Luke loves his new Buzz costume...
...except it really itches!
Jackson and his remote control boat. No, not a dachshund.
I love Luke's face. I'm not sure what's got him all excited, but he's happy!
Over at Aunt Donna's and Uncle David's
I had no say in the acquisition of this!
Jackson brought home from school this letter to Santa. I thought it was so cute, funny and typical of my wonderful 7 year old I wanted to share. I have corrected the spelling for your reading ease.
My Christmas wish is to get a dachsund. One reason this is my
Christmas wish is because I like dogs. Another reason this is my wish is because some dogs are funny. Santa can make my wish come true by putting it next to my bed.
I think these pictures say it all. I figured I could freak out like I normally do or use it as blog material, so I ran for the camera. Just so you know, I was not laughing as I went for the camera.
Notice the empty toilet paper roll. It was full before the below incident. On the up side, could this possibly be step one towards potty training? At least he knows where the paper goes.
How do you cach a turkey?
First, you find the turkey you want. Then,
take a bow and arow. After that, showt
it in it's intestins! Yum! Yum! Yum!
(there was no editing done by a mom in this reproduction.)
We had a nice low key Thanksgiving this year with Mark's sister Jill and niece Amber. Here are some pictures of our festivities.
Here we have the whole gang at out decked out table. That's my Hershey Kiss centerpiece in the middle that Jackson made for my birthday.
This is a video of Savanna singing a turkey song she learned in Kindergarten. If it looks like she's crying it's because there was "something in her eye." At least that's what she told me.I tried this recipe from the free Kraft Food & Family magazine I get in the mail and loved it. It tasted great and has a great presentation. Super for impressing guests. The only thing I may try next time is substituting the Ritz crackers with Italian bread crumbs but the crackers were fine. Hope you like it.
Chicken Parmesan Bundles
If you don't get this magazine in the mail I think there is a link on the web site to get it. It's free and nice to have around when writing a grocery list.
I was attempting to get Liam to make some animal noises for Grandma, but as most of you know kids don't like performing on command, especially with a camera in front of them. I thought this came out pretty cute anyway so this is for you Grandma. The rest of you will just have to suffer throught it :)
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
~Marianne Williamson
Lately I have heard a lot of friends talk about feelings of inadequacy and self doubt, wondering how others may perceive them. I wish we could all see ourselves as "brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous". We see each other that way, why is it so hard to see ourselves that way too? We teach our youth about individual worth and divine nature, how can we teach that when we have such a hard time embracing it as adults? I think it must be an ongoing process. One of those principles that, for most, takes a life time to reach.
What are your thoughts on this?
P.S. I was talking to Leslie after I posted this and she got me thinking. So I'm adding another quesion. After reading the quote, do you agree? Is this "our deepest fear"?
This is kind of dark but you can see Liam's hesitancy at going near this guy. Actually he did this with everyone. He gave himself a wide 3 feet of safety space, but always said thank you.
I loved this! Some woman even decorated her lawn ornaments!
Savanna found her long lost side kick...a dog dressed as a princess. People crack me up!
This skull in someones yard shook when you'd walk by so Jackson decided to use his wand to put a spell on it.
I think what I loved most about last night is the camaraderie that was going on in the neighborhood. People that we never see during the rest of the year act like you're family. It makes you feel like you belong. I love to people watch and what a great time of year to do it! It was fun to see some houses that would get together with all their neighbors and hand out candy together in one driveway, some had fires going in fire pits, everyone was having a great time and there was a real family atmosphere. We had a great time!
I know your mind might be heading a certain direction with a title like this, reel it in we are about to go another direction. For about two weeks my three year old has been crawling into our bed every night. This is a new thing for me, none of my other kids have done this and it's kind of getting on my nerves. For one thing, we have a queen bed and it wasn't built for three. He's squishing me. Then there is the occasional kick, not to mention that he has had a cough and keeps waking me up with his hacking. You might be thinking, "Why don't you just put him back in his bed?" Well, he's real sneaky. I don't know he's there 'till he's there. The annoyances mentioned above aren't bad enough to really full on wake me up just be this thing in my subconscious that interrupts my sleep. Then I wake up and say "Okay, this has to stop." So I decided I'd tackle this head on. I'll just ask him why he's coming in and then maybe we can fix the problem. Maybe he's getting cold or having a bad dream. I asked this morning and the answer took me completely by surprise.
Me: Luke, why are you coming in mommy's bed at night?
Luke: Cause I just wuv you.
Talk about melt your heart! Now what?! I could nip this in the bud so he's not doing it at age 10 or maybe clean up my bedroom floor and put a sleeping bag down for him oooooor send him to Mark's side of the bed....I like that idea!
I have a question and any input would be helpful. After spending 20 or so minutes waiting for someone to help me in the fabrics department at Wal-Mart...(Grrrrr), I purchased some military themed fabric I intend to make into a quilt and then hopefully, sell. I returned home and while showing it to my husband noticed on the selvage (edge of the fabric) was printed the following statement: THE LOGOS APPEARING ON THIS FABRIC ARE PROTECTED TRADEMARKS OF AIR FORCE. THIS PRODUCT IS INTENDED FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY. ANY UNAUTHORIZED USE IS PROHIBITED.
Our family thoroughly enjoyed General Conference this weekend. It's such a great time to take a break from the world and reflect on our lives, where we are and where we're going. Along with this came some great quotes from my darling family I thought I'd share.
In response to Elder Scott's comment on the speed of light Jackson said, "Wow, that's faster than a cheetah!"
After spending the Saturday afternoon session at the Merrell's, Savanna came downstairs the next morning and said, "I want a table full of snacks like at Ben's house."
As we watched the Tabernacle Choir sing Jackson mused, "I wonder why the boys sit separate from the girls." After a lengthy explanation from me about different ranges of voices and the need to sit near people that sing similar to you he exclaimed, "I know another reason. So the boys can't talk to their girlfriends."
As one of the Sunday sessions started Savanna informed us to "Let me know when Pres. Hinckley comes, he's my favorite."
And my personal favorite, from by dear husband. At the conclusion of Sister Beck's talk on the duties and responsibilities of mothers I said "Wow, that was a wake up call." and Mark replied, "Ya...it's about time the women got a talk like that!"
Hope you enjoyed the last two days as much as we did!
I have been doing a lot of thinking lately about what these blogs have done for me. Reading your blogs and comments have given me a spiritual boost that I have been seriously lacking lately. As most of you know, being the mother of small children can leave you wanting more (spirituality, I mean) after church so I am so glad to have this supplement. It's not just the spiritual thoughts you share but the struggles and joys you find in life that boost me. So please keep it up and know that you are making a difference. Here is a quote by Sister Hinckley that expresses best what I am trying to say.
We are all in this together. We need each other, Oh, how we need each other. Those of us who are old need you who are young. And, hopefully, you who are young need some of us who are old. It is a sociological fact that women need women. We need deep and satisfying and loyal friendships with each other. These friendships are a necessary source of sustenance. We need to renew our faith every day. We need to lock arms and help build the kingdom so that it will roll forth and fill the whole earth.
~Marjorie Pay Hinckley
I attended a "Time Out for Women" conference recently and Hilary Weeks did a very funny rendition of "Favorite Things" from Sound of Music with a parenting twist. Anyway, it inspired me to write a version of my own.
Before I begin, I'd like to thank all the little people, like Julie Andrews for the original version. My mom, for singing it to me at night when I was scared. My kids, for asking to have it sung to them, thus passing on the tradition. Oprah, because I love her Favorite Things show...you get the idea. So, without further ado, here are a "Few of my Favorite Things".
The zoo carousel
Jackson's 7th birthday cake, I mean pie.
Check out those goggles on Luke! He wore them constantly for at least a week.
I am a scientist at heart, and like things to be explainable, but the power of the human brain continues to baffle and amaze me. I have been thinking lately about the effect that autumn has on me. Does anyone ever get the blues in autumn or is it just me? Most of my friends just looove autumn. I guess I know why, I mean the leaves are beautiful and it is nice not to have it 100 degrees outside but for some reason it always makes me melancholy, sentimental and nauseous. I looove the summer, so maybe the arrival of cool, windy weather is a bad omen of the next six gloomy months to come. Maybe that is why it feels so sad to me. Maybe the cool air of the fall causes memories to be just as clear and crisp as it is. I served a mission in New York and it may sound like a cliche but autumn in New York is amazing and the strength of this memory is seared in my brain. You may think "well, that's a nice memory, what's the problem?" The problem is that now, mixed with those sharp autumn emotions, is that (and maybe you ladies can feel my pain on this) I get phantom morning sickness in the fall. All my babies were born in the spring, so 4 out of the past 8 autumns have been mingled with nausea. A month ago, in the dead heat of August, I saw a television clip of a father and son walking in New York in the fall. I was instantly queezy. Tell me that's not weird! The smells, sounds and for some reason, even the change of temperature, now all trigger this phantom nauseous sentimental melancoly. The body is so amazing! The power of our brains to induce such emotional memories is incredible! And then, to force them into our physical senses so easily, makes me think that there is so much more to our mental capacities than we ever tap into. Too bad all this brain power can't help me find that lost pacifier that Liam has been screaming for for the last hour.
Here's the whole gang visiting Frankfort, KY. You can imagine how fun it is to get a shot of all of us. We really weren't trying to exclude Liam.
This is one of my favorites! The kids were playing in the rain and Liam was doing this great duck walk.
4th of July parade. It's no Provo Freedom Fest but the kids loved all the candy, someone should talk the Provo parade people about that.
Bottoms up! Lots of fun on the beach in California.
