The Gremmert Crew

Why I need a dog.

2012-01-09T11:55:00.013-05:00

Aidan made a power point for school a few months ago and recently he made another one but this time it was for me and Ryan. He made it all himself complete with sound affects and transitions. I didn't see any of it until he brought be to the computer and made me sit down and watch it. Here it is.

He is quite the salesman isn't he? He added the pics of the dogs and included its name. He really wants a golden retriever. I wish I could give him the dog he wants but in our small house, little yard, and tight neighborhood, we just can't yet.

Gingerbread houses

2011-12-12T21:36:00.061-05:00

Another year brings another round of gingerbread house makin'. This year the Clowards offered to host our get-together. Someday, someday we will host it at our own house. But until then we appreciate so much our friends who let us use their house.

This year Ryan and I were prepared to make the house makin' easier for the kids. We put together 15 houses for the kids using burnt sugar. It worked out GREAT! This made it so the kids could get right to decorating instead of waiting for the royal icing to set. The kids could do more on their own and it didn't take as long which left more time for the adults to decorate their houses. I think this will be a new "must do" for the event.

The ward was having a gingerbread contest at the ward party which was taking place in 5 days. So all the adults were serious business.

Alexis and her cute log cabin

Emilee and Dave Anderson and their stilted house in Fiji

The Callisters

I loved their design. The rock chimney was so creative.

Ryan had a great house with lots of candy. He wanted to be sure his house didn't crumble like last year so with the extra burnt sugar he made his structure!

The Cloward's His was my favorite. He made a trailer complete with gas tank, flamingo and antenna. Loved it.

Aidan's gingerbread house didn't survive the ride home, neither did mine. So we made a new one to take to the Christmas party. It turned out great.!

Everyone from our group won an award from the Ward Gingerbread contest! Fantastic.

Some of the candies we think are really successful are twix, charleston chew bites, reese's cups, ice cream cones, pretzels, mini nilla wafers, gum drops, sugar wafer cookies, licorice, candy canes, dots, mike and ikes, marshmallows, and various hard candies. The new candy this year that was a hit was chocolate rock candy. AWESOME!

The best two Christmas packages just arrived.....MY PARENTS!

2011-12-10T10:29:00.047-05:00

My parents decided to personally deliver our Christmas presents this year. I was so excited to have them come and share some of our Christmas with them. They came for four days and they came baring gifts. My version of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Stephen's hot cocoa, cinnamon bears and grandma sycamore bread! Big ole YUMMY!

Brynlee and Grandpa met for the first time. She took to him quite well. He was always willing to hold her so I could get some things done.

First, we made sugar cookies. I love sugar cookies but sometimes the production is overwhelming. Well, I learned the key to decorating sugar cookies is.............. GRANDMA! The cookies turned out so cute and SO yummy. Grandpa was in charge of holding Brynlee during the event.

Some good snuggle time with Grandma.

And of course what is a visit without getting your hair done by your granddaughter?

Lunch at school with the kids. Grandpa always buys the school lunch just to try out the food.

I was so excited that the timing of their visit coordinated with our Stake Festival of the Nativities. It is always so nice to look at all the nativities. Plus it brings back so many memories of putting together the event with mom in Twin Falls. They had a kids room where the kids could do a craft, color, and dress up. So here is our little Gremmert nativity. Notice the baby Jesus. Cassidy of course had to be the angel since she was an angel for Halloween.

Grandma and Grandpa bought a whole slew of presents. The kids were so excited and wanted to open them all. We let them open one present. They loved what they got!

I just loved that they came out to see us. It meant so so so much to me. I loved sharing some of Christmas with them. I was able to shop a little with my mom and wrap presents with her. I love doing that with her. It was a great visit. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa!

Thanksgiving without Ryan

2011-11-24T23:50:00.027-05:00

In five years of being at Chautauqua Ryan hasn't missed a Thanksgiving until this year. We were all very sad about it but tried to be thankful that we had had so many Thanksgivings with him. He had a really positive attitude and didn't grumble at all. He even was able to go to Cracker Barrel that night where they served him a version of Thanksgiving dinner.

We on the other hand had Thanksgiving with some good friends. The Clowards hosted and the Andersons and Christensens came. It was quite a crew. 7 adults and 14 kids. We made a menu and made assignments. We were very ambitious because we had SO MUCH food. We divided out the leftovers so we all ended up with at least another meal. It was perfect. Who doesn't want Thanksgiving leftovers?

Kids' table

First Thanksgiving

Adult table

I wanted a picture of her mowing down on the drumstick but she wouldn't go for it.

The dads were even good enough to get a little Thanksgiving football game going. It was great!

Facebook posts:

"Happy Thanksgiving! We have good friends who are taking care of us this year while Ryan is taking other people to see their families. He has such a good attitude about being gone today. I am so grateful for him, my cute little kids, my parents, in-laws, siblings, and friends. I miss all of you that I am not seeing this year. And lastly I am grateful for my Savior and that I know He lives. Have a great feast!"

"It's no fun to make fudge without my husband here trying to snitch. Miss you!"

It just wasn't the same with Ryan gone. No football. No skittles and M&Ms. No cuddling while watching a movie and falling asleep. We surely missed him.

Trick and Trunk and all other treatings

2011-10-31T22:37:00.000-04:00

Figuring out costumes for the kids this year was really a breeze. I was so surprised. I only had to buy a couple of items to make them work. We had them ready pretty early too so they were able to wear them four times to different parties and functions. It was great.

This year we had:

Clark Kent

Aidan has been watching a tv show with me called White Collar. He really wanted to be the main character in this show, Neal Caffery

The guy wears a suit and a fedora hat all the time. Aidan had it all planned. He would wear his suit, we could buy him a fedora hat, (yes, I have taught him some fashion terms) and then we could make him a security ankle bracelet like the guy has in the show. He was really excited but I told Aidan that no one would know who he was so we needed a new idea. I saw on Pinterest a cute boy dressed up like Clark Kent and thought we could go with this idea. Well, while looking up pictures of Clark Kent to see what type of glasses he wore, I found that he too wore a fedora hat all the time. I knew this would convince Aidan to be Clark because he has been eyeing a hat at Target for months now. So off to Target we went.

Lacey wanted to be a black cat because her best friend, Allie was going to be a cat.

Our Angel

Cassidy decided to be an angel when I pulled out our costume box and she found this tulle skirt and white butterfly wings. She was smitten with the idea from that moment. I did get her a halo and some "real" angel wings instead of butterfly wings. I loved her in this and she loved the makeup and glitter.

And miss Brynlee was a pumpkin. Since she was less than 2 months not much fit her but we found this cute tulle skirt that had pumpkins on it and I had the big green flower.

Before the trunk or treat

At the trunk or treat

Aidan and George

My costume? A post partum mom suffering from sleep deprivation. I'm convincing huh?

Trick or treating:

The whole gang

The whole Gremmert Gang

Cassidy and her best friend

We go to the same neighborhood every year. It isn't our neighborhood but it is relatively close. The houses are really close together and tons of people participate. They are very festive with their decorations too. The kids had a great time trick or treating. Cassidy finally got the concept this year. She was so gracious too, she said Thank you every time. Usually it is the boys running door to door but this year the girls were the ambitious ones. The weather was just cool enough but not freezing! It was a great Halloween season!

Oh and here is my one Ghoulish treat I made

From Patch to Porch

2011-10-30T20:02:00.000-04:00

We went to a local orchard to pick out our pumpkins. We took a little hayride out to the patch to pick out our pumpkins. It was pretty chilly and my kids were really not dressed for the occasion. I had envisioned cute pictures in the patch with cute fall outfits. Instead I got soccer jerseys and flip flops. Oh well. We had a great time. We had to go through huge mud puddles on the way out there and the kids thought that was the best part.

jumping off the haystack

My kids are always so disgusted by the goop inside of the pumpkins. They never want to touch it. It makes me laugh every time.

We opted for old school jack-o-lanterns this year. We normally do two intricate pumpkins and it takes us over an hour. Tonight is took us maybe 20 minutes. love that.

Cassidy's, Lacey's, Aidan's, and Nick's

We loved having Nick, Granny, Martha and Grandpa Arden joining in on the fun!

Big Sister...Finally!

2011-09-09T21:28:00.002-04:00

Cassidy has waited for so long to be a big sister. She told everyone she met that she was going to be a big sister. The day finally came! She is off to a great start! She is always checking on Brynlee, helping to change her diaper, she talks to her when she is crying to calm her down, and helps pick out her clothes. She gives her lots of kisses and always wants to hold her. I love to watch her with Brynlee.

Try to focus on what Cassidy is saying. She says some pretty cute things but the other kids talk over her some of the time.

Congratulations from Lacey

2011-09-03T21:12:00.011-04:00

Lacey wrote me a letter and brought it to the hospital today. It is another sweet letter. I so love them!

Translation:

From Lacey To Mom
Congratulations mom. I am proud of you. I love our new baby. What are we going to name the baby? I was thinking that we can name her Rebecca. I love that name. Can we mom? I hope we can. It is an option. You can think about that name. We are the greatest family in the world. I love you.

What sweetie pie pie. And it is true we are the greatest family in the world.

First days!

2011-08-16T19:33:00.002-04:00

The kids were a little too excited about school this morning. Aidan was up at 2:30 complaining he couldn't sleep. After helping him fall back asleep Cassidy woke me to tell me their was a monster that didn't like her. Then Lacey woke up at 5:30 to tell me it was almost 6:30 a.m. and we would need to get up soon. Then she continued to tell me every 15 minutes how much time left. All the kids somehow ended up in my bed too. Finally we all just got up even though I had 20 minutes until my alarm was to go off. I'm happy they were excited. They both seem to have good teachers and have at least on of their favorite friends in their class. It should be a great school year for both of them.

Cassidy has been waiting to start preschool for so long. She associates going to preschool to becoming a big sister. When she woke up this morning she asked if she was going to be a big sister today. Sadly, not yet. She loved being able to say in her weekly schedule that she had school. She feels so big. I can't believe I am sending another one off to preschool but I love to see how they enjoy having something all their own to be excited about and proud of. She has mostly kids from our ward in her class so the transition will be very easy for her.

Cassidy with her carpool buddy and new favorite person in the world, Mary.

She had songs to sing to us, stories to tell, crafts to show us. and snacks to tell us about when she got home. She had THE biggest smile on her face.

Tennis pros

2011-08-04T18:20:00.003-04:00

Aidan and Lacey took tennis lessons over the summer. It was a crazy hot summer but we all endured the lessons well. We had our camping chairs, snacks, and water for the spectators and then a fan/spray bottle, and water bottles for the players. After a few lessons we realized the coach was our neighbors son.

Lacey had great form to start but just couldn't connect with the ball. It would take her five swings to finally hit the ball. Aidan had great form but too much power. He was hitting it to the fence each time. After a few lessons though they both improved drastically. They played with larger balls that were mostly nerf. They were called Quick Start balls. I guess they are all the rage in Europe and the coach claims that is why European tennis players are better than Americans. The coach was really good with the kids. He was fun, patient but stern. It didn't take long for the coach to find out that Grandpa Carter was tennis player and that the kids now felt ready to play against him. I think that was both of the kids goal, to beat Grandpa. The last tennis lesson of the summer was exciting for the kids because the coach had put all sorts of prizes on one half of the court. Stuffed animals, toys, candy, snacks etc. He had the kids hit the ball over the net and which ever prize they hit with the ball or hit closest to, they would win. Each kid one like 3 things. Also this summer they were featured in the local paper. Lacey was quoted in the article. It was exciting for them.

Trying to keep up with the big kids.

I was so happy to see them love tennis and that they actually have some skill in it. Ryan has been good to take them to play tennis to keep up their skills. Hopefully we will keep with Carter tradition and become a tennis playing family as well.

Lacey's note to Ryan

2011-07-24T11:18:00.002-04:00

Ryan took Aidan to El Salvador for the temple open house. They spent 3 days there. Lacey handled Aidan going with no problem. I think going to a different country made her nervous. On the boys way back they got stuck in Atlanta and couldn't make it back to Louisville. Ryan was planning to leave the next morning alone to go to Seattle for his brother's sealing. Well, instead of bringing Aidan home he decided to catch a flight to Seattle and take Aidan with him from Atlanta. When Lacey heard of this, she was ticked. This was her letter she immediately wrote to Ryan once she heard the change of plans.

Dear Daddy,

You are in trouble because you let Aidan go to El Salvador and Seattle. That isn't fair at all. Cassidy went to one (Seattle-last summer). I went to zero. Aidan went to two. That is not fare at all. Cutey pants! Love, Lacey

I love her spelling of words and most of all that she ended by calling Ryan a cutey pants. So Lacey! She is now planning some trip alone with Ryan.

Fourth of July

2011-07-04T22:35:00.001-04:00

I absolutely love the fourth of July. I think I just love the colors of it. I love the clothes and the festive food. I love decorating the house and even the kids bikes. I just can't get enough of red white and blue! Someday I am going to have a party that will look like this:

I want to have all the fun colorful decorations, creative food, a bunch of friends over, sparklers, corn hole, all the works! Someday!

I made one craft this year to add to my decor. There were many others I wanted to do but this is all I could get out of me this year.

We went to the Pancake breakfast this morning but it rained the whole time. We were under a pavilion but we decided to cancel the parade portion. I know the kids would have still done it but it was more the parents who weren't too excited about it.

I told the kids we would do our own parade in our neighborhood once the rain stopped. So here is our small parade.

Due to the catastrophe we had with Lacey riding her bike into a tree at last year's parade we opted for a scooter this year.

What a cutie pie huh?

We went to see Rio at the cheap theater and then did a little shopping afterwards. We had a really fun afternoon. Then we met some friends at the park where we would watch fireworks. Cassidy is terrified of fireworks. All our kids have gone through this at her age so we were prepared. We use Ryan's shooting headset that drowns out the noises. She had to have them on as soon as we were packing up to get in the car to go see the fireworks and I don't think she took them off till she was safe back in her house. She did fall asleep on the way over to the park. She had just had a purple popsicle hence the purple lips. I had to pull over to take the pic because she looked so cute!

The kids had fun playing together while waiting for the fireworks.

The fireworks were pretty good too. Cassidy didn't cry at all. She did sit on my lap the whole time though. She loved the pretty colors and oohed and aahed over them. One time though when a firework was louder than the others she said, "That one hurt my feelings."

We had a good day. We missed our Ryan though. This was the 11th anniversary of our first kiss. Aaahhh!

Drive-IN

2011-07-01T23:02:00.005-04:00

We took the kids to a drive-in movie tonight. They were so excited. I don't think they fully understood what a drive-in entails but they were excited to eat treats and watch Cars 2. We explained a little of what to expect. Aidan then said, "I though drive-ins were just for romantic times." Ummm, what show has he seen to make him think that? True, they can be snuggley and romantic but honestly most of my memories are with my family or a large group of friends. His comment did make me laugh though. "Romantic times?" So funny.

We had to drive 40 minutes to the drive in. It was the closest one in the area. Why have drive-ins died? It is one of the funnest experiences. I went to hundreds growing up. We would pile everyone into the van or truck, put a mattress in the bed of the truck and load up on popcorn and treats. It was so much fun! So many memories.

Lacey fell asleep on the way there so she was a little grumpy at first.

Look at that face! She was lovin' it.

Everyone made it to the end of the movie except Cassidy. It was 11:30 by the time it ended. Aidan was geared up to watch the second movie but I knew Ryan and I weren't not going to make it through it. We decided to leave after the first show. It was such a fun night! The kids are ready to go again.

Rounding

2011-06-30T13:43:00.001-04:00

This morning at 9:27 Lacey asked me what time it was. I told her it was 9:30. She adamantly said, no it’s not, it is 9:27. Aidan then piped in and said “She was rounding.” Lacey replied defensively, “No she’s not, she’s pregnant!” So glad she is defending my rounding-ness.

My Lilies

2011-06-19T15:55:00.000-04:00

My favorite thing that came with my house is the orange day lilies along the side and also a little patch in front.

The lilies come back every year in full force. I look forward to their arrival every summer! I love that they are maintenance free too. Two years ago I transplanted some onto the hill in my back yard. They have multiplied and look so pretty. These flowers are all over Kentucky, just along the roads and in people's yards. I am so glad I have my very own.

Our Cardinal

2011-06-04T15:18:00.002-04:00

We have a cardinal in the neighborhood that comes every morning and sits on the mirror on our car. He will sit there for a minute and then he will flutter in front of the mirror and then he will peck at the mirror. I have little peck marks on my mirror from him. We see him all the time. He started doing this last year and now has returned again. All our neighbors know this bird because he does this on every one's car. Does it mean I have lived here too long if I am now making friends with cardinals?

Letter from Aidan

2011-06-02T18:48:00.001-04:00

With it being the last day of school, the kids brought home tons of papers of projects they have done throughout the year. Writers notebooks, pictures, math assignments etc. They wanted me to go through everything but seriously it would have taken me a week to get through all their notebooks. One letter addressed to me did catch my attention. It was from Aidan. Here is what it said:

Dear mom,
I really want a dog because I can have a friend to play with all the time when I am bored. The two dogs that I want are a golden retriever and a choclet lab. I know you do not want a golden retriever but I really want a golden retriever you know to get me a golden retriever or choclet lab but you know that every body in the family wants a dog except you. I hope you think I am responsible enough to get a dog. If you get me a dog I will be obedient for the rest of that week. I really want it to be a puppy so I can train it. Another thing I could do is to help Lacey and Cassidy. I also will not complain when I have to do my chores. I do not know if you know this but I want a puppy more than anything in the world. (I still want my family, home, dad's job, and money) but you can get me a dog for Christmas. You can buy a puppy with your allowance.

Love,
Your mature, financial, lonely, son Aidan.

p.s. write back

Where do I begin with this? First I love that he is willing to be obedient for the rest of that week when he gets his dog. I love that he still wants his family, home, dad's job and money and I love that he thinks that I get an allowance. And how he signed his name, too cute.

I would love to make his dreams come true but just can't right now. Maybe someday.

Happy Mother's Day.

2011-05-08T16:11:00.000-04:00

Both the kids had a card for me that they had made at school. Lacey's was a fill in the blank. Here is what it said.

All about my Mother

She has the prettiest...ring

She always helps me...get redy for school.

She cooks the best ...cake.

She is really excited when I ...have a brtday.

She really gets angry when...I fite with my bruther.

She is really good at ...crafs.

Her favorite thing to do is...to wach tv.

I love it when she...hugs me

I wish she would...buy a pet.

The best word to describe my mother is...gorjis.

Love, Lacey

It is so interesting to see what your kids think of you and yes, I have worked long and hard to make sure GORGEOUS is part of their vocabulary especially when we are talking about how good us girls look *wink wink* It made my day that she said that. Love that girl.

Here is Aidan's card.

It says: Dear mom, I hope you like this card because it is made with love. I love you no matter what. Thank you for making us dinner and thank you for helping me in video games. (in the heart) I love you with all my heart and with all my desire. Love, Aidan.

I have sweet kids!

Tornado Warning

2011-04-20T09:50:00.002-04:00

Aidan wanted to know what to wear to school so I looked online at the weather forecast. He was looking over my shoulder and saw the Tornado warning and severe weather warning for later that night. Normally I wouldn't have told my kids anything but he read it on his own. The storms were suppose to roll through from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m.

Ryan was in St. Louis and he was hit by the storms first. They had hail there and two tornadoes touch down. Ryan wasn't affected but the tornado sirens did go off where he was. Hearing this report from Ryan I knew the storm was potentially dangerous.

Aidan was really concerned when it was time to go to bed. He started to cry a little and I knew falling asleep would not come easy so I let him sleep in my bed. I really felt in my heart that we would be fine. Either the storm wasn't going to be that bad or if it was bad that we would be prepared and taken care of. I told Aidan to listen to what the Spirit was trying to tell him in his heart. Listen for the calm feeling. He started to sob saying he didn't have the Gift of the Holy Ghost yet and that he couldn't feel it. I explained he could feel the Spirit comforting him even if he didn't have the Gift of the Holy Ghost yet. I told him to trust me to take care of him.

The kids were pestering me with questions and wanted to know what we would do if there was a tornado. I told them I would prepare the bathroom with all the stuff we needed. They began to list all the stuff they wanted in there. Aidan wanted all his toys and all his school stuff and his bed. I told him that stuff was all replaceable and just chose things we couldn't replace. He grabbed his favorite stuffed animals and his scriptures. After laying in bed for a few minutes he ran out to tell me we needed money so he needed to put his wallet in the bathroom too. Lacey of course had to get her wallet too. After I finally had them settled down they asked what we would do if we were really scared. I said we could tell funny stories or sing songs that made us feel happy. I told the kids to try to fall asleep and no more talking. From the other room a moment later I could hear the two kids humming I am a Child of God. I just smiled and giggled inside. What sweet little children trying to calm their hearts.

I prepared the bathroom while the kids were asleep. I grabbed everything we would need from shoes, coats, snacks and water, to important docs, camera, fire extinguisher, flash lights and our external hard drive. I was ready for this storm. I too was a little nervous about the potential of the storm so I stayed up watching the news showing the storm get closer and closer. Finally the tornado warning was issued for our county, the sirens went off, and I received the emergency alert phone call. I looked outside and it really didn't look bad to me. However, the meteorologist kept saying this storm could produce sudden tornadoes that would touch down for a few minutes and then pop back up into the storm. Also that there were hurricane force winds up to 80 miles per hour. I didn't know if it was worth it to wake my kids or not. I saw a few of my facebook friends were in their basements so I figured be safe rather than sorry. I woke up Aidan and Lacey and had them sleep on the bathroom floor where I had blankets and pillow. I then put Cassidy in there as well but she never woke up. I turned the tv up load enough for me to hear it and we waited the storm out.

The kids weren't really scared at this point. I think they thought it was fun to be up in the night laying all together in the bathroom. They wanted to hear a funny story so I told them about a small earthquake that happened on Halloween morning when I was in third grade. The funny part was that I was in the bathroom while it happened. That made them laugh. They ate a fruit snack and then our county was cleared from the warning. All the kids went back to bed but in my room. Before returning to bed though, Aidan examined all the stuff I had brought to the bathroom. He looked around and said to me, " I rate your preparedness an EXCELLENT. EX-CE-LLENT." That made me smile.

Flaps 9

2011-04-15T16:18:00.001-04:00

We have been waiting for years for the opportunity for Ryan to upgrade to Captain. The company finally had a massive upgrade in several cities and Ryan was awarded a captain spot but in Milwaukee. While we have no intentions of moving to Milwaukee we are excited for the upgrade. With the upgrade though, Ryan has to endure 4 weeks of training and several tests. He has to pass the tests in order to become a captain.

Ryan is a very dedicated person. He started studying 3 weeks before his class started. I think that is being prepared. He thinks he procrastinated. So for the past 2 months Ryan has spent all his time studying. We have had piles of books, notebooks, notes, flash cards all over our house. We have "tried" to leave him alone so he could study. He started two weeks ago and passed his first test which was a written test. The next step was an oral test which is the most difficult because the officiator can ask as in depth of questions as he wants on a variety of topics. We can't wait for this test to be done.

The other night Aidan volunteered to help Ryan study his flash cards. They studied together for an hour. When they were done Aidan told me that dad passed and he only missed one question. Aidan was very impressed.

The next day I was tucking Aidan in bed and he said, "Mom, I would really like to learn more about planes." I said, "That would be great." Then he said, "So could you tell me about flaps 9?" I laughed and said, "Aidan you are talking to the wrong parent. Maybe daddy can give you classes on airplanes." This is when I knew that Ryan's studying was affecting my kids. When they start busting out lingo like flaps 9. I didn't know flaps even had numbers. As I am writing this Aidan is reading it and telling me that their is flaps 0, 9, 45 and blah blah blah number flaps. Seriously too much studying!!!!!

Three little ladies

2011-04-14T15:43:00.029-04:00

We found out today we were having another little girl coming in September. Ryan and I went to the ultrasound together and I had really high hopes for a boy. I love my girls and I love all the frill and flowers and bows and dresses but I was ready for airplanes, tonka trucks, and trains again. I also wanted the balance of 2 and 2. During the ultrasound they didn't investigate the gender till the end but as she was doing measurements of her stomach, kidneys and legs we could see the little baby had her legs right close together crossed at the ankles. When I saw this I said, "This is a modest little girl." Sure enough it was. I was shocked and my first thoughts were of Aidan. I was heartbroken for him. I knew he wouldn't take the news well and was so sad I couldn't do anything about it.

We found a cute little shirt that says Little Sisters Rock as our way of telling the kids.

We decided to have lunch with the kids at school to tell them. When we walked in both Lacey's and Aidan's teachers were in the hall and knew we were coming with news. I knew the kids were excited especially if they had told their teachers all about it. We sat down to lunch with the kids and they were so anxious to hear. We made them close their eyes while I pulled the little outfit out. When they opened they saw pink. Aidan immediately said, "You are joking" Lacey just seemed stunned and oblivious to what was happening. I told her what the shirt said and still not much of a reaction. Aidan then started to go through my purse in hopes to find some little blue outfit that I was hiding. Instead he found a bag of Reese's cups. He said what are these for and I said to soften the blow. He sat for a minute and I really thought he was going to be okay and then I saw his eyes start to tear up. I hugged him and tried to console him the best I could. Poor guy, a life with 3 sisters.

By the time we left he had pulled himself together. He was happy about it but he has excepted the news. Now his new mission is to find the girl a name. His first suggestion was Lilyana, the name of a cute little girl in his class. Lacey's first suggestions were Ellanora (the name of two of her favorite friends put together) and Alexa. It is going to be harder to name this baby with 2 more opinions to work with.

So another surprise turn in our lives. Three girls and one boy.

When I Grow Up...

2011-04-02T15:33:00.000-04:00

I have always been envious of ambitious people; people who have known what their dreams have been since they were three. They knew what they wanted to be when they grew up and they went after it. Whether it is some grand occupational plan, to sing, play piano, be a competitive athlete or an artist. I wasn’t given any of those obvious talents and have always wished I had a dream since I was three of becoming something amazing.

One of my most treasured and favorite books as a little girl was a Little Golden Book called Baby Dear by Eloise Wilkin. It was a sweet story of a little girl who has a new baby sister. She was given a baby doll to care for while her mommy cares for the real baby. She would do all the things the mom would do with the new baby with her own little baby doll. They bathed them together, sang to them together, rocked them together, and took them on walks together. Side by side this little girl mimicked everything the mom did. I’m not sure why as a little girl I was so taken with this book. The illustrations are just precious and the story was so adorable. I had a new baby sister and maybe that is why my mom got me that book. My original book lost the front cover and is well worn. I have since bought another copy because it is that dear to me. It is clear to me now why I loved that book so much. It was who I wanted to be. I wanted to be a mom even when I was that little.

Last fall my mom came to visit and brought me a CD of songs that I listened to all the time when I was a kid called Songs for a Mormon Child. One of my favorites was called “I Want to be a Mother”. The lyrics are:

When I grow up, I want to be a mother and have a family

One little, two little, three little babies of my own.

Of all the jobs, for me I’ll choose no other! I’ll have a family

Four little, five little, six little babies in my home.

I put the CD in to listen to it and when that song came on I just started to cry. It dawned on me that from a young age that was all I wanted to do was become a mother. That was my dream and my ambition. And now I was doing it. I'm livin' my dream.

I do love being a mom. It feels like my soul purpose in life. I am not good at every part of being a mom but some parts I am. I look at my house and wonder what happened to the clean organized life I used to have. When it was just Ryan and I, I was clean and organized. I remember being pregnant with Aidan and being so desperately sad when I couldn’t lean over the tub anymore to clean it. Now, cleaning my tub is not at the top of my priority list. I’m just grateful for the days my kids are fed, have clean clothes and, are in bed at a decent time.

It is harder to be a mom than I ever imagined. I would like to say I gave up everything to be a mom but I really didn’t. It is what I always wanted so I don’t think I have sacrificed anything to be a mom. I have sacrificed my figure and my sanity but I had no other dream, no other ambition, no other career path other than this one. So sacrifice isn’t how I would describe being a mom for me. It definitely has shown me my weaknesses and my faults but it has also shown me some strengths and most of all the power and joy of love.

I am so grateful to be a mom. It truly is my dream and ambition. I am so happy I have such wonderful children and that I get to be their mom forever.

General Conference

2011-04-02T11:41:00.016-04:00

We love General Conference at our house. One of the biggest reasons we have satellite is so we can watch Conference on tv. I always make sure we have good food and lots of work sheets for the kids to keep them busy. This year I saw a cute idea on one of the craft blogs I frequent. They had little buckets full of candy with a key word on it. Every time you heard that word in a talk you could pick a treat from that bucket. We decided to make a tally and get the treats at the end of the talk so we wouldn't be disruptive. It was a great way to get the kids to listen. However, some talks totally drained out our candy supply. I think LOVE was the overall winner. By the end we would say "I'm sick of love, I want a different candy." Cassidy was cute, each time she heard someone say Latter-Day Saints she would say, "Hey we go to that church." Glad to hear she was listening too.

It was a great weekend of relaxation and edification.

First time Snow Skiing

2011-02-22T15:27:00.001-05:00

Skiing in Utah has somehow become a yearly excursion for Ryan and some of his friends. This year we tagged along. Ryan took just Aidan skiing one of the days we were out there. Aidan did great! He wants to be good at everything the first time he does it so I was a little nervous he would get upset and quit because it was challenging. Ryan said he kept in good spirits and picked it up pretty well. Here are their pics.

Look at that form!

Totally cool ski bums!

Here is a video as well. I was so impressed when I watched it!

Portrait of Lacey at 100

2011-02-07T12:00:00.002-05:00

On the 100th day of school they do a bunch of fun things. Each kid is to put 100 things on a shirt and wear it to school. She wore 100 butterflies on her shirt. Also, at school they make a self portrait of what they will look like at 100 years old. Here is Lacey's.

She had a note to go with hers. It says "When I am one hundred I will have cool earrings." Love the ambition!

They are "cool" earrings don't you think?

Here is a flashback to Aidan's self portrait. A classic as well.

Party with games and Challenges

2010-12-26T21:32:00.001-05:00

Tonight we were just hanging out with everyone when Aidan handed each person this invitation:

I was truly surprised because I had nothing to do with this. Everyone were really good sports and accommodated Aidan's invitation. We all gathered at the pool table where indeed there were "games and challenges". Aidan had a bottle of water for everyone with their name on it. So when we arrived he said, "You can get a refreshment." So cute huh? Aidan first had us all play pool, each taking a turn. After that he had a target set up for us to shoot his nerf gun. I must say the girls were better than the boys in this challenge. Next was a challenge to fly Aidan's helicopter from the pool table to a landing site. We had fun with that one. Strangely Derek was a better pilot than Ryan. Hmmm.

The next stage of the party was everyone played a few minutes of Scrabble. We had two boards out. After that Aidan came in with a Bingo game that was called "AIDAN" instead of Bingo. We played with M&Ms. Somehow the game was rigged for Nick to win. We ended the night with a treat.

It was so much fun and Aidan engineered it all with Grandpa's help I think. It was just so cute to see him be in charge. I wish I would have taken some pictures of the games and challenges but we were having so much fun I didn't stop to do it.

A new reason for living...

2010-12-18T13:01:00.049-05:00

A new reason for living in Louisville that is.

This morning Ryan told me he was taking me to a special place as part of my Christmas present that was of the same caliber as the Gap Clearance Center in Cincinnati. He said it was 45 minutes from our place. I was highly doubtful that anything in Louisville could compare to the Gap Clearance Center and if it did I would have heard about it by now.

So we drove for 45 minutes with Ryan the whole time building up this mystery place. I was getting nervous that it all would be a disappointment. As we got close to the exit he made me close my eyes. I had to keep them close until he stopped the car. When I opened them I saw this:

Now if you are a shoe-loving woman like I am you would instantly know that I had just pulled up to shoe heaven. I was shocked I had never heard about his place. Seriously who has been holding out on me? Ryan found out from some flight attendants. We walked up to the door where people were waiting in line to get in the door since it was a few minutes before opening time and then I saw this:

Yeah, I love that!

Then the doors opened and I saw this:

Rows and rows and rows of shoes. It was well organized which makes a big difference when shopping. My biggest mistake was wearing my boots. I should have just worn my flip flops so I could easily trip on shoes. I tried on a gazillion shoes. I first narrowed it down to about 12 and then to 5 and then to 4. It was so tough. Some shoes were up to 70% off and to sweeten the deal they also were having a sale of 20% off your total purchase. All the shoes are name brand designer shoes that you would find at Macy's, like Michael Kors, Steve Madden, Jessica Simpson, Eccos etc. Everyone took a turn looking at shoes. Ryan found a pair of dress shoes and Lacey found two pair of church shoes. We found Aidan an $80 pair of North Face snow pants for $20. Ryan was so jealous. But all in all everyone scored.

Here are my new beauties!

What a great Christmas present huh? The man knows me and he knows me well!

Gingerbread Festivity

2010-12-11T22:08:00.003-05:00

I wasn't sure our gingerbread party was going to work out this year. Every place we looked to having it was booked and our options for days to do it were dwindling. Luckily Alexis allowed us to use her home for the party. Someday, yes, someday we will host the gingerbread party in our own home. We just wanted to invite more than one family and our house just doesn't accommodate that very well. So thank goodness for good friends with big houses.

Four families came with all their kids and tons of candy. We had so much but we used a lot of it. We helped the kids first with theirs. Once we got a structure made we let them decorate as they wanted.

Miss Cassidy just wanted to eat the frosting which really isn't that good. After the kids were done and busy watching a movie, we sat all the adults down for the real show to begin.

I had high expectations for Ryan's house. When I first did gingerbread houses with Ryan's family 10 years ago, I had no idea how serious they were. I had started making a dinky kid looking house and looked over at Ryan and saw a replica of the White House. I soon realized this was serious and not just an excuse to play with candy. So over the years I have developed my talent and I think maybe I have officially won the right to carry the Gremmert name.

Ryan in the planning stages.

I think this was the Empire State Building and it was starting to lean so we hurried and took a picture.

Yep, moments later it all crumbled and this is what is ended up looking like. On the other hand........

Mine turned out so cute. My roof was falling a little but the candy canes came as a great structural element as well as decorative. Act like I planned it right?

So here is our side by side comparison just to rub it in one last time.

Southern Lights

2010-12-10T23:22:00.005-05:00

A pilot friend of Ryan's invited us to join his family to Southern Lights in Lexington at the Horse Park. It was a little drive but it was worth it. Southern lights is a drive thru Christmas light display. If you tuned to a certain radio station Christmas music accompanied the whole adventure. The lights were so fun. They had some lights that went off in sequence so it looked like the figures were moving. They had Churchill downs, horses racing, marching toy soldiers, the 12 days of Christmas and a lot more.

After the lights we went to the main building to see a bunch more fun things. We rode on a cute little train that was all lit up.

That is Ryan's friend and not just some strange guy with our kids. He opted to ride in the caboose with all the kids while Ryan and I snuggled in our own car. Sounds cool but I really felt silly riding the train with no kids in our car.

Next they had a whole display of electric trains of all sizes. The kids loved watching them go through such intricate villages.

And the part the kids were most excited for was the HUGE bag of kettle corn to end the night. Must admit I make it better. The kids loved it though! Anything seems cool when it comes in bulk!

We had such a fun night. All the kids were demanded we go next year. So I think we found a new Kentucky Christmas tradition!

Hill Cumorah

2010-10-21T21:17:00.008-04:00

We experienced the Hill Cumorah in two parts. Once we arrived in Palmyra we stopped first at the Hill Cumorah and hiked to the monument they have there of Moroni. It was late in the afternoon and we were expecting it to rain soon so we seized the opportunity.

The views from the top of the hill were gorgeous.

I truly couldn't believe I was on top of the Hill Cumorah. My whole life I had been taught the story of Moroni delivering the plates to Joseph Smith on a hillside and here I stood. The reality never sunk in.

My kids of course took full advantage of rolling down the big hill.

On our way down we went a different way than we had gone up. The way up was paved and a large path. The way down was not paved and was literally through the woods. It gave such a better depiction of what it would have been like for Joseph Smith. You could feel the reverence of the area. I was telling Cassidy why a statue of Moroni was at the top of this hill. After I finished the story, she said, "This is a special, special, special place." We really tried to emphasize to the kids being calm in these places and thinking about how they were feeling there so they could recognize the sacredness of the places they were.

We went through the Visitor Center the next morning. It was so pretty. We watched a great video about Joseph Smith receiving the plates. The videos really helped the kids to visually understand what happened there. They also had many interactive displays for the kids that helped them as well.

Lunch with the Missionaries

2010-10-20T20:40:00.007-04:00

Next on our list was lunch in Rochester with two sets of missionaries. Strangely enough I am related to two missionaries serving in the Rochester Mission. Sister Stone is my cousin's daughter and Elder Gremmert is Ryan's cousin. We made arrangements to have lunch at Dibellas (so good by the way). My parents sat with Sister Stone and her companion, who was ironically Sister Carter, no relation. Ryan and I and the kids sat with Elder Gremmert and his companion. Elder Gremmert is a ASL missionary. It was really cool to see him signing as we talked to keep his companion, who is deaf, in the loop. It was great to see them. They seemed like good hard working missionaries.

First site: John Johnson Home

2010-10-20T20:33:00.015-04:00

In Hiram, OH is the John Johnson farm where Joseph Smith lived from 1831 to 1832. The Johnson home served as headquarters of the Church.

When we first walked into the home we entered the summer kitchen. These are some of the things in the kitchen.

The sister missionary asked the kids if they noticed anything different than what they had in their kitchen at home. Lacey immediately said, "The exit sign". Out of all the different utensils and pots and bowls, she picked the exit sign. Too funny.

In March 1832, Joseph was attacked by a mob in the middle of the night and was tarred and feathered near the home. The next day, despite his injuries, Joseph preached as he often did to a large congregation gathered in front of the home and baptized three persons. This is the room he was pulled from in the middle of the night.

The kids were so saddened by this story. Joseph's little baby boy had been sick and ended up dying from exposure to the cold.

Joseph received an outpouring of revelation within these walls, including a magnificent vision of the Father and the Son and the three degrees of glory. This was the room the revelation was received in. This was Aidan's favorite place out of the whole trip. He said it was such a "spiritual place" He said he felt like he could review the past and that he could image Joseph Smith and Sydney Rigdon in this room.

Here are just some pretty shots of the area.

Our goal for the trip was to stop at as many roadside apple cider places as we could. We found one as we were leaving the Johnson home area. The apple cider was awesome and gone in minutes. Mom bought some good cashew brittle as well. It was a good stop.

1830 edition

2010-10-20T20:07:00.007-04:00

Just after we left Niagara Falls we hurried over to the Buffalo Public Library. Yes, a big attraction on our list. Why? Well, we found out through Ryan's cousin that you could go to the rare books section and actually handle a 1830 edition of the Book of Mormon. Most of these first edition books are under glass and not to be handled. So it was a rare find to actually hold one. The first printing of the Book of Mormon was in 1830 and 5000 copies were made.

There was no separation of verses in the first edition of the book. It appeared more how a novel would with just chapters. It would have been cool to read the book that way. I understand the need for verses as points of reference but the book is a series of stories and it would have been cool to read it that way.

It was so amazing to see and hold the book. I wondered whose it was and who read it. You hear stories of the Book of Mormon's being passed from one person to the next to read. I wish I could have known who read the book and how it impacted their life. Were they converted? Did Joseph Smith himself touch this copy? I could just feel the history in the book.

They only let two of us in at a time and they wouldn't let the kids in. However, they did let them in at the end to just look at it and not touch. The librarian there said this was the most requested rare book to see and he shows it at least once a week. I was shocked!

This was such a highlight and a rare treat!

Niagara Falls

2010-10-20T19:17:00.046-04:00

We arrived in Niagara Falls about 9:00 p.m. We decided to stay on the Canada side of the Falls. We checked in at the hotel and then ventured down to see the falls at night.

They have a bunch of colored lights on the horse shoe part of the falls and then red white and blue on the American side of the falls. It was so amazing. You couldn't get a real feel for the falls at night though so the next morning when we saw it, it was still jaw-dropping.

You can walk right by the drop off of the falls. Just standing there and hearing the roaring of the falls and then looking practically over the fall is overwhelming.

This is the American Falls. It is really pretty too but not as grand. The bridge is Rainbow bridge that connects the US and Canada.

So we all scratched Niagara Falls off our bucket lists! We chose not to do any of the boat tours just so we wouldn't have to deal with the possibility of screaming girls freaking out. Plus we could see and feel the majesty of the beautiful falls from where we were.

Fall Break Road Trip

2010-10-19T20:52:00.051-04:00

We planned a trip to Kirtland and Palmyra and invited my parents to join us. We have wanted to do this trip for a long time and were so excited to do it in the fall. Fall this year wasn't that spectacular but we were hoping it would better up north. We planned every minute of our trip, packed, and bought lots of food, travel games, books and activities for the kids. Our plan was drive to Cleveland (5hrs away) and spend the night there then pick up Ryan from the airport in the morning and then head off to Kirtland by 9 a.m.

We were all happy starting off!

Everyone had books, movies, games, leapsters to play. Grandma Nana did a great job playing with the kids. She definitely was the entertainment of the back seats. She had started telling them the story of Heidi. The kids got really into it and wanted her to keep telling the story but she broke it up into sections. She is a great story teller.

About half way was Columbus, OH. We decided to stop at a park and take a quick break. After following my GPS to a trailer "park", we finally found a real park. It was great! The kids got the wiggles out and we all got to move around some.

We made it to Cleveland around dinner time. We unloaded at the hotel and went out for dinner. The kids were anxious to get in the pool. Unfortunately the pool was so freezing. Even the hot tub was colder than a bath I would take at home. The kids were die-hards though and still got in.

Don't they look like two kids from the 90's with their discmans? I always laugh when I see them rocking out to their discmans.

We all slept well and were ready for our first day of touring the church sites.

Halloween crafts

2010-10-12T21:45:00.003-04:00

Everyone around me has been crafting Halloween crafts and I caught the bug. I made a new wreath, spray painted some branches, and made some poison bottles out of plain glass containers. It has been fun. I have a couple more things in mind but we will see if I get to them this year.

I made the labels to put on the bottles and added corks to the top.

I modge podged the BOO letters with cute Halloween papers. Then I tied strips of burlap around the wreath. I love it!

I found the sticks on the side of the road. They were simple to just spray paint and glitter up a little. I love how they look.

So thanks girls for giving me the bug!

My Starbucks Morning

2010-10-09T21:54:00.003-04:00

So I had THE greatest discovery this week. Probably the best discovery of the WHOLE YEAR! Last year I was introduced to Starbucks Carmel Apple Spice drink. It is one of few non coffee items you can get at Starbucks. How I lived in Seattle for 2 1/2 years without knowing about it is beyond me. My naivety saved us a lot of money though while living in Starbucks land. Anyway, I love them and find any reason to swing by the Starbucks that is 6 miles from my house. It is hard to justify going that far and especially if it isn't cold outside. Well the other day it was a brisk morning and I had to go right past the Starbucks to go to the school I was subbing at. I watched them make the drink right in front of me and was shocked when they used regular apple juice. What made the drink so good then and different from just warm apple juice? I decided to look up online once I was at school if anyone knew how to make the drink. I had tried attempts but no success. Well, I found the key ingredient is cinnamon syrup and the kicker is...........Starbucks sells it in their store! So right after school I went and bought a bottle for $6.95. That is the price of two large drinks!

I was so excited to try it and share it with Ryan. I bought all the other supplies apple juice, whip cream and carmel sauce.

(Notice my Seattle mug even!)

Then I made the Carmel Apple Spice drink at my house. I was in heaven. I am so exited about this discovery! To make it even better, I made Pumpkin Scones which are also a love of ours from Starbucks. I think mine our better than theirs though. It was a delicious Starbucks morning.

Mmm Yum!

Lehi's dream

2010-10-04T21:09:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago I had heard of a Family Home Evening to reenact Lehi’s dream. I thought it was a great idea and that my kids would love it. So I told them the story and talked about all the symbolism from the dream. A little tough to understand at times but they got the just of it. After we reviewed the story we went into the backyard where Ryan and I set up their own iron rod, tree of life and "fruit".

We tied a ski rope from a tree to the door on our shed to be the iron rod.

The tree the rope was tied to was our Tree of life.

At the base of the tree was our "fruit" or what is delicious to our family, Reese's Peanut butter cups.

So I blindfolded the kids with the "mist of darkness" and first had them grab hold of the rope and walk to the tree and partake of the fruit. They all did that well and loved it.

Then the second time we blindfolded them but didn't lead them to the rope. We just let them wander for a bit. Ryan laughed at them and persuaded them to follow him in all sorts of directions. I then started talking to them and slowly led them to feel where the rope was. Once they felt the rope again they knew where it would lead them and they raced to the tree for another treat.

This is Lacey wondering on her own and of course ran right into the fence nose first. This wasn't so great for teaching purposes right when it happened but later we were able to apply it to the pain of wondering on your own.

We had Ryan and Aidan pulling her in different directions.

Then she was finally led to the rope. We tried to get Cassidy to be blindfolded but she just wanted to run back and forth holding the rope and eat the candy.

The whole lesson turned out so great! They knew how it FELT to live through Lehi's dream. I love that they can talk about holding the rope and why it was important and how SAFE they felt when the rope was in their hand. They KNEW it would lead them to the treat they wanted. And they understood how confusing it was when they didn't have the rope and how it sometimes hurts when you are wondering off on your own. I hope they remember this and that it will help their little testimonies. Ryan and I sure enjoyed teaching them this way.

Lacey's lost her first tooth

2010-09-15T21:56:00.002-04:00

The day finally came that Lacey's first loose to came out. When she got home from school it was ready to come out. She was insanely sensitive to anyone touching it or even looking at it. She screamed crazy screams when I tried to just wiggle it to see how loose it was. Well, while I was gone at YW Ryan used the dental floss and pulled it out. Since I wasn't here I can only guess it went down in true Lacey fashion. She probably screamed like a mad woman, cried, protested, demanded everything in return, and finally let Ryan pry her mouth open for two seconds to yank the tooth out. She came down to the church to show me. She was all smiles and you would never had guessed she was against the idea. She still looks insanely cute! I'm so proud of her.

"Old"ilocks

2010-09-13T22:06:00.005-04:00

When I was in first grade my teacher called me "Curly"locks because I would come to school with my hair curly from the pink sponge curlers. I loved my curls and loved she called me that. Well, I have now received a new "locks" name that I am not lovin' "Oldilocks". RUDE!

Yes, today I turned 35 and I must say I am hating this one more than 30. At thirty you are still young enough, you are still getting your life together, but 35 you are in the middle of your thirties. That means you are almost to 40! That is yucky. Yucky yucky yucky.

I had a great day celebrating my oldness. My friend watched Cassidy in the morning so Ryan could take me out. We went to Wild Eggs for breakfast. Amazing food. I seriously cleaned my plate to emptiness. I had the stuffed french toast.

Then Ryan and I went frisbee golfing. We aren't very good but we enjoyed it. A time or two, okay like 12 times, we had to find our frisbees in the woods. I won't say who it happened to more often but lets just say we only have proof of it happening to Ryan.

We had a great time playing together and yes Ryan beat me by like 4.

After frisbee golf Ryan went home to get DD and I went to get my hair done. Pampering is always nice on your birthday.

The kids were home from school by the time I got home and they gave me my first present, they cleaned the house! Yeah, that was my favorite gift. We then hit Hometown Pizza for dinner. They gave me a few more presents there that were perfect. Spiced cider scented oil, bubble bath that smells like pure yumminess, and new flip flops.

We then met up with the Kelly's for ice cream at our favorite place, The Comfy Cow. I love their ice cream but I also just think it is a quaint place. (Thirty-five year olds say quaint )

Bryson so thoughtfully sharing with Cassidy. Too cute!

Lacey enjoying her cotton candy flavored ice cream.

And me and Cassidy with Brownie explosion delight. I made that up. But it tasted like that.

It took the two of us but we finished it!

It was a great day. I got to be with my favorite people, eat my favorite things, I loved it.

B-Y-U-W!

2010-09-04T23:16:00.000-04:00

Ryan was so pumped for the BYU vs. UW game Saturday night. Game time started at 7 but he didn't get home till 7:30. I had everything ready for when he got off work that all he had to do was push play on the DVR, recline his chair, and hold out his hand for a cold rootbeer. We come from a BYU fan family so it is in our blood to root for BYU. I have passed that on to my kids so they cheered for both. Aidan cheered 2 quarters for UW and 2 for BYU. Ryan seemed okay with that, well at least until the game was over. Then he was a BYU hater again.

Well come to find out someone else in the world was extremely excited to watch the BYU vs. UW game but he lived in Grenada. My brother-in-law, David. Ironically enough he is a UW fan along with Ryan. How we got two of those in the family, I'm not quite sure. About a half hour before kickoff, I received a skype message from David frantic to find a way to watch the game. Almost in jest I said, well if you can't find a way, I can just point my webcam to the tv and you can watch it that way. A few minutes later he said okay let's do it. So we watched the game with my BIL and sister in Grenada via webcam.

We could hear them cheering and occasionally we would chat between plays. They watched the whole thing. I don't know how well they could see the game, but David is that die hard that he would watch it blurry. I thought it was awesome though. I wish they could have just come over to my house instead. Too bad UW lost.

Are we embarrassing already?

2010-08-17T08:33:00.003-04:00

Ryan and I both took the kids to the bus stop today. Ryan had just finished running so he was in some athletic shorts and a t-shirt. We had made plans to each lunch with the kids today. So while we were at the bus stop Aidan came up to Ryan and said, "Are you going to wear that to lunch today?" Ryan could tell Aidan was implying something so he said, "Uh, probably not, I guess. Why?" Aidan then looked relieved and said, "Because you look like you are wearing pajamas." So Ryan is going to lunch in a suit.

Thumbs Down!

2010-08-16T08:14:00.000-04:00

To premise this story, when Aidan leaves on the bus he usually gives me the I love you sign as the bus pulls away. It has been our standing tradition for the last two years.

Today Lacey really wanted Aidan to sit by her on the bus. It is day 4 of school and he has yet to sit with her. She kind of teared up when she asked for him to sit with her. So I told Aidan he had to sit with her. He was supposed to the first day and didn't. He was also suppose to walk her to her classroom the first day and didn't. So I figured he owed and I told him that. He was so mad. He stomped off and then kind of cried as he complained about sitting with her. I didn't back down though and I threatened him with a week of sitting next to her.

The kids got on the bus. I could see from the window that indeed Aidan was sitting next to Lacey. Then I saw the standard I love you sign from his right hand and thought oh good things are okay, until I saw that his left hand was raised up for me to see with a big thumbs down sign. I guess he figured out in sign language how to say "I don't love you today!"

Another one off to kindergarten!

2010-08-11T13:05:00.005-04:00

I have TWO kids in school! I can't believe it. The morning turned out great. There wasn't much protest from Lacey and she seemed hesitantly excited. Aidan was up before the alarm went off with a HUGE smile on his face. He was SO ready to go.

You know how you know your kids "looks" and what they mean. Well, as we walked to the bus stop Lacey gave me this look like "mom I'm excited but nervous. Can I do this?" This picture just captured that! I made sure I was upbeat and strong, meaning not breaking down into convulsing sobs, so she would continue to be excited.

The neighborhood group. One boy is actually in Lacey's class.

Waiting for the bus!

Here it comes!

The last look. Am I ready mom?

Aidan, as excited as ever!

The top of Lacey's head and her hand waving goodbye!

Off to kindergarten and second grade!

Lacey did great. She was brave and showed no hesitancy getting on the bus. I'm so proud of her. She kept checking to see if I was crying yet. She even said, "You aren't crying mom." I told her I was waiting till she was gone to cry. I actually didn't tear up on the way home. I was just so thrilled for them. I wish I could sneak a peek at their day. I will miss them!

She's armed and dangerous!

2010-08-09T14:31:00.000-04:00

She's armed!

She's dangerous!

And she is ruthless! Look at that sinister laugh!

Ready for Church

2010-07-12T10:56:00.004-04:00

We somehow were ready for church early so we decided to take some pics. What really inspired the photo shoot was that Aidan did his hair differently. He looks different and so grown up. He was excited about it especially when mousse got involved. Aren't we a cute bunch?

Fireworks!

2010-07-04T22:53:00.003-04:00

We found a firework show on Saturday night instead of Sunday at a park just north of us. Ryan was late getting home from work so we jumped in the car the second he got home. The fireworks were to start at 9:30 and we left at 9:15. We saw the show start from the freeway but were only a couple miles from the park. We had no idea how long it would last so we just hoped for the best. We jumped out of the car and expected just minutes left in the show. Every firework we declared was the last one. We actually got to see about 15minutes which is more than we could ask.

So actually on the 4th I let the kids go out to do sparklers and pop its.

While they were out surrounding neighbors were lighting off their fireworks which actually turned out to be a great show. The kids were jumping up and down so excited that they were so close.

Cassidy and Ryan stayed inside for a bit because DD was scared.

Ryan finally got her to come outside. Ryan and I pulled out camping chairs out into the middle of the culdasac so we could see better. It was so fun to just sit right outside my house and watch some great fireworks. Seriously I felt like going to the person's house and telling them thank you for the awesome show. It was a peaceful, beautiful night. Happy Birthday America!

"I quit this parade!"

2010-07-03T11:42:00.000-04:00

We went to our traditional ward 4th of July breakfast. The kids were to decorate their bikes for a little parade. They were very excited and I spent last night making sure their bikes were well decked out for today. I decided to decorate a baby stroller for Cassidy since she isn't much of a bicyclist yet. Didn't it turn out cute?

I was very excited for her and thought the idea of the stroller was perfect. We gathered down with all the kids for the parade to begin. I was going to walk by Cassidy just to make sure she would be okay. Before the parade even started I heard a screaming cry and realized it was Lacey. I looked over at her and she was in hysterics. I ran over to her to see what happened. I thought she had already fallen off her bike and was bleeding. Well, she just couldn't get her bike started up the hill. I got her going and ran back to DD. She in turn was beginning to tear up because I just left her to go check on Lacey. So now, the parade begins and I think all will be well. Cassidy decides she doesn't want to push the stroller. So she just pushes it away and pouts a little. I walk with her and push the stroller myself. Again I hear profuse screaming and realize once again Lacey has lost it. She had run off the road and was wildly heading down the grass hill towards a tree. She obviously doesn't hit the breaks at anytime but thankfully doesn't hit the tree. She just sits on her bike in front of the tree, screaming her lungs out.

This is her out of control going down the hill. Photo captured by my friend.

I was far enough away from her that it took me sometime to get to her. In the meantime, my friends and another sister in the ward run over to her in hopes to help her and get her to stop screaming. No use. She just sits there almost stunned but never stopping from screaming. I finally get to her thinking again she is bleeding and hurt. Nope. She just says "I quit this parade!" I take her and walk back toward Cassidy who now is screaming and crying her head off. So I have both girls screaming and crying and I am trying to push a stroller and walk a bike while I am trying to calm them down.

I walked over to the car and decided I quit this parade too!

Me calling it quits

Cassidy never recovered and would not even let me take a picture of her with her stroller. Hence the pout. Lacey did recover but I was done. I stayed a few more minutes and then we bailed.

This is the one cute picture that my friend captured of Cassidy by tricking her to play peekaboo with her baby.

I left mad and frustrated. What a bummer of a parade!

First of the Summer

2010-07-02T10:56:00.003-04:00

Here is it July 1st and we finally were able to take the boat out for the first time this summer. Ryan took it out once while we were gone but I'm not counting that. We took our friends out last night and had dinner and boating on the river. The weather was so nice and the water was actually warm. We had to stop between turns to have everyone swim. Everyone got a turn to do something either wake boarding, tubing or skiing. I was the skiier. Ryan forced me to be the final run of the night. I still get nervous to do it and have horrible flashbacks to when I was a kid but after the second try I was up. The kids had a lot of fun riding in the boat, swimming and tubing. It was a great night!

A Date with Uncle Blake

2010-06-21T22:50:00.000-04:00

Aidan was a little devastated when Blake and Estee informed him that he would be wearing a HOT PINK tie for the wedding. Aidan is a boy of all boys. Doesn't like any signs of girliness and pink is girly. Yes, he got this from his dad. They are on the exact same page when it comes to boys wearing pink...........they shouldn't.

Well with months of lecturing and prepping Aidan about having to wear the tie without complaining, I told Aidan to cut a deal with Blake. So he came up with this deal. He wanted a date alone with Blake to Nielsen's Frozen Custard in Bountiful, UT and here's the kicker, they had to wear CAMO. See that manhood just exuding from him. Well, Blake took the deal. Aidan was so excited for his date. We were swimming when Blake told us he would be back in about 40 minutes to take Aidan out. Aidan hurried home from the pool and got ready. He put on his camo shirt and his camo shorts. He sat right at the front window waiting for Blake to come home. It was so cute to see him so excited for his special date alone with Blake. I don't know if Blake remembered but luckily he was wearing camo too.

As planned they went to Nielsen's for concretes, only the best ice cream ever. I guess while they were there Blake told him he could order whatever he wanted. So he ordered a cookie dough concrete. Then he looked at Blake and said can order a root beer too? Blake said, yep. Boy was in heaven. Blake told Aidan a secret that night that he wasn't allowed to tell anyone until the night before Blake's wedding. He loved that too that he had a special secret with Blake.

Aidan's got a good Uncle who keeps to his promises.

We couldn't stop smilin'!

2010-06-10T19:58:00.008-04:00

During our trip to Seattle, Ryan and Aidan accompanied Grandpa Arden on a business trip to Tri-Cities. Arden wanted to show Ryan and Aidan the ranch. Aidan got to feed the cows, see some bulls, and play with some dogs. He had a really good time there.

Feeding the cows.

Now the real reason and drawing force to get them to go on this trip, no offense Arden, was a visit to Ryan's uncle, who owns some Ferraris. I know ranches are cool and all but honestly what can top a ride in a Ferrari?

Can't you hear him saying, "I'M TOUCHING TWO FERRARIS RIGHT NOW!"

What cute spoiled boys.

When I talked to them on the phone about their adventure they BOTH said they couldn't stop smiling, as evidence in this picture. They were in absolute heaven! Thanks Uncle Jeff!

Can't you hear Ryan saying "I'M DRIVING A FERRARI!"

Ryan has divulged how fast he drove this car, which he claims is way slower than normal because Aidan was in the car, but I will not offer this information because I know some Grandmas would have his head if they knew. But Ryan has gotten into some serious trouble and has been grounded from driving Ferraris for at least a few months.

Calypso Cove

2010-05-29T13:22:00.002-04:00

Summer has begun! We love being at the pool!

Goodbye Pre-K

2010-05-28T21:40:00.002-04:00

Lacey graduated from preschool. She attended for two years and is officially ready for Kindergarten. They had a cute little graduation for them. She has been practicing a song for a month that all of us know very well now. She did great. She also received the award of Sugar and Spice. They said she is a great friend who is always there. She is the first to help someone when they are sad. She is so sweet and very GIRLY. Perfect award for her. I am so happy for her to move up to kindergarten. She wants to be like her brother so bad, riding the bus, reading, writing etc. I did get a little choked up during her graduation. She is such a beautiful girl and I love seeing her progress but it is hard to let them grow up. I can't wait to see how she blossoms as a kindergartener. She is so READY!

A Getaway

2010-05-14T13:58:00.006-04:00

While Ryan's mom was in town we planned a little getaway. After the fun at Great Wolf Lodge, she took the kids home and we stayed another night at a different hotel. We went to see Iron Man 2 and also to Maggiano's for dinner. We had been there one other time in Seattle and were very excited to find one in our part of the country. We both had awesome food. Totally planning another trip there.

The next morning we headed to King's Island for a day of Roller Coasters. Our first ride was Firehawk. This one they tip you on your back so you are facing the sky. You climb to the top facing the sky and then it flips you over for the rest of the ride so you feel like you are flying. I was so nervous for this one. I think it was because it was my first ride of the day and it was so different.

Vortex.....................

Invertigo.............

Diamondback.............

After the first ride I was good. We stood in lines for awhile but hit all the rides we wanted to. It was a lot of fun to be just me and Ryan.

We drove home to quickly jump back in the car to take Ryan's mom and brother to Church hill Downs to watch a couple of horse races.

Again, Eva took the kids home and we stayed the night at a hotel right on the waterfront. It was fabulous.

It was such a good break for us. We always enjoy our time alone. Thank you Eva and Nick for making that possible for us. We are grateful.

Great Wolf Lodge

2010-05-13T13:09:00.007-04:00

As part of Aidan's birthday celebration and really just a part of Granny's visit, we went to Great Wolf Lodge. It is a hotel with an indoor water park. The kids loved it. The room was like a cabin and it had a bunk bed area for them with their OWN tv.

Just down the hall was the indoor waterpark. It was nice and warm inside and no need of sunblock. Love that. The slides varied in scariness. They had little Cassidy slides and then big Ryan slides. I was surprised that Aidan and Lacey went on some of the bigger slides. Most of them had tubes with them. There were some that we could go together and others you rode solo. It was such a great place. We went the night we got there and then as soon as it opened the next morning. We had to take full advantage of the place. It was a BLAST!

Birthday Boot Camp!

2010-05-12T18:47:00.003-04:00

Today was Aidan's 7th Birthday! We started the day with Banana Muffins and hot chocoloate per request of the birthday boy. He got a ride to school with his good friend and had lunch with his dad and his Granny.

He was so excited for his party. He helped plan the whole thing. Invitations, games, and cake. Five of his school buddies rode the bus home with him for his Boot Camp Birthday party. In all we had 13 soldiers show up. It was a well energized party. It had rained all day until about 2p.m. and then cleared up just long enough for his party. We were so lucky! Thirteen 7 year olds in my house at once? That would have been insane.

We dressed up everyone in war paint and dog tags and took their picture.

We played several army games. We did an obstacle course.We made the soldiers carry a wounded soldier across the lawn and back.

We had a granade launch and a paper airplane flying contest. The boys loved it.

I made Aidan a Tank birthday cake. It was so hard to make frosting such a gross color but it looked pretty realistic.

He got some great presents. He loved getting gift cards and even money. He also got a new bike. This is the look on his face when he realized it.

We were exhausted after it all. So worth it though to see how happy Aidan was. Happy birthday, Aidan boy!

On this day...

2010-05-04T22:54:00.005-04:00

Today Ryan and I are celebrating 9 years of marriage. We honestly feel like it is number 3. It has gone so fast.

Although we have had some wiz-bang anniversaries, Paris, Puerto Rico, and St. Martin, today was still a great day. We went to a matinee movie and for a quick lunch at Qdoba. We love their nachos. Then tonight we went to ward temple night. We decided to do sealings. It was so cool to kneel across the alter from Ryan again and think about that same moment 9 years ago. I tried to remember what I was thinking and what I felt in that moment. Then I thought about all we had been through since then. Wow, what an adventure.

I am so grateful Ryan is my husband. He is a great at it. He balances me. He is strong where I am weak, he is faithful where I am faithless, he is courageous where I am fearful. He is a perfect companion for me.

Happy 9 years!

Derby Bingo

2010-05-01T20:20:00.001-04:00

My fab friend holds a traditional Derby Bingo Party. This year she asked us to come in hats. I was thrilled. Had I had more time and more money, we would have been well outfitted. Lacey found a fabulous hat at the flea market. I found a small hat for Cassidy and dolled it up. I had so much fun doing Cassidy's hat. I almost considered it my new passion and occupation. I mean really Derby hats have not restrictions. I shared Lacey's hat this year but next year, my hat will be awesome!

We had a fun time playing Bingo and yes we really did watch the Derby. I think quite a few called the winner. It was a great time with great food and great friends. Thanks Alexis! Can't wait for next year.

If you look close you can see the little red cardinal I put on Cassidy's hat. She can pick out a cardinal from a mile away. True Kentucky girl.

Welcome back 80's!

2010-04-24T22:38:00.000-04:00

A friend of mine turned 30 recently so we had an 80's surprise party for her. It was just a girls party. I was so excited to take a trip to the 80's. The whole week prior I was listening to music, looking at old pictures and laughing at the clothes. It was so fun to think about my life then. I was 5 when the 80's started and 15 when they ended. The 80s were some good times. So many good songs and funny memories. I thought about all my little girlfriends and the crazy things we did together. I miss those times and miss those good friends.

I went shopping with a friend for 80's clothes. It was fun to think about the dorky things we wore. I found some great stone washed jeans, a jean vest, and even some JELLY shoes. I did feel a little old though because Alexis didn't know what pegging your pants was nor what bubble skirts were.

I put my hair in a side pony tail with the little curls down the front. Then I ratted my bangs to make them big. It was strange how naturally it felt doing my hair like that. I then put a big bow clip in my hair. I had hot pink lip gloss and blue eye shadow. Man when I looked in the mirror I seriously thought I was 13.

The party was great. We totally surprised her. Everyone was dressed up too. It was AWESOME! We played 80's music and ate fluorescent cake and reminisced about the crazy 80's.

So the funny addition to this is the next day we were getting ready for church and Lacey asked me to do her hair like mine was last night. I thought she meant the side ponytail but she wanted the curls down the side too. I refused to make her bangs all poofy so luckily she didn't insist on that but she did want the big bow. I just laughed because she thought my hair looked good when I thought it looked beyond ridiculous.

Was that Thunder?

2010-04-17T22:18:00.006-04:00

The greatest event our city offers to some may guess is the Kentucky Derby but in reality it is Thunder over Louisville. This is an annual firework show over the river. It takes place two weeks before the Derby. We are die hards and go every year! This year was the first time we went with friends.

Parking is always a mess. You have to park in certain areas and then walk down to the water front. Ryan had dropped me and the kids off while he parked the car. I totally thought I would get to the waterfront before him and I would have a place all saved for us. Well, he parked way closer than where he dropped me off. I had two strollers and all our stuff. I pushed the big stroller with Lacey in it and all our bags and Aidan pushed Cassidy in the little stroller. Aidan would trade off with Lacey pushing. At some points they were both tired so I had one sit in the front seat of the double stroller and steer the stroller with Cassidy in it. So I was essentially pushing both strollers but Aidan was steering the one Cassidy was in. It was a crazy mess. We walked over two miles just to get to our spot. It took and hour and forty minutes. Yeah it was insane and I was so tired.

We had a great spot on the lawn with our friends. We had lots of snacks and treats to keep us occupied while we waited for the show to start. Two barges shoot off fireworks that mirror each other on each side of the bridge and then fireworks are shot off the bridge as well. The whole thing is choreographed to music.

Each year our kids have hated the fireworks. It is too loud and too late at night. We often consider getting them a sitter and just the two of us go. But there will be one year they surprise us and finally like them so we keep bringing them.

We were prepared though. We had two sets of headphones used at the gun range and then earplugs. Cassidy was startled by the first fire works. She held on tight to me the whole show but didn't really cry. She just watched in amazement and a little concern.

Lacey on the other hand full on zonked out for the whole show. She didn't twitch at all to the noise. She seriously missed the whole thing.

Aidan surprised us and didn't use the earplugs and liked it. It was his year. Yeah!

I loved it as I always do. Loved the music, the colors and the volume of fireworks they shot off. It is truly the best fireworks show ever.

Here is a taste..........

Accepting Reality

2010-03-22T15:41:00.001-04:00

After a few years time I have finally faced the reality that my wedding ring no longer fits me. I kept hoping somehow it would fit again without turning my whole finger numb. But, I faced the truth and finally had it resized. I went from a 4 1/2 to a 5 1/2. A whole size! It was hard to accept the fact that I am not the same size I was when I was married. Thank goodness we don't have to try and fit in our wedding dresses again. Now that would be a very sad day.

Now that it has been resized, I love having it fit. It feels brand new again and I keep staring at it like I did when I first was given it. I look forward to putting it on instead of resenting it because it didn't fit any more. I still love it and love wearing it again.

That which we call a Rose...

2010-03-16T16:32:00.003-04:00

What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Cassidy Rose!

We call Cassidy, Dee Dee, all the time. I figured she would pick up on that as her name. But when I asked her one day Dee Dee what? and she said Rose, it took me by surprise. That is her middle name. I do call her that a lot, but it was so cute to hear her say it. I hadn't taught her that or rehearsed it with her. She just picked it up from me saying it. Isn't it adorable?

Brian Regan

2010-02-28T15:11:00.004-05:00

Over the holidays my sister brought three DVDs of the comedian Brian Regan for us to watch. He was so funny and Ryan and I took to his humor quickly. As we watched videos on YouTube we decided to see if he was on tour. We were so excited when we saw his tour was coming to our town. We saw him last night. When we bought the tickets we had tried to look at the theater map to see where our seats were but we couldn't find where CC was. When we were actually there and were led to our seats we were a little shocked. They had put three rows of folding chairs in front of the row where the regular theaters seats began. We were in the third row of those folding chairs, in the center. He was so close to us it wasn't almost uncomfortable but I was laughing too hard to care. Ryan and I had such a great time. We love laughing and especially laughing together. We have continued to quote his bits and still find ourselves laughing. He takes everyday simple things and makes them so funny. One of our favorites is when he talks about passengers sitting in first class and how you feel like such a peon walking past them to get to the coach seats. ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9em-ZCddWk&feature=related ) He has such funny facial expressions and is so animated which makes it all the funnier. All the bits we had seen on DVD and on the internet were clean so we were hoping he was still clean in person. He is! That is the best thing about him is that he is entirely clean. No swear words, no inappropriate humor. Just clean. So go check him out.

http://www.brianregan.com/experience-av.html

I decided that if I was a queen I would definitely have a court jester. Wouldn't it be great to just have someone around that all they were in charge of doing was making you laugh?

From the Office of the First Presidency!

2010-02-25T13:41:00.003-05:00

My mom called me today and immediately just started reading me a letter she and my dad had received in the mail. I thought she was reading me a letter my dad had received and already talked to me about but I got confused when I heard my son's name mentioned. Then it clicked. Remember the story where Aidan called the neighbor boy Uchtdorf ? My dad enjoyed the story so much he felt the need to write the story to Pres. Uchtdorf himself. My dad had told me awhile ago that he had done that. I was a little embarrassed but didn't think much of it. Well, the letter my parents received was from the office of the First Presidency, from President Uchtdorf.

I was laughing so hard when my mom was done reading it to me. I was in shock and a little embarrassed. I hope he took the story well. But honestly to hear him write about MY OWN son and reference MY FAMILY was amazing. For one tiny moment, President Uchtdorf was thinking about MY FAMILY. We really love him and look forward to every time he speaks. We have a special place in our hearts for him because of who he is and also because he is a pilot. We felt honored he had replied to our silly story. Aidan was beaming when he read the actual letter. It will be something he will treasure for a lifetime.

Is this a problem?

2010-02-23T12:17:00.001-05:00

What mom? I was thirsty.

HO HO, La La, and Money

2010-01-06T18:33:00.004-05:00

Cassidy has begun to make up nicknames for people. She has a little friend that she calls LoLo. It is cute to hear talk about her, which is a lot. Well, while in Utah everytime my dad came over to Blake's house he would walk in saying "Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas!" Cassidy got very excited everytime she heard him and started saying Ho Ho Ho herself. Then we realized that when she talked about Grandpa she called him Ho Ho. If my mom came over without my dad she would say "Where's ho ho?" It was so cute. Even still she calls him Ho Ho. I love it!

I was trying to teach Cassidy, her cousin Madison's name. She goes by Maddie a lot so that's what we worked on. The first couple of times she called her Money. I thought it was so funny so I didn't correct her. After spending some time with "Money", Cassidy started to say it a little better so sometimes it would actually sound like Maddie. Otherwise, it is still Money.

Then, My sister Melinda came to Utah for a bit too and somehow she was given the nickname La La. Yes all these names are starting to sound like the Teletubbies which she has never ever seen. It is fun though to have her recognize family and call them by their names, or at least the names she has given them.

New Year's Crazy Hat Party

2010-01-01T12:21:00.001-05:00

It has become our tradition to have a crazy hat party for New Year's Eve. Blake and I had planned to have a big party at his house and to incorporate this tradition. I must say Estee and Blake were my biggest supporters. We had a whole ton of people, lots of food, and lots of crazy hats. Cassidy felt the need to try on every one's hat. She looked cute in every single one.

Aidan and Lacey changed it up a couple of times too.
There were plenty of other cute people in their hats too. Here are a few.

We played games with the kids and then had a random countdown to zero when we were good and ready. Blake and Estee had bought some confetti bombs that surprised everyone. Here we were trying to be all conservative and not mess up Blake's house. After the countdown we did sparklers. The adults stayed up till the real countdown and toasted to some nasty tasting sparkling fruit juice. It was fun to spend the new years with everyone.

And "hats off" to Blake and Estee the winners of the best hats! Thanks for being great hosts!
We will have to up our game next year and out do our hats from this year. Happy 2010!

A SCARY Christmas Carol

2009-12-22T20:28:00.001-05:00

My mom wanted to take my family to see A Christmas Carol at the Hale Theater in SLC. To prepare them for the play, the night before my mom told them the story. They were fascinated by the ghosts and the mean Mr. Scrooge and were listening so intently to her story. Lacey was hilarious when she tried to say Ebenezer.

We went to the matinee with my mom and dad. Miss Cassidy had a special date with Uncle Blake, which I’m not sure who enjoyed more Blake or Cassidy. I was very interested to see how the kids reacted to a play. They had only been to one play before put on by kids. This play was a bigger production and more intimate and fascinating to watch. They were enthralled at the get go until Mr. Marley showed up in all his chains and scary voice. Lacey about had a conniption fit. She did not like him at all. She kept saying “turn it off! turn it off!” She had a death grip on my hand too and would not let go of it the rest of the play. She also couldn’t stop asking if he was coming back. Each time a new ghost was to appear she would hide her face. Then the culminating event was when they zapped fire at Scrooge’s tombstone. She jumped up and ran out of the theater. Ryan went out with her but we had her come back in for the end so she could see how Scrooge had changed. She even laughed at parts after that. The rest of the night Lacey asked me if the “chain guy” was real. I explained that he was just a person dressed up. I tried to show her the actor at the end without all the chains and makeup on but she wouldn’t have it. I guess I hadn’t realized how scary the story is. It is a little overwhelming and not very Christmasy strangely enough. It was a good experience for them though.

Lights at Temple Square

2009-12-21T22:28:00.003-05:00

Tonight we bundled up for a night at Temple Square. This was a must do while in Utah. The Salt Lake Temple is so amazing anyway (Ryan and I were married there) but with all the trees around lit up it is almost magical. We took our fun Christmas light glasses that turn the lights into little snowmen and hearts. My family got a kick out of them. My dad even started to let passers by look through them. There was also a beautiful nativity presentation. They even had a star projecting onto the tabernacle. It was so cool. I loved being there. It was a cold night and we lost Aidan for a bit (a story in an of itself) but overall it was a great night.

Sledding

2009-12-16T18:52:00.001-05:00

We were delighted to see so much snow when we got to Utah. The kids were anxious to go sledding. There are so many places to go so we ventured out this morning. We learned a few lessons. First we picked a hill too small, then we picked a hill too big. Aidan showed no fear and was the first to go down this steep hill all by himself. It wasn't a good idea. The run he chose was icy and he spun around twice and then fell off and rolled down the rest of the hill. He started crying and then stomped off. I reluctantly jumped on a sled with Lacey to rescue Aidan. We were a little more successfull since I used my HIGH HEELED boots (yeah it is all I had) as breaks to slow us down. Lacey and I screamed the whole way. LOUD! I was able to talk Aidan into trying the hill again with me. We marched up the hill, in my high heels mind you, to try again. So Aidan and I then went and he laughed and screamed the whole way. He liked sledding again. The kids each had turns with me or with grandpa and Aidan even went again himself after some good training from his momma. Cassidy went down the little hills but wasn't allowed on the big one. It was so fun. Cold, wet, exhausting but fun!

All I want for Christmas....

2009-12-13T21:22:00.000-05:00

Aidan lost his two front teeth tonight. They were so ready to come out but he was hesitant for some reason to pull them. Ryan decided to use some floss to get them out. They both came out really easily. Aidan was shocked when the first one dropped to the floor. He was very excited though to have them both out. Eating was becoming difficult for him.

Breakfast with Santa

2009-12-12T08:25:00.000-05:00

Santa and Mrs. Claus came to Aidan's school. We spent the morning making crafts and visiting with Santa. The kids all walked over to Santa and Mrs. Claus together and Cassidy took one look at Santa and quickly chose to sit with Mrs. Claus. After their picture they gave Cassidy one last chance to sit with Santa but she gave him a look like, "Are you crazy?" and quickly ran back to me and Ryan.

The Best Gingerbread Making Party-Kentucky edition

2009-12-10T08:00:00.000-05:00

In Ryan's family, making gingerbread houses is a standing tradition. His aunt hosts the party each year. There is always lots of people, candy and frosting. We miss that we can't be there with everyone so we usually make our own at home. We have always wanted to invite other families but just don't have the house to accommodate that. We found out that we could use the community center for free so this year we had the Kentucky edition of the Best Gingerbread Making Party. We bought lots of candy and graham crackers and I made frosting for an hour straight. We had several families come. It was so much fun. We were just so happy to be able to share our tradition with our friends. So plan for next year Y'all!

Our house this Christmas

2009-12-02T07:14:00.000-05:00

I feel lucky that I don't have a husband that I have to nag to put up the Christmas lights. He is self motivated. He worked long and hard strategically planning every extension cord, power strip and outlet. He did a great job! We love it, the kids love it and our neighbors love it.

Tree shopping

2009-11-27T07:24:00.001-05:00

We picked out our tree early this year. We usually aren't the day after Thanksgiving people but Ryan was going to be gone for 4 days and we wanted to enjoy our tree as long as we could this year. We love having a real tree. Ryan and I grew up with real ones so it is an easy choice for us. We have a few of our "Gremmert Beauties" modeling the trees for us.

I love decorating the tree. It is just so magical to see it turn into a Christmas tree filled with ornaments full of memories. The kids are getting better at helping. They still put every ornament on the same limb but we rework it.

The finished project.

We used the limbs we cut off and made a wreath. Ryan and I did this together. Now isn't that teamwork? It turned out great.

Happy Thanksgiving from Lacey

2009-11-24T16:53:00.000-05:00

Princess for a day!

2009-11-07T21:56:00.005-05:00

Today was Lacey's birthday party. It was a PRINCESS party. All the little girls came in princess dresses and looked so cute. We played a few princess games. We put kisses on a frog like pin the tail on the donkey, then we played princess, princess, dragon, like duck, duck goose but using a wand to tap them on the head, and then we played music and had them dance and then when I, being the wicked witch, waved my wand and turned off the music, the last girl to fall to the ground asleep from my spell was out. They were adorable to watch. We then ate a castle cake that really looked more like the Oakland Temple and opened presents.

Lacey had a great time with her friends and loved all her presents. The girls received a tiara, a wand and some jewelry to take home. I had taken a picture of each girl individually and made them a card like this one to take home. They were just so beautiful.

I love doing fun birthday parties for my kids. We get excited together and can't wait for the party to arrive. It is work but it is so worth all the effort. My mom always had super parties for me and I loved them so much. I mean who can top Tifferella. I can only do these types of parties for so many years so I am going to take advantage while I can!

First Day of School............FOR ME!

2009-11-06T21:40:00.000-05:00

(Ryan made me take this picture I guess to get me back for all the pics I take of him.)

I went to school today, to middle school to be a substitute teacher. This was my first time subbing and it was for 8th grade pre-algebra and science. What a way to start. I was so nervous. Middle schoolers can be a little intimidating and especially for my first time EVER. As I got to my classroom I just started to laugh out loud. I couldn't believe I was doing this. Then when the students arrived reality set in. The kids were okay overall. I mean they had a sub and they acted like it. I didn't have any major problems though. I just let them know my boundaries and they did pretty good sticking to them. It was so weird to be around them though. I still feel like those days were just a few years ago but then seeing them, I so don't relate anymore. I found myself looking at the teachers and seeing them as my peers. That was weird and just evidence that I AM old. What was weird too is that the same social dynamics that existed for me in 8th grade still exist. There are the same typical groups: popular, flirty, jocks, cheerleaders, nerds etc. You could tell who they were. It made me think back to who those people were to me back then. I just wanted to whisper to some of them that none of this social mumbo jumbo matters. You change when you graduate and you become the real you and most of these people will never know that person. My heart aches for teenagers. It is such a hard time, critical, emotional, and rebellious. Some mistakes seem worth it at the time but are so juvenial and immature in reality. Anyway, I did see some kids from my ward and it was fun to see their puzzled faces as to why I was there. It was a good first day and I think I will just get better. Ryan did a good job playing mommy but at the days end, we were both exhausted.

Random thoughts of gratitude

2009-11-05T12:25:00.002-05:00

At preschool today Lacey learned about a happy family. She made a door hanger for each member of her family listing why she was thankful for them. Here are her answers.

Daddy: I'm thankful when daddy takes me out to dinner.
Mommy: I'm thankful when mommy plays "babies" with me.
Aidan: I'm thankful when you let me sleep in your bed when I'm scared of Santa.
Cassidy: I'm thankful when you give me the remote control when we watch T.V. You're a really nice sister.
Family: I'm thankful for my family! I like it when we go swimming together at the YMCA.

So which one made you laugh?

Happy Birthday to Lace Lace Pretty Face

2009-11-02T21:11:00.000-05:00

She is FIVE this very day. She was four and a half according to her as of yesterday. We tried to explain the half stuff but she didn't get it. She is just happy to actually be five. She planned most of this day. We started with donuts, chocolate with sprinkles. Then she went swimming with daddy. Corndogs for lunch and the out for pizza for dinner. We went to Toys R Us so she could show us the three things she DIDN'T want out of that whole huge store. She was game for everything. Well, we did pretty good. She was so excited to pick out stuff and use her $3 gift card from the store. Ryan took her out to the car while we picked the final present choices. We enjoyed dinner at Hometown Pizza and then off to Cold Stone. I had signed her up for the free birthday treat so she had a coupon for a free ice cream. She is starting to love coupons as much as me.

We opened presents when we got home. She ended up getting PINK legos, 2 Pet shop stuffed animals, a Snow White dress and shoes (that I found for $6.50 total), princess playing card, and some jewelry.

She enjoyed all the phone calls she received today. She was surprised everyone was calling for her.

Halloween

2009-10-31T23:09:00.000-04:00

We had a relaxing Halloween morning. The clouds continued to blow out of the area that left for a promising Halloween night. We carved our pumpkins together. The kids actually participated more this year. Ryan made them pull out all the "pumpkin guts". They didn't really like that part. We didn't get as extensive with the carving this year. We played it simple but they turned out good. A ghost pumpkin and a heart pumpkin.

So this year we had Tinker Bell, a gypsy, a cheerleader and Karate Kid. The kids didn't know what a gypsy was so I just said they stole kids. My mom always said growing up that if we weren't good she would sell us to the gypsies.

The kids were very excited to start trick or treating. We went to our usual neighborhood and met up with some friends. Aidan and his buddies ran from door to door and the poor girls just couldn't keep up. Cassidy just stayed in her stroller and we would only take her to the people sitting in their driveways. So she did drive-thru trick or treating. She loved it. She ate like 40 suckers that night. We had a great night with no rain and lots and lots of Candy!

Trunk or Treat

2009-10-30T09:31:00.000-04:00

This weekend has been much awaited and much planned for. Friday night was our Ward Trunk or Treat that I was in charge of. I spent the day decorating and Ryan was my errand boy, a cute one at that. Everything went really well for setting up. I had 2 of my friends help me decorate and I swindled the missionaries into setting up my tables and chairs. I even had time to go home and get me and the kids ready for the night.

The party went really well. We had soups and chilis and homemade rootbeer. Oh, it brought back so many memories. We had lots of people come. We had invited 3 families and they all came. I was so happy. Ryan had to take on the role of host to them while I was busy managing everything else. I was so glad he was willing to do that even though it isn't always his forte. He played the role well.

We had about 7 games that the kids had fun playing. Bowling, golfing, ring toss, dart board, coin toss, and even a plinko game THAT I MADE ALL BY MYSELF. (If you don't know what plinko is you need to go watch the Price is Right) After the games we did our trick or treating. Unfortunately it was raining and gusting wind outside so we had to resort to the classrooms around the building. I was very disappointed because the trunks are always fun but I figured I had used up my don't rain on my activity petitions on my 4th of July activity. It worked out fine just the same.

It was a great night! Exhausting but Great!

Ode to Florida

2009-10-25T15:21:00.002-04:00

Our trip to Orlando was great! We spent a week there with Ryan's parents in a great condo. Here are our highlights

Visiting our old ward and good friends.

Seeing our old house. The trees have grown a lot.

Visiting the beaches both Atlantic side and Gulf Side. Clearwater Beach was gorgeous.

Feeding the alligators (a standing tradition)

Swimming. Lots and lots of swimming. The pirate ship pool was so fun.

Going to the Tampa Zoo. The kids fed a giraffe and rode a camel. How cool is that?

Playing mini golf

Eating gelati at Frozen Gold

Eating Hot Fudge sundaes at Girhadelli

Going to Downtown Disney. Loved the Lego store and could spend days in the Disney Store!

Life is good.

2009-10-24T16:54:00.000-04:00

This is what I overheard Aidan saying to Lacey in the car on our way to a party.

"Aren't you glad you are down here playing instead of in heaven sitting around? I told you life is good."

Sleeping Sisters

2009-10-12T14:35:00.001-04:00

It was naptime...............

Fall Festival

2009-10-10T21:56:00.000-04:00

We had a great time at Aidan's fall festival at school. There were lots of games, popcorn, prizes and a hayride to a pumpkin patch to pick out pumpkins. The ride was so beautiful passing by the horse farms. We loved it. It was quite the taskthough to get those pumpkins. They had put all the pumpkins at the bottom of this big hill. So I had to carry 3 good size pumpkins up this huge hill, drag Cassidy along and help Lacey up the hill. It was not executed gracefully but it got done.

Overnight with Daddy

2009-10-10T11:16:00.005-04:00

Ryan had an overnight in Cincinnati so we went up to spend the night with him. The hotel has a pool and hot tub. So we hurried into our swimsuits as soon as we got there for a night swim. The hot tub felt great! Love hot tubs.

After swimming we ate some popcorn as we watched football and then fell asleep. I didn't bring the pack n' play thinking Cassidy would be fine on the floor. Nope. She was everywhere and no one slept well. Pack n' Play is a must have!

The next morning we swam again and then got Ryan ready for work. After he left for the airport, I took the kids to Lowe's for the Kids' workshop. We built ball toss games. It was really fun.

Doritos

2009-10-08T21:14:00.002-04:00

Does eating Doritos do this to you?

Washing your hands.

2009-10-07T20:41:00.002-04:00

Since Aidan has started school he has become obsessed with washing his hands. They have taught him at school that anytime you touch your nose or eyes or someone else's you need to wash your hands. So he has been faithful about sticking to this rule. He tells all of us to wash our hands all the time and is constantly questioning us if we washed our hands after we were in the bathroom or after I have changed a diaper. It has become so annoying. But, two weeks ago his school was closed for 2 days because of a large number of kids being out sick. Did we get the sickness? NO! Why? Because we are washing our hands all the time thanks to Aidan's OCD! I really was grateful though.

So really how do you tell a kid to stop washing their hands? It has been so tricky. I really don't want this to become a problem for him like Howard Hughes or something but really washing your hands is a very good thing. One time we were at the bus stop in the morning waiting and he was playing around with a neighbor boy. The kid accidentally touched Aidan's eye. Aidan insisted he needed to run up to the house and wash his hands because the other kid had touched his eye. I had to explain to him that the germs were on the other kid's hands and not on his. It took a few minutes to calm him down and to convince him he didn't need to wash his hands. Hand sanitizer has been added to his backpack for such emergencies. The other story happened today. We were talking about getting baptized and I was explaining to them what would happen. I said that Daddy would hold them as he lowered them under water and while they were plugging their noses. What was the first thing Aidan said in response? "Then I will have to wash my hands." OH, Aidan seriously!

Not quite BYU but still football

2009-10-02T23:15:00.002-04:00

During our trip out to Utah we were suppose to go to a BYU football game with Aidan. He was so excited to go to a real stadium. Ryan and I both love football and have enjoyed going to games. It defines fall for us. Since we weren't going to Utah we decided to go to a high school game. We packed up the blankets, popped the popcorn and headed to the game. The kids had a great time. Lacey was mesmerized by the cheerleaders and Cassidy just loved to clap. Aidan loved it all. It was a really fun night but it didn't compare to a BYU game. Someday we will get Aidan to a college game.

A blessing and a curse

2009-10-01T20:58:00.000-04:00

We get to fly for free, right. Some of you are very jealous of this and you have every right to be. We are very grateful for this perk from Ryan's job. We have flown millions of times. Seriously so much. However, what you may not realize is the pain, suffering, disappointment, and energy that goes into flying standby.

For example, last week I had planned a trip to Utah to see my parents and my brother and sister. We had talked about it for weeks and my kids were beyond thrilled. I spent a whole day doing laundry, packing the bags, packing up snacks, loading the car and cleaning the house. Then I woke up at 4 a.m. dressed my kids, loaded them in the car and headed off for Cincinnati just to be stopped at 6 a.m. in a traffic jam 3 miles from my house. I moved 6 miles in one hour. Missed the flight and went home. Attempt #2. After a few hours at home, I loaded up the kids AGAIN and headed for Cincinnati one hour away. I parked the car, juggled 2 large duffel bags, a backpack, purse, and stroller onto a van to take me to the terminal. Then I had to juggle the same cargo off the van, and up one story to check in. Once through security, which we have down to a science, we were off to our gate. Quickly to find a full flight of people headed to L.A. that aborted take off that were now trying to get re-routed through SLC on MY flight. We were out of luck. The flights the rest of the day were oversold already plus all the passengers from the L.A. flight were added to them. We were not getting out of there. So, I threw in the towel. In so doing, I was crying as I told my mom we weren't coming, my kids were crying because they couldn't see grandma and Grandma was crying because she wasn't going to be able to see the grand kids. We were a crying mess. After I gained my composure and was assured that going home was the right choice, I then had to go retrieve my 2 large duffel bags, which come to find out had been sent to SLC without me because they were in a hurry to load the plane and just took all bags. But I waited 2 hours to find that out. So after 4 hours at the airport, driving 2 hours and being up since 4 a.m. we weren't going anywhere and my bags wouldn't be back until the next day.

So you see, it is a blessing AND a curse!

Let's go fly a kite!

2009-09-28T21:18:00.004-04:00

It was such a windy day today that we decided to play with the kites. Aidan had the day off of school so we were able to play most of the morning with the kites. We had the neighbor kids join in. Miss Cassidy loved it, Lacey struggled a little to keep hers in the air, and Aidan had to keep being told not to cross lines with other kites. It was quite fun until Ryan and I took the controls of the kites and both ended up tangled in our neighbors tree. We eventually got them out but that was the end to our kite flying for the day.
Yes this is the ragin' style here. Isn't it fashionable?

Playin' cards

2009-09-23T09:23:00.006-04:00

My Grandma loved to play cards. That is probably what I remember doing with her the most. She had the best games. Last week Lacey wanted to play something so I got out the cards and taught her a game my grandma played with me. We call it the clock game. It really is a solitaire game but we made it work for multiple players. Lacey loved it. Then we taught it to Aidan. He loved it as well. It is simple and easy for the kids to play. As I taught them to play, I talked about my grandma and what she was like. I took out some pictures too so they could see her. She passed away before they were born so I told them she got them ready in heaven to come to earth and told them to be good and choose the right. Lacey loved the thought of grandma preparing her for earth. Just a little heritage I'm trying to pass down.