Five Year Anniversary

I was sitting around talking with a friend at the Arts and Crafts Group tonight when I came to realize what today was. We were talking about how long we nursed until and then I brought up how I would have nursed Samantha longer if it wasn't because of my tumor. After chit chattin' about it for a little bit she asked how long ago it was. It was then that I realized that five years ago today was when I had the surgery to have it removed. Now it almost seems like it never happened. I only have the memory of the dent below my right ear and also every time I eat I sweat below my right ear too. It's not always that noticeable unless I have to do a lot of chewing. =) That's when it really sweats. It's funny now to look back and think about how nervous I was. There was a chance of temporary or even permanent facial paralyses on the right side of my face. I think through a lot of blessings and prayer that I was blessed to have neither. We even went and got family pictures taken right before this happened just in case I didn't look the same again. As I am sitting here reliving the moment five years ago I now am realizing how much Heavenly Father was watching over me and new my fears. I truely was blessed. What a learning experience it is and was for me.

Friends bring Happiness

Saturday morning we were thinking about meeting up with some friends to go to the zoo with them. Of course Corey and I were lazy and slept a little later than we thought we would. Corey doesn't get to sleep in very often so I wasn't pushing the matter. Anyway, we ended up not going and freezing our bottoms off. Instead these friends met up with us at our house later in the day. It is always so fun to see them. I worked with Kori when we lived in Cedar City. She is the one that made work worth going to. We both were pregnant at the same time except she hid hers for like five months. It was pretty disgusting since I was always just huge pregnant. =) She also was due two and a half months before me. It was embarassing because we would show up to work wearing the exact same outfit but mine was blue and hers was red. Our boss had to take a picture of us and hang it in her cubicle. Kori and I obviously didn't get the clue to call each other because we wore the same outfit quite often on the same day. Anyway, we have talked about living by each other and leaving the back gate open for our kids to run back and forth to play with each other. We know that won't happen since they live in Cedar and we live in West Jordan. No plans on changing that in the near future. So, at least it gives us an excuse to go on vacation down south.

This is my friend Kori (she's holding her almost two year old son Tayvin) and her daughter Kaysha.













This is Kori's husband Tracy throwing the football with Braxton






Kori's daughter showed up at the house with a really cute hairstyle. I attempted to do it to Samantha on Sunday. Below is my attempt. =) How did I do Kori?



I don't have any pictures of last night but I guess I should be a little better at it. We had our new neighbors and friends the Combs over for treat night. The Collins also came over. It was really fun to get to know the Combs better. It also helped the Combs and Collins get to know each other better too. I just was thinking how wonderful it is to be able to make friendships and to be able to know that we can turn to each other in times of need. It was really a lot of fun. Our kids all had such a wonderful time together. Deana/Hannah Montana is always so good with my kids. Little Mike has such patience playing with Braxton and Tayden. Big Mike does a good job getting Tayden's energy out...he slept through last night.....Samantha and Katie had fun playing dress up and running around.

My point is really that we love having our friends around. It brings so much happiness in our home and just love being able to be with all of you. Thanks to all of you who have had so much patience with my kids and made us feel so welcome. We are so thankful to live here and have so many wonderful people living around us.

Tayden Tag

Tayden got tagged so I am finally getting around to telling you about him.

1- Tayden was born on September 10. He weighed 9 lbs. 6 oz. and 22 1/2 inches long. He was to be induced on that day but decided that he didn't need help and my water broke at 4:15 that morning. I think that describes how he is a bit. He really thinks he is a big boy and can do things on his own.

2- Tayden really loves Spiderman, Buzz (Toy Story), Cars (Lightening McQueen), and recently has started liking the Wiggles...again. He likes to watch Buzz any chance he gets. He has quite an imagination when it comes to any of these.

3- He LOVES to go outside to play. Any chance he gets. When I tell him it's too cold he tells me, "I get jacket mom". He likes to ride his Spiderman bike, with mom's help he likes to play basketball, and go to the park.

4- He's been to Chuck E Cheese twice. He loves it there. I get asked at least once a day if we are going.

5- He loves Juice! This is something we try to break him from but we get "YUCK" if something else is in his juice cup.

6- He loves food/snacks. He definitely doesn't eat everything we put in front of him though. He is constantly asking for a treat or snack. One of the things we have noticed that he has a liking to is Mexican food. I can't sit and eat Taquitos by myself he has to come sit with me and eat mine.

7- He loves the nursery and playing with friends.

8- He loves playing with his brother and sisters. He gets so excited when they come home from school.

9- He LOVES his daddy. He wants to be with him every chance he gets.

10- He is really funny. He likes to make people laugh. I think he might end up being the comedian of the family.

Well, that's Tayden. I am sure there is more but that is what I can think of at the moment.

I guess we will tag...Tayvin Peterson, Cohen Lyman, Noah McDonald.

Walking???

Clarissa has shown no interest in walking at all. She has been totally comfortable just crawling around and walking along the furniture. We have tried "practicing" with her but she didn't care for it. Well, last night I was sitting down and she kept using me to help her stand up. Of course she claps for herself because she can stand there without holding onto anything. She kept doing it and then I thought let's try again with the walking thing. She did it!!! She took four steps toward me before falling. Woohoo! Does this mean she will start walking today? No. Tomorrow? No. In two weeks? Probably not. At least she now is showing a little interest. I celebrate this but at the same time I am a little sad because my baby is growing up.

To my Sisters....

Some of you that really know me are probably confused right now. I don't have any sisters. A friend of mine just sent this to me this morning. I thought I should share it with all of you. Many of you have touched my life and I am very blessed to have met you. I hope that we can stay sisters and continue to be there for one another.


A young wife sat on a sofa on a hot humid day,

drinking iced tea and visiting with her Mother. As

they talked about life, about marriage, about the

responsibilities of life and the obligations of

adulthood, the mother clinked the ice cubes in her

glass thoughtfully and turned a clear, sober glance

upon her daughter


'Don't forget your Sisters,' she advised, 'They'll

be more important as you get older. No matter how

much you love your husband, no matter how much you

love the children you may have, you are still going

to need Sisters. Remember to go places with them now

and then; do things with them.'


'Remember that 'Sisters' means ALL the women...

your girlfriends, your daughters, and all your other

women relatives too. 'You'll need other women. Women

always do.'


What a funny piece of advice!' the young woman

thought. Haven't I just gotten married?

Haven't I just joined the couple-world? I'm now a

married woman, for goodness sake! A grownup! Surely

my husband and the family we may start will be all I

need to make my life worthwhile!'


But she listened to her Mother. She kept contact

with her Sisters and made more women friends each

year. As the years tumbled by, one after another,

she gradually came to understand that her Mom really

knew what she was talking about. As time and nature

work their changes and their mysteries upon a woman,

Sisters are the mainstays of her life.


After more than 50 years of living in this world,

here is what I've learned:


THIS SAYS IT ALL:


Time passes.

Life happens.

Distance separates.

Children grow up.

Jobs come and go.

Love waxes and wanes.

Men don't do what they're supposed to do.

Hearts break.

Parents die.

Colleagues forget favors.

Careers end.

BUT.........


Sisters are there, no matter how much time and how

many miles are

between you. A girl friend is never farther away

than needing her can reach.


When you have to walk that lonesome valley and you

have to walk it by yourself, the women in your life

will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on,

praying for you, pulling for you, intervening on

your behalf, and waiting with open arms at the

valley's end.


Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk

beside you..Or come in and carry you out.


Girlfriends, daughters, granddaughters,

daughters-in-law, sisters, sisters-in-law, Mothers,

Grandmothers, aunties, nieces, cousins, and extended

family, all bless our life!


The world wouldn't be the same without women, and

neither would I. When we began this adventure called

womanhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or

sorrows that lay ahead. Nor did we know how much we

would need each other.


Every day, we need each other still. Pass this on

to all the women who help make your life meaningful.

I just did. Short and very sweet:


There are more than twenty angels in this world.

Ten are peacefully sleeping on clouds. Nine are

playing. And one is reading her email/**my blog at this

moment.


**I changed the wording there.

Just for Laughs

Here's to anyone who needed a smile today!

Brownie.....Yum!

This was a very fun recipe I got off of www.brightideas.com . I suggest if you haven't checked this website out yet you need to. It gives you so many fun ideas to run with. We had some friends over for dinner on Sunday so I thought I would attempt to make it.
It became a little hard to cut but this is how the middle looks so you can get the idea how it is thrown together.

And then of course this is how it ended up looking after letting it sit out a little long. Of course it went really well in the shake we made Monday night.

Tagged - What's in my purse?

Thanks to my darling cousin Heather for tagging me, I get to show you all what's in my "purse". I could make it really easy on myself and tell you what is in this purse:

but...there is nothing. This is my grab and go purse when I get to go out on my own. So I just throw my wallet in it and go. The below picture shows that I am still a mom with young kids. So, the Diaper Bag is my main "purse" for a while.



So anyway, here goes:

1- A onesie
2- Cloth Diaper (For a spit rag...I totally use disposable for the cute bottoms).
3- Clarissa's white nylons and two pairs of socks
4- A Huge tub of Triple Paste. This is great for Diaper rashes.
5- comb
6- A brush (I've been looking for this one. I totally thought Sammy stole it.) =)
7- Three packs of Chocolatey Peanut Butter crackers
8- Six packs of crackers and cheese dip
9- A zip lock with chips a hoy cookies.
10- mini fruit roll-up
11- A Curves Strawberry and Cream snack bar (That one is mine...the previous four are obviously for the kids...unless I am at church and get really hungry =).)
12- Two packs of skittles
13- A Football shaped Easter Egg
14- Toy keys
15- Two Butterfly toys
16- A Frog Finger puppet
17- A Hair bow
18- Teething Tablets
19- Chic Mauve Glazewear Lip Gloss
20- Nail File
21- Macy's Gift Card
22- J.C. Penney Portrait Club Membership card
23- 2 pens
24- $1.75 in change (I guess this fell out of my wallet that is usually in there but wasn't at the time I went through the purse...I mean Diaper Bag)
25- Five Diapers....what else would there be..it's a diaper bag.

I now tag.....Kori, Jane, and Alyse. Katie, Corey told me to tag you too. So if you check out my blog again you're tagged. =)

Haircut

I finally gave in and got my hair cut. All the layers were really bothering me. So I went from one extreme to another. Hopefully I can get my new haircut figured out.

BEFORE











AFTER

Day two of fun!

This is what happens when you forget to bring the camera. Corey took a picture with his camera phone but it didn't work. Darn it! We went to Classic Fun Center today. The kids had a ton of fun. Mom even attempted to skate. (It has been twelve years since I put skates on). Now it is back to school on Monday for them.

Chuck E Cheeses

So, I went a little crazy taking pictures at Chuck E Cheeses today. This is the second time the kids have gone but the first time Corey and I brought them. They were so excited when we got there because we didn't tell them we were going. We never get to go out that much as a family so it was a lot of fun to do. The kids go back to school on Monday (the 14th) so we thought we would try and have a little fun before they have to go back to school.

Strawberries

So, I have to take a moment and share with you what my husband did for me. I guess while I was out this afternoon with two of the kids he once again pulled out his creative side. What you see is strawberries with chocolate drizzled on the outside of them. What you don't see is that he dug out part of the middle and put white chocolate in that portion of the Strawberries. He didn't really want me to post his picture but I had to show off who got all the credit for that. After Tayden, Corey, and myself (the other three were already in bed) had a few strawberries, I realized I should have taken a picture. I wish I could share with you all but they didn't last very long.

Allergies vs. Cold

O.k. Not too long ago I just got over having a really nasty cold. I was so relieved to be over it finally. Well, out of no where I started getting a runny nose. My eyes are watering and I have been sneezing a ton. My nose gets a little stuffed up at times too. I don't ever recall having allergies growing up. So, I am trying to decide if I have allergies right now or if it is another cold. So, if anyone has an answer to this insaneness I would really appreciate.

Handsome Braxton

Braxton just cracks me up. After I told the kids to go get dressed this morning I saw Braxton looking for some jeans. I noticed that he was wearing his blue button up dress shirt. I asked him why he was wearing it. At first he was a little embarrassed that he got caught wearing it before he was finished dressing. He then proceeded to tell me that....."I want to look handsome today". So here are some pictures I took of him looking handsome. I will be the first to tell you that he is NOT camera shy. He wanted me to take more pictures of him. Anyway, it just made my heart smile.