St. George...

On Sunday 12/27/09 we headed to St. George for four days. Steve has a client that has a really nice house down there and he wanted Steve to come train him, his wife and his parents while they were staying there. So we packed up the family and took a little mini-vacation. It was really fun and relaxing. They have a really nice outdoor heated pool and hot tub so we spent some time there. We also watched some movies in the theater room he built. They have an awesome kids play room so of course we spent lots of time there-the kids loved it! One of the days the guys went golfing so us girls and the kids hung out at the house and played cards. Steve has them on strict meal plans so we all ate really healthy which was nice after eating lots of not so healthy stuff during the holidays. Avery started to get sick while we were there but other than that we had a great time as a family. We hit a snow storm on the way home but it wasn't too terrible. Here are some pictures...

The weather was pretty cold (like 30's) but the pool water was so warm it was like taking a really warm bath.

I hung out in the hot tub. :)

They have the cutest little kitchen in the kids playroom. The kids loved playing here and made me all sorts of food.

Maddy doing some ironing.

These "Plasma" cars are so much fun to ride and we all had a blast.

Had lots of fun on the swings as well.

Our living quarters. They have a really nice guest house, which they call "The Casita" that we stayed in. It is attached to the house but completely separate so it was really nice and accommodating.

One of the many views.

Thanks John and Heidi for such a fun time and inviting us to come! We really enjoyed ourselves.

Christmas Afternoon...

Christmas afternoon we went over to my sister Stacy's house for our annual family Christmas party. My parents and all my siblings (and families) were able to be there except for Jennifer. We missed you guys Jen! We always have such a good time and I look forward to it every year! Here are some highlights...

Santa made a visit (looks like he's lost a little weight) ...

It took a little convincing but we finally got Maddy to sit on his lap.

Avery wanted nothing to do with him. This was as close as she got. We tried putting her on his lap but she wasn't having it at all.

Turns out Santa was looking for more than just a visit with the kids. :)

Everybody chowing down. We had yummy turkey roast with potatoes and carrots, my Aunt Carolyn's yummy rolls, artichoke cheese dip (made by me), veggie tray and pumpkin rolls and cake for dessert.

The kids opening presents. All the cousins did a gift exchange and Maddy and Avery got puzzles from their cousins. Avery got a really nice doll stroller and Maddy got a really cool desk from my parents.

The adults did a nice "White Elephant" gift exchange. It's so fun! Shalane and I ended up with the most wanted gifts... there was quite a battle for them (sorry Jamie and Mom... or should I say Ben and Dad?) ;) Steve got a $25 gift certificate to Great Harvest-yum!

My Dad always falls asleep and the guys decided to mess with him and put paper in his mouth while he was sleeping. It was pretty funny!

The kids LOVED climbing all over Steve and getting "horsey" rides. I think they wore him out!

I have the best family ever!

Thanks everyone for an awesome Christmas! Thanks Stacy and Justin for having us!

Maddy's Birthday Celebration...

Since Maddy's birthday is so close to Christmas (December 16th) we decided to have our family celebration with him when our family got together on Christmas at my sister Stacy's house. He was sick on Christmas Eve but he lit right up and was so excited when I brought his cake home and showed it to him. He couldn't wait to get the "Ben 10" character off it so he could play with it and he kept climbing up on the counter to look at it. He was also so excited that it was green because that's his favorite color. He picked out a white cake with raspberry filling in the middle (with a little help from me)... yummy!

Opening presents... he got some Alphabet cards from his nephew Jace, another "Lets Go Fishing" game from his nephew (Dallin) and nieces (Claire & Lola) and an outfit from my parents. He felt really special and I think he thought our whole Christmas party was a party for him...

The birthday boy... just adore him! Here is a short video of us singing "Happy Birthday" to him...

Christmas Morning...

We had such a wonderful Christmas this year! On Christmas Eve the kids opened their pajamas. They were so soft and looked so cute and cuddly! It was Avery's first time having two piece pajamas and she was so excited and felt so grown up. She kept pointing at them and saying, "Jammies Mama!" Someone also snuck some pajamas (for Steve and I to share) under the tree for Steve to open. :) The kids slept until about 8:30am Christmas morning which was nice. We heard Maddy wake up and could hear him talking about opening presents before he went out into the front room. As soon as he saw that Santa had made a stop at our house he ran into our room telling us that Santa had came and brought presents. He was so excited, it was priceless! I wish I could bottle up those moments and save them! Here are a few pictures of the kids opening their presents Christmas morning...

Between Santa and family members Avery ended up with three new dolls and two strollers for the dolls. She was a happy camper. Although she mostly likes pushing her old favorite doll "baby" around. She is still pushing dolls around all the time. She also got some more pj's and some clothes.

Maddy got the three things on his list that he asked Santa for. They were "Hot Wheels" cars (and race track), "Gator Golf" game and the "Don't Break the Ice" game. He got the "Lets Go Fishing" game from his cousins in California. He also got some more pj's and clothes.

Avery all smiles pushing her old favorite doll "baby" around the house.

Maddy played with his Hot Wheels (and track) for hours. Here is a short video of him playing with it...

I made Steve (and other family members) a photo album for the past year and gave Steve some cologne. He gave me a few gift certificates for one hour massages... yippe-can't wait to use them! After we opened all our gifts, Steve starting putting things together and I made breakfast. We had bacon, eggs, hashbrowns and toast. While I was cooking Maddy could smell the bacon and said, "Yum, I smell yummy food." I think it is the first time I've made bacon for them. We had such a relaxing fun day together as a family.

Whatever Wednesday: Christmas Spirit...

I hope your heart will be full with the true Christmas Spirit this Christmas...

Merry Christmas!

Music Monday: Silent Night...

Mormon Tabernacle Choir: Silent Night...

Christmas Cookies...

Wednesday after celebrating Maddy's birthday and running around all day shopping and going to Maddy's Dr. appointment we went to Jamie's house to make cookies for our weekly outing. It was fun and everyone enjoyed themselves.

Yummy cookies!

Thanks everyone for the company and thanks Jamie for having us!

Maddy's Day...

As you already know Wednesday was Maddy's fourth birthday. We are having a family birthday party for him when we all get together for Christmas so everyone can be there. But I still tried to make it a special day for him. Here is a little glimpse of his day...

I let him choose what he wanted for breakfast... he chose leftover pizza from the night before.

Steve came home around 9 am in between clients so Maddy could open his presents from us (I'm pretty sure Steve was as excited as Maddy was.) Maddy is a bit obsessed with the Ben 10 cartoon and already has the first three volumes on DVD and he got the fourth for his birthday.

He also got this Ben 10 Omnitrix watch. You probably have no clue what I'm talking about. There are all these different creatures (with powers that Ben 10 turns into on the show) that can be attached to the watch and it lights up, makes noises and talks. He has been wanting one for so long so he was very excited and can't stop playing with it. He also got cards and money from family members (thank you everyone.)

Steve putting his watch on for the first time. I seriously put it on him so many times throughout the day... it's kind of driving me crazy.

One happy boy showing off his Omnitrix watch (with one of the ten creatures on it.)

After we opened presents I took the kids to Walmart so Maddy could pick out his cake for next weeks party. Of course he picked out a Ben 10 cake. We did some other shopping and ran some errands before going to his well child Dr. appointment.

Maddy was so excited to show Dr. Berry his new Omnitrix watch and Dr. Berry humored him and even turned off the lights so he could see it glow. He's healthy and everything looked good. The Dr. did note that he has big tonsils and asked if he snores. He does a bit and is a really heavy breather when he is sleeping. He said to watch and see if he is a nose or mouth breather. If he is a mouth breather we might want to see a specialist and consider getting his tonsils taken out. Here are his measurements:

Weight-34.6 lbs. (40%)
Height-41 inches(65%)

After his appointment he wanted to go to Wendy's for lunch and then we headed home for a few minutes before heading to Jamie's house to make Christmas cookies. After being at the Dr.'s and out shopping for hours the kids were wore out and both fell asleep while I was driving to Jamie's house to make cookies. After we left Jamie's we came home and had eggs and pancakes for dinner (which Maddy loves.) At the end of the day before going to bed he said he had a really fun day.

Happy Birthday Maddy! We love you more than you will ever know!

Special Day...

I can't believe how time flies! Today Maddox is four. Here are a some things I want to remember about him at this age...

*He is SO affectionate and I'm soaking it all up and can't seem to get enough. He is constantly telling me he loves me and giving me huge hugs and kisses throughout the day. After tucking him in bed we can't leave the room until he gives us both hugs and kisses and tells us he loves us and will see us in the morning.

*He is learning so much in school and has learned most of his letters and can write and spell his name.

*I can now officially say he has stopped sucking his fingers (because he is growing up he says) and we are so proud of him! Has been bandaid free for a while now.

*He is so smart and creative and his imagination is endless. We pretty much play pretend all day long every day. A few of which include he makes me all kinds of food, makes things disappear and shoots goop everywhere.

*He is very competitive and always want to be first. First in line, first getting somewhere, first to get in the car, etc.

*He is initially pretty shy but usually warms up pretty quick.

*He now insists on sleeping with his door wide open.

*He dresses himself and is very particular about what he wears. He still loves to spend most of the day in his PJ's.

*He has gotten so used to going places with my sisters and I that almost every day he wakes up and asks if we are going somewhere fun today.

*When he wakes up in the morning he now yells from his bed to me (I'm usually still in bed), "Mom I'm awake now." I tell him to go ahead and get up.

*He is always looking out for Avery and helping her do things and taking care of her when she gets hurt. His favorite person is his Daddy and he waits for him to get home to play with him. He also always says he wants Daddy when he starts crying if he gets hurt or anything like that.

*He loves trains, legos (especially building trains, airplanes, rockets and shooters), Ben 10, Diego, Dora, Max & Ruby, the color green, playing air dart guns with his Dad, nuggleing while watching movies (especially GI Joe & Transformers) with us, making sound effects and playing with anything that shoots, playing with Avery, helping me do everything from cooking to cleaning, going to school & church and carrying random things around with him... I'm really hoping he outgrows this and doesn't turn into a hoarder.