Together is our favorite place to be

Overwhelmed

2012-01-25T20:17:00.000-08:00

Everywhere I turn there is someone passing away, someone new battling cancer, some heartbreak. I don't know if its because these people are my age that is making me so sensitive, or if its realizing that we are a week shy of my Mom's 1 year passing.

Either way - everything feels so heavy right now.

Rubbing it in

2012-01-19T20:48:00.000-08:00

John and I are both feeling a little sore with our immunizations today. We have prescription for Malaria, travelers diarrhea (lovely), and a host of other things they will kill that we can catch along the way. We were told to drink lots of soda because its the safest thing to drink over there! Wha-whoo! It still seems so unreal. I put our mosquito spray and clothes spray in our little box we have going with all of the stuff we are collection to take with us.

I'm SO excited!

A snack for the letter Q

2012-01-16T13:33:00.000-08:00

I signed up (not intentionally) to bring a snack for Davis' preschool starting with the letter Q. I was stumped! I finally settled on doing Q shaped cookies but I was not thrilled with how boring it was. I was talking to the boys in the cars about it and Davis said, "Mom Q is easy - Q-cumbers!"

Seriously he is so clever!!!

Three!

2012-01-15T19:41:00.000-08:00

That right - Beckham turned 3! We started the morning off with some waffles. I had seen some cake batter ones on Pinterest but were told they were not good but they did give me the idea to put sprinkles over the syrup. Becks loved it!

Our day was awesome! Caleb and Davis both got him a new Thomas the Train and they gave them to him first thing in the morning. Then Davis helped him make a cool track to play with. I was walking by and saw this:

It melted my heart. That is my boy's life. I decided to get my camera out and just lay down and snap pics for a while. For me they are priceless.

He requested Grandma's Macaroni and Cheese for dinner with salad. Poor guy - I forgot he wanted peaches to. He loves canned peaches! If I pull them out he says, "yea, yea, yea!" While jumping up and down.

He rocked the musical VIP mug and chair cover from my childhood!

Then we had a double layer ice cream cake made out of ice cream sandwiches and whip cream!

I think he liked it!

Happy Birthday Becks. You are getting so old and independent but you still cling to being the "baby." You are wild, head strong, and tough as nails most of the time. You are mischievous and a cuddler all in one. Some much of you is opposites. You are a wonder. One thing is sure, you love attention and you love to around people! We love you!

A season of change

2012-01-15T03:39:00.000-08:00

I cant sleep. Its 4:00 in the morning and I have thoughts swirling in my head so I figured I would get them out.

Lately things have been changing around here. Its been slow and steady but its enough that I'm starting to recognize the changes. I remember not too long ago thinking that being a Mom was so hard at times. I counted down the seconds until John would walk in the door so I could get some relief from the incessant needs of three little boys. Girls night outs could not come frequent enough because I just needed some time to get out and remember what it felt like not to be climbed on, spilled on, and nagged on.

But that it changing. I was talking to a friend of mine a couple of days ago. She and I went through that stage of transitioning to our third together and now we are both transitioning into this new stage too. She said, "I don't feel like I need breaks anymore." Its true. I'm getting enough natural breaks as it is. Caleb and Davis are fully functioning. No need to get them dressed, or putting their shoes on, and Beckham is (slowly) working toward that same independence.

I love the afternoon time when I finally have all of my duckings home. 4:00 until Daddy comes home use to be a nightmare but now its fast becoming my favorite time of day. I love to chat with Caleb about his day and work with him on homework. Sometimes a girls night seems kind of inconvenient because I love that time at night we have to hang out together. If I have a night away I want to spend it with John. Mostly I just want to be here with all of my boys together.

I still have my days and my moments, don't get me wrong. But I am definitely starting a new stage of life. I was never a huge baby person. I loved my babies - don't misunderstand! I just always knew I would enjoy this time more, and I am. It is SO fun!

Next year Davis will be in Kindergarten and Beckham will be in preschool. That means that I will be all alone for 5 hours a week! I can shop alone! Yea! The next year Davis will be gone like Caleb. 8-4 and Becks will be in preschool 4 days a week. Then its half days alone....it changes so fast.

A part of me feels guilty and is having a hard time adjusting to having so much time for myself. As it is right now I can send my boys out to play and really I don't have to worry about them too much. I can start to have a clean house again :) I am planning better meals and trying new recipes again. I am working on projects and not being interrupted a thousand times.

Its true what they say that the time flies by. It doesn't feel like that long ago I felt it would never end, and yet here I am. I love being a Mom. It use to be so much more demanding than it is now. I know that this time will present its own challenges and maybe I just feel more ready for them. I am more confident than I use to be and so are my kids. We have a great relationship and are able to joke and play. I love spending time with them and enjoying their little personalities.

I am so lucky to have been a stay at home Mom to them in their baby years, It was hard. There is no denying that. But I feel like the rewards of making it through that time are paying off immensely. I wont lie its hard to not feel a little selfish at the time I now have for myself. But balance is coming back and I have the time to take care of myself now too.

Its like that moment in spring when the blossoms are opening on all the trees after a long winter. It fills you with joy and rejuvenates your soul. Thus are the seasons of life!

Happy Birthday Savannah!

2012-01-13T17:59:00.000-08:00

Beckham and Savannah were born just hours apart.

We claim her as our sister.

We love you Savannah!

Out of the mouth of my babes...

2012-01-13T08:12:00.000-08:00

I tried my hair curly yesterday and when I woke up this morning I could tell that I had some serious bed head. Davis walked in saw me and stopped and said: "Wo, Mom you look like a girl Rock Star!"

Last Family Night we were talking about Miracles and asking the boys if they could think of some miracles. Caleb was so excited! "I have one. Bullet is our miracle!" And a miracle he is. He is the only remaining fish of our 8!

Goodbye ol' tent trailer

2012-01-12T12:57:00.000-08:00

Sadly when we got our new tent trailer that meant we inevitably had to get rid of our old one. It was sad for me because I have so many great memories in her. Luckily we made sure she went to a good home and she just moved behind us. I can still see her everyday :)

What is so cool about tent trailers is all of the stuff they can hold. Check out how much I pulled out of our trailer!

My Mom had it packed so well and organized! I wanted to share some of the vintage items I found - you can bet they moved into our new trailer with us!

Dishes

Tupperware

Towels

Medicine kit - don't worry she added a bottle of Jack Daniels for emergencies in there!

Tackle box

Propane

Kettle and dustpan- one of us kids made the dustpan in metal shop.

Check out these Coleman mantles!

I totally remember this pencil from when my Mom turned 40!

1968 Emergency guidelines from the Department of Defense.

This was a treasure for me. My Moms camping menu...

Recipes....

and packing list!

I miss her writing. I even found an apron with her name on it. Don't miss out on seeing the lovely pot stands its resting on.

It was such a fun walk down memory lane! Lets have one more inside tour...

Washcloth holders

Inside of the silverware drawer

Awesome curtains!

The Dixie cup holder as well as our toothbrush holder that she added a toothpaste holder to.

We will miss you sweet Trailer!

Guess who has been pinning?

2012-01-12T12:12:00.000-08:00

Johns learned how to use Pinterest and hes pretty into it. No biggie.

Okay, okay so maybe its only for the Philippines sites hes finding. Still he doesn't roll his eyes at me anymore!

Time to lay it on the line.

2012-01-11T14:20:00.000-08:00

I feel a bit like Oprah. I worked so hard to take the weight off only to gain some of it back. BUT...

So its time to start again so I can be great.

I'm a little embarrassed. There is no hiding that. But I want to lose 22 pounds before we leave for Cebu. 12 weeks. That's almost 2 pounds a week.

John and I got P90X but I don't think I'm ready for that. So I'm doing Slim in 6 and I bought some Zumba DVD's. I really need to tone. That's the number one thing. So from now until we leave I will be exercising 6 days a week. I will report in every Monday here on my blog.

Lastly if I can just remember this:

I should be good. But seriously:

:-) So true.

Okay, I have problems. I'm aware of them. That's why I'm back where I'm at. But...

IVE DONE IT BEFORE.

I CAN DO IT AGAIN!

Basketball!

2012-01-11T07:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday was also special because it was Caleb's first basketball game. He has wanted to play basketball forever but when we first looked into it you had to be in 3rd grade. This year they have 1st and 2nd graders in a league and he is stoked.

He chose # 23 as his jersey. He thought it was a good basketball number - good thinking dude!

He did pretty good for his first game ever. He is not real aggressive but Moms okay with that :) Mom was especially proud that he passed to everyone on his team, including the girls. I want our boys to be good in sports but I want our boys to be good sports more.

John and I both were so happy to just sit on the sidelines and not coach. Caleb's coaches are Crystal Picklesimer, who also happens to be his scout leader. Joe Pastor is also coaching. We coach his son Tanner soccer. Its fun to be in a small town where we have so much interaction with people. Well, I guess I only like it because I like the people :)

Cant wait to see how much he progresses over the next couple of months!

I belong!

2012-01-09T21:38:00.000-08:00

Caleb was baptised on Saturday. We were so lucky that the other boy being baptised this month happens to be one of his best friends. We went down to the Temple a few weeks ago to take some pictures of them.

The Primary president let me make the programs and they were a lot of fun to do! I especially loved adding some questions we asked the boys in the program. Check out their answers, they are pretty funny!

It was such a special day. We didn't have a lot of family that could make it but I was overwhelmed with the friends that showed up to support us. Even Caleb's teacher from school showed up to support him. I love Mrs. Smith!

I think by this time he was really tired of taking pics with Mom and Dad :)

All ready!

I am overwhelmed with love for Caleb. He is really starting to grow up. I don't always feel like I'm ready for him to start branching out and making his own choices, but I know I need to let him test his wings. The only way he will ever be truly happy is to be independent. Its in his blood, but it makes it hard to be his Mom. Especially a Mom with a slight control problem :)

I choked up all day long but when we came home I was filled with an enormous amount of peace and contentment. Caleb is such a great kid! I become more and more proud of him everyday!

C.T.R.

2012-01-08T21:30:00.000-08:00

So much to write about this weekend but Im still processing it in so many ways. For now - check him out!

The newest member of our ward.

Baptized 1.7.12

Oh what fun!

2012-01-07T19:37:00.000-08:00

I dont want to forget how I feel tonight. I love the stage of life we are in. Our boys are so much fun! Life is not as stressful for me and I find myself enjoying the journey more each day. I sicerely like and enjoy hanging with my kids. I love playing with them. We can joke and kid and it's this whole new stage of life that we are coming into and it rocks! :-)

Ouch

2012-01-06T08:28:00.000-08:00

Typhoid shots - $84 a piece
Apt to meet with the nurse in order to get the Typhoid shot - $60 a piece

Its double ouch. Ouch on the shot, ouch on the price!

Oh yeah and renewing Johns Passport - $110.

Renewing our Passports!

2012-01-04T20:24:00.000-08:00

OH - MY - GOODNESS!!!!!

John and I have always said for our 10 year anniversary we wanted to go back to Johns mission in the Philippines. But reality set in and with 3 kids there is never just a couple thousand dollars sitting around to actually do it....that is until John won snowmobiles!

Our tickets are officially purchased and its only a few months away!

I CANT WAIT!!!!

2012 Family Theme and Dinner

2012-01-03T09:44:00.000-08:00

John and I spent a couple of weeks thinking about and discussing what our family needs to work on for this year. Our 2012 theme is Patience.

We had our big fancy family dinner and introduced our theme for the year. We set the table with our beautiful china and broke out the boy's silver cups and forks they got when they were born from Grandma and Grandpa. Davis really wanted Spaghetti this year and I couldn't argue with his big brown eyes.

John gave a big toast before we ate! Being able to "cheers" our apple cider is the boys favorite part!

At dinner we talked about how being patient with someone is showing them love and kindness. John and I each shared ways we are going to work on being more patient with them, and we had each boy share a way they could be more patient with each other. Lastly we talked about how we also need to show patience with ourselves, and how we all make mistakes but we need to not get frustrated with ourselves as we learn and grow.

Whenever we use our china we try to teach them more formal table manners. It usually works pretty well....but not with spaghetti!

Happy New Year!

Halloween Ghosts back to haunt!

2012-01-03T08:40:00.000-08:00

I found these ghosts haunting my parents attic this year and wanted to be sure they would be remembered forever!

Mom's Ghost

Dad's Ghost

New Years resoutions 2012

2012-01-01T17:15:00.000-08:00

I have 6 goals for this year. I am setting a lot of limits with my time this year so if you are a friend and reading this I would SO appreciate your support in helping me keep these goals. In no particular order of importance my goals are:

I will feed my family healthier.

After every meal (including breakfast) my boys say without fail, "I ate my breakfast/lunch/dinner what can I have for a treat?" Really? How did we ever give them the impression that every meal is followed by a treat? I think our motivation to get them to eat their food has backfired.

I bought a juicer with some generous Christmas money we received and have started making shakes. It usually is an orange and a slice of fresh pineapple juiced and then added to the magic bullet with half a banana, 3 frozen strawberries, a couple of frozen peaches, and a half cup of spinach. They boys love them! This is the kind of treats we need to be accustomed to!

I also am going to start making sure that dinner is served in the right portions - 1 protein, 1 carb, 2 veggies/fruits. Right now we usually eat 2 carbs and 1 veggie. John and I tend to eat really fast. Its been a necessity in the past with 3 little ones...but our kids all feed themselves now! Its time to slow down and enjoy family dinner so we don't scarf 2 giant portions before we have a chance to feel full.

I will get back to my goal weight.

The one goal I did make last year, I didn't reach. It was to maintain my weight. In the spring I got really sick, as well the let down after all the months of stress, combined with grief...I was not in a good place! My Dr wanted me to try an anti-depressant and I did. Long story short, because I couldn't take one that was weight neutral I took one that can cause weight gain....and I did. After a couple of months of being on it I felt better and tappered off but I didn't get back on the horse with my weight. Now its time.

I will set limits with work/social time.

Its hard to work from home. I still do some photography and I consider Over the Big Moon to be a job. I also do some side work with graphic design. Bottom line I need to set work hours and not feel guilty for respecting them. Its hard to tell people that I cant help during those hours because I'm working, but it shouldn't be. If I worked at Walmart people wouldn't expect me to move work to accommodate them and I shouldn't feel guilty about saying I work during those hours. Beckham still takes naps most of the time and it would be good for Davis to start a more structured "quiet time" which would give me about an hour and half during the day that I can work and not take something away from my kids. My work hours are 1:00-2:30. If my work doesn't fit into those hours, then I have too much work and need to downsize and say no.

I also feel bad if I cant do something if I am asked, whether that be going on a play date, a favor for a friend, or helping out with watching kids. John and I both have pretty time demanding callings that squeeze a lot of our extra time out. I remember a good friend telling me that we shouldn't be afraid to say, "I would love to help but I cant because that's not in the best interests of my family." But to actually say the words makes me feel so selfish. Why is that? Why do I push my kids needs back to fit those of someone else. I need to change my mindset and accommodate kids and John first - everyone else second. Of course there are extenuating circumstances but they should be the exceptions not the norm.

I will be more present.

Along with setting work hours I am going to set hours that are computer and phone free. From 4:00 until bedtime there is no computer and no unnecessary phone conversation. I remember my professors talking about how important it is that Moms are at the crossroads in my MFHD classes. I have been physically present but not always available. Caleb gets home from school at 4 and I don't want any distractions between him getting home and kids getting in bed. I need to be available for my kids during this time to listen to what they have to say about the day, to help with homework, and to just be available for any need they have. That means I might have some time where they don't need me and perhaps I could be more efficient but I don't want to even give my boys the appearance of being unavailable. While the world pushes and values efficiency, which is sometimes necessary, there isn't a lot of room in Mothering for efficiency. In fact nurturing is almost the opposite of efficiency. My life demanded efficiency for a couple of years, but not now. Its time to slow down and nurture.

I also want to be more present for John. He comes in the door often to a whirlwind of activity and frustration. Call me old fashioned but I want to greet him at the door with a kiss and have the house calm enough that I can listen to how his day went and allow him to unload instead of me unloading on him immediately. Its important for me to be at his crossroads too and to nurture our relationship.

I will be better about birthdays and Thank you notes.

I stink at remembering and sending birthday and thank you cards. I use to be better but that's not saying much. This last year was pathetic. Its not because I don't care or am not grateful...sometimes its not even because I have actually forgotten. My life is broken up by the days of the week - not the actual date. On any given day I most likely can not tell you what the actual date is. Regardless I am determined this year to be better and more thoughtful and show people how much they mean to me.

I will be more thoughtful about spending.

We have always been pretty frugal...sometimes even cheap :-) I feel like right now we feel tighter than we really are because we have money that is being spent on little things. Fast food adds up! As does little trips to Walmart or the grocery store for a couple items. We just need to be mindful about our spending again.

Meet our new family members

2012-01-01T09:14:00.000-08:00

Let me introduce you to 3 very special fish.

They are the newest members of our family. We got a little carried away at the pet store and got 8 to start with but last night there must have been a mass murderer in town because there were a lot of floaties this morning. Biggie, Boom Boom, Ca (pronounced Kay), Iggy, and Fluppy all have been flushed, poor guys. Caleb was devastated that we hadn't even got a picture of them yet. So now we have 3 fish plus a picture of them.

I think that's the perfect number!

Christmas

2011-12-31T08:39:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas Eve was great, although not what people would consider a "normal" great Christmas eve. We spend the day switching our old trailer into our new trailer and cleaning it all out. Then we worked on more projects around the house. It was laid back and production which was perfect. The boys were so excited for Santa to come (even Caleb got into it.) The boys and I had made a carrot wreath for the reindeer that we set out that night. It was super easy to make. I gave the boys my bundt pan, a bag of carrots, and water and let them put it all together. They dumped a layer of carrots in the pan, added water until it covered the carrots, and then put it in the freezer. To get it out of the pan was a little more tricky. I had to place a hot towel on the bottom of pan twice to kind of get the ice to melt until it fell out. I'm sure if you left it out for 20 minutes or so it would come right out. It was perfect because not only were feeding them we were given them a drink too!

And cookies of course!

Poor Beckham didn't stand a chance of waiting up for Santa!

John and I cuddled and watched The Nativity which was the perfect way to go into Christmas. Everyone was happy to see that Santa did in fact come. It was kind of questionable considering the naughty behavior the holidays seem to bring! Much to Moms disappointment he brought the boys a fish tank....no fish. Because....well Christmas Eve was productive... and Santa forgot... and Walmart was closed at 10:30 Christmas eve ;)

The boys had to wait in our bed until Mom got the cinnamon rolls in and the camera ready. They were dying to come out!

I think their favorite part of the day was seeing the little bits of leftover carrots from the reindeer.

I like having Christmas on a Sunday. It just feels more reverent.

We had a lovely Christmas dinner with our friends the Jensen's and the Morgan's. Collette even brought Coconut Cream pie to my delight and Bobbi pulled through with apple pie and vanilla ice cream to Johns pleasure.

The day was relaxed, fun, and most of all very merry! Just as Christmas should be!

Break

2011-12-29T13:32:00.000-08:00

I thought with this being a break week from Over the Big Moon I would have so much time to catch up here on this blog...wrong! My mind has been bombarded with thoughts about my goals for this upcoming year. I am a goal setter but last year at this time I didn't make any. I didn't want to put pressure on myself because so much was still unknown at that point with my Mom. I was living in CA indefinitely and not really sure how I was going to handle her passing. It was a really good thought, but in reality I have felt little lost without my normal goals.

Maybe it was best though...maybe it gave me the time I needed to grieve so I could get to where I'm at. I feel anxious and prepared to move forward. I have been ready to tackle my life and get things in order. But in order to do that it meant I had to tackle Christmas! I knew it was going to be a bear of a project - and it has been! Our house was completely torn apart and full of boxes for 2 days!

When all the boxes were removed though I found the most amazing thing...my house was a blank slate! A very dirty blank slate, but nonetheless it was empty! What an opportunity to really scrub my house clean and then redecorate and update things. We have lived here for 4 years and a lot of things just need to be freshened up.

So that's where I'm at. I'm scrubbing the tops of cupboards and filling holes in walls. Next I will be breaking out the touch up paint and scouring DI for new treasures to add to our decor.

I know I will never really be done grieving but I do feel like I have hit a milestone. I'm ready to move on from the pain. I feel guilty in some ways saying that because I don't want it so seem like I'm moving on from my Mom - I'm not - I'm just moving forward. Moving forward with a new outlook and a renewed sense of esteem in myself for having done the best I could, and having cared for her in a way I am proud of.

I wasn't perfect by any means. No one can be when faced with such an emotional trial. But I can honestly say I did everything in my power to make my Mom comfortable and happy for those last months of her life. I gave her the respect she deserved and treated her with dignity. I got to sacrifice for her the same way she had always sacrificed for me. I gave her care all of my heart - just as she always cared for me. Her last gift to me was the self esteem created through her care. Its hard to describe but I have a confidence in myself that I have never had before.

I will love my Mom forever. She will always be a part of me and who I am because she is the one who created me, loved me, and sacrificed so much of what she wanted to give me what I needed. She taught me to work and instilled in me the belief that I can do anything. I don't think there is any more important lesson she could have taught me. The courage and confidence to try new things with the ability to work hard at them to succeed.

I really didn't mean for this post to be more than a little blurb about cleaning but the thoughts have just poured out of me as I have sat here typing. It feels good to define all of the swirling chaotic thoughts in my head.

I am really excited for 2012. I think its going to be a great year for our family. We have learned so much from 2011 and now are ready to move into the next chapter of our life!

PS. Can I just add how happy I am that the next chapter does not include diapers and diaper bags! WHA-WHOO!!!

A Christmas Memory

2011-12-25T08:00:00.000-08:00

WIth Johns family this year we made a memory album with everyone submitting a different memory or what Christmas means to them. I wanted to share ours.

John

I remember going to pick up many Christmas trees from Christmas tree lots growing up as a kid. I remember picking up one very special tree one year. We went for a hike into the woods, dug up the tree, and left a hole the size of a VW bug. We brought the tree home, roots and all. I don't know how Mom and Dad hid the roots beneath the tree, but we had more than presents beneath the tree that year.

I remember breaking a lot of things as a kid simply because we used to play so much inside of every house that we lived in. I remember being very sad for breaking each object but one sticks out in my mind a lot more so than the others. I can't remember whose it was but it was someone's baby's first Christmas ornament which hung from our Christmas tree that year. I remember being very sad because all of the baby's first Christmas ornaments that we had for each of our siblings were so sentimental to mom. I remembered all of this as I pulled mine from its box this year to set up for Christmas 2011. To whomever whose ornament I broke that year, it didn't go down very easy. Let me know whose is missing and I'll make a new one.

Lisa
It's no secret that Christmastime was a huge part of my childhood. Anytime I see anything Christmas my heart swells with anticipation and I am enveloped about with a sense of home. While I love the decorations, lights, and music my favorite part of Christmas is giving gifts.

My parents did a lot of things to encourage us to love giving. I have very vivid memories of going to Thrifty's and walking up and down the aisles looking for the perfect gift for each member of my family. I'm sure many of the gifts I got my parents were little trinkets that they didn't need or necessarily want. But I was so excited to watch them open something I had thought so much about and tried so hard to find that perfect something for them.

We also baked a lot of cookies to give away during Christmas time. I mean A LOT of cookies! I remember being about 5 or 6 and pulling the wagon around the neighborhood with my brothers to all of our neighbors delivering plates of my Mom's special Chocolate Chip cookies. When we were old enough my Mom put us in charge of making the cookie dough. Each of us would take a day to make a huge double batch in our big orange Tupperware bowl. No mixers! It was all elbow grease and I hated trying to stir in that last cup of flour!

We probably baked 10-12 double batches each year to go deliver to our neighbors and Ward members. I can still remember some of the goodies that we got each year from our neighbors. Martha Kelly always made us a Rum Cake and the Peterson's at the top of Shamrock gave us the green, white, and red layered Jell-O.

Probably one of my favorite Christmas memories was the year we did the 12 days of Christmas for one of the families in our Ward that were in real need. I loved going shopping with my Mom for toys and clothes for each of the kids. We would drive over each night accompanied with anticipation and butterflies in our stomach, hoping that we would once again get away without being seen. I think on Christmas Eve we delivered all of the makings for a Christmas dinner.

I will never forget how good I felt that Christmas. I enjoyed opening my own presents but not near as much as I enjoyed giving presents to that family in need. None of the 5 of us ever told anyone what we had done and it has remained a secret all of these years

I want to instill that same love of giving in our boys that my parents taught us. I love being the Mom now and planning gifts that will surprise and delight all at the same time. There is something about giving that brings a happiness that cannot be replicated anywhere else.

The Spirit of giving is truly the magic of Christmas. As I think about what it must have meant for our Heavenly Father to give us his son, knowing that eventually he would have to suffer for our sins and sacrificed his life to save ours....it overwhelms me. But in the true spirit of giving the sacrifice of giving brought forth more joy and happiness as now our Heavenly Father can have all of his children return to him.

It truly is better to give than receive.
That is what makes Christmas so special!

Caleb

Davis

Beckham

Our new home away from home

2011-12-24T19:07:00.000-08:00

We were the proud owner of two beautiful snowmobiles for 4 whole days. Off they went and yesterday we spend the whole afternoon scouring Vegas looking for the perfect trailer...and we found it!

It cranks up!

When open it has a King size bed on one side and a double on the other.

Plus another double when the table is down.

The double bed

Both beds have a nice privacy curtain.

This bench offers nice storage and can be a single bed too!

Our stove, sink, and fridge. The fridge is cooled with propane which is really nice. I also really like that the cooking stove and sink are both normal height instead of having to bend over all the time.

I also love that door is all one piece and that the door when its all folded up turns into a really big step. It also has a nice little table for cooking with an outside stove. We didn't set it up but it has a full awning with screen and rug.

We can not wait for spring!!!

Christmas Card 2011

2011-12-24T08:00:00.000-08:00

This has been a tremendous year of growth for family. Last year we left off with Lisa, Davis, and Beckham living in California taking care of Lisa's Mom, who had been diagnosed with ALS. Lisa was able to be with her when she peacefully passed on February 1st. It was obviously a very difficult time but there was also a very special spirit that came with her passing. It lifted us up and strengthened us more than we could have ever imagined. We will never be able to adequately describe how much we learned and grew from this experience, but we are forever changed for the better. We miss our Grandma Silly like crazy but we feel so blessed for the life she lived, the example she set, and the memories we cherish.

On Valentine's day we all drove back to Utah and started piecing our life back together after living apart for almost 3 months. It was nice to be back in our own home and be all together again!

Caleb is now 8 and anxious to be baptized next month. He is in 2nd grade and excelling in school, especially in math. He loves to read and is flying through books faster than Mom can stock them. He improved so much this last year in soccer and is really starting to play smart and work hard at it. The competitive spirit is definitely kicking in. Caleb is so fun loving and keeps everyone around him laughing and happy.

Davis is our thoughtful and witty 5 year old. Mom decided after our turbulent year she wanted one more year with Davis at home and so we held him back from starting Kindergarten. He is so smart and has such great concentration! He loves riding his bike and is quite the artist. He is so kind and generous and makes friends wherever he goes!

Beckham is our wild and crazy (almost) 3 year old and keeps both of us on the run - ALL of the time! He tries so hard to be big like his brothers and hates getting left behind. He is also our biggest cuddler and loves to have our full attention. He charms the crowd wherever he goes with his cute little voice and smile! He is now potty trained, so our household is happily diaper free! YEA!

We will be celebrating our 10th year of marriage this summer. We can't seem to figure out who the old people with grey hair showing through are in the mirror each morning! John will have been with Sunroc for 5 years this Spring. He spends most of his time Estimating but thankfully Civil Construction has picked up enough for him to get back out into the field and do some Project Management.

Lisa is busy as can be helping out in school, running the household, and trying to keep up with 3 very busy boys! She is still doing a little photography and graphic design on the side. She and a friend started a Mommy Blog a few months ago called Over the Big Moon. They are having fun writing about family life, traditions, and home decor while making a little money on the side. You can check it out at www.overthebigmoon.com.

We love that this time of year turns our focus back to that which is most important and helps remind us how blessed we are. Losing someone so close to us truly made us appreciate the sacrifice our Savior made for us more than ever before. We are so grateful that death is just a temporary separation and that because of the Savior we will all be reunited again. Our family chose "Peaceful" as our family theme for the year and we have been able to
find that peace through our Savior.

We hope that our little letter finds you feeling jolly this Christmas season! So many of you supported and strengthened us in our time of need this year, and we will forever be grateful that we have such
wonderful friends and family!

Eagle Hills Lights

2011-12-21T17:27:00.000-08:00

I always refer to how out of control my parents neighborhood is each year. Someone made a video of some of the houses. It shows a lot of the good houses, but leaves out some of the best. Maybe I'm just jaded he didn't include their house, which is way better than some of the ones in here. But I don't think so because every night last year Davis, Beckham, and I drove around looking and he left out some of the very best in the neighborhood.

This at least gives you a taste for what it looks like:

The Carol of the boys

2011-12-20T19:29:00.000-08:00

The boys pretty much made this up on their own and have been singing it as we deliver our neighbor gifts.

A Bobcat!

2011-12-20T07:24:00.000-08:00

Caleb turned 8 and officially became a cub scout! He has been so excited for Scouts!

He turned 8 on Sunday and earned his Bobcat on Thursday night at his first pack meeting! I am so proud of him! I got my first pin too!

His den leader Crystal is so cute and she had the boys in the pack paint Caleb and Braxtons faces to welcome them both in.

Caleb dug it!

Cutest version of Ring-a-round the Rosie - EVER!

2011-12-19T07:14:00.000-08:00

Beckham has the cutest little voice and John was able to get him to sing Ring-a-round the Rosie for him!

An EXTRA-ordinary day!

2011-12-17T14:54:00.000-08:00

What a day! We got up this morning and decided to head into town. John had qualified to be in a drawing for 2 Ski Doo Grand Touring 550 snow mobiles and you had to be present to win so he wanted to be there. Why not, I had a lot to do in town.

They dropped me off to donate plasma so unfortunately I was not there when....

HE WON!

We are still in shock!

Thank you Santa!

Baptism Pictures

2011-12-17T09:22:00.000-08:00

We went down to the Temple last week to take some pictures of Caleb on his 8th birthday. Its surreal to see him growing up so fast. He is changing into a young man. He is a little more serious and a little less naive. Its amazing to watch but comes with just a tinge of sadness as I see the carefree days of childhood disappear a little bit at a time. He is such an amazing person. He is so good and kind and has this incredibly independent spirit that is trying to stretch and grow free.

Its an honor to be his Mom and I am so proud of him!

8 is great...I think.

2011-12-15T22:11:00.000-08:00

I cant believe my little boy is 8 years old!

I think about how 8 years ago when I became a mother, in so many ways I became so insecure. Being a mother is hard and it really holds a mirror up to you and shows you all of your faults and imperfections. But now as I see Caleb growing up its taking those insecurities away.

He is a great kid!

He had a great birthday! For dinner he requested Broccoli Cheese Soup with artichokes and then cinnamon rolls instead of cake. It was a surprising meal but a yummy one!

Hope all your wishes come true sweet boy!

We love you!

Under the Mistletoe

2011-12-15T06:56:00.000-08:00

As I was unpacking my Moms decorations this year, I found the mistletoe ball that had hung in our home since I was a little girl. It brought back so many good memories! Being that it was made in the early 80's, I decided to give it a little makeover to update it.

The little red apples really seemed to date it. I pulled them out and added berries and some pine sprigs in their place. I also switched the plaid ribbon for some gold burlap ribbon. Just for fun (and for the memories) I added two apples back in on the top!

With my little elf helper we made a sign to display the ball on!

You can bet when I took this picture I was attacked with kisses!

I love it! It is always nice to take something sentimental and update it so that you love it all over again! Davis stands under the mistletoe all of the time and then I hear in his little singsong voice, "Mom look where I'm standing!"

Mistletoe is so much fun!

Davis' letter to Santa with Translation

2011-12-14T12:09:00.000-08:00

100 Lego's

Pokémon cuddly

Angry Bird- "splitty"

Remote Control Car

Ornament

Snowman cuddly

Pokémon Cuddly

Presents

Fish

Santa

2011-12-14T10:35:00.000-08:00

Don't worry Santa...Davis brought his list :)

Mom's Genealogy tree

2011-12-13T12:31:00.000-08:00

These ornaments that belonged to Grandmother Lula.

I love these ornaments! They are so old and vintage! They make me feel connected to Grandma Lula. The spinners are from the year she was born.

I'm pretty sure this ornament has been on the tree for the last 5 years but I had just never noticed it. It was a really touching moment for me when I opened the box and read it as I put it up this year!

I added her brass name ornament from when she was a little girl.

There are so many special and meaningful ornaments on the tree. I love it and its such a fun decoration!

Christmas Decor!

2011-12-12T21:26:00.000-08:00

I am so happy with how all of my Moms Christmas decor blended into what I already had!

This hangs right as you come into our home over the arch into our great room. I feel like it really welcomes people into our Christmas wonderland.

I am so happy with how this project turned out! We don't have a fireplace but I wanted one to hang our new stockings from...and I love it! I LOVE our stockings! I've waited many years to get cute matching ones that will last us forever! I wish I was talented enough to make them...but I'm not! Thankfully Heather at Sunshine Daydream Creations is!

John found the wood for me and cut it to the size I wanted. Then we added the red lights and garland behind the wood to make it look like there is a fire burning. The matches in the Santa tube are from our home growing up, I can remember them as far back as I can Christmas!

Here is our tree. We do a very traditional tree with ornaments from all of the years growing up.

I love the little wooden train that was found in a Thrift Store and the rustic red wagon was found on the curb near my Dads house for the trash man - SCORE! We wrapped up 24 Christmas books and are unwrapping 1 each night. The wagon is the perfect place to keep them all while they are waiting to be opened.

Great Room:

Some of my favorite things on the bookshelf:

-The NOEL is from my Mom, she has a whole set of decor that matches, including the nativity on our mantle.
-The train was my Grandfathers

I loved these little scenes while I was growing up. I use to play with them when I was a little girl and I love seeing my boys sitting and playing with them now.

The kids nativities.

Kitchen:

My favorite things:

-Ornament Salt and pepper shakers
-The vintage Christmas tin and Gingerbread Men pillows
-Bowling Pin Santa and Mrs. Clause that my Mom made
-Vintage Hazel Atlas punch bowl and cups
-Baking Santa and the For Santa plate and cup. Its the same cup and plate I left cookies for Santa on
-Gingerbread man chalkboard

Billiard Room:

Our pool table was the perfect place to put up the Victorian town that my Mom and I collected together. I love the details of these little towns. I was so excited when I found a little figure this year of a woman selling hot cocoa and Chocolate Chips cookies (its the bottom right picture). My Mom was famous for her cookies - especially at Christmas time so it was like I found her to add to our little town!

My Mom made the Rudolph out of bark and the little gingerbread house she got at a Christmas boutique. Its so fun that all of the pieces store inside (this is another favorite of my kids!)

Nook:

The advent calendar was the very last Christmas gift I opened from my Mom and the bell was part of her bell collection. The candy plate was always full of See's candy on my Mom's coffee table!

Bathroom:

Yep even our bathroom is decked out :-)

My favorite things:
-Santa towels and cross stitch made by my Grandma Audrey
-Our surfer needed to get into the holiday spirit!
-Even our wallflowers have gone Christmas!

We have garlands all over:

That top wreath is really special to me. It was my parents first wreath and my Mom has kept it all of these years. She has a special box with the story all written out on it. I have 3 windows and I couldnt figure out a good garland to go with it. I love the way the wreath turend out with the two swags on the side.

There is so much more but this is probably getting long enough! I did want to end with one last picture...

My Mom made the cross stitch to hang under the picture of the Savior in her home. I love the way it looks under our portrait with the garland above. It really helps remind us why are celebrating.

Disneyland 2011!

2011-12-08T08:48:00.000-08:00

Seriously nothing beats Christmas at Disneyland. This is our 5th year going and it still is so magical!

We started our day off in Fantasyland. Casey Jr is one of their favorite rides. It was our first time in the back and they really liked it! I'm not sure we have ever been on this ride and not been in a cage.

Next it was off to Dumbo for Mommy, Davis, and Becks while John and Caleb went on Mr Toads wild ride for the first time.

We did the carousel and Davis got to ride on the horse with a gold tooth - that use to be Walt Disney's wifes horse!

We have never done the Storybook ride either because the line is always too long but it wasn't too bad so we tried it out. Davis was not so sure about going into the whales mouth! He loved it after that. He kept pointing and saying, "oh, take a picture of that, and that!"

Then it was off to Small World which is always so amazing during the holidays.

They had these great drummers out and the boys were mesmerized! Davis was mimicking them the whole time!

Its seemed like the day was going to be crowded even though we had stayed ahead of the crowds so far. We decided to head into Toon Town which is something we don't do very often. It was a good thing because was Beckham was tall enough to go on the go-coaster!

He loved it! Davis...not so much! But he did try it twice and was brave both times.

There were a lot of people at Disneyland but they must have all had small kids because the big rides had NO lines! We walked straight into the Haunted Mansion. I was just taking Caleb and Becks and at the last minute Davis, in a fit of bravery, said he wanted to try it and they walked in right as the doors shut. BIG MISTAKE! Both Becks and Davis freaked out the whole time (not that I blame them).

We walked onto Splash Mountain...

The Riverboat was out of commission but they had the Pirate ship running. We had never been on it before and it was pretty cool!

(they were giving me their best pirate smiles)

Indian Jones, Tiki Room, Tarzan's tree house, and the Jungle Cruise...

I went to get his dinner at the Mexican restaurant in Adventureland while John took them onto Buzz but Beckham peed on John and poor John was traumatized! We did get great seats for the parade while Beckham dried out :) Yuck!

After the parade we walked right back onto the Storybook ride because it had been closed for the parade and then went over to Nemo and to meet Grandpa who came down to watch the fireworks and snow with us!

The snow even tastes like cinnamon!

It was such a fun day!

We miss it already!

Sea World!

2011-12-07T05:23:00.000-08:00

We were blessed again with a GREAT day at Sea World! The park was empty! We have never seen it so empty! We played the whole day and then headed over to have Pat and Oscars with Grandpa and Grandma Henderson. Its such a fun tradition that the boys love! Davis even knew that his favorite pasta would be there as well as warm cookies from Grandma!

In a snow globe....

And in real snow!

Playing in the snow in bathing suits and flip flops. That is my kind of sledding trip! They also got to visit Reindeer and sit in Santa's sleigh.

Then there were the rides! We had a lot of fun on the rides this trip and didn't do any shows. As the Sky tower was coming down Davis was fist punching the air - YES! because its his favorite ride!

Daddy trying to stay dry on the Shipwreck rapids... but it didn't work!

Davis was so brave to do the Eel ride this time! It was so funny! This is what he looked like when it started:

By the end though he was hands up!

We did the Sky bridge for the first time and they loved it so much we had to do it twice!

Of course we hit our favorite exhibits...

Sharks!

Beluga Whales!

The climbing area!

The tide pool!

I even convinced Caleb to touch the Anemone.

John and I had a little to much fun with these mirrors!

I definitely think we need one of these in our room!

We love Sea World!

Its like the best hidden secret in theme parks!

FYI

2011-12-06T22:59:00.001-08:00

No more house phone. Just call our cell phones.

Thanksgiving

2011-12-06T13:40:00.000-08:00

I'm a little a late posting these pics but its better late than never. We went to Palm Springs to spend Thanksgiving with Aunt Pam and Uncle Rick. They rented a nice house for us all to stay in...

Life was tough!

There was a lot of swimming...

Some lounging...

A little angry birds....

And a little distress...

We had a little oven problem, and despite all the effort put into it we ended up not having a second oven like planned. We learned that with Crock pots all things are possible! Dinner was so yummy!

There were so many other small things but mostly it was just being around loved ones that made Thanksgiving so special!

2011-12-05T10:46:00.000-08:00

This weekend was Caleb's 8th birthday party! Andee, and I combined forces to throw a combined Lego party for Kruz, and Caleb.

Our handsome birthday boys!

They loved their own Lego shirt!

We had the Lego table out in the middle of the room with all sorts of Lego's. The boys were happy to build and build!

We had a bunch of games because it was too windy for us to do the bounce house.

Guess how many Lego's...

Competition to build the tallest tower in 1 minute...

Lego Bingo!

Lego Pictionary! It's like Pictionary, but you build Lego's instead of drawing.

Juice boxes and cupcakes.

We let the boys frost them themselves!

Andee taught me something new. - add a small box of pudding to your cupcakes - HOLY COW they were so good! So good, that I liked them better without frosting! For the record this tip (found on Pinterest) really does work to make cupcakes bake bigger and fluffier!

Doritos on a cupcake...hmmm...

YUM!

These two are the best of buddies!

We sent each boy home with a goodie bag. While we were in CA I had gone to the Lego store and filled a bucket of all sorts of car parts and fun Lego pieces to fill the bags with.

We got lucky and the wind eased up just enough for them to bounce around for a little bit!

I cant believe that he is turning 8!

Where does the time go????

Happy Birthday Duke!

Once in a lifetime...

2011-12-01T22:12:00.000-08:00

While at Sea World this week we had a once in a lifetime opportunity. As we were headed out of the park we noticed the killer whales were really active and we watched them for a bit from up top. One of the trainers told us to go check out the underwater viewing.

It was A-MA-ZING!

The Sea World education worker that was down there said that this was truly a special once in a lifetime thing to see because they never have all 4 whales in that pool together. Not only that but the whales were so active! We were mesmerized!

And then to top it off someone showed up with a guide dog. Whales see a lot of people but either they were very curious about the dog or they saw the dog as lunch but they came right to the glass and just hovered there. Check out these shots of Caleb!

It was so cool! I still get the chills thinking about how magestic these beautiufl whales are up close. I am so grateful we had the chance to see them so up close too!

7 yr old roller coaster junkie!

2011-11-30T21:23:00.000-08:00

We just got home for a week long vacation. It was so nice! This morning we took the kiddos down to CA Adventures for a quick trip. We will not wait in line for Toy Story Mania so we get there right when it opens so we can be the first in line...actually the 10th person in line. I asked Caleb if he was tall enough would he go on CA Screaming. At first he said no but after a little cotton candy bribery he agreed to try it.

At first he wanted me to hold his hand but after the first drop he was screaming and laughing. He loved it! He went on it not once, not twice, but 3 times and was begging to go again.

I love roller coasters and am so excited to have a new riding buddy!

In case you don't know what CA screaming is...

6th longest roller coaster in the world (2nd longest steel coaster in the United States)
Its highest point is 120 feet tall followed by a 108-foot drop.
Accelerates guests from zero to 55 miles per hour in four seconds at the launch.
It has a loop

BTW - he also puts his hands up...

no biggie.

Why its so great to go to Grandma and Grandpas house....

2011-11-28T21:14:00.000-08:00

While driving away from visiting Grandma and Grandpa Henderson's this is what John and I overheard from the back...

Caleb -"They sure are friendly"

Davis: "They are always nice to us. They never say mean words or put us in time out."

That is what Grandparents are for!

M is for McDonalds

2011-11-27T23:26:00.000-08:00

Today as John was sitting with Beckham in church trying to keep him quiet he was going over letters with Beckham. He would point to a letter and Beckham would guess a letter or let John tell him what it was. He does not really know his letters but when John pointed to the letter "M" Beckham excitedly shouted "McDonalds!"

At least he's got "M" down!

Black Friday

2011-11-25T09:24:00.000-08:00

We did the whole Black Friday experience....Target, Sports Authority, Home Depot, Bed Bath & Beyond. So worth it but I got 2 hours of sleep.

He looks so cozy.

I am so jealous!

My Top 10 Thankful's this year (in no particular order)

2011-11-24T10:16:00.000-08:00

My Mom. I knew I had a good Mom, but I didn't know until now just how great! I will forever be grateful for her example and that she taught me to do hard things. She never coddled us and I am so grateful now because I am strong and independent.
Healing. I have gone through a lot this year but I am healing and happy. I really didn't know if and how I would get here, but I am.
John. Every marriage has good years and harder years. This has been our best year yet! He is so dedicated to being a good dad and husband and he really works hard at making us work. He is willing to change and has made some amazing changes this year. I am so proud of him and love him so much! Its fun to be so in love :-)
Caleb, Davis, and Beckham. We are hitting such a fun stage of life right now and I love the excitement and humor they bring to me each day. I love their hugs and their jokes. I love that they love to be around me and want my attention and praise. I have great kids!
Belief. My testimony of our Savior and Heavenly Fathers plan has been strengthened so much this year. I am so grateful that I know that I can be with my Mom again forever. I am so thankful for our Savior for making that possible.
Support. I have great friends. They have lifted me up and carried me this year when I wasn't a very good friend. I love this quote: "Friends pick us up when we fall down, and if they cannot pick us up they lie down and listen for awhile." I had friends who did just that this year!
Neighbors. I have great neighbors and this year I had a new neighbor move in right behind me! (if you saw where I lived you would understand why this is so great - our neighborhood is still mostly undeveloped) I can not begin to tell you how grateful I am she shares ingredients!
Disneyland. Davis, Becks, and I spent the beginning of the year at Disneyland every single day from 3:00-6:00. I was so absorbed in being a daughter and caregiver while living with my parents, that those precious hours away from all distractions to just focus on being a Mom were heaven sent. Since we have passes this year we have spent many trips back and those fun times have really helped our family heal through play.
Peace. I feel like John and I spent so many years worrying about money and the economy and this year I just let that worry go. Nothing has changed in our financial situation. He still works in construction in a stinky economy but it doesn't weigh me down with worry anymore.
Walls. It has changed my life to get a block wall around our yard! It seriously has blessed me in so many ways! My garden did better, my kids stay contained, we can finish off our landscaping, we were able to bury our trampoline....all that by a simple wall retaining dirt. Blessed wall!

I feel like I just got started! There are so many other things I am grateful for, but these were the first 10 things that I thought of so they must be important. Wait I have to add 1 more...I got new clothes. Updated clothes that fit my body right now. I am SOOO grateful for them!

Maybe what I am most grateful for is gratitude. I love in the Veggie tales Thankful Song where the lyrics say, "Because a thankful heart is a happy heart!" Its true. I am grateful and it makes me happy!

Caleb's Thanksgivng Turkey

2011-11-23T12:14:00.000-08:00

This came home from school and I was cracking up. Apparently his turkey dances in a Disco place....can someone tell me how my 7 year old knows what a Disco Place is?

Almost stitched together

2011-11-20T20:59:00.000-08:00

Seems like our hanging with the Gardner family is starting to wear off on ours....

We thought he would be getting stitches so it wouldn't scar badly but they just glued him back together.

Lesson learned - don't play on the piano at church.

101 mph

2011-11-17T19:18:00.000-08:00

That's what I feel like right now. I cant go fast enough. My poor mind cant go to sleep at night and all week I have stayed up to 2 or 3 in the morning working on things only to sit in bed lying awake. Why are things so busy you ask?

I am a Mom
I am a Mom of boys
I am a Mom of our boys
Super Saturday is coming up
Its Family picture time of year
Over the Big Moon is doing really well but demands a lot of attention right now.
Holidays are coming

So there you have it. I'm still alive and holding on. Sunday will come as sweet relief when Super Saturday will be over. John has been amazing. As in doing laundry and dishes and cleaning up after the tornado I am. I haven't even asked. In fact Ive asked him not too. He just keeps going. He sure must love me.

I can feel my sleeping aids taking hold of my overtaxed mind and it feels good to feel tired. Now lets just hope I can actually sleep :-)

Decorating the Christmas Tree in Tradition

2011-11-15T20:38:00.000-08:00

My boys have been begging for days to decorate the Christmas tree. I put it up all by myself one quiet day and it's been bare until tonight. It was so fun! I can already see how the Spirit of Christmas is embedding in their tender hearts. They love to decorate and they love to sit and look at the tree.

We started off with Christmas music as Caleb, Davis, and I danced all over the floor to Christmas songs. Daddy brought in the ornaments and they couldn't wait to get theirs out and put them on the tree. What a gift all of the ornaments are we have collected over the years. We do a traditional tree rather than a fancy tree. Its full of ornaments from all different years and all different places.

Isn't our tree so pretty! I love it!

Everyone keeps asking me if I am okay and how I am handling this year and the truth is, I haven't been this happy since my Mom passed away. I expected to be sad but it is NOT possible for me to be sad with Christmas around! There are simply too many happy feelings that are ingrained inside of me.

At the ALS walk I had such a fun time talking to my Moms best friend when they were about my age. Its strange to talk with her woman to woman now when I use to know her as a child. I love her! She reminds me of my Mom and I can see why they were such great friends! She told me whenever she feels depressed she plays Christmas music and she can't stay depressed for long. It's so true!

The only tinge of sadness I had tonight was as I pulled out ornament after ornament from my Grandma Irene. She gave me an ornament in my stocking every year of my life until she died. My boys have ornaments from my Mom from these first few years but it hit me the tradition might die out now. I'm hoping my Dad will pick up his Moms tradition and give my boys an ornament in their stockings each year too. Please Daddy!

I'm going to take pictures later of some of the special ornaments on our tree but tonight I just wanted to say how magical it was to sing carols and decorate with my boys. There is nothing in this world that compares to the beauty of a child's face lit by a Christmas tree!

Thank you boys for a memorable night and for being just as excited as Mommy is to pull the ornaments out! I love you guys so much!

Las Vegas Air Show

2011-11-13T20:42:00.000-08:00

While I was at Time Out for Women John bravely took all 3 boys to Nellis Air Force Base to see the Air show. They had a blast!

Well, at least they said they did. I cant tell if Caleb is ticked or "tough" in this picture! They each came home with their own flashlight, which might have been the highlight of the whole day!

Time Out for Women

2011-11-12T20:21:00.001-08:00

Pam and I attended Time Out for Women this weekend. Its an event where women go to hear motivational and spiritual speakers. It was wonderful! I learned so much and wanted to share just a few thoughts I had from the experience.

Forgiveness does not make our persecutors right, it makes us free. I loved this. Its something I learn over and over. Being able to forgive gives us power to live a happy life. One of my favorite quotes is - resentment is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die.
One speaker talked about the story of Widows mite from the Bible. She compared that to motherhood. Sometimes we feel like our contributions have to be grand but they do not. We offer our mothers mite daily and while our offerings might be the small little things they are worth more because we cast it all that we have.
We need to keep priority over efficiency. Its easy to get caught up in the tasks of things and forget to keep our children as our priority. Sometimes its good to allow things take longer and make it a meaningful experience for our children rather than pushing them to go at our pace.
Look into our children's eyes when they talk to us. Notice them and their details. We have such a short time to be their Mothers. Build them up and sincerely love them.

Once again I became honored at the sacred role I have to be a Mom. There was one story that particularly touched me that I want to share about the Mother of a boy who at 13 started making bad choices. He had bad friends, started drinking, and experimenting with drugs. She quit her job so she could be there more and pick him up from school daily. He resented that and they could hardly converse about anything without him being angry and resentful. She didn't know what to do and while praying about it she got the answer to tell her son she loved him. She couldn't find the right time and because things had gotten so bad she knew that if she did it would probably create more contention. One night she went by his room and saw his door open a little and her son was sleeping. She tiptoed in and in the dark she told him she loved him. She felt so much better and so each night when her son had fallen asleep she would sneak in and tell him how much she loved him. She waited up no matter how late it was and did it each night. At the age of 15 things started turning around and eventually by the age of 21 he had turned into a great adult. A neighbor was having a hard time with her daughter and remembering the struggle they had with their son came over to ask the Moms advice as to what to do. The Mom said something along the line of "its a stage and you have to let then work it out." Her son was there and said "No Mom, don't you remember? You came in every night and told me how much you loved me. I use to wait up for you to come in to say it before I went to sleep each night." The mother had never known that he was awake.

This story touched me so much. It reiterated everything I have learned this last year while losing my own Mother. There is no power in the world that can compare to that of a loving mother. Nothing in this world can bring the comfort, peace, and power that a Mother can. I am honored to be my boys Mother. I am rededicated and rejuvenated to be the best mother I can!

Beckham's Christmas Book 2011!

2011-11-11T10:54:00.000-08:00

Davis' Christmas Book 2011!

2011-11-10T10:58:00.000-08:00

Caleb's 2011 Christmas Book

2011-11-08T22:53:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness! I decided to look into when Snapfish would be having a sale on their photo books so I could look into doing a new book for this year. It just so happened that they were buy 1 book get 2 free - BUT it ended today! I sat down at 2:00 and started them and just finished them up at 11. Holy Cow my bum hurts! They are not perfect in the way I wish I could have gotten them but I am still happy with them, especially because I got all 3 books for a total of $45! It was a steal and so worth it! Here is Caleb's book! Shhhh, don't tell!

Merry Christmas from Heaven

2011-11-04T15:06:00.000-07:00

My house is clean and the Christmas music is on. I'm ready to decorate for Christmas! The first box I brought in happened to be my Moms Genealogy Tree. It had one ornament hanging on it....

Upgraded

2011-11-03T09:35:00.000-07:00

John and I found an entertainment center at Di a few weeks ago and it was beautiful! It even had doors like I dreamed of. It was small like ours but it was real wood...with doors...and molding...and ball feet......and it was $150. Thumbs down! Very sadly I walked away. A couple weeks later we went back to DI and my beauty was still there! There were tons of people looking at her but no one was buying. I'm telling you $150 at DI is just to much. I jokingly told John I was going to go offer them $100 to take it off their hands. He said, why not? So I did. And guess what they said yes!

We brought the lovely little girl home and we wanted to give her a new black look with some wood showing through. I started that night. 7 cans of spray paint later and a new bead board back and this is what we have:

Isn't she lovely!

Want to see inside.....

What!!! Where did that come from!

Yes, my friends I gave John and early Christmas present. We got a little break with our finances and I figured that my man deserves something for him. All of our big purchases are always things like vacuums...it was time John got something fun for all of his hard work. We also splurged on a Blu Ray player so we can stream Netflix. And since we got a Blu Ray player we splurged for a full HDTV.

I am a happy girl, John is a happy man. Sometimes we just need to splurge a little.

Preparation

2011-11-02T11:08:00.000-07:00

I am packing away all of my Halloween decor and getting my house all cleaned up and ready to get my Caroline's Christmas Decorating on. I have my Christmas music playing softly in the background. I wondered all of those years where my Mom got the energy to decorate like that. This morning I got my answer. There is a reverent anticipation that I feel preparing to bring out Christmas. I don't know how to describe it but I understand the force that drove my Mom all those years that we didn't understand. Its special and sacred and I feel uplifted and joyful today by it. I feel like I am preparing my home for something special. And I am, the celebration of the our Saviors birth. I believe its the Spirit of the Savior and his birth that is at the core.

I am so excited!

Happy Halloween!

2011-11-01T11:26:00.000-07:00

Our cute legos!

We had a great Halloween! We just stayed in the neighborhood but it was so worth it! Because we are spread out people don't expect a lot of trick or treaters so our boys were getting full candy bars! Our neighbor Linda even had frosty books for the boys since she knew they were coming! I love our neighbors!

We had 5 legos and one mermaid that we took around in the back of our Party truck!

We came home to a huge stash of candy and crock pot French Onion soup! Yummy! Halloween is exhausting when you are an adult...so worth it though!

Happy Halloween!

What Coco Chanel taught me....

2011-10-29T22:18:00.000-07:00

I saw this on Pinterest and found myself a little offended by it....

Who is she to judge anyone by what they wear? How arrogant! How demeaning! But what really bothered me was how bothered I was with the quote. Does that make any sense?

Then I got to thinking that right now I don't feel great about myself. Last May and June I started having a hard time with everything I have gone through in the last year but I also didn't know I was SO sick. My Dr wanted me to try a low dose antidepressant and started me with Prozac and holy cow - I couldn't get out of bed! I was so tired! He really wanted me to give Lexapro a try after Prozac. Its worked really good to help me feel better but it also has packed the pounds on in the last 2 months!

When I got to my normal weight last year I threw all of my bigger clothes away so I couldn't go back...well that means that right now I don't have any clothes that fit. So when I read that quote it made me feel even worse. I wish I had the money to go out and buy clothes that fit and flatter my body...but we don't.

When I was finally able to be honest with myself about why it rubbed me the wrong way I was able to read it differently. She is right. I should try to look my best when I leave the house. Not looking my best when I don't feel the best about my appearance doesn't help me at all!

I am currently weaning off of the Lexapro and hopefully I can start to work back to my normal weight. In the mean time I may not have a lot of clothes that fit but I can still try my best to look nice. Thank you Coco Chanel for that little bit of ladylike advice...even if it was hard to swallow.

Staheli Farm 2011

2011-10-26T10:12:00.000-07:00

We took our annual trip to Staheli Farm this year and it was a blast as always!

We always have to start the night out with the barrel rides. I think this is the first year John or I didn't have to ride along!

Next was the saddle horses!

Caleb is growing up so fast! He had more fun pulling than riding!

Speaking of growing up....

The Corn slide!

Caleb was more interested in the Redneck trampoline :)

As always the Star Wars family walking around....we still don't know why but we do know they make all their own costumes. Impressive and my boys love them!

The duck races were a big hit again with the boys. They would play here all night if we would let them!

And of course the Corn Maze!

It is always such a good night. I put Caleb on so much medication before we went and it seemed to work. No breathing treatments this time! Wa-hoo the tradition can live on!

I rocked my Mamas cowboy boots that night, no biggie.

Its amazing just how fast they are are gorwing up. Just looking back over the 4 years we have gone to Staheli Farm I can see how much they are changing and growing from one activity to another.

Time sure does fly by....

The rest of the weekend highlights....

2011-10-25T23:13:00.001-07:00

BBQ and Pool Party!

Celebrating Kams B-day!

Saying Goodbye for this trip...

From the Orange Country Register....

2011-10-24T19:02:00.000-07:00

The Orange Family History Center, located in the rear of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Orange, celebrated its 20th anniversary on Saturday afternoon with an open house and dedication of the new Caroline Braxton Rober Internet Learning Center.

Following a presentation and a ribbon cutting ceremony, visitors had the opportunity to tour the center and use its various resources to learn about their ancestors.

The center, at 674 S. Yorba St., is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday and welcomes all guests regardless of religious affiliation.

JEFF ANTENORE, FOR THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Orange Family History Center Director Beth McCarty speaks during an open house and 20th anniversary celebration at the center on Saturday.

Randy Burnett - a stake president for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which hosts the Orange Family History Center on its church grounds - speaks during Saturday's 20th anniversary celebration.

Larry Rober, husband of the late Caroline Braxton Rober, for which the new Internet Learning Center at the Orange Family History Center is named, was on hand to help dedicate the new center.

Lisa Rober, daughter-in-law of Caroline Braxton Rober, stands with Kamden Rober, left, and Davis Henderson, Caroline Braxton Rober's grandsons.

Caoline Rober Internet Learning Center

2011-10-23T21:57:00.000-07:00

The highlight of the weekend in CA was the celebration of the Family History Centers 20th anniversary, and the dedication for the Caroline Rober Internet Learning Center.

As we mingled with people who work at the Family History Center it was amazing to hear how many people our Caroline taught. She truly was teaching the teachers as well as the students. It is such an honor to have her name associated with the learning center.

Walk to defeat ALS 2011

2011-10-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

It was such a great day! The park was gorgeous as was the weather! I can not begin to describe how touched I was to see so many different families who have all been effected by this horrible disease. It hits every race and every age but that Saturday we were all combined as one in our grief and resolve. A great example of this was when they called out all of the team names. One team was called "ALS sucks" and there was a collective laugh throughout the crowd. Not because it was particularly funny but because everyone there had a personal belief for how bad ALS truly is.

We did not hear our team name called and so at the very end they re-announced our team as "Last but not least - Sweet Caroline!" Then they said they wanted to hear it and we sang the chorus to Neil Diamonds Sweet Caroline. Then the DJ played it for everyone. It was awesome and my Mom would have loved it.

Thank you to those of you who showed up to support us and for walking with us. Thank you to those who helped us raise money and donated so generouly. Between the two Sweet Caroline teams we raised almost $8000. What an accomplishment!

I wore your shoes for you Mommers. ALS may have taken your life but it never took your spirit.

Truly you defeated ALS!

Vacation recap - Disneyland and Sea World

2011-10-17T20:26:00.000-07:00

I have so many wonderful things to blog about from our BUSY weekend in CA. John, Erik, Sarah, and Caleb all arrived Wednesday night. We headed to bed for an early wake up call to Disneyland. We had a blast! It was busy but we still were able to do a lot thanks to Johns fast pass skills. We rode the new Star Tours ride and it was really fun. We stayed until 8:00 that night and we went home and slept good!

Friday we had another early morning so we could head down to San Diego to have donuts for breakfast with Grandma and Grandpa Henderson. It was so fun to visit with them and have Grandma dote on and spoil the boys with attention. We headed over to Sea World for the day but not before snapping a few pictures!

Sea World was amazing as always! We got to see the new Turtle Reef exhibit which is one of my new favorites! The day ended with John, Caleb, Erik, and Sarah going on the Rapids ride and getting soaked! I promise it had nothing to do with the water guns we were shooting at them ;-) Caleb and Erik were brave enough to do it a second time and both didn't have any dry spots on them when they got off!

We finished Friday off with dinner at Grandpa and Grandma's house! We are so blessed to have such wonderful Grandparents. You can feel how much they care about us and they are so fun to be with! We love them so much! This is one of my new all time favorite pictures!

We headed home that night to Aunts, Uncles, cousins and another really good nights sleep!

Davis' happiest day ever!

2011-10-12T09:47:00.000-07:00

My Mom had a tradition where she would take each grandchild to Disneyland when they turned 5 years old. My Dad is carrying on the tradition and today was Davis' special day!

Grandpa stayed true to Grandma Caroline and allowed Davis all the treats his heart desired...

I'm told there was a Mickey Ice cream bar too!

His favorite things of the day were Toy Story Mania. It had the longest line - 50 min and they waited in it twice.

He also loved the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail. They went twice and were in there for at least an hour each time. There was only one little moment that might have been a sore spot in the day....

One more video that just cracks me up. They pulled kids into the parade to do a line type of dance but Davis likes to bust his own moves!

Back in CA!

2011-10-11T15:51:00.000-07:00

Davis, Becks, and I drove to CA with my Dad yesterday. We left Daddy and Caleb back in UT. It was a nice drive especially because Grandpas car has a built in DVD player with headphones. The boys watched their movie and we listened to a book.

Awesome!

When we got home it felt so good to walk into our house but at the same time there just felt like there was something missing. I had a few moments where I couldn't hold back the tears as I thought about the life that my Mom brought to our home growing up. Her excitement for life was always infectious!

I just found saw this on Pinterest and it helped me feel better.

The happenings

2011-10-09T09:12:00.000-07:00

Its been a little quiet here on my blog lately for two reasons....

Over the Big Moon - I am loving the creative outlet this is for me.Since we are just starting out it takes time to market and get our name out there and also to fix the quirks on our site. Plus then there is the actual posting and projects. But I love it and I am having fun. Most of all I'm glad that a lot of the projects I think of doing are actually getting done.

The second reason is that I have been going into town a lot more than normal driving Erik and Sarah to interviews and to get applications. I am happy to do it and love having them with us but I have less time at home each day. Happy news though Erik got a job! They also have their own transportation now too! They bought a sa-weet vintage car and so as soon as Sarah gets a valid drivers license she will be able to drive herself around. 2 documents needed down, 1 more to go!

All in all life is good here at our house. Very busy and I'm just trying to keep the chaos in order.

School, homework, soccer, soccer practice, preschool, work, callings, meetings, visits, mother helping, gardening, canning, plasma donating, creating, cooking, laundering, cleaning, organizing, shopping, chauffeuring, and most importantly loving.

Its my life and I love it in all of its imperfection. I wish my house was cleaner and I had time to keep everything in order. I wish I remembered things better and wasn't so forgetful and rushed all of the time. I wish I had more time to serve others and be a better friend. I wish I had time to exercise and to get ready in the morning and time to do my hair.

There will be a time for all of that. In 3 short years I will have an empty house everyday for 4 hours. In 4 years I will have 8 hours all alone each day. I am pretty sure that the next few years are going to fly by! There will be time for a clean house and more "me" time but I'm enjoying each season as it comes. Right now my boys need me more than they need a clean blinds and baseboards....and I am so glad they need and want me! Baseboards and blinds can wait.

Skim boarding

2011-10-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

We packed up lunch and our bathing suits and headed over to the Virgin River after soccer on Saturday to so some skim boarding.

John and Erik were definitely in their element!

Caleb had been once before with John but this was Davis' first time going.

Caleb was so good! I was impressed with how fearless he was and how natural it came for him.

I however am not a natural. I thought it would be good for me to at least give it a try. It doesn't look like its that hard right? Riiight. I made sure the camera was all packed away when I tried but this pic of John (minus the jump) should give you an idea of what I looked like....

Ummm yeah. I am not graceful when I fall either. Ouch! I did manage to stay upright twice and got a little cocky and fell hard again! That was enough "practice" for one day.

This really was an awesome family outing. Its relaxing and it was hot so the water felt good. I loved that Becks could run and play and we didn't have to restrain him because it was so shallow. Plus there is sand galore to dig and throw! He was a happy boy!

Davis wanted to show me his mad moves!

Sarah and Erik have been so fun to have with us! They are both so fun and so good with the boys. Its been nice for me to have someone to talk to during the daytime and they are really helpful which is so nice! We never got the chance to get to know Sarah very well as she was growing up, especially the last few years and its been great that we are getting that chance now. We had only met Erik once before they moved in and yet it feels like hes been part of the family for years. He is so great! Im so glad Sarah has found someone so fantastic and so perfect for her! It really has been a blessing for us to have them be apart of our family for right now.

I love when we take the time to get out and play! Especially for this handsome guy!

He works so hard at work and at his calling and then comes home and is a great Dad and hubby. I love when he gets to get out and relax.

Those kind of smiles make me happy! We will definitely be back on the river again soon!

Sometimes a girl needs change

2011-10-02T15:58:00.001-07:00

Artisitc Davis

2011-09-30T11:33:00.000-07:00

At Preschool Davis learned a song that has the letter sounds and also two words that start with that letter. He sat down the other day all by himself and drew out his song. He has been singing it all the time and he is so proud of his pictures. The only thing he asked me for help on was what a question looked like. I'm hoping to get all the pictures labeled in the next few days.

Check this out!

2011-09-28T19:10:00.000-07:00

I was featured today on I share printables for my Harry Potter Potions labels that I designed!

I am SOOOO excited for this project! I have wanted Halloween apothecary bottles for a couple of years but never could get around to making them. Since I decided to do my house like Hogwarts I wanted the potions from the books. I got designing and here are the results!

I found my bottles at thrift stores and in my pantry and distressed the glass to look old and spooky. If you want to learn how I distressed the glass check out this tutorial. After the bottles were ready I printed my labels on card stock and cut them out. I used a even layer of modge podge on the back of the label and stuck it onto the bottle. I continued to hold the label down for a few minutes and kept checking to make sure that the label had not bubbled up. After letting it sit for about 10 minutes I put a thin layer of modge podge over the front to make it more durable.

My kitchen finally has a potions set and it only cost me about $14 for the bottles and cork stoppers.

It was a bonus activity to go around the kitchen and mix things up to go inside of them! It was like we were really mixing potions.

Grab your own Harry Potter Potions labels here.

You can see my other Hogwarts inspired Halloween decor and free printables here!

As for the rest of my house....

If you are not a big Harry Potter fan I made this Raven print you can grab here instead!

There were so many cute Halloween Printables out there. I chose these to put up in my home:

Halloween Bunting designed by Moselle and found at Blue Cricket Design
Halloween Subway Art from It works for Bobbi
Trick or Treat bag label from the Graphics Fairy

I'm sure there will be more projects as the month goes on but I'm so happy with how things have turned out this year. Davis keeps saying how spooky our house is! In fact he even prayed, "thank you for our spooky house." :-)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

The tears finally came

2011-09-25T19:50:00.000-07:00

If you know me you probably know that I cry pretty easily. But the last few months when it came to my Mom I haven't been able to cry. Ive cried about other things but when I talked about my Mom or thought about her passing it felt like there was a barrier that was holding the emotion at bay. I think I feared that if I opened that door and cried there would be pain waiting there.

And then tonight my friend Andee, my sis in-law Sarah, and I went out to dinner and to our annual Women's Conference for our Church. The messages were inspiring and uplifting and it put my heart into a vulnerable state. On the way home the conversation turned to Andee's good friend who recently passed and I shared an experience about the night my Mom passed and the tears started coming.It was like there was a dam inside of me waiting to burst and the tears came no matter how hard I tried to hold them back.

Thankfully we were close to home and I was able to run and hide away in a quiet place alone. I listened to the beautiful music of Kim Reed as I cried. Her music was such an important part of my Moms journey for us. The tears flowed and sobs escaped. I was wrong about the tears bringing pain, no hidden pain came. In fact it was like a healing balm of relief to finally release the tears.

As I listened to the song "Going Home," a song that for so long represented my Mom leaving this earthly home, the words took on new meaning. They brought me comfort that words can not describe and a meaning that has changed me forever. I am healing. I use to be afraid of healing. Afraid that if I healed it somehow diminished the impact of her life on me. Now I see that healing is the best way to honor her.

I love my Mom. I will always love my Mom. No one in this life will ever take her place. In some ways only I can do that. I am her daughter, the one she trained and raised and through me she will live on forever. She raised me to be strong and resilient. To not only survive but thrive. I hear her in my mind saying "YES!" the way she always did when she was really proud of me. Not only do I hear her in my mind but I feel her in my heart. I know she is porud of me.

I am healing.

I am a Queen!

2011-09-21T08:13:00.000-07:00

I am so happy with how our new blog has been going! We have been averaging about 400-600 hits a day. Yesterday we had 772 hits! I designed a 9/11 printable that Pam posted and 1,266 people have viewed that post! I'm having such a good time! Not only is it something I enjoy but its reminding me to enjoy my kids! Not that I normally don't enjoy them but I am seeing them and my role through a different lens.

We have such great boys! I believe Becks is finally starting to get a little less crazy :-)

Really all I wanted to say today is how much I love my boys, John, and my little life. I love that I get to create everyday. I create food and decor but more importantly I create love and memories and the feeling in our home.

I am the Queen of my little kingdom! I love that through my hard work and patience I am creating the home I always dreamed of having.