My Boy is 11!

Kason turned 11 years old last week. How is it possible that I have an 11 year old? I can't figure that out....since I am sure that I am still 25 :)

I love the excitement a birthday brings for kids. Don't you remember that as a kid you would make sure everyone knew you were 10 1/2 and not just 10? Or, that it was your birthday in 2 months and you would be 11? Funny that as adults we no longer do the count down!

Kason had been counting down the days to his birthday for weeks.

He woke up ecstatic to open presents, go to school, and then celebrate his birthday with dinner and bowling.

I love this "big boy" so much!

He has a wonderful spirit about him, and I am amazed by his wisdom everyday.

He has a sensitivity for others' feelings that not many other people possess.

He has a drive to be the very best at whatever he does.

He loves all sports, especially basketball, soccer, and baseball!

He loves to watch the Utah Jazz with his Dad at night - in fact, he sneaks out of bed at night(when he is supposed to be asleep)to finishing watching with his Dad...and I usually don't know:)

He loves music....even the piano (although he doesn't admit it).

He is extremely responsible and takes great care in following instructions that are given....this makes him an excellent babysitter!

He loves his sisters and brother with all of his heart - and they love him back!

He has a special relationship with Braden....they just "get each other", and it is so heartwarming to watch.

He is very inquisitive and has been since he could talk.

He asks very good questions....and keeps asking more until he feels satisfied with the answer.

He is so extremely honest. His innate sense of wrong and right is amazing!

He is a great friend.

He respects girls (even though some boys at school make fun of him for opening a door for a girl)

He gives his coat to girls when they don't have one and are cold....(seriously, I love this boy!)

He wants to be "doing something" constantly. In fact, he knows what is on the calendar before I do - he is my "human calendar".

Kason, thank you for making me a mother. You are a wonderful person, and I am so proud of you. You make our family complete in every way. I love you so much! Happy Birthday

Halloween, Birthday, Thanksgiving (in that order)

Since I am so far behind in blogging....my list keeps getting bigger and bigger of things I need to write down....I am just going to do a "bulk blog"!

I realized I haven't even posted Halloween pictures! I am not a huge fan of this holiday....I think it would be fun, if I would actually take the time to plan out costumes. But, who are we kidding, costuming five kids is a lot of work!

So here is the end product :


Kason was a rapper, Jaicee a doctor, Halle a pirate, Braden was Spiderman, and Ava a butterfly.
The picture with all of the kids is the cousins on Brandon's side....can you believe how many there are? 20 kids, all under the age of 11! Nice picture of my Dad as a beautiful butterfly! (Sorry for always doing collages....my great friend Sherine got me hooked! )

Next up was my birthday. Somehow, it is just not as exciting to have a birthday as when you were a kid. (go figure?) I did however, get to spend it with Jaicee at a benefit dance concert called "Art with Heart". She did a great job and I was so proud of her. I even got in a little shopping and lunch with some other "dance moms". And, I went out the night before with my hubby for a yummy dinner and Christmas shopping! A pretty great weekend!!




And last, but not least....one of my favorite holidays - Thanksgiving. I love to get together with family and eat to your heart's content. And, boy did we ever do that! It was even better because my sister Sharielle and her family were here for the event. We all got to meet sweet little Sloan.


It is so fun to have babies with your sisters....nothing much better than that.

The food was great, and the company even better!!

Oh yeah, and we got to watch the annual Dallas Cowboys Thanksgiving football game. This is Brandon's favorite part of the day!

And if we didn't eat enough on Thanksgiving Day, we were at Brandon's parents the next day to eat even more. (We even got in our annual Thanksgiving football game that day.)

All in all, it has been a fulfilling last month....now let the holidays officially start!

The Happiest Place on Earth....Part 2

Disneyland was definitely the highlight of our trip. But on the days we didn't go to Disneyland, we still had a great time.

We went swimming....(why is it so fun as a child to go swimming at a hotel?)




We shopped at Downtown Disney. Braden just died when he saw all of the "Buzz Lightyear" and "Cars" items that were everywhere. He just started loading his hands, saying "I want dis and dis and dis........". He ended up getting Buzz Lightyear pjs. He wanted them on immediately - and didn't want to take them off....ever!

We went to see High School Musical 3 at a new theater across the street from Disneyland. The movie was great, because there was NO ONE ELSE IN THE THEATER! The kids thought we had bought out the show for them. They could talk, laugh, run around, and kick the seat in front of them as much as they would like. That is my kind of movie theater experience!




We also took a trip to the beach. Who can beat a day of basking in the hot California sun, while playing in the sand, and listen to the waves. Doesn't get much better than that! (We did have to convince our kids that there were NO SHARKS before they would get in the water).

We saw this in the sky the day before election day. Pretty cool.....



It says "Save Traditional Marriage".....a plane left this in its wake.


We had one more surprise on the last day of our trip.......



Oh, how I LOVE Wicked! I have seen it twice, and I wanted Brandon and the kids to see it. My kids love the music and know all the words (you should here Braden sing "Popular"), and are always asking when they can see the "real live play".

They loved every second. I stayed at the hotel with Braden and Ava while Brandon took them. I wish I could have seen their faces while they were watching it. Needless to say, they couldn't stop talking about it when they got home. (It did take 2 hours to drive there - when it was only 30 miles away....love California traffic).



And, I had to add in a collage of "Disneyland foods". Do you ever wonder why a churro, pickle, cotton candy, etc. just taste so much better in Disneyland? It is because you are paying gourmet prices....so they better be gourmet!



So, if you want a fabulous family vacation....head to Disneyland in November. It was definitely one we will always remember!

The Happiest Place on Earth.....Part 1

Since I was little I have always LOVED Disneyland! It is a magical place that I could never get enough of. Since having my own kids, I love it even more.

I want to go every month

But Brandon doesn't!

In fact, he doesn't seem to catch the magic like I do. Granted, the last experience we had was at Disney World two summers ago....it was HOT (95 degrees, and 95 percent humidity), and so crowded! Heat and crowds are two things that make Disney World/Land not very fun! So, I reassured him that this time would be better.

And it was PERFECT!!

Our kids didn't know....we surprised them. We told them we were going to St. George for a week. We stayed over in St. George....and the next morning we told them we were going to Las Vegas. 6 1/2 hours later (don't drive to Calif. on Sunday...apparently everyone is coming home from a weekend of gambling in Sin City) we arrived. The kids were not happy we had decided to go to Vegas....it took way too long!

But, bunkbeds in the hotel room solved everything!

I can't believe Kason didn't read any signs or notice where we were. I guess because it was dark, and being distracted by a movie in the car helped!

The next morning we told the kids we weren't in Vegas....but actually California! There faces were priceless. They were ecstatic! The first words out of their mouths were "We are going to DISNEYLAND!"

Nothing is better than totally surprising your kids! It is worth every dollar just for their reaction.

Oh, what a time we had....it was beautiful weather (75 degrees and sunny); and completely uncrowded. We were walking on to almost every ride.

Like I said, It was perfect. Even Brandon said so!

I planned for meltdowns with the kids. But, they didn't ever occur.....I think the "no line waiting" was the reason.

So here is an onslaught of pictures to document the fun!

Braden's favorite rides were Buzz Lightyear, Monsters' Inc., and the new Toy Story ride. I think he rode Buzz Lightyear and Monsters Inc 25 times each. One time he rode Monsters Inc 6 times in a row! Like I said....no lines!

All of the characters. We bought autograph/picture books for the younger kids. They loved it and now they have their very own scrapbook. I recommend doing this if you have little ones!

I will post more of the rest of the trip in a coming blog. We were in California for a full week! Nothing better than being with your kids (no school or other commitments interrupting) and your husband (no work or hobbies interrupting) for a whole week!

Just a note....if you need a great workout try chasing your 5 and 3 year old in "Tarzan's Treehouse" with a 5 month old and 2 cameras in tow. There are a ton of steps in the "Tarzan Treehouse", and 5 and 3 year olds can run much faster than I can! I was seriously so sore the next day...my thighs were on fire. We went up and down the treehouse multiple times while waiting for the big kids who were on Indiana Jones.

Overachieving

I have been taught since I was very little to always do my best in anything I did. Always go the extra mile, do the extra credit, leave things better than I found them, and make sure to do more than was asked of me.

I think this was something that my parents did a good job instilling in me.

I feel like as I have gotten older I have not been able to do this very well....I wish I could go the "extra mile" a little more! It somehow seemed easier to do this when I was younger. ( I must be getting tired!)

But, I have found something that I have definitely "overachieved" in this year:

Anyone else have their Christmas lights up already?


Have you had them up for a few months.....just being extra prepared for the holiday season?


Did you make sure you got them up before the snowstorms come?


Anyone else have such a wonderful husband, that you didn't even have to ask, beg and plead to put the Christmas lights up this year??


Well, we have definitely gone the extra mile in this department, because our lights are up! (I am so happy to see that all of my parent's hard work has not gone by the wayside!)



Just don't tell anyone that we didn't even take them down from last year! Seriously...can you believe that. Brandon just kept rationalizing it by saying that we would be the first in the neighborhood to have our lights up - and the lights are clear - so no one notices them! What?


I am glad I don't have to beg and plead this year to have him put them up. It looks like the problem is going to be begging and pleading for him to take them down! :)

Birthday Boy

Braden turned three last week. Of course, I am a week behind. He has been waiting so patiently for his birthday to come. Brandon and Jaicee's birthdays were last month - and it was so hard for him to understand that it wasn't quite his birthday.

He was so excited when he woke up the morning of his birthday. He just kept saying "It's Braden's spiderman birthday." (He has been telling me he wanted a "red spiderman" birthday for weeks.)

We had our traditional "candle in the pancake" breakfast. He has been practicing this for weeks also!







It was killing him to wait until Brandon got home to open presents....but he made it! Some of his favorite things were his spiderman fishing pole, spiderman hat and gloves, and his "cars" racetrack. He also got a spiderman scooter from Grandma Nae and Papa Jer that he loves.

He picked his favorite spot for a birthday dinner.....a gourmet restaurant, with a playset....Carls Jr!

Grandma Debbie and Papa Bruce took him to "Build A Bear", and he thought he was in heaven. He spotted the Spiderman bear right off - and couldn't think of anything else. He wanted that bear!

His cousin Max (whose is two weeks older) came too. They loved it!

Thanks Papa and Grandma!

Braden you are a wonderful little boy and I love so many things about you.

I love that you are so polite. You have always said thank you and please from the time you could talk. I especially love your reply that you always give of "Thank you really much Mom" (said with such true sincerity).

I love that you adore your big brother Kason. You wait for him to come home from school and follow him from the minute he arrives.

I love that you run around the house in your spiderman, batman, superman costumes and say "SUPERMAAAAN" (No matter what superhero you have on).

I love that you said after getting on the scale this morning..."Mom, I growing bigger. Now I can go to the mountains with Dad, and hunt moose and bear!" (Seriously, like father like son)!

I love that you say "I wuv you Mom. Bye" as you are running out of the room.

I love that you are so excited every time your Dad gets home from work! No matter if he has only been gone for 1 hour, your reaction is the same. You scream "Daddy!!" and run to his arms.

I love that you wake up in the morning and immediately ask "where's my daddy?" When I say that he is at work, you reply "Daddy at work making lots of money?" Then your next reply is "I want my Daddy back!"

You are a climber...not so sure I always love that part, because it is so dangerous. You climb everything from tables to pantry shelves, to columns on the front porch. You are too coordinated for your own good.

I love that you say "wipe my drippin eyes" when you have been crying. You want me to wipe your tears off of your face with both of my hands (not just one). Funny thing is your big bro Kason said this same thing when he was your age! So crazy!

You are a special spirit, my litle Braden bug. I love the happiness and pure joy you add to our family. Happy "spiderman" Birthday to you!

And I had to add a few pictures of this sweet baby! She is 4 1/2 months and growing like a weed. She is my chubby ball of happiness with thighs that have endless rolls. (Seriously, I will have to post a picture - it is amazing!) And I love every square inch of her to pieces.

Afternoon of Pampering

What do 12 little girls want to do for a birthday party.......

Get their hair and nails done, of course!

Jaicee had a great time at her birthday party. All the girls got their hair done into a beautiful "do", and their nails painted with their favorite colors! It was a perfect 8 year old birthday party. (Great for Mom too, because all of the entertaining was taken care of).

Dancing makes me happy!

I was able to go to "So You Think You Can Dance" with my sister and sisters-in-law a couple of weeks ago.

I have decided that there aren't many activities that make me as a happy as watching this amazing art form. The human body is incredible....and when you add that with music - it is magic.

I have always loved to dance, but I think as I have gotten older and cannot do exactly what I used to do, I love it even more. It brings joy to my heart whether I am the one dancing, or watching someone else dance. I just love it!

So it was especially fun watching these amazing dancers dance for 3 straight hours. Pure entertainment.

Me, Shaundee, Cyndy, Jess (love the binocs), and Celesta

Beautiful extentions ladies!

And I got to enjoy it with great company! Thanks girls for a fun night!

Kids Really Do Say The Darndest Things!

I love Primary and get the great opportunity to do sharing time (teaching all of the children in our church under the age of 12) every few months. This past month our theme was on prayer. I was teaching the kids about the Prophet Enos from the Book of Mormon.

I held a picture up of Enos and asked if anyone knew who this was.

A child in the back raised her hand and answered: "That is Enos."

"Right", I said, "This is the prophet Enos" (pointing to the picture)

And then I heard this statement from a little 7 year old boy on the front row: "What?, The prophet penis??" (With a very confused look on his face)

"No, the prophet E.N.O.S!" I repeated quickly

It was all I could do to not fall to the ground with laughter. Luckily, only his teacher and a couple of other younger kids heard him say it....so I was able to quickly move on.

I had the biggest smile on my face for the rest of the sharing time - and couldn't quit hearing this hilarious statement being repeated over and over in my head.

So, for all of you parents out there that teach your children the proper anatomical terms for their body parts.....Great Job!

I will just make sure I don't teach about the Prophet Enos for a while, or at least enunciate his name a little better next time!

Another Cousin

I just realized that I never posted a picture of my little sister's new baby girl. Sloan was born September 15th at 9 lbs! That is right....we (Shar and I) must feed our babies ice cream in the womb! Shar and baby are doing great (except for a nasty breast infection) and I am so ecstatic that she has entered mommyhood!

I am definitely so sad that I cannot love that baby....hurry home Shar!

She's Eight!

Jaicee turned 8 years old on Saturday. She has been looking forward to this birthday for a very long time. She was lucky enough to be able to be baptized on her birthday also, which made the day so very special for her.

The day started with Jaicee extra excited to open her presents. She jumped out of bed and ran downstairs to start the fun. Her favorite present was a school kit that I put together for her. (Thanks to Lisa for the great idea.) Jaicee and Halle play "school" everyday...so to have everything in one box is heavenly to her! She also loved her "littlest pet shop" toys and "webkinz". Jaicee was such a kind sister, and let Braden open many of her presents...because he thinks every day is his birthday!

After opening presents, it was time for the traditional birthday breakfast of pancakes...with a candle in it! The kids look forward to this every year. (Such little things make them happy).





We then headed to the church for her special day. Jaicee was so excited, but also a little nervous. She kept asking her dad to explain exactly what was going to happen.

Jaicee and Brandon just before her baptism. Gotta love the white jumpsuit look!

The whole family

The baptism was beautiful. Jaicee was beaming with excitement afterwards. I loved the pure look of joy on her face, and wish I could bottle that memory up. It is a wonderful moment to see your daughter make a very important choice in their life, such as this.

After the baptism we had a lunch with all of the family, and then we began the birthday celebration. However we couldn't really celebrate until after Kason's soccer game and the youth duck hunt that Brandon took Kason and Braden on.

I know, I don't like the fact that he is holding a shotgun either! He did just pass "hunters safety" if that counts for anything!

Not so sure Braden likes this "hunting thing"

So, by 8:30 pm it was time for the birthday dinner. Jaicee picked Artic Circle. Seriously, out of all of the places she could go - I love that she still wants to go to a place with slides and ice cream!

I love my Jaicee for so many reasons. She is a great big sister, and cares so much for her brothers and sisters. She has a sensitivity for others, loves life, and has a "mothering" capability that not many have. She has a wonderfully free spirit and zest for life.

Jaicee has a sparkle in her eyes that is apparent to everyone around her. I love looking into them...crystal blue, intelligent, and pure. I am so proud of the choice she has made this day. I love you Jaicee with all my heart!

Christmas Cards

Look at this great offer! Free Christmas card design....this is no joke! I love Christmas cards, but don't love having to creatively design them myself. I love when I can find others with these wonderful talents to benefit from. Go check out the offer here!

Happy Birthday.....How about some stitches??

Thursday was Brandon's birthday! He was able to celebrate by going to work, and of course playing basketball at lunch like he always does a couple of times a week. I love that he plays - it keeps him in shape, he loves it, and he is good at it! However, today was an eventful day of basketball. Look at this:

Just a little pick up game you might ask? Oh no, it might as well be the NBA championship game with how competitive these boys are. This happened when Brandon was diving (yes, diving at 35 yrs old) for the loose basketball. He hit heads with another very competitive player (aka his cousin Jeremy) and came out with this nasty gash. (Jeremy was unscathed)




Since Brandon loves getting family pictures so much (not!), I had scheduled family pictures with a great photographer for a birthday present :). He called me about 1:00 to let me know that he had some good news and bad news. The good news was that he was on his way home early from work so he could help me get the kids ready for family pictures. The bad news was that I had to take him to get stitches in his head. WHAT?? So much for the family pictures that had been scheduled for months! I know he doesn't like family pics, but this was a little drastic.

So, after plastic surgery and 30 stitches (yes 30!) he successfully got out of family pictures. He also got out of getting the kids ready for pictures - which is definitely the worst part. Thanks to his Mom who took him to the hospital, held his hand :), and took care of him while I tried to get five kids ready for pictures.

Pictures were an event in and of itself - I will have to post about that later. But, we did actually get to go to dinner for Brandon's birthday and give him a few "hunting necessities" for gifts.

photo courtesy of Braden

I love you babe! Happy 35th Birthday! (Boy I am glad I am not as old as you)

Serenade For Two

I came around the corner the other day to find this:

Braden was strumming on the guitar and singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". It was so sweet, and he was even singing in his nice, soft voice - which doesn't happen very often. I was so happy I got to witness this moment.

It was one of those "rewarding mom" moments that keep me going! Thanks Braden for reminding why I love being a mother.

My Baby! (Said with saddness)

She is growing up way too fast...already three months old! I love every inch of her...especially her chubby kissable cheeks, and chunky rolly thighs! I am saddened by the thought that each day she gets bigger and older, and am trying desparately to savor every second.

Can you kiss a baby too much...because seriously, between me and the kids this girl gets MAULED with love. I mean, who wouldn't want to squeeze those cheeks?

These are some pictures of her at 4 weeks old that I haven't posted. Look how much chubbier she is now! She was almost 13 lbs at her 2 month check up....guess I am feeding her cream!