We wish you a Merry Christmas!

We want to wish every one a very merry Christmas and a wonderful new year.  We were very blessed this year and are so very grateful for all that we have received.  We are so grateful for all of you and your love and friendship.  We hope all of you felt the love of the Christmas season.

Seeing the Light on Temple Square

Every year on the Saturday before Christmas, my family has a tradition that we go to the temple.  This year we also decided to go see the lights on temple square and just turn it into one big long day.

So after the temple session and dinner, my dad decided it would be fun for the kids to get to ride trax so we went to the station and bought tickets.  Madelyn and Hiett were so excited to ride the "train"  luckily they both got to ride sitting next to a window.  Caleb was not impressed with trax and cried and squirmed because he couldn't play on the stairs.  JD and I really had our hands full with him.  Thanks to all my family that tried everything they could to entertain him.

After we got off trax, Caleb was happy.  Madelyn was so excited to see the lights every turn she was gasping and trying to take it all in.  Hiett wanted to get through it as quickly as possible and kept trying to run off.

When we got to the place where they have the big Nativity set up we stopped for a minute and Madelyn looked up and saw in the north visitor center's window The Christus.  She let out the biggest gasp and said "I want to go in there!"  So of course we went in.  Madelyn and Hiett immediately ran to his feet.  I could help but think if this would be kind of how it would be when Christ comes again.  That we just can help ourselves and run to his feet.  Madelyn said that she felt the spirit she said that she felt warm and happy inside.  I loved that I got to have this special moment with her. Caleb when he saw the Christus he just smiled and started giggling.  It was so cute to watch them.

After the Christus we went back outside to see more lights.  JD decided to put Hiett on his shoulders and that worked much better with him.  We walked around and then over to the temple.  My kids were so happy that they could go up the stairs and touch the temple.

After touching the temple we went out on the plaza and looked at the lights out there.  They have a fountain or pond out there and I love to see it every time I am up to temple square. It is so beautiful and in the background is a perfect view of the temple. They had little balls with lights in them floating on the water and then in the middle they had an all white Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus.

We had such a wonderful time and I think the kids will talk about this outing for quite some time.  It was a lot of fun and I hope we will do it again.  Just not on the Saturday before Christmas. (too busy)

Happy Birthday Hi Guy!

So today is Hiett's third birthday!  In the morning, JD and I gave Hiett a bike and his two year book. (I make them a book for each year).  The bike is going to take some practice and nice weather before he can get good at it.

Then Hiett said that it just wasn't his birthday unless he had balloons and a cake.  We weren't going to do any today because JD had to work so we moved his party to Sunday.  But he persisted and JD went to the store and bought little cupcakes and three balloons.  Which after he got them he decided it could be his birthday.
Then later in the afternoon, Grammy (my mom) came by and gave Hiett the gifts from her and Poppy (my dad).  They gave him a soccer ball, a book and an awesome goal for him to practice with.  He has been practicing like crazy so he can be good for his party on Sunday.

After dinner, we had the cupcakes even with a candle to blow out.

Tagged Thanks Em! ;)

5 Things I dont leave the house without:
1. Gum
2. Keys
3. Jacket
4. Shoes
5. Kids (rarely do I get to leave them)

5 Cartoons I watched when I was younger:
1. Flintstones
2. Tom and Jerry
3. Barbie
4. Care Bears
5. Sesame Street

5 Things that terrify me:
1. Roller Coaster that make you go upside down.
2. Dying before my kids are raised.
3. Semi Sandwich on the freeway.
4. My kids getting seriously hurt.
5. Losing JD.

5 things that I dislike that everyone else seems to like:
1.  Gummy candy
2. Cold weather
3. Shoes (wearing them)
4. Cats.
5. Indoor Pets

5 Things I want to do before I die.
1. Raise my kids
2. See the ocean.
3. Go to San Diego Temple.
4. Meet the Prophet.
5. See my kids make something of themselves.

5 People I tag to post this on their blogs:
1. Sarah Potter
2. Angie Finlinson
3. Erica Harward
4. Brooke Lott
5.Bowbie

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

Saturday JD and I took the kids up Whiskey Creek to find a Christmas tree.  They were so excited and looking everywhere to find the perfect tree.  We even got into some snow so they were even more excited for that.  When we finally found our tree and let the kids out of the truck they were sliding on there bums down the hill and running around laughing and throwing snow.

It was about 23 degrees up on the mountain.  It was so cold.  Thank goodness we found it not to far off the road and JD brought the chain saw. So in a hurry we were done and back in the truck for some granola bars and hot chocolate.
On the way back, Madelyn thought that we were so far away from home that she would keep asking if we needed to stop at a motel to stay the night.  We were only about a half hour away from home.

We saw a jib jab on my sister's (Auntie Em) blog and knew we just had to do a Christmas one of our family.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Happy Birthday Bubba!

Yesterday was Caleb's first birthday!  We gave him his birthday present in the morning.  It was a ride on Speedy the Turbo Turtle.  It is on casters so he can drive it wherever he wants, well when his legs get a little longer.  For now he just pushes it or gets pushed on it.Caleb was so excited he couldn't wait for JD to get it out of the box.

Later that night we had the traditional birthday party with our extended family.  We just let Caleb open the presents as family showed up.  It was fun that way because he could play with it for a minute or two and then of course Madelyn and Hiett would come and steal it but he was a good sport about it.

Then came time for the cake.  While we sang to him he was snickering a little and then he got the cake and had a little taste and then just dove in.  He loved it.

Madelyn and Hiett did too.  We could not keep them away from the cake they just kept running up and stealing little tastes.

We had a great time visiting with our family.  It is so much fun to get together.  Thanks to all for your unconditional love and support.  We really appreciate all of you and what you do for our family!

Just look at those boots

I have been so excited to get these boots for the kids since I saw them in the landsend catalog.  I knew they just had to have them.  Good thing we got a good deal on them.  I ordered them almost 2 weeks ago and they finally came today.  They are so cute and they love them.  Hiett calls them his "Swiper the Fox" boots (from Dora).  Now all we need is a little bit of snow.

Happy Halloween!

Hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween.  We sure had alot of fun and got way too much candy.  But isn't that the way it goes with that holiday.  Auntie Em was our lifesaver this year, JD had to work and so Em came and helped me out.  I don't think I would have survived without her.  Thanks Em :)  Madelyn was so excited to wear her costume so for about a week before everyday she would have to put it on.  I let Hiett try his on the morning of and it was a fight to get it off.

Madelyn was a cute bumble bee

Hiett was Spider-man. I painted his mask on with black face paint. Thanks Bowbie :)
When he looked in the mirror and saw it he sighed and said "It's perfect"

Caleb was a monkey.  Which anyone who knows Caleb would know that a monkey is a very fitting costume for him.

We had so much fun running up to the doors and saying trick or treat!  The hardest thing was getting back in the Van after we were done at each house. We were so happy that we had no tears from scary costumes this year:).  All in all we had a great Halloween!

The Play House is complete at least till spring

The playhouse is done and the kids could not be more thrilled.  They are always in it playing something.  It was alot of work but I wouldn't trade the experience.  It has taught our kids that you have to work for the things you want and it doesn't happen all at once. 

This is what the kids did while dad put the roof on the playhouse

 They had a lot of fun going down the "ramp". They got going pretty good too and kept trying to make it steeper so they could go faster.

We have a few minor things to do to it, like metal roof and paint or stain but that is going to wait till spring.  We figure that we will be just over $100 for all the materials and everything, which I am pretty happy with that.

Madelyn can swing by herself

We have been working with Madelyn for quite some time trying to get her to push herself on the swing. She would get so close and the loose focus and start making herself go crooked and standing up or jumping out. But now she finally has it. Here's the video to prove it:

The Play house project

For two years Madelyn has been bugging us to buy her a playhouse. Every time we go to a store with play houses she has to go see them and try to convince us that she needs one. But they are so expensive and we couldn't possibly ever afford it
Well one night I was surfing the internet looking for things to do with pallets (since JD has a lot of them at work) and I came across this website
where the guy built a shed out of pallets and I thought that we could probably make a playhouse out of pallets too. So yesterday we started on the pallet playhouse.
It is not built completely out of pallets. JD wanted it to have a sturdy base so we used 2x4's and wafer for the floor and posts to support the roof when we get there.

We ended up taking apart all the pallets and using the wood off of them for the walls. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be to remove all the nails and disassemble the pallet. It didn't take very long to screw the pallet boards up to form the walls and the kids were so excited and willing to help with this part of the project. Hiett handed me the boards and I put it in place and then Madelyn handed JD the screws and he screwed the boards to the 2x4's.

There will be more posts to come as we finish more on the playhouse.

jump, jump, jump! Caleb likes to jump!

Today we went up to Oak City to Grammy and Poppy's and the whole time we were there Caleb climbed on every thing he could and then when he got to the top he would jump and do his celebration dance. After we ate dinner, Caleb crawled over to the lawn mower and proceeded to climb up on and jump. Here is the video Grammy did.

Look out world here comes CJ!

Yesterday, Caleb figured out how to make the little power wheels four-wheeler go. We knew that he would be doing it soon since he has been climbing on and off of it for a couple weeks. JD was watching the kids and he was in the kitchen and heard the four-wheeler start going. When he got in the living room CJ had rode it clear across the room. CJ was so proud of himself. It is a little scary to think of him being able to do that but it is so cute to see his face.

Madelyn's First Trip to the Dentist

Today, Madelyn had her very first dentist appointment. She was very nervous and unsure about what was going to happen. Last night, I got out my dental assisting textbook and showed her the instruments and told her everything that they were going to do. I guess that is one of the perks of being a dental assistant for a couple years. The only problem is that I stayed home while JD took Madelyn because he had an appointment at the same time. So now you get to listen to him.
Madelyn was pretty excited to go to the dentist especially when we got there she just kept talking about the whole thing. I went first so that she could see how it was going to be and once the Dental Hygienist had her hands in my mouth she proceeded to give the history of our family to the best of her 4 year old memory needless to say she had everyone at the Dentist office just about rolling on the ground laughing and there I am helpless to even try to defend myself because the Hygienist was laughing so much that she did not even give me a chance to get a word in.

After I was done it was Madelyn's turn and for the first time since we got there she had to be quiet although she was sure trying to keep talking but she found out it is hard with hands in your mouth. She did really well and had a good check up, no cavities yeah!(which means no more money to give away).

Hiett

Hiett has done a lot of growing up the past few weeks. I am so proud of him and just wanted to share that with everyone. We ran out of diapers and so he had to be potty trained and he took right off with it. He has had a few accidents but for the most part he has been great. We will be taking him to the store next week for his big potty treat. (We did this with Madelyn as well.) We take them to the store and let them pick one toy for being such a big kid.

Also, Hiett has figured out how to peddle his trike. He loves it. He is almost always on it whenever he is outside. It is so nice to go for walks and he rides his trike.

He has grown into such a little boy and not a baby. It is amazing to me how fast they mature once they conquer some of those big things. I am so proud of him and glad he has decided to be a big boy.

Fire Department Party Fun

On Friday night, JD had his summer party with the Fire Department. For two years now they have had the inflatable toys and all kids big and small love them. Sometimes you have to wonder if the adults like it more than the kids. Here are a few pictures from the party.

JD and our friend Bill just before JD tipped the slide.


All the kids on the big huge slide. I think Madelyn went down it at least 15 times.



CJ & Hiett loved the bouncer. They didn't want to get out. Hiett liked it because he could do it himself.

Scare Me to Death!

Madelyn has been on one of those "I'm so big" kicks and she has been picking up CJ and carrying him wherever she wants him to be and getting him in to things. On things that he shouldn't on like Hiett's daybed and his four wheeler. Here is a video of the four wheeler ride. JD had to video it because I was nearly in tears because it scared me so bad. But no one got hurt and Caleb loved it. Now whenever he wants to ride he looks at Madelyn and grunts while standing next to the four wheeler.

Look What Caleb can do!

I can't believe my baby is already standing up. He is getting so big so fast. He just barely learned how to crawl and now this. The video was taken on saturday so now he is getting faster and better at standing. I am definitly not ready for another toddler. Not much we can do now.

Outing to the Oak City Canyon

These past two days we spent up the canyon. It was so nice and relaxing up there. We had so much fun. We were in a nice quiet spot off the road and in lots of shade. Grammy and Poppy came up with us and Em, Ryan and Tiff, and Kolby came up for dinner.

The creek was close but not so close that the kids were tempted to sneak off and get in it. They did really well by always asking an adult to take them down to the water. They would collect leaves and call them their boats then they would race them down the creek.

Grammy brought her 4 wheeler. The kids loved riding it especially Caleb. He rode it more than anyone else I think. He would lean you over to it and make the engine noise. (Since he can't walk yet he just leans wherever he wants to go)

The hammock was another one of Caleb favorite places. It was the only place where he would take a nap. He would go from all out screaming to dead asleep in about two minutes after being placed in the hammock. It was good to have him nap but some one always had to be on Caleb duty and sit next to the hammock.

On Thursday, JD and I took the kids down to the creek and let them walk in it. The water was freezing but felt good on our hot, tired feet. JD led us down the creek looking for fish. We found some and it was cool to see the kids faces when they saw them. Madelyn kept saying that we were explorers and finding new things that no one had seen before. We will probably go back next week and fish, since we forgot their poles this time.

It was a lot of fun and we hope to do it atleast once more this year.

Madelyn's Fort

Most days Madelyn amazes me. She is so smart and has a great imagination. Today is no exception. This morning JD put a little cooler in her window to try to cool the house down some more. It is working great but now Madelyn's room feels more like a fridge than a bedroom. Today while Madelyn had "quiet time" in her room I went to check on her and she had hung a blanket up and was huddled in the corner trying to keep warm. Poor girl. So I helped her make a bigger fort she was so excited she has been running in and out of it ever since. She has moved in all the stuffed animals and dolls. She can not wait for Hiett to wake up from his nap so they can play.

READ, READ, READ!

Yesterday I was so lazy. I only did what I absolutely had to. Thanks to J taking care of everything, It allowed me to sit and read all day long. It has been so long since I have been able to read a whole book in one day. I read To have or to hold by Josi Kilpack. She is a friend of one of my friends that writes books (Julie Wright) so I decided to check her out. Her book was great. I love some of the LDS romance books and hers is one of them now. Not dirty or trashy at all and I like that about some authors. I will definitly be getting another from the library soon.

Then this morning, the kids did the cutest thing. They have been doing it for a while but this time I was ready with the camera. Every time JD gets out his book to read there are the kids with their books reading right next to him. It was so cute I just had to share.

Fourth of July Fun!

We had a pretty laid back 4th this year, partly because JD had to work and with three kids I don't do to much by myself. We went to the parade with my family the kids made quite the haul. The bag I brought for them was overflowing. (Thank you Delta business owners.) We can't possibly eat all of it but oh well they loved it. This was Hiett first year picking up candy.



After the parade, we went home and put JD and Caleb to bed. The kids and I watched Toy Story. It was nice to have a little time to relax after the parade.

After all the naps and eating lunch, the kids and I went up to Oak City to visit and play in the pool. Madelyn and Hiett had so much fun in the pool and running through the sprinklers with Em, Kaylin and Kolby.



We went to the fireworks and Madelyn was pretending that the fireworks were shooting her. Hiett would say the color of the fireworks everytime one came up it was so cute. Caleb wasn't impressed with them. He cried almost the whole time, it was mostly because he was exhausted.

All and all we had a pretty good 4th. Hope all of you did as well. Thanks mom for all the pics since I forgot my camera. Thanks to all my family that are so willing to help me with the kids so that I can enjoy the day too.

Muffin Tin Monday!

Today for lunch we tried a new thing that Bobbie told me about. It is called muffin tin monday and what you do is put different food items into each space on a muffin tin.My kids loved it. They loved it so much that I think we will do it every monday. We had Ham, cheese, crackers, pickles, grapes and juice.



Here the website for ideas. The possiblities are endless.

http://www.kiddio.org/2008/08/muffin-tin-monday.html

Thanks Bobbie for all your great kids ideas.

Happy Birthday Madelyn!

Madelyn turned 4 today! She has been so excited for her birthday to come and it finally came. I can't believe I have a child that is 4.

Madelyn has been bugging us to go camping or sleep outside, so last night Madelyn and I slept out on the trampoline. (I forgot how terribly uncomfortable it was.) It was pretty chilly outside and I didn't sleep very well at all.

When morning comes the first thing Madelyn does is rolls over and says to me "I can't wait to get my bike, can I have it now, please?" I tell her we have to wait for Dad and Hiett to wake up. She didn't have to wait too long about 10 minutes and then she got her bike. We made her get dressed and eat breakfast before she could ride it. (What mean parents she has) She is getting pretty fast on it already. Before long we won't be able to catch her.



Later that evening we had cupcakes and ice cream at our house with our families. It's nice to get together and visit. Thanks to all who came and we missed all who couldn't make it. Madelyn got quite a lot of stuff which she loves all of it. Thank you everyone!

Hilary Weeks Video

I was having a really bad day today. I was tired and alittle sad and needed a pick me up. I love Hilary Weeks. Her music inspires me. So I went to youtube and happened to find this video. It is just how I feel about being a mom. I hope it makes you smile and laugh like it did for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6I8FCgaoaG8

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House

Today we went to the Oquirrh Mountain temple open house. It was so much fun to take the kids and spend the day with them. Mom and Emily came with me because JD had to work. I could not have done it with out them. (Thank you guys) I love going to the temple. I love the spirit I feel when I am there. I love how it makes me want to become a better wife and mother. I am grateful for the opportunity to go and to enjoy the beauty of the House of the Lord. I marvel at how much time and care goes into the temple. I am grateful that I live in a time and place that the temple is so accessible. I am grateful for my testimony of the temple that I know that my family is sealed to me forever.

Madelyn was so excited to go. She asked me if she got to go in as far as mom and dad do. (She has only been in the lobby of the Manti temple when we go). She loved the mirrors in the sealing room. The texture of the carpet in the celestial room she had to bend down and feel. She also loved the chandiliers or "sparkley lights". She would every so often break out in to singing "I love to see the Temple" it was so cute. It was great to take her there so she could see and feel it for herself and start a testimony of the temple.

Hiett was nervous excited. He wanted to go in as soon as we got there but as we got closer to the doors he got a little nervous. Thank goodness Mom was there to talk and comfort him. After the nervousness we went to the Baptistry and he liked to see the oxen and the water. He was probably one of the few who loved the stairs. He loved everytime that he had to go up or down. He liked the murals in one of the ordinance rooms. It had deer and a rabbit and a fox painted in it.

Caleb was such a good baby considering how tired he was. (No nap before the open house) He was so quiet and just looking around.

When we got outside and went to take pictures of us at the temple Madelyn and Hiett discovered the fountain and it was all over from there. They were in the fountain constantly. We had to keep getting them and dragging them over to where I wanted the picture. But oh well they had fun and I did get some pictures too.

Mini Fishing Trip

Well today we decided to take the kids fishing since it is free fishing day. First we had to buy Hiett a pole. He was so excited to have his own. The kids really didn't care for catching fish.

Madelyn loved casting her "bubble" out and then reeling it back in. She actually got pretty good at it. She could cast out further than I could. (which is not saying much but hey).

Hiett liked to play in the water and watch dad cast it out and reel it in.

Thank goodness for good babies and strollers. Caleb was completely content to just sit and hang out.

The wind was blowing pretty hard and so we called it quits after about an hour including time to eat dinner. But we still had fun and it was good to be out of the house.

Hiett's Broken Leg

It has been a very busy last 2 months. It all started March 30th. Madelyn and Hiett were back in Hiett's bed room playing. Then Hiett lets out this terrible scream. "No big deal"I tell myself "it is close to bed time and Hiett usually over reacts when he is tired". I casually tell him to come here and tell me what happened. He comes crawling out of his room still screaming. Madelyn tells me she jumped off the dresser and he didn't get out of the way and she landed on him. I gather him up and calm him down. Then I call my mom. "What does a broken bone look like?" I ask. "I don't know" she says "feel his leg to see if anything feel out of place" Nothing does so I put him to bed. No big deal.

The next morning Hiett will not put any weight on his leg. JD gets home from work and we start the debate of should we take him in to the doctor. Caleb has a doctor's appointment that morning so we decide I will just ask Dr. Jackson what he wants me to do. Of course he says to bring him in later that afternoon. So I bring him in and Dr. Jackson looks at him and the whole time Hiett has decided to be brave and say nothing hurts. Luckily Dr. Jackson orders some X-rays and sure enough his tibula is broken. That means a cast clear up to his thigh for 6 weeks! Hiett is so excited he picks camoflauge which is no surprise for anyone who knows Hiett.

Hiett was a really good sport. I only heard him complain once about his cast. It didn't slow him down at all.

Now the cast is off and the real work begins. It now hurts a lot and we are trying to get him to walk properly again. Luckily JD's mom gave us some tricks to strengthen his muscles. He is making great strides and hopefully some day soon he will be back to normal.