Little Dec. Update

Hello everyone!
What a HO hO HO Holiday!
It was a great month for us! Our Tree was up as soon as possible and Starting with President Hinckley's Christmas fireside we were off to a great start!
Ju Ju screamed Lights every time she saw a Christmas light.and said ho ho hO every time she saw a santa.
Lilypad has a great little singing voice and is singing all sorts of songs. When she talked on the phone to her uncle Spence (on a mission in Brazil) she sang him I am a child of God. She adds an extra bit to her verse ~ "at home at school at play" which is from the sunbeam song. It is so adorable!! I think she sang the same version for Grandma too.
This year Mickey was finally brave enough to see the white bearded guy! The last 5 years she screamed and never go within 4 feet of the guy! So this year I got some fun photos! pictures are here! and here!
We have had tons of fun with L home for these 2 weeks! We love him so much!!!!!
The Bishop is constantly telling me every time he sees me that L. is his Hero and an all around Awesome guy as his clerk, and thank you so much for sharing your Husband with us.
Did you know that if you cross Great and Awesome you get "Grawsome"! it is a word that my mouth seems to want to say when I talk about how much they love L as clerk.
L and I went to see 1940's Radio show at the Boulder Dinner Theater! It was really good and we loved spending time alone together!!! It is rare and we were so glad to get away.
We enjoyed Christmas Eve with Mom, and having a great dinner! We love HAM!!!
Thank you for your wonderful gifts!! We all were spoiled and feel very loved!
We loved receiving all of your Christmas Greetings and Pictures!
Also wanted to Thank Mom for all the help she has been with watching the girls and letting them come over and play! We love and appreciate you so much!!! Thank you Thank you Thank you! We love you!!!!!

WE wish everyone to have a wonder new year, 2008!!
Have lots of Resolutions and have lots of Success!!!
Love from all of us!

By Mickey

Christmas Eve at the Grandma P's House!

Every year we go over to Grandma P's for Christmas Eve. We had a nice dinner and then read stories.


The girls were most interested in playing and presents. They wanted to dress up in jewelry. Perhaps we should have done the pageant and had them be the wealthy wise men.
Thank you B for the Pictures!

Visiting Mrs. Claus and the Mall Santa!

Mrs. Claus is a lady from our church who has a story time at the mall every month!
They really put together a nice time each time! Of course a lot of our church friends go and so the girls love to go and see the show and their friends!

Every time Ju Ju sees a Santa she says HO HO HO!

Santa's Reindeer!

Oh yeah a cow too!

SANTA I just can't wait for you to come...

Our Ward Christmas Party had a special visitor! Santa-
Yeah!!! Mickey is smiling and she looks proud to be next to Santa!
Lilypad is folding her arms to be reverent for Santa!
Ju Ju is just happy she has a Candy Cane!!!

The other day my friend had the girls over while I went in for an eye exam. She had her husband on the phone and he had Santa in his car. So each of the girls got to talk to Santa.
Mickey told me "MOM we got to talk to SANTA, the really real, REAL Santa!"
Then she told me that she told Santa she wants a Baby Alive doll (curse those commercials) Lilypad wants a fish and Ju Ju wants a toy Tomato!
According to Mickey~ because she spoke to Santa her self it really, really will come true!

miracles do happen....

This morning I was feeling sorta down. I have a cold and it seems that I am often alone to rear the little childrens. I was feeling lonely for my L. So as I began my day, I said a prayer. I prayed to feel better and to have a positive day... and then I prayed that my husband would notice me. Just as I was yearning and sharing my thoughts about this topic with Heavenly Father, in walked L. And do you know what? He had made breakfast for me, eggs, bacon and buttered toast! Yum! Breakfast in bed for me!
Just last week I taught a lesson in RS about prayer and revelation. In one part it challenged us to have courage to pray honestly. Well.... My prayer was heard before I even finished it!!!
It was also very humbling too!
I am so thankful for my husband! I am sure glad he thought of me when he was prompted to make breakfast!

Elf time!

Merry Christmas!

See our Elf-morphasis!

Cheers!

Time to be Thankful...I think

The past few weeks have just flown away haven't they?
Thanksgiving week was memorable to say the least. Too bad we lived it instead of watching it on a TV sitcom...
The girls and I went up to my folks to visit LJ and T (visiting from Logan) and my parents, Monday .
The plan was to be there till Thurday with L coming up Wed. night after work staying till Thursday afternoon,and then go to visit Mom P and everyone who had come into town. Well that was a nice plan that disappeared pretty quick.
That night/Tuesday morning, I was up all night with Ju Ju who was so sick I took her to Urgent Care to see if she was dehydrated and needed IV fluids. I was so worried because she was vomiting every half hour and progressed to to every 15 minutes! I couldn't believe how ill she looked it really freaked me out! Fortunately she wasn't that bad yet and so the Urgent Care doctor gave her a prescription, to calm her tummy. Then the following night Lil was sick which brings us to Wed. My father was an angel that week helping at 3 am a couple of nights with cleaning up soiled blankets while I gave girls baths. Lil actually made a make shift bed with her sleeping back in the tub. (no water in it of course) because we didn't want to clean up the carpet again.
Poor Cari her baby got sick and Poor LJ her baby got sick too along with her Liz . If I had crystal ball I probably would not have even gone up to my folks if I knew my kids were all going to be so sick. My mom spent nearly the whole day driving me to Urgent Care and to get prescriptions and special drinks for my baby. When I apologized for ruining the holiday she was so sweet to say she was glad she was there to help me. Hurray for MOMs!!!
Then L who was in Erie still, related that he was sick when he called and couldn't come join the rest of his kiddies and wife. I was desperate to be with him! I think when thing go wrong it is a comfort to have your spouse with you! Even though he has that gag reflex when he sees others puke. Hoping that things would be better, Thursday arrived.
Meant to be a day of thanks, members of the my family where dropping like flies with sickness. We called off the coming relatives from Boulder, Broomfield and Loveland, to prevent the spread of germs.

Poor Mom, she didn't get to have th full house for the dinner like she planned. Inspite of all the sickness I set the table with the china. so when JuJu was sick all over the dinning room floor at least the table looked Magazine lovely!
L was able to creep over to see his Mom and the rest of his family that night. (I was so jealous.) L called at 4 pm to invite us to join him in Longmont. Exhausted, I on the other hand didn't have the energy or man power to load up my car with whining and sick kids in the dark (why does it have to be so dark in the winter so early?) and was stuck there 'till first light.
Friday came and finally L and I along with the girls were all together! Well eventually...
L went and helped out Friday morning for the CU Boulder Football game. So around 3 or 4 in the afternoon the reunion came. We ordered pizza and went around the table telling what we were thankful for. Lil said she was thankful for Jesus! Yea, Lil ! He really is the most important isn't he!
We have been trying to help Ju Ju get fully recovered from her illness. It just seamed to linger on for her, nearly a week and a half.
Thank you to those who included her in your fast. She has lost weight and energy but is up and running around with her sisters pretty much back to normal. She takes 2 naps a day though, I don't mind that ;D
Though I was totally sad not to visit with fam who were here. Boo Hoo for me!
Yet in spite of it all..
I have learned some valuable things!
I absolutely Love my husband and though thick or thin and sickness and health.. I always want to be with him!
Thank goodness for washing machines!!!
Also I really value the time and energy of those who really helped me out when it was really yucky and were there for me when most others would avoid us and our version of the plague!
Thank You!
I am also thankful for Prayer and blessings! (Thank You Uncles)
I know they helped Ju Ju and me her mommy feel better!
Obviously I didn't take pictures of sick kids. These are from the Sunday after Thanksgiving!
I love my sister LJ's post on this event! Check it out!
Oh lets not forget...
I love my Hands Full, better Full than Empty!

With a break to Grandma's house we took a photo opp. with the pretty tree.
We played with LJ and her crew which was the best!

We miss them when they are gone but love how exciting it is when they visit!

Tasty Autumn Dish!

Waiting for our supper! We helped peel potatoes!
Yummy Corn & Cheese Chowder!
Hear is the Recipe, Enjoy!

Yummy! though she liked eating
the biscuits that were served with this chowder the best!

Eating a hearty bowl as usual.
She is our best eater!

Eating potato bites and then
crammed her biscuit into her water cup!

Update!

Okay here is the update!
L and I had our 7th anniversary Sept. 14th and we are more in love today than ever! We celebrated by going to the Dinner theater.
Mickey has had a lot of field trips for learning with our school. We went and saw the Titanic Exhibit. Very interesting and touching. We also went to a farm and learned about growing vegetables and we picked pumpkins. We also have had some play trips to the park with our school too!
Lil is pre-K, she is really learning her letters. She almost can spell Lily. So far it tis Lil and the rest is just not showing up yet! Letter L is her favorite!
Ju Ju is in nursery! She seems to love exploring and playing. Her number 1 place to be is in my lap. That is really hard for me to live with some days. She talks a lot too: mommy, daddy, eyes (this is for eyes, glasses and ears right now), nose, mouth, teeth, gum, cookie, cup, dink (drink), MINE, bum, poo poo, dinky (stinky), up up up, gamma (grandma), gampa (grandpa), peeez (please), dank oo (thank you), bebebullz (vegetables) and more words, these are just a few. I think she believes she is 3 like Lil. Right now I hear her saying cup, cup peeez! Better get her a drink.

We all love you and wish you well

First Kiss!

You may know about my Kindergarten romance with James Higgins.
We would Kiss on the play ground and pretend he was Luke Skywalker and I was Princess Leia. (we didn't have the knowledge of their being twins- thing).

Well....
Mickey told me this today:
"I have a boy friend and it is Kaleb."
Kaleb F. is a boy in her Primary class who also lives down the street. She'd said he was her boyfriend before to me.
"He is my boy friend and I am gonna practice being a mommy as a baby sitter and then we are going to get married."
I asked her if she told this to Kaleb. She said "No , it is a secret"
I smiled
Then she told me that after her class they went up on the stage and behind the curtains...
"and mommy He kissed me on the cheek!"
Smiling super big and jumping up and down, she was so excited as she told me this!
Yay!!!!!! (Though, L would probably roll his eyes and say OH NO! Every dad worries about boys and their daughters.)
I was so happy. See, I was praying to thank Heavenly Father that she even thought getting married was a good thing. Rare for her.
Here is a back up about M's attitude.
M and I have been doing school everyday and spending a lot of time reading and talking. So I tell her the other day that I love her and I am glad she is my daughter and that I am glad to be her mommy. I say something to this effect: When you are a mommy you will get to have fun teaching your baby.
She then tells me “no, I’m not going to have children and I am not going to be a mommy.”
I ask her why not.
She tells me, ”because, it is too hard and I don’t want to do it!”
I continue, by saying, “what if I had decided it was too hard and I never had you?”
She just gave me this look that said well that would never happen cause look I am right here.
Ever since her words have echoed in my heart and mind. This isn’t some random thought of hers either, she has said these things for at least 2 years. I don’t know where it first started, but she has stuck by this No kids, no marriage, and no being a mommy, just a babysitter idea.
It hurts me. It gives me the thought that I am not doing something great in the eyes of my child. It also tells me she is reading these feelings somehow from my attitude and how I approach the challenges of being a mother.
YIKES!!!!!!

After the R.S. conference and General conference, I knew my work was cut out for me to help her want to be a mother and have a family! So I have been praying and asking Heavenly Father to help me show here the joys of being a mom.

Now I know she just needed a boyfriend. Chuckle... Wink!
Oh yea and a KISS!

Weekend Retreat!

Big smiles in front of the Logan Utah temple. It is great to be together in the House of the Lord.
It was a beautiful drive to Logan Utah!
We only had a couple of days there but it was a nice retreat!
J hadn't seen LJ's family or her since returning home from Brazil, so he was glad we were going. We drove through Wyoming through Kemmerer and around Bear Lake. The canyon between Bear lake and Logan is just breathtaking in Autumn.
I think we drove so slow that others couldn't wait to pass us ;D
Here are some of the pictures I took. They don't really do justice to God's hand in this season! Mom really was in awe of the bright Orange leaves. I suppose if you had them in your house they might look like man made faux leaves?
I was really glad to get the chance to see my sister even if it was for 3 days only! I love her and I really miss her when we are not together! We had fun visiting and playing. T, LJ, myself and J all attended the Logan Temple on Friday. That was really nice. I loved the spirit and being all together was so nice! Yea! for Grandma S who watched 5 babies for us! She gets a Celestial Medal of honor from me! They say Children are our jewels in the celestial rewards of heaven and I am totally making sure her crown is bejeweled for that service!
We watched & listened to Conference Saturday and Sunday. It seemed to me that the focus was so much on families and raising a righteous generation! Every talk was very good! I have a lot of food for thought! It was really nice to have a spiritual vacation!
How often does that happen?!!!

Grandpa Lou with Hinckley

On the left you can see Gordon Hinckley and in the middle in a dark suit is Grandpa Lou!

Uncle D IS HOME!!!!

September 5th will go down in History as the day D returned from his Mission to Georgia!
Yeah! We all Love you super dee duper a lot!

Ready Set GO!

Getting Back To School!




I let M help set up the area we are doing our lessons in!
She chose to set up a row of 'desks'. We have been really doing pretty good so far this year. I think that the improvement has been two things. #1 M got glasses for reading and close up work! She has trouble focusing and her eyes were working too hard! Now she can do more and less tired about it! Yea!! #2 We are confident about how everything is going. I think the first year we really took a lot of time figuring out how we approached learning and what we wanted to have our time be spent, and what we wanted to accomplish with ourselves and our learning roles!!! So far so good! Of course we are still human and we have our moments ;D
Hurray for School!

School is in Session!

A started school today. She is a Cartwright Coyote. She has to be there bright and early. Mom isn't sure if she likes the craziness in the morning of dropping her off, but that comes with the territory I guess. This will be the beginning of a long and fun journey.

Sunday pictures!

We were all dressed up for church and at my aunts for dinner. So we took a family picture in their beautiful back yard!



I took pictures of the girls earlier in in the morning before church.
The yard is okay for a background I guess.

Paul Family

Hello, I thought I better start participating since D-lyn has done such a nice job with her posts. We just got family pictures done, so I thought I would share our smiling faces. Our family is really enjoying this area. Can't wait to see everyone in September.