Me: We should probably start getting you guys to bed early since Daylight Saving's Time is coming up.
Ashley: What's Daylight Saving's Time?
Me: It's when we turn the clock forward or back an hour. In the springtime, we turn the clock forward. So when you go to bed at 8:00, your body will still feel like it's 7:00.
Ashley: Oh, I see. So it's a trick to get us into bed.
It's been awhile since I've posted. I just haven't had much to say, I guess. But the other day was Trevor's birthday, so I'll add some pictures of that.
It was a fun day. He had the day off, so we sent all the kids off to school and Jason to a babysitter and we went skiing. :) It was really nice just being able to go on a long date during the day with Trevor. I love that man. I hope he had as good a time skiing as I did. It's embarrassing how much better he can ski than I can. But oh well.
When we got home we had some pizza and then cake. Jason still has some pizza on his mouth in the picture. Also, he never wears a shirt anymore...because Hulk doesn't wear a shirt. Naturally. I just looked at the last post and apparently this behavior has been going on for some time. Nice. :)
Hailey burned her finger on a candle. I thought it was picture worthy :)
Jason's Birthday is just before Christmas. I hope I didn't confuse the kid too bad this year--we were traveling to Idaho for Christmas day, so we had an early Christmas. Our early Christmas just happened to land on Jason's birthday (the day before we left to travel)...and I wanted him to have a birthday that was separate from Christmas, so we had his early birthday two days before our early Christmas (his real birthday) and had the real Christmas on Christmas day :)
This little guy is so much fun to have around. Each child that we have I just love the new stages they go through and all the new things they learn. Jason's into the Super Hero stage. He runs around acting like a super hero all the time, I think I mentioned it in the previous post. He got this Captain America mask and shield and LOVES it. That was the first present he opened. Then he did a bunch of super hero poses.
We convinced him there were more presents he should open and he would like the others, too. He did, but wouldn't take off the mask and would only put the shield down while he was busy with the wrapping paper.
He took some breaks to look in the mirror with his meanest Captain America super hero face. 
More breaks for poses.
And still more posing. He doesn't even care about the other presents :)
We sure love our little three year old. He brings us entertainment and excitement every day. The last few days Captain America has gotten a break because he now has been running around with green pajama bottoms and does his best (loud) hulk roar. He'll also inform you that hulk does NOT wear a shirt, or shoes or socks. It's quite a struggle to convince him he needs to wear these things when we go to the store or anywhere else. Then as soon as we get home he strips and puts on his hulk pants. Trevor thought it would be funny to put green food coloring in the toilet once as he went, so he would think he was peeing like hulk or something. Jason figured out his little trick and insists that I get the food coloring every time he needs to go. I'll entertain this for a little longer, then maybe introduce a new super hero or something.
Christmas (both of them) were great! Here's a picture of our early Christmas. 
And for some reason I forgot the camera for the Christmas in Idaho with all the family around!! Nice. I had my phone so I got a couple with that, but none were very clear so I'm not posting them. Jason got sick as we were driving and continued to throw up the whole way there. Then Ashley also got sick so we spent most of the first day and a half in Idaho with a couple of sick kids. Also the day after we got back, Trevor and Tyler got sick. Along with Grandma and Grandpa. Good times. Still, it was worth it to see everyone and I'm glad the busy times have slowed down a bit!
Hello all!
I figured I’d better get my Christmas letter on the blog since I already mailed out the Christmas cards promising a yearly update to be posted here. Although, I guess if you wanted a more detailed update you could just read the rest of the blog…I digress.
This year has been amazing. We’ve had so many fun adventures and trips. We had a family vacation in C’ouer d’Alene. It was so beautiful and a lot of fun. Cliff and Lisa (Trevor’s brother and his wife) and family joined us for all the fun. We went waterskiing, to an amusement park, and visited Spokane.
Right after that trip, we took a trip to Texas to see some friends be sealed in the temple. While there, we stayed with my sister and husband (Amy and Bart) and family. It was a very fun trip and I LOVE getting to visit family! They kept us busy with fun things even in the record-breaking heat they were having…and it was HOT.
We took a trip (this time without the kids! Thanks Grandma Strupp!) to Bath, Illinois for their annual Redneck Fishing Tournament. We “fished” for Asian Carp. These are the fish that jump out of the water, many times right in the boat. The rules state you can’t take a fishing pole, only a net and a baseball bat—we just used nets… It was more fun than I ever thought possible.
We also went on our first cruise with my brother and his wife (Mike and Alicia). It was amazing, and I’m sure we’ll have to frequent the cruise ships more often. Although it’s probably not a good idea for the waistline…Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Madsen for watching the kids!!
Trevor is still loving work and Montana. He has been really busy this year with work, church callings and the kids and balances it all so well. He loved coaching Tyler’s basketball team so much last January that he’s doing it again this January. His new calling in the Elder’s Quorum keeps him on his toes, but once in awhile he’ll find some time to go hunting.
Kim loves being a mom. I love the different stages the kids are in and watching them learn and grow. I feel like I have a little more free time with just one child at home on school days. It’s weird going to the grocery store with just one kid. It’s wonderful! I still play in the city volleyball league. I was just called into the Young Women’s program at church and was able to go to camp with them this year. I still fill in a few times a month at Trevor’s office and LOVE being able to keep up the hygiene skills, but still stay home with the kids (kid) most of the time.
Tyler turned 8 this year. The highlight of his year was his baptism. He’s such a good kid and really likes school, basketball , swimming and cub scouts. He’s excited because he just got his wolf badge. He continues to be a wonderful big brother and loves to play and wrestle with Jason when he gets home from school. Jason really looks up to Tyler and always asks when we’re going to “pick up Tyler” from school. He also really likes to play his Nintendo DS, but isn’t too obsessive about it…yet.
Hailey just turned 7. She’s a VERY good helper and always asks if she can help me with anything. She finished her gymnastics class at the end of the school year in June and decided she didn’t want to take another class this fall. Instead she joined “Girls Running Club.” She told me the first day that she like it but it was “too much running.” She stuck it out, though and finished the season. Hailey is a sweet, sensitive, loving girl. She’s very responsible and I know when I ask her to do something, she’ll do it right away. She’s also going to be starting basketball in January. We’ll see how that goes.
Ashley is 5 years old. She started kindergarten this year and loves every minute of it. I was afraid she might get sick of it because it’s all day long. Nope. She probably wishes she could stay there after school, too. She loves her teacher and her friends at school. She loves the activities they get to do and the time they get to play at recess. She also opted not to take more gymnastics classes this fall but wants to join the basketball bandwagon like the rest of the kids.
Jason is 3 on the 22nd of this month. He’s finally potty-trained. Hurray! Once in awhile he’ll get to playing and not want to stop to use the bathroom, but I’m excited to not have ANY kids in diapers. He’s quite a little social boy and likes to talk to all the people at the grocery store and at church. He makes us laugh every day with the things he comes up with. Lately he’s really into Superheroes. Specifically Spiderman and Captain America. He wears his Spiderman costume almost every day since Halloween. He also has been watching “Super Hero Squad” every day for the past 2 weeks and runs around saying “Super-squadies, time to hero up!” He also WILL NOT wear his underwear the right way because the super heroes are on the back and he wants to see them. So he wears them backwards. Comfy.
We are so grateful for our Savior’s birth and atoning sacrifice. We count our blessings every day and are so thankful for our family and friends and the opportunities we have. Thank you so much for blessing us with your friendships. We love and miss you all so much!
Love,
The Strupps (Trevor, Kim, Tyler, Hailey, Ashley and Jason)
Holy cow. Seven years have past already?! I don't know how this happens.
Hailey's been such a good helper this last year. She's very responsible and I don't have to remind her about things. If I tell her once, she does it. She loves school and loves to learn. She's doing great learning how to read and always wants to spend her nights in bed reading books.
Hailey's favorite color is yellow or pink, she loves crepes and spaghetti, and she loves crafts and gymnastics. Her favorite movie is "Barbie Princess Charm School" and her favorite tv show is "Level Up." She's one of my tender-hearted children. :)
I love this little girl.
We had a couple of birthday parties this year for Hailey. We had a little family birthday party at our house on her birthday:
Then we had a birthday party with the kids in her class at the bowling alley the following weekend. That was an adventure. I understand the rule they have at school that if you bring invitations to hand out, the whole class needs to be invited. However, that makes for a lot of kids to handle. I figured a lot of them wouldn't be able to make it. But a lot of them WERE able to make it. Good times. I'm glad Trevor was able to come and help coral the children. They got bored of bowling pretty fast and then we had some pizza and cake and opened presents. Then played some games while waiting for some of the last parents to come. All in all it was a pretty fun time. I'm glad I have such a sweet little girl(s). :) Happy Birthday Hailey!!
The end of changing diapers, that is...so long as the "no more kids" idea sticks. (Although that was my mom's plan at 4, and she ended up with 3 more...)
YAY! I don't have to ask him every two seconds, either. He tells me. AND he goes #2 in the toilet. :) For a few days it was only #1 (no accidents there) but the other kind was a little touch and go. Now: no accidents for 3 days. And he even stays dry at night. Which is more than I can say for another child...
Anyway, he's very excited about his Spiderman underwear and tells everyone in the grocery store about it. He also has found the little hole in the front of his briefs and is a little obsessed.
The kids at the trunk or treat:
Tyler is a clone, Hailey is a witch, Ashley a dinosaur and Jason is Spiderman. They love Halloween. We got plenty of candy to get rid of, too.
