Go Team Boyles!

May

2011-09-23T13:39:00.003-06:00

May was a fun month- both Shawn and I have birthdays, and there is Mother's Day, but here are just a few pics- Lily found her thumb! Yay!

My Brother and his wife, Shanna took out their endowments- I was there, but we had to rush back to Lily for her feeding, so I wasn't able to be in any photos...

Shawn had a birthday...;)

June

2011-09-23T06:55:00.011-06:00

In June we took a week and a half vacation to Southern California! It was a sort of family reunion for my family and it was AWESOME! We played at the beach...

My brother, Joe, and his family were sealed as a family in the San Diego Temple!!!

We went to Sea World with the fam- good times- I didn't take enough pictures!

We went to this awesome air craft carrier that had been converted into a museum- it was cooler than I thought it would be and we ended up having to even rush through it in the four hours we were there and still didn't get to see everything!

Here we are at Disneyland! We were only there for two days- I wish it could have been three, and NOT during a summer weekend- but we had a blast anyways!

For a late Father's Day we went flying- well, to an indoor fan tube thingy- even the kids went- it was awesome!!!

April 2011

2011-05-18T19:35:00.004-06:00

I know that this year is really Lily heavy, but babies change so fast that it is hard to keep track of it!

I guess I can't say it enough, Abby LOVES Lily- and the feeling is mutual!!!

She has such a pretty smile- I love that she smiles so much!!!

Just like my other kids, Lily loves her binki!!!

I LOVE the Bumbo- Shelley gave it to us and it is the BEST!!! Lily loves sitting in it!

Shawn snuggling with the kids- he is such a wonderful Daddy!!!

March's Summary

2011-05-18T19:09:00.006-06:00

We went out to Goblin Valley and met up with Shelley and her family- it was fun, but really windy and would have been a nice day otherwise, but it was freezing from the wind!!! The kids still had fun, though!

It was mustache March again in Shawn's company this year- doesn't he look amazing?!!!

So, of course the whole family got into it!!!

Lily didn't really like hers, but doesn't she look adorable?!

We blessed Lily at the end of March- her dress was amazingly beautiful!!! Being the star of the day sure was exhausting, though!

Me and my sisters and our babys! From left to right it is Emma with Kaeden, Shelley with Weston, me with Lily, and Shanna with Shiloh!

Shawn, his Mom, and Lily

My parents with Lily

Lily's Dr said that I could use a cream on her acne to help her look good for the blessing weekend and said that it would be worse when I stopped, but the creme was only a temporary fix- she still had a lot of acne, but when I stopped using the creme I saw how bad it got!

February in a nut shell!

2011-05-18T18:46:00.007-06:00

Abby so LOVES Lily- she takes every chance she can get to snuggle her; which is great because I had to get back to work when Lily was two weeks old and Abby comes home from Kindergarten in the middle of the day and snuggles with and takes care of Lily!!!

So, we went out to Grand Junction the first weekend of February for Shelley's new baby, Weston's, blessing and Shelley being the awesome sister and photographer that she is took some time and took some awesome photos of Lily for us!!!

Lily has been a complete Angel- sleeps great and doen't give us problems, but she still can cry...

This is just my favorite picture of Lily- she looks so contemplative...

This is a onesie that some friends of ours made for Lily; the character on it was designed by Shawn, he and his friend Isaac (the one who made us the onesie) did a web comic together and this was one of the characters...sadly the webcomic didn't make them any money, but it was fun while it lasted...

For once, I really don't mind this picture of me... Lily looks great in it too!!!

Daddy being himself with Lily!

Yeah, Daddy and the kids playing video games... good times!

Abby made Lily a Valentine- or into a Valentine- you decide!!!

Lily looking pretty for church!

Family dinner for Granddad Hartzell's birthday- I LOVE living close enough to my parents and Joe and Shanna that we can get together with them a few times a month for dinner!!!

Here is Lily with her cousin, Kaeden, who was born a week to the day after her- he was a lot smaller than she was at birth, but he is catching up!!!

Photos from Jan 11

2011-05-18T18:43:00.003-06:00

Abby LOVES Lily and being a big sister- she asks to hold her all of the time; sometimes I have to tell her no because I want a turn!

Lucas took a karate test and moved up a belt...

Lily just looks cute here- it almost looks like she is waving!

Lily!!!

2011-05-18T18:36:00.004-06:00

I am so behind, but I thought I would post about our sweet baby Lily! I know I can't possibly catch up from when I used to post on this all of the time, but I figure for some of the family and friends who don't do Facebook that I should post some pictures and info about our wonderful, Angel baby!!!

Lily was born at 3:45 PM on January 19, 2011. She weighed 7 lb 11 oz and was 20 inches long- she was very happy about being born- don't you think?

The kids were so excited to have a new baby sister- they loved coming to meet her at the hospital!

This is my favorite picture of her on her birth-day- she is being held by Lucas and just looking up at him- Love it!!!

Crazy, hormonal Mommy...

2010-10-19T13:05:00.003-06:00

I know, I haven't posted for a long time... I really need to be better at it, but it seems like blogging has taken a huge backseat to facebooking. I also had lost my camera's computer connector after Christmas and I didn't have any pictures to post until now... maybe I will do a brief update of the past year... we will see- I don't have tons of time.
I do, however, want to share how wonderful my children are and brag about them for a second. I have been really struggling this pregnancy with illness and discomfort and mood swings. Abby has made me several "I hope you feel better soon," drawings that were completely unprompted... I am so grateful for my little angel. Well, the other day I lost it for no real reason, honestly I started to yell at my kids because we couldn't find the tape to put up a Halloween decoration with and for some reason that got me really mad just thinking of all of the lost tape, pens, and used paper that they steal from my office. I was also fed up with their messy rooms which I had been trying everything in my power to persuade them to do without forcing it on them... finally I blew a fuse and started yelling at the kids- I told Abby she had to clean her room or go straight to bed... when after several times of yelling at her to try to keep her on task and still not getting results, I put her to bed, yelling at her the whole time and her crying. She got herself back up and cleaned her room... later when I put her to bed, still angry from before, she hands me this note:

For those who can't read kindergartener, it says, "Mommy, I hope you feel better, To Mommy from Abby." I lost it and started to cry, I felt like the worst Mom in the world for getting so ticked at my children for not having really done anything wrong. I still can't believe that a sweet little girl decided on her own to make this for her mother who was screaming and yelling at her and calling her a theif and it is so full of love... I now have it hanging in my office where I can see it prominently for 6-7 hours a day and remind myself of the kind of mother I should be. It is easy to blame my behavior on my hormones, and I will admit, I have yelled at the kids way more than I used to lately... but I need to be better. I just hope that I haven't damaged my sweet, loving children by the time my hormones balance themselves out again!!! I just have to say how blessed I am to have the kids I do- I certainly know I don't deserve them, but I am super grateful for them!!!

Lucas's Church Comic...

2010-08-22T14:07:00.005-06:00

Okay, so at church we allow Lucas and Abby to do drawings in their "sketchbooks"- today I was shocked when I figured out what Lucas was doing, so I am sharing it with you- see if you can figure out based on his first grade education what it says...

Okay, so for those of you who need a little help reading this, the first page says "The Adventures of Jesus"

The second page caption at the top says "Jesus and the Storm"

The first panel says "A time on the earth Lamaites (he didn't quite get that part right) were in a storm screaming:

The second panel says "They woke Jesus and he said STOP"

The third panel says "And He said "Calm Storm"

The fourth panel says "And they finished sailing with Jesus"

I know, we were shocked, especially when we saw the first page, "The Adventures of Jesus"- yes, a little on the not-reverent side, but we were so amazed- Shawn started laughing and didn't stop for like five minutes...

I am so proud of my Lucas for doing this "comic" about Jesus during sacrament meeting... it is amazing what the kids learn and show and teach us every day! I thought you would all enjoy it as well!

I. Hate. Being. Pregnant!

2010-07-11T16:30:00.004-06:00

I know, it sounds terrible to say it, but it is true! Pregnancy is 9 months of misery for me- I am sick for the first 15 or 16 weeks (I know, other people have it worse, other people have to be hospitalized and stuff, I am not that bad, but I am sure that if it weren't for a prescription from my Dr's office [I love working for my OB, it makes it so much easier to get drugs and stuff] I am sure I wouldn't even be functioning most days- and I can barely get the essentials done as it is...) Then I start to have the hip problems and back problems that pretty much last me the rest of the miserable time. This is why Abby is 5 and a half and we are finally deciding to have #3. The thing is, I honestly feel guilty- we have never had a hard time getting pregnant- seriously, every single time Shawn and I have said, "Let's do it"- there we go, we get it; and we haven't had any accidental pregnancies yet *knock on wood*. This especially makes me fell guilty because I know a lot of people who have really struggled in getting pregnant and I just sit here and whine about it. At any rate, we are thinking this will be the last one with all of the pains and problems that accompany me being pregnant, but seeing as how I will be 12 weeks this week, I figured I might as well post about it for those of you whom I haven't told yet or who don't do Facebook (which I don't think there are many of you, but here you go!) So, I am preggers- wish me luck!!!

Abby's Little Mis-Adventure

2010-05-22T04:51:00.002-06:00

So, yesterday the little 3 year old granddaughter, Kaya, of our neighbors came over to play with Abby. I wasn't feeling well after a little bit, so I went and layed down in my bedroom at the back of the house. I could hear the girls playing fine and I wasn't worried about them. Well, after a little while Lucas came home, he was upset about some girls who were teasing him on the bus, so I let him watch TV in the living room, and between that TV and the one I was watching in my bedroom, I didn't think about the fact that I couldn't hear the girls very well because Abby has never done anything bad.
Well, a little bit later the neighbors came back to get Kaya and I went upstairs to get the girls from Abby's closed bedroom door. They weren't there, but I wasn't worried, I just figured that they must have gone down to the unfinished basement to play, so I checked down there- no girls. I started to worry, mostly feeling bad that the neighbor was asking for their kid and I didn't know where they were. I searched the whole house, calling for them- nothing.
I heard the neighbors son's motorcycle start to drive around the neighborhood and I thought, well, she probably took her for a walk, sometimes Abby likes to go for walks around the block, but she knows that she isn't allowed to go alone, so I sent Lucas up one way and I went the other, we met party around the circle and still no sign of the girls anywhere.
Now, I really started to panic! I started to go to some of the neighbors houses that Abby had gone to to play before, but no one was home. We all started walking around the streets- I sent Lucas to check at the park. We still couldn't find them. Now the neighbor with the motorcycle had checked out entire neighborhood and couldn't find the girls. I started to cry... I didn't feel in my heart that something bad had happened, but intellectually I couldn't shut my brain up from thinking of how easily they could have been taken by someone... I also was feeling absolutely terrible that this happened to my neighbors little 3 year old on my watch...
We saw a couple of teenage boys on the street and they mentioned that they had seen the girls and told them to go home, but clearly the girls hadn't listened to them. Those boys started to help us look, running around looking for the girls. I ran into a few other neighbors to helped to start the search. There must have been over a dozen people looking for the girls by now.
Finally the guy on the motorcycle drove up the main road in our community and found the girls at the constructions site of the new school that is being built, it is probably a little less than half a mile from our house. I started running in that direction, the guy on the motorcycle gave me a ride and I was so relieved and mad when I saw Abby again. Motorcycle guy took Kaya home and I carried Abby yelling at her and making her cry right along with me as we walked back home.
Another friend who was out driving looking picked us up and gave us a ride home. Needless to say I was feeling so grateful for so many wonderful neighbors who were so willing to help out. I also grounded Abby for a week and took away her TV priviledges for a few days (this actually hurts me as much as her, but it is her favorite thing, so I had to do it!).
Now, I am thinking very strongly of putting a chain lock on the front door so that the kids cannot get out without me knowing about it! Needless to say I felt like the worst mother ever and I am sure that the neighbors won't let Kaya come over to play with Abby ever again!

Thanksgiving 09

2010-02-11T08:05:00.008-07:00

Well, we had a wonderful Thanksgiving with my family. Brent, Becca, and their five kids came up from Tucson, Shelley, Derek, and their two kids came over from Denver, and Joe and Shanna and Nolan came up from Phoenix. It was a crowded house with all of those boys and Abby running around and playing! But we had a wonderful time! One day we went to the Dinosaur museum, which was a total blast!!!

Shelley is an amazing photographer and she took family pictures of all of us! We love it- although, it was really bright and sunny out- sorry for the squints!

Isn't Abby adorable?!

We celebrated Edison's birthday during that week- Shawn and I made the cake...

All in all, it was a crazy, full house, but we had a lot of fun!!!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T09:29:00.003-07:00

I am so sorry that it has been so long since I have posted something- heck, I haven't even updated my wallpaper since November! At any rate, I will try to catch you all up on our going's on, once I have uploaded my photos from Christmas etc- for now, this is just a simple post wishing you all a happy 2010!!!

Abby's Fifth Birthday!!!

2009-11-06T08:24:00.005-07:00

Abby turned FIVE on Wednesday! The time is flying by too fast!!! We went up to Jungle Jim's and had a fun party with the family- I didn't take as many photos as I should have, but here are some!

Lucas and Abby get along so well! They are great siblings!

My parents were both there, and I meant to get a picture of Abby with both of them, but it never happened, but here is one with her Grandma Hartzell (I also never took a picture with her and me and Shawn...)

Abby with Grandma and Grandpa Boyles!

Abby was so funny when we were singing to her; She posed the whole time, I think she thought I was taking a still photo of her... At any rate, that is why we are laughing at the end... Sorry about me talking- I know it comes out really loud because I am close to the camera!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-06T08:17:00.005-07:00

We went back to Payson for a Halloween party with all of our old friends a few days before Halloween- I went all out with my Geisha costume- it won the children's costume contest that I didn't even enter in! I think I look kind of freaky, but it was fun! Shawn was supposed to be Calvin and Hobbs, but his hair came out green instead of blond!
Abby was a pretty kitty and Lucas was "Master Dan" a Bakugan guy.... he loves his Bakugan!

Trick or treating!!!

Family Fall Photos

2009-11-06T08:13:00.005-07:00

Sorry it has taken me so long to update the blog... We went out a few weeks ago to the Canyon and took some family photos- unfortunately Lucas and I were both starting to come down with the week of sickness- so his photos didn't turn out great- but here are some cute ones!

At the end-Lucas wouldn't keep his head up and Sherri was telling him to put his head up- so Abby decided to help him- then we all got in on the action!

Putting Abby to bed...

2009-10-20T20:08:00.001-06:00

Tonight, Shawn put Abby to bed, but I heard her calling to me as I left Lucas's room. She wanted a drink of water, but I told her no and to go to sleep. She persisted, but I held strong and walked away. As I walked down the hallway she said, "Mom you just don't understand people very much!"

Abby reading Frogs, Dogs, and Gators

2009-10-09T08:06:00.002-06:00

This is a book that is really a song that Cory wrote when Shawn was a kid and Shawn turned it into a book by doing illustrations for each verse. At any rate; we self-printed it a couple of years ago and Abby was so cute reading it this morning that I HAD to get a video of it!!!

Children's Miracle Music

2009-10-05T08:30:00.003-06:00

So, a few years ago when I was living in Pleasant Grove and working at Curves, this woman who was working out told me about this program that she had created called "Children's Miracle Music" and how by the time she got home, her husband will have gotten all of the kids out of bed, they would be dressed, hair done, bed's made, toys put away, eaten breakfast, brushed teeth, etc. I was amazed that any husband could do this, but she told me that all he had to do was put on this music CD that she made and supervise them while they did it all themselves! Well, this sounded pretty cool to me and I bought the program from her, she gave me a deal for it- it came with a Cd and with a dry-erase chart that you can keep track of the kids points on. I listened to it a time or two, but didn't use it until recently (earlier, I thought, well, the kids don't need wake up stuff, because they wake me up, and I wasn't too picky about how clean their rooms were and bed's made unless people were coming over) At any rate, I started using it this year because Lucas has to be ready to leave for the school bus at 7:15 (I know, ridiculously early!!!) So, after a couple of weeks of scrambling each morning to get the Lucas ready for school on time, I remembered the Children's Miracle Music.
One morning I put it on at about 6:30- it starts out with a nice song to wake the kids up...so I played it and went upstairs to help them hear the wake up music and explain that for each thing they got done with the music they would get a point that would work toward earning them a private date with Mom or Dad. They jumped out of bed and immediately started making their beds when the music told them too. Then it told them to "do and act of kindness" which I explained meant clean up their rooms and toys, etc. So, for 3 songs they do this. The pattern continues...there are 8 points to be had in all for the morning routine, and 4 to be had for at night (they clean their rooms, get changed, brush teeth, etc.) Every time they get all of their points, they also get a star.
We have made ourselves a reward menu for them to choose from- for 100 points, they get a private date (and it only takes less than 2 weeks to get 100 points if they get most of them every time), so we made the 100 points dates cheap ones, like go to the park together, or go to a dollar movie, then if they want, they can save up for 200 points, this is something that costs a bit more, like go to a matinee movie, or go to the local swimming pool, etc. 300 is something more, like the Dinosaur Museum, or go miniature golfing. Do you see my pattern? At any rate, it is wonderful, the kids beds are made every day, they get themselves dressed and ready for the day without a fuss, their rooms (although, not perfectly organized) are cleaned up and look pretty good almost all of the time! I am loving this. The woman who does it gives them a star sticker for their star if they get it, but we decided to keep track of the stars and use them as their allowance. At 10 cents a star, once they have 10 they can get a cheap $1 toy at the store, and for 100 stars, they get a $10 toy- this is also working out well; although so far we haven't cashed in any of their stars yet and we also want to do tithing with them on that... so we haven't actually done that yet...but we have done dates, well, actually one date; I took Abby to the park the Saturday before last and then we went to Wendy's for a $1 frosty. She loved it! Lucas is saving up for the Pool, I think. We are loving having our house cleaned up all of the time and the kids doing it all themselves! I so, highly recommend this to any parent! If you are interested go to www.childrensmiraclemusic.com and watch the video that this woman made of her kids doing it- the cost for what she put together is $35; and I totally think it is worth it! I am starting to get a little tired of the same songs all of the time (most are classics and stuff, nothing edgy), but we might go in to Shawn's work sometime soon and record just the vocal prompts as tracks and then we can insert whatever music in that we want to for the tasks...but I don't know when we will do it... At any rate, I am loving this new routine and so do the kids!!!

The Triumphant return of Elder and Sister Hartzell!

2009-09-28T08:53:00.005-06:00

So, on September 10, Abby and I went to the airport to pick up my parents who were just coming home from the Tokyo, Japan mission!!! We were so thrilled to see them again!!!

Here we are opening the box of gifts that they sent to us... Yeah, they totally got me my own, authentic, Kimono...although, I am a little too tall to wear it correctly, I may have to adjust it so that it may not be correct with all of the folds and stuff they do, but it will be long enough... I wonder what I will be for Halloween!!!

We are so excited to have them home...of course, they will be leaving shortly to go and visit some of my siblings, so we won't see them as much as we would like right now, but now they live here and we will get to see them a lot! Yay!!!

Lucas lost his first teeth!!!

2009-09-28T08:43:00.004-06:00

Lucas came home from school a couple of weeks ago and he had just lost his first tooth! The school even sent it home in a little treasure box thing for him to carry it safely in! He was so proud! I only got a couple of pictures of him with only one missing tooth...so here is another- he is so silly!

Then, just the other night, he lost his second one- here her is only minutes after pulling it out!!!Now he can really sing "all I want for Christmas is my two front teeth"- but they are already growing in...time is flying by too fast! My little boy is disappearing, literally, one peice at a time!!!

Abby singing the "speckled frogs" song

2009-09-04T05:14:00.002-06:00

Abby just looked so cute singing this song, I had to share it!

Lucas's First Day of First Grade!!!

2009-08-22T08:39:00.002-06:00

Lucas went to his first day of First Grade on Thursday- I barely slept the night before worry about the fact that he was taking the bus for the first time and worry about him making it home safely... also, the general worry about him making friends and doing well in school...

It was a chilly morning despite it being mid-august, Abby was so excited to see her brother get on the school bus and Lucas was too excited to ride the bus to have us take him to school... I couldn't take it, though, so I went to the school and got there early to see him off of the bus and safely to his classroom...

He was so brave- no worries at all- I am so proud of him!!!

Legendary Boyles Family Stay-cation!!!

2009-08-22T08:15:00.006-06:00

So, this year instead of going somewhere else for a vacation, the Boyles family decided to do a "stay-cation"- Alex and Zoey came out and we all had a total blast- we did so many activities that we were exhausted, but it was a lot of fun! The first day we went on a hike up to Timp Cave...

Abby being herself...

Lucas inside the cave- he did great- Abby was so scared that I had to carry her the whole way through- my arms were sore pretty much the rest of the week, but, then again, I carried her a lot more the whole week, too (I don't know what I am going to do if and when we have another one and I need to carry that baby around, Abby is almost 5 and she still asks to be carried all of the time!!!)

Drew is such a great uncle to them- he walked the whole way down holding both of their hands because he is who they wanted to walk with!!!

The next day we went to Lagoon- here we are at the beginning of the day- I am smiling because it is before I got motion sickness and threw up...

Here we are, my final smile before this particular ride made me feel sick...the kids did great, though, went on tons of rides and were total troopers!!!

Here is Abby riding with Cory and Sherri on the sky ride that takes you across the park- Abby was too short (and a little too scared) to go on most of the big rides, so we took turns with her- Lucas, on the other hand, was not only big enough to ride everything, but he did ride everything- he was amazing! We watched his face while he rode and he looked totally terrified, but then we would get done and he would give us this huge smile and say that it was the best thing ever!!! He is getting so big!!!

Abby, Me and Sherri riding a spinning ride- funny that Sherri and I got stuck with Abby when she wanted to ride this particular one, we are the two who get motionsickness...but thanks to the patches, it wasn't too bad...

Alex and Zoey rode on the sling shot (a ride that you pay extra for and you sit in this ball and it launches you WAY high into the air and you bouce around for a while)- apparently it was totally awesome- Shawn and I were too chicken to ride it!

Then, of course, Cory and Drew had to do it also- they have a camera on them while they ride- Cory's face was HILARIOUS to watch!!!

On Wednesday we went Lazer tagging and Bowling...

I love watching Shawn bowl...he really gets into it...

Lucas is working on his approach...

I just had to get this picture in- Yes, this is Abby sitting on the toilet playing the DS...

On Thursday we went to the Dunes, it wasn't the best trip there ever, one of the ATV's lost it's seat on the freeway (Cory miraculously found it a few days later by chance driving down the freeway)- but Lucas and Abby didn't care- they love ATVing- especially Lucas, you can't go fast enough for that boy...

On friday we went to seven peaks water park- it is hard to get a lot of photos when you are walking around in swimsuits and riding on water slides- but once again Lucas was super brave- he even wanted to go on rides that scared me!!!

All in all, we had a ton of fun on this vacation. We are so grateful to have such a close and fun family- thanks again Cory and Sherri for having it and funding it!!! It was fun to spend the time with Alex and Zoey also, we don't get to see them often enough! I am still shocked at Lucas, the fact that he rode on big roller coasters without a second thought, and big water slides...I think he is going to be our dare devil- which is shocking, since he was the four year old who was afraid of the McDonald's playland... I guess times can change! Abby was more timid and required a lot of holding and snuggling, but that is okay with me, I love snuggling that sweet little girl!!!

Park Family reunion

2009-08-22T08:11:00.002-06:00

Every first Sunday in August we have a family reunion for Grandma Fullmer (Shawn's Dad's Mom's) side of the family. I love this photo of Emma and Abby- Emma is such a great Aunt!!!

Here is Lucas holding his little cousin, Ella's, hand to help her walk to a race they were about to do, so sweet!!!

Abby really liked her cupcake!!!

Lucas's Birthday

2009-08-22T07:39:00.005-06:00

So, as is our new tradition, we made our own fondant for Lucas's birthday cake. His new favorite thing in the world is Bakugan, so we did out best to make him a "Drago" Bakugan cake.

It turned out pretty cool looking, although it was nothing to the one we were trying to copy, but I think it turned out pretty good for our amateur efforts!

We had a ton of the Payson neighborhood kids over- we wanted it to be not just a birthday party, but also a farewell party and we wanted lots of kids to come; I think we wound up with about 12-15 kids, which was great- it was a lot of fun for both Lucas and Abby!!!

We had two blow up pools set up and the slip and slide- lots of fun for all!!!

This was taken on Lucas's actual birthday- we did a simple party at Cory and Sherri's house...

We made a second cake for his family birthday party the day after his birthday- we had all of Shawn's extended family over, it was kind of a new house party/Lucas's birthday party. Shawn wanted to make another cake, this time Speed Racer, turned out really good for only taking us an hour...

All in all, Lucas had a great 7th birthday- 3 parties and 10 Bakugan!!! What kid could ask for anything more?!?!

Kayaking in American Fork Canyon

2009-08-02T06:24:00.004-06:00

So, last week we went up to American Fork Canyon with Shawn's family to try out the new inflatable Kayaks that Cory recently purchased. We had a ton of fun! I had forgotten Abby's swimsuit, so she had to borrow one of Emma's bikini tops and we had to tie it up so it would fit- If I have my way, this will be the only time she wears one of these- but she looks so cute in it, don't you think?!

Shawn towed Lucas around in these little one man fishing kayaks a friend of ours brought- Lucas was so proud to be doing it alone!

Shawn and I make a pretty good kayaking team- we still haven't perfected it, but that is when I just stop paddling and let him take over!!!

Painted rooms in our house

2009-07-28T21:43:00.007-06:00

Here are photos of all of the painting that we have been doing- our kitchen is red...as you can see...
Abby's room is so bright yellow that I keep thinking that a light is on up there, but it is just the sunlight shining brightly in there...

Lucas's room is a bright orange! It took 3 coats... I think it is fun!

I didn't take any of our bedroom yet, I will do so when it is more set up- for now, it just looks dark brown...

Moab July 2, 2009

2009-07-05T20:20:00.011-06:00

All of these pictures are from Thursday July 2, 2009- We did so much that day and had so many great photo opportunities that I couldn't help but take a million- this is only maybe a tenth of how many I took...I hope you enjoy them!

These first photos are from a place called Sandy Beach along the Colorado River- we had the whole beach to ourselves all morning and the kids had a BLAST!!!

Isn't Abby so cute?! She was proud of this first sand castle that she made with Daddy...

Lucas jumping over the very small waves that came to shore from the river- it was cold water, but the kids didn't mind at all...

Nice action shot of Abby...

You know, the kids often do argue and stuff because of being siblings, but I am so proud of them for how often they get along and play well together!

Lucas and Abby were both running around, Abby stopped long enough to look cute for a photo just as Lucas ran by...I like it anyways!

Could Abby be any cuter?! I love how her butt looks in this photo!

Abby made a really cool sand castle with the wet mud, dripping it into a big pile- I thought it looked really neat!
Lucas LOVED digging moats for the water to fill...

ATV-ing with the Boyles that afternoon....

Lucas loved ATV-ing.... He kept calling for Emma (who was driving the ATV he was on) to go faster!!!

Sherri and Abby hanging out eating oranges during lunch...

Us on the top of Gemini Arches... a very fun and cool place- the pictures hardly do it justice...
This bench has NOTHING under it, it looks like you are about to fall into the canyon below---again the photo doesn't do it justice....

Arches National Park later that afternoon....

Floating rock- we each made our own as well...

I like Drew's the best...

Abby giving Grandpa a big hug on the butt....

Shawn had just carried Lucas up a bunch of stairs and was tired...Cory decided to take advantage of this....

Abby and Lucas loved climbing on the rocks!!!

We killed some time on Friday morning throwing rocks waiting for our ride to the place where we would start rafting
This is what Abby looks like just after she has thrown a rock...

Here is the prep shot for throwing it, we loved her stance...

Nice action shot of Shawn

Well, anyhow, we had a great day- hope you enjoyed the photos!

T- ball 2009

2009-07-05T20:17:00.003-06:00

I wish I had taken more still shots than this, but I tended to forget my camera most days... I did take a few videos and Lucas had done so well that he hit the ball the first time his coach pitched it to him, but for some reason whenever I brought the camera and had hit out to video tape him being pitched to, well, he never hit it... Oh, well, we are proud of him none the less!!!

Catch up time!

2009-06-29T08:09:00.002-06:00

I am so sorry I haven't been posting regularly like I used to. I really mean to do so, but life has been so super busy with work, kids doing swim lessons and T-ball, and moving and painting and fixing, well, you get the idea...I have just been too busy to blog. I thought I would tell a couple of cute stories about the kids, since I haven't been able to post frequently, so here they go:
Lucas has been doing T-ball, which has always been entertaining- you never know what cute things the kids will do. I will admit, though, that these kids have all gotten much better at playing it, and there isn't that entertainment of the kid who just starts swinging as soon as he sees the ball, weather it is on the tee or not...but it is really great to see the kids getting better at the game.
A couple of weeks ago Lucas got to have his turn at catcher. They always let the whole bench bat, but keep track of the outs, it just doesn't matter if there are more than 3 outs. Well, when the last batter gets up, then all of the kids on the bases all run for home, so as catcher, the kid gets the ball and stands just in front of home plate to try to tag all of the kids out. Well, Lucas didn't sucessfully get the ball and get in front of the plate until the second to last kid was heading for home. Lucas got in the way and tagged him out- he was so excited about this that he turned and looked at me and shouted "I got him!!!" He totally missed the other kid running past him and safely touching home- but it was so cute to see!
Lucas's team has also began batting off of the coach's pitch. We have never practiced this with Lucas, he had never done it before and with his often slower reflexes, I worried that he wouldn't do it, but the first time the coach pitched it, he hit is sucessfully! He has done really well with this, there have now been a couple of times where after 4 throws, he has to use the t- but since his league is with kids not only in his grade, but also the grade above him, I am very impressed. I still have yet to catch it on video, though, and his last game is on Tuesday night...cross your fingers that I finally do catch it on video and I will post it here, if I do!
Abby has been working on new skills as well. She recently decided that she wanted to learn how to snap, which is actually a rather difficult skill for a kid her age- it requires strength in the fingers which most 4 year olds don't have, but she kept working on it and practicing and strengthening her fingers until now she can snap louder than me! She is super good at it- which goes to show that all you have to do is practice persistently to be good at something. She has decided that her new skill to conquer is whistling. She purses her lips and blows so hard that a very high pitched noise does come out, but she needs to work still on mastering and controling that noise, but she is already doing great!
There is one problem with her knowing how to snap. We were in church last Sunday and she got on the floor and tried to crawl under the bench- she is much too old for this behavior, so I put a stop to it and told her to get up on the bench. I started to count silently with my fingers and she suddenly snapped at me and said, "I don't like it when you count!" and even wagged her finger at me- Shawn had to look away so as not to laugh- fortunately, I didn't find it funny at the time and she was forced to sit right on the bench.
Abby has also been doing this thing lately where she hates to be punished- well, what kid doesn't- but the weird thing is, she will cry and scream and be upset, but the only thing that calms her down is a big hug- it's a lesson for me, I would be mad at the person punishing me, but all she seems to want is even more love and affection. I am not sure if this is a way to try to avoid the punishment, but if it is, it doesn't work, she still gets a time out, but she wants to snuggle in and stay there when she is free of her time out. I love it- she is super snuggly, which makes me glad that for now, I don't have another little one that she needs to compete for in order to get snuggles, I figure by the time we do have another one, she will have grown out of this, but for now, I love it!
For an update and me and Shawn, well, life is crazy with trying to move and set up the new house in addition to taking care of the current one and working, etc. Last saturday Shawn emptied out the storage shed- we borrowed my in-law's car and trailer and it was a rainy day- well, it sprinkled in the morning and rained in the afternoon. He was on his way to the new house with a full load- carboard boxes, etc. when both tires on one side of the trailer blew. He had to pull to the side of the road and call Triple A, who said that they wouldn't help him because they don't do trailers- so he had to call around to a bunch of tired places before he found one that would help him and wait for over an hour for a guy to come out from Les Schwab and change the tires there on the side of the road, which we had to pay the guy $100 an hour to come and do! Ridiculous! We are mad at Tripe A!!! On top of that, it sprinkled some and we were worried about our boxes.
While Shawn was going through this, I was working at Curves, but we had planned on Shawn picking me up when he was done taking up that load, so I was stuck walking home, which I didn't mind too much, but I had this sweet woman who I barely know or have visited with much who heard about my struggles (we chat on the circuit) and offered me a ride home. She gave me her number to call her when I was done with work, but I wasn't going to call- you know how pride can be...but she came by when I was closing, but still had to clean when she came back to offer me a ride- I told her I still had 20 minutes of cleaning to do, so she went to the grocery store and came back and gave me a ride! It was so sweet, I had to try to control my tears of gratitude! It was such a sweet and selfless gesture- especially how much she went out of her way to give me a ride- I just felt so pleased with the world in general at that time, while poor Shawn was probably feeling the opposite. Well, that is life, I guess.
This past weekend was really busy, I had to work at Curves for the last time that morning and Shawn went up to the new house to take a load and then went and bought paint with his Mom- Sherri is being awesome and buying the paint for our house- she is so excited about decorating it that she is doing this wonderful thing for us- also she is buying fabric to do curtains and stuff- we are very blessed to have her help! We painted most of the kitchen on Saturday- it is hard because I do not have a steady hand, but Sherri and Shawn do, so they are doing all of the trimming work, while Shawn's sister, Emma, and I did all of the rolling- and while the rolling covers most of the surface area, the "cutting in" is the most time involved, so there is just a bit of that left to do and we will be done with the kitchen. We still have Abby's room, Lucas's room, our bedroom, our bathroom, the kids bathroom, and the office upstaris to paint, but that is our order of priority and if we don't get some of the later rooms done, well, we will just have to do them later! It is making for a busy summer, though, we will not have a weekend off probably until October, I am thinking...*sigh*; but we are excited!
After the painting, we went to the rodeo in Lehi that night- which was a blast! We are again grateful to Cory and Sherri for helping us out- they are doing so much for us this summer...I hope we can repay them soon!
Love to you all- sorry this was really long, I don't blame you if no one reads it! I will post pictures of each room once it is done being painted so that you can see! Busy! Busy!!!

Adventures in Home Buying...

2009-06-14T10:44:00.003-06:00

So, on Tuesday, June 9th, we closed on our new house! Yes, we are excited about it, but it has been extremely stressful getting this done! We found out on May 20th, that we needed 5% rather than the 3% we had and were planning on for a down payment becuase the zip code we were purchasing a house in was changed to a "restricted market". At that point in time we were planning on closing on June 1, so we had 10 days to come up with $4000. We, thankfully, got an extension on our closing date without penalty of extra fees, and were barely able to make that 5%- thanks to the blessings of bonus's from both of our jobs. We also had to borrow $3000 from Cory and Sherri just for the purpose of making it look like we had more money in our account than we really would have after closing. Well, we didn't expect that we would have to actally USE some of that money...but as it turns out, we did.
You know, it would have been nice if someone would have told us that we would have to pay $1000 in HOA fee's and another $1000 extra in taxes that we had to bring to closing... I am not as ticked about the taxes- but it would have been nice if someone had told us that...but the HOA fees- MAN! I am so mad- we have two HOA's, one for Traverse Mountain, which is a fee of like $35 a month, and we had to pay $200 for a stupid fee to set up our account- DUMB...but even worse is the HOA for our particular neighborhood- it is $45 a month and we had to pay an outrageous amount of $500 to set up our account. All I have to say is that they BETTER be doing some awesome stuff for us with that money that they are taking. As a result of these ridiculous fees, we have had to cut our food budget in half and ALL extras are gone until we are in the clear again.
Needless to say, I am a bit stressed about it. You know it is sad when you have a coupon for a free box of Capri Sun that you are excited to get as a treat for your kids, and when you can't find said coupon, and therefore, cannot get your kids a $2.50 box of Capri Sun and you wind up crying in the parking lot...well, you get the idea...
At any rate, we are now homeowners. We need to do a lot of things before we can actually move in- basic things like painting and setting up stuff, but also we need to do some important repairs (holes in the ductwork in the attic, and the master shower won't turn off all of the way and a large brake in the backyard fence that I don't want the dog going through- I think the HOA should fix it!) But also, they didn't give us keys to the locks that they had taken off the doors or a key to the mailbox- so, there are some additional things that we get to deal with that will cost us more money that we dont have. Why are we buying this house again? Oh, yeah, Shawn fell in love with it...
Well, I just wanted to let you know what is going on...don't worry, I don't expect very many people to read it all, mostly it is for my own sake to remember what happened. This is going to be a busy summer, with two houses to take care of and moving to be done- not to mention the usual responsibilities of work, child care, etc. So much fun to look forward to!!!

The Princess Festival!!!

2009-06-13T19:59:00.001-06:00

So, on June 13 Abby and her cousin Ella went to the Princess Festival in Lindon. Apparently this is done every year, it is a non-profit organization called "In our Own Quiet Way" that donates money to children and families in Kenya, so the cost of our wonderful experience went to a good cause as well and gave the kids something really fun to do!
This place was private property owned by some guy who built a castle in his backyard for his grandkids- can you believe it?! Also, there was a cottage there and a huge lawn and a huge, enclosed playground! The only problem was that it was rainy when we got there so we had to keep the actual princess adventure inside and it was meant to be outside, but the girls didn't mind (we took most of these photos after it was over)!

They had a station there that was only $2 to get your hair done like a princess, but we go there too late, so I did her hair myself in 10 mintues, I think I did rather well...

This was when we first got there- before I did her hair...

All in all, the girls had a pretty fun time- they might have been a bit young to get what was going on with the adventure and Abby didn't want to leave my side, but I am definitely going to do this again next year- it was so beautiful!!!

LOVE STORY (Taylor Swift) meets VIVA LA VIDA (Coldplay) - Piano Cello - by Jon Schmidt

2009-06-09T08:52:00.001-06:00

This is just plain beautiful!!!

Lucas's Kindergarten Graduation

2009-05-23T18:33:00.007-06:00

So, yesterday Lucas graduated from Kindergarten! I can't believe how fast the year went! He did great and is already very excited for First grade!!!

Lucas got a little bored while one of the teachers was talking...

Here is Lucas with Lillian- his "girlfriend"- another mom helper in the class told me that her son said that Lucas and Lillian were married! Cute!

Here is Lucas with his teacher, Mrs. Mitchell- she has been AWESOME!!!

Abby's First Dance Recital

2009-05-23T18:19:00.003-06:00

She was so cute and did a fantastic job! We are so proud of you, Abby!!!

Christi's Birthday

2009-05-23T18:11:00.004-06:00

So for my birthday we went to a new place in Lehi called "Liberty Land" it was really fun- we played miniature golf and did the bumper boats- Abby didn't last too long on the bumper boats- as soon as she got sprayed she was screaming to get out and then after a bit, my boat died, which left me a sitting duck for Shawn to squirt me repatedly in the face and head- I was soaked and it was a blast!

A podcast about Rocket Road Trip!!

2009-05-17T11:02:00.002-06:00

Shawn and Isaac (the guy who is doing the web comic with Shawn) recently were asked if they could have their comic strip talked about on a pod cast. It is a pod cast that talks about several web comics- if you want to hear about theirs, go about 2/3 of the way through it...good stuff!!!
http://www.seattle-geekly.com/podcast/episode_14.mp3

Look, Ma- No Training Wheels!!!

2009-05-09T17:04:00.003-06:00

So, today Abby said that she wanted to ride her bike with only two wheels; so we gave it a try and she got it right away! She did so great- she rode up and down the street several times; I got really tired trying to stay with her in case she fell over. By the end, the only thing she needed help with was getting started. Lucas, as you might know, still had training wheels on his bike, but seeing his little sister do it, gave him the motivation he finally needed. He took off just fine after a couple of rough starts and now he can start on his own and ride the bike like he has been doing it for years! He can start by himself and everything. So, there is our big milestone moment. The only downside is that in addition to chasing bikes around for a couple of hours; we weeked our whole garden and fertilized it and planted vegetables! Shawn also mowed the lawn and I worked at Curves this morning and worked out...needless to say, I am wiped!!! But proud of the kids!!!

Abby's field trip to the Krishna Temple

2009-05-04T20:17:00.005-06:00

Abby singing me a song

2009-05-04T19:52:00.002-06:00

Crazy Mommy...

2009-04-29T04:07:00.003-06:00

Do you ever have a day where you feel like you can't do anything right? I have been having one of those years... A year ago my only responsibilities seemed to be getting Lucas to pre-school a couple of times a week and getting myself to work once a week. Well, since then I have added getting my son off to kindergarten everyday and picking him up on time every day (yeah, I know- sounds simple right...but I have missed picking him up a couple of times because I was lost in work and my computer reminder didn't go off and the school had to call me). Which leads to another one, working from home, which has been wonderful; but I will get so lost in what I am doing that I have forgotten to do several things with the kids that needed to be done- like picking up Lucas from school- or taking Abby to dance. Yet another thing I added- Abby's dance, which I swear she has only been to half of the time because I keep forgetting to get her there- my latest mistake has been that yesterday they were supposed to get their class pictures taken together- her class is usually on Wednesdays, and when I first read over her paper I was focused on the fact that I had to purchase her another outfit so that she would coordinate for the picture and assumed that photos were happening during class, since the top of the sheet said "Tuesday and Wednesday April 28 ad 29th. Well, when we got to the store at 4:00 yesterday to get her the outfit for the photos, I read the paper again and saw that her photo was scheduled for 3:30 yesterday. I was so upset at myself that I started crying- thankfully I have a sweet little girl that forgave me when I apologized for my mistake, but I bet she will ask me in a couple of weeks when all of the other girls have their cute pictures where her's is and why she doesn't have one...
Also, I have added Lucas doing karate- I haven't missed this yet becuase I have to meet Shawn in Orem to have him take Lucas the rest of the way to Karate in Alpine- but that is because Shawn skypes me a reminder to go- I have been late, though.
Added to all of this, I was asked to be Lucas's Room Mom, which when they asked me at the beginning of the year if I could do it, I said yes because my life wasn't as complicated; since then I have added two more part time jobs- the work from home one and working at Curves. I just feel like I started juggling a couple of balls- and was making that work, when all of the sudden I was tossed a knife and a torch and three other balls to work in it as well. But I am not catching them well at all. I still feel so bad about Abby's pictures...and she was supposed to turn in a check last week for her costume, but I was doing training for work in Salt Lake City and I forgot to give Shawn the check to take to her class- so, most likely, she won't get the costume she needs for her recital. I am the worst Dance Mom ever! I wonder often how my mother did it with 5 kids to juggle; I can't handle my two.
Oh yeah, I forgot to add that I do a joy school for Abby's pre-school; something that I haven't totally screwed up on yet, but it is another stress in my life and I am not that good at it...
I am just venting here- I am sure most of you who actually come to my blog won't even read this, but I am just feeling so bad, particularly about all of my mistakes with Abby's Dance, that I can't sleep and I needed a place to vent. Thanks for listening if you read the whole thing, if not, don't worry, I am not offended.
Christi

Girls will be Girls...

2009-04-24T15:49:00.002-06:00

So, today, Abby was over playing at a neighbor's house- there is a little girl there who is 5. Well, I went to check up on Abby, since she had been there for a while and I didn't want the other mom to feel like I was having her babysit (although, I was able to get some work done while she was gone!); so I went to check up on her and the other mom and I visted for a bit- no biggie, right? Well, as I was walking home, Heidi (the mother of the girl, Jessica) called for me to come back. Apparently, she went to check on the girls after I left- they were playing in their non-fenced in- facing a busy street backyard in the sand box. Well, apparently the girls saw on Curious George how if you add water to dirt, it makes mud- so they did this, but thinking that thier mommies would be angry about muddy pants, they decided to take off their pants AND underwear (don't forget- this is facing a busy street...).
So, we each got our respective girl dressed and as I was walking Abby home and telling her how she isn't allowed to take off her pants and underwear at people's houses, I decided to go one further and ask her if they pee'd in the sand box- "No, Mommy, I went pee in the mud...." Oh, Joy- yes, this is the mud that not only was all over their hands and feet, but also, weirdly, around her mouth....
So, I took her home and gave her a thorough bath and talking to- hopefully she won't do this again...

We're buying a HOUSE!!!

2009-04-18T21:10:00.008-06:00

K, so this is the house- it is in a neighborhood in Traverse Mountain at the north end of Lehi (the same exit as Thanksgiving Point)- the downside for me is that it is a cookie cutter neighborhood- they all look the same; but we loved the inside so much, we were willing to overlook this- the other downside- we will be living on a hill...)
This is what it looks like when you walk through the front door...
The stairs are so beautiful; we practically bought the house just for them!
The kitchen is HUGE and it has granite countertops- BONUS!!
This is the pantry- and Lucas is holding open the door to the basement...
This is the half bath that is on the main floor...
This is a shot from the corner of the master bedroom (on the main floor)- Lucas is in the bathroom and there is a sliding door to the back yard here...
Nice, huge master bath- again granite countertops!!!
This is the jetted tub and shower- sorry it is fuzzy, I didn't realize that it was when I took this picture, but you get the idea!
Nice, big walk-in closet!
This is the entry to the backyard from the master bedroom- yes, I know it is a small backyard...
We need to do some work back here...eventually!
This is the view of the living room from the upstairs balcony- Shawn just keeps envisioning Christmas morning...
Laundry room upstairs..
Kids bathroom upstairs- nice and big- the toilet is in it's own room and there is a large linnen closet here as well!
Lucas's room- one of the one's that faces the street...
Abby's room- she wanted a picture with her window- her's is the other room that faces the street...
The third bedroom upstairs: kids play room/future baby's room/ guest room
What the upstairs closets look like
The stairs to the basement
From the bottom of the stairs
Huge future family room
Another view of the future family room- the photo didn't turn out great, so I didn't post it, but behind where I was stading to take this picture is a huge storage room...
Future 1 or 2 bedrooms
future hallway and bathroom.

Well, as you can see, there is a lot of work for us to do, over time, with this house...but we are super excited about it...I am still shocked that we can even afford it! We signed contract papers today and we will close on June 1st- then we will be official home owners! YAY!

No, I'm not dead- YET!

2009-04-09T12:21:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to write something up on here- it is strange, I feel like I don't have anything much to write, but at the same time we are going through some major life changes! Last week we went and met with a financial guy who told us about what we could expect to afford for a home. Then someone tells us about this new thing that the State is offering to people ($6000) for first time home buyers who buy a NEW home (only for the first 1600 people); so we decided to start looking at new homes...well, then we started looking at used homes too and basically our lives have been crazy going around looking at houses and I haven't slept well in over a week! To make a really long story short- we have found some that we love, but they might be out of our price range, so we are going to put together an offer and see what happens. Basically, they aren't new (there goes the $6000), but they are only slightly used (bank foreclosures) and are AWESOME- frankly, I will be shocked if one of our offers are accepted because these seem too good to be true (they probably are). The homes are up in northern Lehi- so the commute time for Shawn will be about the same. If we don't get them, though, we intend to keep looking. We decided that the brand new home thing was fun, but when you consider the cost of putting in a yard and fence, a slightly used one is a better deal and there are a lot of desperate people out there selling their homes and bank repos, etc....so there is my update for you! Hope you are all doing well! I will let you know when we have things finalized- and put up a ton of photos (I don't dare even take a picture now because if we don't get it, whenever we see the photos we will be depressed!)

Lucas stories...

2009-04-02T12:01:00.002-06:00

Last week I finally got my peas planted- should have done it a week or two prior, but that is life- anyhow- Lucas asked me what I had just done. So, I told him and he said, "Good job, Mom, I'm proud of you!"

Just a minute ago, Lucas was making his own sandwich and I let the dog out saying, "here you go, Mutt." Lucas repeated me and informed me that he would be repeating everything I said, "except the bad words, I won't say those..."
This bothered me a bit- I don't swear even when the kids aren't around, so I said, "What bad words do I say?"
"You go to your room and go to time out!"

Lucas and Abby creating a world together

2009-03-26T09:09:00.003-06:00

I was dead tired this morning and had a hard time getting out of bed...when I did finally get up this was what I saw the kids doing! It was so adorable, I had to take a video for the blog- sorry that I move around a bit- the light made them look really orange and, so I opened a window to get better light. It amazes me how well they play together- they really are best friends- sure, they do fight sometimes, but how cute are they at the end of the video when Lucas shows Abby how to blow a kiss?!! It is so wonderful!!!! I love it!!!!

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

2009-03-20T17:33:00.003-06:00

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.”

Shawn found this on Amazon- I was shocked and abhorred at first (and I thought it was a joke)! This is the description of the book from Amazon: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies features the original text of Jane Austen's beloved novel with all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie action. As our story opens a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace but she's soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy. What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield as Elizabeth wages war against hordes of flesh-eating undead. Complete with 20 illustrations in the style of C. E. Brock (the original illustrator of Pride and Prejudice) this insanely funny expanded edition will introduce Jane Austen's classic novel to new legions of fans.

I have to admit- I am tempted to read it!!! It is like a "B" movie- book!
Completely crazy- or completely awesome? You be the judge!

green jelly:three little pigs (heavy metal)

2009-03-19T15:56:00.001-06:00

K, so this is a song that Shawn's Dad got from a nurse he works with- we LOVE it- the kids especially ask me to play it over and over in the car- they love to sing along as the wolf and the pigs! The animation on this video stinks, but I wanted you all to hear the song!!!

Jim Gaffigan - Bacon - KING BABY Premieres March 29th @ 9pm on Comedy Central!

2009-03-13T18:15:00.001-06:00

I thought this was hilarious! And so true!

2009-03-13T08:40:00.001-06:00

Lucas had his Grandparent's Day on March 13- Cory and Sherri moved their schedule around so that they could be there for it, which was a lot of fun!

Here they are doing "centers" which is when the kids split up and do different activities- this one was making patterns with little bugs- Abby loved this one so much that she refused to leave it...

This one they did their handprints...cute, huh?

Here they are- what a good looking group! You can see that Abby isn't happy- I had to pull her away from the plastic bugs to take this photo!

Lucas and Sherri made "sight word" searchers- you use them to spot the sight words...

Here is Abby, still playing with the plastic bugs...

I added some videos- the thing is, these video's happened first, but when I am downloading photos, I have to start with what happened last, apparently it is the opposite with videos' those one's come up wherever in the post you are...it would be nice if it was consistent...At any rate- I hope you enjoy lucas singing his songs- he is the one who is usually NOT singing!!! :)

Our Little Adventure...

2009-03-11T09:16:00.002-06:00

So, this morning was like any other morning- although I actually was more on top of things than usual. I gave the kids their baths and was just finished getting them dressed when I heard a high pitched beeping coming from the basement. I went down and saw that our carbon monoxide/explosive gas detector was beeping and giving me a read out.
I did not panic- in fact I felt annoyed; I had this same thing happen to me in Pleasant Grove, twice, and both times it turned out to be nothing. So, I went up and opened some windows- just in case; and looked up the non-emergency number for the fire department. They didn't answer, so I tried it again (I didn't want to call 911), but again it didn't work, so I called 911. They told us to evacuate the house and wait outside for the fire department to come. So, I got the kids in their coats and outside (I got Lucas a bowl of cereal to eat outside since I didn't know how long we would have to wait for them to come and he had to leave for school in 25 minutes from then). I wasn't sure how long we would have to wait, but it was only about 5-10 minutes before the big fire truck came.
The kids were excited to see this huge firetruck pull up in front of our house and while the firemen checked out our house and did their readings, the kids got to see the hose truck and I explained to them how some of it works. Then an ambulance came as well and we got to sit inside of it and stay warm while I showed the kids the exciting features of the ambulance. Then ANOTHER fire truck came- this time a big ladder truck. It was very exciting to see the big trucks, but I felt kind of bad for all of them to come out just for our little gas alarm.
They finished their testing and it turns out that the highest concentration they found was in the garage and it was only 40 ppm (not enough to hurt you unless you sat there for hours breathing in that air and getting in no fresh air), so it was probably just from when Shawn started his car before he left for work. Everything else was fine- which was what I figured. I felt bad, though, that 12 men had to come out just to waste their time. But they assured me that it was fine and they were all very nice and said don't hesitate to call if it happens again- that is what we pay taxes for, right? (Which reminds me, I do still need to send in my state taxes...)
At any rate, crisis averted and we are all safe and sound. I am grateful to have these kind of alarms, but so far I have had 3 false alarms now in 3 years....I am not going to let my guard down and unplug them completely, but it doesn't exactly make me run when I hear it going off....

Cute!

2009-03-10T20:10:00.003-06:00

Okay, so we were having Family Home Evening tonight (since we can't do it on Monday nights because Shawn and Lucas have karate) and Shawn was using one of our new felt story pieces to tell the kids the story of the 2000 Stripling Warriors. When he was done, he asked Abby what was the name of the group of young men?
"The Two Thousand Stripping Warriors!"

Lucas teaching his class how to make paper airplanes!

2009-03-09T13:48:00.002-06:00

So, they are doing this cute thing in Lucas's kindergarten where they do a show and teach every friday- they can do it as often as they want- so far Lucas has done it both weeks- here are the photos from the first week. He taught them all how to make a dart airplane (thanks again to Shelley and Derek for his awesome paper airplane book that is the gift that keeps on giving!)

Lucas's Big Day!!

2009-03-09T13:00:00.005-06:00

So, Lucas was awarded the Student of the Month in kindergarten this month! I am so proud of him- he is such a good boy!

Abby and I were in his class all day on Friday- he was so good with her!

Here he is posing- he taught his class karate- star block on friday!

Lucas talking about his girlfriend...

2009-03-08T18:38:00.001-06:00

He is the MAN- I am so proud!

Abby saying the Pledge of Allegiance

2009-03-05T12:46:00.002-07:00

Isn't she adorable!!!

Facebook

2009-03-04T20:05:00.003-07:00

K, so I have been a little bit behind in the trends, I know that- I don't have tons of spare time to waste online, like I used to. Ever since I started working from home, I feel like whenever I am at a computer I am working, so generally, I don't spend a lot of time in front of mine when I am not working. However, recently I have started catching up on my Facebook. I hadn't been on in months, but I found some friends whom I hadn't spoken to in YEARS and it was a nice way to reconnect with them. So, here I am- behind in my blogging and busy as always, but I just wanted you to know, if you have been waiting for me to replay to a friend request, I finally have. Also, I think I might enjoy popping in to Facebook once a day or so, as a means of keeping up with my friends. I will admit, at first I was trepidacious about joining in and bothering with it...but I am beginning to see the benefits of it. So, if you want to write on my wall- just look me up and add me as a friend (I will try my best to not make you wait for 6 months- as I have some of my other friends!!!)

The recipe thing

2009-02-26T09:19:00.003-07:00

I just wanted to let you know that I think I am going to stop posting the new recipes that I try on this blog...I wanted this one to be about my family, not cooking. So, I think I am going to start a cooking blog where I can put up not only new recipes that I find and Love, but tried and true ones that I got back to all of the time. I will let you know when I actually get it up and running!

When Shelley came to town

2009-02-26T07:33:00.008-07:00

Okay, so I am way overdue for this post, but I have been really busy with work ever since Shelley left because I had a lot of time to make up for....

Shelley came to visit us the first half of February since Derek was doing a dental internship thingy in Grand Junction for a month. I always love to see my sister and we had a total blast while she was around!

We went to the circus...

The kids got cotton candy...

Here is baby Stewart- he is so FAT! I LOVE it!!!

Melissa and Aunt Deb came one night to hang with us...

Okay, this is a horrible picture of me, but Melissa and Shelley look great! I am not wearing any makeup and this sweater makes me look pregnant!

Shawn has such a way with babies!

We were playing "London Bridges"-the kids LOVED it!

Here is Edison and Abby playing in the snow- he looks like he is having a lot of fun, huh?

Abby LOVED the baby!!!

Lucas just took a picture with him...I think babies tend to kind of flabbergast him....

All in all, we had a fantastic time! I was sad to see her go, but I knew that she was missing her husband and I don't blame her for that! I do miss her- hopefully she will come and visit again in April!

Chicken with Peanut Curry Sauce

2009-02-13T19:22:00.000-07:00

Ingredients

* 2 tablespoons canola oil
* 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast, cut in 1-inch pieces
* Salt and pepper
* 8 ounces frozen cut green beans, thawed (recommended: C&W)
* 8 ounces frozen pepper strips, thawed (recommended: C&W)

For sauce:

* 1 1/2 cups light coconut milk
* 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth,
* 1 tablespoon red curry paste
* 1/3 cup chunky peanut butter
* 2 tablespoons brown sugar
* 2 tablespoons lime juice, plus wedges for garnishing
* Coconut Rice, recipe follows
* Cilantro sprigs for garnishing

Directions

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add cut up chicken, season and saute until cooked through stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add green beans and pepper strips and continue cooking for 3 minutes.

While chicken cooks, start the peanut curry sauce. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together all ingredients for the sauce. Pour sauce into a frying pan over the chicken and vegetables, stir to combine. Turn heat up to high and bring to boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer until sauce thickens slightly, about 6 to 8 minutes. Serve over Coconut Rice or plain steamed rice.

Coconut Rice:

3/4 cup light coconut milk (recommended: A Taste of Thai)

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

1/2 lime, juiced

2 cups instant rice

1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut, toasted

In a medium saucepan, combine coconut milk, chicken broth, lime juice, and instant rice. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and cover for 7 to 9 minutes. Fluff rice with fork and stir in toasted coconut. Serve.

Note: To toast coconut, place in dry frying pan over medium-low heat stirring occasionally until golden brown.

The result:
Oh, my gosh!!! This was so good that I broke my weight-loss rule and took seconds! The thing is, I still want even more! I loved this so much Shawn and Lucas are still eating it for dinner and I had to blog about it! The only thing I *might* do differently would be to make it more like 1/2 c to 3/4 c peanut butter, to make it peanutbutterier! This was so good- by the end, it was almost like eating candy! Good times!!!

HOW TO FIGHT

2009-02-12T12:46:00.001-07:00

HOW TO WORK OUT FROM HOME

2009-02-12T12:45:00.001-07:00

I thought this was hilarious!!!

Lucas's Crush part 2

2009-02-09T12:34:00.002-07:00

Okay, so today Lucas and I were in the car again and I wanted to know more what his crush on Lilian was like, so I asked him, "Lucas what is it that you do for Lilian when you are helping her?"
"Um, I just give her kisses."
I have to admit, this rather shocked me (and made me laugh), "Does she like it when you kiss her?"
"Usually."
"Does she want you to kiss her?"
"Yeah, sometimes...sometimes she asks me to kiss her and I always give her a kiss when she asks me, but sometimes she doesn't ask and I give her a kiss anyways."
This REALLY shocked me, I was expecting it to be something along the lines of he likes her and she thinks he is a stupid boy or something. So, I went on:
"Where do you give her a kiss?" I HAD to know....
"On the cheek." Well, that was a relief. Then I asked,
"Does she let any other boys kiss her?"
"Nope, just me. She especially doesn't let Landon kiss her, Landon isn't a good boy. But she is always good, she is so nice!"

Think what you will, I know I should maybe discourage this kind of behavior so young, but at the same time, they are in kindergarten and I am proud of the fact that my son is the one that this girl likes! I think it is sweet- maybe in a few years we will have a discussion about dating and kissing girls and age...but I am sure he will soon see them as dirty and having cooties, so I am not worried. I think it is ADORABLE!!!

Last Week's and This week's new recipies...

2009-02-09T09:06:00.000-07:00

For last week:
We found this recipe on the back of a Junior Mints Minis box that Shawn got for christmas (of all places):
Junior Mints Mini's No Bake cheese cake:
1 oreo pie crust
1 pkg cream cheese
1/3 c sugar
1/2 pkg whipped topping (4 0z)
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 pkg Junior Mints Mini's (divided)

On High speed whip cheam cheese, sugar and vanilla until creamy. Blend in whipped topping until fully incorporated. Fold in 3 oz of Junior Mints Mini's. Spread mixture over pie crust. cover and chill if refrigerator 4 hours. sprinkle top with rest of Jr Mint's mini's just before serving.

The result: actually this is halved from what it called for. It called to make your own crust, but I just don't have time for that, and it is actually cheaper to buy the crust than it is to make it when you consider what you pay for the ingredients! So, my sister made this for me (shelley and her kids have been visiting over the past week, it has been TONS of fun!) while I was working on other things- I think it turned out pretty darn good, I love mint, chocolate and cheese cake, which this satisfied all of these cravings!!!

This weeks recipie: Adventures in TURKEY!
Yes, yestereday I made my first turkey (finally!!!) I thought it turned out pretty good, although the texture wasn't what I had hoped for, just not as juicy and tender as I like, but I didn't have a meat thermometer, so the only way I had to make sure it was done was to kinda overcook it, so there you go! It wasn't hard, actually, although I followed the direcitons from the box for the stuffing and I didn't love it, I think I need to get Grandma Fullmer's recipie, I love her stuffing. Anyhow, I did What Sherri does that makes the juciest turkey ever, that is to cook it in a Turkey sized oven bag and cook it breast- down. This allows the juices fromt he dark meat of the back to seep down into the breast and make that meat nice and juicy. Sherri makes the best turkey I have had, so this worked pretty well, but as I said, I think I kind of over cooked it, but better that than we all get sick! At any rate, I am glad that I finally did make my own turkey- I have always wanted to, but we always end up eating turkey somewhere else, so finally this was my turn! I am proud of myself!

PS- an extra recipe:
Last week we also made these cookies that I thought were pretty good:
Double Chocolate Mint Cookies:

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups butter, softened
4 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Cream together, butter, sugar and eggs. Mix in remaining ingredients. Blend well.
Drop by teaspoonful onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 8-9 minutes. Cookies will be soft. Cool about 1 minute on cookie sheet then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe Variation: For a different flavor, omit peppermint extract and use a total of 2 teaspoons of vanilla. Also substitute peanut butter flavored chips for the chocolate

What we did: We saw some reviews of these cookies that said they lessened the butter, and it turned out better, so we halved the recipe and did 1 Cup of butter instead of 1 and 1/4. It did turn out well. Also, instead of just choc chips, we did mostly Andes Mint thingys and just a few choc chips for more chocolate-yness! Also, I only did a small dash of peppermint extract instead of the full amount because of the mint chip thingys. (I hope that makes sense.) At any rate- they turned out really well!

Lucas's First Crush!!!

2009-02-06T12:31:00.003-07:00

So, today when I was taking Lucas home from school he was talking about his teacher. Then he said, "Mom, do you know who I help out in school?" I thought he was going to say something about helping his teacher. No, he said, "Lillian, because she is so beautiful"!!!! He went on to say, "But I don't ever help Landon, he says fart all of the time and that isn't nice."

New Recipe

2009-01-27T08:37:00.003-07:00

Chicken Chimi in the Oven

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups salsa
3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 pound cooked, shredded chicken breast meat
1 cup refried beans
6 (10 inch) flour tortillas

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Lightly grease a medium baking dish.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic in oil until tender. Stir in salsa and water. Season with chili powder, cumin, and cinnamon. Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor, and blend until smooth. Return mixture to the saucepan, stir in the chicken, and cook until heated through.
Spoon an equal amount of refried beans down center of each tortilla, and top with equal amounts of the chicken mixture. Fold tortillas over the filling, and secure with toothpicks. Arrange seam-side down in the prepared baking dish, and brush with the remaining olive oil.
Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven, turning every 5 minutes, until golden brown and crisp.

Our result: we liked this, I have to admit, I was a little leary of the cinnamon, but it made for an interesting new flavor that was a fun variation on what normal chicken Chimichunga's taste like. All, in all, good stuff!

Videos of playing games with the kids

2009-01-23T08:29:00.005-07:00

We were playing games with Shawn's family on Sunday night, the kids wanted to be with us, but were too young for our game, so they played their own game while we played ours- I wish I had videotaped earlier, they were being adorable...but this was still cute....

Last night Lucas and I played WAR- he loves that game! The kids seem to always be acting cuter before I turn on the camera, but it was still cute- this is a two parter because I had to stop to shuffle his cards- might be boring to some of you, but I think my parents will enjoy it!

Through the eyes of a 4 year old

2009-01-23T08:23:00.004-07:00

So, yesterday I decided to stop being so uptight about my digital camera and let Abby play with it for five minutes (supervised, of course) and this was the result- there were more photos, but I deleted the really fuzzy ones. I thought it was interesting to see what was photo worthy to a four year old, this was the result....

She made this in school that day- they learned about penguins...

Their letter this week was "O"- this was her "O" show and tell... sadly this is one of her favorite toys- yeah, a small rubber bath toy....she is strange....

This is the paddle to a paddle ball set...

New Week, new Recipe

2009-01-18T06:30:00.002-07:00

P. F. Chang's Chicken Lettuce Wraps

SERVES 2 -3

Ingredients

3 tablespoons oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup water chestnut
2/3 cup mushroom
3 tablespoons chopped onions
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4-5 leaves iceberg lettuce

Special Sauce

1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon hot mustard
2 teaspoons water
1-2 teaspoon garlic and red chile paste

Stir Fry Sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

Directions

Make the special sauce by dissolving the sugar in water in a small bowl.
Add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ketchup, lemon juice and sesame oil.
Mix well and refrigerate this sauce until you're ready to serve.
Combine the hot water with the hot mustard and set this aside as well.
Eventually add your desired measurement of mustard and garlic chili sauce to the special sauce mixture to pour over the wraps.
Bring oil to high heat in a wok or large frying pan.
Saute chicken breasts for 4 to 5 minutes per side or done.
Remove chicken from the pan and cool.
Keep oil in the pan, keep hot.
As chicken cools mince water chestnuts and mushrooms to about the size of small peas.
Prepare the stir fry sauce by mixing the soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice vinegar together in a small bowl.
When chicken is cool, mince it as the mushrooms and water chestnuts are.
With the pan still on high heat, add another Tbsp of vegetable oil.
Add chicken, garlic, onions, water chestnuts and mushrooms to the pan.
Add the stir fry sauce to the pan and saute the mixture for a couple minutes then serve it in the lettuce"cups".
Top with"Special Sauce".

The result: We really liked this- although we have done Chicken lettuce wraps a slightly different way before and when we did those we used boston, or Butter lettuce, and I liked the way that rolled better- and the other wraps we had used some peanut sauce (you can buy it at the store in the asian food section) which we LOVED on this as well- all in all, I think we will do this again!

New Week, new Recipe

2009-01-12T08:26:00.002-07:00

Okay, so we had a coupon for Pork Chops from Costco, so on Saturday we went there and got some. We honestly have never done our own pork chops before, I remember having them on very rare occasions as a kid, usually just cooked in the oven and eaten with applesauce, if my memory serves. At any rate, we wanted to do it right, so we tried two ways of doing it to see how they worked out. One was just with a "Spade Ranch" pork seasoning rub that we rubbed on two of them and cooked them in the oven. The other was a very well reviewed recipe we found online...

"Yummy" Pork Chops

INGREDIENTS

2 cups Italian-style salad dressing
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 boneless pork chops

DIRECTIONS

In a bowl, mix the Italian-style salad dressing, soy sauce, and pepper.
Place the pork chops in a skillet over medium heat, and cover with the dressing mixture. Cover skillet, and cook pork chops 25 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove cover, reduce heat to low, and continue cooking to desired doneness.

The result: This was easy to make and we had seen a review where someone added fresh garlic to it, so we added a couple of cloves of that as well. In all honesty, we liked it fine, but it didn't wow us, we actually preferred the Spade Ranch rub...

One of our New Years resolutions...

2009-01-10T08:12:00.000-07:00

So, Shawn and I decided that for a New Years Resolution, we would try a new recipe every week. We get tired of the same things all of the time, and we don't have the kind of time to try something new every day, so once a week it is, although it may be that we do more than one a week.
For example, last week we did three new recipes (although two barely count as they were for different flavors of popcorn). I also decided to post up the ones that we liked so that if you are at all interested, you can have them, too! Also, I may on occasion post recipes of my own favorites, mostly for myself so that I have a digital version of them...but that it is only if I have the time and feel like it! So, here you go!
Sopa Tuscana (Tuscan Soup)

INGREDIENTS

1 pound bulk mild Italian sausage
1 1/4 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 large onion, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
5 (13.75 ounce) cans chicken broth
6 potato, thinly sliced
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 bunch fresh spinach, tough stems removed

DIRECTIONS

Cook the Italian sausage and red pepper flakes in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until crumbly, browned, and no longer pink, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Cook the bacon in the same Dutch oven over medium heat until crisp, about 10 minutes. Drain, leaving a few tablespoons of drippings with the bacon in the bottom of the Dutch oven. Stir in the onions and garlic; cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
Pour the chicken broth into the Dutch oven with the bacon and onion mixture; bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes, and boil until fork tender, about 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the heavy cream and the cooked sausage; heat through. Mix the spinach into the soup just before serving.

The result: We really liked this soup, although we didn't even bother trying to give some to the kids- if there aren't noodles in a soup, they inherently don't like it. Plus I got a *little* bit heavy handed with the red pepper flakes, so it was a bit spicy. Also, we did the spinach thing, but it didn't really add to the soup, nor have a strong flavor, so when I had leftovers, I didn't bother with it and they came out wonderfully. Will we ever have this again- you bet!!!

Key Lime Popcorn
Ingredients:
1 T fresh lime juice
2 T freshly grated lime zest
1 T fren colored sugar
1/4 t salt
1/3 c coursely chopped grahm crackers

1/4 c popcorn, 1/4 c oil, 1/4 c sugar

Mix the first 5 ingredients and set aside. Put oil, popcorn, and sugar in Whirley Pop stovetop popper and cook- spinning the whole time. When it is done popping, pour the lime mixture over it and mix well.
The restult: This was okay. It was very limey, but also kind of salty sweet, but I don't think I will make it again...

Marshmallow Peppermint Popcorn:
1/2 c finely crushed peppermint candy canes
1 c mini marshmallows
1/4 t salt
1/4 c popcorn, 1/4 c oil, 1/4 c sugar

Mix the first 3 ingredients and set aside. Make the popcorn and pour the marshallow and candy cane mixture over the popcorn and stir well- the marshmallows will melt into the popcorn and be yummy!
The result- we really liked this...but probably save it for a Christmas treat!

Hair Cut

2009-01-04T21:00:00.006-07:00

So, on New Year's Eve I decided that I was sick and tired of my hair- you might be surprised- I have always been quite proud of my hair - seeing it as "my one beauty"- but I have had it long for three years now and I was ready for a change. Also, it was rather damaged from dying it, so I wanted to cut off the dead and damaged parts. So, I cut off a good foot off of the top and layered it down to just past my shoulders- as you can see in the photo. Also, I darkened the light blonde a bit and touched up my roots- I am starting to get some grey hairs- it is looking like I will be dying it from now on. Anyhow, I actually really like it and I think it is a big difference- but apparently I am wrong because I spent several hours with my in-laws the following day, whom I spend TONS of time with, and no one noticed a thing- so maybe I am wrong. What do you think?

I had to get a photo with Abby- she is so pretty!

And then, of course, we had to get a photo of Shawn and Lucas...aren't they adorable?

Ice Skating

2008-12-30T21:31:00.004-07:00

We went ice skating for the first time with Sherri, Emma, Drew, and Emma's boyfriend. We had an absolute blast- Lucas was really shaky at first, but by the end he could hold his balance- he was too afraid to ever move his feet on his own, but he would hold them still while he was pulled and he never got hurt from the many times that he fell down!

Abby did rather well- she never went out on her own, and mostly liked to be held by both hands- preferrably by Daddy (Mommy wasn't as steady on her feet), but she was at least willing to move her feet around, even if she never got the hang on balancing!

Here we are together- I am proud to say that I only fell once, at the very end, and I did NOT dislocate my knee- as happened last time I went skating over 9 years ago!

Abby got a gumball- I just couldn't resist adding this picture of it in her cheek- awesome!

Shawn's Christmas cartoon- Merry Christmas everyone!!!

2008-12-25T10:58:00.000-07:00

Frisco Christmas Lights - Wizards in Winter

2008-12-21T18:40:00.001-07:00

Now THAT's what I call a Christmas Lights display!!!!

I thought this was hilarious!!!

2008-12-19T09:22:00.000-07:00

http://bewareofthedoghouse.com/VideoPage.aspx

Abby sick

2008-12-14T07:58:00.002-07:00

I thought this was sweet- Abby was sick as a dog yesterday and at one point when she was sleeping on the couch Angus went and layed down with her- it is nice to think that maybe he thought he was taking care of her and could sense she was sick- most likely he wanted the warm spot!

Snow-YAY!

2008-12-14T07:48:00.004-07:00

It snowed earlier this week- although it wasn't that much- but Lucas still tried to make a snowman! The kids played extremely well together. We got a bunch more snow yesterday and Lucas and Shawn played outside for about an hour yesterday- Abby has the flu, though, so she couldn't- poor girl! I didn't get any pictures of yesterday, though, so I guess this will have to do!

Abby-ism's

2008-12-13T10:20:00.003-07:00

"Oh much fun it is to ride..." isn't she the cutest?!

Lately we have been working with the kids on remembering Christ during the sacrament- teaching them to think of him and to sit reverently and even to say a prayer. This past Sunday as soon as the sacrament began Abby crossed her arms really tightly and squeezed her eyes shut as tight as they would go. She sat like that for almost all of the bread portion of the sacrament and even whispered to Lucas to "be quiet it was time to think about Jesus." But by the time the water was coming around she wanted to play toys. She came up to Shawn and asked for a toy and he said it was still time to think about Jesus and she said "I already did- I'm all done thinking about Jesus!!!" She said it loud enough that most of the people sitting around us heard- it was funny!

Whenever Abby get's hurt she milks it like you would not believe- she will have barely scraped her knee- the skin isn't even cut and she will walk around with a limp for DAYS!

Another cute story- we have a couple of nutcracker ornaments on our tree. Well, one day she took a fancy to one of them and was holding it when I asked her to hang the nutcracker back on the tree she said, very insistently "It's not a nutcracker- it's a ten-thousand shoulder!!!" I think she got it from the story of the "Steadfast Tin Soldier" on Fantasia 2000. She still calls it that, too, even though I tried to tell her she was wrong- that is another thing- she is NEVER wrong- everyone else is! I am scared for her teenage years!!!

Do us a Favor, please?

2008-12-06T11:38:00.001-07:00

Okay, I need everyone who reads this to please go to www.rocketroadtrip.com right now! That is Shawn's web comic and when you get there you will see a little thing above the actual comic that says "Vote"- click this link and vote for his comic!!! We want it to get a good standing so that we can start selling ad space on it and maybe get it to make us some $!!! Thanks!!!

New Computer!!!

2008-12-06T11:12:00.002-07:00

Yay!!! I am so excited! Thanks to help from my cousin Melissa who works at the Apple store we were able to get a new computer- and not just any computer- an I-mac!!! I am so excited!!! It is so very pretty and we are having fun playing with it and figuring it out- it is different from our old PC and I am not as familiar with how to work around with it, but our old laptop was dying and we needed a new one, so we decided to get one that wouldn't constantly crash on us!!! I know, you can all be jealous now...it's so pretty! Anyhow- I just wanted to say Hi to everyone and let you know that we are still alive! Hope you are all having fun times with the Christmas holidays- man this year has gone by fast!!! Love you all!

November Update

2008-11-26T13:53:00.001-07:00

Okay- well, the past few weeks have been crazy busy for me! Between working four jobs, taking care of the kids, entertaining friends, and just living life I haven't had much time for the blog. I also haven't really taken any pictures over the past few weeks, so nothing much there to report. Basically I wanted to say Hi to everyone and let you know that I haven't fallen off of the face of the earth. Hope you all have a great Turkey Day! We are still trying to find our balance in our lives, but things are going well and, for once, we still have $ in the checking account when one of Shawn's paychecks comes in again! So, that is all good! Hope you are all doing well! I will try to be better about posting and finding the time in which to do it!

Abby's Birthday Party

2008-11-08T17:05:00.005-07:00

So, today we had Abby's birthday party. We had a bead bracelet making station, a crown making station, and of course, the ever popular pinata- if only we had more than one kid come!This is the money show of when Lucas broke the pinata- sorry that you can see his butt- we try, really we do, but his pants just don't stay up!!!

Lucas, Abby, and Jessica (our one guest) going through the spoils- there were plenty to be had for only the three of them.

Isn't she pretty?

Here is the cake that Shawn and I spent the morning (well, after I got home from work) decorating- I think it came out quite nicely. We wanted to try our hand at making a traditional cake and then covering it instead of doing a unique shape- I'm pretty proud of it for our amateur attempts.

Abby is so much Shawn's daughter- she doesn't know how to make a normal face for a photo!

She had just blown out the candle- just missed it.

Thankfully Abby had a great time with her one friend and I am very grateful that our kids have built in friends in each other. I held it together really well for the party and even when Jessica's Mom came and visited for a bit. Then I shut the door and cried. I know- I cry easily, but that is the way it is! Abby didn't notice any slight- she was totally fine, I am glad that she is young enough not to take it personally. Thankfully we did have a couple of kids whom we had invited come early and drop off presents because they couldn't come- that helped me feel better. All in all, the kids had fun and that is what matters, right?

Field Trip to the Fire Station

2008-11-08T16:50:00.008-07:00

So, Abby's preschool went to the fire station on Thursday. We had a great firefighter guy who was fantastic with the kids take them around and show them EVERYTHING! He was really wonderful with them!

He let them crawl into the big truck and see how they ride and get ready for a fire to fight.

He also sat them down and showed them how he dresses up for a fire...

How to crawl around when there is a fire- and where to go...

I thought it was great that he showed them what a firefighter would look like if they came into their house- so that they won't be scared of them.

Then he let them try on the outfit.

Here is Abby "driving" the oldest truck that they had there.Here she is driving the big cool one that the fire fighter pulled out and turned on the lights and the siren for the kids!

They all had a wonderful time and I am glad that I decided to go along as well- I may not have gotten as much work done, but I think that outings like this are both important and fun!

Snow!

2008-11-05T17:19:00.002-07:00

We woke up to a beautiful blanket of snow on the ground today! I didn't take this picture until 11, so as you can see, some of it had allready melted, but Abby was very excited to go out and play in it!

Abby's Birthday

2008-11-05T17:08:00.003-07:00

So, for Abby's birthday we took her to Build a bear where the built her own kitty! I wish I had remembered to bring my camera with me to see her face when they were stuffing the kitty and kissing the little heart they put inside of it and stuff! I am too forgetful- lately I feel like I can't remember anything! Well, we think she had a pretty good day! She got a big girl bike with training wheels and, of course, the kitty. I was especially shocked at the price- I thought for sure it would be like $40, but it was only $28 after the clothes and everything! Not too bad! Abby came up with the incredibly creative name of "Kitty Friend" Believe me, we tried to get her to come up with something else, but she was dead set on this one...

Halloween!!

2008-11-01T16:50:00.000-06:00

Our Beautiful Abby- she was a princess, although I think this dress is more queen like! Her hair was so curly when I took it out of it's curlers- it reminded me of my sister Shelley when she was a child!

Here are the kids together.

Lucas as BumbleBee- last year he was Optimus Prime, but this Bumble Bee is the one from the cartoon series...

The kids had a blast trick-or-treating; Abby really got it this year and despite the cold rain they were running from house to house having a total blast!

You can see that Abby's pretty curls started to come out toward the end of the night- but she didn't care, they were having too much fun! I was especially proud of Lucas- he was really great at saying "thank you" and then we went to this one door where these other kids were trick-or-treating and we heard them say "Happy Halloween" and I told Lucas he should do that from now on and he totally did! "Thank you, have a Happy Halloween!" He is such a good boy!

We spent Halloween up in American Fork with my in-laws which is always fun for us! We had a good time, despite the rain- it is a good thing it was warm earlier that day!

Bath fun

2008-10-28T12:44:00.004-06:00

On Sunday we let the kids have a treat and take a special bath in our bathtub- they had a blast!

Autumn walk

2008-10-28T12:38:00.004-06:00

We went for a nice autumn walk along the canal behind our house on Saturday. The kids took turns riding on Daddy...

There was one beautiful view that I really wanted to show Shawn. I wish I had a better camera- this would look better, but it was absolutely gorgeous- this is just the best I can do with my cheapo camera.

Kids painting

2008-10-28T12:03:00.003-06:00

They are just like their Daddy- isn't it cute?!!

Goofy in How to Hook Up Your Home Theater

2008-10-24T19:55:00.001-06:00

They actually made a new Goofy cartoon- I have always loved his "How to.." segments! Enjoy!

6 Jobs- no $- Are you freaking kidding me?

2008-10-20T10:31:00.002-06:00

Okay- so as most of you know, Shawn works for a video game company drawing fun art- which he LOVES! It is an awesome job to brag about and he can never complain about his work, but the pay is a little low (Job #1).
So, I got a part time job working for my in-laws at their medical spa (Job #2). This helped make ends meet, but when we moved down to Payson it put me half an hour drive away from work, so now I only work one day a week for 5 hours for them- not much.
We have also been doing laundry for my mother-in-law- she has some major problems with pain in her joints and we are pretty sure that she has Fibromyalsia (or however the heck you spell that), so over a year ago we started doing laundry for her- because the simple act of folding and hanging clothes hurts her, so she pays us $10 a load and we do about 5 loads a week for her- so there is a little more money(Job #3).
Then Shawn's karate teacher (yes he does Karate- isn't that cute! He does it with his younger brother as bonding time and his mom pays for it in exchange for Shawn giving Drew art lessons as well and they have fun being together); anyways- his teacher teaches karate at UVU (formerly UVSC for anyone who didn't know) as well as some other real subject like Math or something- anyways, they wanted to add another karate class to his repertoire and he recommended Shawn for the job of teaching it even though he isn't quite a blue belt yet. So, Shawn teaches one class for two hours a week at $30 an hour (Job #4).
Then I used to work at Curves and I loved it, but I don't have the hours during the week to do it- but there was a girl at my Curves here in Payson who worked only on Saturdays and she was moving- so I took her job. I only get minimum wage, but I get to work out for free (thus saving us $30 a month) and I get a little bit of money for time when I am usually not doing anything anyways, hence (Job #5).
Then, Shawn's Aunt owns her own medical billing company which she does working from home and has gotten busy enough that she needed to hire a part time work from home employee. She offered me the job just this past week. I will need to answer phones Mon-Thurs from 9-4 and double check stuff on her billing- I am barely starting to get trained with this, but this now makes it (Job #6)!
Yeah, now granted three of these jobs just started and I haven't gotten paid for some of them yet, but at the same time- we are working 6 jobs now between the two of us and still, we have no money! No one can say that we aren't trying as hard as we can- but our bills have like tripled in the past few years and it is tough to keep up! I don't mean to sound whiny or complainey, but when we consider that we are living in my parents house paying very little rent and we are in theory saving up to purchase a home of our own and we haven't been able to save anything- that is where it gets scary- and we don't even spend as much on things like DVD's as we used to! Anyways- I just wanted to vent about it- that is life, I guess! Who knows, maybe Shawn or I will write a book and make tons of money- that would be nice!

This made me LOL out loud!

2008-10-19T16:45:00.005-06:00

Tough Love vs. Spanking - Good Argument
Most of the American populace thinks it is improper to spank children, so I have tried other methods to control my kids when they have 'one of those moments'.

One that I found effective is for me to just take the child for a car ride and talk. Some say its the vibration from the car, others say it is the time away from any distractions such as t.v., video games, the computer, iPod, etc. Either way, my kids usually calm down and stop misbehaving after our car ride together. Eye to eye contact helps alot, too.

I've included a photo below of one of my sessions with my son, in case you would like to use the technique.

Sincerely,
Your Friend

This works with grandchildren,
nieces, and nephews as well.

Laundry...do you think I should wash them?

2008-10-19T11:59:00.000-06:00

An Engineering Mind: Superman and Thermodynamics

2008-10-16T15:19:00.001-06:00

So, this is a friend of ours from back in the married student ward days- he actually has several of these videos that he has done- I think they are hilarious! If you enjoy it, go to You Tube and check out his other ones! Enjoy!

Final Twilight Trailer from Summit Entertainment!

2008-10-16T13:59:00.001-06:00

Fall . . . the second most wonderful time of the year!

2008-10-13T14:58:00.002-06:00

I LOVE FALL!!!!

I don't know what it is about it exactly that I love so much about fall. Maybe it is the fact that every fall for my growing up life was a time of change- of new things and moving on to a new place. Or (and this is the most likely) it is because for me, fall is all a big build up to Christmas!!!
Whatever the reason, I just love fall! I also LOVE conference weekend! I go into what Shawn calls a baking frenzy during General Conference. Over the past two weeks I have made Cinnamon Rolls, Zucchini bread, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, apple crisp (several times) and just during conference I made breakfast casserole, coffee cake, etc. I don't know what it is, but as soon as it turns cool, I begin to bake and that lasts me through Christmas and then after that I am pretty much done with it for the year. So, I was thinking that since I have the recipie for the best cinnamon rolls ever, I would share them with you all!

Cinnamon Rolls (supposedly it is the Cinnabun Recipie)

Roll dough:
1 pkg yeast
1 c warm milk
1/2 c sugar
1/3 c melted margerine
1 t salt
2 eggs
4 c flour

Make as bread dough; knead and place in an oiled bowl and let rise until double. Then roll out in a large rectagle shape (about 1/4 in thick and 21 in by 16 in)

Filling:
1/2 c melted margerine or butter
1 C brown sugar
2 1/2 T cinnamon

spread the melted margerine over the rolled out dough. Mix the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the melted butter. (tip: leave the top 1/2 in bare so that it will stick to the dough when you roll it up.)

Roll it up and using string or floss or whatever you want to, cut into 1-2 inch thick rolls. Place in bake ware and let rise. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes or until light brown.

Icing (this is the best part):
1 stick softened butter or marg
1 1/2 c powdered sugar
1/4 c cream cheese
1/2 t vanilla
1/8 t salt
Beat until fluffy.

Enjoy!

YAY! My computer is back in business- for now!

2008-09-28T10:26:00.002-06:00

Okay, so for those who were worried about my lack of posting the past few weeks, you have probably noticed that I have finally caught up! Not only that, but Shawn and his AWESOME friend at work were able to not only save all of my photos and files off of the computer (which I will now swear to back up my photos every time I load them), but there were able to resurrect the computer without having to erase the whole thing and reload the operating system! I hadn't realized how co-dependent I have become of my computer, but without it I felt very cut off from the world! I also really missed being able to video chat with my parents every week, so tonight I will finally get to again! YAY! However, it has caused my comptuer to be not quite the way it used to be, and since it is 3 1/2 years old, it might be about time to get a new one, if only we had the money . . . *sigh*! Well, just to keep you posted! I put up quite a bit, so scroll on down and enjoy!

The Pumpkin Patch

2008-09-28T10:06:00.005-06:00

So, on Thursday we went with Abby's pre-school to a pumpkin patch in Santaquin- I didn't even know the place was there, but I really liked it, it is called the big "Red Barn" and it is where Mountainland apples are grown and they also produce cherries and pears and several other kinds of fruit. They had an old tractor out for kids to take pictures on, so here they are- Lucas really liked the tractor!

Here are the kids in the pumpkin patch- here they are with the two they picked out . . .

The kids and I on the "hay ride" which had no hay whatsoever, but was pulled by a tractor and it took us out to the pumpkin patch!

They had some fun images for the kids to stick their heads though and get a picture- cheesy I know, but the kids look so cute- don't they?

All in all, it was a lot of fun, and I wound up buying this big bag of apples for $7 and they were GOOD! I am definitely going to go back there next year, maybe even next time I just want to make a fruit pie, the fruit was awesome and well priced! Some of you may be wondering, how is Lucas there when he is in school- well, he didn't have school that day because of parent teacher conferences, so it all worked out! YaY! By the way- I LOVE FALL!!!!!

Go Team Boyles!

May

June

April 2011

March's Summary

February in a nut shell!

Photos from Jan 11

Lily!!!

Crazy, hormonal Mommy...

Lucas's Church Comic...

I. Hate. Being. Pregnant!

Abby's Little Mis-Adventure

Thanksgiving 09

Happy New Year!

Abby's Fifth Birthday!!!

Halloween 2009

Family Fall Photos

Putting Abby to bed...

Abby reading Frogs, Dogs, and Gators

Children's Miracle Music

The Triumphant return of Elder and Sister Hartzell!

Lucas lost his first teeth!!!

Abby singing the "speckled frogs" song

Lucas's First Day of First Grade!!!

Legendary Boyles Family Stay-cation!!!

Park Family reunion

Lucas's Birthday

Kayaking in American Fork Canyon

Painted rooms in our house

Moab July 2, 2009

T- ball 2009

Catch up time!

Adventures in Home Buying...

The Princess Festival!!!

LOVE STORY (Taylor Swift) meets VIVA LA VIDA (Coldplay) - Piano Cello - by Jon Schmidt

Lucas's Kindergarten Graduation

Abby's First Dance Recital

Christi's Birthday

A podcast about Rocket Road Trip!!

Look, Ma- No Training Wheels!!!

Abby's field trip to the Krishna Temple

Abby singing me a song

Crazy Mommy...

Girls will be Girls...

We're buying a HOUSE!!!

No, I'm not dead- YET!

Lucas stories...

Lucas and Abby creating a world together

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

green jelly:three little pigs (heavy metal)

Jim Gaffigan - Bacon - KING BABY Premieres March 29th @ 9pm on Comedy Central!

Our Little Adventure...

Cute!

Lucas teaching his class how to make paper airplanes!

Lucas's Big Day!!

Lucas talking about his girlfriend...

Abby saying the Pledge of Allegiance

Facebook

The recipe thing

When Shelley came to town

Chicken with Peanut Curry Sauce

HOW TO FIGHT

HOW TO WORK OUT FROM HOME

Lucas's Crush part 2

Last Week's and This week's new recipies...

Lucas's First Crush!!!

New Recipe

DIRECTIONS

Videos of playing games with the kids

Through the eyes of a 4 year old

New Week, new Recipe

P. F. Chang's Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients

Special Sauce

Stir Fry Sauce

Directions

Make the special sauce by dissolving the sugar in water in a small bowl.

Add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ketchup, lemon juice and sesame oil.

Mix well and refrigerate this sauce until you're ready to serve.

Combine the hot water with the hot mustard and set this aside as well.