Merry Christmas . . .

. . . From our CRAZY FAMILY to Yours!

(Braeden is sitting on "red" pillows for "Santa's Sleigh" and Elli is in front being Rudolf.)


Braeden dressed in this red shirt and wanted Elli to be Rudolf, so I made her these ears and nose. I told Braeden to get me my camera and it took him a while to get it. I realized why it took so long when he walked in the room with Santa's Beard. He taped the cotton balls to himself. He is so FUNNY!!

Elli wanted her "nose so bright" (like ths song) so she got a flashlight and put a red circle on it to shine and make her nose bright. They are so worried about the detail. Elli wanted me to put black on her nails for the reindeer hooves, but I didn't have black nailpolish . . . dang it.

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Later that night, we went bowling with some of Mark's fellow workers. The kids didn't want to take off their things, so they wore it to the bowling alley. I couldn't say no to their cute faces. All the drunk bowling fanatics got a kick out of them.

Braeden took this video game serious. It was funny watching him.

Email SANTA CLAUS!!

Santa has a laptop now and kids can email a letter to Santa!! That's what Braeden did!!

Just go to SantaSearch.org and let your kids send an email! Braeden just thought it was the coolest thing ever. He can't wait for the reply.

Here is what Braeden wrote....

Dear Santa,
am i on the notee list or nis list cus i want to no rele. i cant wat tel crhistmas MERRY CRHISTMAS.

(Translation: Dear Santa, Am I on the Naughty list or Nice list cuz I want to know really. I can't wait until Christmas. Merry Christmas.)

TOO CUTE!!! My kids have already sent letters throught the mail and now they want to send an email. We need to make sure Santa knows where we are and what we want.

Christmas Gift Idea

Do any of you NEED some Christmas ideas?  This is the perfect gift idea.  Just watch this commercial and you'll be heading off to the store to buy one!  They are sold at KMart and Big Lots for $5.99

Click Here To Watch Commercial

Christmas Cards....

If any of you want an awesome Christmas card from our family..... PLEASE send me your addresses right over to jamilynn14@gmail.com

THANKS ALL!!  

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Curly Locks

I was going through my cabinet under my sink in the bathroom last night and I came across these pink sponge rollers that my mom put in my hair almost EVERY night when I was little. I thought it would be fun to put them in Elli's hair, so I did. Elli was SOOOO excited to have curly hair. She knew not to take them out until it was time to get ready for preschool in the morning.

OK, here she is with them in. It's so cute. I have pictures of me with when I was little.

And this is what the result was in the morning. Uncontrollable curls. I couldn't stop laughing. Elli just though she was cute as could be, but she did say to me, "Mom, am I going to have boy hair??" It was too funny.

I had to get Elli off to preschool and had no idea what to do with this head of hair. So this was the only I could think of in my short time. It's funny though, Elli was so excited to have curls. She didn't know how funny the curls came out. I think I will have to get bigger curlers if we decide to do this again!

He Keeps Being NAUGHTY!!

Caleb has figured out the stairs. I knew this would be coming, but how dare it be so soon. He knows how to go up a few steps, but can't get down them yet. He sure knows how to laugh when he's being naughty like this. What a cute stinker!! Oh, look at those legs!!

The only way down for him is falling down. Seconds after this picture, he fell down, but only a few steps.

Another Aaawwww Moment!

I put the kids to bed and Mark went in to give them kisses and this is what he found. He grabbed my camera and took this picture. He told me, "I know you are dying to put this on your blog!" He was right, these moments make being a mother SUPER WORTH IT!!! This is my 2nd favorite part of the day! My 1st would have to be waking up with them climbing all over me!

Drake's b-day!

Ryan's oldest, Drake, had a birthday on Tuesday. They were going to Red Robin (or Red Bird as Drake calls it) for dinner that night so my Mom, Kara and I met up with them so we could say Happy Birthday. Our plan wasn't to eat dinner with them, but we did end up eating with them. My mom gives her grandkids money for their bdays and they get to decide what if they want my mom to take them shopping with it or if they want to save it. But when Drake opened his card, he said "You've got to be kidding me.... $20??" It was soo cute. He was more excited about the $20 bill than the extra $5 bill that was with it. He he was in awe of the $20 bill.

Anyway, Elli and Blayke were as cute as can be together. They are finally at an age where they want to play with girl toys together instead being stuck with all the other boys around. They are the only girls on the Harper side.

After taking 3 shots of this picture, Kara finally smiled, but then I got a cheesy smile from Drake. What can you do though?? You have to put the cuter one of the older people, right??

We were leaving Red Robin and were lucky enough to take pictures with Red Bird. Elli took this so seriously and was the only one who gave the bird a hug. She thought he was the real deal!!

Rubber Ducky ... You're the one

Braeden had just got out of the shower and I was given the other 2 a bath so I told Braeden to get in with them so I could take a picture. I love bath pictures!!

You Want S' More

Braeden finally got his wish last Saturday. Mark built a fire and we roasted marshmallows!! I had some EL Fudge cookies in the pantry (the circle ones with chocolate on one side) and we made smores. It's cheating a little bit, but it is easier with those cookies.

Thanksgiving!

We had a fun Thanksgiving! We ate dinner with my family at my parent's house. Then we went to Mark's cousin's house and ate some more dessert with his 9 cousins and all the extended family. There were probably close to a 100 people there. So it was fun! But after we went to see Twilight. I have only read the first book. I am not into it like EVERYONE else is. I didn't get what all the hype was. But I did want to see the movie since I actually read the book. But I loved it! I didn't have high expectations because I know they were on a low budget, but I thought it was great! I actually might read the other books. I do have a little crush on Edward. The way he looks at Bella was amazing! I fell in love with that look!!

Anyway, I did get to justify how much food I got to eat on Thanksgiving because YES, I did do the Turkey Trot!! I ran the whole thing!! Both my sisters did it with me and it was fun!! I still don't love running though, but it was OK. This was actually the only picture I got out of the whole Thanksgiving weekend . . . an ugly picture of me and my sister's red faces after running!!

Christmas Music....Anyone??

I am totally in the mood for Christmas music. I know, I know, Thanksgiving hasn't come yet, but I love Christmas music. As I am typing this, I am listening to Christmas music. Though, I do get annoyed that 99.9 KEZ and 94.5 KOOL FM start playing Christmas music on Halloween night. That's WAY too early. But I love this time of year and music helps me get more in the mood!

Anyway, my all time favorite Christmas song is O Holy Night!! Who doesn't love that song? If you want to listen to the best version of this song I have ever heard, listen to this one. Pause my music list at the bottom and click the ijigg thing at the top of the blog.

Sweet things Kids do

This just happened tonight and I need to write this down so I remember this.

Mark had some friends over recording some songs for a Christmas present so I took the kids out and about so it would be quiet for them. When I got back, I brought him some food because he was hungry. Well, I guess it didn't settle right with him and it ended up not staying in his belly. (To say it nicely) So when I was putting Braeden to bed, I was lying down with him talking about stuff. All of sudden Braeden said, "I feel bad Daddy doesn't feel good. Do you want to say prayers?" I thought, "Dang, why am I not asking Braeden this question." But Braeden wanted to say the prayer and the first thing he asked for was for Mark to feel better. It was a sweet prayer that I wish I had a recorded version of it. Kids have the sweetest hearts and boy does Braeden have a soft spot for Mark.

A trip to Nashville

Mark and his country band headed to Nashville last week to record some songs that they have written at the Larry Beaird recording studio.

This was an awesome experience for them since sooo many famous country bands record their music there too. Rascal Flatts, Garth Brooks, Martina McBride, Tim McGraw, etc. are just a few of the the artist who have recorded there. They came home with some AMAZING recordings and will go back again to finish their album sometime soon. The wives are the only ones who have heard the new recordings and I tell ya, they are very talented guys. I can't wait for their album to come out!

"Cause You Had A Bad Day"

Mark wasn't having a very good day on Tuesday and so Elli sent her daddy these pictures to him to cheer him up. I think it helped for a little bit until the pain in his stomach started acting up again.

Wildlife Boy

Braeden (again) has been wanting to pretend he is out in the wild. So he was thinking in his little mind about how he wanted to cut a branch down and make a boat. Only because in the episode of Man vs. Wild, the guy made a boat out of tree scraps or something like that. Braeden was trying to find something to cut the branch down and Grandpa gave him a saw.

I know, it sounds like an accident waiting to happen, but all that happened was a BIG HOLE IN THE TREE. (The last picture shows where the where he cut it down.) Sweet ole Braeden cut a huge branch off the tree and it left a big hole in their tree. It did keep him busy for a while.

Scripture Bag??

Last night, Braeden found his Book of Mormon that has been lost for a while now. Braeden would go to the library and check out a Book of Mormon because he wanted to take his scriptures to Primary. But we found his Book of Mormon in a briefcase Mark use to take to church. I didn't even think to look in there.

But Braeden made this scripture bag....made out of construction paper and staples. The handle is made out of paper too. He actually took it to church with him today. I wanted to get a picture of him holding it in his church clothes, but like every Sunday, we are running around trying to get everyone ready on time. And after church, he changed his clothes too fast.

At church, the handle of his bag ended up tearing. The Book of Mormon ended up putting a hole in the bottom when it fell out of it. Braeden was pretty bummed about it, but it was OK he said. He told me I can fix it by sewing it all together. Hmmm, should I just get him real scripture case for his B of M??

Reception

We went to my brother's best friend's wedding reception last Tuesday. It was at Stonebridge in Mesa, which is where Mark and I had our reception. They have some stairs inside and Mark showed the kids and Elli of course walked down the staris "like a princess." She was holding her dress up like princesses do. So Mark got pictures of here.

Of course Braeden had join in the to get his picture taken.


Elli asked her daddy if he would dance with her and of course he did. What a cute couple!!

What were we thinking??

Last week, my younger sister, Kara, was watching my older sister, Lisa's, kids for a week. Veteran's Day was on Tuesday and we wanted to do something to get the kids out of the house. We decided to go to Skateland!! Yeah! Bringing back the memories again! We went to lunch at Chick-Fil-A before we left and I think every other mother had the same idea as we did. There were SOOOO many kids there running around. It was madness for sure. After we almost lost our minds at Chick-Fil-A, we were crazy enough to still take them to Skateland.

When we got there, we got everyone's skates on and none of them had ever gone skating before (except for Braeden and Caden that went with me a month or so ago.) They were all scared at first and kept falling down. I even got to take Elli with me a couple times around with her tiny little skates on. Everything was going OK. Kara and I took turns staying with the 2 little kids and holding each of the bigger kids up so they wouldn't fall. If you want a fun workout, just take kids to Skateland that haven't been skating before. It will keep your heartrate up and arms pumped!!

Well, after a couple hours had gone by, Caleb started getting hungry. I asked Kara to hand me the bottle stuff and we couldn't find it anywhere. I know I filled my formula holder up with formula but couldn't find it. So I decide to go to the car to look for it...maybe it fell out of my bag. By that time, Kara was stuck on the other side while the skaters played Red Light, Green Light, so I packed up the babies, took off my skates and headed to the car. No luck there! Is wasn't in the car. So I head back inside to tell Kara that I didn't have my formula for Caleb. I decided I would take the babies home and she would stay with the older boys so they could get their energy out.

Anyway, for the little bit I was there, it was fun!! And I know the kids had fun! We got to Skateland around 1:30 and Kara didn't bring Braeden home until 6:00. Braeden couldn't stop talking about for a while. He wants to go again and is planning our next trip on for this Saturday.

We even got a visit from Spongebob. What a treat for us since we are Spongbob-aholics!

Best Moments in Life!

Braeden has recently been more interested in wildlife lately. Him and Mark watch MAN VS. WILD TV show a lot. Braeden came home from school and wanted to pretend he was in nature and had to survive out by himself. I told him to make a fishing pole out of a stick and pretend to catch fish. So he did and he climbed a tree and the ground was his water. Well, he got bored with that after a little bit. He's been wanting to build a fire, but I had to explain to him that we don't do that unless we need to and if mom or dad are around.

But when Mark and I were putting the kids to bed, we had them tell us stories instead of us telling them stories. Elli came up with this long Princess story about her and her dad (she was rubbing her fingers through his hair while she was telling her story.) It was adorable and her imagination is too cute. I wish I had her little voice recorded telling us her story.

Then Braeden was telling us his story about being in nature and how he was making a fire. Mark explained again to him that we cannot build fires in our backyard and this was their conversation about it . . . . .

Mark: "You know that we can't play with fire, right?"

Braeden: "Yes."

Mark: "Fire isn't a toy."

Braeden: "Dad, it doesn't even look like a toy so I won't play with it."

I guess it was just so cute with the way he said it. But I love those moments with my kids and Mark that are just so precious. Why can't we freeze time?

MMmmmm, Homemade Tortillas!

My sister in law, Melissa, knows how to make flour tortillas and I know how to corn tortillas, so we had a tortilla making day at my Mom's. It was fun! Very yummy tortillas and I love my tortilla press my mom got for me last Christmas. Every year for Christmas, she gives us fun kitchen gadgets and year supply. Since that is what we do a lot....COOK. I have some of the coolest kitchen gadgets because of her.

But these 2 little babies are only 3 months apart, but Tyke is a tank! All of Melissa's babies are HUGE!! They are always in clothes a year ahead of their age (or more.) Too cute! But they were taking turns in the jumper and making each other laugh. I didn't get a picture of them lauging though. Caleb looks like he thinks Tyke is weird. But what cute cousins!

Aaawwwww!

I am so spoiled to have such a happy, sweet, funny, easy, adorable little boy!! He turned 6 month last week. He is a joy to our family and I love this guy!!

Halloween "FINALLY" came

Our day started at 6:00 in the morning so I could get everyone ready. Mark had to go to work at 7 so I got him ready first. We used wig hair and Elmer's glue for this masterpiece. It's kind of scary how WHITE TRASH he really looked. He fits the part too well. This is what my handsome husband looked like when I was done with him. (I'll spare your sensitive eyes and crop his short shorts out for you.....you're welcome)

Oh, and I can't forget to leave out that he did win an award at work. He got the SCARIEST AWARD.....fitting, huh?!!?!

Then I got Braeden ready for school with his costume on, lunch made, and breakfast eaten. Here is what he looked like when he left for the bus.

My Elli had a Halloween party at her preschool too so I got her ready fast. This was her very first up-do and if I only had a video camera of her face when I was done with her hair. She thought she was the most bea-u-ti-ful princess out there. So here is our little Belle.

Caleb got his costume on when we got to Braeden's school. Here's Master Yoda.

After everyone was ready, we left for Braeden's school and watched him in his parade. Wow, those kids walk slow when you're in a hurry. But luckily we saw Braeden, blew him kisses and took pictures. He was so excited to see us there.

Braeden's fan club.

Then off to Elli's preschool parade. It was so cute watching all this age of kids all dressed up. They are the perfect age for Halloween. They are so anxious and so excited to dress up. Elli found herself another Belle and wouldn't budge from her. She stuck by her side the whole time.

I didn't get any pictures of the actual trick or treating because I couldn't find my camera in my bag where I put it, so I thought I left it at home. But I didn't, Elli just got a hold of it while I was trying to get everything together and it was stuck at the bottom of my stroller. I later found video clips when I downloaded my memory card. My camera was stuck on video mode and it was cute because she was trying to take a picture of herself.

But here's the Star Wars gang. Elli was going to be Princess Leia all along, but last minute wanted to be Belle. So I thought it would be fun for her to dress up as Belle for preschool. So that is why she was 2 things this year.

We have Master Yoda, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. What a cute bunch of trick-or-treaters!

OK, I do have to brag for a bit. A couple birthdays ago for Braeden's birthday party I got some polyester material and made Jedi costumes for each kid that came. It was very easy. No sewing was done, all I did was cut up the material and slice of hole for the head. Well, I thought I would try adding to that costume because Braeden mentioned he wanted to be Luke for Halloween. So I got more material and made Braeden a Jedi coat. (Thanks to my Mom for lending me the sewing machine.) Then Elli wanted to be a princess, so I made her a Princess Leia outfit. Then I couldn't leave Caleb out of the Star Wars theme so I made him Yoda ears and outfit. I am so proud of myself for being frugal (which I am anyways) and making my kids costumes this year. I just had to brag a bit since I am so shocked I even was able to do this. So if I can do it....you can do it!!