Bosley Family

California

2012-02-12T14:23:00.000-08:00

New Year's Day, after church, the kids and I drove to California. My parents kept up their Christmas decorations for us. We had dinner and opened presents Sunday night when we got there. I was a little nervous to drive being so tired, but I really did fine. We stopped once at a rest stop to use the restroom and that was it. We had tacos and they were so good. Griffin and his fiance Leola were there that night and it was so fun.

Monday we went to the park with Tiff and her kids. Bekah didn't have school that day so it was fun to hang out with them all day. Cousins just love being together- so fun to watch. That night we had pizza and went looking at Christmas lights- thankfully a lot of people still had them up. When we got home we watched "A Muppet Christmas Carol." I love that movie!

Tuesday: no pictures. Carson went in the morning with Grandma Karla to watch her bowl in her bowling league and I took the girls to go pick up cousin Jaina from preschool. For the afternoon we just played games and played outside. In the evening we met my grandparents and my uncle, along with my parents, at Home Town Buffet and enjoyed dinner with them.

Wednesday: no pictures. We went in the morning to Grandma Bosley's and met her for a morning at the beach. The weather was gorgeous. Brooke, Jake and Kate met us at the beach and it was heavenly. Probably one of my favorite days! After the beach we went to Grandma's for lunch and Brooke, Jake and Kate went to run some errands. We played Yahtzee with Grandma and then went to Brooke and Jake's to go in the jacuzzi. For dinner we went to Cafe Rio. It was a wonderful day. Late that night my sister Brook got to my parents with her three kids, we loved having them come for a couple of days to hang out with us.

Thursday: We took a picnic lunch to a park and fed the ducks. The kids each brought a scooter and had fun on those. While we were feeding the ducks quite a few of us ended up on top of the tables. There were really mean geese trying to bite us. It was pretty scary. That night Tiff, Tim and their girls came over to act out the Nativity. We waited that long so Carson could have some other boys to share the male roles with.

Friday: no pictures. In the morning Brook, Tiff and I went to get pedicures. After that we played and then ended up giving everyone, except Abbey, either a haircut or trim. It was pretty fun. That night we had IN-N-OUT for dinner and I went with my dad to pick it up. We listened to Christmas music, something I had been longing to do all season. I just had a big desire to drive in the car with my dad and listen to Christmas music- I remember doing that so much with him as a teenager and loving it! Mom, Brook and I went to a baby shower that night, when we got home we played Polish Poker and then Brook took her kids back home.

On Saturday we went bowling with Grandma Karla, Tiff, Bekah and Jaina. On the way we bought Disney Sing It and really had fun playing that together that night. I tried to be more relaxed about letting the kids stay up later and they thought that was great. We had a spaghetti dinner that night and played games. Sunday morning we said goodbye to G & G, went to 9am sacrament meeting with my sister and then drove home. Some friends invited us for dinner and then Carson and I went to Stake choir practice. We had a wonderful time in CA, as always, and no matter how long we are there it NEVER feels long enough!

New Year's Eve

2012-02-12T13:08:00.000-08:00

We hosted New Year's Eve this year, although we did not provide the entertainment.

The Jensen's came armed with sparklers and Disney's Sing It Wii!

We had a really fun time, eating, talking and laughing.

I barely made it to midnight, I hadn't slept well the night before and got up REALLY early to go to the temple. It was great to ring in the New Year with people I love!

Carson's Birthday Party

2012-02-12T12:57:00.000-08:00

On Thursday Dec. 29 we had Carson's birthday party.

The cookie cake was awesome!

Mom's homemade pizza was good!

Playing video games was fun!

Carson is now 11 and we love him a ton!

Christmas Day 2011 or Pure Delight

2012-02-10T09:16:00.000-08:00

The tree was decked.

The stockings were filled.

The children were excited.

The stockings were emptied.

The Santa gift was discovered.

Before church four presents were unwrapped.

This is where the story begins. The morning was perfect. Stockings and the the Santa gift followed by our traditional Christmas casserole breakfast- a true favorite. Having Christmas on Sunday is officially my very favorite day to have it on.

This was helped by the fact that our good Bishop arranged to have us combine with another ward at 10:00am, so we did not have to go to church at 8am. That might have been my best Christmas present :). Carson and I sang in the combined Christmas Choir. I knew it was going to be hard to get through my solo the moment we started singing the first few notes of the opening song. I was so overcome with emotion as I looked out and saw all of these people that I love. The ward we combined with was the one we were split off from a year and a half ago. I totally wasn't expecting that level of emotion. The choir performed for all of sacrament meeting and it was perfect. I love Christmas Sundays with musical programs. I did make it through my solo, but had to put my hand up to my heart at one point so as to calm myself and not go totally into the ugly cry, while singing "Christ the Savior is born, Christ the Savior is born."

Christ is the BEST part of Christmas and I am so thankful for my testimony of Him. Everything good in my life is from Him and our Heavenly Father. I am humbled by their love for me. I only hope to show that same kind of love to my children and husband. I know my Father lives and loves me too, the Spirit whispers this to me and tells me it is true. I also know that our Lord and Savior, our brother, lives, loves and died for us. I am grateful for the knowledge that because of His sacrifice, there is a chance for me to repent of my sins and be made whole through Him.

Next up, changing out of our church clothes and opening the rest of the gifts:

A joke gift for Ryan- a new ironing board cover- we've needed a new one for three years ever since I tried to use sticky, iron-on adhesive for Carson's Cub Scout patches. Since Ryan does his own ironing this gift was for him!

A "Cuttlebug" a cool embossing and die cutting tool for me to use to make cards and scrapbook.

Cambryn with the cat that Morgan picked out for her. Ryan and I take the kids out one on one for ice cream dates every Wednesday. We switch off months and December was my month to take them. So when I took them for ice cream, with the exception of Carson who shopped at his school's Micro sales, we also went and picked out the gifts they wanted to get for each other. I LOVED watching them choose out what to get for everybody, and when they saw it they KNEW that was just the present they HAD to get. They were very excited to watch their siblings open what they had picked.

Morgan with her red notebook, that I confess I did have to threaten that if she asked to go to the store to show it to us one more time, if we had bought it I just might take it back! She is so sweet, and was definitely being a broken record about this notebook. I just couldn't take it anymore.

Carson with his Mario Kart Wii- hours of fun this has provided- for Carson and Ryan.

My slippers from the kids- I have worn them pretty much everyday- I love them.

A fire pit for Ryan- he wasn't very surprised- note to self: next time take cash out so the purchase cannot be tracked. Darn that joint checking account and a husband that works at the bank so he looks at the account!

A huge teddy bear Morgan saw and fell in love with!

Cambryn's doll with button eyes that she put on her list. I wasn't sure exactly what she meant, but when we were at FRY'S she showed me what she meant. This request cracked me up, but she was super thrilled!

Bristyn with her big red ball the only thing on her list that was clear, otherwise she just put things like a purple toy, fun toys, stuff like that- it was super cute.

Carson with his gift from Cambryn, a magic set, she knew he would love!

This is the picture where I get to brag about myself a little bit. And for those who know what this means- please take note of the zero-head-tilt involved in this picture. My husband is pretty great, you already knew that, I thought I would remind you, in case you forgot. Anyway, I wanted to get him something he really wanted and would not be expecting. He has been talking about and i-pod touch for a couple of years, so I knew he really wanted one. One of my friends posted a link on FB for a coupon that gave you a $10 gift card if you spent $50 or more at Target. I quickly printed it out and checked Target's ad. Target was offering a $25 gift card with any i-pod touch purchase- sweet. I thought- I'll just check the coupons on their site also- score- I found a coupon that was for 10% off an i-pod touch. I went the next day armed with my coupons, and learning my lesson from Ryan asking questions about my purchase at Lowe's, I got cash out and went one step further and got Target gift cards at our grocery store- giving us quadruple points towards our gas savings. I was feeling pretty smart! To increase the drama- I made sure that this present was saved for the last one. His expression and reaction were exactly what I was hoping for- he deserves so many things for the hard work he puts in for our family. This was a very small gesture to show him how much I appreciate what he does for us. He is a wonderful father, who loves and is involved with his kids. He is a generous and giving husband. I guess this is as good a time as any to announce to blog-land that I am pregnant with our fifth child- such a giver this man- I LOVE HIM SO MUCH!!!!!

Everyone, except me, on Monday, enjoying Santa's gift. I will have to wait a while before I can enjoy it. But boy-howdy it looks fun!

Christmas Eve

2011-12-28T06:59:00.000-08:00

The girls helped daddy make cookies for Santa, while mom was in the shower. We opted for sugar cookies this year- I picked up some already made dough the day before, when I was out doing the Christmas food shopping. Bristyn did so much shopping with me this year and it was starting to wear on her. When we shopped for food on Friday, she kept asking if it was time to go home. For the third year in a row we had Christmas Eve dinner with the Jensens. It was perfect, as always. Most entertaining was Carson who had to figure out how to be Joseph, the wise men and the sheperds- since he was the only boy. There are no pictures of the kids acting out the nativity- the battery on our camera died. Also missing are pictures of the moms and the oldest kids from both familys. We were there though, having a wonderful time. As we count our blessing/gifts this Christmastime, the Jensens are definitely counted. We are so grateful for their love and friendship. When we got home from the Jensens the kids put out cookies and milk for Santa and left carrots and reindeer food for Rudolph and the other reindeer.

Carson is Eleven!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-12-26T16:01:00.001-08:00

On Friday December 23 Carson had his birthday. I remember him being born like it was yesterday. Carson is such a joy to have around. We of course woke him up by singing Happy Birthday to him and after that his day revolved around food. He requested omelets for breakfast and his dad got up early to make them! He had to go to school on his birthday for the first time this year, he was not excited about that, but I think he survived. At the assembly on his birthday Carson got a few reading awards, a poster and a candy bar. One of the awards was for reading a million words. He is an awesome and avid reader. We are proud of him and his accomplishments. So for his lunch at school he had a bagel instead of his usual p,b and honey sandwich. When I got to school to pick up the kids our sweet carpool friends had a $10 gift card for his birthday(along with little christmas presents for the girls).

On our way home we picked up Carson's best friend to come and hang out for awhile. We made a quick stop at our house and Carson ran in and got his coupons for free Wendy's frostys- thanks uncle Andrew and aunt Maren- he had five of them and this sweet guy, most awesome big brother and friend shared his frosty coupons with his friend and 3 sisters. When we got home Carson played video games with his friend until he got picked up. Ryan got home a little later and changed his clothes and we went to Mimi's Carson's MOST favorite restaurant for dinner. He got a super yummy "French Quarter" which is an awesome cheeseburger with grilled parmesan bread, bacon, avocado and all the regular fixings- he LOVED it! He ate half and saved the other half for lunch the next day. While we were waiting to be seated we sang to him and he opened his birhtday present from us. When we got home the girls went STRAIGHT to bed- they were SO ready. Carson, Ryan and I then watched his birthday present- I didn't make it to the end of the movie though- I had stayed up super late the night before to finish the teachers Christmas presents. I think his birthday was a success and now he is another year older, and wiser too!

December Happenings

2011-12-26T15:49:00.000-08:00

One night for Family Home Evening we made green rice krispy treats and shaped them into wreaths or Christmas trees. I love rice krispy treats- so that's why we choose these- plus they are easy and fast- two things I like as well. We had hot chocolate too and then went looking at Christmas lights. The kids are in their pajamas so they would be ready for bed when we got home.

We go to check on the kids every night and one night we found Morgan like this- I thought it was very cute so I snapped a picture.

Carson had his Christmas Chorus Concert- which they of course call a Winter Concert now. He sang well and it is always fun to watch my kids do something they enjoy- and even more fun when you share that same love with them.

On December 17 we had family pictures taken- they turned out well- we were excited to have them taken. When we were snapping the last few pictures Morgan said she was not feeling well. The plan was for the whole family to go to The Temple Lights straight from getting family pictures taken. We decided however that Ryan better keep Morgan home just in case. So we stopped really quick at the grocery store so Ryan could pick up French bread to make pizza. While he was in the store Morgan threw up in the parking lot. So we drove them home and changed our clothes really fast. Then we were on our way. We stopped at IN-N-OUT for me and Taco Bell for Carson and Cambryn- Bristy just grabbed something at home when we were there. Anyway I bit into my cheeseburger with onions and there were NO onions- truly disappointing.

There is a Dairy Queen right next to the Temple and it's sort of tradition to get icecream when we go to visit the Temple grounds. I opted to go through the drive thru right as we got there and have us eat our icecream in the nice warm car. The soft serve icecream tasted delicious- it's my favorite kind. There was a special spirit at the Temple as always and it was a fun night with three of my kids. I was sad for the whole family to not go together- but Ryan and I decided I better take these three that night- because it was the night we had set aside to go. I love my family and I love Christmastime!

The last day of school, before Christmas break, Dec. 23, Cambryn sang at the assembly at school, with the rest of Kindergarten. They sang a song about courage- it was very cute. That morning we asked her if she was going to actually sing or just stand there. We never know with her. She told Ryan that she was going to sing as loud as she could and she did! I especially loved going to this, because our carpool friends, who have now moved to Gilbert, were there. My friend has been so sick with her pregnancy that she hasn't been able to come to hardly anything so there has not been opportunity to say goodbye. Well I got to sit next to her and chat and see her after school that day- it was just the sort of closure that I needed and we look forward to getting together with them fairly often- we love them!

Camping With the Guys- a post written by Ryan

2011-12-26T11:11:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, Robert, John and I went for a cold weekend at Christopher Creek.

The meals were great. Mc Donalds, egg burritos, sandwiches, fajitas and oatmeal.

Each night got down to the mid to low 20s. On our hike the further we went, the deeper the snow got. We finally turned around when the snow was up to our knees. Not just my knees on my short legs, but the knees on the tall guys too. By the time we got back to camp about 6 hours later, our feet were so wet that we wrung our socks out and then put them on sticks and roasted them like marshmallows to dry them. We were so tired by 6pm we prepared dinner and started to get ready for bed and were sleeping by 8pm. We are such wimps. 8pm. I'm not sure how far we hiked, but I'm sure it seemed much farther than it actually was.

It was a great weekend. We are now talking about the Grand Canyon. Can we do it in one day, or should we do it in two. Two days means more gear, but one day means less time to rest.

We'll see. I need to start getting in better shape.

Family Home Evening with the Jensens

2011-12-23T16:25:00.001-08:00

Early in December we had Family Home Evening with the Jensens. We got together so we could make these cute Nativity sets. After school the kids and I parked our car at the Jensens and then rode bikes and roller skates back to our house and then went back to the Jensens again on our bikes and roller skates. The Jensens also fed us dinner. Ryan came and met us at the Jensens straight from work.

Here are the youngest playing outside- they were showing us their super cold noses. Carson, Morgan, Cambryn and Bristyn made one for themselves. And Carson, Morgan and Cambryn also made one for their school teachers as a Christmas gift.

Piano Recital- December 2

2011-12-22T22:47:00.000-08:00

Here are the performers. Enjoy the videos as well! Morgan played two songs, one by herself and the other a duet with Ryan. Carson played two songs as well, one by himself and one with his best friend Sam. Carson is now in his third year of lessons and Morgan just started this past August. They are both doing well and enjoy it. After the recital we went up to the Goodyear Stake Center and enjoyed their Nativity Display and live Christmas music- it was a fun night as a family.

Decorating the Tree

2011-12-22T17:09:00.000-08:00

George is back for the Christmas season- keeping an eye on the kids and reporting back to Santa on the kids behavior for the day. Each morning the kids wake to find George in a new spot- ready to listen and watch. Morgan is reading "Elf on the Shelf."

Cambryn thought this angel was super special- I love her enthusiasm!

Ryan pretending he is excited about decorating the tree. And Cambryn got to put the star up this year!

Thanksgiving Weekend Campout

2011-12-22T15:18:00.000-08:00

We were so excited that Ryan didn't have to work Friday and Saturday this year- he has the past two years. So we decided to take advantage and go camping- we had a great time and it was cold. I felt a little guilty all warm and cozy in Ryan's mummy bag- not guilty enough to give it up or share it mind you- but still a little guilty. We have been buying little things here and there to add to our camping supplies and feel that we are almost there. Although tops on Morgan's list is mummy bags for everyone- she crawled inside it in the morning after I got up and loved it. We went for a little stroll after breakfast and cleaning up. Getting the whole family outdoors is almost magical- time doesn't matter and everything tastes better while sitting around a campfire.

Thanksgiving- November 24

2011-12-20T16:28:00.001-08:00

So we don't have very many pictures from Thanksgiving- but- at least we have some- that way we know it really happened. This year we were home- again- it has been a lot of years since Ryan has had more than just Thanksgiving day off. Anyway a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving Ryan's sister Brooke called and said, "Can we come for Thanksgiving?" We were SO excited. The crowd was thus: Our family, Grandma Bosley, Brooke, Jake and Kate. And my brother T.J. and his girlfriend. We had all the traditional fixings and they were so yummy. It was a wonderful day full of food and family- just as it should be. I actually really enjoy hosting Thanksgiving- it is always such a relaxed day and everyone is comfortable- and what is more fun than standing in the kitchen cooking all day with a bunch of women?- I love it!!

The next day, Ryan's cousin came over with her family to visit for a couple of hours before the CA crew headed home. It was so nice to see them- even though we only live about 50 min. apart we hardly ever see them. Their youngest is the same age as Carson and they had fun playing games together. The two older boys sat and talked with the adults for a bit and then they went and played with the girls. They are so cute with the little girls- so fun! Below is Bristyn and Kate saying goodbye to eachother- they are 10 months apart- and have so much fun! For the short while they were here- we heard little girl happy squealing almost constantly- thank goodness for the upstairs or it might have driven us crazy. As it was we really loved hearing them have such a good time. Thank you mom Bosley, Brooke, Jake and Kate for coming. We LOVED having you here!

Sweet Cambryn

2011-12-20T16:19:00.000-08:00

Cambryn came down stairs one morning and showed me these pictures she had drawn- once she told me what they said- I knew I had to take pictures and post them here- so I would not forget this sweet moment. The one above says, "Heavenly Father has good plans." And the one below says, "I will follow God's plans." It warmed my heart and even made me tear up a little bit.

Cambryn is a picky eater- but- what she likes, she REALLY likes. How can I get this spaghetti in my mouth faster? I know I will just put my mouth IN the bowl. Problem solved!

Scouts- November 9

2011-12-20T16:09:00.000-08:00

Carson earned his Webelos Badge- this boy has loved Cub Scouts, and as his parents(and a former den leader) we are very grateful that he has had many, many wonderful den leaders. Carson is SO excited to be starting 11 year old scouts with Brother Brown and I am so excited to have his meeting just around the corner. We are loving what Carson learns at Scouts. So much fun.

For this Pack Meeting each family got a bag of props and had to prepare a skit on the spot. So funny!

Field Trip with Cambryn- November 4

2011-12-20T15:59:00.000-08:00

I got to go with this sweet girl on her field trip. I only had her and our carpool buddy- I enjoyed every minute. We went to the Children's Museum and it is super awesome- everything little kids like.

This is her pizza creation- a sparkly pizza what more could a girl want?

Halloween 2011

2011-12-20T10:40:00.000-08:00

My mom always did a color themed dinner on holidays and I haven't done one until this year. Here is our well balanced meal of Cheetos, carrots, orange milk and nachos. Good to get some nutrition in those kids before all the candy. Morgan did her cat make up all three times she wore her costume. She knew it was lopsided but didn't mind one bit. Cute girl- we found the cat ears and tail at the 99* store, 99* for both together.

Cambryn and Bristyn's costumes were both hand me downs from our sweet friend Maddie- the girls love them- thank you!

Carson wore this Uncle Sam costume- that we already had. For the ward Trunk or Treat he was an escaped criminal we did spend $3 on that and I think we also bought Bristy and new wand and tiara set 99*. Here are the pumpkins I had darling pictures of the kids carving them. With no help from me- the older kids helped the younger kids- the only thing I did was clean out the pumpkins for the kids- they hate that part. Anyway those pictures were lost with the grass pictures.

Ryan sat out to pass out candy. I took the kids around Trick or Treating. I bought this sweet orange wig for like $3.50 I think. I needed a new one- my blonde wig was beyond scary- all tangled and gross looking. So the grand total on costumes this year was less than $10- sweet!

Sprinklers- October

2011-12-20T07:45:00.001-08:00

We all helped dig trenches for the sprinklers, it was fun to work together as a family and the sprinklers are working very well. We did take pictures of the grass as well- but- we I lost them. It is great to not have only dirt back there now!

Backyard Campout and Hiking- October 12 & 13

2011-12-20T07:30:00.000-08:00

Also during Fall Break we went camping. The plan was to go kind of far- since Ryan had a couple of days off. But wouldn't you know- I had to be in charge of my very first Pack Meeting as the Cub Master. So we improvised by camping in the backyard after the Pack Meeting and them driving up to Christopher Creek to hike the next day. We had a great time, the kids are all wonderful hikers and I love that Cambryn and Bristyn are wearing skirts- always stylish those two!

A Fun Day With Friends- October 11

2011-12-19T19:57:00.000-08:00

For the first time EVER since we have lived in AZ we did not go to CA for Fall Break. It was fun to be able to do things with our friends here. This is the girls reading together and even though Cambryn looks miserable she was loving having Morgan read to her. We decided to bike and roller skate over to the Jensen's- they invited us over to make wooden Jack-O-Laterns. Carson was a good sport and pushed Bristyn in her stroller- his bike tire was flat so he just walked. Morgan and I were on our roller skates and Cambryn was on her bike and rode super fast.

The Bosley and Jensen kids hard at work and having a great time. These kids NEVER argue or fight it is a delight to get together with them- we love them very much and are blessed to have them in our lives.

The youngest girls playing outside together- they are way happy outside playing and can be content for hours!

Family Home Evening Campfire- October 3

2011-12-19T18:50:00.000-08:00

This night we had a spontaneous campfire, built the firepit, roasted hot dogs and made smores. The kids loved it- especially the spontaneity of it. The picture below captures Carson getting hit with an ember from the fire- not planned- but caught nontheless. I love simple nights- we brought out our notes from General Conference and talked about what we learned it was sweet listening to what the kids remembered.

Happy Birthday Ryan- September 6

2011-12-19T18:18:00.000-08:00

Since we were having our adventure driving home on Ryan's birthday- we gave him his presents the next day. I am pretty sure but can't really remember- that we gave him IBC Rootbeer and Ghiradelli Caramel Chocolate Squares. Two of his favorites. I am sure that I got him a game that we haven't even learned to play yet! Maybe tonight! I love you babe. Thank you for being the light of my life, a wonderful husband and a super star dad! I am blessed to have you for eternity!

Alaskan Cruise- August 28 - September 5

2011-12-17T06:49:00.000-08:00

Rita took us all on an Alaskan Cruise- it was amazing. I am going to try to do my best to chronicle the awesomeness- just know that it was better than we could have imagined and way better than how I can describe it in words.

Sunday(above):

Insert a little back story here: My sister who was going to be able to watch the kids told us she would not be able to. So we went to plan B and were going to have the kids miss school and spend the week with my parents. So Rita got our plane tickets for CA. Turns out my sister was able to watch the kids so she flew in to AZ Sat. morning and Ryan and I drove to CA a little after she got here. We flew out early Sunday morning, with Rita, Jake, Brooke and Kate. Had a layover and then flew into the Washington airport and met up with Jon, Rebecca, Andrew and Maren. Got to the ship and were slowly taking our luggage out of the shuttle van. A worker then approaches us and says are you guys sailing on the Oosterdaam, yes, well you better hurry. He then starts radio-ing do we have any security scanners open? Yes we still have one open upstairs. Up we go to get checked in. The upside- we didn't have any lines to stand in. The downside- we almost missed the ship. Sunday we spent checking out our rooms and exploring the ship. And of course eating!

Monday:
Was a day at sea. In the morning Ryan and I found a nice place to sit and we read our books. After lunch I found myself back in the room lying down and reading, my sister in law was also with me doing the same thing. Everyone else was all together and at one point they called us to see if we wanted to come play games. We didn't- we were both super content doing exactly what we were doing. I spent about 5 hours, reading, sleeping and relaxing. It was perfect and I really think it helped me not get sea sick. We had our first formal dress evening- one of the best parts to me was dinner- sitting down ordering from and extensive menu and if I wanted three soups I could have three soups- which I did one night.

Tuesday:
Let me say "You're welcome" in advance for including this super glamorous picture of me. Tuesday was another day at sea. We would also be in Glacier Bay for part of the day it was absolutely gorgeous. Anyway in the morning we went outside to experience the wind- it was way cold and apparently my hair would stick straight up and back and I kind of looked like Wolverine. The colors were breath-taking.

Wednesday:
This was the first city we stopped in Juneau. We all took the tram way up really high. There was a little nature center and hiking trails, they had trails going up or one that you could take all the way down. Jon and Rebecca hiked up, Ryan and I choose to go down and the rest took a trail loop and then explored the city. The hike with Ryan was beautiful, I couldn't believe all the different shades of green. And some of the trees/bushes have leaves that are bigger than my head. I must have drank quite a bit of water- because in my entire life I cannot remember needing to use the bathroom as badly as I needed to by the time we got down. The trouble was that we were not close to the shops at all. I thought I was going to burst. I did make it- barely. We choose to go on to the ship for lunch and then come back to do some more exploring.

Thursday(above and below):
This was Sitka. And a super fun day. Ryan, myself, Jon, Rebecca, Andrew and Maren all rented double kayaks and had a guided tour. We were hesitant to go- because of price- so the owner offered us all the kids price and after that she had 6 very happy adults. This truly was something I will never forget and it was fun to share this experience with my husband and in-laws. The owner of this company are LDS and totally had us pegged right away- I love that! We even got a huge home baked cookie and a small bottle of water. On our tour we learned some Sitka history, saw and got to hold sea stars and the highlight- we saw a sea lion up close catch and eat a fish it was so cool. The picture we got isn't the greatest or closest- but it does prove I'm not lying. This night was our other formal dress night. And Jon, Ryan older brother who had ordered ALL of his meals without vegetables- decided he was going to try escargo AND Ryan decided he was going to try some too. I don't know why- there are pictures down there to prove it. It was definitely entertaining to watch them.

Friday:
This stop was Ketichan. Ryan and I opted to just walk and look around with Rita and we had a great time. We found a souvenir Christmas ornament. And Rita finished findin things for the grandkids. She even picked herself up a beautiful opal necklace. This was our double dinner night. We made reservations- thinking it would be nice to not eat so late one night and then we found out it would be our last night to see our servers. We really enjoyed them and knew we didn't want to miss seeing them for the last time. We were SO stuffed by the end of that night. But the food was SO good how can you say no!

Saturday:
We played ping pong- everybody together. In the afternoon we had a surprise birthday party for Ryan. He got exciting, thoughtful gifts like the fruit basket from the room with some hot chocolate, tea and low calorie splenda in it. A complimentary coupon book and birthday cake and sundaes delivered by room service. That night 7:30 we stopped in Victoria, B.C. Most things were closed, but it was fun to walk around and check things out. Favorites on the ship: definitely the food, the company, there were many live performers from a solo guitarist to a jazz trio to a string quartet- we loved listening to those and there also was a great magician. It was so much fun to go with everyone- thanks Mom Bosley!

Sunday(no pictures):
We flew home this day and our second flight that would land us in OC kept gettin delayed. We didn't end up boarding the plane until we were supposed to be there already. I was hating that we were delayed- I was so ready to see my kids. We made it and celebrated the July/August/September birthdays with my side of the family- with a bunch of kids who had been waiting 2 hours for us to get there. A little more back story here- My dad picked up my kids on Thursday and brought them to CA- first because Vanessa had to be back in CO and second so my kids would be in CA when we got there.

Monday:
More back story. The Tuesday before we left on the cruise I got rear ended in the van. We had picked up a rental van but were paying extra over what the insurance covered and didn't want to pay the extra $ for the days it would be sitting in CA not getting used. So that left us with a 5 seater car with a 6 member family to get home. My mom agreed to help take us home, my brother who lives in AZ decided to go to CA to see his kids and since he knew my mom was driving home he flew to CA. Long story much shorter- my mom ran out of gas, luckily we were behind them on the freeway and eventually made it to where they were and Ryan drove almost 20 more miles to get to the gas station where he was able to get a gas can and gas- to the tune of $4.83 a gallon. We were in the middle of nowhere. It was definitely an adventure and added some time on to our trip home- but we are so grateful to my mom for taking her whole day and night- she turned around and went right back. Family is awesome. The picture just below is the game my mom, T.J. and I played while Ryan went to get the gas.

Look who started preschool- August 9, 2011

2011-12-16T12:35:00.000-08:00

This picture is from the first day of preschool. Bristyn was so excited to start and meet all of her friends. I am her teacher- I know most of you know already- but for those who don't- I teach preschool from home. I have two classes Pre-K and a Toddler class- for 3yr. olds. I really love it and especially enjoy the much bigger classroom I have now thanks to our new larger home! Anyway Bristyn likes school and especially enjoys being funny, silly and laughing with her friends.

First Day of School- August 8, 2011

2011-12-16T12:26:00.000-08:00

Little Itty-Bitty Cambryn started school this year- I couldn't believe it! I just wasn't ready for it- because of her size it just feels like all the milestones come too early! But doesn't she look so cute! She was excited and nervous. I was also nervous- I truly didn't know how she was going to do on her first day.

Once we got to school we took Carson to his class first- no picture because hello he is in 5th grade now and no way did he want mom and dad following him into class. Morgan on the other hand was happy to pose for a picture- but then again she is always happy to pose for a picture.

Does Cambryn's face lood nervous or what? She got a little teary eyed and so I did too. Thank goodness for two things. 1)She knew her teacher- Morgan's 1st grade teacher moved down to Kindergarten and 2)One of her sweet friends is in her class with her. Mrs. Ruff put them at the same table- I totally love her for that!

It was HARD for me to leave her- I was so glad her sweet friend was there to help take care of her- that was actually my only comfort throughout the day! Well she had a great first day and has adjusted well and is loving school.

Bowling- August 4, 2011

2011-12-16T09:55:00.000-08:00

A few days after we got home we went bowling as a family. I wish it didn't cost so much to go because we all seriously LOVE it! Ryan was there with us- I don't know why we don't have a picture of him! Isn't Bristyn's outfit awesome- she picked everything out herself!

Carson thought it was so cool to rip up his old jeans and requested a picture. Enjoy.

Two week trip to California- end of summer hurrah!

2011-11-07T15:42:00.001-08:00

Tuesday and Wednesday:

We packed serious fun into this trip! Our first stops were to visit friends- the ones I have missed on trips past. I didn't want to miss them this time so we went to their homes first. Our first stop was one of my childhood friends Sara- known her since I was 4- they were leaving the next day for Utah- so I only got to stop in for a couple of hours- but it was SO good to catch up with her. No pictures. The next stop was the Johnson's friends from our newlywed/institute days. We got to their house at dinner time stayed the night and enjoyed breakfast and playing in the morning. Again no pictures. The third stop was at Andy's house, Andy and I met each other at Girls Camp one summer and after that we were together all the time. We were totally instant best friends- we went to different high schools- but called each other EVERY day on the phone. It was wonderful to spend time with her. I also love old friends- at the Johnson's we stayed in our pajamas to play in the morning and since we knew we were going to swim at Andy's we just stayed in our jammies to head to her house. We started with lunch, then went swimming, a little playing, movie watching and IN-N-OUT for dinner(man I love that place). I don't remember when we left, but I do remember getting to my parents late that night. It felt so good to see these old friends- there is something about people who grew up with you- it is a special kind of bond.

Thursday:
Lucky for us our Utah Bosley cousins were in CA for a few days while we were there! This day we enjoyed going to take a trip on the huge orange hot air balloon with them and Grandma Bosley. Thank goodness for the complimentary Merry-go- Round. Because you have to wait a SUPER long time for your turn to go up in the hot air balloon. The day was very fun- the plan was to go to the beach also but the mornig took so long that that didn't happen. We went to Grandma Bosley's for lunch played for awhile and headed back to my parents.

Morgan had a date with Grandpa Gary and Grandma Karla to go birthday shopping. She loved one of the things she picked so much she slept with it!

Friday:
Carson, Morgan and Cambryn went to the beach with their Bosley cousins. Bristyn was a little sick so she and I could not go with them. That night we went night swimming at G & G Great's house. The torture we put my parents through as kids wanting to go night swimming- WHY do kids think it is SO fun to go swimming in the cold night time!?! Nevertheless it WAS fun. We enjoyed dinner and swimming and treats afterward.

Saturday:
We enjoyed the Pioneer Day Celebration. Yummy food, a petting zoo, a parade for the kids and even being put in jail.

Sunday(above):
We went to church with Grandma Bosley and our cousins, this is a picture of Morgan right before we sang happy birthday to her. Then the camera died. The 3 older ones ended up spending the night.

Monday:
The 3 older kids went to the beach again. Monday afternoon the kids had fun playing in the front yard in Grandma Karla's huge red ball and with Morgan's bubble gun she got from Grandma Bosley.

Tuesday and Wednesday:
We drove down to San Diego area to stay one night with Brook and our Treiber cousins. It was perfect. The kids had a great time being together. And I can't even remember the last time I got to talk to Brook for so long. One of the things we did was make our own restaurant. First we let the kids know they were going to pick a job and earn some money for doing their job. Some were happy to do their jobs and there was one that was not. The kids did not know what they were earning money for.

Here they all are in the very bright sun waiting for their money, then we brought them in and welcomed them to the Trei-Bos Cafe. The kids loved picking what ever they wanted and having so many choices, we even got a real smile out of that cute girl up there. Our days were also filled with Wii and of course LOTS of holding that sweet baby a few pictures down. At night after the kids were in bed, James stayed with them and Brook and I got treats at McDonalds and ate them in the Taco Bell parking lot- more light, then Brook and I stayed up WAY late talking. We left after dinner and got back to my parents house not too-too late and started some laundry- one poor girl didn't have any clean clothes left.

Friday:
Tiffany and her girls (otherwise known as our Bauer cousins) were going to the Science Center and since we have a year pass we joined them it was so fun. We took a Safari, watched a riveting film about water, played some hockey and got blown away in the wind tunnel. That night we had dinner with Grandpa Gary and played charades- that was the best fun. Grandma Karla was up at Girls Camp- we missed her while she was gone.

Friday(above and below):
Friday Grandma Karla got home from Girls Camp and we just spent time with her. That night we went to see Mary Poppins. Grandma Great, Grandma Karla, Grandpa Gary, Uncle Tim, Aunt Tiffany, Me, Carson, Morgan, Bekah and Cambryn. We got a sitter for Jaina and Bristyn. The show was great- expect for the statues that come to life-Yikes! Thank goodness we were FAR away from the stage- I can't even imagine the horror for those sitting closer.

Saturday:
Tiff and the girls hung out the whole day. Grandma took all the kids with her to the store- so they could pick out treats and find boxes so we could have a drive in movie- there's grandpa in the back working on a fire so we could have smores- you know cause at this point there hadn't been nearly enough sugar consumed. We thought the kids needed more. That night Grandma put rollers in the girls hair and they looked so cute that night sleeping and the next day for church.

Monday (above and below):
Before we headed home to AZ- we needed one last stop at the Science Center- Morgan REALLY wanted to go on the Earthquake simulator and we had skipped it on Thursday. Earthquake simulators aren't really Cambryns thing so she and Bristyn went on another safari.

When we pulled into the garage I saw this!

And when I walked into the kitchen I saw this! How sweet is that?

Friends/Moving/Love

2011-11-07T15:36:00.000-08:00

This is one of my dear friends and I at her Baby Shower/Going Away Party. I always loved talking to her and chatting about anything. Our friendship felt easy and natural right from the start. I love those kinds. She moved super fast- two weeks fast! She is now in Colorado, has a new baby to love and snow- which she is enjoying. So glad she is happy. Love you and miss you friend!

Swim Lessons end of June beginning of July 2011

2011-11-07T15:12:00.000-08:00

We signed each of our kids up for the same swim session. It was a pretty penny. But definitely worth every cent. We took lessons from someone's home and it was awesome I loved the one on one attention each child got. The first day Cambryn was terrified and of course Bristyn just went right in with the teacher.

On the first day Cambryn was screaming/crying and she went and hid behind the trash cans by the back gate. After I came and got her she decided to try hiding behind the a/c unit. I pretty much figured this is how her first day would go. The second day went much better. The other kids just went right in and did what the teacher told them to. Each one of them improved their swim skills tremendously. We saw enough growth in Carson and Morgan that we are going to sign them up for swim team next year, through the town. We will for sure bring Cambryn and Bristyn back to this same teacher. We loved her!

We celebrated the last day of lessons by getting breadsticks at Target. Yummy!

July 04, 2011

2011-10-31T11:18:00.000-07:00

This Fourth of July we celebrated by having a barbecue at the Jensens, with the Jensen and Burris families. The kids played and played while the adults enjoyed games. We met back up with the Jensens at the high school for fireworks- Lacey had planned on staying home- I'm really glad I convinced her to come.

For the second year in a row the weather cooperated and there was a nice breeze. We were definitely happy to have not come until the sun went down- I think it would have been very hot with the sun beating down on our backs. Our town does a great job with all of the events they put on, the only improvement to the fireworks show would be a better sound system. It is so hard to hear the patriotic music- which has always been one of my favorite parts.

Morgan's birthday July 02, 2011

2011-10-31T08:28:00.000-07:00

Morgan wanted a Fairy party this year. Like Cambryn, Morgan got to have her party on her actual birthday. The two weeks leading up to her birthday we had my niece Lauren staying with us during the day and she helped decorate for the party. We made Mushroom cupcakes and made the chairs for musical chairs look like mushrooms also. The girls who came got to make their own wand and color a wooden bookmark. We played musical chairs and fairy-fairy-troll. With our cupcakes the girls also got to enjoy a couple of recipes from the Fairy cookbook Morgan got for Christmas years ago. The party was super enjoyable for me and I know Morgan had a good time as well. However she has high expectations for everything- and was dissapointed that so many friends she invited were not able to come. After the party we got Little Ceasars for lunch and then we went to the Buckeye pool. We saw our friends the Jensens there, which meant we stayed at the pool longer. Nikki Jensen came home with us to have waffles and play(more) with Morgan on her birthday.

It's freaking me out a little bit that I sound exactly the same in every "birthday song singing video." Oh well!

These two things are what we gave Morgan- a little purse/wallet to keep her hard earned money in and an art set she has had her eyes on since last Christmas. She loved them. Her crimped hair was a special request- thanks to our sweet friends the Mortensens- who have a totally awesome vintage crimper. This girl is full of spunk and attitude and we love her fiercely.

Rain Gutter Regatta June 25, 2011

2011-10-30T16:10:00.000-07:00

The Rain Gutter Regatta was held at 8:00 in the morning. We were soo grateful because it was super, stinking hot. Despite the heat is sure was neat. Carson's boat performed better than his pinewood derby car. It was sweet redemption for him.

Utah Trip June 4th-8th 2011

2011-10-30T14:43:00.000-07:00

Can you believe Ryan's grandmother is 91? We can't either, she is so full of life and never sits still. Her joke is that she takes care of the old people in her ward. Only it's no joke it's true- she and Mike regularly bring in meals for families, widows and widowers and Grandma picks up a few ladies for the Book of Mormon reading group and says that if she didn't pick them up they wouldn't come. We had the best time visiting with her and her third husband (she has outlived the other two) "Grandpa Mike".

We loved the view of the snow-capped mountains.

There was never a shortage of sugary treats.

I loved relaxing on this outdoor love seat Sunday afternoon.

Monday we went to Temple Square in Salt Lake City. We had a great time, we visited the Beehive House- a favorite for the kids, learned a lot at both Temple Visitors Centers and the Church History Museum. We picked up a mini hymn book for Morgan and let the kids each pick out a temple picture for their rooms. That day we ate lunch at the Lion House Pantry- it was my first time- I was not dissapointed. After spending our day at Temple Square we made our way to Saratoga Springs to visit Ryan's brother Jon, his wife Rebecca and the kids "Jon Bosley" cousins, Brent, Jessica, Josh, Katie and Matthew. We didn't take any pictures at their house but the kids enjoyed playing and helping set up the new trampoline. We were going to do an outdoor cookout- but the wind was too crazy- at one point Cambryn had a look of pure terror on her face, because she almost got carried away with the wind.

Tuesday a full day was planned, we started out at the BYU Dinosaur Museum, the kids had a great time, I was mostly just tired- the night before I came down with a migraine that made me throw up, so I was still feeling a little weak. After the museum we hiked to the "Y". The hike isn't really hard but the hills are steep. So we(the kids and I) did need to stop and rest a bit. The hike back down the hill went much faster than the way up and the view from the top was stunning.

A stop at the BYU creamery was not planned, but was perfectly delicious.

We then hiked Battle Creek Falls in Pleasant Grove. It was beautiful and Bristyn walked almost this entire trail. Cambryn was definintely not excited about getting this close to the water. These two hikes were our first hikes we did as a family and we all had such a blast- we will be going on many more.

I couldn't resist snapping these pictures of our children sleeping.

This was breakfast Wednesday morning. Grandma and Mike planned out such yummy food to feed us. Ryan and I would try to help cook or clean up the dishes after our meals and Grandma would have none of that. She truly spoiled us, telling us we were on vacation and let her take care of it. I thought a lot about how I treat people when they are visiting at my house. I know I am not as gracious of a host as she is. I now have a goal of doing more for the people who are visiting, whether they are staying for a few days or for a few hours. After breakfast we left to drive home. We planned to visit the St. George Temple on the way out of Utah. Well we never made it to the temple, because when we pulled off the freeway the car sounded so bad. After two mechanics telling us we needed to replace or rebuild the engine. We carefully and prayerfully made our way back to AZ. The second mechanic told us we could probably make it back home. So we arrived home considerably later than we thought we would. And we were grateful Ryan didn't have work the next day because he spent the day trading in our old van and purchasing a new one. The cost to repair our old van was more than it was worth so we decided to get the new one. I didn't go with Ryan- a car to me is just a way to get around- I don't need fancy bells or whistles, plus he has done fine the past two times- so I am happy to not need to wheel and deal the car salesmen.

We Have Moved

2011-10-24T16:47:00.000-07:00

view of the front of the house

So pretty much we have been in our new house 6 months and I am just now officially posting about it! I wish I stayed on top of blogging- it was so much easier when I posted more regularly. Kudos to Ryan for talking and pushing me into having us see if we could qualify for a loan. I was way super nervous, didn't know if it was right for our family, what would other people think, I love our small home- with my dad's custom crown molding, what would other people think. I was mostly worried what other people would think- something I am still working on even at the age of 33. Anyway we did qualify for a loan and so we started looking. After putting an offer on a home that was priced VERY low- but needed a lot of work, our realtor informed us that someone on the seller's end was lining things out of the contract AFTER we had signed it. We opted to pull out of that mess, and were a little discouraged. In just a short time we found this beauty- freshly painted, new carpet, new tile, new hardware on the doors and in the bathrooms. We couldn't believe how move in ready it was.

from the front door looking in

*All of these pictures show the "staging furniture"- none of it belongs to us!*

my kitchen

I went out quite a bit with the realtor- without Ryan. Well the Friday before we left for Utah, my realtor showed me this house and one other, Ryan was able to meet us at the other house- but didn't see this one. A little after we got home Friday I realized I had left my folder at the second house we looked at. It had all sorts of personal info in it. So we called our realtor and she kindly came back out, Saturday morning, to open the house for us to be able to get our folder. She asked us if we wanted to take another look at the house and we said no, but would she mind taking us to the one Ryan wasn't able to see. I need to interject that Ryan likes to leave early, when going on trips. By meeting our realtor it was pushing our departure time later than we he was planning. When I looked at this home Friday I wasn't sure Ryan was going to like it, boy was I wrong- he took one look around and said we want it- let's put an offer in. Except that was going to be a little tricky, because we literally had the car packed and were planning to leave right then. Plus our realtor had another appt. she was leaving to. So Ryan and I went home quickly and called an Office Maxx in Flagstaff to see if it was possible to recieve a fax there. It was, so we headed on our way, our realtor drew up the offer, faxed to us in Flagstaff, we stopped there signed it, faxed it back to her and went on our way. We weren't sure how long it would take to hear if our offer was accepted. Well not very long when we got back from church Sunday(still in Utah on our trip) there was a voice mail letting us know our offer was accepted. WE WERE SO EXCITED!

from the back corner of the great room- looking over to the stairs

view from the back corner of the great room

So up at our friends timeshare the front office was very accomadating, sending super long faxes for us, notifying us when super long faxes came in. I spent some of Monday on the phone asking questions about the forms we neeeded to fill out. Ryan had to wire our earnest money over-the-phone, from the slopes. It was kind of interesting needing to take care of all of that stuff while we were out of town. When Ryan took our two oldest back home after Utah(see this post) we had the home inspection on Thursday. Everything went very smoothly. We got the keys Thursday April 14th- that day the kids and I cleaned. It wasn't super dirty, but I just couldn't resist vacuuming every nook and cranny of a completely empty house. On Friday, after preschool, I took the first van load of stuff over- I moved the entire preschool that weekend. One of the days the next week I spent over two hours sweeping the walls and ceiling of the garage- it was totally covered with cobwebs and spiders- GROSS! For about two weeks we were back and forth between the two houses, still sleeping at the old house, until we officially moved our big things the last weekend in April. We are very happy here, still have a cul-de-sac, a park across the street, a huge space for my preschool classroom, snow birds to one side and no neighbors on the other side. We feel truly blessed, and are very grateful to have found a home still in our ward, close to our friends and allowing us to keep our callings.

view of the upstairs loft from the back corner

Bristyn's 3rd Birthday

2011-06-05T14:26:00.000-07:00

The family singing to Bristyn- I used a leftover cupcake from Cambryn's party- the cheater pants way to do it, but what can I say?

Bristy girl while we were singing to her- she beat mom and dad at waking up.

She was done eating once the frosting dissappeared.

Singing to her at her party.

Her friends, sibling and friend's siblings.

Bristyn's birthday was last Monday, May 30! Bristy-girl got to celebrate for a few days. She opened her first gift on Cambryn's birthday: it came in the package with Cambryn's from Grandma Karla and Grandpa Gary. We celebrated with her on her birthday and let her open her present from us- I originally had a different gift for Bristyn- but it has lots of little pieces and after Cambryn got so many new things for her party- I thought we could do without more little pieces. Plus Bristyn loved getting the movie. This past Friday, June 3rd we had a little party for Bristyn- we did bagels for her birthday and invited 5 of her little friends, their siblings and moms. It was perfect and I loved getting to chat with some of my friends. Thank you Ashley for bringing the rice krispy treats it worked perfect for the candles!

Multi-tasking: eating her treat and opening presents at the same time.

We used the same game from Cambryn's party too!

Grandma Karla and Grandpa Gary's gift.

Grandma Bosley's gift.

Cambryn's 5th Birthday

2011-06-03T14:01:00.000-07:00

Sleeping.

Cambryn's birthday was last Thursday, May, 26! This girl got to celebrate from the moment she was woken up to the moment she went to bed. The family woke her up by singing Happy Birthday- a tradition. She went down stairs and found a present from Grandpa Gary and Grandma Karla, we had waffles- her request. The morning was spent doing last minute decorating and prep for her birthday party. And her friends came at 12:00pm. Including Cambryn and Bristyn we had 19 kids here- it was CRAZY. Cambryn chose a TANGLED theme and it was so fun! Thank you to my friend Lacey who helped during the party- I couldn't have done it without you! After the party we picked up Carson and Morgan from school and when we got home there was a present in the mail from Grandma Bosley. For dinner we had Papa John's- I was planning to make homemade- but when she requested Papa John's I happily obliged! We went and played at the park and then she opened up our present right before bed.

Waking up.

Grandma Karla and Grandpa Gary's gift.

Big poster on the garage door

Rapunzel's braid hung on the front door. Ryan helped me make it the night before.

18 kids- Bristyn is not in the picture.

The kids are holding Pascal crafts- they turned out so cute!

Cutest birthday girl ever.

Waiting to play pin the frying pan on Flynn Rider.

Cutest birthday girl ever- again.

Cambryn and Sammi after the party.

Grandma Bosley's gift.

Her tummy was hurting- she didn't even take one bite of the family cake at night.

Her gift from mom and dad.

The family singing her Happy Birthday- no one was harmed in the making of this film. :)

Talent Show

2011-06-02T14:55:00.000-07:00

Carson participated in his school's talent show- he did card tricks and our carpooling buddy helped him on stage. He spoke clearly and explained what he was doing very well. Enjoy these pictures.

End of Preschool Year 2011

2011-06-02T14:43:00.000-07:00

This year for the first time I invited the parents to end of the year celebrations. It is so nice to have a space large enough. This picture is me with my 3 yr. old class, one of our friends had to miss our last day. :( And if you would be kind enough just imagine me with my other class pictured below- my camera was having issues so I need one of the parents to e-mail me pictures. I had another great year and love my job! Cambryn is off to Kindergarten next year and Bristyn will start in the 3 yr. old class!

Carson's Chorus Performance, Crazy Hair Day, Father's and Sons

2011-06-02T13:34:00.000-07:00

Carson and Morgan attended Scott Libby Elementary this year. We have been super happy with our decision to take them 2 school districts over. Carson has especially loved being in Chorus- he had to try out- and he made it. He sings in Ward choir too- now that he has discovered how much he enjoys singing. When I was talking to his Chorus teacher one time she said, "Carson sings so well, but I'm not surprised- those LDS kids come singing from the womb." I thought that was pretty hilarious. For the end of the year Chorus performance, they performed "The Nightingale" set in China. Carson played the part of Timekeeper one of the Emperor's chief advisors. It was a fun night.

Carson and Ryan went to the Fathers and Sons Campout and Carson got to try shooting for the first time. This was after the official hours of the campout had ended. There were no guns allowed during campout hours- thank goodness- could you imagine.
While the boys were gone, the girls and I had fun watching Tangled, having waffles and cereal for dinner and getting donuts for breakfast.

Carson's Piano Recital and Mother's Day

2011-06-02T13:29:00.000-07:00

My parents drove to AZ for Carson's piano recital, Friday May, 6th and stayed through Sunday- Mother's Day- we always love when they come. The only picture we took the whoe weekend was of Carson playing his piece at the recital. Of course it is on my dad's phone- since we all forgot cameras.
On Saturday we attende Nicki Jensen's baptism and enjoyed a luncheon at their home afterwards. My parents drove around looking at houses while we were at the baptism. Who knows if they will really end up out here- but a girl can dream- right?
Mother's Day was nice and relaxing and Mom and Dad left about 4:30 to drive home. Can't wait till they come again.

Hunting for Eggs- Easter 2011

2011-06-02T12:30:00.000-07:00

I think these pictures turned out great. Carson and I were cracking up at his faces in the pictures- I love that he can laugh at himself.

Bristy Girl playing in the sandbox- pictures taken by Cambryn

2011-06-02T10:24:00.000-07:00

Morgan's Field Trip

2011-06-02T10:23:00.000-07:00

On Friday April 8th I was able to go with Morgan on her field trip to the AZ Science Center. I spent my day with these two cute girls. We had the best time! The girls were so kind to eachother and it was a pretty relaxing time for me! Shout out to my sweet friend Lucy for watching the younger two.

A Saturday Morning- early April

2011-06-02T10:03:00.000-07:00

In an effort to blog more about everyday life, enjoy uncombed hair, the remains of a milk mustache and a less than glamorous picture of me. Your welcome. :)

Spring Break part 2b- Back in AZ

2011-06-02T07:11:00.000-07:00

While Darice and the two youngest were in California; Carson, Morgan and I went hiking in the White Tanks. We went to the nearly dry waterfall and hung out there for several minutes. Then turned around and took a longer way back. Carson has been hiking for a few years. Morgan has recently been expressing an interest. They both did great.

Spring Break part 2a- CA

2011-06-01T11:00:00.000-07:00

My sister Vanessa was in AZ watching our kids, while we were in Utah. Ryan and I drove back through Needles, CA, which meets the I-10 in Blythe CA, about a 2 hour drive from Buckeye. So Vanessa put all the kids in the car and drove to Blythe and met us, Carson and Morgan then jumped in Ryan's car with him and drove back to AZ. I hopped in the van with Vanessa, Cambryn and Bristyn and we drove to CA. We made it to CA by dinner time and enjoyed eating and visiting with Grandpa Gary and Grandma Karla.
On Thursday my mom kept the girls while Vanessa and I headed down to Brook's to spend the day with her, baby Abbey and Brook's MIL. It was wonderful to spend an afternoon with only ladies. Vanessa tried on maternity clothes, and filled a suitcase with some to take home. There was plenty of holding baby Abbey- my favorite. Grandma Chris treated us to lunch, which was super yummy. It was truly a treat to spend time with my sisters.

Friday morning Vanessa and I set out with two very excited little girls- we were going to DISNEYLAND! And thanks to my soon to be SIL, who signed us in and Vanessa who paid for the parking it didn't cost me a dime! :) The day was a dream, we went to Small World first- less than 10 min wait, next Princess story time where we were lucky to find Snow White available for pictures- with virtually no line! Then Cinderella told us her story. Next was Dumbo which was a little longer of a wait, but we wanted to do it early before it got much hotter. Cambryn was a crack up- she would cry and be terrified before every ride- then end up liking it!

Tiffany and Rebekah have DISNEYLAND passes- so Tiff made arangements to have Rebekah attend morning Kindergartedn that day and come join us at lunch time. When we looked for a shady spot to eat lunch we found Woody and Jessie- another photo op. Tiff met us there and when we were done we headed over to the Winnie the Pooh ride and rode that 2 or 3 times- it was great to have kids that were the same ages so everyone was happy with the ride choices. About this time Bristyn was starting to not feel well- she was pulling at her ears and feeling a bit warm- I thought maybe she was coming down with an ear infection. So that meant carrying her all afternoon- she would lay her head on my shoulder- my arms and back soon started to feel like they were going fall off. The kids needed snack and bathroom breaks kind of often but we totally didn't mind- we were here for them!

Around dinner time Vanessa took the kids home, she is pregnant and so wouldn't have been able to ride some of the big people rides. So she graciously took the kids home. Bristyn was sleeping almost immediately when we put her in her carseat. Mom, Dad, Griffin, Lauren and Kobe came and met us and also brought us pizza. Tiff and I ate our pizza quickly- then we went on lots of big people rides, walked way too far, way too fast and when Tiff and I got home we looked like old ladies hobbling down the sidewalk with our backs hunched over. I was SO tired- but is was SO worth it. What I miss most about not living in CA is being with my family- however a very close second is DISNEYLAND passes- I LOVED having those when we lived there!

Saturday we went to a craft fair and got our toes done. Sunday Brook and James blessed Abbey- it was wonderful- I don't have pictures from Sunday because I was using my mom's camera- next time I go down I will load the pics onto my memory stick and then put some up here.

Spring Break part 1- Ski Trip Utah

2011-05-29T15:46:00.000-07:00

This past March we went to Brianhead Utah with our friends who we have been close friends with for the past 15+ years. This was a two day ski trip. Ryan has been skiing since he was 5 and loves to go any chance he gets. Which hasn't been many since we've been married. The guys spent both days on the hardest runs on the mountain. Rebekah and Heather skied one day and Darice did not ski at all.

While taking the chair lift up for the last run of the day, Derek who was on the chair lift behind Ryan suggested they switch his snowboard for Ryan's skis. Neither Ryan or Derek had ever done the others sport. Ryan thought it was a great idea. Neither were too good at the other, at least compared to their preferred method of going down the mountain. It took over an hour to get down. In fact, ski patrol started clearing the mountain looking for anyone left on the mountain. They were definitely the last on the mountain. Ryan would definitely try snowboarding again, but questions if he would want to give up a day skiing to do snowboarding.

This is supposedly the hardest run on the mountain accessible by chairlift.

It took some nerve going over the edge, but after that it was great.

As Ryan said above I did not ski, remember this post, well I said in that post that I was looking forward to trying skiing again. However since that trip my knees hurt all the time as in sitting, standing, lying down- all the time. Ryan would love me to go to the dr. about it- and I know I need to, but, I just keep putting it off- I fear the $$$ it might take to fix the problem. So I opted out this trip and on Monday while everyone was out skiing I spent the day cooking white chicken chili and cornbread, reading and napping. Tuesday the girls stayed with me and in the afternoon we went out to the mountain to watch our men ski. I had a wonderful, relaxing time, loving most the one-on-one time with Ryan on the drive up and back.

We live for these trips and are already counting down the days until the next one!

Diva Bristyn

2011-05-29T13:38:00.000-07:00

Sisters

2011-05-29T13:24:00.000-07:00

Carson's Last Pinewood Derby

2011-05-29T13:14:00.000-07:00

The weekend between Wicked and the Snow trip Carson had his final Pinewood Derby. Unfortunately Carson's car wasn't very fast. He came in last every time except twice, and those times he came in second to last. He had fun building the car. Not as much fun watching his car. It was hard to watch him be disappointed his last time racing Pinewood Derby. At least we got some good pictures.

Carson and Sam, his best friend, drew this poster together.

Bosley Family Snow Day

2011-05-24T08:08:00.000-07:00

Two weeks after "Wicked" we took the kids to the snow. The last time the kids saw the snow, two of them were not even born, Morgan was just 6 months old. I was able to borrow most of the snow gear we needed- thank you facebook- and so we bought very little. Our family had a perfect day together. Sledding was first, we were able to borrow two sleds, and as we were leaving Ryan ran and grabbed the plastic slide off of our climby thing in the back yard. The slide was by far the best sled especially for Ryan and I to take Bristyn and Cambryn down with us. That left the two other sleds for the big kids to use and everyone was happy. We only had two crashes, Carson hurt his wrist a little on one of his runs, and on the very last run of the day Morgan decided she wanted Ryan to take her down the super steep part of the hill. They had a blast, but both tore their pants on the spin out at the bottom. Thank goodness neither one of them had borrowed pants!

After sledding we drove down the road about a mile and found the perfect spot for snowman building. The whole family worked hard for about two hours building our snowman, we scooped, shaped and formed our snowman to pure awesomeness. It was a wonderful, wonderful day. Everyone was happy and smiling the entire time. We had packed lunch with us and picked up something for dinner on the way home. Ryan and I want to make this at least a yearly tradition- no more going 6 years between family trips to the snow.

Cambryn and Bristyn totally out- 2 minutes into the drive(literally)

Preschool

2011-05-09T17:50:00.000-07:00

Darice’s Preschool Now Enrolling for 2011/2012

Age Requirement

-To attend the 3yr. old class, your child must be 3 yrs. old by August 31, 2011. Class will meet Tues/Thurs 9-11am.

-To attend the Pre-K class, your child must be 4 yrs. old by August 31, 2011. Class will meet Tues/Wed/Thurs 11:45am-2:15pm.

Darice’s Preschool now offering:

Early Registration Rates

-Register by June 1st to save $15 off of your registration fee and $25 off of your first month’s tuition. A total savings of $40!

Referral Credit

-Refer a friend and receive $20 off of your second month’s tuition.

Sibling Rate

-Enroll two of your children and the second child’s tuition will be half rate.

If you are interested leave me a comment.

Wicked in Tucson- a weekend event- Jan. 15, 2011

2011-03-30T08:07:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows me knows how I feel about this Musical. I saw it for the first time, in New York, on Broadway, with my older sister, in Sept. of '09. I have been dying to see it again ever since. And I totally wanted Ryan to see it. So I checked it out on the internet and saw that the closest it was coming was Tucson. I started saving right away for tickets, and counting down the days until the tickets went on sale. In the meantime we talked about it with our neighbors and they decided they would come with us. Tucson is about 3 hours drive from here, so I thought it would be awesome to get matinee tickets that way we could drive out in the morning get lunch before the show and then get dinner after the show, and still be able to drive home.

So this is how the weekend went down. Since we were leaving early on Saturday we dropped off the kids at friends houses on friday night. We love our friends who kept our kids for us. Friday night Ryan and I enjoyed a yummy dinner and we watched "The Wizard of Oz" to gear up for the show. We caravaned down to Tucson and met at Claim Jumper for lunch. We had a nice long relaxing lunch with no kids. He he he. Then we all jumped into the the same car and drove to the theater at U of A. When we got there and parked we started walking from the parking garage. Our friends realized that they didn't have their tickets, so Ryan and Mike drove back to get the tickets from Claim Jumper. Ryan's not the greatest with directions and they turned the wrong way. Then they got stuck waiting for a train. Finally they get the tickets and get back to the parking garage, Shannon and I are already at the theater waiting for them. Ryan and Mike had an adventure running from the first parking garage they saw, which wasn't the closest place to park, to the theater. Since they didn't know where they were going they stopped to ask several people along the way where to go. It was probably funnier to them, then telling it here, but they looked like a couple on a date. Running around looking for the musical. They were out of breath and didn't know what the theater was called or what part of the campus it was on, but they got a lot of strange looks and "oh what a cute couple" glances from everyone they met. They finally got to the show about twenty minutes late sweaty and out of breath.

After the show, I took off my shoes seeing that it was going to be a long long walk. We had to stop and ask for directions back to the garage where Ryan and Mike had parked. For dinner we went to the Macaroni Grill. Love It. Before we were seated, Ryan went to the restroom. While in there, a worker from the restaurant failed to wash his hands after taking care of business. Ryan came out with a look on his face. After telling us what he saw, we all agreed that he should tell a manager what he saw. Ryan requested to speak with a manager and told what he saw. Unfortunetly they didn't pick up our bill, but they did make all the employees go and wash their hands, because Ryan couldn't point out the exact guy in question. After making THAT fun memory together we dove into our pasta, salad, bread and peach lemonade- it was perfect! My verdict on the entire weekend- AWESOME! I loved the show as much as I did the first time I saw it, if not more. It is amazing. Shannon really liked it as well. The guys- well you never really know with the guys. Ryan would see it again, but Mike maybe not. You MUST see it if you get the chance. And the music- don't even get me started- it takes your breath away! I play the cd quite a bit in my car, the kids even request it from time to time. This post is much longer than I thought it would be.

Wed dec 29 through new years day- with Grandma Bosley

2011-03-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

We got to Grandma Bosley's on Wed. morning and stayed with her for the rest of our trip. Shortly after we arrived we began making an awesome gingerbread house. It was so much fun to work on it together and then see it all come together. We had put Bristyn down for a nap- when I went to check on her she was a giggly playing with her toys. Cambryn enjoyed taking a little break and playing with the train.

In the night we had Christmas, Brooke and Jake came over (which they did so much while we were there- and we loved) and we enjoyed a very yummy Christmas dinner and gift opening. We were definitely spoiled by Grandma Bosley. Especially the adults- she is taking us all on a cruise to ALASKA! Ryan and I are very excited not only to see ALASKA, but also to spend time with Rita, Jon, Rebecca, Brooke, Jake, Andrew and Maren. The cruise is going to be at the very end of August. We don't know yet what we are going to do with our kids, because our babysitter that we had all lined up decided to have her due date to close to when the cruise is. Can you believe the nerve? Anyway we jest- we are so thrilled for Vanessa and Brian, and can't wait to meet their little bean!

Thursday morning Grandma, Ryan, Carson and Morgan took a very, very, very cold wald on the beach. They enjoyed it a lot, however I was happy to stay warm back at the house taking a nap with the younger girls. That night we went to "the" Snoopy house- the owners have been decorating like this for many, many years. It was my first time seeing this house, even though it is only a couple miles from the house Ryan grew up in. It is super amazing- the kids loved it and had a great time running around with cousin Kate.

New year's eve morning we had traditional apple fritters. This trip we had lots of time to relax an we sat by the fire visiting, went shopping together, played games had lots of good food and just enjoyed eachother.

Monday dec 27 & Tuesday dec 28

2011-03-24T11:36:00.000-07:00

The Monday after Christmas Grandpa Gary took off work to come play with us. We were so happy to have him come spend time with us. Our morning was nice and relaxed, then we went to Taco Bell for lunch. Grandpa took us to the Discovery Science Center and we had a blast. Rock climbing, laying on a bed of nails, being in the show, playing in the big gingerbread houses and playing the virtual harp/among other things. That night Grandma stayed with the girls while the rest of us went to see the movie that we missed Christmas night.

Tuesday Ryan stayed home and enjoyed peace and quiet while he read his book. The kids and I went with Grandma, Aunt Tiffany, cousin Jaina, cousin Bekah and the daycare kids to the park. We ate lunch and played. The kids and the adults had a wonderful time. I think Tiff and I stayed for about 3 hours. While Tiff and I were still at the park, Grandma took advantage of Ryan being home and ran to the store. The 28th is Grandma Great's birthday, so after daycare everyone,except Ryan,who was picking up Grandma Bosley from the airport, went over to sing to Grandma Great and enjoy cinnamon rolls- Yum!

cousin jaina

grandpa great, me, grandma great- pic oct 2010

Keepin it Real

2011-03-24T10:06:00.000-07:00

The truth:
I am still finishing up Christmas posts.
I still have 3 Valentine decorations up.
I have close to 10 (maybe 12) unfinished craft projects lying around.
One of those projects is a cross-stitch that was supposed to be a Laurel project- which means I have had it for 16 years.
I have trouble finishing things.
I don't know why.
It makes me crazy.
I wish I could kick this bad habit.
Does anyone know of a cure?
Please help.
I welcome any ideas.

Christmas Day

2011-03-10T14:32:00.000-08:00

We got home from the Jensen's a little late and sent the kids straight to bed. Which meant mom wrote letters, to Santa, for all of the kids and mom and dad even set out the cookies & milk. The kids each got one thing from Santa that they REALLY wanted plus a Christmas book that Santa chose out for them. Carson got Lego Harry Potter for the Wii. The girls each got a pillow pet. The big fat man did good this year and all the kids were happy with the loot he left.

After we saw the Santa gifts and looked in our stockings, we ate our traditional Christmas breakfast casserole, then opened all the other gifts. We actually had to wake up the kids this year, because when we were done with the gifts we were driving to CA. Ryan had to work Christmas Eve so the earliest we could drive down was Christmas day. We talked about waiting until the day after Christmas, but decided let's just drive Christmas day- it is only 5 hours and we have done it SO many times that they kids do super great in the car.

The picture above shows Ryan with an ornament that Morgan made. I don't know if you can tell, but the teacher had the kids put their whole hand in white paint, then the kids held the small ball ornament in the palm of their hand. After the paint dried, the kids turned each finger into a snowman. Carson also made an ornament at school he had me open it a few days before Christmas so we could hang it on the tree. It was his hand print with a picture of him in the middle, and a poem about cherishing this hand print cause it wouldn't be small forever and I lost it, just started crying right there. My kids are getting bigger and I am not sure it is my favorite thing.

These two pictures crack me up, because Ryan was genuinely excited for this gift. And it is Tupperware. Special tupperware that has snap together lids, no more searching for a lid that fits. He was thrilled and had the other tupperware out in the recycling bin in no time flat. These pictures are worth a thousand words and will be my favorites, of him, for a long time. He says that this new tupperware has changed his life, and I have only mentioned once about my pyrex lids disappearing into the recycling bin with the old tupperware. Now I guess I have mentioned it twice:)

Our family got this gift from Uncle Andrew and Aunt Maren. We love it- only we have to wait all the way to the end of May to use it- we can't wait. The following pictures are the kids enjoying some of their gifts. We took the kids to the Dollar Spot at Target to buy gifts for eachother. Cambryn was the most hilarious as she would take something and show it to Morgan or Carson and then say, "choose this for me!" She definitely didn't end up disappointed Christmas morning.

pajamas for her build a bear from mom and dad

littlest pet shops from mom and dad

a trick track with mighty beans from mom and dad

tigger from grandma and grandpa great and gloves from morgan

We went as a family to see Toy Story 3 at the theater. I missed the best part of the whole movie because someone needed to use the bathroom. So the day it came out on DVD I went and bought it. Our kids love Toy Story. We used to have Toy Story 1 & 2, on VHS. I knew I wanted to get the kids these two movies. And then I really wanted to get them the dolls too. The search was on. I had gotten the small(7in) hard plastic dolls at Walmart- I wasn't that excited about them. So Ryan and I looked on e-bay for some of the big(18in) soft dolls. We found some that we were almost going to bid on. Then I thought, I'll just check the Disney Store on-line and see what they have. I was way excited when I saw that they were having a buy one get one free sale on their 18in soft dolls. The excitement was short lived when I discovered they were out of stock. I then decided to call the store at the mall- on the off chance that they had the dolls, and were honoring the sale price. Score- they had all 4 dolls that we wanted and held them all day until 6 o'clock until Ryan could get there. These were my favorite find, these dolls ended up costing just the same as the ones I had purchased at Walmart. The girls, especially Bristyn, play with them all the time.

new clothes from g&g that she kept trying to give back

build a bear clothes fromg&g

littlest pet shop daycare from g&g

diary of a wimpy kid from g&g- a tradition

We had a great drive in the car and made it down to Grandma Karla and Grandpa Gary's house in late afternoon. It was so fun to be there on Christmas day. We opened our presents and gave out our gifts. The snack/appetizer foods were laid out on the table just as always, and they were yummy just as always. That night we tried to go to the movies, meaning we drove about 30-45 min. to the theater and the show was sold out. Plan B- back to Grandma and Grandpa's to play games- it was so fun! The boy cousins played video games and the girl cousins watched a movie. We stayed up too late talking, playing and laughing- it was perfect!

nativity and keepsake ornaments with my picture on them- primary and girl scouts from mom & dad

very awesome vintage cookie jar filled with 150 $1 bills from mom & dad

guess who

wrote this!?!

Christmas Eve

2011-03-10T14:29:00.000-08:00

For the second year we spent Christmas Eve with our good friends the Jensens. We share a traditional dinner and enjoy eachother's company. Last year we had the children act out the Nativity story as we read it from the bible. This year we read the Nativity story at home and at the Jensen's just ate, talked and played. We love the Jensen's and are grateful to have them in our lives.

This is the only documentation we have of the night. Audrey is trying to keep this book away from Carson. It is the 5th book in the Fablehaven series, when Audrey finished the 4th book- the 5th book wasn't released until 9 months later. Carson borrowed the books from Audrey and when he was finished with the 4th book she wouldn't give him the 5th. She wanted him to have to wait just like she did. This is not the first time Carson was trying to sneak the book from their house.

Carson's 10th Birthday- WHAT!!!!!!!!!!

2011-03-10T13:04:00.000-08:00

This sweet boy is 10 years old and I can't believe it! It seriously does not feel like 10 years have passed already. Carson is such a joy to raise. He loves his family a lot, a lot, a lot, has a kind heart, thinks of others and is a great big brother to his sisters. He thinks about food all the time, worrying about what is for dinner even before breakfast is finished.

Carson has joined the Chorus at school and comes to ward choir with me now. And he loves it. He didn't really want to try out for Chorus. He is glad now that he did. We encouraged him to try out, but told him he did not have to join if he didn't want to. Well he really loves his Chorus teacher and has found that he enjoys singing very much.

For Carson's birthday we got him Super Mario Bros. Wii and a couple of pocket knives, don't worry he has earned his whittling chip-HA.

Carson had his best friend Sam over the Friday before his birthday for a sleep over. We gave him his video game that morning so he and Sam could play it together. On his actual birthday we had Sam, Sarah (sam's sister pictured with morgan) and Maddie (pictured with Cambryn) over to play. That night we had a huge cookie bar cake, sang to him and gave him his pocket knives. If you care to hear us serenade Carson just click on the video below.

Evertyhing before Christmas minus Carson's Birthday.

2011-03-07T11:03:00.000-08:00

We took our kids down to our town's Snow day. It was at the beginning of December, the kids had a really great time. Carson was over in the "big kids" spot and the girls stayed with the little ones. Morgan did not like getting snow on her neck and down her shirt- but once we got her her jacket with a hood she was much happier. Cambryn was all smiles the whole time and Bristyn kept finding chunks of "snow" and bringing them to us. Meanwhile Carson was having too much fun throwing snow balls at someone- the parent had to ask Carson to stop. Carson felt really bad because he didn't really mean to hurt them, but he was throwing the snow balls at them on purpose. So it was a good learning experience for him. As for Ryan and I we have NO problem with another parent asking Carson to stop. We would have done the same.

After the snow day we got pizza- Papa John's- it was a special treat. Ryan had a coupon for a free medium and we had another coupon for a $5 large. I think we might have threatened that any girls who had a bad attitude, during the day, would not be eating pizza with the family, that night. Needless to say we had very good attitudes. When we finished the pizza we hopped in the car to go see the drive-through lights. We had seen them from the freeway and they looked really cool. Our kids where loving driving through the neighborhood to look at lights and asking to do it every day. We thought it would be awesome. But it really wasn't that great. It cost $15 per car and the lights did not look very great up close. We will not be doing this again.

The next night we went to the Temple to see the Temple Lights. These did not disappoint, they never do. Their have been some years, sadly, that we did not make seeing the Temple Lights a priority and so we did not make it to see them. I am not proud of this, so this year early in December Ryan and talked about our month and figured out when we would go. Planning- I am not a huge planner- but it sure would help a lot of things if I were. We truly enjoyed the lights and the huge nativity scenes. Our family stood and watched/listened to the choir also. That night it was a combined choir of one nearby LDS stake choir and a local christian church choir. They have been combining to sing at Christmastime for about 15 years. The spirit is so strong on the Temple Grounds, I love bringing the kids there.

One night we were invited to a friend's house for Family Home Evening. The elders/missionaries were there to share a message with us. And as a surprise Santa stopped by. All of the kids got the chance to sit on his lap and tell him what they wanted for Christmas. As you can see I got the chance as well- it was really funny- I can't even remember how many years it has been since I have done that. Also Bristyn was not happy at all about sitting on Santa's lap- but I didn't have to tell you that! We had a great time and are certainly glad for friends who invite us to do fun things!

Decorating for Christmas/Black Friday/Thanksgiving Weekend

2011-01-19T15:33:00.000-08:00

bristy-girl playing with the nativity finger puppets and dressed in a swimsuit :)

cambryn lining up the Mary and baby Jesus finger puppets

We started decorating for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving and I loved it! Ryan had to work that day, but as soon as he came home he said, "Let's turn on some Christmas music and put up the tree." He earned about 500 points for saying/doing that. So Ryan had to work on Saturday too. But the kids and I worked all day decorating the house, Carson and Morgan worked tirelessly putting the decorations on the tree, and I didn't get one stinking picture of them doing anything. Cambryn and Bristyn did pretty much what you see them doing in the pictures above. All of my areas that are available to display things are super high- the top of the cupboards and the top of the refrigerator. So past helping with the tree and putting up the ladder next to the tree, there wasn't much more for them to do.

our pretty tree

ryan setting up the reindeer

When Ryan got home from work on Saturday, he put up the lights on the house and when I came out to talk to him, I saw him setting up the reindeer. For this he earned about a gazillion points. It is possible that he didn't really care for the reindeer. It is also possible that he might have been heard to say, "they actually look pretty good." So I have a converted reindeer lover! I for one totally love the reindeer. And a couple of years ago when my parents got me one and my dad set it up for me it made me a very happy girl. Now I have two and having my husband put them both up for me had me smiling all the way through Christmas. He really loves me and he knew that this would be a sweet way to show me- I love you babe-a-lish-de-lish!

ryan "grilling" the steak

This same weekend we got some steak to grill on the barbecue. Only when we went to turn the grill on- no propane. So here we have improvised grilling- simply move the electric skillet out to the barbecue and you too can grill in style. I purchased my first sewing machine on black friday this year and it is so fun to have a sewing machine. I haven't gotten it out and played with it as much as I would like, but it is fun none the less.

me sewing on my own sewing machine- thank you black friday

Thanksgiving 2010

2011-01-19T15:13:00.000-08:00

This was our very first year spending Thanksgiving without any extended family and it was very bizzare. It just didn't feel normal.

We did have our neighbors over for a Thanksgiving meal, we did it early so that they could get to their family's house by afternoon time. Also because it was so early we opted out of having dessert. The food was so yummy! Ryan and I cooked ham, mashed potatoes and green bean casserole. Our neighbors brought rolls, homemade cranberry sauce, stuffing and roasted sqaush. Their littlest one was battling a fever, so they came in shifts. Pictured with us is Shannon and "neighbor Sammie" who is just five months older than Cambryn. Mike came over to eat once Shannon went home to stay with baby Cameron.

We first met Mike and Shannon in July of 2005. Here in AZ, at that time, if you wanted to buy a house, you had to enter a drawing/lottery. If your name got drawn then you got to choose a lot, if not better luck next time. The day we went, they choose two groups of names. The first group had their purchase price locked in and got to choose a lot. The second group got to choose a lot but not have their purchase price locked in for two more weeks. Ryan and I, and Mike and Shannon were both in the second group. This meant that we had the entire day to sit and wait until it was our turn to choose our lot. Well that is when we met them and we hit it off right away and talked the hours away. We parted ways knowing that we were on the same street just 3 houses away. And we have had a great time doing all sorts of things together. The girls love to play together, Shannon and I have gone out to lunch and shopping, Ryan and Mike have gone hiking, to Cardinals games (those played on Saturdays or Mondays) and out to lunch as well. We have traded babysitting and gone on family picnics. We love them very much, they are truly some of our best friends and we treasure having them as neighbors.

After Thanksgiving dinner I took Cambryn and Morgan to see TANGLED at the theater. They were so excited to be able to go with just mom. The movie was super cute and I loved getting popcorn and sharing it with my girls. Later that night we baked our apple pie and ate it as a family while we watched another movie, KITT KITTREDGE an american girl, we love this movie and have made it a Thanksgiving tradition to watch it together.

The midnight showing!

2011-01-19T14:15:00.000-08:00

Ryan and I took Carson to the midnight/opening showing of Harry Potter. For one night at least we were the coolest parents on the block. A huge heartfelt thanks to the Watsons for keeping Cambryn and Bristyn, and to the Perkins for keeping Morgan. It is such a blessing to have awesome friends, who do so much for us! On our way to the theater we picked up Sam and his dad. We loved having them along. We brought our Harry Potter Clue game to play in line while we waited to go into the theater. When we got their they let us go right into the theater, so there was no place to play the game. On another note Ryan was carrying $20 cash and when we went to pay for our popcorn he couldn't find it. Long story shorter- some lucky person found $20 in the parking lot and Ryan is no longer responsible for carrying the cash!

Remembering

2011-01-19T11:06:00.000-08:00

When I was 5 or 6 I had tubes put in my ears. It wasn't until I took the hearing test in Kindergarten, that it was discovered, I had 35% hearing loss in one hear and 45% in the other. I remember my Grandma bringing me this bear at the hospital after my surgery. I loved it, it had/still has a cute lavendar dress and apron that my grandma made for the bear. The bear had a music box in it that played "I Am a Child of God" I would wind up the music box and listen to it over and over and over. The music box died many years ago- but I still treasure this bear. I had it in the girls closet for a really long time. It was high on a shelf- I didn't want anything to happen to it. Then one day as I was putting something away in their closet- I looked at the bear and remembered how I loved playing with this bear as a girl- and I decided to take it down and let the girls play with it. It warms my heart to see them play with and sleep with this bear that I have so many memories of.

bristyn sleeping with the bear- nov. 2010

Boys will be boys

2011-01-11T12:33:00.000-08:00

the mom with her hands protecting her head and the grandma doing a handstand

Unlike the previous post- these pictures totally need explaining! First they are not very clear/or focused- the result of either a 9 or 10 year old boy being behind the lense of the camera. Second unless you have been here to witness this in action you would have absoutely no clue what in the world you were looking at!

baby on the grandma's feet- while the grandma is still doing a handstand (she has serious skills)

These are pictures of what Sam and Carson were doing while all the girly fun was going on in the kitchen. Their second favorite thing to do- after the Wii- is jumping Hot Wheel cars, sometimes they try to get them to jump through a tiny window in the doll house, or they take to trying to hit some or all of the family members (pretend of course). So they strategically set up the persons who are the targets, create barricades and other obstacles. Then comes the challenge of holding the car tracks just right so they make contact with their intended targets. They have great fun and always want to take pictures and video. They are also quite resourceful- see picture below.

There was a box of wipe on the table in the preschool room and the boys helped themselves- i'm not sure but i think this is a tunnel.

Girls just wanna have fu-un!

2010-12-23T10:22:00.000-08:00

These pictures pretty much speak for themselves. One day we had Megan over and another day we had Emma over.

Morgan drew bunny faces all by herself. We have had these bunny ears for over a year and they continue to be a favorite.

Bunk Beds!!!

2010-12-22T21:10:00.000-08:00

Early November brought bunk beds for the girls, they were delivered and set up by Grandpa Gary and Uncle Griffin! Morgan has been asking for bunk beds over and over. I am one of 5 girls in my family and growing up we had 3 girls in one room- with a custom-made triple bunk bed. It was made by my grandpa. So my dad was asked to make some for our girls. Plans were being drawn and things were moving forward. Then my mom found these beds for a total steal. Buying the materials would have cost more than purchasing these. It also saved countless hours of man power. The beds are gorgeous.

the girls watching

proof that carson was here

grandpa and uncle griffin hard at work

My dad and Griffin arrived late on a Wednesday night. We kept Carson and Morgan home from school on Thursday and I also moved my preschool class to another day. The preschool room was completely filled with odds and ends from the girls room, while the bunk beds were being made. Amidst the buliding of the beds we had a yummy breakfast, went out to lunch, played and talked together. Our helpers didn't leave until 6:00 at night, and it was so fun to have them here.

me, morgan and cambryn on a top bunk

me helping

First we just put together one set of bunk beds, we were concerned about both fitting in the room. We had a right to be concerned as there is literally less than an inch to spare. So as we were assembling the second set, which is actually set up like a loft bed, we had to lift it way super high to clear the other top bunk and then lower it carefully down.

morgan helping- she was so excited to help

uncle griffin showing his mad skills

Another hurdle we had to overcome was that with both beds set up, the middle switch on the triple switch was covered by the beds. The middle switch of course is the light. Thank goodness for my handy dad and brother knowing how to fix things like that. So now the middle switch is the half-hot switch and we don't miss it at all since we never used it in the first place. And if you don't know what a half-hot switch or plug is- you must not have grown up around construction like I did.

the finished product and cute bristyn

Thank you to my sweet parents who gave us these beds as a gift, including two of the three twin mattresses that we needed. Parents are the BEST!

To say the girls love their beds would be a huge understatement. Ryan and I love that the girls each have their own space to sleep. For quite some time Morgan and Cambryn have been sleeping in the same tiny bed. We would often find Cambryn falling half way off the bed, because a certain someone would be pushing her off in her sleep.

Painting/Carving Pumpkin(s) and the Goodyear Halloween Party.

2010-12-21T12:17:00.000-08:00

The kids painted these pumpkins early in October and we got to enjoy them on our entertainment center. The kids loved looking at them everyday. And just incase anyone was wondering we did not have the kids paint on top of the Ensign, it is Ryan's Alumni magazine that comes once in a blue moon.

The Goodyear Halloween Party was a fun thing to do on Saturday. They had rides and mazes- but you had to buy tickets for them- which we did not do. The lines were crazy long for the rides. All in all I don't know if I would go again- too many gory costumes and not enough free activities. We did get to watch "The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" while sitting in the stadium that was pretty fun.

We carved our pumpkin Halloween night. If you do it much earlier than that here you end up with a rotting pumpkin to greet your trick-or-treaters. We opted to carve only one pumpkin and have it be a joint family effort. Since Halloween was on Sunday this year, we did not take them out trick-or-treating. We did pass out candy at our door, we only had about 7 people come.

50 mile hike minus 20 miles = No water, hurt body, and good times

2010-11-17T19:27:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, my friend John and I went for a 50 mile hike in the Coconino National Forest on the Arizona Trail, which turned into a 30 mile hike. I realized that it has been too long since I've done something like this and didn't have the strength. Also I pulled a muscle and we ran out of water. The water filter wasn't able to make the hike, that would have been necessary had we tried to go further.

During the day it topped out at about 45 degrees and at night about 25 degrees.

Flat ground and the downhills weren't so bad, but the uphill was crazy. Stopping way too often to catch my breath.

This was home for the night, not much, but it was all we had.

Cambryn's Preschool Party and Ward Trunk-or-Treat Fri. Oct. 29

2010-11-14T16:00:00.000-08:00

Half of Cambryn's Preschool class

Cambryn has a fun little group of kids for preschool, she loves when it is "her" preschool day. And I must say that as the teacher, I feel super blessed to have two darling classes. They are both such a joy to teach!

On another note- last year Cambryn refused to wear a costume- so this year when she at least put on the Ballerina outfit, from her regular dress up clothes- I was thrilled!

Our party was a blast. I splurged at the store and got the "KIDZ BOP" Halloween CD. The kids loved it- especially the scooby doo song. We had a black table cloth, orange plates, black cups and scary spider rings all over the table. Some friends brought treats to share, and we also had cheetos and cinnamon rolls with orange frosting. The kids really enjoy dressing up and always love showing there costumes off at school.

Other half of Cambryn's Preschool class
The pretty Ballerina
After Trunk-or-Treat

This day was so long, but so fun too! This is how my day turned out:

7:15am- Carson and Morgan leave for school(their school does not allow costumes).

7:15-9am- get my costume on and set up for the Preschool Party.

9-11am- Preschool Party

11am-2:20pm- clean up the party mess, make lunch, bake 3 batches of cornbread, put a chicken in the crock pot (to use in the chili), get the chili mostly made on the stove, put the corn bread into tupperware and somewhere in there get Cambryn and Bristyn down for a nap.

2:20-3:15pm- go pick up the kids from school still wearing my pirate bandana on my head and jagged cut shorts- but instead of my pirate button up shirt over my white t-shirt, I had my apron on, it was a cute look- I promise:)

3:15-5ish- after school snacks, finding every ones costume accessories, putting spices in the chili, removing the white chicken from the whole chicken-cubing it-putting it into the chili, whipping the whip cream-adding it to the chili-freaking out a little bit because it looked like the whip cream was not incorporating itself into the chili, put some chili in a bowl to test it, stop freaking out because it tasted perfect, put the dark meat portions of the chicken in a container in the fridge, start getting people into their costumes, load everyone in the car, remember that Carson needs some sort of container-run in and empty the milk into a cup-rinse milk jug and cut the top off and run and get in the car.

5ish- drive to the kids school, let Carson out before I park the car-so he can almost be on time.

5:30-6pm- Carson sings with the Chorus group at school-he had to tryout to join and he is loving it, Ryan meets us there and I cry while I am watching Carson sing-what is wrong with me?

6ish- Ryan heads home to grab the chili and corn bread, I hop in the van with the kids to head straight to the church-upon arrival we start to change Carson into his costume.

Also after Trunk-or-Treat

6:30ish-late- enjoy corn bread and chili, go straight for my own (is it bad I didn't try anyone else's?), win second place for my chili-so exciting, enjoy the carnival games inside the church, totally LOVE having my neighbor come- we have invited her every year for 5 years- it took telling her we weren't going to go trick-or-treating on Sunday to get her there, pass out candy from my trunk, enjoy having one of my best friends park her car next to me, have Morgan try to stow away in Sister Proctor's car and enjoy standing in the parking lot just talking for a long time because the weather was gorgeous!

Carson's candy calendar

We let our kids pick out their 25 favorite pieces of candy. Mom and Dad then picked out their favorites from the left-overs and we saved the rest to hand out on Sunday night. Before we knew it Carson and Morgan were both writing out candy calendars- so I would know which piece of candy to send in their lunch everyday. So classic!

Morgan's candy calendar

Hoping

2010-11-11T22:40:00.000-08:00

Dear Husband,

Hoping you're safe.
Hoping you're warm.
Hoping you're not lost.
Hoping your backpack is not too heavy.
Hoping you're going to have lots of stories to tell.
Hoping you're having fun exploring the snowy mountain.
Hoping you're missing me- cause I sure am missing you!

Can't wait to see you,
Love Wife