The boys

Today is graduation day for the boys. Next Sunday J will be in Sr. Primary and the twins will be sunbeams.

Christmas Eve

We had a rough start to the morning James was coughing all night and Jakub woke up with a fever so we rested all morning then drugged up the kids with Tylonal and vapor rub and were off to the movies. We saw Tangled and then went out to dinner at Texas Roadhouse. (Thanks to Johns work for paying, That was his Christmas bonus. Take your family to dinner) I love when someone else cooks, cleans up, and pays.
On the way home James started sleeping. We walked in the house and handed them all the present from Grandma S. She has been so excited for the boys to open the gifts she sent in a package last week. They were the perfect keep the boys awake gifts. Legos. A huge favorite at our house.
After an hour of playing the boys opened there new PJ's. Mario! Another favorite with 3 (make that 4) boys in the house.
John read the Christmas story and we talked about the true meaning of Christmas. James and Jakub new the story very well after acting out the play for their Joy School Program. Jakub leaned over to me before Joseph and Mary even got to Bethlehem and said "No Room, Mom, there was No Room" Then when the part about the shepherds came James told us that an Angel visited them.
After Family Prayer and before bed Jakub put out Pecan Pie and Pie crust cookies for Santa. The pie bubbled over and made a huge mess of my oven but it tastes good and the boys think Santa will like it.

Now the boys are all in bed sleeping and I am sitting here reflecting on Christmas' past. My dad left me a message this morning saying I could have the day off tomorrow and he would cover the cow milking. Christmas was the one day my brother Scott and I would wake up extra early and sneak out of the house to get to the barn and milk the cows. We always hoped we could get done and home back in bed before anyone noticed. This Christmas my brother is away from his family fighting for our freedoms. Please pray for the soldiers and their families. Be grateful. We are truly a very blessed people.

(time to play Santa!) Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

monkey

James was jumping on my bed this morning and when he fell his head hit the headboard he got a huge cut. I got the bleeding stopped and called Kristie to come calm me down and confirm my fear that I needed to take him in to the Dr. I love Dr. Jones....she got us right in. James didn't cry when the nurse cleaned it out, he didn't cry when he got the shot to numb it, and he was so brave just squeezing my hand while the three staples went in.
I was super excited to pick a prize from the treasure chest and even got stickers to for being so tough. And he really wanted me to take a picture of him making a silly face before leaving the dr. office. What a kid!

New rooms

We have no more toy room. It is now J's room and he is excited for the lock on his door to keep out his brothers. We put a fresh coat of paint on the walls and J now has a new desk to do homework on. The twins were still in the cribs that we had turned into toddler beds. Now they have bunk beds. It has been the new favorite toy at our house. Most often it acts as a pirate ship. Grandma S. made these super cute levi quilts to go on the twins bed.
Now it's time to get some pink on the walls and get ready for this baby girl to come. I am 31 weeks pregnant now and enjoying every kick. But I am not loving the backaches, heartburn, hip pain, numb hands, ...... I think pregnancy is harder the older you get.

Family Pictures

It was FREEZING! A big thanks to Chelsie for coming to Idaho and taking pictures for us. Check out her blog for a few more .....creativeclicksbychelsie.blogspot.com

We miss you, Great Grandma

I feel so blessed to have known each one of Johns Grandparents. Last Friday Grandma passed away. She has been talking about being with Grandpa for almost 9 years. She has really missed him since he died. My favorite memories are the times John and I spent in St. George with Grandma and Grandpa. I remember everynight kneeling by their bed for prayer. If it was Grandpas turn to pray Grandma also coached him on what to say just like I do with my 3 year olds now. She always made sure each of her children and grandchildren where prayed for. She had a strong testimony of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I will miss my visits with Grandma. We always shared tears when we talked. I could feel of her love for me each time we were together. She always treated me like I was one of her own.

Jay ended up with the flu on the morning of the funeral so I ended up running back and forth to be with him and with John and the funeral. The boys and I didn't make it up to the grave site so we drove up today to see. I have a picture of Jay with his dad and grandpa by in this exact spot about 8 years ago. You see when Grandpa died I was about 6 months pregnant with Jay. I remember Grandpa holding my hand after his stroke and listening to me talk about Jay and how he was going to carry on the family name and be the IV. Now here I am 6 months pregnant with a baby girl when Grandma dies.

A few pictures from Halloween