Santa was good to us......

The anticipation. Waiting for everyone to be ready has to be one of the hardest things to do on Christmas morning. The kids did a good job, I don't "think" anyone peeked. At our house everyone has to come down together, and how exciting to see all the wrapped gifts under the Christmas tree. I don't know who is more excited today?

We don't have very many traditions started yet within our little family other than eating cinnamon rolls and ripping open presents. But we spend it together and that is the most important thing to us!!!

I remember being a kid and not being able to sleep, worried Santa wouldn't have gotten our last request of what to bring us. Well, this year Santa didn't fall short of our little requests. Big, well deserved smiles were on all of our faces. Despite what some elves may say, "There is a Santa" and he did come.



Christmas was a little different to me this year, it definitely changed me and how I look at life. I realized this season what is important to me. I must choose what I believe in and believe in what I choose! I have to have the courage to stand for what is right and to not be ashamed of who we are. I fall short here sometimes, afraid of what others may think, but by doing this, where does it get me?? I am indeed grateful to my Father in Heaven for blessing me with an amazing husband and beautiful healthy children. They are on the right path, each of them and that could not make me happier! In truth, my little family is all I need. I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!

We had a "White Christmas" in Gilbert

We came Home to a BIG surprise this night! I do have to say, it was nice to know that "Someone" loved Us!!! I haven't tp'd, or been tp'd in, 15 yrs! To be young again. "A term of endearment" Oh to be loved. . . . .

And to love in return, I have to admit, we (me and Kim) hit first and hard! Hard belly laughs!!! Hiding from cars, trying not to get caught....what a rush. I honestly thought they had forgot, but what a better time of year to come home to a "white" yard.

Thank you "RASORS" Michelle, you always just know! Your kinda like my left roller skate, without my left roller skate I would just go crazy in circles! I could never, ever ask for a better FRIEND! You have been there for me, through thick and thin, you love me unconditionally, you understand who I am and who I want to become. You give me the strength each day to be a better mom. You are AMAZING, thank you for allowing me to be a part of your life. You are more than just a friend to me, You are Family!

Thanks for the Spirit of Christmas.....it only took a few hours to clean up!!!!! It will leave a lasting Memory!!!!! Oh yeah, getting caught is part of the fun!

For you Michelle...

Temple lights!!!

We have been to the temple lights a few times this year, and I have to say every time we have gone it has been good times, and good company! Theres nothing much better than a walk around the temple with people you love!

We went with the Rasors and the Footes, its great when your kids are friends with your friends kids.....

With Christmas coming so fast, sometimes we forget to stop and remember the reasons for this time of year. Today in our sacrament program, and I've heard this before but for some reason I heard it different today. When they came to the presents that the three wise men brought to Jesus, she explained what Frankincense and Myrrh was, and what they would come to represent! Frankincense is an oil that they used back then in the temples when they brought forth sacrifices. Myrrh is a perfume that they used on ones that had passed. Amazing how they would come to be so symbolic in Christ's life. The sacrifices that he made for us, then to go on and give his life for us! Two amazing gifts that he has given to us! Ones that I am so thankful for. And without, would give little meaning to this time of year. I know Christ lives, I know him to be my older Brother that I look up to and hope to be like. I love him with all of my heart, and am so grateful for the gifts that he has given me. I challenged my kids to serve others from now until Christmas, to always be looking for ways we could give back, to serve!

Merry Christmas....

Sweet smell of VICTORY!

It was a fun quick season of soccer!!! These kids did a great job of staying on top of the ball every game, giving them a 6win - 1tie season. Their last game was the most challenging game of all. The other team, we had once tied, came back to fight for the WIN.....when in the end.....We WON 3-2!!! Very exciting game....all of us crazy soccer moms were up on our feet, screaming for the "Blue Sharks" I'll have to say it brought out the competitive side of me!!! The ref was tough on our kids....and we still pulled it off in the last 2 min of the game. What ever happened to a good ol game of not keeping score?! (ha ha) I got into it with the ref at half time....not like me at all until it comes to my kid!!!! Every time we got close to a goal, their goaly would run half way across the field and grab the ball with their hands.....come on ref?!

Fun times, and good friends.

Something to smile about!!!

Our Baby is ONE! And what a fun day! Matix started standing up last night, doing better and better every time he tries. Dylan was determined to continue the tradition of each child taking their first step on their 1st Bday......at 11:30 I made him go to bed. No luck, but he did stand.

Matix is such a sweet baby. Our family is truly blessed to have his spirit in our home. He is so even tempered, and mellow. He is a great sleeper, what every mother dreams of. He loves to be cuddled, but when he's too tired he likes to stretch out and do it on his own.

This little boy and his dad have an amazing bond. For some reason Matix would chose Da Da over Mom any day, any time. I think dad has brainwashed him. They seem to just get along so well. So fun to see, and I don't really really mind.

Matix has blessed my life in so many ways. I could never imagine where I would be today if it wasn't for him. What a wonderful day to remember and thank my Heavenly Father for sending him to me when he did! I honestly believe he was sent to save my life. He came into this world with so many watchful eyes, so many prayers when we were early on. We were so eager to meet you, you are truly a miracle. I believe he has a great and divine purpose to full fill while here on earth. I love you so much Matix. You are truly a gift from God, and what better time of year to celebrate your birth.

Light Parade!

The kids marched in the Chandler light parade....so much fun! They won "Judges Choice" Big huge compliment!!! I know I say it all of the time but...dance has been soo good for my family! London continues to grow leaps and bounds in personality and dance. Still shy, but loving every min of it. Kaden can shake his groove thing. Dylan to, he has just chosen to focus on sports with a little recreational dance. Which is ok!

This was a fun way to really kick off the the christmas season. Good fun friends and family is always a bonus!!!

"Bite ME"

The excitement, the anticipation. I was worried that "Twilight" wasn't going to be as good as I wanted and hoped for. Well I am not much of a critic, I don't overanalize, I show up for the popcorn, so I guess you could say my standards weren't set to high!! The race to finish listening to the audio book was on....I couldn't go to sleep with out my I pod in my ear. Brad thought he would be funny and turn it to music, full blast just when he would notice me starting to drift. It wasn't the volume hunny, it was that every time I lost my place it would take me hours to get back where I left off. It was pretty sad when the boy at the sonic drive thru window said to me, "Your friend was just here".....what. And as he points to his ear (I had my one plug in) "What are you guys listening to, and how many of there are you" As he handed me my "free" soda, I laughed, and realized how dumb we must look?!

Dumb is when you blush at silly movies about VAMPIRES!!!! When the whole audience is wahooin as the Cullen's come on the screen for the first time......and you and several others are all sportin the "I love Edward" t-shirts. Thank you girls for making this so much fun. And the movie was great.....Michelle and I took Brad and Joe to see it that very same night. It wasn't quite the same, sorry boys!! I think they were a little embarrassed when we let out our hoops and holla's.

How do we know the difference?

I know I have said it over and over again, but I love this kid. He has such a tender side to him. One I have never witnessed before first hand. Yesterday was one of those spiritual learning days for me. To some it may sound silly, but at the end of the day, as I lay there holding this sweet, tear filled emotional boy, I couldn't help but wonder what my life would honestly be like without him in it. I tremble at the thought of life being so fragile, so short and so, important.

We loaded up the car yesterday morning and headed to the hospital with Dylan. He was to have surgery to remove his tonsils and adenoids. A simple procedure, I knew, but for some reason....my emotions, my feelings were horrifying. How does one know the difference between cold feet and the spirit? I may never know. I kept telling myself as long as we were prayerful, the spirit would make it known to us what to do. Let me back up and say that we had cancelled the surgery once before because two days prior we found out he had pneumonia. Many had brought to my attention how worn down and tired he had been for quite awhile, and I just thought it was the sleep apnea taking a tole on him. We did everything we could to get him better so we wouldn't have to cancel again.....so many trips to the doctor. (and I am not like that) We knew he was doing soo much better, almost, pretty much over it all.....but no clearance from a doctor. I KNEW if I mentioned pneumonia, they would send us home. In my heart did I think he was ready.....I guess not, because hours later, as they were getting ready to take him back, I opened my mouth. My terrifying thought was, what if something was going wrong, and not telling them what I knew was the 15 seconds they needed to help him!!! Dumb I know. No life is worth the risk, and as Dylan lay there full of emotion (so much like his mom) I knew that this little boy had WAY too much to offer the world for us to make such a careless mistake. Whether it be the spirit or medicine...I learned a huge lesson yesterday.

My thoughts out loud.

"On the Good days I live, and on the Bad days I learn." Its soo hard being a kid, cuz I am sooo grown up. (ha ha) I am far from wise. But I realized today that I am proud of being old-er!!! Not smarter, we all know that before long my kids are going to be teaching me. But, I am okay with being where I am. I Love to learn, and with each new grey hair, comes knowledge. Sometimes we are challenged to be the bigger person, and today I was asked, "But why do I have to be the bigger person??" Because that is one thing this life is about, being Christ like, being the bigger person. And as I said that, I questioned myself. Am I doing all I can to be Christ like? It saddens me to see so much heartache, so many people faced with trials, where this world is going. And I sound like my mom! But, I know if we do all we can, challenge ourselves to be the bigger person, to reach out to someone in need, we will be blessed. Give of yourself, when you don't think that you can, cuz all that you do is bound to come back to you. In the end it comes down to "How you Lived!"

I lOVe these Kids!!!

(click here)My friend was so gracious to come over and capture a few (ha ha) pictures of my darling Kids!!! These are just a very few! Its crazy how it catches their very personality. I love these kids with all of my HEART and I don't know what I would do without each and everyone of them.They each bring something different and unique to the Family. I Pray that I will be able to hold them close as long as I possibly can, then when the time comes for them to spread their wings, I hope I taught them well.

Sea World

I don't care how old you are, you are never too old to enjoy Sea World! Kaden, Dylan and I sat right up front at the Shamu Show. The warning was there, "You Will Get Wet!" And we did. Salty and Cold!!! But it was well worth it.

We had a blast! There wasn't anything we didn't see. The kidos loved the Sharks!!! We couldn't get them out of the shark tunnel. Thanks to Grandma Karen, we were able to enjoy and very nice and fun weekend in San Diego. We were there for the wedding, and even though it was a quick trip, we got to do and see alot. The kids loved the beach so much, it was as if they had never seen one before.

This is how you do it dawg!

Hey little ma ma how'd you get so Funky!!! And when did she grow up? My baby girl is growing up so fast. This weekend London and Kaden danced at Schnepf Farms! I cried (as did a few others I know) when I saw how amazingly beautiful my children are. I am emotional, its no secret! But when I saw London walk on the stage, I was overwhelmed with excitement. Anyone who knows her, knows how shy she is. Okay, she is selectively shy. Just last June she went out on the stage, and I think she might have bounced once, maybe twice. She has come a long long ways in just 4 short months. Baby steps, each time we do something, we get better each time. And thats all we strive for, love and encouragement will work wonders. Some may think I am crazy for involving my children so much so young, but for me, it is sooo much more. I grew up dancing, it was always my dream to have kids that would love the same things I did. The confidence they build through dancing is, to me, amazing. And I love music and I love Dancing, even though I cant shake it like I use to (I do a mean Kitchen Dance) I guess I can confess that I am living through them somewhat.
Kaden has been dancing with the boys crew for just under a month, and they pulled it together and stole the show!!! Kaden was sooo stinkin cute....he kept up with the big boys. They are all a bit older than him, but I think I have said it before, Kaden has got some groove. And he loves it. He has improved leaps and bounds in just the last few weeks, a mothers joy. Okay, and we are proud, but aren't we aloud to be. They hold our

heArTs!!! He watches the older boys, and soaks it all in. They are all making me so proud, they are all coming out of their shy shells in one way or another. They all have amazing teachers. We couldn't be happier anywhere else.

I can not forget Dylan. He is taking classes also. But you know Dylan, sweet and shy. He loves to dance, but he is holding back a little, don't know why. Maybe he is just waiting for that perfect time to WOW us. Oh wait, he already does. In everything he does.....he is my angel. I think he's holding out for Football! I am good with that. With them being so close in age to each other, I think they need to grow up supporting one another, and being different. I would love to see them encourage each other, not compete.

Tagged.....

Michelle tagged me....I had to go into my pictures and pull out my third file eight pic and post it. I guess it could have been worse. This was our trip to Mexico with the Rasors and the Mowers a couple of years ago. I couldn't stop with just this one (by the way this would not have been the one I would have picked) self portraits are never good. So lets take a trip down good ol memory lane while we are here. We went to the aquarium, lots of fun, we lost london on the way out. I had never been soo horribly scared in my whole entire life. So much time had gone by and I thought for sure she was long gone, carried off by a stranger. Cute little blonde's are a treat down there, good luck I've learned. We found her, she was hiding back behind the turtles. We had looked there many times, the place was empty! Mothers worst nightmare!! But besides that, so so much fun.

We can not forget the DOG FISH......with the big old warning sign.....fish bites. Yeah right they wouldn't have it in an open tank if it bit....or would they. Ask Clayton....the darn thing practically jumped out of the water, he must not have liked your shirt...or he was just trying to say to you, "here's your sign"

While we are remembering......you CAN NOT forget all of the sweet smelling POOP!!!!! Michelle, you remember it all. Lets see there was our tank with no water....stink, stink, and all Brad had to say was good luck we gotta get on the road. (He was heading home) All of the dump pipes started overflowing.... you had to be there to appreciate the hard belly laughs!!!!! (High tide maybe) Michelle thought she could get rid of hers before, well I'm not quite sure what she thought. I love you Michelle....lets just say it was a really big mess, and the dogs (not ours) thought it was snack time. We enjoyed watching the crusty ladies dog chow down then run home to open arms and kisses....ha ha....if she had only not taken the good mango's away from us...cutter...we wouldn't have let him lick her whole face before we let her know what he had been up to. Cleaning or dumping the poo tanks are never ever fun....but there is always a good story. After the back up problem got resolved, someone in the camp, we wont say who, put a hose down the crapper to get it good and clean.....and lets just say it was like Niagara falls coming out the front door!!!! We laugh NOW. right Michelle. GOOD times, ones we will never forget.

Now feel free to play along........

Misty, Stacey, Kris Ann, Amy, Tenneal

A priceless moment.

Holli and Lee got MARRIED on Monday in La Jolla CA. London was lucky enough to be their flower girl. As if getting married on a beach isn't romantic enough, everyone was in tears. You can judge a wedding by how many people cry.....and if you have an ugly crier in the audience, you know it rocked. You can call me a sap, I was a mess. London did sooo good. For anyone who knows her, knows how stinkin shy she is. When we got there she said to me "mom I am not doing this!!!" My biggest fear was coming true, and then out of no where she headed up the stairs to line up with Savanna. When I saw her coming down the stairs looking like a little bride, I bawled.


I envisioned the day she was to be married.....and it made me so sad. We don't get them for very long. They are growing up so fast right before our very eyes. We need to cherish every moment that we have with them. They are so fragile, and so sweet. The are soo eager to learn. I pray that throughout this life I can be the example that this little girl needs, a friend, a mom she can look up to. Teach them while they are young. Hold them in your arms, and on your laps as long as you can. And when the are ready to spread their wings and fly, Love them.