Happy Better Birthday Shavonne!

Thirty years ago, my dear sister Shavonne was born. I have six sisters and Shavonne is just above me in the line-up. The last one of the older kids. I begin the line-up for the younger kids. She is 2 years and 8 months older and a great big sister. She and I shared a room for a long time, even in college she and I shared a room. I would always have the top bunk, while she luckily got the bottom bunk. When I was in eighth grade, she was a junior in high school. She was in seminary and I would constantly complain at night for her to turn off the light so I could sleep. She would be reading her seminary scripture assignment. Finally, one day she said, "Why don't you read your scriptures too Courtney!" (I'm sure my whining was driving her crazy.) It was at that moment that I started to read my scriptures and soon after gained my own personal testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Whenever I think of the moment I recieved that warm burning answer, Shavonne also comes to my mind... So, that was a tangent, but, oh well. Anyways, so she and I shared a room for a long time. We would take masking tape and run it down the middle of the room. She had her side and me the other. She would clean up her side, and me the other. Now, my side of the room was across from the door and sometimes she would say I couldn't step on her side so I would have to get a running start and leap to my side of the room. Ahh, good times! We would also play this game where she would be reading a book and I would take it and hide it. Okay, okay, it was my game, not hers. She would get really mad at me for hiding her book. I just wanted to play with her!

Other games that we often played was this game where you had a bouncy ball and we would kick it back and fourth to each other and try to make a goal. Or, our favorite that mom would always get mad at us for...Shark. One of us would be on the top bunk and the "Shark" was on the bottom. You had to reach up and touch the person on the top bunk, but you couldn't stand or climb up the bunk. When mom would say, "no more playing shark," we would change the name to fish, or whale, or dolphin and continue on with our games.

Shavonne is a great big sister, and according to another one of my big sisters, Shaina, Shavonne is a great little sister too! We had a lot of fun together growing up. She would let me hang out with her when she was a Senior in high school and I was just a freshman, and when we lived in Spokane together, we had some great times living with Shaina and Heath, and when Shavs and Karla got an apartment and I lived there with them illegally, I think.

Happy Birthday Shavonne, I hope you have a great Day today! Love you tons!

Forts, popcorn, snow, and birthdays

This is a catch up post for the past couple of weeks. I have taken these pictures with the intent of blogging them but haven't done it until now.

Here is Mackenzie and Alexis under the fort we made from a table. They enjoyed watching Kun-fu Panda in their special fort we made together.
We will watch movies together as a family and the kids make a mess with the popcorn. Well, correction, Eli makes a mess with the popcorn.The blanket is my attempt to keep the mess under control. We have gotten a lot of snow and the girls have been wanting to play in it for a long time. We haven't because all of their snow gear was packed up and stored at Sharon, my sister's house. (It is stored there because we are selling our house and need to keep the clutter to a minimum. Just in case you were wondering.) Anyways, we finally got our snow stuff yesterday and the kids went out to play. Jared loves playing with them too. I am not much of a snow lover so I keep my distance if I can help it. But, I was outside with them for a little bit until poor Eli got cold and started crying a lot. Unfortunately, I had to go inside with him. It was just too bad...wink, wink!

And...my dear, sweet, amazing husband had his birthday last week. It was kept pretty low key, but I woke up early and made him breakfast before he left for work. We had a pizza party for him at his work with the other teachers. They all chipped in and I brought in Pizza Hut pizzas for their lunch and then we sang to him. He got home late, due to having boys basketball tryouts, spent an hour with us having dinner and cake and opening presents before he had to leave again for a basketball game at the church where he and his team dominated the court. I love my husband so much and he is such a kind loving person to me. He does everything possible to make me happy and he loves his kids. I am so grateful to have him in my life! He's my stud forever!

I could only find one birthday candle. It might be a good thing, his candles might set the house on fire. My handsome old man! :)

Idaho Falls Museum Nativity sets

We went to the museum this past Monday for FHE because they were having a big display of Nativity sets for you to come and see for free. They had displays from all over the world. Some were made out of rock, some out of wood, clay, and clothe. It was cool to see how the little miniature people looked the same as those where they were from, ie: Chinese figurines for China, Ecuadorian figurines for Ecuador, Native American figurines for Native Americans. I think you get the point. I wish I took more pictures of the sets but I only took one picture of a set that I think my sister Sharon could easily do. She sews really well and lately she has been making dolls, so I think she could easily make this set.
They were all beautiful, and I was in awe as I walked through looking at how special and amazing this time of year is and that it is something celebrated and honored all over the world, the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.
This a picture of the kids on the horse that is in the children's play area. The girls had a lot of fun looking at the nativity sets and playing at the museum.


Mackenzie
Alexis

Eli

Directions...to what?

My sister Sharon put on her blog the other day a recipe for our Grandma Jayne's special wheat bread. She had to call mom to get the recipe and it resulted in a 45 minute conversation about how much of each ingredient to use. Well, the funniest measurements that were said was three mugs full of water and palm hollows of salt. Now, you start to wonder "how big of a mug? why wasn't it measured in cups? this doesn't seem worth the hassle! and someone's hand could be bigger and so they might add too much salt!"
So this got me thinking of the funny ways people explain things and here is my favorite of all...Imagine you are lost out in the middle of nowhere and you stop to get directions at the local gas station. You ask the registar if they can give you directions and this is how it goes, (please imagine a hick accent!) "Well, yer gonna get back on this road and go 2 farsees." What's a farsee?" you ask. "Well...(scratches his head) yer drive as far down the road as yer can, see, and then you drive as far down the road as yer can see, that is 2 farsees! Next, yer wanna watch fer a can in the road, now don't tip it over because that might confuse someone whose lookin fer the can on it's side. Turn this way after the can at the stump. " "Turn Right?" I ask. "Well, if that is this way then ya. Keep going on that road over 2 hills and 3 road kill. If you get hungry on the way, you can have some but down't take the body, just the meat. We got a guy out back who makes sure there's always something there! Nice guy, not all there in the head, but a nice guy!" "That will take me to the freeway?"I ask. "Yep, just keep going and yer'll end up on the cement road with lines."

I know that is totally a random post but I had to do it! Anyways, here are some pictures of the kids and me, just for kicks and giggles.
Alexis, Courtney, Mackenzie

The Man Child: Eli, and Me.

Let's deck the tree!

The Saturday after Thanksgiving we decorated the Christmas tree. The kids were so excited! They love putting the ordaments on the tree, especially on the same branch if I don't catch them. Normally, I go back over and re-distribute the ordaments to be all over the tree. It's fun to do this with the kids!Take a small break to smile for the camera!Horray! It's all done! Now we should put presents underneith!

Kenzie is showing Eli the presents. Teaching him the 4 1 1 on Christmas.

Now that it has been a full week since putting the presents under the tree, I've decided that I should have waited a few weeks. The girls ask ever day if it is time to open the presents and I have to say, "No, not yet!" I figured if you have the presents, you might as well put them under the tree, but Eli won't stop bringing me pieces of the wrapping paper that he's pulled off of one present or another.

Christmas time is so wonderful! I feel so blessed to have an Amazing husband, Beautiful Healthy children, a Warm Comfy home, and Especially my Savior Jesus Christ to Honor!

Fixing the Turkey: Hands on!

I have been talking to the girls about Thanksgiving and what we should be greatful for. I think they are finally getting it, but then I talk about how we have a big turkey dinner and immediately the teenager comes out in Alexis and she very matter of factly states that she does not like turkey and will not eat it. She cracks me up. We thought that if the kids helped us out with the turkey, they might be more inclined to eat it! Here is Jared and Mackenzie getting the turkey out of the wrapping. Jared is showing how the turkey use to walk.

Kenzie is smelling the liver. She squished up her nose and said, "Eww! Stinky!" Jared showed Kenzie the Heart as well and decided it would be funny to act like he was eating it.
Once Alexis stopped having her fit that she has every morning, she joined us and thoroughly enjoyed helping with the turkey.

They said, "Please can we touch it daddy?" and so of course we let them, but we washed their hands before and after so all is well. They would say, "Oh cold!" and, "Slimy!"

Seasoning salt is the best seasoning! I use it all the time!

Jared laughed at me for posing; like I was Martha Stewart or something. Delicious turkey, here we come! Who has the last laugh, he is now posing with the perfectly cooked golden brown turkey.

Yum! Eat up!

My Sweet Family

I love my family and so I just wanted to post some random pictures of us. Eli looks so cute in his suit that Aunt Sharon got him for his birthday, it finally fits him just right!

Jared with the girls at a baseball game. I never blogged that event so this is a makeup/catchup post.

Eli loves to just sit on my lap when I am typing at the computer. I look all messy because this was taken after we all woke up from our naps and I already took my hair out from church.

I love this picture, I wish I was in it and Eli was looking forward because then I might actually use it as a family picture. I just love the smile Kenzie is giving! Doesn't my husband look so so so cute in his suit.

Whenever I ask them to do a silly face they do this one. They learned this silly face from their Uncle Byron and Aunt Jemayla....Nice!

Lego Cake

All the kids were downstairs playing and together they made me a lego cake. By the time I got them all to sit next to me and pose for the camera, Mackenzie had had enough.I love Lego Cake, it is fat free, looks colorful and pretty, and easy to clean up!

The kids brought me the Lego cake and then say happy birthday to me. It is not my birthday but I think that is one of their favorite songs to sing. They sing it to eachother all the time.

What are you making?

I love my husband, he helps me cook, clean, do laundry, and take care of the kids. Sometimes, when he cooks, he doesn't realize the mess he leaves behind. Today he came home from work and decided that he really wanted cookies. Now, I am not baker normally. I will eat cookies right out of the oven but if they are a day old, I am not a fan. Jared, however, could eat and eat and eat cookies all day long. Well, he could eat anything all day long, he really does have a hollow leg! Anyways, so when he gets the hunger bug for cookies, he makes them himself.

Here is a small mess he made. I didn't take a picture of the kitchen afterwards but I should have because every ingredient was still out on the counters. Plus, pans and bowls and measuring cups and spoons were spread across the counters as well. Oh well, he and the kids had a good time making the Mint Chocolate chip cookies.


He decided to make a quadruple batch so that he could freeze some dough for later.

The kids love to sit on the counters and help us stir or pour in the ingredients.

Eli kept walking around say "ookie, ookie, and pointing at the oven."

Pirates, Witches and Pumpkins, Oh My!

We went over to some friends house last night for a halloween party. Jared and I were going to go as Wesley and Buttercup from Princess Bride but I couldn't find a red dress anywhere. So we went as pirates. It was a small group but so much fun. Cory and Annie and James and Emily hosted the party, and my family plus the Wray family came along for the ride. We had pizza, soda, salad, and sugar cookies. It was a great meal. Trying to get the kids to pose!

My sweet little witches! Yesterday Kenzie came up with this story, "mom, I'm a witch and I am going to turn you into a bird. Then I'll catch you and put you in a cage." She said, "Bibidy, bobidy, boo..." I started cawing and flapping my wings. She said, "Fly mom!" I did, and then she grabbed my shirt, and put me in the orange chair and acted as though she were locking a cage, and then walked away. Alexis, who was watching from the side, came up to me a few seconds later and said, "Here bird, I'll turn you back into mommy, bibidy, bobidy, boo!"

Decorating our sugar cookies that are in the shape of pumpkins.

Kenzie focusing on her decorating!

"EEEEsssssse! Eli is so freaking cute!

No, we did not string Eli up, this is a pinata.

Kenzie taking a swing!

Bobbing for apples. Mackenzie had a hard time but she finally got one. She was all wet though!

Yummy apples.

Paddle boats, Speed boats, and Air boats

This is my last post of Florida so rest assure, you will not have to read much more! We went to St. Petersburg, a two hour drive, in order to enjoy some more activities provided by our Go Card. One was a paddle boat dinner cruise. On board, they have a nice array of dinners to choose from and live entertainment. I think Jared and I were more entertainment than the singers. They had a dance area and no one was even thinking of using it. Finally, I told Jared that we got to get up there. Well, we started to really cut up the rug and finally other couples were joining in, including Dad and mom. Dad said he wouldn't go up, he didn't know how to dance, but I finally got him to take me up and then Jared and mom joined us. Dad dances very very well! By the end of the night, practically the whole boat of people were doing a line dance with Jared and me as their guides.They have draw bridges all along the way and apparently boats have the right of way because immediately a horn would blow and the bridge would start rising. It was very cool to see! It takes a good ten minutes or so to rise and get us through so traffic has to wait maybe 20 minutes or so. I bet in the summer time, people try to find other ways around the bridges to get to their destinations. This was a really pretty shot of the sunset, good job mom!

Mom and Dad on the paddle boat.
Jared and me, just hanging out. One of the things that we did to entertain ourselves while eating dinner was make a few bets on things. One bet was to see how many tattoos our waiter had. He had a very piratey voice and a diamond stud in his ear. Jared guessed 4, mom 1, dad 2, and me 0. I won, hehehe! We also bet how many the bar tender girl had. She looked very nice and put together but to me she had a little wild side. I guessed at least 2, mom 1, and Jared and dad said she had none. Well, she had 7, I win again.

Another ride we went on was the Dolphin Speed Racer. It was a big yellow boat and we went out into the Gulf of Mexico and the boat would slow down and create this big wake behind it. Well, the dolphins would jump through the wake. It was pretty cool!
The air boat ride was pretty cool. You get in a very shallow boat that just skims the water. You drive through a sort of wetland swamp area and they show you the wildlife. Mainly birds were all we saw but we did catch a glimpse of a few alligators.

Mom and Dad. What's better than a loud romantic boat ride with your mate and a mug in the swamp?

How about a loud romantic boat ride with your mate, your mug, and your children in the swamp!
This was while we were waiting for our Air boat to leave. They had this huge plastic alligator in the store. Jared and I immediately went into Steve Erwin mode and wrestled the croc. Said with an Australian accent, "Look at the size of those teeth!"