The Adventures of "Cheva" and Co.

Brothers

2011-09-29T11:21:00.002-06:00

A video of Michael and Baby Samuel this morning, talking and cuddling...

Video Debut of Baby Samuel!

2011-09-29T07:18:00.002-06:00

So, I may be reviving this blog for video's sake! Not all my family uses facebook, and I can't attach videos to email the same way I can pictures. So, until I figure out something better, I will be uploading videos here. Some will be old (most of them probably- I have a lot of catching up to do!) and some new. I hope you enjoy this one I took last week of Sam! Love, Eva

End of the Blog...

2009-04-28T13:23:00.003-06:00

So, since I mostly use this blog for pictures and there are now more efficient ways of sharing pictures, I'm declaring this blog obsolete! From now on we'll be sharing pictures through facebook, so if you're not a member yet, join and add us as your friends. It's a great, easy way to stay in touch. Otherwise, I'll still send out occasional emails with the a link to an album online.
Hope 2009 is treating you well!

Love,
Cheva :)

February

2009-02-18T19:38:00.004-07:00

This month we've been working hard. We spent some time organizing our food storage. It was fun seeing the kids help. They both love being part of projects and insist they're way is the right way. I have no idea where they got that from.

Then Michael began finding places to store Sophia's dolls...
I don't think she cared. She was too busy playing what she refers to as "my guitar."
She likes to strum it and pluck it with Michael's toothbrush.

Besides that, not much happening here. I guess you can say we're hibernating. The days are still passing fast as ever, since we're working and resting so much, and waiting for Spring. Hope life finds you well and happy! Love, The Barnetts

Critters, Cookies and Colds...

2009-01-28T18:35:00.004-07:00

Life has been busy here. We've been fighting colds for a week and hope they will go away! Meanwhile, Chad has stayed healthy, allowing him to stay busy with work. The kids are their usual selves with about half their usual energy, so that's been nice. :)

We decorated cookies one day and Michael really enjoyed that. He did his sprinkles all by himself. Sophia is still interested in animals and really liked holding some bugs we found in our house. She carried it around for probably 20 minutes, letting it walk on her shoulder even, until it fell off. She's brave. Hope you enjoyed these recent pics! Stay Warm! Love, The Barnetts

Sophia Style

2009-01-12T22:42:00.002-07:00

Here is Sophia being a sea turtle. She is very "into" sea turtles right now and is quick to point them out in stories, cartoons and playground equipment. :)

She is also into making "Animal Parades!" She must be an Anderson girl at heart!

Bags and Blocks

2009-01-05T21:37:00.003-07:00

It cracks me up how things change so quickly. A couple months ago I couldn't get Sophia in a picture and now she wants to pose for the camera. She's into more and more "girly" things everyday. I love it.
She's even helping Topaz accessorize.
Tonight we played with blocks after Family Home Evening. Michael takes building very seriously. We may have another engineer in the making...

Till next time, stay warm and happy! Love, The Barnetts

Family Letter for 2008...

2009-01-02T00:39:00.001-07:00

Happy 2009 Family and Friends!

2008 wasn't our easiest year, but Chad and I believe our family is closer than ever because of it. Since I'm not very good at the whole Christmas-letter thing, but I was influenced as a child by David Letterman's style of record keeping, I hope you'll enjoy…

2008 's Top Ten List of Barnett Family Events

10) We bought our dream house!!! Built in 1889, there are a lot of "projects" ahead of us, but it's ours and we love it- especially the ward we ended up in. IT ROCKS!

9) Baby Michael went from an infant who could barely rollover, to a whopping 24 lb. climbing, running and cuddling little boy, who likes brushing his hair and teeth every morning. That is A LOT of progress for one year. Go Michael!

8) Sophia is growing gracefully, learning and developing her own personality. While she is stubborn and smart like her mother and sensitive and sweet like her Daddy, Sophia is definitely her own person. We are grateful for her energy (although it scares us sometimes,) enthusiasm and love. "I luuh-ve you. I luuh-ve you..."

7) Chad was recently called to be the Ward Financial Clerk, which has kept him very busy. Eva was called to be Ward Choir Conductor and enjoyed writing a Christmas program narrative to go along with the music. In both capacities, we're making more friends and growing closer to each other through supporting each other.

6) Eva was asked to write a local theatre's Christmas play, a musical adaptation of "Babes in Toyland." The show was double-cast and performed throughout December to laughing, paying audiences. Best of all, the theatre has asked if she'd be willing to write for them again.

5) Chad lost his "dream job" when the company went bankrupt due to home foreclosures. As a result, Chad started his own woodworking business, Denman Woods. He now has his own shop in Ogden (No more hour+ commute, yay!) and is designing and building custom kitchens, bathrooms, and furniture pieces. He loves his job, and Eva loves seeing him doing something he loves. If you're interested, check out www.denmanwoods.com at the end of January!

4) Eva's anxiety/depression worsened, leading to having the kids in fulltime daycare while she took a break. During this time, Eva painted and set-up Chad's office and showroom at his shop. Also, after many prayers and priesthood blessings she's watching the kids fulltime again and loving (almost) every minute of it. Dancing and singing to High School Musical, Barbie’s “The Princess and the Pauper” and Mamma Mia has been a fun way for all three of them to pass the time.
3) Sophia had her first major injury, falling on the sidewalk and splitting her front tooth off. There was a lot of blood and difficulty trying to see the injury. Luckily Eva had an early Christmas purchase in the trunk, a doll, so that calmed her down. With some sedatives and quick dental work she looked like brand new. Mom and Dad have also fully recovered from this highly stressful event. :)

2) Eva began this blog (which she hopes to maintain on a WEEKLY basis this year) and her own, http://evamelissabarnett.blogspot.com/ She loves comments and knowing people read it, so say hi and please pass it on! Also, she's started her myspace page, http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=391631214 and is looking forward to getting more of her music recorded and out there for anyone!

1) We are all still together. Chad has stayed so strong during this year's ups and downs. Even the kids it seems have understood somehow when we've needed a hug or something to make us laugh. They're only 2 and 1, but they are crucial, strong, uplifting members of our family. We know we're far away from many family, high school and college friends, but there is so much love and power in the four of us. I'm astounded to think what this year will bring as we continue to grow individually and get in touch with you all again.

Best Wishes for an AMAZING 2009!

With Lots of Love,
Chad, Eva, Sophia and Michael

The Twelve Pictures of Christmas

2009-01-01T19:30:00.009-07:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM CHEVA AND CO.!!! We love you and hope 2009 is wonderful for everyone. Here is a quick peek at how we spent the end of 2008 and this holiday season...

This is my attempt to get a cute winter shot of the kids in their Christmas clothes. They thought holding hands was silly.

Evan (Chad's brother) was kind enough to play family photographer for us. Here we are!

This is a great shot of everyday life in our home- people snacking on sweets, wearing random costumes, and leaving projects half-way done. But everybody's happy...

OK, now we're making some progress on the tree. It's all a matter of getting the ornaments on faster than the kids can figure out how to take them down.

And like always, Chad puts the star on top.

We spent many evenings playing games with Evan, Eliza (my sister) and Mike (her husband.) Eliza and Mike have recently been stationed at Hill Airforce Base, about 20 minutes from us. We love having family close by. Evan's staying with us during his break from school. He's been a great help at Chad's shop and as a baby-sitter. I love the look on Michael's face here as they play "Flipper Furry," a hand-crafted game by Chad's dad, Craig. I thought the loud snapping of marbles would scare the kids, but they both wanted a chance to play too.

Ah, Christmas morning...here's Chad playing with Michael's toys...

...Sophia playing with Michael's toy...

...and Mommy playing with Michael.

The best thing about our quiet Christmas was watching the kids enjoy everything with no pretenses or expectations. Every present truly was a gift in their eyes... Thank you everyone for thinking of us.

Again, HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Thank you for your friendships and prayers.

Good luck in 2009!!!

Catch Up...Thanksgiving

2008-12-28T19:05:00.004-07:00

OK, so I'm playing catch up, but too many good things have happened to not report. First, Eliza and I made a surprise trip to our parent's for Thanksgiving. The look on my Mom's face was priceless when we met her at the Von's entrance as she got offf work. :) Chad had to work, but I still cooked a Thanksgiving dinner for us when we came home, and I know he appreciated the time to focus on starting his business. Here are some Thanksgiving Pics. You can tell high-fives were the big thing.

November

2008-11-16T19:31:00.003-07:00

Hmmm...this month has flown by so fast and I don't even know what we've been doing! Here are some recent pictures anyway. Michael still loves wearing his Potato Head glasses and bringing odd toys to bed with him. Apparently he's not on a low-carb diet... :)

Sophia is learning how to have "tea parties" and serve food. These pics are of her first time playing like this.

Look what she gave Chad! She gets a kick out of being the "Mommy" and serving hotdogs.

Sophia did have a tumble and broke her front tooth, but was able to get a crown put on and looks good as new. I'll get some before and after pics up tomorrow.

Michael is understanding and communicating more all the time. We're working on recognizing parts of the body. They are both very reverent with their arms folded during prayer. Sophia's even started saying her own!

Chad and I are working hard getting his new business "Denman Woods" started. More about that later...

Our Photos From...

2008-10-31T21:31:00.002-06:00

HALLOWEEN!!!

2008-10-31T21:21:00.003-06:00

Today's festivities were exciting, upbeat and brief. By 4 pm the kids (and us, parents) were exhausted. We basically ate candy for all meals and snacks, wore our costumes all day and watched movies about candy, like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory!

We made it to the mall for an hour of trick-or-treating. Sophia said "trick-or-treat" when we asked her to, but otherwise she went straight for the candy. She was very good about saying "thank you" though. She was scared to go into some stores- like the crazy, black light ones, but Michael wasn't. He walked in like he owned the joint. Michael held multiple pieces of candy in his hand, while sucking on others, grabbing more and trying to eat some with the wrappers still on. Both of them walked around like they owned the mall, but Sophia kept a closer eye on me than she usually does. I think seeing so many people in costume through her off.

My favorite part of the day was just playing in the leaves in the front yard. All four of us were throwing them into the air and letting them land on us. As far as pictures...I can't help it if Michael is being especially cute this season and Sophia's ignoring the camera...

More Pictures

2008-10-28T19:41:00.002-06:00

Isn't my family adorable?!

Fall Fun!

2008-10-28T19:18:00.004-06:00

This past weekend Eliza took us to a Horse Show in Clearfield, a city very close to Hill Airforce Base where she hopes to take riding lessons. The trip was great. I'm still learning how to paste words and pictures better, but here are some highlights.

Sophia was a natural on the pony-ride. Although you could tell she was kind of scared, she was eager to get on the horse, thrilled when she was riding and didn't want to get off. She talked to him, saying "neigh." She also galloped around the track "neigh-ing." I loved hearing her response when we saw an old hound-dog lying in the shade. She said "Bingo! Hi, Bingo! B-I-N-G-O!" Too cute.

Michael wandered a lot, trying to be free of me, and enjoyed treats from the dutch-oven breakfast and bake sale. He also humored me and played with the fall display. It was worth it though- aren't the pictures cute?!

Sophia...

2008-10-21T23:34:00.003-06:00

Sophia is going through a "no" phase. Instead of smiling for pictures she wants to turn away and then smile at me once I've put the camera down. Or just look serious and confused... Here are my attempts.

Besides saying "no" a lot, she is still very much into music. Above she's listening to The Corrs on the computer, and immediately above she's dancing while eating lunch. I wonder where she gets that from? :)

Michael Updates

2008-10-13T14:20:00.002-06:00

Here are some latest pics of baby Michael. As you can see, he enjoys his food, loves to smile and is trying to be like his Daddy...

We've Arrived!

2008-06-29T09:00:00.000-06:00

Hi Family,
We've decided to maintain a family blog with our latest activities and photos. We hope you enjoy it, comment, and this serves as another way to stay in touch with you!
Love,
Chad and Eva or in other words, Cheva