Christmas Day 2008

Christmas afternoon my family came home for our party. Tori and Titan were excited because Santa had brought them some fun things. Tori got a Nintendo DS which she was very happy about. Kayla had a cold and wasn't feeling very well. She just wanted to be held and wasn't very interested in her gifts. After a four hour nap she felt a little better and was in a better mood. Everyone got some nice gifts-even me! I love the spirit the holidays bring. It would be nice to have that feeling all year long. Christmas 2008 was enjoyed by all!

Christmas celebrations

Christmas Eve we always go to Kevin's parents home and celebrate with his brother and sisters and their families. There was about fifty people there. We always have a great time. We eat supper and then play games One game was a race involving two kids (Tori) wearing big sweat pants and shirts. Teams raced to stuff balloons into the clothes. The winning team had used the most balloons.The kids loved it-especially the small ones because there were balloons all over the floor. They also played "Silent Night" with chimes. They needed a lot more practice but they had fun. After the party Titan and Tori came to our house and opened the last gift of their "twelve days of Christmas". They each got new pajamas (like every Christmas eve).

Christmas concert

Tori goes to a Tavaci class once a week. It is a singing group for young girls and boys. They do dance moves while performing. Last night was their Christmas concert. It was a lot of fun and Tori did a great job. She is a natural performer. Having the dance with the singing makes it really fun to watch. The last picture shows her doing her speaking part. After the concert we all went to Arctic Circle to eat-Tori's choice. It was a nice family night. We love you Tori!

Santa's little helpers

As you can see, I tried three times to get a picture with all three "helpers" looking at me and smiling. Sometimes you just get what you get and move on to the next project! I know Santa will be generous to all three of them this Christmas because they have been good kids. (usually!)

Fun new pics

Kayla likes climbing into the toy cupboard. It's a tight fit but she has fun!

Titan "helping" me make cookies. One of us had a great time with the flour!

Just for fun

Click on the reindeer and see what he is thinking-if you can catch him!

Decembrrr

Today is the first day of the best month of the year! Christmas Day is great but I like preparing for it even more. These are my favorite things about the holidays: I love Christmas music. I like singing it at church, hearing it on the radio and while shopping. I could listen to it all year long. My favorite song is O Holy Night- Josh Groban sings the best version! I love the lights. Even one strand on a house makes it look festive. I like being in my living room at night with only the village and tree lights on-it's very relaxing. I love Christmas stories. I have a book of them that I have saved from various sources. They usually have great messages and help me get in the spirit of the holiday. My friend gave me a book of Christmas stories for my birthday which I am enjoying. I love the decorations. Even though I seem to have the same ones year after year, I still like them. It's fun to see all the displays in the stores. I love gift giving. It's nice to think of friends, neighbors and family. Even the shopping is usually enjoyable, if done early enough! I love the excitement that the kids have as they anticipate Christmas morning. Christmas is the best when you have a child around you. I guess I love almost everything about this month--except for the cold weather! I'm wishing everyone a happy month as we prepare to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Gratitude

As the last leaves fall from the trees and we look forward to Thanksgiving day, I have been thinking of all the blessings I have in my life. Of course health, home and a job are on the list, as well as a lot of other things, but my favorite things are listed next. 1. I am grateful Kevin has a sense of humor. How boring life would be if we didn't laugh together. 2. I am grateful we "play" with our "kids". We still make happy memories as a family 3. What a blessing Tori, Titan and Kayla are! They add sunshine to my life. 4. I am grateful for our parents and that they didn't let Kevin and I be an only child. 5. I am grateful for the telephone. It helps me keep in touch with my best friend even though she lives miles...and miles away. 6. I am thankful for the knowledge I have that I am a daughter of God and He knows and loves me. All my blessings come from Him and I am truly grateful for all of them-big or small.

Lesson learned!

Saturday night Titan opened a bottle of baby's

Tylenol and ate probably 15-20 of them. They were bubble gum flavor-yummy! Luckily Jason saw the empty bottle laying on the floor. After a poison control operator was called, Mom and Dad took him to the emergency room. (Kevin and I stayed with Tori, who was asleep because it was 10:45 pm.) Blood was drawn from his arm. He was given a "charcoal" drink, but after one tiny taste he was refusing it-of course! Jason, Alicia and the nurse had to hold him down while the doctor put a tube through his nose down to his stomach. The "charcoal" liquid was then put down the tube. It finally did it's job and Titan threw up. He kept crying that he wanted to go home-poor child. The nurse drew blood one more time and finally about 3:30 they arrived back home. He is doing great today-which we are all grateful for. I am posting this blog as a reminder to all of us who have children in our homes of the importance of drug safety. The bottle that Titan got hold of was in a tupperware container with a lid, sitting on a shelf in the closet. The bottle had a child proof lid and he was still able to get to the Tylenol! Please think about where your medications are and if you can make things safer for your child -please do. I know that's what I am going to do.

"Cool" kids

Kayla loves wearing these glasses around the house. She leaves them on for about five minutes before she takes them off. Looking good sweet girl!

Tori and Titan looking pretty cool too. Family, do you remember these glasses? They have been at my house for a lot of years!

A New Do!

Tori got her hair cut! It's about eight inches shorter. She has wanted to have it cut for quite a while. She looks very cute and a bit more grown up.

Halloween 2008

The kids had a great time this Halloween. Last year Titan hated having a costume on, but this year he had fun. Tori got to wear her costume to school, which always makes Halloween more fun. Kayla is too young to understand what is going on, but she had no problem wearing her cute flower costume.

Titan was a cowboy riding a horse. He actually liked the hat-didn't expect that!

Tori was a princess-no surprise here! She really would like to be!

Even Jazzer celebrated-the little devil!

Crazy Hair Day

Tori's school participated in Red Ribbon Week, which teaches the kids the importance of staying away from drugs. Each day they had a different theme. Tuesday was "crazy hair day" because you'd be crazy to take drugs! This is how we did her hair.

Crazy Hair Morning

Not to be outdone-Titan has a crazy hair day every morning! He hates it when I get the spray bottle out and get his hair wet. He rubs his head on the floor, trying to get it dry-maybe the buzz wasn't such a bad idea!

October's favorite riddle

A farmer went to the store to buy something for his farmhouse. The clerk told him 1 would cost 25 cents, 12 would cost 50 cents, and 124 would cost 75 cents. What was he buying?

The answer is now in the comment section.

A Favorite Saying....

Spread joy. Paint a rainbow of happiness.
Live fully. Gaze at the moon.
Celebrate the dawn.
Invite pleasure.
Appreciate tranquility.
Treasure golden moments.

Laugh out loud.
Feel enough to cry.
Have fun.
Share good news.
Start a conversation.
Make the first move.
Mend a relationship.

Smile at a stranger.
Make a new friend.
Realize the power of your love.
Share your happiness.
See your own beauty.
Feel your own strength.

Praise others.
Praise yourself.
Let your spirit soar.
Open your heart. Fill it with love.
Stay open to wonder.
Let miracles happen!

What The Heck!?!

We've been invaded! We found this huge yellow jacket wasp nest in our BASEMENT! It was in a dark, back corner, where we don't go very often (obviously). Derrek went downstairs to find his shotgun shells. When he turned the light on about fifty wasps swarmed around his head and the light. Kevin had to spray the nest two consecutive nights to kill all of them. The nest was 19" across, 11" high, and 14" deep. I'm guessing there was close to a thousand wasps in it--or more. Luckily only about 25 made it upstairs. The pipe that the nest was built around goes outside. We assume the wasps got inside through a tiny hole next to the pipe. Guess it's time to caulk!

(sorry 2 pictures are the same, I don't know how to delete one!)

Happy Birthday, Kayla!

Our sweet little Kayla turned one year old this week. She is a happy baby with the cutest laugh. It sounds a bit devilish! She weighs 19 1/2 pounds and has been walking for about a month. She had a fun birthday party with lots of gifts, of course! She didn't quite know what to do with her cake. She is such a precious child and we all adore her. Happy Birthday sweet girl!

Insignificant Me!

I've been tagged by Ashley and Bonnie. I am suppossed to write six insignificant things about myself that no one really knows. So here I go!

1. My fingers are double jointed. I don't know if they were intended to be but as a kid I would practice making them bend only at the top joint.

2. I have tickled my husband's back almost every night since we got married. Usually 5-7 times per week.

3. I love visiting cemetaries. Headstones tell interesting stories!

4. I played my Josh G. Christmas CD until June (when I was alone). If you don't have it, treat yourself-it's the best!

5. The french fries and fry sauce at LaBeau's are my weakness. They are sooo good!

6. I enjoy working cryptograms because doing them proves my brain is still functioning! A crypotgram is a sentence where wrong letters are substituted for the correct ones. Example: ATCHD'C ZQTM = ROSIE'S BLOG. Try the one below and let me know if you figure it out. I will give the answer in a couple of weeks.

ZLF DTUM AL TYYMKA RDTAMUMC YLVMB, TWP ADM LWHZ SVKLCATWA ADSWE SB ADTA ZLF VMMA SA RSAD ADM NMBA ZLF DTUM AL ESUM. (MHMTWLC CLLBMUMHA)

For the genius among us, try this one;

WNJULIY NIL SEBT NBTOLBLY NJW NIBQYBY. (FNIREB DEJBLPJ)

Mark AND Linda, you have been tagged!

The answers are now in the comments.

A Visit To My Favorite Place

This weekend we took our annual trip to the park. Jason, Alicia, Tori, Kevin's brother Kyle and his family went with us. We love going there in the fall because the elk are in the rut. The guys and I got up before dawn each morning and went to one of our favorite spots. When it got light we could see and hear five or six huge elk bugling at each other. It is quite a spectacular sight. We also saw deer, Bighorned sheep, buffalo (of course) coyotes, and a grizzly bear. We had a great time and we can't wait until spring to return!

Show Biz

Today Alicia and I took Tori to a live performance of "High School Musical". It was very well done and the casting was great. It was fun watching Tori enjoy the show. She loves to dance and sing. I wouldn't be surprised if someday she is on stage entertaining all of us! She got autographs from Sharpay, Gabriella, Ryan and Troy before they posed for this picture. It was a great afternoon for all three of us!

THIS WEEK'S FAVORITE RIDDLE

Name a tree that you can change one letter to name an animal. Change one letter of that animal to name a vegetable. Change one letter of that vegetable to name a lunch meat. The answer is now in the comment section.

Just trying!

This is my first attempt to post a blog. Bonnie told me to be brave and not let the computer intimidate me, so I'm giving this a try-even though I am extremely intimidated!