Birthday Party!

December 27th marked Maggie's (the cow) and Rose's (the bear) 6th Birthday!
Brent and Ashley took the girls to Build a Bear to build their animals on December 27, 2001.
These animals have been part of our family ever since!!! They have been slept with every night and I don't think they have missed a single family trip since then! They are very well traveled animals and very loved!!!
The girls make a cute display as we walk through airport concourses with their animals sticking out of their backpacks on their backs, usually dressed to the hilt!!!
In December 2004 we added Alyssa's Jolly (the giraffe) to the family so we included all of them in the celebration!!

Emmy and Meggy giving their new animals a bath after they were built!
My how they've grown in 6 years!!!

Happy Birthday to all the animals!!!

Blowing out the candles!

Christmas Day 2007

Christmas has come and gone again. Alyssa was upset this morning wanting to know if Santa was coming back again tonight and if there were more presents to open!! We think she finally figured out Christmas is fun!
This year we decided that Christmas would be "low key" and small. We'd just do a few things and everyone would be happy. Well, Christmas "threw up" in our living room. Small seemed to be rather large and every one seemed to get most of the things they wanted and were happy!

Santa brought Alyssa a saxophone. We really don't know where this idea came from but she decided that this was what she wanted and stuck with it for several months. She was thrilled and had to play it for everyone that we talked to all day long! She even went and got a rubber duckie so she could be just like Ernie from Sesame Street. She is one funny kid!!!
Meggy shows off her music box. She was pretty happy with all her gifts. Santa brought her a digital camera which stopped working by mid morning so we're sending it back to the "North Pole" for repair!
Alyssa got the Star Entertainer System which she LOVES! Basically it is a console that you plug into your tv and it plays music from a cartridge with microphones that you can sing along with. But the best part is that there is a camera and the kids can see themselves on the tv singing and dancing to the music. They all took turn showing off their singing ability and watching themselves. Alyssa calls it her video game!
Emmy shows off her new dress. She'll be beautiful come Sunday!!
Dr. Lyssa is back in business! She got a new Elmo Dr. Kit and daddy happened to be her first patient/victim! May she grow up to be a Dr. and support her parents!!!!
Meggy loves to sing and perform! She had a good time with the new microphones!!

It was a great day of talking to family, eating (way to much) and playing and watching the kids play.
We hope that you all had a great day as well!!!
* Side note: Emmy received the cd of Hairspray and Meggy received the cd of Wicked so we had them playing and people were singing along to them (thanks Auntie Julie!!!) We sat down to eat lunch and Alyssa broke into song randomly as she often does and was singing "Good Morning Baltimore" but it came out "Good Morning Voldemort" it was pretty funny...we all got a good laugh!!!

Christmas Eve

The children's prayers were answered and when we woke up yesterday morning there was a couple inches of SNOW! Not to let the moment pass them by the girls "suited up" when Steve went out to shovel the walk and the driveway! There is something very magical about snow to children!!!

Alyssa and Meggy ready for some snow action!!

I was watching them out the window between typical "mom jobs". Pretty soon I noticed that the shoveling was on hold and there was a snowman being made! What would a snow day be without a snowman? Emmy decided at this point that being inside where it was warm was really no fun, especially with mom so she suited up and went out to join the fun.
After the snowman was complete and most of the snow was used in the front yard they moved the fun to the backyard. They jumped on the tramp with the snow covering it and then they decided to all make snow angels. When they came in they were very ready for breakfast!!

We thought we'd better get a picture of "the man" before he toppled! Sure enough by early afternoon he fell apart!
Part of Christmas Eve is making cookies for Santa. We had some very original cookies this year. We think Lyssa got more frosting into her tummy than she did on a cookie!
Helping daddy make the chocolate chip/candy cane cookies on Sunday afternoon.

We had a fun day and then had a nice candle light dinner. It was fun to be together with just our family although we missed the larger group as well. After dinner we went for a drive to look at Christmas lights...the girls love to see the "decked out houses". When we got home we turned on the fire and did our traditional Christmas Eve gifts of new jammies! Boise grandma made the cute polka dot jammie bottoms this year....THANK YOU!
Sister chillin' out and showing off their new dotty jammies!!

After every one was in their jammies we read our daily Christmas story and then Steve read from the Bible and the girls acted out the nativity.
The girls are good sports about taking turn being Joseph and the shepherds. Pretty soon we'll have a male to play Joseph!!


We tucked them in and Steve and I wrapped all the presents. I hadn't wrapped anything because little curious hands go through things and corners and packages get ripped so they were surprised to see how Christmas exploded when they woke up!

We also discovered last night that Emmy knows how to "fake snore"! Steve went to check on the kids to see if anyone was really asleep and as he got to Emmy's door she began snoring which is funny because Emmy is quiet when she sleeps! We had a good laugh!!!

Santa indeed found our house and we'll share that with you tomorrow.

"Oh, There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays"

It’s Christmas Eve and we just wanted to wish everyone a fabulous night as you are preparing for the arrival of our favorite “fat man” dressed in red!

We wish that everyone lived close enough to get together and enjoy this evening together but please know where ever you are we are thinking of you and sending all our love!

Our stocking are hung by the chimney with care! We hope that Santa will find us (but more importantly, that the children sleep!!)

School's Out!!!

Whew...it's over!!! School that is!
I can say that after this week I have a deep respect for all working moms! For 3 days in a row I've gotten the girls and all of us out the door so I could be in the kids classes. By the time we're all ready, fed and out the door I need a nap!!!
Yesterday I spent the day in Emmy's class embossing candles. Alyssa went with me and thought that she was pretty darn cool to be the new play thing of the 5th grade!! She colored and stickered and enjoyed the attention. For being there for 3 hours she was an angel!!! (We think she now has a crush on Emmy's 5th grade teacher as well!!!)
Today was the class parties and basically organized chaos!! The kids were higher than kites and so ready for the Christmas break to begin!!!
This morning Emmy decided that she wanted to be Cindy Loo-Hoo from Whoville! What we do for our kids!!!

Emmy is now a Who!!

Lyssa is chilling out enjoying all the food from the 2nd Grade Winter Festival in Meg's class!!

Meggy enjoying "lunch" at school. They had Fried Chicken, Corn Muffins, Latkes, Fried Rice, Fortune Cookies, Oranges and cookies. They were stuffed!! They had been learning about all the different winter celebrations: Hanukkah , Kwanzaa, Chinese New Year and a couple others.

Meggy and her teacher.

Emmy enjoying her class party with friend Katie

The gift game in Meg's class.

We're ready to begin some "time off". Time to start baking and getting ready for Santa!!!!

More Christmas!

The Christmas activities catch up continues!
Emmy had her Christmas Piano Recital on the 8th. They like to have it in an assisted living center so it serves two purposes. The older people that live there really seem to enjoy it. This was Emmy's 3rd Christmas Recital and as she was playing after many of the beginning students I was thinking to myself....we've come a long way in just 2 1/2 years!!!
This year she played "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" by Bach and it was beautiful! Her teacher gave her this piece in October which is technically a level above where she is right now but Emmy rose to the occasion and did it perfectly!!
We think her teacher enjoys a student that loves what she is doing so she pushes her which is great!

Emmy and her friend Linnae. Linnae also takes piano from the same teacher so they get to see each other once in awhile!
Emmy and her teacher Gwen Blakeslee. She has been a great teacher and Emmy loves her!!
That same evening was our ward Christmas party. We got Meggy to sit on Santa's lap. Emmy (who had Linnae) with her wasn't too interested in seeing Santa. (Can we get her to stop growing up?)
This is as close to sitting on Santa's lap as we got with Alyssa! At least she is in the same room and not screaming. Baby steps each year...maybe by the time she's 5 or 6 we'll be there!!! She's still not so sure that this is a good thing!!!
We will continue to catch up and hopefully by the time Christmas really gets here we'll be current!!
Stay warm wherever you are...we're thinking about you!!

The First Days of Christmas

It's time to start catching up on all the going's on around here!!
So we'll back track a little and spend the next few days catching up.
Emmy sings in the 5th grade choir at school and they were asked to come and participate in the lighting of the tree in the local town square. There is only one word to describe that night....COLD!

Emmy looks cute in her Santa hat.
Group photo of Emmy with the choir!
Alyssa, Meggy and Steve trying to stay warm. It was fun to hear them sing but we didn't last for the rest of the program...we headed for warmer activities! (Like running to Target to get light holders so the outside lights could go up the next day!)
Steve worked his tail off one Saturday and we got the house (inside and out) looking very festive this year. Since we weren't home last year for Christmas we were kind of low key but I must say the house looks very "Christmasy" this year!!
I'll have to take picture of everything all lit up and post those too!

Farewell to a Friend

This past weekend my good friend Audrey Read passed away. Some of you may remember her from here.

It's sad to think of her not here anymore. Since she moved into the ward a little over 3 years ago we've been together in one capacity or another. She was my visiting teacher and then last year we became partners.

Alyssa and I have spent many afternoons visiting in her home or working on projects. When I served in YW she helped do many flower arrangements with me...she was very talented in that area and so many others.

Last night at her viewing she looked so beautiful and peaceful. Her cute husband said she looks so good she's just missing her animation. I thought that was so well put...she was always lively and animated and thinking of others.

She's has great daughters and has left an incredible legacy.

She will be greatly missed but she has left us with many memories and many good life lessons!

If anyone is interested, her obituary is here.

Computers=Love/Hate Relationship

Well I'm back after a couple weeks absence. Here's a quick explanation why. Our computer literally gave up the ghost and died...actually fried itself. Steve, who is an amazing fix it man took up the challenge and brought home several spare computers from the office and literally reconfigured at least 3 computers trying to figure out what the problem was. Our computer room looked like a computer grave yard for a couple of days!! Needless to say there was never even a hint of life from our old computer or our hard drives.

It was an eye opening experience for me to realize how dependent I was/am on the computer and having so much info right at my fingertips. We've come a long way in the last few years!!! I mean I took typing classes in high school and now our 3 year old is telling her dad just to look online!!!

So that is the hate part of computers. The love part comes into play with the blog. We had thought that our 2007 pictures were backed up on a cd just like our other years pictures but we turned the desk upside down looking for the disk. It was no where to be found. I was sick thinking that all our pictures were gone. But thank heavens for the blog! Steve took all the pictures I've put on the blog and created a new 2007 file. So for all of you who think I post way too many pictures...I'm grateful that I do!!

So for right now we are borrowing a spare computer from the office until we can find one and make it ours again!!
So I'll begin posting pictures again tomorrow. We've had several activities with the kiddos that we need to catch up on!!!
Thanks for letting me vent my frustrations with the computer!
I'm grateful that my husband is so good at fixing things and coming up with solutions!! So all is not lost!!!!

P.S. If anyone has pictures from 2007 that have any of us in them would you mind emailing them or burning them to disk and sending them?!!! Thanks!!!

Thanksgiving Pictorial

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving was only a week ago today! Christmas seems to be in full swing! I thought I'd share some pictures from our time in Ashton. We had a great time. Great food, great fun, great company! Meggy and Carter seemed to hit it off and they played so well together...we rarely saw much of them!!

Carter and Meggy playing outside in the snow. They played for hours!

Steve is a softie! I told Alyssa she couldn't go out but daddy couldn't resist letting her play in the snow for a while!!

Grandma presenting her beautiful bird! She always puts on an amazing spread!!

During Thanksgiving dinner. Joel and Erin weren't alone at the kids table, Mom and Jim joined them as well!

Emmy, Carter and Meggy show off what to do with cloth napkins!! The pilgrims have arrived!

We questioned Alyssa's thought process. There was so much good food and the only thing she wanted to eat was yogurt! Crazy kid!

We went bowling Friday. It was a blast to watch the kids bowl. They actually all got really good scores, especially Carter. Alyssa being helped by her dad!

The long wait to see if the ball will hit the pins!

Emmy has great form!!!

Meg had her own flair to life...including bowling!

The Rexburg Temple. The open house begins after Christmas. I forgot how COLD Rexburg is!!

It wouldn't be the holidays without one of grandma's famous gingerbread houses. The Architect and sidekicks had a blast building and decorating their house.

Are you sure it's sound and will pass inspection?!!!

The best part of the experience was the laughter and smiles of the children and the adults!