Gift given to Meg tonight (she collects all things Nativity) - It is original artwork by her friend Ashley Flores. I thought it was so neat I had to blog it.

Wizard of Oz Bobbleheads

The coolest gift(s) ever!! Kyle and my mom got these for me and Kyle and Meg sent me on a scavenger hunt all over the house searching for them all. I love them!! And the best part is I have the whole set!

Before

After
The kids are in euphoria - Maiya's eyes began to glaze over and she went down for a nap an hour early. The trampoline came in two boxes - one is for the safety enclosure. The first thing out of Benjamin's mouth "Wow he got us two trampolines!!"
Thanks for all of the gifts Nana and Grandma!

Merry Christmas!!

We miss you all.

We hope you and yours have an awesome time celebrating the birth of our Savior tomorrow.

Nutcracker

Aunt Meg, Aunt Beth and Ella went to see Nutcracker. I opted out and Benjamin and I went to the arcade. Daddy got Maiya duty! But I think he enjoyed the peace for a little. We are in full Christmas mode - We had our turkey dinner yesterday and have stayed up late two nights playing cards and board games. Aunt Beth leaves Christmas day so we are doing some celebrating a little early. The kids are dying to open gifts but that we are saving!!

Rudolph Day

LOL

We "heart" our fireplace!

I can watch a fire in the fireplace (and the Christmas tree for that matter) as if it were the TV. The kids have caught on to this and seem to enjoy it as much as me.

Just trying out sound on the video, let me know how it works.

the kids

the kids playing ring-a-round the rosie for the blog

Trying something new!

I am so excited I can add video to the blog. The last post was my first attempt. I know its old - I was just practicing. Let me know if any of you have trouble viewing it. I'll try one with sound next! YEAHHHH

Mother's day

Benjamin's video card

Pictures are working again - finally!!!

Party Girls

The girls making suncatchers

The house is decorated

My First Thanksgiving spread! It was yummy!!

Happy Birthday Ella!!!

Ella has had a great Birthday - we went to Build a Bear workshop (thanks Grandma), out to dinner with the family, and she had a 'craft' party yesterday. I have not been able to load pictures since Thanksgiving. I try everyday and it just doesn't work. I am beyond frustrated. I even tried to switch to the new blog format and I am no longer "invited" so I can't even do that. rrrrrrrrrr! So stay tuned.

Our Cabin Vacation

Going Fishing...

mmmm...fajitas...mmmm
mmmm...roasted corn...mmmm
Egg toss
I got egged!
Never seen them fall asleep so fast!!

Sock Hop kiddos

Fellow Bloggers...

are any of you switching to the new format - or have you already? And if any of you do tell me how it went.

Spelling Test

So last week started official spelling tests at school for Benjamin. They had a practice test early in the week and Benjamin scored 100!! I was so excited for him. Now the "prize" for getting an A is that you get 5 'bonus' words for the real test on Friday. The regular spelling words were ones like "with" "you" "and" "snap" - the bonus words were "pilgrim" "indian" "thanksgiving" - I mean come on!!! Can we take smaller steps here? After practicing for the longest time and both me and Benjamin getting frustrated I decided to officially let it go! We will focus on the regular words and let the bonus be just that - bonus words!!

Update

Well I don't have any organized blogging thoughts, but since it has been a while I will update everyone a little. Sunday was the primary program Benjamin did a great job with his part had almost all of it memorized. While sitting between songs he had a great time picking his nose. In the car Kyle says "So I saw you picking your nose" to which Benjamin replies truly shocked "How did you know?" It was like he had no idea he was sitting facing 200 people!!! LOL
Ella had a duet for one verse of "Follow The Prophet". She did amazing!! During the practice the microphone came to about her forehead and she sang at a small whisper. In fact I began to think they might get an older kid to do her part. But we practiced all week, and an adult held a mic closer to her mouth and she belted it out. I could have heard her in the hallway - it was adorable!
Maiya has been slightly sick for a few days - not enough to slow her down but enough to make her cranky!
We have rented a cabin for Saturday to Tuesday and I am getting excited - Kyle's crazy work schedule foiled our earlier camping plans so this trip is much anticipated. Its a cabin overlooking a lake with a full kitchen and heat - so not really roughing it but it will be fun!

"Our elections are free - it's in the results where eventually we pay." - Bill Stern

Supporting our local Dentist

Happy Halloween

"Enough with the pictures let's go"
Maiya left the photo shoot
I let Maiya trick or treat a few times - the first house, she went right in their living room. From that point on she kind of got the hang of it. She held out her bucket, got the candy took two paces then reached in and picked up her candy - a few minutes later she is trying to hold six pieces of candy in her little hands and hold the bucket too.
On the loose!

The haul!

50's Greaser ready for the Sock Hop at school
Benjamin and Mommy's Pumpkin
Ella and Daddy's Pumpkin
"Mommy doesn't know that I got the camera off the computer desk!"
A little light reading...

Is this necessary?

So this week is "Drugs are not for me" week at Benjamin's school. Every day they get to wear something to signify why drugs are bad. Today they wore clothes on backwards because... drum roll please "Drugs turn you inside out". As I was searching the house this morning for pants that wouldn't "itch" while worn inside out and simultaneously answering a million and one questions he had about drugs I got a little irritated with the whole thing!! Is it really necessary for kindergartners and first graders to be part of an anti-drug campaign? I mean come on - He doesn't even know what they are. And trying to explain drugs and their effects to a 1st grader - not so easy.
B: Mommy why do drugs turn you inside out? - I can see his boy brain working - picturing your internal organs on top of your skin...
J: (I'm thinking - you act crazy, sell your soul or your body or both, hallucinate, puke in public, curse, steal, act like a fool, etc.) "Well Benjamin you don't act right - you can be lazy, mean and crazy and all you think about is getting more drugs"
B: still slightly confused "Oh" - " but what about the drugstore"
J: "Well some drugs are good - like the ones that doctors give you - but if you take the ones from the doctor too much or the wrong way or if you get bad drugs from people that aren't doctors - that's bad"
B: slightly more confused - "oh"
J: Now my brain is churning - do other mothers actually call the drugs by name? Well Benjamin there is pot, heroine, crack cocaine, etc...? He is only six!
"Come on with your backwards clothes lets go catch the bus"

Now it’s not really the funny clothes thing that bothers me - the kids love that and its fun. But dramatizing the issue at school for a whole week? Does anyone else think that sometimes the "just say no" thing makes drugs seem cooler? If kids start hearing about it from kindergarten on they are going to have a pretty healthy curiosity by time they actually get confronted with the issue.
Now parents should talk about these things with kids - but saying it all the time and making it this cheesy thing could backfire.

Happy Birthday to me...

I feel the big 3...0 approaching so I am going to enjoy the twenties while I can, although Meg says I have been a thirty year old since I was six.
So this morning I left Ella watching the Today show while I went to the bathroom. When I came back she said I have been watching and "the New Katie Couric" and "Matt Flower" haven't said anything about your birthday yet. LOL

Our new van!!

Here is our new beauty - its a 2003 Toyota Sienna Symphony. We are loving it. My favorite feature is the power sliding door. Now I have to be honest the first time I saw that feature on someone else's van I thought come on that is the height of laziness. But I have to confess it is awesome!! - The kids can easily let themselves in and out. Arms full of groceries - just hit the button or let the kids hit the button. Picking Benjamin up from school - just hit the button and he can let himself in. It is so nice. Its is also much more spacious - I can actually fit groceries without anyone holding stuff in their laps ;)

I have named her Gracie - Ella calls her golden Gracie. Kyle refuses to call her by her name :)

We sold the Kia - so for the time being we are a two minivan family - till the Chevy gives up - but we are hoping that doesn't happen for a while. Did I just jinx us?

Kidisms

Ella - "That person from church realized me at the store because they had seen me before"
"I saw the big mess and I got so ignored with it"
Benjamin's new best friend TJ - "How long did your mom say you could play here?" - "Oh about 12 hours I think" - One hour later - "Time to go home now TJ, we are about to eat dinner" - "But I've only been here like fifteen minutes"
Benjamin was sent to fix his hair this morning and he came back out of the bathroom with completely soapy hair - "I don't think this is the stuff daddy puts in his hair because its turning white." NO Benjamin that is soap and the bus will be here in four minutes!!

not funny anymore...

So Saturday we went and looked at a Toyota Sienna and put an offer on it, then on the way back the Kia died on us in the middle of state highway 121 - the police had to show up and everything. The really bad news is the mechanic said the timing belt went - it would cost more than the entire value of the car to fix just that and there is no way to know if engine damage occured after the timing belt went. AAAAGGGGHHHHHHH! Thank goodness Meg moved with us - until we decide exactly what to do she has the only reliable transportation - wait I better not jinx anything else.

Meggie's Room

Final House tour :)

Meg is finally unpacked. All of her stuff fit well - it helps that she has a walk-in closet. Ella said to Benjamin the other day, "My rules are the same as Aunt Meg's rules - if my door is shut do NOT come in."

Animal Grand Central

Me and my blankie
Yogurt nose

Cool quote

"I'm old enough to be satisfied with what I have, and young enough to still want more; Lucky enough to have been really stupid and lived to tell about it; cursed enough to have a good memory; Intelligent enough to understand that I still have a lot to learn, and ignorant enough to continually prove to myself that I still haven't."

Well just to keep you updated - not because I have good news... The leak is fixed no thanks to the home warranty people.Apparentlyy drilling into your own pipe exceeds normal wear and tear. **@#^&*

AND our van is terminally ill. After doing 200 dollars worth of work the mechanic found a head gasket problem. As of yet the van has not run hot so he suggested we put leak stop in it and wear it out. So now we wait for Kyle's Christmas bonus and hope its enough for a big down payment. There is nothing quite as exhilarating and annoying as driving and wondering which turn, acceleration, or start up will be the last.
Luckily my coupon system is still saving us money - got $167 worth of groceries for $119!

We are also saying many prayers for Nana! She is having knee surgery this week. She has a triple threat - arthritis, a cyst, and torn ligament!
Now for some better news - Meg is doing great with her classes, two A's in one week - the best being the biology test that she was deathly afraid of!

The good the bad and the frustrating

Well I had a running blog in my head. It was going to be about my new favorite things here in Teckis. I'll still hit the highlights but now it is a two way street. We have been jinxed lately. But anyhow I'll start with the good:
Maiya is walking all the time now! I am very excited to have a toddler. We now wear cute shoes (and have a reason to wear them). No more dirty knees!!! The downside is she likes to go visiting during sacrament. Maiya has yet to meet a stranger. She waddles away several times during the meeting, three pews up she'll stop, raise her arms to a perfect stranger; if they pick her up they immediately get kisses! She'll continue this on and off the whole time. If you try to stop her she screams! But on her own she's pretty quiet making the rounds - she'll sit 10 or 15 minutes with other families.
Kyle has been working like crazy on a huge project at work. I suppose that is par for the course since he is a project manager - but I miss him! He works late often and continues working once he gets home. The good news is this project should be done soon and I have been given the thumbs up to plan a camping trip. I am so excited. I already smell the smores. There are few things better than a fall camping trip in my book!
Speaking of fall - now that things are cooling off around here it has been so nice. For a while there in July I was pretty sure that our subdivision bordered hell literally. It was so hot!! But now the windows are open, AC is off and I am loving it. I got inside information from Meg that Home depot was marking down outside stuff and I loaded up - table, umbrella, and chairs for a steal! Ever since we have had dinner outside almost every night. The kids really like it. The breeze feels great and so far no bugs - I think the miserable summer and drought killed them all. The best part about eating outside is afterwards I can just hose everything off!
Now for the bad - The van broke down again!!! AHHHHHH On the way home from church the belt popped. So its in the shop and they have also found a coolant leak. So while the van was in the shop I thought I'd work in the vehicle free garage. I was lubricating the garage door opener (something I didn't even know you had to do until recently) when I saw water running through the garage. I thought I had busted something in a box when I moved the box and found mold on the drywall. AHHHHH once again. It seems as though we nicked a pipe when installing our 'garage organizer' two weeks ago. Meg had to end her shower mid shampoo and I am now waiting for the plumber. We have a home warranty but I don't know if breaking the pipe yourself is covered. My plan is to act dumb - yeah, yeah I know that isn't so hard:)

Poor Kyle

Yesterday was my man's birthday. It was a comedy of errors on my part! - I arranged piano lessons as his gift - I made a cute card on Microsoft word then forgot to close it out. He came home and saw it on the screen instead of in the sealed decorated envelope. I made one of his favorite dinners - cube steak and potatoes. Once at the table we realized we never replenished our Heinz 57 sauce supply post move. He was very upset apparently cube steak isn't the same without the right sauce! Now moving on to the cake. I got this crazy idea to make my own ice cream cake - how hard can it be I thought. I made a cream filling, crushed oreos into it, spread the ice cream then decorated the top with icing - each ingredient ok by itself - awful together!! It was so sweet none of us could eat it - even Benjamin - well he finished his but didn't want seconds. So sorry babe - better luck next year. (It better be that's going to be the big 3-0)

Holy Cow cont.

Well so much for "there won't be any changes soon until they build another building"...A High Council member from the Stake announced in Sacrament meeting today that there will be a special meeting next Sunday outlining the boundaries for a new ward! So we will find out next week if we are members of the Frisco 5th ward.

Some more...

My Kitchen - I love it! - I decorated much more "country" than my style - but it went with the border, and until I paint it will work. Now I just need the motivation to keep it clean!
The girls room
Notice our little walker in the picture - the tide has turned to almost 90% walking!

As you can see it will be a tight squeeze to have two twin beds - so when the time comes the girls will switch rooms with Benjamin. They have already made paint color selections :)

I still have so much to organize in their room - but it is so hard. My main work time is during her nap, so its a little difficult to do when its her room to work on - everyday I say I'll set up the play pen for her to nap and do it - but you know how plans go!