Crazy Kid

(Christmas pictures are a little too overwhelming right now, so this is what I'm posting for now.)

Since living with my parents, Caleb's room has been in the storage room.  Poor kid has been sleeping in a crib amongst stuff.  We cram all kinds of crap in that room.

A while ago, he learned how to climb out of his crib, so I stopped that by putting a blanket over it and making it so he couldn't get out (yes, I would consider myself white trash!)  That worked for a while.  Then I decided to take the blanket off.  He didn't climb out of his crib to get out of going to sleep, but for 2 days, this is what I would find him doing shortly after taking the blanket off.

(You can see the top of the crib, that's where he climbed out of.)

Usually, Caleb will cry for about 2 - 5 minutes then realize we aren't coming to get him out of bed, so he'll lay down and go to sleep.  But he kept crying.  And it was really loud crying.  So I went in and found him on top of all these boxes..... completely stuck.  He couldn't get down.  I couldn't help but laugh.  What a little fart.

Then 15 minutes later, he cried again..... really loud.  I couldn't wait to see where he was this time.  Little chubs was stuck again behind these boxes.  Oh, and to top it off, he likes to take all his clothes off. That's why he is in his diaper.  He won't leave them on during his naps.  You can't see it, but his diaper has duct tape on it so he doesn't take that off.... once again, WHITE TRASH!  Boy am I glad those 2 days are over.  He hasn't climbed out of his crib since then.... (fingers crossed)

Elli Singing In Primary

For the little Sharing Time in Primary on Sunday, Elli got to sing Silent Night all by herself.  She did such a great job.  You can see in her face how much she loved being in front of everyone.  She's so BRAVE!!

We "ELF"ed OURSELVES

My kids saw an Elf video of their cousins and BEGGED me to make one of us.  So here it is.  Merry Christmas ya'll!!

San Tan Flat

Last weekend we went to San Tan Flat which is in Queen Creek.  It's a pretty fun place.  They have a band playing, dancing, fire pits and marshmallows, and great food!!  But note to self:  Bring your own bag of marshmallows.  I bought of "bag" of marshmallows for $3.  But there were only 8 marshmallows in it.  But the kids loved it and had a lot of fun!!

Caleb had so much fun walking and dancing around.  He didn't want to be held or picked up.  I love when this kid is happy.  He is soo stinkin' cute!!

Phil Vassar / Lucky Blue

Lucky Blue opened for Phil Vassar earlier this month.  We had so much fun watching the guys up there.

Braeden absolutely is THE NUMBER ONE FAN of Lucky Blue.  He has made his own posters of LB and knows all the songs and thinks one day he will be one stage with them playing the guitar like his daddy.  He was on the edge of his seat the whole time clapping his hands.

When the guys were done on stage, the kids sat on the chairs waiting for their dad to come down and see them.

Then Phil came out, flipping his hair ALOT and drinking "something" out of the little red cups.  Not sure what it was, but he definitely was on the tipsy side.

Halfway through Phil, I went backstage with Mark to watch the show.  I had to get a picture of the backside.  But he was such a great performer.  He blew me away on the piano.  I was a little confused why his piano had zebra print on it though.....

LB with Phil.

And I had to get a picture with him as well!!

A couple nights ago, they guys and I headed to Toby Keith's Bar & Grill to talk to Ben & Matt (KNIX's morning guys)  They were doing this fundraiser for the United Way called the Pay For Play.  If you donated money, they would play anything for you.  So..... we had them play "The Wrong Dress"  It was so fun hearing their song on the radio.  Ben & Matt said they really liked the song.  The next morning, they played it again for us!  Now if we can only get them to play it on the radio without giving donations..... someday!!  :)

Gingerbread House

Grandma Dianna and Grandpa Bob came the week of Mark's concert and boy did we get Christmas early!!  They brought all of us presents for Christmas.  It was so nice of them.  They also got us this fun Gingerbread house.  So we made it for Family night last week.  It ended up being ME finishing the rest because the kids decided they would rather jump on the wet trampoline because it was raining!!

Mark made us some YUMMY hot chocolate because it was cold.

And the final product!!  It turned out soooo cute!!

Temple Lights

We have already taken a trip to the Mesa Temple for the Christmas Lights.  It was soooo cold that night (remember, I have Arizona blood)  This was the day Braeden got his Lucky Blue shirt and was VERY proud to be wearing it and he kept opening his jacket so people would look at it.  He even tried taking it off all together because he was very determined to show it off.  Such a funny boy.  But the kids had a lot fun there. We went inside the Visitor's Center and watch the Luke 2 movie and look at the Christus.  

How did I get so lucky to get such cute kids??

Caleb has decided that he is not a big fan of the high chair (sometimes) and he'll come sit by Elli and they'll eat on this chair together.  It's kind of delicious!!!

Thanksgiving Fun Run

Is it December already???  Geez, where did November go??

Well, Braeden's school did a little Turkey Trot.... and I mean little.  The kids probably ran for a whopping 30 seconds.  Maybe a minute.  But it was fun.  I went and ran with him.  He just thought it was such a workout.  Thank goodness they gave them a popsicle to help cool down!!

AR Designs Giveaway

AR Designs is having a very tempting GIVEAWAY of the cutest jewelry there is right now!!  Anyone and everyone can enter.  And if you know me well, you know that I have already done my part to get the most possible entries I can to enter.  So just letting you know about this.  Entries need to be in by this coming Monday (the 7th)

Time Out For Women

I guess I skipped over not posting this..... ooops.

My sister in laws and I went to Time Out For Women in Phoenix last month.  We had SOOOOO much fun together.  I'm glad all of us ended up going.  Holly got us a hotel for Friday night.  So we went and listened to some amazing speakers and then walked back to our hotel and talked until 1:00 AM.  We got up early and went back in the morning.

This is Kenneth Cope.... or as I call him, KEN.  Long story short, when we were about to take this picture, I called him Ken instead of Kenneth and it made us all laugh.  Even the next day when Kenneth was walking around greeting everyone.  He came up to us and we said, "Hi Ken." He laughed, but I hope I didn't offend him by calling him that.  Oh well, I really loved listening to him.  He was a great performer and I loved getting out my old cds of his that I haven't listened to in FOREVER!!

There were some amazing speakers and I came home with some great notes.  I have loved listening to John Bytheway.  He is so great!!  Very uplifting and funny!!

Camille, Megan, Me, Holly

(I am so lucky to have such great sister in laws.)

Oh Ken.....

Here are notes that I took that come in handy to look back and re-read what we learned.....

Brad & Debbie Wilcox

“If you can laugh at it, you can live with it.”

·      - Decreases stress

·      - Decreases pain

·      Is good for immune system

- A good sense of humor helps us keep perspective, helps build relationships, and helps us cope with problems.

A positive attitude is to be respected, not ridiculed.

FUNNY STORY:  They were on a plane and when it was landing, it was really bouncy.  The plane actually bounced up and down a couple times before coming to a complete stop.  Everyone on the plane was shook up and scared.  The pilot then came on the intercom and said, “Take that you bad bad runway.”  When people were walking off the plane, they had a better attitude about the whole situation and actually thanked the pilot.

*If you can laugh at it, you can live with it.

Don’t ridicule people who are cheerful.  They are CONSCIOUSLY choosing to be humorous.  Everyone has problems.  You can have problems and be happy AT THE SAME TIME.

- Don’t postpone happiness.

- Happiness is a CITY in a STATE of mind.

- Ecclesiastes 3:4 – A time to weep, and a time to laugh, a time to mourn, and a time to dance.

- You can be serious, but take life in a light way.

- Happiness and laughter can help us keep His image in our countenance.

- God told Adam & Eve to be HAPPY ….. and FIND JOY.

John Bytheway

Started off telling us that his last name is in the scriptures and the meaning is “Path that leads to eternal life.”  (He was pretty proud about that.)

- Alma 29:14-16  - Be happy with the success of others.

- Don’t compete.

- Marjorie Hinckley “Small & Simple Things”

·      pg 148

·      pg 104

·      pg 31

- Marry someone who knows how to be content.

- Our best answers are the ones we already know.

- Read the sacrament prayers and DO WHAT BOTH PRAYERS SAY.  D & C 20:77 & 79

·        - Pray to have the Holy Ghost with you ALWAYS.

·        - Always remember Him

- Find joy in the success of others

Donna Schaub “I think I’ll be delightful today.”

- Am I fun to be married to?

- Diamonds shine brighter against a dark background.  (Which is meant that we can shine bright even in this dark world.)

- D & C 101:32 – Yea, verily I say unto you, in that day when the Lord shall come, he shall reveal all things.

- 1 Nephi 11:22 – And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things.

- Be cheerful. Don't be a whiner.

- I can choose to be delightful!

Emily Watts

APPEARANCES

- Outward appearance is an inward path of commitment.

- Children are a slow ripening fruit and at different paces.

·        - Be patient, don’t judge them on appearance.

- Heavenly Father loves MY children as much as I do.

- Joseph Smith History 1:8

- Early experiences (or trials) pave the way of our life.

- Psalms 27 : 14 – Wait on the Lord

* You plant it, you water it, you take care of it, but when it comes down to it….. It’s the SON who does the rest.

- 1 Cronicles 5 : 20

- Psalms 9 : 10

* Fruit doesn’t always ripen on this side of the veil.  But he does not forsake us.

* Some of the hardest kids are what make YOU a better person.  Sometimes we think our kids can be a burden, but we need to let them make us better people.

* It’s up to the SON who will bring us rippen, beautiful fruit – We just need to put our trust in him.

Emily Freeman

ABUNDANCE

How often do we feel inadequate??  (Like…. “If I had this….then this.”

3 STEPS

1. Determine what we have to offer, then make the most of it. 

            Alma 26 : 16 -   Therefore, let us ^glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel.

2.  Give all (even if it means our time)

         There is a power of abundance when we give all.

         Be less critical

         Always be on the Lord’s errand

* Be there – Don’t wait for things to calm down – Be there when things happen.

3.  Learn to be content

            Abundance can come with the simplest things.

* Are we content?

*Heavenly Father just KNOWS

*When we are not sure where we are, the Lord can help us to be content.

* We can make the most of what we have

            John 6 : 6 – The Lord is aware of us

·        - If we could be build upon a foundation (which is the Savior), how abundant out life will be.

- Make the most of what we have to offer.

- We are given things we cannot handle, but can with the grace enabling power of Christ.

- It is worth the struggle to sit at the right hand of God.

Funny (and LONG) Story

(I am not sure how to make a long story short, so this is a long story...)

On Saturday, Mark and Braeden went to the USC vs ASU football game at ASU. My sister in law Holly couldn't find a sitter so I offered to watch her kids too. I had a total of 5 kids which wasn't that bad. Things were going good. They played outside, we ate dinner and watched movies. At 6:00, I put Holly's baby down for the night. Then at 7:00, I put Caleb down. Then the other 3 stayed up and watched movies. Then about 9, I decided it was time to really stop being loud and crazy and try to get them to fall asleep. I sent Logan upstairs and he seemed fine with that because he went straight upstairs and fell asleep. Elli and Bryce were finally quiet and then about 10:00, Bryce fell asleep. Just about then Elli was dozing off and then I hear a huge cry from upstairs. Elli woke up too because she was in my arms and I had to get up. It was Caleb crying. So I grab him and he comes downstairs with me to lay down. Both Elli and Caleb were wanting to lay with me so I had both in my arms. (Which was amazing!!) Elli zonked out. She was dead asleep within minutes. Caleb on the other hand wouldn't stop being annoyed that he woke up. He was calm for a little and that's when I heard the baby crying too. So I put Caleb down and ran upstairs to calm her. Caleb by now was so mad at me for not holding him. I made Sarah a bottle and she calmed down. When I got back downstairs, Caleb wouldn't let me hold him anymore. He was so tired and I think he was basically half asleep. He walks away from me and goes towards the high chair. Then seconds later, he stopped crying and he was TOTALLY asleep. He had fallen asleep in this position. I had to take a picture of this. Such a funny boy.

INSPIRATION....

I'm not sure how many people follow the Nie Nie Dialogues, but Stephanie is such an inspiring writer. She is the one who was in the plane crash last year with her husband and another guy who was the pilot. Well, the pilot passed away, but these 2 survived. She updates her blog almost daily. When I read this post, it made me realize how important I am. Outward appearance and worldly things really don't matter.... no matter how much we want them to. If you want a little pick-me-up, READ THIS.

Halloween

We had a very fun Halloween. We have a Super Mario Bro., Minnie Mouse & Mickey Mouse. Elli was so excited to be Minnie with Caleb being Mickey.

Caleb was almost impossible to get a picture of. I didn't even try to put on his ears. But he looks so cute in them.

She carried around her Minnie Mouse doll everywhere she went weeks before Halloween. Even trick-or-treating.

These are our friends the Klepingers. Pres. Klepinger was Mark's bishop in California before he went on his mission. Now he is in our Stake Presidency and Leann is in the Relief Society Presidency with my mom. I love these guys. I couldn't stop laughing though when I took this picture. Actually this was Take #2. When I first started counting "1...2...3" they both put their arm and leg out like this. So the first picture was blurry from me laughing so hard. Too cute. They always have fun costumes every year!!

We had a scary moment at the ward party. Mark was taking care of Caleb the whole time so he handed him off to me. I knew he was standing by me and I got a little distracted and then noticed he wasn't by me anymore. I told Mark we lost him and we split up and started looking for him. It seemed like 15 minutes we were looking for him. My sister Kara was there and noticed a man carrying him towards us and got him. I guess he was heading for a busy road. AAAaaaaahhhh, I was so mad a t myself. I should have known that what Caleb would do.... he never stays next to me if I'm not holding his hand.

After the ward party, we headed on over to our cousin's house to go trick-or-treating with them. The dads stayed back at the house to "pass out candy" and watch the USC game.... which ended up turning into the "lights off" and NOT passing out candy. But here's the gang....

There was a little incident that happened during our trick-or-treating adventure. Caleb wasn't strapped in the stroller so he could go trick-or-treating. As I was pushing him, I noticed that the stroller wouldn't move and it got stuck, but I kept on trying to push it. I then looked down and noticed my little Mickey on the ground. I was pushing him along the road. He didn't cry much at first, but then cried a lot when I picked him up. I felt so bad. Here's the damage....

(I know you're beginning to wonder if I'm a suitable Mom. I am too after that night.)

After caleb fell out, we took him back to the house and laid him down to go to bed. Then we left to go to Holly's brother's house in Queen Creek. (Holly's my SIL) Her brother's family puts on a HUGE Haunted House every year. We didn't know what we were going out to see, but it was about 8:00 when we got there. I thought maybe the crowd would have died down a bit... but NO, it was a HUGE LINE!!! I guess the news channel came out and it was on the news. There were a ton of people. But we got right in (thanks to Holly's brother) From the beginning, I knew Braeden wouldn't go. Ever since he was 3, he hasn't been a big fan of scary things. I don't know what changed it for him, but he used to like things like that. I thought Elli for sure would come with me inside, but the music was really loud and she chickened out. So I went with Holly and her 2 kids. I could tell Braeden wanted to go but wasn't sure about it. He asked me A MILLION questions about it after. It was actually a really good haunted house. We want to go again next year!!

Elli put glow bracelets on her shoes and she was pretty proud of that. She showing it off.

Halloween at School

It was a little crazy this morning, but we got through it (or I did.) We got up and got our Halloween costumes on. We first ventured to the grocery store to get dry ice and root beer for Braeden's Halloween party. Then we went to Braeden's school for his parade. We took a picture of our little Super Mario Bro and headed to Elli's school to watch her parade.

I had to hurry back to Braeden's school to run a station in his classroom. So my sweet mom finished watching "Minnie Mouse's" parade for me and took some pictures.

I forgot to take pictures in Braeden's class because I was so focused on our little project... dang it... but we had fun!! Braeden was pretty stoked being Mario. Some of the older kids were telling him he was cool and saying, "Thanks you, so nice." (which is what Mario says in the New Super Mario Bros game I guess.) He got a smerk on his face trying not to smile too big. It was funny.

Then I ran back to Elli's school to play with her at her little carnival. She has a fun preschool. They always do something exciting there.

Chubs was having the time of his life being outside and sliding down this slide. Just look at that smile!!

He even thought this was a slide and apparently went down this end and fell on his face. He's such a tough kid though.

Elli fishing for her prize.... a pumpkin frisbee.

I found out a couple weeks ago that Elli has a little fling for this boy. These 2 are apparently getting married. Then another mom today told me that Elli was "getting married" to another boy a couple days ago. I needed Elli when I was in high school to have her teach me a few things about boys. She seems to have that down.

I can't wait for Trick-or-Treating. It's a fun holiday for me!!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!