The Life Of Britt

My Baby Girl

2012-01-08T23:19:00.002-07:00

Well, today was a special day for the Wright Family. It was the day that my beautiful daughter got baptized on her birthday! The program was beautiful...Emery was beautiful! I am just so proud of my baby girl that she chose to be baptized and become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She helped plan the whole program. We had two dear friends give talks on Baptism and the Holy Ghost. My hubby and I sang a song. My friend and her daughter played the piano and violin as welcoming music and as the interlude music. My mom said the closing prayer and Ethan gave the opening prayer. So many people came to show their love and support. I am just grateful for them and everyone who helped. And of course, I cried like a baby. My little girl was growing up and the Spirit filled my heart.

Emery's words of the day: "I was happy, scared, nervous and excited" She was so gracious with all of the gifts she received. My mom gave her scriptures with a cute ruffled scripture case.

*More pics to come*

Being "Single"

2011-09-25T17:21:00.002-07:00

So, I have a few minutes before I Skype with my parents....so I thought I would jot down some happenings.

I have been a "single" parent for 4 days....and I'm ready for my sweet hubby to be back.

Thursday: Soccer Practices. Every Thursday, Emery and Ethan have soccer practices. Ethan has his at 4:30 and Emery's at 5:00. It is nice that they overlap a 1/2 hr...but that means I have to entertain my two youngest for an hour and a half. So bring on the snacks....and craziness.

Friday: Went to Movie Night at the kid's school. They showed National Treasure. They just had it on the football field. It was actually pretty fun. If you call playing Tag with six 2nd graders...then wohoo! Yes, I had to take several time-outs. haha. There was Chick-fil-a, a jumping castle and kids to play with. We didn't stay for the whole movie...but Miles was so interested in the stars. He kept on pointing to them and making me look with him. Cute boy!

Saturday: 9am-Soccer Game; 11-Lunch; 12-Soccer game; 2-Birthday party; 2:30-pick up apples for applesauce; 3:30-Pick up Emery from Birthday Party; 4-Diaper run; 5-Pizza and Movie

Sunday: Went to church. Sang in a duet for ward choir. It went well. Skyped with my parents. Made applesauce. (So this applesauce is a recipe that Ethan got in kindergarten) The applesauce is awesome!

Recipe:

10 apples, peeled and sliced

1 lemon, juiced

1 Cinnamon stick

Put in crockpot for 3 hours on high. Smash apples. Eat and enjoy!

Totally yummy.

...I love

2011-09-15T20:35:00.004-07:00

...I love that every morning, Miles cuddles with me. He has his routine of getting a pillow and putting it next to my head. After he gets his pillow next to mine, he puts the "boppy" (the nursing pillow) and puts it on top of his pillow and then we name off the parts of the body he knows. (eye, ear, nose, head)

...I love how Miles is starting to repeat words. Balloon (th-oon), drink, pillow, ow, no...are some.

...I love that Ethan is learning his alphabet and the sounds to the letters. He spelt fox all by himself and then Emery played a game with him. She thought of three letter words and Ethan had to spell them out. And he did great!

...I love how Emery cleans her room up every night. She says she can't sleep when it is messy.

... I love that Emery insists on having a salad for her "sack lunch." She saw a friend who had a salad in her lunch and thought it was a good idea.

...I love how Preston prays that he'll be happy in his prayers. But not only does he pray that he'll be happy...but Mom, Dad, Emery, Ethan, Miles will be happy on earth.

...I love how Jac works unbelievably hard for his family. I love that he works hard so that I might be able to stay home and be with my beautiful children. Yes, difficult sometimes...but my treasures.

April

2011-04-24T20:18:00.004-07:00

I've been looking at other blogs, and thought I would just jot down some April happenings.

WE RENTED OUR TOWNHOUSE IN UTAH!!! (Yay! After a year+ of being vacant!)

We had 3 visitors this month! Jac's brother Tyler had a conference in Denver and stayed with us for a night. My parents and brother came and visited on their way to Texas. And Glendon, Jac's best bud, stayed with us overnight on his way to Iowa. We've been blessed to have 3 visitors in a month.

Birthday celebrations galore. My 30th birthday. Had a party at a friends house, and it was a blast! Jac's 31st bday....partied while parents were here.

Helped with a Sock-hop for our ward. It was fun and loved dancing with all my kids.

Busy with my baby, Miles. He has learned to push the kitchen table chair over to the counters so that he can climb on the chair, climb on the counter, open the kitchen cabinets to get to the candy that is supposed to be hidden. (at 15 months!) Needless, to say, nothing is safe.

Had Easter at our friends, the Estes. Wonderful dinner and DELICIOUS ham! Actually everything was good. I am so grateful that Jesus died and suffered for our sins. I am so grateful that He was resurrected. I find joy and peace knowing that I too will be resurrected and live again with my family.

Emery's 7th Birthday!!

2011-01-17T14:12:00.002-07:00

There's my beautiful 7 year old daughter!!!

Menu

Breakfast

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins

Yogurt

Clementines

Strawberries

Lunch

Chicken

Ceasar Salad

Croutons

rolls

Dinner

Olive Garden

Emery got to choose her meal plan for the day. The big present that she wanted was going to get her ears pierced. We went to Claire's and she was a little nervous. We told her that she didn't have to do it, but she wanted to do it. She picked out light pink studs. I held her shaking hand while they pierced her ears. I am so proud of her!!! She did awesome!!!

When we got home, she told me, "Mom, when I am grown up...I'm going to tell my daughter that it hurts to get your ears pierced."

That night we went and ate at Olive Garden with our dear friends. They had a daughter that was turning 9. Our friend asked Emery if it hurt and she said, "oh, just a little." And then when my parents asked her she said, "not really."

She is such a funny girl. Emery, I love you so much. You amaze me every day. I love that you are a wonderful big sister and challenge yourself. Happy Birthday baby girl!

Christmas Card 2010

2011-01-08T13:35:00.001-07:00

This year has been one of adventure and one filled with many blessings. At the very beginning of 2010, we were blessed with our fourth child, Miles Romney. Within his first 6 weeks of being born we put our house up for sale, moved into Jacob’s parents house, went house hunting and actually found a place to rent, and moved our family to Boulder, CO.

With our move, we truly have been blessed. We have wonderful friends and neighbors. We have had to rely on the Lord and know that He answers our prayers. May the Lord watch over you and your family in 2011.

Here is what we’ve been up to:

Emery, 7: She is loving being a 1st grader. She enjoys reading, writing, and is interested in fossils and rocks. She wants to be a paleontologist and a farmer when she grows up. She is also enjoying her first year of Girl Scouts. You can usually see Emery in a comfortable t-shirt, exercise pants, running shoes and her hair in braids.

Ethan, 4: He enjoys going to preschool. He loves doing crafts....so preschool helps a lot with that! He enjoys being anything Ninja. He enjoys printing out coloring pages and pays a lot of attention to detail. He usually finds a picture of a Ninja, Knight or Robin Hood figure and creates costumes after them. You can usually see Ethan in his Ninja costume.

Preston, 3: His biggest accomplishment this year is that he got potty trained! He has started singing to himself and we love to hear his little voice. (fav. song: Jingle Bells) He is all boy which comes with a lot of opinionated views and mischief. You can usually see Preston wearing his Optimus Prime mask.

Miles, 1: “Smiles” took his first steps at 10 months and now loves walking around everywhere showing off his new talent. He fills our lives up with the many smiles he gives. He is such a good baby. You can usually see Miles pretending to talk on the phone with anything he can hold up to his ear.

Jacob: Got hired by Jive Software. He enjoys working with his co-workers. They even had a day where they all went skiing together. He ran his first 10k at the Bolder-Boulder. He participated in Movember and got to grow out his facial hair for a whole month. Jac is cub master and recently got called to be a primary teacher for the Valiant 9-10 class.

Brittany: Keeps busy with feeding kids, taking kids to school, cleaning house (or trying), picking up kids from school and making meals for the family. And in her spare time likes to spend time with her friends and host parties meant for kids. Her life is filled with a lot of her kids (and hubby) which in turn comes with a lot of joy and happiness. She is the Relief Society Meeting Coordinator....and loves being a Mom!

Hudson Holiday Lights

2010-12-21T21:08:00.003-07:00

We went to another night of fun! We drove down to Denver and went to the Hudson Holiday Lights. It was at the Hudson Gardens and Event Center. All I can say is...WAY FUN! It was fun walking around the gardens and seeing all the light displays. They had a cool house that was hooked up to music and different parts of the lights played with different parts of the songs. Kids loved it...and most of all, we went with our friends! They were such good sports about trekking and waiting for us with our 4 kids. (oh, and they have twin baby girls) We actually went to dinner and made a fun night out of it all. And, we got the tickets 1/2 price. Such a great night...have to do it again.

Girl Scouts & Ethan's Program

2010-12-20T20:37:00.003-07:00

Ethan had a Polar Express program. He got to wear his pajamas to school and had a little program. He was so cute and did a great job! They sang Rudolf the red nosed reindeer and had cute little red noses. They had a surprise for the kids and Santa came! Ethan got to see Santa twice this year! He is asking for a Ninja costume for Christmas.

Emery sang at a nursing home with Girl Scouts. Just last month we signed her up for Girl Scouts. She loves it and I know we'll be doing a lot of fun things with the Daisy group. In January, she starts selling cookies. She also did a great job in her performance. She sang 10 songs, smiled and made eye contact with the audience.

Zoo Lights

2010-12-20T20:08:00.004-07:00

Thoughts before I get started: (1) Can I say how grateful I am for cabbage leaves! (2) Was having a "rough" evening and Jac talked to Emery on the phone and the kids had me lay on the couch while they massaged and brushed my hair. I'm so grateful for my beautiful children. Emmy took care of Miles and then I felt very loved while Emmy massaged my back, Ethan brushed my hair and Miles was shoving pretzels into my mouth. And to top it off, Jac came home with flowers and donuts. Mmmm...(3) I love singing Christmas songs in church. We sang 2 closing hymns, and I loved the second song we sang "Silent Night." I love how in hymns you can truly share your testimony by singing. The Spirit touched my heart about the Savior and his divine plan for all of us. He is real. He loves us. And I love this Christmas season and may we reflect on His "gifts" to all of us.

At the last minute, we got invited to go see the Zoo Lights with our friends. They had a Zoo membership so....we got a little bit of a discount. Yea! It was just so fun! The kids got to see lights, some zoo animals and got to sit on Santa's lap.

Mickey D's

2010-12-14T22:09:00.003-07:00

Jac went up with some of his co-workers and go skiing. It was for one night and a day....but still, that gave me the excuse to go out to eat. I talked with my friend and we promised each other that we would meet each other at the playground at McDonalds.

I was on my way to McDonalds and realized that there was no playground at this particular McDonalds. So I got my handy GPS and searched for McDonalds Playland. It popped another McDonalds restaurant up close-by so I followed "Gabby's" voice and made it there. (yes we call the voice on our GPS - Gabby - or as Jac puts it Gabby Google) And Yet...another McDonalds without a playland. It was late, kids were hungry and I was grumpy. We ate there.

Gathered all the kids up, got all their food, got their drinks, got into their seats at the table, was holding Miles on my lap and Presters needed to use the bathroom. AaAh...never a quiet moment...to sit down and enjoy the meal without getting up 20 times. Anyway, got Presters situated and we were all a little happier now that we were eating.

The cashier who took our order came up to us and gave me a gift card to McDonalds and said that the person who was giving this to you wanted to let you know that you had a beautiful family. Talk about how sweet and generous!!! After this incident, my burden was lightened. Thank you!!

Emery's loose tooth

2010-12-08T21:05:00.002-07:00

It is interesting to Emery to check every night to see how many loose teeth she has. (it was always about 4 teeth that were loose)

Yesterday I picked her up from school and her top tooth was VERY loose. She wanted to pull on it and take it out. I told her to keep wiggling it, and it will get really loose.

Needless to say, she was OBSESSED about pulling her tooth out. She would take streams of toilet paper and wrap it around her tooth to try and pull it out. (quite funny) At bed time, she sat herself in front of the mirror and was determined to pull her tooth out. She got it so it was bleeding a little bit, and she freaked out every time she saw blood. But she didn't mind twisting her loose tooth sideways in her mouth and making funny faces. Finally, when we all gave up...there was a little voice in the bathroom that said, "I pulled it out. See, I told you it would come out." (yes, a little fact about Emery...she likes to prove her point ALWAYS...some might say she argues about "almost" everything...and this is the case...even if she is wrong) I sure do love my sweet pea.

The tooth fairy came and left her 50 cents...and Emery was thrilled!

Movember

2010-12-05T21:35:00.004-07:00

Jac did Movember with his co-workers for the month of November. It is a charity kind of thing to bring awareness about men's prostate cancer...and they grow their beards out for the month of November. It has been the only time where I willingly let Jac grow out his facial hair. It was fun seeing him grow it out...but after the whole month...I don't like it. I didn't like kissing him: too scratchy! But to be honest, after he shaved it off after the month - it took some time getting used to his "baby face" again. But now I'm glad that I can kiss my sweetie without getting scratched!

Many faces of Jac:

Early Beard

Untrimmed Stache and beard

Goatee

Handlebar

Stache

Can I have a New Years Resolution yet?

2010-12-05T20:50:00.004-07:00

I have thought of my New Years Resolution and that is....write in my blog once a week. I have neglected writing, and have found that I have been missing a lot of the "going-on's" that happen around here.

So even if it is a week loads worth....at least I'm writing...and my sister Morgan won't be mad at me. =)

This week's "going-on's"

Relief Society Meeting: In my ward, I'm the Relief Society Meeting Coordinator. So for our holiday meeting we decided to base it off the book "The Hundred Dresses." It was a fun idea and it actually turned out really well. We, of course, had a nice dinner. We had a speaker do a slide show of the book, then had some songs and then had another speaker talk about how this book relates to her in her life and focused it around Jesus. We did this enrichment with another ward. My ward was in charge of the decorations. Here is some...not so good pics of the evening. I couldn't have done it all by myself. Thank you so much for everyone that made it possible to have a beautiful night!

Christmas Tree: This year we decided to get a fake tree - since we are renting, less we have to worry about: needles and fire hazard. I hit a Black Friday sale and got a lit tree for way cheap. Isn't our tree beautiful!

Christmas package: We got a package from Grandma! Thank you Mom!!! There was several presents that were labeled "Open Now." We got advent calendars - which I'm really excited about...couldn't find them anywhere...so thanks Mom! And a fun hat that jingles to "Jingle Bells" music.

Haha...these just make me laugh!

This is a Halloween Photo Gallery

2010-12-05T20:39:00.002-07:00

Halloween was fun! Miles was a bumblebee, Preston was Optimus Prime, Ethan was Bumblebee the transformer and Emery was Toph from Avatar:The Last Airbender. We went and picked pumpkins from the pumpkin patch. The kids had a blast carving them. We also had a kids Halloween party at our house. We did skeleton necklaces, Halloween bingo, a donut eating contest and had fun with our friends. On Halloween, we had several couples over and had chili. It was fun! Can't wait till Halloween next year.

Preston is 3

2010-11-08T21:49:00.002-07:00

2007

Isn't he cute!?!

Looking back on pictures...makes me want to have an infant again...someday, someday.

Preston has brought so much "joy" into my life that somehow was missed by his older siblings. Let me give you a few instances:

*drinking fingernail polish - and for the first time had to call poison control

*smearing poop all over the toilet seat and getting it all over his body and hands all because he was bored

*having poopy issues in trying not to go poop in the toilet.

Lately, Preston has started to sing (a little). He started with "Twinkle, twinkle little star" and that lasted about a day....but now he loves to sing his ABC's (or as he calls it A-B song)

He is very much into anything superhero...loves Batman, spiderman, and transformers. (seeing that maybe he's seen one episode of one of these...but nevertheless...loves these things) For about 2 weeks, Preston has been asking for a Batman toy....thanks to tv commercials.

Today, we had preschool...and since it was at my house...I made cupcakes so we could sing to him and celebrate his b-day. One of his friends brought a balloon, and another gave a gift. (which was really sweet of his friends to bring..Thank you!) So after cupcakes and gifts...Preston was having a great time. So after preschool was over...Preston told me that he wanted another party. "Mom, Can I have another party?" This just made me laugh.

Jac came home and we went to our favorite pizza place, Old Chicago. Preston: "Pizza Party" Jac had heard that on their "family night" the kids could decorate their own pizzas and they would cook it for them. Awesome, right! Their "family night" is on Tuesdays so Jac called in advance to see if it was ok if we could do it on a Monday, and it was no problem! The kids loved it! And it was awesome that Old Chicago could make that exception for us.

Dinner was good. We got home and Preston opened up his Batman Toy. It was a little action figure of Batman with his Batmobile. (from imaginetix) All the kids played together and it was just a fun birthday night.

I just love Preston so much. Even though he has given me "experiences" that my first two didn't...I wouldn't change it for the world. He brings a little spice into our lives. With those big brown eyes, mischievous laugh, and all boy through and through...he is our little gift from heaven.

We Are Still Alive!

2010-09-12T14:01:00.002-07:00

Updates:

*Yesterday we took our first family bike ride! We rode our bikes to a nearby park. I had Miles strapped on me...and I was seriously struggling to ride my bike uphill. I loved seeing Emery and Ethan be so excited to go on a bike ride!

*We still haven't sold our house in Utah. It has been difficult...but I know that the Lord knows what is best for us. We are just so grateful that Jac can pick up "side jobs" to pay for both homes. I know that when the time is right...our house will get sold. (or rented)

*Family Favorite - the animated "Avatar:the last airbender" The series is free on Netflix. Way cute!

Emery: She's a 1st grader! She really enjoys school! I love picking her up and seeing the smile on her face. She has become a HUGE helper. I was sad when she started school full-time because I didn't have my helper all day. She loves animals and loves to play animals. (both toys and putting her hair a pig-tails as her 'puppy ears') She has started to make jokes that are actually funny. (haha)

Ethan: He's a preschooler! This will be his first full year. He's really been into super hero's lately. (He loves IronMan & Ninja's) Without Emery's full time persuasion on what they play...he's actually gets to play with boy stuff. =) It is fun to see him grow up. He tells stories and starts off.."No, seriously Mom..." It is really cute the way he says seriously.

Preston: He is in a little preschool that some moms are doing. Tomorrow will be Day 2 trial run. He is potty trained! It was a happy day when he could go #2 on the potty without any issues. When he wants your attention....he simply asks, "Look at me, Look at me Mom." He also loves super hero's and anything boy.

Miles: Teething. Getting his 4th tooth. He crawls everywhere. On our main floor we have no carpet and he usually walks flat footed or has really chaffed knees. He's starting to eat some table food and loves it! And of course, we couldn't have Miles if there was no Smiles. He has such a happy smile and shares it often...which we love.

Jac: Loves his job! And loves the people he works with. He is the cub master in our ward. He loves it that he can be with the boys and influence their lives. The boys call him "Brother Awesome." He's a great dad and husband! He makes me laugh.

Britt: I really like my life simplified. And it's difficult with the 2 kids in preschool, and a full-time 1st grader...I find my new best friend is: MY VAN. I feel like I'm doing a lot of rescheduling of schedules and driving. (but I am very grateful for my van!) Once I find my new schedule...I'll be just fine. Just finished "Mockingjay" - 3rd book of Hunger Games...I liked it.

2010-07-26T20:09:00.001-07:00

Emery: "Mom, Do you know why I like movies so much?"

Britt: "No, why?"

Emery: "Because they make my dreams fun."

3 VERY LOOONNGG Days

2010-07-09T06:23:00.004-07:00

*WARNING: Kindof a little gross*

Let me give you a little background: About 2 weeks ago, I had strep. Not a fun experience. My sweet hubby took a day and a half off of work so I could sleep. He took care of the kids while I took care of myself. I am so grateful for him. Needless to say - that "long" weekend was full of TV and movies. =)

Present: On Thursday at 3:00am - I felt like I was coming down with strep AGAIN. My throat was killing me. So, when I actually got up - the right side of my throat was EXTREMELY swollen. I went to the doctors and dragged my 4 little cuties with me. Yes, I was positive with strep....but the doctor wouldn't prescribe me any medicine. (ARE YOU SERIOUS!) She wanted me to go a "eyes, ears and throat" doctor to make sure that there wasn't a cyst on my tonsils. (she was concerned that there would be since it swelled sooo much in such a little time) She told me that she already called him and that he would be waiting for me. (I was so emotional that I started to cry just thinking about taking my kids to Boulder - which I don't know very well - with a swollen throat and more doctor visits all during their quiet time: THIS WAS NOT FUN)

I called Jac and he was so nice to meet up with me and help me find my way. So I went to the new doctors. I was talking with the doc and he looked in my throat and believed that there was a cyst back there. He told me that there was 2 things I could do. (1) He could cut a slit in my tonsils and let it ooze out or (2) set an appt. to get my tonsils out in the morning. He told me that I needed to do it immediately. Okay...so what does one do when her husband is in the car with the kids...and would like to have her husband there for the procedure. So...I did what I do best: Cry.

I went and told Jac and we called some people from our Ward who live in Boulder. They were awesome!! My heart is so touched and grateful that they were willing to watch our 4 kids so Jac could be with me.

So the Doc did his business - and there was no cyst after all. For the past 2 days I have not been able to speak. I did get antibiotics...and so I'm feeling better...just tired. One of the good things that has happened during this trial is the weight loss. haha.

(Sorry this post is looonngg...I guess Morg, I'm just catching up on all of our lost time together...so hopefully you didn't fall asleep while I'm telling you every single detail of my last few days)

4th of July weekend

2010-07-03T22:16:00.003-07:00

We just got back from FIREWORKS!! We went with some friends (whom of course invited some friends) and there was 11 boys and 2 girls. We watched them from the park and the kids had enough space to run around and be crazy. It was fun being at the fireworks with friends but I LOVED it when all of my kids snuggled up with Jac and me during the fireworks. I sure do love my family!!

The fireworks were cool this year. There were heart shaped fireworks, swirls, and even smiley faces. But I think my favorite ones this year were the gold shimmery ones....and especially during the "finale" they popped one gold firework after another and it was just beautiful!

Tomorrow, we'll head to church and have a BBQ with some friends. I truly love living in Colorado and have been blessed with great friends.

I am also very grateful to live in this country. I am so grateful for the freedoms I have and am truly indebted to those who made it possible. Thank you!

Happy 4th of July!!

Family Pics

2010-06-04T12:47:00.002-07:00

Ethan's Prayers

2010-05-25T21:30:00.002-07:00

A little while ago, Ethan used to say in his prayers, "And please bless us that we'll have fun with friends over."

I would correct him and say that maybe you should think about what you're saying because not every day are you going to play with friends.

He just said, "Noo...listen...you guys are my friends."

Now, in his prayers he still does say the same thing but I don't correct him since I feel pretty special knowing that he thinks that his family are his friends.

Spa Night

2010-05-25T21:11:00.002-07:00

I just got back from our Ward's Relief Society Meeting Spa Night. I thought it was a HUGE success!!!

About 3 weeks ago, we had a planning meeting and came up with the spa night stations. We had it at a person's house so we could have candle light. Her house was SOOOO beautiful and perfect! We had 3 stations. We had a nail painting station, a hand scrub station and a foot soak (which we actually soaked our feet in her hot tub) I realize I could have done the foot soak all night!

We introduced all the stations and let everyone go where they wanted to go. The night was just perfect. The friendships that people had with each other were strengthened....and even new friendships were formed. It was VERY relaxing....even for the people planning it.

My prayers were answered and I am so grateful for this wonderful blessing! I am so grateful for the committee members who helped me put this together. Thank you!

Preston

2010-05-16T20:11:00.002-07:00

Today, I found out that Preston is known in Nursery as being the kid who is quiet and doesn't like anybody.

I just have to laugh! He brings me so much joy and happiness it is funny to hear what he is like when I am not there. Love you Presters!

Vermont Maple Blueberry Salad

2010-05-16T19:55:00.004-07:00

Today, we were invited to a BBQ for my friend's b-day. People who were invited were asked to bring a side dish....so of course, I thought of Zupa's salads. Mmmm....after I thought about how good their salads were....I decided to search around and try and "recreate" Zupa's Vermont Maple Blueberry Salad.

I miss Zupa's! I've been thinking about how good everything is...and just want one in Colorado! Sorry about my tangent...so, I found a recipe and tried it. I LOVE IT!!

I just want to say thank-you to the woman who's blog I found....you made all my Zupa's dream come true. Oh, and the Vermont Maple Blueberry Salad was a hit at the BBQ.

Here it is:

2 granny smith apples, diced
Romaine lettuce
1/2 C. blueberries
1/2 C. crumbled bleu cheese
1/4 C. cinnamon almonds
VINAIGRETTE:

A handful of chopped onion
2 T. apple cider vinegar
3 T. pure maple syrup
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/3 C. extra virgin olive oil

Mix Onion, Vinegar, Maple Syrup, Salt and Black pepper together in my Blendtec. Add Olive oil and mix.

Emery's Poem

2010-05-06T10:15:00.003-07:00

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week.

Here is the poem that Emery wrote for her teacher:

(with very little help from me)

I think you're nice

Do you like rice?

I like your fish

Do you wish for more?

I think your neat

Your so so sweet

Thanks for teaching me

I shout Yipp-ee

I'll miss you next year

My eyes will fall with a tear

Pixs of Kids

2010-03-25T21:09:00.001-07:00

Quick Update

2010-03-21T17:50:00.002-07:00

Jac had Friday off since he worked late one night. We wanted to do something fun...so we went to the Aquarium! We were going to go to the Zoo...but it had snowed the night before. Crazy!! We were getting so used to the Spring weather. =(

So, back to the Aquarium. It was the kids first time....and also Jac's! It was their Friday Family Night...so the kids got a discount at the aquarium and ate at the restaurant for 2 bucks. We had a blast! The exhibits were awesome...and I seriously cannot believe how BIG some fish get. The kids could ride them! Yee haw!

They got to pet sting rays. They were slimy but it was cool. We will definitely have to go there again. Emery loved the sharks. It was one of her favorite parts.

On Saturday, we met up with Jac's friends and ate out at "the Med." We went during their Happy Hour. (what time exactly is Happy hour...haven't a clue) But they had an awesome menu. We tried a little bit of everything....and it was DELICIOUS! We will be going again....I'm sure.

So our normal days are filled with Emery going to school, and then riding bikes around our little neighborhood. Emery gave a talk today in church and Ethan said the prayer. We are feeling very blessed to be here and can see the Lord's hand in our lives. I am extremely in love with my family.

Day 25

2010-03-07T21:09:00.003-07:00

I just can't believe we've been here 25 days! We've lived in our house for 23 days....crazy!!! We have had a blast! It is fun getting to know our neighbors and people from our ward better. Seriously, the Lord has blessed us so much!

This past weekend has been fun. On Friday, we had the missionaries over for dinner. Then we got a babysitter (like our first one ever that wasn't family) and headed over to a friends house for a game night of Ticket to Ride. There was 4 couples in total. Even though Jac won in our group, it still was a lot of fun!

On Saturday, Jac woke up and wanted to get the house clean. YEA!!! The morning we cleaned, then I headed off to get a pedicure with a friend and that night we invited one of Jac's co-workers over and his family. We did a BBQ and played another game of Ticket to Ride. yahoo! (haha-or should I say choo-choo)

Jac and I already have callings. Jac is the Cub Master and I am the Relief Society Meeting Coordinator. (that pretty much means that I am in charge of the previously-called Enrichments) I am excited to be involved and do the best I can. Jac also left this morning to go to 360 Flex..a conference. He is presenting with his brother and I am just so proud of him. I know he'll have a blast and just wish me luck with the 4 kids for 4 days. =)

A Side Note

2010-02-28T21:46:00.003-07:00

I am very happy that we moved. I am sad I had to leave family and friends...and miss them greatly...but with that even being said...I am happy.

The Lord is looking out for my little family....and for that I am truly grateful! My hubby loves his job and the people he works with, my children are happy with school and are meeting friends, and I look at my life and feel a great sense of peace. The Lord has truly sent angels to lift my burdens. In moving to Colorado, I had my mother who helped much more than she needed too, my mother-in-law whom she let us stay at her home with in transition, and awesome friends who reminded me what friendship was all about. And while being here, I know I don't have any related family, but I prayed for at least one friend...and the Lord has blessed me already with much more.

Mi Casa - Some photos

2010-02-26T14:29:00.003-07:00

The Backyard!

It totally is a yard compared with our last piece of land. (hehe)

The Kitchen

LOVE it!

The table matches with the tile floor and countertops!

The Front Room

We got overstuffed chairs that match perfectly with our old couch.

(and do you see my storm trooper...Ethan found that shortly after we unpacked it and seriously would not take it off for a week!)

Our Living Room

(yea...need a better shot)

But you do get to see our new couch, lamp, and end table....can you say that my sweetie spoils me? Love you Jac! And thanks so much for the new furniture!!!

Answered Question

2010-02-18T11:46:00.002-07:00

Phew...I finally enrolled Emery into school. YEA!!! She is very excited to meet new friends. So, I am totally bugged that I have to take Emery to school every day. Yes, you can call me lazy....or just busy with 3 other kids at home that it is just more of a convenience than anything else.

I asked the secretary at the school why don't they have any bus system for the kids and she said that we live too close to the school so that is why there is no bus offered. Talk about craziness picking up Emery from school. (I actually haven't picked her up yet....but I can just imagine)

But I guess that is all part of the Colorado adventure!

Day #5

2010-02-16T22:29:00.002-07:00

We've been living in our house for 5 days now. Everything is still in boxes and I am not stressing out so much (yes, I have my moments) but it is bothering Jac more than it is me. I actually cleaned the kitchen so you could see the counter. The kids and I straightened the downstairs (aka. ME) to get ready to get our new furniture tomorrow!!! We got a couple of couches, a couple of over stuffed chairs and some end tables. It will look really nice, I think. I'll post pics later.

A lot of the boxes that are left are the clothes boxes. So, I feel like I have boxes and boxes of laundry to put away....umm...what can I say...it's not my cup of tea.

We went to church on Sunday. It is at 9am....so we needed to leave the house at 8:30am and travel 15ish min. to church to be on time. Did that happen? nope. But nonetheless, we got to church and love our ward. Everyone is so nice! In Sunday school, Jac and I said the prayers. I got welcomed in RS and then after RS was over got bombarded by people getting my information. I even got my pic taken for the spotlight. What can I say? They are on top of things! We even had a family pic taken for the upcoming directory. It was nice and the kids had fun at primary. There are only 33 Primary children. (that is including my 3 kids) So, yes, a change from Utah. I am excited to be in the ward and I hope to make new friends and help progress the Lord's work.

Today, I tried to enroll Emery into kindergarden. I took the four kids and dropped of papers that Emery's old school gave me to give to her new school. The secretary told me I had to go online and fill out some papers and then bring them back to her. So while filling those out was harder than I thought...just being here 5 days, I have no emergency contact or doctor information. What do you do?

I also found out that there is no bus system. I have to take Emery to school everyday and pick her up. Umm...also not my cup of tea...but I guess that's what I have to do. Did I mention that her school is k-8? So picking up Emery from school everyday is going to be a little crazy with all the parents of the kids picking their kids up at the same time. Fun, fun. Why they don't have a bus system...I don't know. I guess I'll keep you posted on that.

My beautiful kids!

2010-02-14T22:10:00.004-07:00

For those interested...

2010-02-14T21:19:00.002-07:00

The Chocolate Bacon Cupcake

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeayDADvtL0

The first couple days...

2010-02-13T14:54:00.003-07:00

On Wednesday we traveled the 9.5 hours to Boulder, CO. Jac wanted to leave as early as possible (he said 8am!) but with late nights, stopping at a book store, eating at Denny's for breakfast, getting Bobby from my parents house, we finally left around noon. For the first time EVER...I wasn't stressed out getting ready to leave. I was ready to get out of the "limbo" stage and get on with the next step in our lives.

The kids were AWESOME on the trip. Jac seriously listened to "Ender's Game" (his book on CD) the whole time! The only complaining that happened was about 1/2 hour out of Boulder. The kids have been so excited to move to Colorado...Ethan was crying because we couldn't sleep in our new house the first night we were in Colorado. We stayed in a hotel for two nights since the moving truck couldn't be there until Friday. We got a surprise visit from my father-in-law who just took a drive and found himself in Colorado. Needless to say, we weren't too disappointed to have a visit from him.

Jac's first day at the office was Thursday. I was stuck at the hotel with 4 kids and a dog. I wanted to do something fun with the kids that didn't consist of too much walking since I would have to carry the car seat around. (yea...not so fun) So...I decided it would be fun to go to the library. So, after battling the "free" continental breakfast, I packed the kids in the car to go to the library. I was so proud of myself for actually finding the library!!! But to our disappointment the library was closed on Thursday. haha...now what!?! There was a grocery store nearby so we stopped there got crayons, coloring books, and lunch. We got back to the hotel and I thought it was a successful outing because I went and got back to the hotel without getting lost! (for those who don't know...I have a horrible sense of direction so getting anywhere is a great accomplishment)

We ate at a place called The Rib House. Great pulled pork sandwiches and we listened to my father-in-law play his guitar at the Open Mic Night. Thursday was also the day that I tried a Chocolate-Bacon Cupcake. Anyone who is reading this should just come and visit us to try a Chocolate-Bacon Cupcake....haha, just kidding. It actually was really good!

ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

2010-01-17T14:36:00.002-07:00

These past 2 weeks have been, let's say....FULL of changes. I am overwhelmed and trying to keep calm through all the stress. I am excited and happy for these changes, so I am just taking one day at a time.

The first big change is having 4 kids!! I love my beautiful baby boy. The kids are adjusting great and I've realized that Preston is "so not" a baby anymore. He seriously has grown up overnight. We went out and picked up some dinner with all the kids and having 4 kids is quite the adventure. I wouldn't change it for the world, it just takes some time getting used too.

Also, Jac has accepted the offer to work for Jive Software in Boulder, CO. He just got back from a 4 day conference and is excited to be working for Jive. We are all excited for his new job venture and are anxious to get to Colorado. We are going to go house hunting in a couple weeks. Yeah for a bigger home!!!

Since we are moving to the Denver area, we are in the process of getting our house in order to sell. So, my days are filled with packing and taking care of the kids. It is busy but we are excited to move on to the next step in our lives. It is kindof scary for the unknown, but exciting...but I know if we trust in the Lord, we'll be exactly where He wants us to be. And with Him we can't go wrong and there is no need to be scared.

Welcoming Miles Romney

2010-01-14T13:53:00.002-07:00

Here are a few pics of my cute little baby boy. He was born 2 January 2010. He weighed 8lbs and 12 oz and was 20 inches long. I didn't have the camera at the hospital (whoops!) but took a few shots at home. I'm anxious to get sibling pics....and will post those soon.

I started having little contractions early on the 2nd. I was a little shocked I was going into labor since I was a week early and my other 3 kids weren't but a day early. But as the day progressed....they were definitely labor contractions. They weren't regular so I wasn't so anxious to go to the hospital. But by 4pm, I knew I was going to have this baby tonight. When I was having a contraction, at first, all of my kids laughed at me. Ha ha...very funny. After Jac explained that the contractions hurt mommy...the two older ones stopped laughing...but Preston loved laughing and mixed it up with growling back at me. Emery kept on saying, "Miles....stop hurting Mommy!" And Ethan just patted my shoulder and said that it was going to be okay. Looking back on it...it was quite humorous.

I was waiting for them to become more regular....but it didn't really happen until later. But since I knew I was having the baby, I called my mom, friend and sister and telling them that the baby was coming tonight. Over anxious....I know....but extremely excited. Jac made dinner and we packed up the kids and dropped them off at his parents house. We finally made it to the hospital. It was around 8pm. They checked me and I was dilated to a 7. They quickly rushed me into the delivery room and hooked me up with an epidural. (which I was VERY thankful for!) My parents arrived at this time. When the doctor came in to break my water, my dad excused himself, and with 3 contractions and a couple pushes....Miles Romney Wright entered the world! The first thing he did was pee on the doctor! haha. My dad went to go get a welcoming gift for Miles out of his car and when he came back Miles was here. So, I was at the hospital for 1 hr and 41 min before I had the baby.

Emery and Ethan picked this outfit out for Miles. It was his going home outfit.

34 Weeks

2009-12-01T12:52:00.003-07:00

Today, I had a doc's appt. He says that everything is PERFECT!!!! (I just feel everything is perfect apart from my weight) It just amazes me that every time I step on the scale....I say to myself, "I really weigh that much!?!"

But if the doc is not concerned....I guess, neither should I, right? I love hearing our babies heartbeat. He did say that I am measuring 35 inches. So, technically an inch ahead of schedule. My next appt. is Dec. 15th. Then I'm down to 1 week appts. YEAH!!! That means our baby is coming soon. =)

Thanksgiving weekend

2009-11-29T21:14:00.002-07:00

Okay...so I am having camera issues again. I can't find the cord to the camera to charge the battery. I'm kindof bummed because I really want to take pictures!!! I guess I'm surviving...but still, It is frustrating.

Well, the holiday weekend was so much fun! Hanging out with family and friends all weekend long....what could be wrong with that? We spent Thanksgiving with Jac's family. I only had to bring a green bean casserole and a salad....I sure lucked out! Then I devoured the Pecan Pie. (I had been craving this pie since the beginning of the month) We played games and snacked on left overs the rest of the night.

On Friday, we went and saw Planet 51. It was a cute show and the kids (plus their cousins) were completely quiet and didn't ask for any snacks. We then went out on Black Friday and got the boys' some jeans and Jac some new shoes. (and I actually got a pair of Doc's to replace my much needed ones)

On Saturday, we had some friends over for breakfast. It was fun. Then we went to a family party which consisted of good soup and games. Then we went and used our Best Buy points and got Lego Star Wars for the Xbox. So....that's it. Sunday was relaxing. =) Tomorrow, we are going Christmas tree shopping!!!

Pumpkin Time!

2009-10-13T13:31:00.003-07:00

This past Saturday we were bored and wanted to do something fun. Emery had wanted to carve a pumpkin so we decided that this was the day to do so! Jac had wanted an easy way to capture video of our family. He thought it would be fun to go get the Flip and record our pumpkin carving day. So....that that is exactly what we did! Jac likes it because it has the USB hook-up right in the camera.

(for those who don't know what the Flip video is....here is a picture. Ours is black)

So, off to the pumpkin picking we went. We went to Cornbelly's and picked out a HUGE pumpkin. Later we found out that it weighed 53lbs. I will put the video of the pumpkin carving day on later. But Saturday turned out to be a great day! The kids loved it....and if the kids loved it you know that we loved it too!

My Little Man

2009-09-29T21:00:00.002-07:00

Here is some video of Preston. These were actually taken a few weeks ago and I can already see how much his vocabulary has grown! Crazy! So...here is a little peek on how my little man is growing up.

Just an ordinary day....

2009-09-24T20:24:00.003-07:00

Nothing really exciting happened today.....just felt like writing a little post.

Well, I woke up at 5am this morning and by 5:30am was on my way to the temple. I went with my friend Angela and was praying that her 5 month old baby would be fine without her....and to find out in the end that our prayers were answered and she was a happy baby when she came home. So that is all good news! Came home and stared at my beautiful children.

Then we went to the library and got 7 books for Emery to read and 3 back-packs for all of the kids to wear home filled with a couple books each. Hit story-time, came home with playdough, made Mac & Cheese and got Em off to school. Put the boys down for a nap and watched a couple episodes of "Burn Notice."

A couple days ago, the sister missionaries called and asked if Jac and I would be available to join them at an investigators home for a discussion. Of course, we cleared our schedules since it would be a good experience. Then, I got really nervous. I feel like I've been a missionary in other ways...but not really the proselyting kind of missionary work. Am I bad for feeling a little bit nervous and scared? It ended up that they couldn't have a discussion so we met them instead. It was fun meeting someone who was investigating the church. So....that went fine and hopefully I will be able to attend a real discussion....and be able to put my two-cent testimony in.

Then we picked up the kids and my friend fed us dinner. So....wha-la....there was my day in a nutshell. Tomorrow, I have a docs appt and have to drink the glucose drink. I'm just excited because when it is time to have the sugar drink....that means the baby is that much closer to being here. Yeah! Baby name ideas: Miles.....and that's as far as I have gotten. =)

Happenings....

2009-09-21T14:09:00.002-07:00

#1:

Background: For school Emery has to read 15 min a day. She usually reads while Ethan is at pre-school and fortunately we are at my mother-in-laws. My mother-in-law has a big basket of scriptures in her living room. One day Emery decided to read the scriptures for her 15 minutes that day.

For FHE on Monday we went to Deseret Book and got a picture of the temple to put in the kids room. I showed Emery the Book of Mormon I found. She looked at me and said, "Oh! Mom can we please get this so I can have my own scriptures?" When I said "Yes" she hugged the scriptures and was jumping up and down yelling, "Thank you! Thank you!" Then all the ride home she wanted to tell her Grammy that she had her own scriptures and didn't have to use hers. What a beautiful sweet heart!

#2:

The other week we had a Zucchini Cook-off and Indexing Enrichment. I had always heard about the Family Search Indexing program....but I have never actually done any indexing. So, it was interesting and seemed pretty easy....my kind of style. The Zucchini recipes were surprisingly ALL delicious. Some of my favs were: Zucchini and Cheese dip, Orange and Zucchini Bread, the "Mock" Apple Cobbler, and a Chicken and Zucchini-Stove top casserole.

So the next day I was just hanging out and I decided to do some indexing.....AND I really enjoyed it! For some reason, actually documenting people's names....they come to life. I feel like I am contributing "that" much more....I don't know, it seems funny, but there is a connection you feel and you are excited for the people on the other side.

It's A......

2009-09-02T22:00:00.000-07:00

BOY!!!!

Emery's 1st Day of KINDERGARTEN!

2009-09-02T21:40:00.000-07:00

Emery was so excited to go ride the bus!

The fam walking Emery to the bus stop!

Em and her friend showing each other what folders they got for school. So cute!

Emery found her seat next to her friend. I can't believe my baby girl is growing up!

First of all, I can't believe Emery is officially in kindergarten. I have been so excited to have her move up to the "next step." Then last night I was a little nervous....not about her getting ON the bus...but when she is at school and has to get OFF the bus. Would she know where to go? Will she get to the right class? Then another flood of questions came to me.....Is she going to be a good friend? Will she stand up for what she believes in? I guess the answer that I came up with is....just let her grow up. And yes, I am sure we will have interesting questions this year....but to teach her the right principles and let her decide for herself. (And now....I'm thinking I'm a little crazy....she is just in kindergarten) But nonetheless....these are my thoughts.

So....her FIRST day of kindergarten. I put her in the afternoon so she wouldn't be entirely BORED during the boys nap-time. So....today she had to wait A LONG time for the bus to pick her up. (well, a long time in an excited 5 yr old's mind) I decided she could pick out her breakfast and lunch. She had cereal this morning. (yes, the most sugar cereal we had...lucky charms) She was dressed and ready to go at 10am....so she had 2 hrs of waiting. She asked me if the time to go to the bus stop was longer than the trip up to Snowbird. And I said, "Yes" and then she said, "Ohhh....that is a looong time."

But she made the wait. We had lunch. A champions lunch of Dino Nuggets, string cheese, a big carrot, and some soda pop. She wanted dino nuggets because she could eat them faster and in turn get to the bus stop faster. We went to the bus stop and hung out with her friends and all of the nervous parents. All in all, she made it on the bus and was waving goodbye like a beautiful angel. Love you Sweet Pea.

Kids having fun

2009-08-27T13:22:00.002-07:00

Okay...this one is just for me.

Ethan's 1st Day of Preschool!

2009-08-24T13:02:00.002-07:00

Today, was Ethan's first day of preschool!!!! I can't believe he is that old already! Yes, I am excited for Emery to go to kindergarten....but thinking that Ethan is in preschool makes me think that my kids are growing up too fast. He had a great day!

The morning started when I woke up at 6:30am to take a shower before the kids woke up. So, I was dressed and ready to go by 7am when Preston woke up. Perfect timing! We woke up Ethan shortly after and he wanted the cereal with marshmallows in it. So we woke up Emery and we went downstairs to have breakfast. After breakfast Ethan knew exactly what he was going to wear. We had gotten him school clothes and he has been waiting patiently for school to start so he could wear them. He picked out his Lego Star Wars t-shirt and new jeans. (the only pair of jeans that are actually long enough!) He made me tuck in his shirt and put on his "fast" shoes. After we calmed his hair down a bit....he made me style it so that he looks like a dad. (notice that he combed it over to the side just like his dad)

So off to school we went! He had so much fun. He got to play with toys, sing in a microphone with his friend Gage and learn about the number 1. I can't wait for the rest of the year!

My 3 yr old son with his

XS 5/6 Lego Star Wars T-shirt and

5T jeans and

size 10 "fast" shoes and

I love all 38 lbs of that boy!

The best close-up shot I could give with the sun in his eyes

Ethan's super hero back pack

And Emery being a good sister leading Ethan to preschool.

Zip Line Fun

2009-08-24T12:48:00.002-07:00

This past Friday we headed up to my Uncle's cabin and had a BBQ! It was so fun seeing family! It brought back memories for me growing up and now I am so grateful that my kids can have fun memories there too! I think you can tell where we ended up by the videos below. I love my dad in these videos. He is such a wonderful Grandpa!

Homemade Soft Pretzels

2009-08-20T14:12:00.002-07:00

We have been so busy with the last of the summer fun before school starts. One of the fun things we got to do was go to the new water park: Cowabunga Bay. Jac's old company invited us for a Family/Work party there. Since it was free....we totally went! We had so much fun even though it was very COLD. There is a kiddie pool area that was luke-warm and the water slide water was FREEZING...so I heard but never went in myself. Before we left for home Jac bought the big soft pretzels. The kids loved them and were interested in how they were made. So, today I decided to try and make them and thought the kids would have fun also.

Here are the kids helping make the pretzel dough. They are such good helpers!

The kids seeing if the dough has raised enough.

ooooohhhh

The kids having fun rolling out the dough and making pretzels

The finished product

And of course, the kids enjoying them. They made lots of snake pretzels and had fun playing with them. They turned out pretty well.

Diaper Cake Geniuses

2009-08-20T13:56:00.002-07:00

Here is the beautiful mother-to-be Sarah! She is NOT holding her baby but her niece Adelaide. She is already a natural! Kari and I gave Sarah a baby shower for her upcoming baby girl. We are so excited for her! This picture is basically the best pic I have of the shower....so hopefully Sarah will have better ones than I have.

But, me being a creative one....ha....no really, I was creative this once....I decided to do a diaper cake. And....no, you can't eat it. I'm creative but not that creative. =P

I had the crazy idea to make a diaper cake....and my friend, Angela made my idea come true! Thank you!

Here it is:

DARLING ISN'T IT

(haha)

Here is a view from the back

And here is a view from the side

I rolled up tiny diapers and filled the "cake" with baby necessities. And of course some "nursing" necessities and baby accessories. It was so fun to do! Thanks Sarah for having a baby so I could try this diaper cake idea. Good luck on your future baby!

Kindergarten is coming....

2009-08-08T21:08:00.002-07:00

My friend called and told me that they had the class lists up.....and that I should check out what teacher Emery has for Kindergarten. I was going to go during the boys nap-time but Ethan was SO excited to see Emery's school that I sneaked the drive over before nap-time. And I'm excited to say that Emery's teacher will be a woman from our neighborhood! YEAH! (I was secretly wanting her to be Em's teacher....so I'm very excited too!) So here's to the beginnings of getting ready for Kindergarten.....yipee!

Cute quote:

Emery: Mom, when I die and I'm up in heaven......(pause).....Can you walk?

Me: Yes

Emery: Well, When I die and I'm up in heaven I want to walk and give Jesus a big hug.

Camp Out At Grammy's

2009-08-07T06:41:00.003-07:00

Every year, Jac's mom has a camp-out with her grandkids! It was so fun this year that Lexi was down for the week and just in time to spend time with her cousins at the camp-out! Here are MANY pics from the fun evening we had!

One of the first times that Bobby really knew what it meant to be a dog! =)

We roasted hotdogs and had marshmallows for dessert. Mmmmmm.....

A cute pic of Jac and Preston! Preston was hanging out with his daddy and wanted to be just like him.

Grammy even had glow in the dark bracelets! This is always a hit!

In the tent ready for bed!

Grammy telling bed-time stories. She told us about the 3 little pigs and stories of her childhood.

Prester's baby browns!

What a silly goose!

Good Bye Shoes

2009-08-06T06:20:00.004-07:00

I really do love my flip-flops from Old Navy. And am sad to say that I have retired them but am happy to report that I got a new pair of the same basic black flip-flop from, non-other, than Old Navy. Jac has said for AWHILE that I needed to get a new pair of the basic black flip-flop but I couldn't let mine go. They were comfortable and molded to my feet....the only problem was that....yes, there was a hole. So, when I went out shopping with my good friend, Angela.....I splurged and spent the few bucks on a new pair of these mamas. So here's to my new flip flops!

Catching Up: Emery's Dance Recital

2009-07-21T16:58:00.004-07:00

A proud little brother

Emery's Dance Class

They had such cute costumes!

Mother and Daughter

Emery all ready to go to her dance recital

After a year's worth of dancing, Emery had a dance recital! She had so much fun and were with many girls from our neighborhood. It was one of the first times she wore make-up....and it always makes me nervous to when she gets older. I have such a beautiful girl! Thanks to all the grandparents who came and made my little girls day special.

Family Reunion

2009-07-21T16:48:00.004-07:00

At the end of June, we had a family reunion at Jackson Hole. It was a HUGE family reunion with about 50 people attending. Everyone was there except my sister and her family and a cousin. We missed them....but had fun nonetheless. We did kayaking, hiking, boating, went to the Bar J Wranglers, the kids had a horse ride and of course we did lots of talking. It was so fun to see all of our family! (And Lauren: I can't wait to see the pictures you took)

Morning

2009-06-21T06:21:00.003-07:00

It is Father's Day Morning....and I am so far....having a quiet morning. I was awoken by my dog barking to let him out to use the "potty" and decided to cook up some rhodes cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Jac is sleeping....and I'm so excited to celebrate a day just for him! He totally deserves it. He is a great dad and a wonderful hubby.

Keep you posted on the rest of the day.

Happy Father's Day to all you dad's out there!!! Have a wonderful day!

My New Niece

2009-06-09T11:58:00.003-07:00

I am proud to announce that I have a new niece....

Adelaide Eden

She came Monday night and came into the world at 9 lbs 1 oz and 19 inches long. I am excited to see Kari and baby!

January 9, 2010

2009-06-01T19:58:00.005-07:00

Yes, at 9:20 this morning....I went to the doctor's for my first pregnancy visit!! My sweet husband came with me. After all the check-ups and stuff, we got an ultrasound...and I am 8 weeks and 2 days....to be exact. So that puts the baby due....JANUARY 9th!!! (a day after Emery's birthday) The baby is a perfect little jellybean. We are totally excited over here!

I haven't "thrown-up" yet but am extremely motion sensitive. Being in the car puts me over every time. I can tell when I need something to eat because I get really nauseous. But I'm great after I have some crackers or something. So, I haven't been really craving anything but have been wanting anything sweet. (so there goes my Weight Watchers!) Dang it! So, I guess I'm justifying that I can eat anything I want because 9 months down the road....when the baby is out....I know how to get the weight off again. I so need to change my thinking!! I know it's bad...it's just a phase...and I'm sure I'll get over it soon when I'm huge. haha.

Good Luck Sweets!

2009-05-19T12:45:00.002-07:00

Today, Jac is speaking at the 360 Flex conference in Indianapolis. He is excited to be there and to be presenting. I am "oh so proud" of him and his accomplishments. I know that he wouldn't be where he is today if it wasn't for the talents that he has been blessed with.

I know Jac has been excited to talk "geek" for 3 days straight and to hang out with his brother, Tyler. Those two always have something up their sleeves....either it be a good idea or a session where they just talk code. I'm just glad that they have each other to talk "geek" with. =P

Thanks Tom and John for letting Jac be a speaker at 360 Flex!!

Winston's New Name Is.....

2009-05-13T07:13:00.003-07:00

BOBBY!

Please meet for the 2nd time...Bobby!

(Please note: no more name changes)

WICKED!

2009-05-12T12:28:00.003-07:00

As many of you know....Jac and I had a chance to go with my parents and Thabo to the Broadway showing of WICKED! It was AMAZING....needless to say. We had such a fun night with my parents and little bro. Before the show, we went out to eat at a Thai restaurant and it was really good. It was just a perfect night. When we got seated in our seats, we were in box seats right next to the stage. We had AMAZING seats. I was taking in everything and when I looked over to my right and I double glanced and I saw Pres. Uchtdorf! Wow!!! What a cool opportunity! Then I saw another crowd gathered around another person and it was Pres. Monson! How cool is that!!! So, I like to say that we went and saw WICKED with Pres. Monson and Pres. Uchtdorf.

Jac's Bunkbeds - FINALLY!

2009-05-12T12:20:00.003-07:00

Didn't Jac do a GREAT job!!!! Here is the toddler bunk bed that Jac put together. What he did was just take the kids toddler beds and built a frame and ladder for them. Isn't he so creative? The kids absolutely love their beds!! Thanks so much sweets!

BOBBY'S NAME CHANGE IS.....

2009-05-12T12:14:00.002-07:00

We actually renamed our dog....and his name is

Winston.

Bobby's First Night

2009-05-09T22:01:00.002-07:00

Here I am sitting in bed with a faint "cry for help" bark coming from my kitchen. I feel like Mr. and Mrs. Darling with their dog, Lady, on her first night at her new home. Jac just fed him a treat and was quite for a little bit and now he is back to his sweet 7 week old bark....more like a "cry for help" yelp. =P

Yes, for Mother's Day I got a puppy! I'll post pics later. But we did find him on KSL....just to let you know. He is a shi tzu, maltese, poodle and pug mix.....and is so very cute!!! Jac really likes the name Bobby but I wouldn't want to name our own little boy that....so naturally, Jac designated the puppy's name as Bobby. And....I must say, it is slowly growing on me....but I can't really think of any other name that would be cute that is a real name and not a dog name. Any suggestions??

How are the kids enjoying the puppy? THEY LOVE HIM!!! Emery wants to hold him every two seconds. Ethan wants his fill of lovings from the puppy. And Preston just laughs and pets him....and I must say sometimes he is testing his limits.

So this Mother's Day....let us just see what I have put myself into.

Happy Mother's Day to all you mom's out there!!!

Where is my camera cord?????

2009-04-25T20:15:00.004-07:00

It is sad to say that I still can't find my camera cord. It is totally bugging me because I have so many things I want to blog about.

Like: Going to go see Wicked, kids just having fun, Me just having fun, Easter, Jac's bunkbeds.....the list goes on.

So, thanks everybody for being patient. I am not trying to be a slacker.

It totally bugs.

I love my hubby

2009-04-18T20:29:00.004-07:00

I just have to brag about what a GREAT husband I have. I was searching through old pics and created this collage. (yes using Picasa for the Mac!) He loves being a dad. Every night after we put the kids to bed, Jac always says, "I love our kids. We have the cutest kids in the whole world." Who wouldn't want a husband that dotes on your kids as much as you do.

I love that he works hard so that I can stay home with the kids. I love that he works hard so that we can food on the table and a roof over our head. We have truly been blessed and I love how he has our best interests at heart.

This past weekend we were going to get the yard prepped to put sod in, but it didn't work out this weekend....but we are going to get it in for NEXT weekend. I am going to Logan for the day and when I come back....there should be a yard with Grass to come home to! Yahoo-eee! haha.

I love you sweets. And I am so glad that I can be with you for eternity!!

Happy Birthday Sweets

2009-04-16T13:57:00.003-07:00

sidenote: Jac just told me that they now have Picasa for the Mac!! I am totally excited to use it again and can't wait to find my camera cord and make some fun collages for you guys.

But today is my hubby's birthday!!!!! Today, I made German Pancakes for breakfast....and they were mighty good. Jac worked in the morning and is spending the rest of the day with us! The kids and I went to the store and got some birthday goodies and picked up Zupa's for lunch. I am so excited they have one near us now. I love their Tomato Basil soup mixed with their Cauliflower soup....mmmm...

Tonight, the kids are getting watched and Jac and I are going to go to Happy Sumo for dinner. My sis-in-law organized the dinner hang-out with some other couples....so it should be a lot of fun. I am kind-of scared to go to Happy Sumo and try out their sushi....but it should be good! I'll update you later.

I love you Jacob!

My 28th Birthday!

2009-04-09T18:06:00.004-07:00

I had a great birthday! A BIG portion of my birthday present was going to go visit Morgan in Oregon. On Sunday, before we left, she made angel food cake (FROM SCRATCH!) and it was soooo delicious. Joel made pizza which was perfect. Thank you Morg and Joel! Dinner was great!

I got home late and the house was perfectly clean. I opened up the garage and there had been some projects going on while I was away. There was wood pieces and tools all over. What had Jac been doing while I had been gone??? I first initially thought of the deck, but when checked...that wasn't the case. So what had he beed doing? Well....My cute hubbie had cleaned the whole house while watching the kids AND had washed all the laundry. Nice b-day so far! Then I walked into the kids room and lo and behold....his project! Jac had moved Preston into the kids room....AND he had made a bunk bed for Emmy and Ethan!!! (Pics to come) He was actually creative while assembling it. He used their toddler bed as frames and built around them. (I would really put pics on here BUT I can't find my camera cord)

In the morning Jac made me breakfast and gave me many games that will be fun to play. He gave me "Ticket to Ride" which I really wanted! Thank you sweetie!!! It was a nice sunny day so pretty much the kids and I spent all day outside enjoying the sunshine. Then for dinner we headed over to AppleBee's and to Maggie Moo's for dessert. So pretty basically, I'm saying that I got spoiled on my birthday! Thank you!!!

The Fam at AppleBee's

Presters at Maggie Moo's. We were all sitting at a table eating and he was at another table having fun pushing the chairs around. What a cutie!

Emery at Maggie Moo's. She had Bubblegum Icecream with Gum ball's.

Ethan is showing off his Cotton Candy Icecream. He wouldn't take of his Transformer glasses that he got from his mommy from Oregon.

And I had to show off my cute outfit! The cute jacket is from my sis that she let me borrow. Thanks Morg!

Jack Sparks on his bike!

2009-04-08T15:09:00.002-07:00

Day 3 & 4: Pictures

2009-04-06T22:25:00.004-07:00

Here is Sage's killer dimples. She was so fun since I seemed to be picked a favorite over my mom!

What can I say....self portrait??

Enjoying the sunny weather while at home, in Utah, there was SNOW!

A small homemade tortilla. My sister is amazing....she cooks everything from scratch! And it seems that everything she makes from scratch turns out to be the YUMMIEST.

I had to catch this on camera. My mom cooking! (ha, we just give her a hard time about the cooking thing...we love you Mom!)

This is how we watched Conference. They could only listen to Conference via the internet so we propped up a window and listened to it from out on their front porch basking in the sun! Thanks Morg and Joel for such a fun and relaxing time! I loved being with your cute little family and spending time with your kids. Thanks again!

*Okay, I think I got some days mixed up....but you get the idea....I had a BLAST in Oregon*

Day 2: Highlights

2009-04-06T22:17:00.004-07:00

My sister's neighbors had a colt. Jack and Sage love going to see this baby horse.

This is the only picture I took of the house. I wanted to take pictures of the inside...but I guess I never got a chance. This house, my sister's husband built. So...this is the house that Joel built.

Jack got a John Deer bike and attached the bike trailer to the end. He walks down the road to get the mail. He loves to work hard and play outside in the dirt.

This is my favorite shot when my mom tried to help Jack go for a ride on his bike! Mom, you are so cute!

Day 1: Oregon Here We Come

2009-04-06T21:35:00.005-07:00

My plane didn't leave until 1:25pm, so Jac and the fam took me out to go to breakfast in the morning. There is one place that is ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS....and that is Kneaders Bakery. It is my new favorite place to eat!! I mean...come on...look at this french toast....who wouldn't want a taste????

Yummy thick slices of French toast, Cream to spread on with fresh strawberries, and of course a TO DIE FOR syrup drizzled all over. Yummy goodness....is all I can say.

So, after a great breakfast...I drove up to Salt Lake and met my mom in a taxi. The first time I have ever ridden a taxi. Good times. =)

Here we are leaving Utah....

....and here we are arriving in Oregon.

Yeah! Here I am showing off my new scarf that my mom got me. Thank you! I think I was just so happy to get off the plane. After not being in an airplane for 7 years, I actually got a little motion sickness. Weird, but true....and for all of you thinking out there....no, I am not pregnant. =P

We stayed in Portland for the afternoon. We drove by our old house in Lake Oswego, which the current owners did some upgrades to the outside of the house and it looks fantastic! We stopped at Olive Garden for dinner and also stopped and walked around the Portland Temple!! I think this was Jack's favorite stop. Apparently, he had been talking about going to the Temple for a while, and he finally got to go!

On our way to my sister's house we stopped in at Multnomah Falls. It was just after sunset that we arrived, so we got the last little bit of daylight....and it was so green and beautiful...and wet. Luckily, my sister's little boy had an extra beanie that fit....so I didn't get so drenched out there.

My big girl

2009-03-30T13:17:00.002-07:00

Well, as some of you may know....Emery is registered for Kindergarden!!! At registration, they gave me a list of things that a child should "know how to do" before going to kindergarden. (the list consisted of a child knowing their colors, shapes, counting to 10 etc.) One of the items was tying one's shoes. Ha! Now, do I know any pre-kindergardener who can tie their shoes? NO! (until now)

Emery goes to dance and the dance assistant quickly taught her how to tie her shoes while putting her shoes on at the end of dance. For the past few days, Emery has tried really hard to get the shoe tying thing down....and she did it!!!

I can officially say that Emery can tie her shoe without it coming easily un-done. Yeah for my big girl!

Free giveaway

2009-03-23T13:14:00.002-07:00

I'm just posting about another Angela's Accessories giveaway!! We are actually giving one of our flower bows away. They are totally cute!

So, if you want a chance to win one of these adorable flower bows just go to: angelasaccessories.blogspot.com.

The Luck of the Irish

2009-03-20T22:50:00.003-07:00

One day Emery came home from preschool and told me that she learned that leprechauns are real and that if we don't set up a trap for them they would steal our gold. She was very determined about keeping our gold safe so that a little leprechaun wouldn't steal it.

So....what did Emery come up with??? She and Ethan made a leprechaun trap! They found a mason jar, some ribbon, tape, a penny, some Popsicle sticks....and this is what they came up with. So, yes, I am announcing our 2009 St. Patrick's Day Leprechaun trap. Tadaa. I hope you enjoy the pics.

So once finished, Emery insisted that the trap be placed outside our front door so that we would be safe from leprechauns coming into our house. As you can see, we placed a penny at the bottom of the jar so that the leprechaun would climb the ladder; hop in the jar, grab the penny and then would get stuck and set him free after St. Patrick's Day. To her dismay, when she checked in the morning, no leprechaun was caught...it must have been the luck of the irish. She said that the leprachaun wasn't caught because she should have put her "gold medal" she won at preschool in the bottom of the jar instead of the penny because her "gold medal" was real gold.

So...what did we learn from this? Next time put her "gold medal" in the bottom of the jar so that it would be more appealing to the leprechaun instead of a penny. We'll have to remember that for next year!

Happy Birthday Liam!

2009-03-20T22:44:00.002-07:00

The other Sunday, we were invited to Liam's family b-day celebration. Kari made an awesome caterpillar "cup"cake, which was not only cute but good! Happy Birthday Liam and we hope that you get a chance to fly your kite!

Disney On Ice

2009-03-20T22:27:00.005-07:00

We had the opportunity to go to Disney On Ice!!! My mom got us tickets and the kids loved every minute of it. The night began by picking my mom, Thabo and his friend up at their house and going out to The Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner. It was really good. Thank you so much Mom!! The kids quickly enjoyed the massage chair on our way to go see the big show!

Ethan thought it was great and laughed.

Don't I have a beautiful girl!
(oh and if you read the above post: the "gold medal" around her neck is the same one she said we should have used in our leprechaun trap)

Here we are at Disney on Ice! These are the best pics we got. Emery was really happy and excited to be there...but she just didn't want to miss anything by taking a pic. Silly girl!

Preston actually really enjoyed the show! He was clapping and waving to everyone that passed him. I loved seeing his personality shine through. He is so cute!

Here is Capt Hook with his pirate crew. The costumes were amazing! Mom, thanks again for making such great experiences for my children. You are a wonderful grandma!

How Emery feels about her Daddy

2009-03-07T14:30:00.005-07:00

Copy this note, ask your child the questions and write them down exactly how they respond.

Emery at 4 years old.

1. What is something dad always says to you?
"I love you"

2. What makes dad happy? When I kiss him

3. What makes dad sad? When I hit my brother

4. How does your dad make you laugh? He tickles me.

5. What was your dad like as a child? Mmmm...he was in a family.

6. How old is your dad? Ummm...you're 17 and daddy's 18.

7. How tall is your dad? Big

8. What is his favorite thing to do? Play with me, sometimes though, because he needs to work.

9. What does your dad do when you're not around? Ummm...I don't know.

10. If your dad becomes famous, what will it be for?Uh, I don't know.
11. What is your dad really good at? Games, like Old Maid.

12. What is your dad not very good at? Umm, he's not very good at speaking spanish.

13. What does your dad do for his job? Uh, he works and he gets more money.
14. What's your dad's favorite food? Oatmeal

15. What makes you proud of your dad? Uh, I don't know.

16. If your dad were a cartoon character, who would he be? He could be Ord, from Dragon Tales.

17. What do you and your dad do together? Go to dates.

18. How are you and your dad the same? We both like to sing.
19. How are you and your dad different? We have different hair, because mine is kindof white and his is kindof brownish.
20. How do you know your dad loves you? Cuz he gives me lots of kisses when it is before bedtime

21. Where is your dad's favorite place to go? To the movie theaters.

Blue and Gold: Picture Happy

2009-02-24T22:30:00.004-07:00

Well, all I have to say is that....IT WAS A SUCCESS! All of our hard work payed off. Thank you to those who helped....you helped make the night that much more enjoyable.

Here are the coolest bouquets around! Thank you Ang! These turned out great and were an instant hit!

Here is my father-in-law entertaining us with some Western Tunes. Thanks!

Here is one of our games! It was a shoot the can game that was done with lasers.

Here I was with Bro. Wood getting sworn in as a new den leader and a new cub master.

Our yummy dinner! (notice the holster silverware holder) Everything came together and was perfect!

Here is some more entertainment! We had an awesome square dance number that will be talked about for years to come.

My cute blue-eyed cowboy!

Another game!

Thanks for everybody that participated!

Pin the badge on the Sheriff.

I'm a leaving on a jet plane

2009-02-24T08:05:00.005-07:00

I just got a phone call from my mom and she had some GREAT news!!! She mentioned to me that she and my dad got tickets to go visit my sister in Oregon!!!

I am so excited!! So my dad is sending my mom and I off to Oregon to go visit my sister and her cute kids! (and of course we can't forget her cute hubby!) We are going General Conference weekend!!! Can you tell that I'm a little bit excited????

And....what is happening with my kids....you might say. Jac is going to watch them!!! Man, I am truly blessed by the family that I have.

Thank you so much!!! I am so very grateful. I love you guys!!!

Fun with the Cuz

2009-02-13T14:27:00.003-07:00

Today, we had a cousin come and play! The kids had such a fun time. It was fun to get to know "K" and hang out with him. The kids just played with their new toys they got for Christmas, Transformers, and one time I caught them in the bathroom with the door shut and lights off. (of course wanting a flashlight!) They even shoved a hand towel in the crack between the bottom of the door and the floor. So creative! I don't know if I was that smart when I was their age. =) And then we decorated heart cookies for fun. Thanks for coming over and playing!

Here are a couple of funny comments he said:

K: "Burp! Oh excuse me....sometimes it just happens."
K: "Oh...yeah, yeah, yeah" Then kindly filled me in and said, "that's what I say to my friends"

Another Free Give Away!

2009-02-10T13:08:00.001-07:00

Just to let you know...my business is having another free give away. So, go and check it out for the chance to win!

angelasaccessories.blogspot.com

We are giving away a cute beanie with a fun flower!

Seven Years and still going strong....

2009-02-10T01:27:00.003-07:00

Written Yesterday:

Today, I have been married to Jac for 7 years! Crazy! I doesn't even seem like we've been married for that long. I wouldn't change the last 7 years for anything. Seven years ago today, I got sealed to the most wonderful man on earth and was married in the Mt. Timpanogos Temple. Seven years later we have a great home, wonderful friends and have 3 beautiful children who are the joys in our lives!!

Today:

Well, Jac totally out-did himself. Around 4:00 pm, Jac told the kids that they were going over to play at Grandma's. That was a surprise....because it was different from our original plan. (so I knew that Jac had something up his sleeve) Then Jac told me to get my "nice" clothes on. I was wondering what he was up too. Soon after, we were on our way dropping off the kids and heading up to Temple Square. Hmmm....he took me to "The Roof" restaurant!!!! It was so fun and beautiful! It overlooked the temple and it was amazing. They had GREAT food and 25 different kinds of desserts.

Then we went and saw the new Joseph Smith movie. It was really good. I started crying when little Joseph asked his mom to leave during his operation. I never really saw it from that perspective, I guess. It is amazing how many trials the early saints went through to give us religious freedom. Although, the trek to Salt Lake was extremely difficult and hard...and I am truly grateful for their sacrifice...I didn't realize the day-to-day torment they had to survive. I feel so blessed to live in this day and have religious freedom because of their sacrifices.

So....Jac did an awesome job planning our anniversary. (He definitely got the short end of the stick this year. All I did was promise him to make snickerdoodles for him...and I haven't even done that yet) Thank you Jacob! I love you!

(okay...the pics are blurry...but you get the idea, right?)

I'm a Believer!!!

2009-02-09T13:17:00.003-07:00

Preston loves music and to dance!!! In this video, you can catch a glimpse of my every day happenings with Preston around. (okay, so the video isn't the best and you can hear me giving a solo....but I still am stricken with Preston's smile!)

Birthday Boy

2009-02-08T21:34:00.005-07:00

Ethan's 3rd Birthday was a blast!!! We just had a family party and it was really nice. My parents were there along with Thabo, Tyler and Kari and their 3 kids, Jac's parents and 2 brothers and friend were there....and the best part was that we fit in our house!!!! yeah!!! Thank you everyone for coming! You all added to the night and it wouldn't have been the same without you.

I can't believe that Ethan is THREE!!! He has given us so much joy from the moment he entered this world. I am so grateful to be his mommy. Ethan is so funny. An update on how much he wants to be his daddy: Every morning he wants to get dressed first before he does anything else and has to put on his "contacts." He loves Emery with all of his heart and they are definitely best friends! Ethan really wanted a birthday hat for his birthday and Emery was gone for a minute and came back with his "birthday hat." She had gotten some paper and cut out a crown for him and stapled it together. (This is the last picture in this post)

A friend asked him how old he was going to be, and so he held out his hand in a "number 2" position and said, "I'm going to be more than that."

I love you Buster Brown!!

Picture Happy in RICHFIELD!!!!

2009-02-04T15:50:00.002-07:00

Okay, so I was a little picture happy....but that just shows everyone how excited I was to be visiting "Our favorite neighbors from across the hall!!!!" Our friends bought a 6 bedroom house in Richfield almost a year ago and we went to visit them. (actually it was Dianna's idea) So here is there wonderful house!

We had such a GREAT time!! We arrived Friday night and the kids played and played and played while we sat and talked and talked and talked. (haha) On Saturday, Dianna made a delicious breakfast. We played Guilatine (a fun card game) and drove the 3 blocks to Sandi's Resturant. The hubbies and kids walked home while the wifes went out and played. Well, really we just went to the store to pick up banana split makings. But on our way, Dianna eyed a slide at the D.I. We hit the D.I. and it was a $5.00 steal! Jac helped Tom with some programming stuff for Dianna's business. (which is missymays.com) And you really had to pull Jac's leg to help. He loved it!!! Thanks Tom.

All of the boys were playing in the dirt...they got so dirty and loved every minute!!

While all the girls were playing "pretend" on the new $5.00 steal at D.I.

Tom and Dianna and baby Cami at Sandi's

Cute Elena on our way to Sandi's

Ethan playing with Lili and Elena

Emery and Sam putting a puzzle together

Thanks so much for the enjoyable time in Richfield Tom and Dianna!!! We will definitely have to come visit again!!!

Home Office Renovation

2009-02-02T16:21:00.005-07:00

It was time for Jac's "away from home" office contract to end....so we were wondering about how the desk would do on the carpet. After some talk....we decided to get some laminate wood flooring....and to save our carpet. So after our trip to Home Depot....Jac started to rip up the carpet.

...and it looked like this.....

...and after lots of hard work from my hubby....it looked like this....

....and then, whala....the finished product....

And then our desk was moved in and he has a nice home office space. Thanks sweetie!

And I just thought this was a cute picture of Preston.

Some things about Ethan...

2009-01-30T11:28:00.004-07:00

Ethan's birthday is coming up soon....and he'll be 3. CRAZY!!! But I did want to talk about how cute he has been lately. Every morning he jumps into bed and wants to get dressed. He gets a pair of pants and a work shirt. (a work shirt is a striped polo t-shirt) He gets his socks and car shoes and I help him put them on and he is on his way....to work! Jac set up a "computer" for him and Ethan goes to work every day....just like his daddy. Jac loves it that one of his sons wants to be like him.

He also, as of lately, has been wanting me to call him "dad." So if I want him to do anything, I have to say..."Time to eat, Dad" "Do you need to go potty, Dad?" (well, you get the idea) Not only do we have to call him "Dad" but he deligates names for the rest of the family. Emmy is usually "Mom" and Jac, Preston, and I are usually "Son."

I love my little Ethan. I am so grateful that I was blessed to be his mommy.

Just to make your mouth water....

2009-01-24T10:11:00.002-07:00

Yes, this is the Toll House Pie from the Dodo.

And....it was delicious.

Angela's Surprise Birthday Party!!!!

2009-01-24T09:47:00.004-07:00

My good friend Angela had a surprise 30th b-day party! It was so much fun!!! Tony really did out-do himself....but he should! Angela's party was at a place called "Noah's." Tony reserved 3 rooms;one for eating, one with a pool table, and one with Rock Band. There was even ice skating!! At the roof-top at "Noah's" there is an ice skating area. We loved going ice skating, Jac and I hadn't been since we were kids. Even though some of us went faster than others, we had a ball! Tony had food catered in which was very yummy. So everything from Roast Beef and Chicken Cordon Blue to delicious veggies were there. It was so fun to be at a party with our friends and hang out. Angela, thanks so much for turning 30!!! Thanks for being my friend and making my life a little bit more happier. I am so grateful for wonderful friends! Happy Birthday Ang!

Sweet Moments....

2009-01-19T12:29:00.002-07:00

Preston is such a cutie! He is growing into his personality and I am loving it! I tried getting a quick snipet of his happy personality, so enjoy! I think my favorite part is when he is laughing and his mouth gets really small and round. I love my sweet boy.

My New Present

2009-01-19T12:19:00.003-07:00

Jac went and helped his friend move his family into their new place and when he came back he handed me a piece of paper with a delivery date posted for Monday. As I read around, he went and bought an extra freezer for me! He said it was the one that we were looking at, so I thought it was a half-size freezer....but today, in comes....

THIS BABY!!!

(here is the inside of my awesome freezer!!)

I am totally excited about my new freezer!!! It has so much space, it is perfect!!! It is actually a freezer that can be a fridge also. My sweetie did good. Thank you!!!!

Oven S'mores

2009-01-19T12:08:00.003-07:00

On Friday, we wanted to do something fun with the kids. So, in the end we ended up doing oven s'mores. The kids really enjoyed it...actually we all did! It was something simple and easy and the kids loved it! I should do simple and fun activities with the kids more often.

"Can I eat this?"

Emmy was being a silly goose! Oven S'mores was a fun family activity!

Preston mostly ate the "goods" for the s'mores. He really loved the marshmellows!

Free Product

2009-01-15T18:15:00.003-07:00

Hey all of you out there! My company, Angela's Accessories, is actually having its very first FREE giveaway! We have some cute Valentine's bows, so go check it out! They are actually perfect for your little girl or even as a gift.

Go take a look: angelasaccessories.blogspot.com

Dinosaur Museum with family!

2009-01-11T21:30:00.004-07:00

My Uncle called me up on Saturday morning and wanted to go with me (and my kids) to the Dinosaur Museum. I didn't have any plans apart from the chores on Saturday morning so we totally went! We had such a good time! The kids played well together, had fun, and I actually got to have a conversation with my Uncle over lunch. Thanks Dave for calling me and letting us hang out with you and your cute girls!

Pretty Pretty Princess(es)

2009-01-09T09:44:00.003-07:00

Em got a game called "Pretty Pretty Princess" for her birthday. It is a jewelry dress-up game and you can become Sleeping Beauty if you get all of the princess "accessories." It is the first thing that Emery grabbed this morning and wanted to play...even before breakfast! It was fun, and now I didn't realize that I have two potential princesses at my house! (haha) Okay, so when Ethan gets bigger he'll hate these photos...but I am just a loving mother who loves her little boy....right? Emery got a Sleeping Beauty dress-up gown from her Grammy, so now she is ready to a ball! Thank you!

Ethan is at the stage where he wants to do everything by himself. He insisted on putting on his own earrings. These pics just make me laugh!

Birthday Time!

2009-01-08T22:13:00.003-07:00

We had so much fun celebrating Emmy's birthday! Before tonight, we talked about all the fun stuff we could do for Emmy's birthday. All Emery wanted to do was to go see a movie. She was sooo excited about this, that we decided to do exactly so! She really wanted to go see "Bedtime Stories." So on a Thursday night, we had no problems getting the tickets. (haha)

We went and ate at Kneaders. It was the first time that I had eaten there...and I know it won't be the last! It was sooo good! Jac and I had the Turkey, Bacon and Avacado Panini's...mmmm....and Jac got a fruit tart that was delicious! The kids had really good grilled cheese sandwiches and snowflake sugar cookies. Then we rushed over to Jac's parents house for cake and presents. Thank you for letting us come and all the family that was there! I know it made Emmy feel loved and special. We sang "Happy birthday" and rushed off to the movie. Thanks Ty and Kari for coming with us. It was a lot of fun! Thanks Ethan for taking pics! Here are a few pics from the night! Happy birthday Emery! I am so grateful that I can be your mommy! Love you sweet pea!

Fun in the Snow....and Gingerbread houses!

2008-12-30T13:38:00.003-07:00

This morning was so beautiful that the kids and I went out to play. We got all bundled up and helped our friend hand out some fliers and then made a snowman! We used things from around the house. Thanks to the creativity of my kids, his eyes and buttons are skittles; his nose, of course: is a carrot and his arms are candy canes. Emery is holding the snowman's hand and saying, "He's my friend." What a silly goose! Needless to say, we had fun!

Here are our Gingerbread houses for this year!

Jac, Ethan and my Dad helped make this fantastic house.

I decorated this house all by myself. (My creative juices were gone by the time that I got around to landscaping...hopefully next year I'll get around to a yard)

And this cute house was designed by Miss Emery. She was very particular on where I would put the dots of frosting. I think it turned out great! Thank you Mom for organizing the gingerbread house extravaganza!

Helped Moving In...

2008-12-29T23:33:00.003-07:00

My roommate - before my cute hubby - was moving into her first home! It was so fun to see her house and to help her move all of her families things in. Jac and I got there and there was A LOT of help. She had lots of family there to help. I am so glad that her and her family have their first home and that it is perfect for them! Thanks guys for letting us come and be part of the move in caous.

Here's the front of the house. It has a cute porch and a large yard....perfect for the kids to play and a garden.

The stairs going down into the basement. Ethan is such a stud!

The family room

Their daughters room. She was so excited to show me here purple curtains in her room.

And the laundry closet. I took a picture of this because I thought it was cool tiles. Also it shows their new dryer! wohoo! I think her and her family will be very happy and comfortable in their new house!!!!

Preston really enjoyed his Christmas present....

2008-12-29T23:28:00.001-07:00