Presenting Kaylee!!

Tonight was sooo fun, we got to go over to the Anderson's to see Kaylee! She is so sweet and small and girlie and beautiful and small oh did I say that already?! It is crazy how huge James looks next to her! I just love her to pieces! Carlee was great to let us all hold her and love on her! And "Sweetie G" as she wishes to be called couldn't have loved her Grand daughter any more, it was so amazing to see Carolee smile so big and kiss on her little Kaylee. Congrats all of you, we love you!!

My boys!

These are my two favorite boys on the planet!! I love watching Jimmy with his son, they love each other so much and I have visions in my head of them going to Father/Son activities and doing all the things that my Dad and brother do together! Jimmy talks about wanting to take him camping and fishing and doing outdoor stuff, although I told him that it might be best to wait until he is able to at least walk :). I think that Jimmy is so glad to have some more testosterone in the house, he had been so out numbered but now he has a tag-team! As Grace once told me "Boys is Awesome!"

Grace's Messes!

Now I try to encourage my children to develop their talents but Grace takes things to a whole new level! She loves to cook and bake and while I allow her to help me when I cook, she can often be found playing with her own kitchen & fake food. Well as of late she has decided that fake food is for little kids and she is a "big kid" and so she should be able to use real food for her dishes!! Her favorite ingredients to use are: flour, sugar, salt, pepper, uncooked pasta, sprinkles and pretty much anything that she can get her hands on. Now in case you are thinking that I leave all of this out for her to use, that couldn't be farther from reality, she has learned to scale the shelves in my pantry to the very top so there isn't much that is out of reach! She also loves painting and coloring but because of her criminal record we keep those kinds of things under lock and key. The following pictures and video clips are over the period of two days in the life with Grace!

Oh Yes I am all about child labor in this house! If you are old enough to climb counters, open canisters and pour out the flour you are old enough to help clean it up.

This here lovely painting was done with ink from one of the Asian countries that Grandma visited and brought back for Alexis. This ink is not in the approved list of things Grace is allowed to use so she waited until all was dark and quiet in the house to launch a surprise attack! What a World!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

And yes that was a jelly bean that she pulled out and then threw across the room! As you could see she was very remorseful about it all. Any takers of a 4 year old that hates to wear clothes and lives to make messes!???


I would also like to thank the makers of Dyson, Magic Eraser and Clorox Cleaner w/ bleach for your assistance in my life for without you Grace may not be alive!! One little request please upgrade the magic eraser to also remove "ink from Asian country" thank you.

Sooo Excited!

So I got the news about 5:20 am today that miss Kaylee Lynn was born, she is the niece of Kaytee and Kenzee. Their older sister Carlee gave birth to her and what a gift from Heaven this is for all of us but especially the Anderson family! As soon as I get pictures I will post them. What a great day! Congrats Chris and Carlee!! We love you!

On a lighter note!

So James turned 5 months yesterday! I really can't believe how fast it is going!! It is also another reminder that I need to get these last pounds off me! James is such an EASY baby, he just hangs out and smiles and sleeps and is so fun. The fact that he sleeps is such an awesome thing to me because he goes to bed around 9 and doesn't wake up until 8:30 or so the next morning!!! It is a dream really! In fact some mornings I have to wake him so that I can feed him! He is starting to do the cute little talking that babies this age do, he is rolling over and he loves playing with toys and of course putting everything in his mouth. He loves his sisters and his Daddy, he gets a huge smile on his face anytime they walk in the room. I love my boy, bet you couldn't even tell! :)

Hard Day

So yesterday the 24th was a year from the day that our sweet friends were killed in a car accident. For those of you that are not familiar I will give a short version of what happened. Our friends Kaytee and Kenzee were on there way home from Utah when Kaytee lost control of the car and it rolled killing them both. Kaytee was only 23 and Kenzee was just 8, it has been a very tough year, we have missed them so much. Yesterday I spent some time reflecting on them and remembering their smiles, please indulge me for a moment while their memories are spilled onto the page. Kaytee had this laugh that could just light up the room and Kenzee was sweet and had this little voice. One of my most favorite memories I have of Kenzee was when we went to FAO Schwartz for Lexi's birthday and while the other girls were looking at all the toys I turned around to see sweet little Kenzee wearing a cute red sweater, sitting in an over sized rocking chair, holding a baby doll in her arms and rocking it like it was her very own. She was looking down at the baby and touching it's face, I could just tell she was dreaming about being a mommy, the image is still very fresh in my mind and I am so grateful for that. There is not a day that goes by that we don't think of them. Lexi misses her friend dearly and while we know that they are watching over us it doesn't make us miss them any less. How grateful we are to have the gospel and the knowledge that we will see them again and oh what a day it will be when we reunite with them.


This picture of Kenzee was taken that day at FAO Schwartz and the one of Kaytee & her dog Jack was taken just a few months before the accident.

When I Grow Up I am Gonna Run Away and Join the Cicus!

10 Reasons I Should Join the Circus

10. I have always had a thing for leotards (see my "ABC tag" post)

9. Working w/ Elephants would be a dream because they would always be bigger than me.

8. Staying fit would be much easier doing two shows daily.

7. I have always wanted to travel the world!

6. I could scratch an itch with my toes when I am short on hands.

5. I already know how to tame wild animals.

4. I could be in the side show cause I have eyes in the back of my head.

3. I could drive a compact fuel efficient car that would fit all my clowns!

2. The tight rope is something I walk everyday.

1. I have always wanted to wear a top hat!


Last Thursday, the 19th of June we went to the circus as a family. I had bought the tickets many weeks prior and only paid 10 bucks each! I wasn't expecting to have very good seats but when we got there we were only 3 rows back! The girls had been excited all day, so when we found our seats and as the show was starting their eyes were as big as pies! Grace was most happy about the lions and elephants and Lexi loved the beautiful ladies that spun from the ceiling on wires. James was really good and seemed to enjoy the lights and music although he did fall asleep part way through. It was a wonderful thing to do as a family, however I am hopeful that next year we will be able to join the 3 old "No cruelty to animals" ladies that stood out on the corner in protest to the circus :).

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I love in the video when Lexi keeps striking a pose waiting for the camera, too funny! Silly girl she is always ready! Oh and the guy with the tigers, I swear more than once I was thinking we would be at the show where he would get eaten!!

Music & Milestones!!

WARNING! Bragging to follow, may be unsuitable for some viewers!
Well this past week has been mighty busy, Lexi had her 3rd grade program at School and I must say it was THE perfect way to do one, it was short and sweet! It was only 30 min long and very entertaining! We actually filmed the entire thing with our nice video camera and I just got a brief clip with the smaller camera so I could post it. The next clips are of James rolling over, in the past I was not so good at getting that kind of stuff on record but with James I am trying to do better. While all are welcome to view I am doing this primarily for journal and Grandma purposes, and I guess for all our family that live far away (which is just about everyone). Enjoy!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

ABC TAG!

Tagged by Janna

A-Attached or Single? - Attached.

B-Best Friend - Jimmy is my best friend but if we are talking about best girlfriend then I have a few, Marissa,Mesa,Lindsay,Kasey, I have several other very close
friends so it is hard to pick just one.
C-Cake or Pie?- Well if it is my Mom's Cherry Pie than Pie but if not then cake :).
D-Day of choice?- I love Monday's cause John & Kate Plus 8 is on and FHE, and I love Fridays cause my man comes home early!
E-Essential item?- Dr.Pepper Chap-stick and my CAMERA!!








F-Favorite color?- Green but I love Red a lot too.
G-Gummy bears or worms? Only if they are chocolate covered, I am not a huge fan of either.

H-Hometown?- Born in Alaska but only lived there for a minute, moved to Vegas right before 1st Grade so it is my Home.


I-Favorite Indulgence? Vacations with my Husband and SLEEP!
J-January or July?- January...I live in the desert and I would rather be cold than hot, you can only take off so much but you can always add another blanket. And two of my babies were born in January!
K-Kids?- 3 Alexis, Grace and my sweet baby James!!
L-Life isn't complete without?- My family
M-Marriage Date?- December 14, 2002
N-Number of Bros & Sis?-3 sisters, 1 brother





O-Oranges or Apples?- Apples




P-Phobias and Fears?- Something happening to my husband or kids!




Q-Quote?- "No one listens to the white girl" & "If you lose your keys in a flowing river of lava just let them go."



R-Reason to smile?- My husbands dancing!
S-Season of choice?- Fall, anywhere that has it.
T-Tag Ten People?- Mesa,Lindsay,Leah,Marissa,Kasey,Rachel,Camille,Mari,Steph & Brook or anyone that wants to!! I love reading them :)
U-Unknown fact about me?- Well my Mom knows this but when I was little I wore a purple leotard EVERYWHERE!!!




V-Vegetable?- Broccoli
W-Worst habit?- Thinking bad of myself.


X-X-Ray?- Yes when I hurt my ankle and foot(separate times) and when my appendix busted.


Y-Your favorite food?- Italian or my Mom's or Mother-in-law's cooking!

 

Oh oops how did that picture of an Italian get in there?! lol


Z-Zodiac sign?- Scorpio (look out!) hee hee

I love to Sing!

So for the last 5 months or so myself and my good friend Glenna have been planning a reunion for the singing group we were in during High School called Expressions. For those that do not know the first thing about Expressions, it is the preforming group at Chaparral High School (my old stopping grounds). It consists of about 20 students who do lots of traveling and singing, we spent so much time together that we all became close friends.

Well we have been talking (Glenna and I) for several years about getting us all together and when I got an email from Glenna that we were just gonna do it, I immediatly jumped on board! It took a little bit of time to locate everyone, and there was one that we never were able to contact but out of 22 that was not too bad.

So the reunion was set for June 14th 2008 and while there was a lot of work and time put into the event it was well worth it! This past Saturday was the BIG day, we started with breakfast at Blueberry Hill and then went back to Chaparral to sing the music we sang our Senior year. Our Director Marsha Borovicka was there to lead us and it was really amazing to be sitting in our old choir room with her at the helm! We had set up a room for our spouses and children to play and hang out in while we rehersed a few of our favorite pieces and then we performed for them. My family has never really seen me sing other than around the house so I was really excited for them to see me in that setting. While the songs did not sound as good as they did 11 years ago, I think that for only having six of us there and not having sung those songs for 11 years we did pretty well! Yes, we were really bummed that only six of us made it, we had several that at the last minute were not able to make it but it was still great for those of us that did!!

 

 

After our mini-concert we took a little break so that children could take naps and so we could re-group and then we met back up that evening at my parents house (thanks Mom & Dad) for a BBQ. We spent the night eating food and catching up, the end of the evening I was able to show the slide show that I had been working on for many weeks. It was a great day and maybe once we (Glenna and I) have recovered from putting this one together we will be ready to do it again in another 10 or 11 years :).

 

 

These are some of our children, the red heads belong to Tanya, Grace & Lexi (and lexi's friend), Glenna's girls in the pool, and then one of Sam's kids.

Finally, I figured it out!

So I have made attempts for months to get some video clips on here but I guess the files were too large and it was just taking too long so I gave up until I saw these on my friend Rachel's blog (thanks :) ) so I was able to upload a few videos from the last couple weeks. The first clip is of Grace going down the slide in my parents pool a few weekends back. She loves the slide and the diving board! The next two clips are of James, I was trying to get him growling, he sounds like a gremlin. The last clip is of some kittens that were left in the desert behind my parents house that I wanted to keep in the worst way but they turn into cats eventually and we already have too many of those!!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Girls Night!

So last Friday Jimmy came home early from work and said he wanted me to have some time with Grace and Lexi, just the girls and he thought going to see Kung Fu Panda would be fun. So we got our tickets off of Fandango and headed to the movies! We decided to surprise the girls and so I didn't tell them where we were going. Alexis is old enough that once we got close to the theater she knew what we were doing but still let Grace try and guess! They were so excited when they found out what we were there to see, we got our treats and then went to find some seats! We were lucky to find three together in a pretty good spot because it was packed! The movie was AWESOME! I don't know the last time I laughed that hard watching an animated show. The best part was looking over at my girls and seeing them laugh hysterically and trying to take a mental picture so when they are teenagers and too cool to hang out with their mom I will be able to remember back. Grace was clapping and reacting to all the fighting scenes and the people around us were laughing at Grace. At the end everyone clapped which I loved because there aren't too many movies these days that are worth clapping at! On the drive home the girls were talking about which character they were and who Jimmy & I were. Grace is Tigress, Lexi is Viper, I am Shifu, James is Monkey and they decided that Daddy is Po the panda! It was a great night and it reminded me that I need to do that more often with them.






This was taken in a photo booth at the theater