A month of get togethers!

Okay--December is always a crazy month, but it was made even crazier for me because I went to a bunch of old friend reunions/get togethers! It was SO MUCH fun to see all my old friends! Some of them I hadn't seen in 10-15 years! I reminded Kevin of what a wonderful saint of a husband he was for being so patient this month. He was very supportive and happy for me to get together with so many long lost friends.

First...some "old" pictures...

1985--my 9th birthday party...
Becky, Holly, Laurie, Kristen
Kelli, Lara, Natalie, Me, Krissy
Andrea, Emily, Katie, Melodi, Heather

My friends (and sisters) from the cul-de-sac I grew up on...

Me, Aubrey, Katie, Holly, Emily, Julie, Laurie

High School dance--old friends My wedding...1996

Kristen, Me, Melissa, Ali

Well, I first got together with some of my old 30th ward (the ward I grew up in) friends. We had so much fun growing up together. They are and will always be some of my most cherished friends.

Benjamin, Me, Kelli, Melodi, Heather, Becky, Natalie (we were missing Andrea and Kristen) Next I got together with all the friends who lived on the cul-de-sac I grew up on. We all agreed we had the best childhood EVER! Playing night games, jumping on the trampoline, making up plays and programs for our parents, playing in the gully behind our houses, walking down to the store to get candy....and the list goes on... I love my childhood friends! Thanks for the memories!

Benjamin, me, Katie, Megan, Julie, Aubrey, Lara, and Holly (we were missing Emily and Laurie!)

Aubrey, Lara, and Holly

Me, Katie, Megan, and Julie

And finally, I got together with another group of high school/Junior High/Elementary school friends. We got together because our good friend, Melissa was in town and I hadn't seen her in like 10 years! We had so much fun and talked and laughed all night long at the Cheesecake Factory.

Me, Melissa, Melodi, Liz, Kristen

Liz and Melissa, enjoying their cheesecakeOh...the good 'ol days. I feel so blessed to have so many wonderful friends who helped shape my childhood and gave me some of the best memories EVER! Thanks to all my friends...I love you guys!

Happy Birthday Tyler!

Tyler turned 10 (I can't believe it!!!) on Christmas day. He is growing up too fast, but he's such a good boy. We had a fun little birthday party for him on Saturday, the 27th. We went bowling at Fat Cats bowling alley in Salt Lake, had pizza, cake, and opened presents. It was fun.

Merry Christmas to all!

We had a wonderful Christmas! I love love love love love Christmas...the whole shabang...Christmas carols, Christmas shows, Christmas spirit, Christmas lights, Christmas trees, Santa, shopping, the crowds (yes, the crowds), the hustle and bustle, etc. etc. etc., but....I also love it when it's....OVER!

On Christmas morning, the kids didn't wake up at the crack of dawn, which was nice. They woke up around 8:00. We enjoyed watching them open presents. We tried to go slow and let it last as long as possible. It was nice. We also had a VERY white Christmas...it snowed and snowed and snowed all morning. It was beautiful!

We went up to my parent's house in the afternoon and enjoyed spending time with family. We also sang "Happy Birthday" to Tyler and had cake. It was fun. Here's some pics...

The kids Christmas morning...I love the look of pure childhood Christmas excitement on their faces...

Tyler with his new Nintendo DS, which he's wanted for about 3-4 years now. I kept thinking that Santa would be able to get it on sale "next year" (after the hype wore off), but this year I finally realized that they NEVER go on sale...so Santa decided that Tyler had been a good boy and it was finally time! (Now watch, they will go on major sale next year!)

Brooklyn with her new "pink" Nintendo DS, DS purse carrying case, and nail salon.

Derek with his new Gameboy Advance SP, Mack truck, Gameboy games, and some books.

Trip to Oregon

Holy cow!!! It's been a while since I've posted, but our lives have been INSANE! Tis the season, I guess. I am very much looking forward to January so life can calm down a bit. I have a ton of pictures and things to post on here, so it may take me a while...

Well, we made a trip up to Oregon the beginning of December. It was a lot of fun. While we were there, our niece, Kristi, and her husband, Lehi were sealed in the Boise Temple. It was so nice to be there with them and with family. It was a beautiful day.

Some of us at the temple after Kristi and Lehi were sealed. Sadly, this is the only picture I took and neither Kristi or Lehi are in it!!??
Angie, Marshiela, Kent, Me, Kev, Mom, Dad

Also, while we were there, our nephew, Abram, got home from his mission. It was so much fun to see him! It's been a while since I've been able to see a missionary come home. It's always an awesome, yet emotional experience. I get emotional just watching random missionaries who I don't even know come home and be reunited with their families. I warned my kids that I will be one of the most embarrassing moms EVER when they get home from their missions. I will tackle them to the ground and cry and cry and cry. It will be memorable! :-)

Benjamin, Ryan (nephew), Kent, and Kevin...at the airport after Abram got home (once again, this is the only picture I took and Abram's not even in it!!?) However, this picture speaks volumes about the Kevin/Kent combo...always a good time!

Anyway, we had a great time while we were there---hanging out, singing Christmas carols around the piano, bowling, hanging out with friends, and just enjoying the holiday season with family. Here are some bowling pictures...

Kent, bowling

Mom, bowling

Kev, bowling

Dad, bowling

Dad, mom, Kev, Benjamin, and Kent...good times!

Something that made me laugh

Hey guys, of course as a mother there is always something that makes me laugh! Tyler said something funny today...it might not make anyone else laugh...it might be one of those "only funny because I'm the mom" things, but it made me laugh nonetheless.

Anyway, Benjamin's new thing is that he is obsessed with eyes. He really really wants to somehow get a hold of someones eyes! He will crawl over to someone and try to grab their eyes and he gets so discouraged when he can't get a hold of them. It makes me laugh to see the serious look of determination on his face--his eyes look so focused and his little lips purse up and he breathes really hard. I just sit and giggle as I see the look on his face and his cute little chubby hands trying so hard.

Anyway, tonight as Benjamin was diligently trying to grab mine and Derek's eyes, Tyler said, "Mom, what a vicious baby we have." It just struck me as so funny and since I was already giggling about Benjamin, I just lost it when I heard that comment.

I know it's not "fall off your seat" funny, but I thought I would share with you all so I can remember it in the archives!

I love my kids.

Pics of the kids

Okay, I wanted to take some cute pictures of the kids, but it didn't work out so well. I cut the boys hair, got them all dressed up and we took them over to Gardner Village to take some pictures. What I didn't take into consideration was how COLD it was going to be! It was FREEZING and it was starting to get dark. So, I took a few quick pictures and conceded. We didn't even get any of Benjamin. So, my new plan is to take some cute pictures of the kids INSIDE for now and try again at Gardner Village in the spring.
Oh and here's a little picture I thought I would post. Tyler has such an inventive, imaginative mind! He is always wanting to build something or figure out how things work. Most of the time, I love to encourage him and am impressed with what he comes up with. However, sometimes I want to pull my hair out! He never wants us to throw ANYTHING away because he either wants to take it apart or use it in an invention. Well the other day, I found this...He decided to take apart a bunch of the pens in the junk drawer so he could use them in an invention!!! AUUUGHH! It took me forever to figure out which part went to which pen and I ended up throwing away some of them too. I told him he is not allowed to play with pens anymore!

It's the most WONDERFUL time of the year!

I love Christmas!!!! On Friday and Saturday we set up all of our Christmas stuff! It was so much fun! Since we were living at my parent's house last year, we haven't seen our Christmas decorations for a couple years. The kids enjoyed reuniting with everything. Kev and the kids also picked up a Christmas tree and we had a lot of fun decorating it.

Speaking of Christmas trees--Kev and I have had an ongoing debate about real/fake Christmas trees for years. I have really wanted a fake (pre-lit) tree and Kev loves real trees. I love real trees too, especially the smell, but I hate having to water it all the time, the pine needles all over the floor, and having to take forever putting a bazillion lights on it. I also would like to put up the tree earlier and leave it up later, but it dies too fast. I usually take it down the day after Christmas.

Well, Kev said that if we get a fake tree, we might as well do away with presents too. He loves the whole process of getting the tree, bringing it home, and decorating it. So, our compromise is that he has to put all the lights on it! He always does a great job and I remind him every year that if we had a fake (pre-lit) tree, he wouldn't have to do that! For now he seems okay with it.

Last night, I suggested we get a fake tree as our big tree and a small real tree for the nostalgia and smell. He didn't seem to like that idea either--he said I was like the camel putting his nose in the tent. If you're not familiar with that story, here's a link... http://camelphotos.com/tales_nose.html

Anyway, here's a picture...
Also, here's my little Willow Tree Nativity that Kev got me for Christmas last year. I was very pregnant last year and didn't' really want or need anything, so I asked for this...and Santa delivered! I love it!

Yay! I'm a proud piano owner!

Okay guys I'm so so so excited! I've wanted a piano FOREVER and we finally got one!!!! I've been looking for a piano on and off for about 6-7 years. My criteria for a piano was...1. Not ugly. 2. Good price. 3. works. I finally found it! On Wednesday we went and looked at a piano I saw on KSL Classifieds. It was only $300 (I couldn't believe it!), works great, and totally matches our house! I was stoked! I just happened to see it on KSL when it was newly listed. The lady who sold it to us said it was a good thing we called when we did because she had a bunch of other calls on it and several of her family members said they would have bought it too! So now we have a piano and someone has been playing it or at least playing with it ever since it entered our home. I'm so happy!

Fun times with Friends

On Saturday, we had a fun little get together with old friends. We had dinner and hung out at our house. It was so fun to see everyone and chat. Josh and Melodi (Park) Christensen, Chad and Deann Hecker, Dave and Becky (Barlow) Johnson, and Josh and Ali (Williams) Clark came over. Melodi, Becky, Ali, and I were all roommates at college (and have been friends since Elementary school and Junior High). Chad was like our surrogate roommate at college and Kev, of course was our friend at college too! It's crazy how when you get together with friends and talk about the "old days" it doesn't seem like it was that long ago. We had a great time and laughed and laughed and laughed!

Becky, Melodi, Ali, and I

College Buddies--Melodi, Me, Kev, Ali, Becky, and Chad
Melodi & Josh Christensen, Chad & Deann Hecker, Becky & Dave Johnson, Josh & Ali (and Ryan) Clark, and Kev & I