she found a huge cow bone! Trevor was not sure how she went right to it like she had put it there!!! Trevor is excited to take her out hunting as soon as he can! She not only will make a great hunting dog, but she will also be a wonderful guard dog! Last night she walked around the house with Trevor to check on each one of the kids before going to bed! She was crying at the doors until our neighbor suggested that maybe she wanted to make sure the kids were all safe. After checking on them, she was able to settle down for bed! We love Annie!!! Annie on high alert!

Happy on the ride home!

Ready for bed!

Nine years and counting!

On August 30, 2000, Trevor and I were sealed in the San Diego California Temple for time and all eternity! I just can't believe it's been nine years since our family began. A lot has happened in nine years and it seems to have gone by so fast! We are so very blessed. Happy Anniversary Hun, may there be many many more to come!

August 2000

August 30, 2009

Two wheeler!

Yesterday, Chandler was watching all the other children in the neighborhood ride their bikes, and was sad since he didn't know how to. My good friend, Tavia, took him out to the driveway and taught him how to ride! Now he is a little pro! He just keeps telling me all he would like to do it ride his bike. Now I'm afraid we won't get him off! :)

First Day of School!

Ready to head inside on the first day of school!

Chandler in his new classroom! YEAH for Kindergarten!
Ready for mom to leave!

The teacher's aide taking him to the table.On August 26, 2009, Chandler and Emma had their first day of school! They were so excited! They both were up early(too early) and ready to go! Emma is now a third grader and ready to take on cursive and multiplication! She is excited to be one of the older kids in their school(only goes to fourth grade)! Chandler being in kindergarten only has a half day. He goes in the afternoon. I'm thinking morning might have been better since he has to wait quite a while before getting on the bus after Emma gets on!! I'm grateful he seems to be enjoying his class. Although his first day he struggled when they put him on the wrong bus home! Poor kid! He got home a half of an hour after the other kids got home! I told Emma from now on, please make sure your brother is ON the bus before you go! He still wanted to go back, so I'm glad the tears lasted only a little while! Here are some of the pictures of Chandler's first day. I wish I had some of Emma, but she ran out the door before I could take some!

A Trip to Washington!

I'm finding it is harder than I thought to do blogging! I know it's been quite some time since I have wrote, and now I am behind! Guess I will try and get caught up!

This August, our family took a trip to Washington. It was a great week! There was lots and lots of driving, but it was worth it! The kids had a little bit of trouble with getting car sick, but we found that Dramamine helped a ton! Guess that will be a staple on any trips for us! First we headed to Vancouver to see Trevor's father and Ron. It was great to have a few days with them. We headed over to the Oregon coast in a town called, Newport. We went to the Oregon Coast Aquarium! The kids loved seeing the sharks in the big walk through tunnels and touching all the sea life in the tide pools. That night we had an amazing hotel right on the beach!!! Our view was breathtaking! We slept with the windows open all night, sleeping to the sound of the waves! The next day, after breakfast and playing at the beach, we saw the Yaquina Head light house. We got to see inside and climbed all of the stairs to the top! The lighthouse was great, minus all the kelp flies! The flies were everywhere! Emma got a button that read, "I survived the Kelp flies!" Guess they are frequent visitors to the lighthouse. After we had our fill of the flies, we headed to the Tillamook factory in Tillamook Oregon. We got to see how they make cheese from the beginning to end! It was quite a site to see! The kids loved the ice cream too! Then it was back to Vancouver. The next morning we went to the first ever Moss/Shewell reunion at the Ensign Ranch in Cle Elum, Washington. We had a wonderful time with all the family! We met a new cousin/niece, rode horses, went canoeing, and slid down a huge slip and slide! It was a great visit with all the family and we look forward to the next reunion in two years!!

Kids asleep on the road! They were beat!

Jellyfish at the Aquarium!
Todd and Emma seeing how big they are!
Looking at all the Jellyfish!

Touching sharks at the tide pool!

Look out Chandler!!!

A nice ocean view! Can you find the starfish?

Todd looking for burried teasure!

Our view from our hotel room!

Yaquina Head lighthouse!

All the stairs to the top of the lighthouse!

Ready for the climb! Everyone made it!

Eating yummy Tillamook Icecream at the factory!

Our first ever Moss/Shewell reunion!

Going down the huge slip and slide!

All the kids/cousins looking at the horses! They got to ride some of them!