Miss Gracie Turns Four!

My wild and crazy girl just turned four! I always say I can’t believe it but with her I totally can! Not sure if it is because she drives me wild and time just doesn’t fly by as quickly with her or if it is because she is so dang smart and I forget how young she really is!
Grace is my sassy one through and through. Her sass is what makes her such a character! Although she is a challenge for sure she is also so dang funny! I remember our trip to Atlanta and all the teens were screaming with laughter. And it was because Grace was making up jokes for them. She loves telling jokes! And she loves being the center of attention!
I love, love that I can get her to dance on cue. She will rock out with me anytime anywhere. My kinda girl! The other day when picking up the mouthy teens she wanted me to roll down her window so she could dance and sing the song Tik Tok at the top of her lungs to all the kids around! Cracks me up. It was something I would do! Bonus~it embarrasses the older ones! HA!
For her birthday we went to the Rainforest Café. She loved it of course. Then we headed home for presents. She loved everything and wanted to know how I knew it was “just” what she wanted! It was a low key birthday but for her it was just right!
I love my sassy girl Gracie Mae! She brings excitement, frustration, humor, clarity, wisdom, and joy into our lives and I am grateful she is a part of our family!
Happy Birthday Grace! Here are some of the things we love about you!
Dad~Her view on life. Her funny facial expressions. How she sticks her hip out with her hands on her hips. She’s spunky! Her hair. How she dances. Her binky talk! You have to be a linguist to understand it! How she will mix it up with Ethan then she’ll rat him out!

Zachary~ I love the way she tries to smile with her binkers in, and even though everyone thinks she hates me we all know I am her favorite :) Also I love her sassy princess attitude and she's the only four year old I know who speaks her mind:)

Rachelle~ I love her Booty-luscious butt shakings. I love the way she’ll always bust a move for yo no matter where you are.

Hannah~ I absolutely love Gracie, she's fun,Insane and a wild beast no one can contain her.

Bailey~I love that she plays with me. I like that she likes cartoons. She picks flowers with me!

Ashley~

Anthony~ She is so wild and crazy, one of the most unique of the family. I love how her teeth stick out and her voice is super cute. She is so sweet and spunky. I love how she knows words to songs that I don’t even know and how she sings them in the car. She gives great hugs and kisses.

Elizabeth~I love how she snuggles me and sings at the top of her lungs. I love her crooked teeth. :]

Eric~ Grace is a huge load of cute fun times. I love playing with her as long as she doesn’t call me a meanie poo-poo face.

52 Blessings Project~ Week 4!

This Week I Am Grateful For~ My New Camera!

Yeah...totally materialistic blessing this week. I am feeling emotionally and physically drained lately. And sometimes it's hard for me to think of the blessings in my life. Which is exactly why I participate in the blessing project. So when I am having a hard time like I am now then the blessing project forces me to take some time and think of the good I have been blessed with. And I am picking something I love that makes me happy! Simple as that!

For My birthday this year Tony got me a new camera and I love it! I am always jealous of the fabulous pictures I see on other people's blog. I want mine to look that fab too. Waaa...

But I am hopeful with my new camera I can achieve better pictures! I still don't have a clue what I am doing, and I am trying to figure it out.I want the colors on my pictures to look brighter! And I DID manage to get a few that way! Funny thing is I don't have a clue what I did! HA! I definitely need to read up on how to take better pictures.

Here is one of the pictures I took with my new camera. I love the how bright the colors are. It's exactly the kind of pictures I want to take.

There is something wonderful about being able to look back at pictures of my children and remembering that special day, or remember how they were as they were younger. I love being able to capture our lives and look back. So I plan to learn all about my camera and figure out how to take fantastic pictures of my little animals and I'm having fun in the process. And for that I am very grateful!

Happy Birthday Ashley

21!! Ashley is 21!!! I can still remember meeting her for the first time.She had these big brown beautiful eyes and the best smile.She was so affectionate right from the beginning. I loved it when she told me it would OK with her if her dad and I decided to get married! She then gave me the biggest hug! It was so sweet!

I think she thinks I am kinda crazy ( which I am!) But I think she kinda like it too! She was my friend from the very beginning and I have always been very grateful for that!

And now she is a young woman.All grown up.WOW!It went quick!At least I know she is the same kind person that I met 12 years ago with that same beautiful smile!

Ashley~ I hope your birthday was super fabulous!I am grateful you are a part of my family.I am proud of the young woman you are becoming!I love you!

Happy Happy Birthday!

Here are a few things that we love about you!

Dad~ remembering her as a little girl. Her smile. her eyes. I love her laugh.I love her spirituality. I love that she comes to me when she needs to talk!

Anthony~ You are my twin! So to love you, is to love myself. and we all know how much I do.;) Haha! I just love everything about her. We are so alike and we really understand each other.Considering we are the only two people who answers their phones, we like to talk to each other about our lives.You are such a amazing and amazing daughter of God.I am so proud of all that you have accomplished. I will miss you while I am away on my mission! I love you!

Zachary~You are my twin. Just kidding. But you are a sweetheart and one of the few people who laughs at my jokes.I appreciate that :). She is caring and always seems to brightens the room with her smile or laugh.

Rachelle~I love her individuality and the way she glows when she enters a room. Her laugh is enough to put me in a better mood every single time.I wish we spent more time around each other!

Elizabeth~I love how loving she is and that she is always there for me.I love her outgoing personality and love for fun.

Hannah~Ashley is fun and loving. I just love her!

Erica~I love her personality, her awesome dance moves and how she helps me keep Eric in line! ;)

Eric~ Ashley is my oldest sister.Thankfully she's not from another mister.She's amazing and fun and awefully cute.I can't wait for her to bring home another black British man.

Grace~I love that she does the things that I want her to do. I like her.

Bailey~I like her playing with me.I like riding on her shoulders.

52 Blessings Project~ Week 3!

This Week I Am Grateful For~Being Able To Live Under such Favorable Circumstances In A Wonderful Country!

I have been somewhat mesmerized this past week watching the news to see the latest developments in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti. My heart hurts for these people. The children. The families. They were so poor to begin with and now they have lost everything.The devastation is so extreme for them.I just don't know how I would handle being in that same situation.

As I watch what is unfolding I can't help but feel so blessed to live in a country where I am free to come and go as I choose. To worship as I choose. Where I have not just adequate housing but a very nice place to live and raise my family. We have such a abundance of things. We never have to know hunger. We are clothed. We have every need possible met. And many times I tend to overlook it all.I don't even give it a second thought! I have many times found myself wanting more. Wanting better. Kinda shameful to think of it now. I think the time is now for me to take a good hard look around me and see how truly fortunate I am. I DO live in incredibly favorably circumstances in the BEST country there is~ And for that I am truly GRATEFUL!!!!

Today There's A Crap Storm Raining Down On Me And I Don't have A Umbrella!

My husband came home from work today and asked how my day was. And I found myself laughing~in a kinda crazy/I may never stop laughing~kinda way. Cause that's how I handle stress.I figure it was either laugh or cry and I was NOT going to cry NOT going to let the animals know they had gotten the best of me!
Oh yeah...It's been one of THOSE days!

Some of the highlights of the day began with chocolate milk spilled on my carpet,Grace hitting me and screaming cause I wanted to brush her rat's nest/hair,cleaning pee off the floor cause my once potty trained for months and months child has now decided to pee her pants instead. Every time! And the fighting. OH the fighting.over and over again. The biting, scratching, punching, pinching,Screaming. We had it all. Oh yeah UFC you got nothin on us!

And with that fighting they kept waking Adelynn over and over and over. The poor baby was so tired and now cranky too!
So in total frustration I sent the kids outside to play while I got Adie back to sleep. Then I went in my room to pick it up.Then maybe ten minutes later Bailey told me I just had to come see Adelynn.What?? She was sleeping! Well Bailey had woke her up and taken her out of her swing and taken her outside!And propped her in a chair so the baby could watch her hula hoop! Oh my hell! I about died! But the baby was cracking up. So hard so I had Grace go get me the camera. And as I was taking pictures I noticed Ethan down on all fours. Eating something off the ground like a dog.Oh not a dog. A Cat! He was eating cat food he had spilled all over the floor.Apparently it was delicious cause that's what he told me! A little later the neighbor next door came over (you know..the one who if I say "Hi" to either of them they pretend not to hear and ignore me) She was really pissed. Cause our garden drip system was flooding the rocks on the side of her house. I told her I'd have my husband take care of it but No, she wanted me to see it! So here is a pic of it! I noticed the dog crap in her rocks and thought at least she can't blame that on us. But then I had the horrifying thought maybe it wasn't dog crap and maybe she could blame it on us! Ughh. Whatever!

Once she pointed out the water flooding to me the kids saw it and then I couldn't keep the kids out of it! Ethan kept taking his diaper off and "swimming" in it!

Burnt out with crying, fighting kids, rude neighbors, cranky baby who had no sleep I was bout done! Then mouthy teen who is grounded for a month came home from school with a buddy telling me he was going to the game and he'd like to see me try to stop him!

It was then that I asked Rach to watch the kids and I grabbed my keys and took off. Finally settled on going to the library.The nice QUIET library. Then just as I was settling in I got a phone call from the hubs. I forgot to leave money for the maids so I had to return home!

Sighhh.....Some days it just feels like there's a crap storm raining down on me and I don't have a umbrella! Now where the hell is that emergency stash of chocolate???

52 Blessings Project~ Week 2

This Week I Am Grateful For~My Sweet Baby Adelynn!

This little girl is such a sweetheart! I love that she is such a mama's girl! One of the tricks that the older kids like to do with her is to turn her around so that she sees me whenever I ask them to hold her. Cause without fail, once she sees me she will start to complain. And if I don't give in and pick her up she throws a full on tantrum! They know it is a sure fire way to get out of holding her!

During the day if I am trying to get something done I will try to put her in her swing. And if I ignore her and keep picking up, she yells and yells at me. But as soon as I turn around and talk to her she stops immediately and starts to smile! She can be crying and then will stop instantly and smile. She is trying to sweeten me up so I will get her! Her little arms start pumping like crazy and she coos and smiles at me. I love it! I love kissing those chubby cheeks, and tickling her fat little ham hocks (thighs!) I am so in love with this little girl and feel so happy having her in my life!

She is one of the best surprises ever!

This past week has been hairy! Issue after issue with one of my kids. To say the least it has been a very stressful week.

Then a few nights ago it was about midnight and I was laying in bed. Couldn't sleep. Thinking of ways I could help things turn around. And frustrated with the tension between me and my kid! My heart was heavy. And then little Adie started crying! So I got up and put her in bed with me. She was hungry and wanted to nurse. I laid down next to her and she turned into me to nurse. She was all business. And my mind went back to my other child. And I wondered if I am just screwing them all up. If it was my fault that they are struggling. And just as I was wondering this Adelynn pulls off from nursing rolls back onto her back and looks me straight in the eyes. And just stares at me with such a intense gaze. Then she gives me the sweetest smile, rolls back on her side and goes back to sleep while nursing. And crazy as it seems it comforted me! Her little smile reminded me I am just doing the best I can. Yeah~ She probably was just being her sweet little self but that look, that smile was just what I needed at the moment!

When dealing with older, mouthy kids, what a breathe of fresh air she brings to my day! I will take a fussy, cranky, baby over a hormonal teen any day of the week~ And for that I am very grateful!

52 Blessings Project~ Week 1!!

Cara has once again decided to do the blessings project and I am excited to participate again! If you are interested in being a part of it check out her blog here! I missed doing it last year. I probably should have continued last year on my own.

I find it helpful to acknowledge the good in my life since it seems when life gets too busy or hard that becomes my focus and I loose sight of how blessed I am!

So here we go again...

Week 1

This week I am grateful for ~ My maids!!

Establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith,a house of learning, a house of glory,a house of order,a house of God D&C 88:119

How many times have we heard this scripture? I remember sitting in relief society hearing lessons on the importance of creating a house of order. And I longed for that! And I felt ashamed that my house wasn't on of those. When Tony and I got married I went from having a two kids to having five! It threw me for a loop! As hard as I tried it seemed I just couldn't keep up with everything!I wanted to be one of those ladies who was so on top of it. So organized.But I am NOT one of those ladies! I had a girlfriend who would give me "tips" on how to be more organized and keep a spotless house. She told me how she woke up at 5 am and couldn't go to sleep so she decided to get up and organize her linen closet. And it was then that I thought NEVER,EVER will I be one of them! First of all...I'd never wake up at 5 am and not be able to go back to sleep, and if it did ever happen, cleaning my linen closet is not what I'd do!

Over time I got better at cleaning and keeping on top of things but it is still a struggle. Seven kids is alot of work and alot of mess! And I know that when my house is together, I tend to be too. It just makes a difference!

After I had Adelynn, we started having a maid come in weekly! I was so overwhelmed and having them come weekly just took that edge off. It motivated me too cause I know they are coming so I have to keep up with the house.

Christmas and New Year both fell on Friday this year. And that is my cleaning day. So I missed having them show up for two weeks in a row.

But they came this past Friday. And I felt such a sense of peace when they left and I walked through my spotless house. I went in my room and sat in my chair and read my book and had a half an hour of quiet, just sitting in my clean house! Delightful!

It restores a feeling of peace to our home and takes a huge load off for me. I feel so grateful that we are able to be able to have them come at this time. For that I am truly Grateful!

My Word Of The Year!

I saw last year on Cara's blog that she had something called a word of the year. It intrigued me so I read about it then I did a search on the Internet on it and found I really love this idea!

One of my favorite blogs that had a explanation of it that really resonated with me was

Christine Kane's. If you aren't sure what it is all about check out either of these.

Basically you choose a word that inspires you. Whenever you think of that word throughout the year you let it guide you into taking action! It is a way for me set my intentions for the year.

I have so many little things that I know if I would make a change my life would be easier. But I seem to be stuck. No forward progression. It is something that I have spoken with Tony about at great lengths. How do I find the motivation to make the change? Especially when I feel overwhelmed most of the time?
We both know we need to change and we know the time is now. So we would go out to dinner and make lists of what we wanted to change and then we would prioritize them.
Then we talked about what it would take to make those changes. We then threw around words to each other to narrow down what our word of the year would be. It had to have impact to us when we heard it!
He chose the word NOW!
I had a much harder time finding a word that made me think change! I finally settled on the word BECOME!! The definition of it says it all for me!
1.) To come into being
2.) To come, change, or grow to be
That's my goal of the year. To grow to be, to come into my being. To BECOME more organized, To BECOME fit, TO BECOME healthy, To BECOME more spiritual, To BECOME a better example to my kids.This is my year To BECOME all that I want to be!

Christmas Eve

Some of my fondest childhood memories are those of Celebrating Christmas Eve with my family! I loved the excitement I would start to feel when Mom would take us to pic n save to pick out that perfect gift for our secret brother or sister we had gotten for the gift exchange on Christmas Eve.

I loved the Nativity we would reenact each year. I was jealous of Cari getting to be Mary and Eddie being Joseph each year. I wanted to be Mary instead of a Shepherd, but once we began, it seemed that being a Shepherd was just right!

Remember that house we went to every year? It was decorated like you wouldn't believe! And the man that played Santa...Freak but It was fun seeing him every year!

I loved how as I got older it was still one of my favorite nights of the year.The traditions changed a bit as we added to them. My favorite new one of course was the caroling to neighbors and friends. We would all put on reindeer antlers and pile into the car and head out to the families we were gonna sing to. The little kids were forced to be up front. Maybe so they drowned out the voices of some of us not so talented singers! And they were so dang cute too. So full of excitement! I think our huge family was a sight for all to see!



Christmas Eve was pretty low key for us this year. I am kinda at a loss of how to celebrate it when we are not home at Mom's for it! It just feels off to me! We've tried caroling with just our little family but Tony is the only one with a good voice and since we don't have a huge group it feels a bit like we are torturing the families we visit rather than delighting them!
And it doesn't feel right with so few people here! When my step kids are with us it seems to feel a little better but they decided not to come out this year. I need to establish some of our own traditions so that I can reclaim Christmas Eve as one of my favorite evenings of the year!

This year I put out a bunch of snack foods, some ham and some rolls. I just didn't want to cook since I was going to be cooking all day on Christmas morning. Then against my will I gave in and we decided to open presents. Weird to do it so early and not save it for the last part of the evening!
We all then put on our Christmas PJ's and then got in the car and drove around looking at lights! That was pretty fun for the little girls. They were anxious to get home and get in bed though! They were worried Santa was on his way!
So even though it isn't as fabulous as my memories of it are it was still a fun night.
Maybe next year we will come up with something to make it fabulous!

Christmas Cookie Exchange 2009!

Well my annual Christmas cookie exchange came and it was as fun as ever!

It is something that I look forward to every year. I kinda over do it a bit I am told but it is something that I love doing!

Some of the ladies that came for the first time were a little intimidated with baking 9 dozen cookies, but hopefully in the long run it was worth it for them! I even had one lady who emailed me wanting to know if I was serious! Hahaha!

Anyhow, 11 ladies were able to make it this year. It was definitely a fun bunch of ladies!

I had friends I knew from ,y childhood, friends from high school, friends from my old ward in Gilbert, friends from my new ward in Chandler, a friend I had made recently at Sam's club, and my cousin too! To me that is what the holidays are about. Spending it with friends and family. It's one of the things that makes the holidays for me!

We had a yummy dinner then we swapped cookies.I think the boxes I made this year turned out cuter than the ones I made last year and the cookies looked so cute in them!

Thank you to all my friends who came for making it such a great night. I am already looking forward to next years exchange!!!

Decorating the Christmas Tree!

We were a little later getting around to decorating the tree this year. Poor Bailey was asking me daily if it was time to decorate yet. The night we finally did was magical for her I swear! She was so into it! I think that the little ones are what makes this time of year so fun. Watching them and getting a different perspective of the holidays!
Even the older ones were sweet about it and wanting to help! That doesn't always happen around here. Nice! And I do think the tree looks fabulous! I splurged last year and got a tree that is one of those always lit ones. See last year my tree had lights that went out and after checking the lights one by one I couldn't find the burnt out one. So I tried to cut away the lights to restring the sucker, but instead ended up with bloody stumps for fingers. So I got ticked and chucked the tree in the trash and went and got another. And threatened the hubs to not say a word! So putting up my tree this year and seeing it all lit was delightful! Best Christmas purchase ever.
Doesn't it look pretty? Oh and one of my favorite things about putting up the ornaments is remembering where each one came from. Zach made this one when he was in Kindergarten, my girlfriend in Utah always bought me a pig ornament each year, the pillow ornament Tony's grandma made. So many ornaments that have special meaning to me and bring a smile to my face as I look at it!
Once we had it up I was thinking maybe Bailey had the right idea, I should have done this sooner!

~ Hem Your Blessings With Thankfullness So They Don't Unravel~

Tuesday night I thought I was going to have a heart attack! I was cooking dinner and after two hours the meal was still not through. And I realized my oven went out! No longer working! And I was just getting ready to bake some pies! Umm time to panic. So at almost 8pm I made my sweet husband hop in the car and drive me to Lowes to look for a new one! We drove like mad and raced through the store. I wanted one on clearance so we ended up going to 4 different stores! Yeah, we were hauling butt! But we found one I liked and I was able to set up delivery for the next day. Just in time to do my baking!

It was delivered and I stayed up after everyone went to bed to get ready for our Thanksgiving. The house was so quiet and as I was getting ready to turn out the lights after finishing up in the kitchen I turned around to glance around and see if I had missed anything. And I saw that new stove. And I was almost in tears thinking about how fortunate we are. You see, a few years ago we were really struggling. Tony had lost his job and the holidays were looking really, really bleak. That year for Thanksgiving I actually pawned a few items to have money for the food. Humiliating I know. Only added to that white trash feeling! I was so worried about Christmas coming. I was pawning items just so I could buy our Thanksgiving dinner so how in the heck was I going to be able to buy Christmas for my kids!

Well, I shouldn't have worried. We were taken care of. Our sweet neighbors did they twelve days of Christmas for us. Gave us food, money, and fun little treats with it!It made it possible for us to provide some sort of Christmas for our family! it was delightful and helped us keep our spirits up during a hard time! I hope my kids will remember when they are older what a gift that Christmas was.

Somehow, somehow we survived. We survived and we thrived. And we were blessed through the kindness of others.

Tony was able to find a great job and we have been able to get on our feet again.I feel so grateful that when my kitchen stove went out, I was able to go buy a new one!

Today Grace spent almost a hour sitting at the table. Just waiting! She was so excited for dinner. The feast she called it! And Ethan kept sneaking olives. And Tony and the teens were joking about who gets his diaper after all of those (Sick). And my sweet Rachelle was so helpful. Spent so much time in the kitchen asking what Else can I do for you mom. Then there was Hannah holding my sweet Adie so I could cook! My kids made fun of me at the table tonight as we sat together eating turkey and drinking our special "Shirley Temples"(the little ones think that is what makes the holiday meals so special!) cause I was a little emotional~ Thinking again about how blessed I am. When times have been tough we have still been blessed. I have known that my Heavenly Father was aware of me and the struggles I was going through. And now~We have enough to meet our needs. We are healthy. I have a husband that loves me and tries so hard to make me happy. I have amazing kids. They are what makes this life such a fun journey!

I just feel such a great feeling of contentment and gratitude tonight. I know that I will be thanking my Heavenly Father tonight for the rich blessings I have been given!

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity. It can turn a house into a home,a stranger into a friend.Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow ~Melody Beattie

Bailey's Kindergarten Thanksgiving Program!

Wednesday was Bailey's preschool Thanksgiving program. It was pretty fun to watch her. They sang songs and recited poems. And she was really, really into it!




Ethan was being such a pain in the butt though. It was outside so I had Adelynn in the stroller on the hill above the grass watching and he kept running down the hill to the stage. He got on the stage a few times and tried singing with them. Then the principal gave him one of the hats the kids were wearing and he then thought he was a part of the program! It was really embarrassing! People were cracking up but you know they were talking about "that" kid!




After the program we followed the kids back to their class where we had some refreshments. Bailey read some books to Ethan and made sure all her friends were able to see her baby sister!And she was so cute showing Grace around her class room. They would hold hands as they walked around looking at the different stations in the class. I remember when I had Grace 18 months after Bailey and I worried it would be so hard to have them so close together. It has been hard but seeing them now, such good friends, it makes my heart melt! I love their friendship! I love my sisters so much and it makes me feel good knowing they are establishing a friendship that will last them a lifetime! Getting three kids and myself dressed and out the door by eight was such a chore and I kept telling myself I really didn't want to go but I am so grateful that I did! It was a fun program and I really enjoyed my sweet kids!

Best Commercial EVER!!!

My hubs showed me this commercial and I think maybe he might be a little irritated. Cause I told him, oh yeah, that is the BEST fantasy ever!!
So ladies, take a look. Whatcha think??

Homecoming 2009

Zachary finally decided to go to a homecoming this year. He took his girlfriend Lauren. I was so bummed cause we were out of town camping! I missed seeing them and taking pictures. I sent my camera with Lauren to make sure I got some but it is just not the same as being there and watching the kids getting ready to leave.

He went with his best friend RJ, and Mac,and Tommy. They are so funny. They decided to buy matching Vans and hats to go with their outfits. Zach had a yellow hat he bought also but decided not to wear it.

It was cute but a little over the top with all that Yellow. He and Lauren were so odd getting ready. They actually went shopping together for her dress and then his clothes. Who does that at that age?

They are a cute couple. I really like her. They had a great time and I am still sad at having missed it! Zach kept going back and forth about whether he was going to go or not so we went ahead with our camping trip.

I'll have to plan better next year and make sure we are home so I don't miss out on seeing them off!