Christmas Concert at Temple Square

I love going to the Christmas Concert at Temple Square. Lately it's been hard to get tickets. This year was especially difficult because the guest singer was "DAVID ARCHULETA"!! No one in my family was able to get tickets and we were pretty sad. However, I have a friend (former teaching buddy) that came through. He and his wife are missionaries at the Conference Center and were able to pull some stings and get me some tickets.

The show was absolutely wonderful!! I loved it. I think it was my favorite Christmas concert so far.
David Archuleta really did a wonderful job. Even better than I expected.

We had great seats on the middle balcony. Front row! Although we did get in trouble for "leaning against the railing" OOPS!

Andrea, Grandma Sue, and Grandpa Rick got to come with Liam and me.

Oh look, it's little David Archuleta in a tux.

We were standing at the finale so I quietly got out my camera and took a quick video. Don't tell anyone.

Liam's a Star!

Liam is a Star! He earned his Star in Boy Scouts in November. He actually has only 2 more merit badges before he gets his Life badge - well, he needs his service hours and time to pass of course. But, he's really doing well and motivated to get it done. He has already signed up for his next scout pow wow in March so he'll be ready to move right along.

He really cleaned up with the merit badges this time. At the Court of Honor in November he got basketry, archery, rifle shooting, weather, swimming, family life, citizenship in the world, and electricity merit badges in addition to earning his Star.

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Lets give him a hand!

Thanksgiving Thoughts

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year, visiting with family and eating of course.

It's been a rough year in our home, but this is a good time of year to remember all the things we do have to be thankful for. It's so easy to dwell on all the things that go wrong and all the things you don't have. But, all of the things that are really important we do have.

This year I'm thankful for:

1. Healthy & happy boys in my home!
2. A wonderful husband that is very good to me!
3. A very supportive and loving extended family!
4. The knowledge we have of the true gospel that keeps my focus on what is truly important in this life!

So, as we enter the Christmas season I am going to try very hard to be happy and enjoy this time of year. I'm going to try not to focus on what is missing, but what we have. Christmas isn't about what presents you can give or what presents you get. It's about celebrating the birth of Christ. Maybe this year it might be even easier to keep the focus in the right place.

Carving Pumpkins

What do we do every year on the Monday before Halloween? Carve pumpkins of course!

Jim gets to help Gavin. Gavin wanted a "cat" pumpkin and luckily Jim had the ability to make one. Liam on the other hand, has my lack of artistic ability so both of our pumpkins are "traditional", at least that is what we are calling them.

Getting them set on the porch.

Finished products.

Trevan's Annual Birthday at the Pumpkin Patch

Again this year we got to go to the pumpkin patch for my nephews birthday party.

It's fun hanging with the family!!

Gavin had more fun this year.

Nice shot from inside the slide.

Asher obviously thinks I'm crazy and doesn't love my picture taking.

I love Trey's cute hat!

Cute tractor swings!

Liam trying to pet the little horses.

Gavin found a "corn flag" during the corn maze.

And, we took a crazy hayride out to the pumpkin patch where we were let off to pick out pumpkins. We thought they were waiting for us so he hurried to grab pumpkins. We turned around and our ride had LEFT! We waited with all the kids (lots from Trev's party) in the dark until it came back. Then we got to take the very bumpy ride back. Liam found the perfect looking pumpkin! I seriously love Halloween!

Asher and Gavin were too short to reach the pedals so Gavin gave Asher a push. Cute boys!!

Vineyard Pumpkinland/Fall Break

It's fall break and we had nothing to do. Luckily my sister Andrea and her baby invited us to go to the pumpkin patch.

Gavin found a new furry friend and just LOVED to touch its cage (gross!).

Vineyard is a cheap way to get out of the house. A lot of little activities.

Gavin and baby horse having a seat.

Andrea, Trey, and Liam checking out some pumpkins.

Why this was Gavin's favorite spot, I'm not sure.

Liam is SUPER excited to be here and taking pictures.

Both of my kids are just too excited!

How Much Competition Is Too Much Competition?

This year Liam is playing on a coed recreation soccer team. It's been such a good experience. Last year he was on a competition league team and it was...not so fun. The coach was yelling at him to do things that Liam had no idea about. The coach was yelling/swearing at the refs. He was rarely played, partly because he joined a team that was already together and he was just a "sub". He didn't even know why we was having to go. Anyway, he had decided to drop soccer until his friend called to say they were joining a coed rec team. Liam was interested and signed up.

What a difference experience! This coach is so encouraging, the team members are encouraging. There are 17 year old boys on the team that have been in AAA leagues and are refs and incredible players there with girls that have no idea what they are doing. They help each other and nobody kills you if you miss a shot. It's actually FUN!

I had a conversation with a couple of friends about soccer. They were talking about their kids on competition teams and how they were screaming at the other team players and playing to the death. I told them about the league Liam is on and they were almost irritated at the idea. Why on earth would you play for fun and not to WIN? They almost seemed offended that score isn't recorded and placement isn't taken, like it's a waste of time.

So, I started to think about what I am teaching my kids with sports. Do I need to teach them to be more competitive? I realize there are times in life that it helps to have that attitude - selling yourself in an interview, getting ahead in school. But, learning to be sportsman like and having fun is good too. Do we really need to push them so hard in everything? Do we push them to do something to the point of making it not fun anymore? Do we encourage them to step on (or throw to the ground, literally) others to get ahead? Hmmm.....

For us, I think I like our new league. I like being nice. I like having fun. I like being able to have Liam play a lot and feel good about his contribution. I like building confidence without needing to crush others. I don't know. I guess it's just a sport. It's not life. But, to some screaming parents on the sidelines, you would think it's all that matters in the world.

Here is his fun little team.

Yep, they even let Liam try out being goalie (he's there with the yellow goalie shirt). Let's just say that the bigger and taller the player is, the better chance they have of covering that big goal. At least nobody got on him for missing a block.

Canning, Canning, Canning!

This year our garden really did well! We had watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, raspberries, green beans, green & red peppers, cucumbers, squash, zucchini, potatoes, carrots, pears, peaches, apples, apricots, grapes! It was crazy and it's still producing. We had to do something with it, so I started canning more than usual.

We have SO many tomatoes! The bushes just grew together and completely overtook their cages. I can hardly get in there to pick them.

Here is my very first batch from the vine. I love home-bottle tomatoes so much more than canned in the store. It takes time, but it's worth it.

So, my first batch didn't produce many bottles but that's OK.

I ended up doing a few kinds of jam, grape juice, tomato soup, canned peaches, and many bottles of diced tomatoes. I still have green ones on the vine waiting to be picked. I better hurry because it's getting cold out there.

Gavin's Trip to Jr High

OK, I love the CTE class!! Liam is now better at sewing than I am. The funny thing is that he really likes this class. They have learned to do laundry (and he did our laundry, thank you), sew, cook, take care of kids. It's great! He had to put together a child activity folder and they each had to bring a 3 or 4 year old to class one day. He was able to take Gavin. He said Gavin was the best behaved! What? You don't believe me?? It's true, he was good. He doesn't like to participate in groups so he sat quietly. Oh well. Gavin had a lot of fun.

Liam Starts Jr. High!! I can't be that old.

Well, at least the school picture turned out nicely. Too bad the background colors don't match the outfit. I remember hating my jr high pictures. I guess we all do.

This is Liam heading out for his first day. It was actually a little cold. He walks with a couple of friends since we are only a few blocks from the school.

It was a little weird for me going into that school since I went there as a 7th grader. He even has one teacher that I had!

So far things seem to be going pretty smoothly. It's a whole new thing needing to be organized and on top of things yourself. Hopefully it will be a good year.

Good Deals = Summer Fun

For the last several years we have gotten Seven Peaks seasons passes. It's my way of having something to go and do when we are bored. Yes, it isn't as exciting as it could be because it's available all the time and because we've gone at least once a week for years. BUT this year they added a little surprise!! I guess they just bought Trafalga Lehi (formerly Liberty Land) and if you had a season pass to Seven Peaks, you could go to Trafalga Lehi for free throughout July. We didn't learn about this until almost the end of July, but got to go twice. Finally, something new for them to do that didn't cost me any money!! I love that!!

Gavin's a big cheater at mini-golf!

Small, indoor train that kind of made me dizzy because it almost went in a circle.

The little boys liked it though.

Liam did really well on the rock climbing wall. I didn't attempt that one.

Excellent golfers!

It's funny that the two littles gave the same pose

Gavin LOVED the bumper boats.

I did not love being sprayed by girls that I didn't even know.

I was soaked and my hair didn't like that.

Liam got to ride the airplane so that Gavin would go.

They also have a little roller coaster that we all went on. It was a little faster than I expected, but Gavin survived. Liam went back a second time with a friend and spent a lot of time playing laser tag. Look at all the free activities!! I really love FREE!

Scout Camp 2010

Liam got to go to scout camp for the first time this summer. It was fun, but he also had a few mishaps. It feels like one of those summers.

First, he broke his glasses in half and lost the lens. Luckily he was still able to finish this rifle shooting and archery merit badges without being able to see.

Second, he had a bag of clothes thrown away - excellent. That's what I get for sending a trash bag for him to put his dirty clothes in. On the day they were packing up he was taking his things out of the tent and apparently the kid in charge of trash walked by and picked up his "trash". Good thing he didn't change his clothes as often as he should have or we would really be in trouble.

Jim got to go up one night since he's in deacons. Camping is NOT his favorite but he survived.

Gavin spent the week feeling abandoned. He kept telling me that he was "all alone" even though I was right there. He was so happy to see Liam when we went up on Friday evening for family night. We are glad he's home and I'm glad that I didn't have any laundry to do.

Better Safe than Sorry

Seven Peaks Hospital Trip #2!

Last year we ended our Seven Peaks season with a trip to the doctor, a CT scan, and then a night and day in the hospital because of a concussion.

This year we had made the trip a little earlier (mid-July) and in a much fancier vehicle (an ambulance).

Those of you that know Gavin, know that he is too fast for me. He had a little slip and fall in the wave pool. While trying to comfort him, I noticed a HUGE goose egg on the back of his head. I took him to the first aid hut. The crying stopped and it got a little scary. He started to get really quiet and wouldn't sit up. He wasn't responding to pain so they called the EMTs.

They came and got him on a stretcher and headed to the ER by ambulance. He wouldn't say a word, he just looked into space. He had a good grip on his swimming rocket though.

At the hospital everyone was concerned until the CT scan results came back showing no bleeding or fracture. Once everyone was out of the room he started talking. I guess he was just freaked out by all of the attention and people. We got to take him home after about an hour. He had no other problems, other than a sore back of the head. He did get to come home with several "stickers" all over his body (as you can see in the picture). He didn't want us to take them off. They also gave him the cute little horse he's holding in the picture. It's been a new favorite.

2 Lessons Learned

1. When in doubt, just take them in. It's better to error on the side of caution. You really can't tell how bad it is without that scan.
2. I better be ready to chase a 3 year old the ENTIRE time we're at Seven Peaks. Both injuries have happened because he's taken off to have fun before I was ready to follow.

Pioneer Trek at Martin's Cove 2010

Liam had the opportunity to go to Martin's Cove with the youth in our Stake this summer. Most of the pictures have Liam hiding somewhere in them, but I had to look through literally thousands (like 4000) pictures to find him. I got a call when they were headed home to warn me that he might be upset because the last night was particularly hard. But, when he got off the bus he had a big smile and said that he had a good experience. Maybe not a FUN experience, but a good one. He came home missing a lot of stuff and wearing his PJ pants because that's all he had, but it was worth it.

They went the 2nd week of June which was good and bad.

Bad:

1. Liam got the cast on his arm THE DAY BEFORE he left. And it wasn't water-proof.
2. It was not warm.
3. It RAINED, RAINED, RAINED
4. The wind BLEW, BLEW, BLEW (85 mph winds)
5. The tents were flattened and everything was soaked the first night.

Good:

1. The kids got a more realistic look at what the pioneers really went through!!
2. They experienced something hard, pulled together, and made it.
3. They learned to have a positive attitude.
4. They came home grateful for home, hopefully it lasts a while.

I can't begin to imagine what the actual pioneers went through. The kids in our ward have shared stories that they learned while on trek and even the teen boys were in tears.

What strong people the poineers were. It makes me grateful for the trials that I have today. I'm not sure I could have done that with my little family.

I'm so thankful Liam had this opportunity. Maybe one day our whole family will get to go.

ECLIPSE!!

I totally stole this picture from Andrea's blog, sorry! Liam and Stephen aren't pictured, but I have to point out that they came with us.

But I LOVED Eclipse, and my Eclipse treat holders!! This book was by far my favorite in the Twilight Saga. In fact, I skimmed the book (thoroughly reading my favorite parts) before seeing the movie. Because I read the last 150 pgs the day of the show I realized that the movie really did follow the book. I was very happy about that. Even a lot the dialogue was right from the book.

Here is my frustration, and please don't think that I'm a giant pediphile. Movie Jacob is so good looking that it really ruins the story for me. In the book I loved Edward so, so much and was angry when Bella kissed him or would go to see him. But in the movie I'm thinking Edward is so....not Jacob that I keep finding myself leaning a little more Team Jacob than I should.

Now, who wants to go see it again??