"Burning" in the Snow

One of my New Years resolutions was to start working out on a consistent basis. Unfortunately, I am far from being a morning person, which is my only possible time to work out, so I haven't been very good at sticking with anything. I finally committed to an exercise program which takes me through 6 weeks of grueling work outs and eating low calorie meals! Surprisingly, I haven't had too much of a problem with eating well and getting up to work out. The hardest thing was realizing my body is way out of shape and having to deal with the soreness. This week I was hating that we lived in a two story house! I finally started feeling a little bit better on Thursday, but still had some soreness in my legs....those evil squats!! Friday afternoon Ben surprised me with a professional massage as a "reward". I think he felt sorry for me.
After the massage, Ben and I caught dinner and a movie. We saw the Bucket List. It was a great film....funny, serious, tear jerker, etc. We saw our Bishop there, the second movie we have seen him at this month. Guess we are watching good films!LOL After the movie, we did our regular Walmart Stop and ran into some old friends we saw there last month, on a date night. Two "run in's" in a row....weird!


















This morning I woke up early (Wow! ) and worked out before we left for Flagstaff. My Mom was great enough to watch Sophia for us, so we didn't have to drag her along. Flagstaff was covered in snow. In fact, we didn't even have to go all the way up to Flagstaff to find a place to sled. We took an exit, about 15 minutes out of Flagstaff, and followed it up to a great spot. Soon after we got there about 6 other cars showed up. Guess it's a common place...it was a lucky guess. We had a great time and so did the kids. Ethan was having a hard time climbing the hills b/c the snow was so deep. So Ben and I (mainly Ben) had to carry him. It was very hard on my legs from all the working out I have been doing, therefore the "Burning in the Snow"! After an hour and 1/2 of sledding, the kids started getting wet ( mainly Boston's hands) so we packed it up and headed out.







On the way home we were all hungry and we saw a sign for Johnny Rockets. We have a weakness for that spot since Ben and I both worked there. (So much for a low calorie diet!) We didn't realize that the restaurant was in a Casino, but luckily it was right by the doors so we didn't' have to pass by too many slots! The kids enjoyed a fun lunch! They all took turns picking out songs on the juke box, and were lucky enough to see the employees dance. We dared them to go out and join them, and finally Aubrie and Boston got out and started dancing. The people in the restaurant got a kick out of it and later on Boston said that was his favorite part of his day. Right next to Johnny Rockets was a bowling alley. The kids begged and we caved( I actually wanted to play myself!). So we all played one game. The kids did really good, carrying their own balls and throwing them themselves. Boston had a good spin on his, Aubrie was all about THROWING it down the lane, and Ethan was good with the Granny style. They all scored around 60, which isn't bad without help. I won't mention my score! Ben ended w/ 2 strikes! All I have to say is that Wii bowling threw me off!LOL

On our way home the kids starting fighting over Boston's Nintendo DS. Thankfully, I remembered the Alphabet game, and Aubrie really had a good time doing that. She wanted to play it the whole way home. Towards the end, Boston joined in, too! We ended up playing it 5 times.
We finally got home around 4:30. I really missed Sophia, and was excited to see her. She was happy and kept following me wherever I went. It was really cute. I spent time with her and watched some professional ice skating , the kids played w/ friends and Ben started putting his weight set together. Ben has had so much exercise equipment through out our marriage, and hasn't ever really used it! It all started our first Christmas when he asked for an Ab Roller. That never got used! I'm hoping things will change w/ this "gym" he is putting together in the garage!
Tonight the boys went hot tubing while Aubrie and I played Memory. Then we all played Disney scene it? The kids have had a FULL day, and I am exhausted. Thank Heavens for a day of rest....ha! I wish Sunday's were restful. Maybe when Sophia is in the Nursery!

Back in Session

Well school is back in session and things are getting back to normal around here, which includes waking up early, dealing with homework and after school activities, ugh! The bright side is that it gets me going in the morning and having a structured day is good for us! The kids have done well, jumping back into the thick of things. Ethan is doing great, too! I was concerned he might slip back into his old ways...crying and whining, but he is doing so well we are now trying preschool 3 days a week. Today he was a little confused at first, but I told him to give me "5", and he did and then he was off to play.

Ethan has had some "funnies" and some "firsts" this week. This Sunday was his first Sunday in the primary. I wasn't there for it, b/c I was sick:( But here it is from Ben....

He was not too happy to go in since he would no longer be treated to treats on demand and toys all over the place. I took him into the primary room and he would not let go of me and started to fuss. His new teacher, sister Rigby, asked Ethan to be her special helper and ended up holding him in her lap for the entire time. I think that Ethan was working her, but he seemed content sitting in her lap. I checked in on him every now and again to make sure that he was alright. He seemed to be fine as the day went on.
....thanks Ben. Wish I could enjoy the help of more entries from him, but I'm not counting on it!

Monday morning I had to get Ethan out of bed to go to school. He was not waking up and so I had to dress him while he laid there comatose! I had to leave his room for a second to get something and when I walked back by his room I saw him sitting up on his bed. When he saw me he quickly laid back down and pretended he was sleeping, again. I said "Ethan, I caught you" as I continued to walk on by. He then yelled back, "you got me Mom, you got me!" Then on Wednesday I was getting him ready for school and he pulled his Book of Mormon out of his drawer and said, "Mom I'm going to bring this for Show and Tell". I told him that was a great idea, but he needed something that started with an "S". He said, "I know Mom, Scriptures!" I was impressed!!! Then I told him to go put them in his backpack and get his shoes on. When I came downstairs that funny boy was making his own lunch. He actually thought about how he needed a lunch, and by the time I got down there he already had a yogurt and applesauce with a spoon in there. I asked him if he wanted a sandwich, as I pulled a sandwich out of the fridge I had already premade. He said, "Oh ya, that would be GREAT"! The things he does just take me back! I just LOVE his personality.

Today Ethan was having grahm crackers w/ milk. I told him to he should keep the cup on the paper plate, so he wouldn't drip milk on the table. He didn't want to do it that way. Two minutes later he said, "Ooops, I spilled milk. I'm sorry Mom! I should have listened to you". If only I could hear that from my children more often!!

Aubrie had a BIG learning experience this week. She has been wanting a new Comforter for a VERY long time. Her's was getting old, faded and falling apart. They were having a sale at Target on a really cute quilt, and so I bought it and surprised her with it on Monday. Last night Ben told her to go to bed, but instead she started coloring on her bed (with marker). Well I probably don't have to tell you the rest. It ended in much tears and apologizing and me telling her it wouldn't come out and that when you don't' obey sometimes bad things happen. She said she prayed that it would come out, and I told her that maybe Heavenly Father wanted her to learn her lesson on obeying. I told her that everytime she saw the mark it would remind her to be obedient. She then said, "Well did he have to make me learn that lesson when my bedspread was so new"! Ha!!!!! After I was done controlling my laughter, I told her that she probably wouldn't have learned much if it was an old bedspread. Luckily the mark is up by the pillows...easily disguisable!;)
Aubrie has a hard time staying on task! She is so easily distracted with things going on around her. On Tuesday it took her 3 hours to do chores that should have taken 20 minutes. I decided to try a timer. Yesterday I set the timer and watched her go to town. She put her ipod on and quickly went to work. She was done w/ chores, reading and homework in an hour! Why didn't I think of the timer earlier? duh!

I was on Bostons bad list this morning. He came to me this morning (why not yesterday?), with tears in his eyes, saying "I missed Ben's birthday party". Ben is one of his best friends at school. They had his party January 5th and handed the invitations out before school got out....you do the math and factor in Holiday chaos!! He cried all through breakfast. Not that spoiled brat cry, but that "I feel so bad I missed his party" cry. I felt awful, and am trying to arrange a play date for the two. I love Boston's sensitive side, but sometimes it can be so heart wrenching!!

This afternoon Aubrie had her first singing lesson. He teacher made a CD of her lesson, so she could practice along during the week. It's almost a free lesson for the rest of us! She said Aubrie did well and seemed to really enjoy herself! After her lesson she went to Madison's (her best from from Kindergarten) birthday party at Pump It Up. Aubrie is excited to go to West Wing next year and be with her. While she was there the rest of us went to Streets to eat and "celebrate" Boston having made first Honors last semester. Yeah, I know he is in Kindergarden, but if we make it a big deal now hopefully he will keep up the good work! We were going out to eat anyway, but he didn't know that!;) After Streets we picked up Aubrie and made a Target run, I think my 5th this week....pathetic!

A January day...gotta love Phoenix!

READING TIME!!!!

Happy New Year!

Wow, I am still recovering from New Years Eve. Usually Ben and I ring in the New Year in our own family room, with a bottle of Sparkling Cider, watching the ball drop at Times Square. I remember one year, and I'm thinking it was last year being pregnant and all, that we went to bed before Midnight. Well we made up for that this year.
I started my day with a Mother/Son date with Boston. We went to see the Water Horse, which was pretty good, and then we walked around the Mall. Then we made a stop at McDonald's. I asked him to pick ANYWHERE he wanted to eat, and lucky me I got to go to McDonald's...ha! ha! While we were in the play area Boston asked me to time him as he raced through the play structure. He did that a couple of times, and had fun trying to beat his previous "time". As we were leaving to go home I asked, "Boston, what was your favorite thing we did today?". I was expecting him to say the Movie, or the kids pack I bought him at the Theatre that included popcorn, candy and a drink (total rip off by the way). But, NO, he said, "me racing through the play area?" I guess next time I can save 30 bucks and skip the movie!!

For New Years Eve we went to the Frandsen's house to ring in the new year. My Mom was great enough to watch the kids. Ben and I grabbed some dinner and killed some time at Walmart and Blockbuster before we headed over to their house. On the way over there I was telling Ben how tired I was. That was at 8:30! We started off eating, well not me b/c I was full from dinner, and socializing. Then we decided to start a game of Mofia. That basically took us till 1:30am!! You would think that would be enough, but then they pulled Rock Band out and we played that until 2:30. After talking for another hour, we were out the door by 3:30 and home a little before 4:00. Unfortunately I have this problem where I have to wind down a significant amount of time when I get home from something. So I didn't fall asleep until a little before 5:00....ouch!!

On New Years day Ben took the kids over to his brother, Matt's, to check out some new stuff he got and to visit. I was able to get an hour nap in....not enough! I spent the rest of the day cleaning out my closet, a task I haven't tackled since we moved in! Goodbye maternity clothes, in between clothes, and way too skinny cloths!!! I was too tired to make dinner, so we ran in the New Year w/ McDonald Happy Meals and Panda Express...LOL!! Aubrie gave a cute FHE, she read the Christmas Story out of Luke by herself, and had the kids act out stuff. A week late, but still very cute. We also went over family goals for the year. One of our family goals is to work together as a family. When the kids do something good we will put a quarter in a jar and when the jar fills up we are going to Disneyland. It's a big jar!:)
I was so tired by the end of the night, but we still had Ben's sisters and Mom over for some Chicken Feet ( a cool domino game). I probably would have not had them over, but Amber was going home the next day. They left around 10:00. We had fun!

Yesterday I really felt my lack of sleep and I started getting sick. I was so tired throughout the day...my old body sure can't take the late nights!! I cleaned out Sophia's closet and started on Aubrie's. I actually mustered the strength to make dinner. Ben took the boys to the mall to return some shoes so I could relax. Aubrie was such a big helper with Sophia. She played with her and fed her, while I lied comatose on the couch. She even put her to bed!! Then I could hear her in the kitchen doing something with water. She brought me a glass of water and a bowl with water and a washcloth. She put the washcloth on my head. I guess she thought I had a fever:) The 20 minutes of sleep I got on the couch threw me off, and so I still didn't fall asleep till Midnight.

Today was much better. It took me awhile to get out of bed, but once I did things were productive. We made a trip to the Mall and got a few errands accomplished! We had a few "circus acts", Ethan banging his head in the shoe store and some teenagers cutting in front of me in line at another store, RUDE! But we survived it all and made a short stop at McDonalds for an ice cream cone and a little time in the play area. I was the hero!;) Sophia did so well the whole time. Tonight we made our "family" trip to Sams and Walmart for some groceries and school supplies. I guess they like to get us twice a year now!!

Well that's the New Year so far. I haven't exercised yet, that will come when school starts...along with the good eating! So far scripture study and maintaining my composure around the kids is going good!!:) I love the New Year....a fresh start!!!

Christmas 2007 and Beyond

Christmas Day was wonderful and relaxing. Those two usually don't go in the same sentence. Usually we are rushing through our presents so we can rush over to Ben's parents, to open presents. Then we are rushing home to clean up and get started on all the dishes we plan on taking over to Ben's parents....you get the idea. This year I wanted things to be more simple. So I decided that we would take our time opening our gifts and have a nice breakfast and go over to Ben's parents when we were ready. It really doesn't matter if we are there when everyone else open gifts, b/c we all get the same thing anyway. Even with us taking our time, it still ended up that we got there about the same time everyone else did. After opening gifts, we came home and relaxed. I made dinner simple this year; the raspberry chipotle dip for starters, then a ham, mashed potatoes, my Shoepeg casserole, sweet potatoes and store bought rolls for dinner. We were all in charge of making something, so I didn't spend all day in the kitchen. It was actually the perfect amount food! We filled our day watching the Christmas Story, the Testaments and the kids played with their toys.

The kids had a great Christmas. Boston was excited to get his Nintendo DS. I swear he had DS radar. We put his gift behind the tree so it would be the last gift opened. The next thing we know Boston is in the middle of opening it. I don't even think their was a name tag on it! He also was happy to get several games to go with it! His other gifts included some Star Wars Legos, Magnetix, some Wii games and clothes. I never have seen a 6 year old BOY so excited to get clothes!

Aubrie enjoyed a new shuffle loaded with Hannah Montana and High School Musical. I feel like I have a teenager, her beboping around and not being able to hear anything I tell her. She also got a jewlery box, a lot of clothes from Justice (one of her favorite clothing stores), a baby set that included a high chair, pack and play, stroller and swing. She has been wanting that for a long time. She also got a handful of other things, like the rest of the kids!

Ethan's favorite toy was a cleaning cart. I found it at Ross and instantly knew it was for him. It has mops and a mop bucket, and broom and "pretend" cleaning bottles, and sponges etc. All Christmas day he was going around cleaning all the rooms. That's all he did for the next couple of days. Moon Sand and a Nerf gun was also high on his list! All the kids also got Razor scooters from Santa. They didn't touch those much, until they made it through all their toys and ventured out front! My Dad also bought them digital cameras, the cheap kid kind of course. That was also a favorite! Ethan took many pictures of his cleaning cart!!:)

Sophia didn't get much, of course. She doesn't even know what's going on and she has plenty of toys and clothes from the other kids already. Her favorite thing was eating the wrapping paper!

Ben surprised me with a trip to see Wicked and a new Camera, and Ben enjoyed a new shuffle and some work out clothes. We also bought ourselves an early Christmas present, a generator! To bad preparing spiritually can't be as easy as preparing physically!

We ended our Christmas day starting a 750 piece puzzle. My Mom bought it for Aubrie, only looking at the picture and not realizing the amount of pieces. I should have known better than to start it. I love puzzles, and also can't stop once I get going. Aubrie did a pretty good job helping and finding pieces I just couldn't find. She has an eye for puzzles! My Dad joined us around 10:00 pm and Aubrie, my Dad and I finally went to bed at 12:30!

The next day we woke up and finished the puzzle. It took us about 7 hours, total, to finish it. I had to leave that one sitting on the dining room table for a few days! It hurt to finally break it down and put it back in the box.

Later that day my Dad and I enjoyed some Daddy/ Daughter time at Red Robin. That evening my brother Joe came over to spend time with my Dad, and Ben and the kids and I went to see the movie "Enchanted". It was a cute movie. The kids really enjoyed it and kept going over their favorite scenes on the way home!

Thursday morning my Dad left, with tears in his eyes (mine were a little watery, too) and then Ben and I rushed to Home Depot to get paint for the kids bedrooms. We picked out a nice blue for the boys room, and Aubrie picked out a bright pink for her room. It was way too bright, and I couldn't convince her on a lighter pink, so instead of fighting her I just switched the paint chips when we had them make the paint. Good thing, b/c the lighter pink is still quite bright! Luckily the white bead board in her room softens up the color a little! Of course, the bead board is still only half way done, so Aubrie has been sleeping in our room the past couple of days!! Why do we start these projects?! LOL

Friday Ben went golfing with a friend while I stayed home catching up on 20 loads (not really but it sure felt like it!) of laundry. I also cleaned out the boys closet and the kids craft cabinet! I feel like after hours of work I didn't even make a dent in all the organizing I still have left to do! Later that night we finally finished all our returns. We had a few at the mall and somehow we left that place spending more money than we got back. After returns, we grabbed some dinner at Uncle Sams, a pizza/ hoagie place we hadn't tried yet. Their pizza was yummy and their is a new hoagie that I am already addicted to! (Chicken, mushroom, cheese toasted and served w/ honey BBQ sauce for dipping. YUM!!!)

Pictures we took at Uncle Sams!

Saturday I met up with Ben's Mom and the Sister-in-laws for lunch at Chilis. Aubrie wanted to go to Pets Mart afterward, and convinced Krista to come along. Krista ended up getting a tabby cat that looks like our cat Simba. Aubrie insisted we visit her and her cat later, so after dinner Aubrie and I made a trip over there. When we got back the family played Aubrie's new High School Musical game. It's pretty fun watching the kids do the dancing and singing parts! After the game, Ben headed off to his "Fight Night" get together...still don't understand the appeal of watching that stuff! Anyway, while Ben was gone Aubrie and I enjoyed some alone time.

Sunday we were running a little slow. The kids have been waking up later, and so we forgot that we had to set our "real" alarm clock! We made it to the last two meetings which were really good. The Laurels were in Relief Society, so Erin and I got to go to RS, too! We sat in the very back w/ our babies. Sophia, of course, didn't want to fall asleep so I passed her off to Ben so I could enjoy the lesson. It was on supporting our leaders! We spent our afternoon playing Disney Scene it with the kids. Sunday night we had dinner over at Ben's parents. We had a ham dinner and I brought my yummy Seven Layer Salad. I have to remember to double the salad next time. It went fast and everyone went for seconds only to be disappointed that there was nothing left. They brought out the Ninetendo 2 for the kids, so that kept them busy while we all visited. After we got back, Ben's sisters came over for games and visiting. Aubrie wanted to stay up w/ us and play games. So we played 10 minutes of Disney scene it? and one round of Hide and Go Seek. After we got her to bed, we played Chicken Feet (a domino game) and Ultimate Spoons. I have to play that game with the YW sometime. They will love it!

Well, that's a wrap of our 2007 Christmas and Beyond. Now it's time to take down the Christmas decorations (outside is actually down already), make new goals for the new year (working out and consistent scripture study are always a winner) and preparing for early school mornings and endless activities (our new additions are voice lessons for Aubrie and Karate for the boys)...Heaven help me and give me strength! Only 4 1/2 months till summer!!! My Mom took Ethan out on Saturday. This is what he came home with!:)

8 days of Christmas

Isn't it ironic how when you have the most memories to write down, you don't have the time to write them all down. I've accepted this as a basic truth as the Holidays have quickly closed in on me. There have been so many times I have thought, "I need to make sure that gets recorded on the blog", and I now I won't even scratch the surface on writing them all of down. So here are my "8 days of Christmas"!

Monday night we spent with Ben's parents and sisters, Amber and Krista. We met for dinner at Top Shelf (a Mexican restaurant close by) and then went to look at Christmas lights. There is a house nearby who goes all out. They have it set up where you can park and walk around their yard and they have a popcorn machine going for "their guests". Sometimes Santa is there, but this time we missed him:( The kids still had a great time.

Tuesday I finally committed to baking. It has been haunting me on my "to do" list, being pushed over day to day for a few weeks now! It was my Mom's day off, so I figured I could enlist her help. I went simple this year, Almond and Peppermint Bark and Peanut Butter Cup cookies, one of the family favorites. I put together 20 containers....whew!!! After dinner, we took the kids and we delivered them to families in the ward, who we hadn't already received a gift from us. The kids had a great time taking turns delivering them. We were glad they were excited to do it, since it was a little chilly that night!

Wednesday Ethan had his Christmas "party" at preschool. We basically showed up to help them decorate an ice cream cone like a Christmas tree and Nutter Butters like snowmen. It was a very cute idea, I think I will do that next year w/ the kids. He had a hard time icing the "tree" but he had a great time decorating the whole thing with M&M's, his VERY favorite candy! After school, the kids had a late piano practice w/ some of the other students to prepare for their recital. After that practice, it was determined that Boston and his friend Thomas were not allowed to sit next to one another at the recital. LOL Ok I just realized they had their practice on Tuesday...that's what happens when I get behind on things. Wednesday night we capitalized on the Soft Opening of Jumba Juice. They were giving out free drinks from 4-6, on Tuesday and Wednesday night. Of course, we went both nights. Ben can't ever pass up a good deal. In fact, he spent about 20 minutes calling different families in the ward to let them know. We saw several people from the ward while we were there. I don't' think anyone in our family will be wanting a Jumba Juice for a few weeks!! Wednesday night was the joint Young Men and Young Women activity. They used the firetruck, that brought Santa in at the Ward Party, to carry a trailer (with hay of course) for Christmas Caroling. Erin brought her two oldest girls and I brought Aubrie. They had a good time and so did the youth. The 12 year old boys were a little troublesome, giving me a glimpse of what I'm hoping I won't have to deal with in 6 years! Our first stop was Ben's parents (who are now in our ward). Aubrie was so excited, jumping off the trailer and running into Aunt Amber's arms. Too bad I forgot my camera:( Our youth are so spoiled! I'm glad I can be a part of it! Hee Hee!:) Later that night Krista and Amber came over for cards.

Thursday I had to finish up some Christmas shopping. I usually NEVER put my shopping off to the last minute, b/c procrastination gives me panick attacks! But my Dad called and said he was coming for Christmas, so I had to run and get him some gifts. Then to top things off, Lorraine's gift wasn't working. I made her a huge clock and the time piece was broken. So I had to run and get her something else. Luckily I found a beautiful Star Diamond Pendant for a GREAT price! Mother-in-laws are sooooo hard to shop for. Anyone else agree? Luckily there were no crowds at Kohls (that's where we went), but things were still CRAZY! I had all the kids w/ me and both Aubrie and Ethan wanted to push Sophia in the cart. Of course, I wasn't about to let Ethan push Sophia! Things got a little dramatic, until I told him he could push Boston in a cart. Luckily Boston was a good sport about it! As soon as we got that figure out, they all had to go to the bathroom. After that, Ethan started pushing Boston all crazy, and as Aubrie was looking at Ethan and yelling at him to stop she wasn't paying attention to where she was pushing Sophia. Sophia was holding on to the front bar of the cart, and Aubrie pushed her right into a center display, crushing one of her fingers. Sophia started to wail and then Aubrie started to cry hysterically b/c she hurt her. I then told everyone we should just go home and asked them to take the carts back. Then Boston and Ethan started fighting over who was going to do that. I sure gave everyone in the store a good show! Amazingly, I somehow regained control and walked out of there with all the Christmas presents I needed! Whew! That night we did our grocery shopping for Christmas dinner. Walmart was a MADHOUSE!! Luckily Ben was with me so we were able to divide and conquer....although sometimes I think the kids do better when it's just me. Why is that? Ben mainly comes in handy with loading up the car and bringing the groceries in the house!!

Friday was probably the craziest day of them all! It started off normal, getting the kids off to school. The only difference was that I had to make sure Aubrie's hair was "performance" ready for her recital. They were able to have a few hours at their school Christmas parties before we had to pull them out for the recital (their school was the only one in session for that day!). Both Aubrie and Boston did a great job!! Neither one missed a single note and their timing was awesome. Finally they were able to see the "fruits of their labor" ! After their recital Ben went golfing w/ his Dad and a friend from the ward, while me and the kids hung out at home. We then went to see the new National Treasure Movie, "Book of Secrets" w/ the kids (minus Sophia) and Ben's parents and sisters. It was VERY good. We saw several people in the ward there. We Mormons can't resist a GREAT Disney family film! After the movie, Krista came over and we (minus all the kids) watched Disturbia. It was a great scary movie, but I have realized I am getting too sensitive to scary movies. Even "I Am Legend" was too much for me. I have always liked a good scary flick....what's happening to me?!

Ethan and one of his friends, Andrew (Thomas's brother..see above) at the kids piano recital!

Saturday Aubrie went to The Nutcracker with Ben's Mom and the Sister-in-laws. They said she kept them entertained, jabbering on about anything and everything. That is my Aubrie..the jabber jaw! Boston had a fun time at a Birthday party for one of his school mates. It was held at one of those "Soft Play" centers. The place is about 20 minutes from here, so Ben just took him and got some shopping done while I worked on my YW lesson. Luckily I was able to finish it up before my Dad arrived, around 2:30. Then I took my Dad out to get some shopping done...ARGH....it was a MADHOUSE!! On the way home I made my life easier and picked up Sonic. Then I made a gingerbread house with the kids. Boston made a small gingerbread house at school and he said, "Mom my gingerbread house can be like the playhouse to the big one"!

Sunday morning was crazy as usual...I can't wait for the new block...11:30!! Luckily Ben's parents went early, since the girls are in town, and saved us a seat! Sophia did alright, until the last 10 minutes, so I was able to enjoy most of the Christmas Sacrament Program. Aubrie was a little upset b/c she went to one of the practices for the Christmas Program and so she thought she was going to be singing. Things were too crazy for me, and I feel bad leaving Ben with all the kids during sacrament, especially with Sophia being so demanding, so I stopped going. Aubrie was a little crushed when the the little kids had their singing part. I ended up doing my lesson on the Three Wise Men and the Star. I talked about the guiding stars in our life that can lead us back to the Savior. It was a good lesson for me. Funny how that always works out! Sunday afternoon my brother Joe cam over to visit. He ended up staying for dinner and then we played a little Guitar Hero and visited. After Joe left and the kids were in bed, Ben's sisters came over for some games. We had so much fun! We played Scattegories, Trivial Pursuit Pop Culture, Scene It? the Second Edition, Ultimate Spoons (my new favorite), and finished with some good old fashion Hide and Go Seek! The first time I crammed myself under Ben's Bathroom sink. I was so uncomfortable. They couldn't find me fast enough!! Finally, I started making noises to help them out. Another time I hid in the Linen Closet, and they couldn't find me, again. I was much more comfortable wedged between blankets instead of towels and Ben's mouth wash, etc, so I waited a bit longer before I made noises. All those games made me feel like a college kid again, except when I pulled something in my leg as I was leaping over Amanda for a spoon! I had pain all night, and realized that I wasn't as young as I used to be. We didn't finish games until 1:45. Amazingly I haven't been tired all day!!!

Today started off like the Movie "Jingle All the Way". Boston has been wanting a Nintendo DS for Christmas, and Ben has been putting off getting it for him. Well today he realized why I kept harping on him to get it. I spent all morning calling stores to see if they had it. I was to the point of tears, knowing how much Boston deserved it...being he is so good and it was the ONLY thing he really has asked for! Luckily Costco came through for us, at a HEFTY price. I guess Ben had to learn the hard way! After we got that resolved, I sang (Christmas songs ) as I wrapped and wrapped and wrapped (sound familiar?). It is very unlike me (seems to be a theme this year) to not wrap my gifts as soon as I buy them. It was quite overwhelming to have so many things to wrap. So, unlike me, I wasn't enjoying the wrapping and my wrapping wasn't as artistic as I like to make it!! After all my wrapping, I played outside with the kids until it was time for our Christmas Eve plans. We started our evening taping Ethan "reading" his "Cookie" book. He has the thing memorized to a "T". The first time he did it Aubrie was in awe, thinking he learned to read. Anyway, it's really cute to watch. Then we recorded the kids singing Christmas Songs. After that we watched the church DVD "Finding Faith in Christ". I then gave a condensed version of my lesson on the Wise Men. After that, the kids made cookies while Ben went to pick up the Pizza (my new Christmas Eve dinner tradition I have decided to start!:). After pizza, we let the kids open up their Christmas PJ's. After baths, we made reindeer food and they spread it out on the lawn. Ethan dumped his bag in one spot, Aubrie quickly ran around the lawn and dumped her's in several spots. Then there was Boston, slowly and methodically sprinkling the lawn a little at a time. When Aubrie caught on to what he was doing she said, "How did he think of doing that? Boston is so smart!" After reindeer food, we prepared Santa's plate. Then Boston said, " Don't' you think Santa will get a tummy ache?", referring to all the cookies he would be eating. I told him that was smart thinking and asked him if we should leave him an apple. Now there is one sugar cookie, an apple and 9 carrot sticks...for the reindeer, on the plate! The kids then wrote a letter to Santa, and then wrote their Service gifts. These are like "service coupons" that they put in one another's stockings. After they got everything ready, Ben's family came over for dessert. Now they are gone and we are watching our all time favorite Christmas movie, "Christmas Vacation"! All the gifts are wrapped, whew!, the house is clean and now all I have to do is fill the stockings and eat the food on Santa's plate:) Hope that I get some good rest so I can enjoy tomorrow. I can't believe another Christmas is almost past! What a wonderful season. I love how it softens every one's heart to serve and show compassion and love. If only this spirit could always remain all year! One day:)!!!! Merry Christmas EVERYONE!!

Boston's teacher was so great with the Christmas Holiday. Boston came home everyday for the past week and a half with some Christmas art project. Here they all are!

Aubries gift to me, that she made at school!!

What happens in this family when you aren't reverent during sacrament prayers! Boston got them, too! Sweet boy did them first thing when he got home. I cut his in half!!!