Think you're tired?

Sam might want to dis-own me in a few years because I put up these pictures but she will get over it!

Surprise!

My sister, Vera, is the "cool aunt". Everyone knows that. If it wasn't for the fact that I know she really does love her nieces and nephews I would think she is just trying to make us look bad.

Since she lives a long 13 hour drive from us we don't get to see her very often and we really miss her.

She flew out this last weekend and surprised the kids. They had no idea. I made up every excuse in the book as to why Tyler couldn't go to his wrestling tournament and they had to get their chores done on Friday instead of Saturday and why they couldn't have friends over, etc. Her flight got in about 9:30 Friday night so Joe and I went to go buy black thread (which I really did run out of) and pick her up. It was probably the best surprise I have ever been a part of.

It was a great weekend spent with family. My Mom and Dad came over on Saturday. It was nice to have dinner with them then a quick escape to get ice cream without kids. It is not often we get to hang out and chat with them with out kids around.

I know it was a sacrifice for her to leave her business (She is a funeral director ie. mortician and owns and runs her own funeral home. Well, two of them actually) and come spend the weekend with us. It is a memory that our kids will have forever.


These are the only two pictures I have of the surprise. My camera takes a long time to think, so by the time I took one picture it was too late to get any one's reaction. Veronica was babysitting so Vera got a picture of her when she walked in the door.
Here is handsome Tyler in his new suit that Grandma and Grandpa got him for his birthday and Vera and a few if the family.

Birthday Boy

Note to self: I need to stock up on birthday candles. A package of candles used to last us forever but now it seems like every single birthday we are running to the neighbors asking to borrow a few candles.

Tyler turned 12 last week.

Wow.

Tyler loves to wrestle, play football and go hunting and camping, pretty much anything outside. He is always messing around with and teasing his sisters, dad, and friends.
He is a good kid who tries hard to be a good example to those around him.

It is an interesting thing watching your kids grow up. It can be trying, emotional and the hardest thing to watch them struggle and try to be patient and loving yet firm with them. Trying to find that middle ground and teach them boundaries but still give them room to figure things out on their own is hard I am learning.
Yet, it is also the most rewarding experience I have had as a parent so far. Those times when they are doing well and you can see progress in them and a little glimpse of the person they might become fills you with a mix of pride and extreme gratitude at the same time.

Happy Birthday Tyler!






He goes to wrestling practice from 5-7 and Joe left to go to work at 6 so we sang a quick happy birthday to him and had him blow out his candles on his way out the door. If I have taught my kids nothing, at least I have taught them a proper love of cheesecake. The real New York type of cheesecake. His choice this year? Layered Pumpkin Pie Toffee Cheesecake. It was heavenly.

I hope no moms get mad at me for posting their kids' picture on my blog. I almost didn't post these pictures for that reason but these pictures just exemplify Tyler perfectly. He had some friends over to celebrate his birthday and they ended up doing a doggy pile on him.

15 and counting

Joe and I celebrated 15 years of marriage last month. I love anniversaries. I love the week leading up to our anniversary. It is fun to look back on the years, especially the times that we were dating and engaged. It really has been an incredible 15 years and I could not ask for someone I would rather spend it with.
We wanted to do something fun and different to do so we were so excited when we got the chance to go to the U of U game a few days after our anniversary (Thanks again, Alma and Matti!) It was a quick trip up to SLC and back but so, so good. It was nice to spend the day driving and chatting.





Check out our shirts that I made for the game. It was a blackout game so we needed black shirts. I bought our shirts for $4.00 each and made the rest on my Silhouette machine (how i love that little toy)!

Party Time

It is time for a little pity party, want to join? Most things in life it does no good to complain, but every once in a while it is nice to just let it all out, have a good cry and then move on.
MY TIME IS NOW.
Here is the deal. I exercise faithfully 5 days a week. An hour each time. Not just a little walk. We are talking about spinning (cycling) classes, kick-boxing classes, running, weight training, etc. I drink plenty of water and eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies.
Joe exercises a little, a 1-3 times a week, and eats whatever and gets plenty of soda. Yes. Carbonation and caffeine.
Joe decides it is time to loose weight. First off, I am so proud of him. He is doing awesome and working so hard. But...SO AM I, darn-it!
He pours himself a cup of milk, adds a little extra. I pour myself a cup of milk and give myself a little less. When I say a serving of this is 5 or 6 "points" he counts it as six, I count it as 5.
He looses 5 lbs a week for 3 weeks. I lose....well, not near that much.
Time for desperate measures. I decide to start running, adding in 3 extra workouts a week. Just short 25 min ones, but it should be enough to make a difference, right?!
No.
Lets just say that my rolls just really like where they live. You know what? I don't care anymore. I am healthy and I exercise. My body is strong and healthy and that is what is important.
Want to know how Joe is doing? He is doing awesome! I think he has lost 41 lbs now and I am so proud of him!
That's it for my pity party, thanks for coming!

Fall 2011

Wow, October is over already. Hmmmmm. Time to post about our Halloween activities!
Traditionally we get the kids all dressed up, take pictures, then all go as a family out to Joe's parents neighborhood trunk or treat but it just didn't happen this year. As the kids all got home from school, they kind of made plans go out with their friends, got homework done, dressed up and took off. And in the chaos of it all, I forgot to take pictures of them before they left.
Veronica didn't dress up for Halloween but dressed up on two different occasions as a pirate. I really wish I had a picture of her because she looked so cute!
Tyler was a homeless person. He and his friend made him a sign that said "will wok for candee".
Sam was a gypsy. She had so much fun planning her cute costume and it turned out cute but most of her friends had no idea what a gypsy was!
Brenna chose to be a witch and Braelynn was The Little Mermaid. It was so weird only getting those two dressed up and out trick or treating.



We made our annual trip out to the pumpkin patch. We always have a good time picking pumpkins and reminiscing about years past and the fun memories we have there. My favorite? The year that Brenna chose a rotten pumpkin first thing and carried that pumpkin around the whole time. We could not convince her to get a different one. So fun. You can read about it here.
And, as always, you have to be able to lift up your pumpkin by yourself before we can take it home.







And you have to carve those pumpkins. We almost didn't have time to do it this year. It seems like the older the kids get the harder it is to find time to do things as a family.

Storytime and Show and Tell

I have wanted to post about this for a long time but it was a little too close to my heart, too personal. Try to think about this in mom-mode. About one of your kids that you know needs something but you don't have a way to provide for that need. About how fervent your prayers for that child can be and then when the answer, the sweet, sweet answer comes and you know that it was an answer to prayers and you get that knowledge re-confirmed in your heart that Heavenly Father knows and loves YOU.
That He not only cares about your needs but your wants also.
I had felt for about a year that Samantha needed something. She sort of gets "lost in the shuffle" sometimes no matter how hard we try not to let that happen. She needed to do something that she was good at, that she excelled at. That no one else in the family does. Something that she could feel good about, that could boost her self-esteem and give her a sense of pride and accomplishment. If you know Sam you know that she is very animated and bubbly and fun and energetic. She also loves to sing and is very good at it. She even takes her little sisters and teaches them to sing songs with her. They look like her backup singers. I will have to record them someday.
You may remember me posting about this singing group Brenna and Braelynn participated in last year as a part of their preschool. As soon as I saw it I knew that she needed to be a part of something like that.
Problem: Not matter what I did, how I budgeted or sacrificed or did without, there would be no way to put that in the family budget that was already stretched thin.
Fast forward about 5 months, and many prayers later I was talking to Holly one day and she mentioned that she likes to do trades! It just so happened that she needed shirts made for the costumes to match the ones she already had. It worked out perfectly. I paid for the supplies and sewed in exchange for the tuition.

Now for the show and tell. We could not find material that matched the previous color so we went with similar material but a different color. We also did not have a pattern for the shirts so I made my own pattern. I have sewn for years and have made simple patterns but never to this extent. Guess what?! I did it! I took the shirts and made a pattern, adjusting for seam allowances and different sizes. I am happy with how they turned out and am excited to see them on the girls.
Now back to sewing, I have one more to finish...