The End of 2008

I am happy to say goodbye to 2008. It was a very interesting year for our family. We got to go places that I never thought possible. Thank goodness we went when we did. Watch the news and it is not looking good over in Israel. Our friends are safe for the time being but she says they have closed everything and hear bombs all day and night. I am so happy Doug is home safe and sound.

The economy took a crap. That was not good. My kids are getting so old. That is good and bad. We have to move. That is bad. We are healthy and still have a good job. That is good.

I can't wait to print my book. I think it will be a treasure. The Slade Scrapbook of 2008. This is my last entry for the year. Happy NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

2008 Christmas Break

We did our annual 12 days of Christmas. This year we has some pretty sneaky people we did it too. The kids had to be extra careful. We have done this since Sadie was 5 except for last year because we were in Israel. Kamryn wanted to do it to someone there but it really wouldn't work because everyone is Jewish. She also wanted to go caroling and we told her people would probably not like that either. Anyways... Someone started doing it to us but they must of gotten tired because we only got the first 2 days. My kids think that is funny.

The kids enjoyed Christmas this year and the presents they got and gave. Doug and I got a GPS for the car. What a lifesaver in NM. It is really cool and it doesn't have a subscription. We also got a Clear Play DVD player for the family. It filters out all the crap in movies. Can't wait to use it.


The day after Christmas we took the kids, with Doug's parents, up to NM in the motor home and we spent the week at an RV park and getting a feel for the area. Since it was snowing we decided to take another route. It took 12, I repeat 12 hours to get there. It should only take 7 which is bad enough. Glad to say that is over. Doug's parents spent the night in a hotel and then went to Eagar.


The RV park is really nice. It had a little movie theater in it. We watched Journey to the Center of the Earth. It had a laundry and a hot tub and pool and pool tables. It was fun.



One day we took the kids up to Santa Fe and let them play in the snow. They had a lot of fun. I took a nap in the truck.


One day we took the kids to the aquarium. When you have been to the Red Sea it is kinda hard to beat but it was nice.
One day we went to the zoo. It was a very nice zoo. Sadie took pictures of all the animals. Kamryn got a monkey to sit on a stick that she put through the cage. I realize I use to do this kind of stuff a lot when Sadie and Derrik were little but poor Kamryn has missed out.

Most other days we went and looked at houses. I thought that the kids would complain when we did this but they LOVED it. Last time we did this I had 3 car seats and it was a nightmare. They really loved model homes. I told them the house we get will not be like those. We didn't find one we loved. Mostly because Doug likes old fixer uppers that have a lot of square footage and I like the newer ones that are more practical. We will need to keep looking. Still too sad for me to get into it.


We took the the normal route home and stopped in Eagar for a few hours. Eagar is smack dab in the middle. It was nice to see the family and take a break. Made it home safe and sound last night. It is nice to be home.

A Good Day

So I have something that was so exciting to share with you. I love a good deal. Yesterday I was out with the kids and we discovered I was gunna run out of gas. Well I made it to Safeway and I plugged in my Mom's Safeway Card (My mom said I could use hers because in Eagar there is only 2 grocerie stores and she uses Safeway. However there is not a Safeway Gas Station and the one in Showlow is usually higher even with the gas reward.)(Hope that is still OK Mom?) Well I have been so thrilled with the lowering gas prices. When we got home from Israel it was over $4.00!. Well I got $0.91 a gallon! That is unreal. I had to take a picture because I was so happy. It cost me $22 to fill my whole truck up. It use to cost me at least $75. That is good news. Doug wanted to know if I can read the sign that says, No Cell Phones.

Happy Birthday Sis

Today was Krissy's birthday. I had Seneca today and the kids each took a shift watching her. Derrik had her from 7am-9:30, Kamryn from 9:30-noon, I had her from noon-3 and Sadie watched her from 3-5:30. It works out great, especially for me because she sleeps from noon to 3. (Hey I have her all the time, it doesn't hurt to have her cousins help out.)

Sadie and Seneca made her mom a cake. She sure loved doing it. What a mess they made! She liked to put the sprinkles on. I think she liked to lick the cake after we iced it more than anything. We only had an 8 candle but it worked. Happy Birthday Sissy.

Our first New Mexico Trip

Doug and flew out for 2 days to go and see what I am in for. Krissy stayed overnight with the kids. I had to say that because I got a call from Andi while we were gone and she said Tori told her that the kids were staying by themselves and she wanted to know if I needed them to stay there with them. Too funny.

Well the first thing about it is that it is FREAKING COLD!!! I could not beleive how cold it was. It was windy so it made it very cold. Apparently it was the coldest day all year. I hope that was true because I hate being cold.

We went and looked for houses. There are many houses on the market. Like here I guess but not as many forclosures as here. We haven't even begun to scratch the surface. We are going to get what we want even if it takes a lot of looking.

There is a beautiful mountain there. The towns were not very pretty because no one has grass. I guess it costs a lot to have grass being as the water is so expensive. Some people have fake grass. That costs a lot too but is is better than rock. The city lights were nice. Everything is dead because of winter but I think it will be better any other time of year. The houses are all that ugly brown that Arizona has.

The people we came in contact with were all nice. That is good. We didn't have that much contact but that is good. The stores are all new and nice. Seems to be alot of shopping. There is a mall there with Sam's and Costco. Gas is about the same price as here.

We went and saw the Temple while we were there. It was very pretty. It is about 10 minutes from where we'll be. I guess there is everything we need except all our good friends that we will miss.

Kids Christmas Program

Tonight both Derrik and Kamryn had their Christmas performance. They both did great. Derrik's all about History. He had a special part that enabled him to not have to sing. He is not a lover of singing. He did well on his line.

Kamryn's was all about Christmas. She sang her little heart out. Cute hats hu? Kamryn and Derrik each had to wear a red shirt with no writing on it. They both decided to just turn their shirts around. Works for me.

Grannie Slade and Dustin (Doug's oldest brothers, youngest child) came to see them perform. Dustin is visiting because his mom has been very sick in the hospital. She is doing better now.

On the way home since there is no parking we gave Grannie a lift to her car. They all road in the back of the truck. It was pretty chilly out there.

14 years of Bliss

Today is Doug and I's anniversary. I can hardly believe it has been 14 years. For the most part they have all been good years. I first remember meeting him when we were lifeguard partners when I was 14. I needed a job and that was what was available at the time. Unfortunately I couldn't swim well. Doug was very heavy in the water so he would kinda kick to help me across. I got the job and we dated pretty much every summer for the rest of high school. It was only in the summers for some reason. Those were fun summers.
Then Doug went on his mission to England and I was dating another person. When he left he also had someone else. For some reason he started to write to me. It must have been summer there and he was missing me. It was just friendly letters but I really looked forward to getting them. When he came home I broke it off with my boyfriend (it was time anyway) and started to date Doug. He came home in September and by they end of the month we were engaged and by December 9th we were married and leaving for college at EA.
I would have never thought I would have been married so fast and that I would have got someone who is so compatible for me. He is so sensible and for the most part easy going. He likes the weird things that I do. He is the best dad. He is super smart and works very hard. He does not procrastinate and he does what needs to be done. I love Doug and he loves me and that is why moving to NM will be OK even if it is hard. Here's to the next 14!

Decorating for Christmas

Every year we decorate after Thanksgiving. I guess I should say I watch all the others decorate for Christmas. I don't like to decorate. It takes too much work. My kids love this part of Christmas more than Christmas it self. We have 6 trees. One in my room (fiber optic), Family room, Front room (kids decorations) and one small one in each one of the kids rooms.

Kamryn got to put the tree star up this year. She is getting so big that it was hard to get her up there. We have no more little kids in this house!

Sadie serenaded us with Christmas music on her violin. She is getting pretty good at it now.

ASU Basketball

Doug took the kids to the ASU men's basketball game Thursday night. Kamryn had never been. They had a lot of fun. Sadie and Derrik caught a shirt. They are going to share it. It is an XL so I think it will be a while before that happens. They loved going with their dad.

Sadie's Neuro Apt.

We spent all day today doing the brain stuff. It was all done at Barrows at St Joe's Hospital. I was very impressed with the hospital and especially with her Dr., Dr. Kevin Chapman. I kept her up till midnight and woke her up early for the EEG. She needed to sleep for part of the hour test. It went well. I took a picture of her with all the wires and stuff but she won't let me post it. She is so much like her father.

The EEG came back good but he said it only means that the things they tried to get her to have an episode don't set her off. He said she is a mystery to him. Her symptoms could fit more than one diagnosis but they don't fit just one. He said if he were a betting man he would lean towards Epilepsy but he wants to rule out a few other things first. He also said it could be a Brain Stroke. I think we will take the first one. He was so efficient and did so many tests and took his time with us. He talked to us and made Sadie feel OK with it all. He said when you have a seizer it does not cause any brain problems and it is OK as long as you are having it in a safe place. So no baths or swimming alone or climbing up on high places. He made her and myself feel OK about it all.

So now he is going to have us do an MRA which is I guess is better than an MRI. We will have to get insurance approval so that will probably be in a month or so. Then we will go from there.