8 years later...

A little over 8 years ago....

This handsome guy....

asked this GORGEOUS girl (just play along) out on a date.

He'd been gathering his guts to ask her out for several weeks. Little did he know that she had been secretly orchestrating ways to try to see him and get to know him better so he'd be convinced that he needed to ask her out.

When he finally called her one Sunday night towards the end of September he asked her out. He reassured her that he wanted to ask her out before she had gone into elders quorum that day to make an announcement, and the counselor in the bishopric announced to the whole elders quorum during priesthood that she was available, and the guys needed to ask her out. He wanted her to know it was his own plan, not Brother Andreason's.

Little did the sarcastic girl know that when he called back on Tuesday to set the time (and cause he just wanted to talk to her) that she about crushed his heart. He asked, "So do you still want to go out on Saturday night?" To which she responded, "Uh, actually, I don't think so." She thought of course he'd know she was completely kidding because she was ecstatic to be going on a date with him. Couldn't he hear her voice all giddy with excitement when he called? After a few seconds of awkward silence she quickly realized he didn't know how sarcastic she could be and as fast as she could she calmed his heart down by telling him she was TOTALLY kidding, and really wanted to go out with him on Saturday.

On their first date they went to eat at Macaroni Grill and bowling. A simple date, but she was surprised at how comfortable she was with him. On the way out of the bowling alley she started to reach her hand out to hold his hand, but stopped when she remembered this was their first date and she didn't want to seem too forward.



Their schedules were completely opposite, he worked from 4am till noon, studied and napped till 4:30 or 5 then he went to school full time till about 9, and had to go to bed at 10 so he could get at least 5 1/2 hours of sleep. She worked as a school teacher and didn't usually leave the school till 5:00. They dated on the weekends, and talked a couple times during the week throughout October. Before they knew it they had fallen in love and couldn't picture their lives without each other. They got engaged in November, the Sunday night before Thanksgiving, and yes, she should be a total romantic and remember the exact date, but she doesn't.

On January 17, 2003 they were married for time and all eternity in the Las Vegas, Nevada temple. It was a beautiful, sunny day that was shared with so many of their closest friends that had traveled from far and near. It was wonderful!

They honeymooned in San Diego and Hollywood.

So, how is it that 8 years have passed already? In some ways it seems to them that it's only been a blink of an eye, and in other ways it seems like they've been together for so much longer. The last 8 years have been filled with ups and downs of life, but at least they can work with their best friend so those downs of life aren't quite so bad. He still makes her laugh every day and thinks she is amazing, beautiful, talented, hilarious, and did I mention HOT??! And she is even more in love with him than she was 8 years ago, she still laughs with him and thinks he gets more and more handsome each year. She is amazed at what a good father he is, and so thankful for the hard work he puts in to support their family. They are excited for the next 8 years, and 8 more after that, plus 8 more, etc.... Life is good.

Anyone for dress-up?

Perhaps one trait that comes with being the third child is the automatic thought that one is just as old and independent as the older siblings. Ever since Sydney was old enough to fight back, she's done just that. She loves to wrestle with Hayden, and it's sometimes sad to hear my 6 year old son calling for help with fear in his voice because his 1 year old sister has taken him to the ground and he can't get up.
As she's getting older her independence is shining through more and more as well. She wants to go to the potty, just like her siblings. She doesn't go, just takes off her diaper, sits on the toilet, yells done, wipes herself with TP, and flushes. It actually started off very cute, until she started doing it at least 3-4 times each hour. That's A LOT! She also likes to choose what she eats - which isn't much for variety, and what she will watch on tv - still not much variety, and especially what she will wear. She will let me dress her for the day, if she's in a good mood, but if she's been gone upstairs for a while I can figure she's changing her clothes, and of course - taken off her diaper. She is pretty creative with her choice of clothing, wouldn't you say?

Not too bad, till you realize those are Hayden's underwear!

Coming downstairs in Rebecca's swimsuit, my socks, and purses galore! Oh, and of course - no diaper!

I'm pretty sure she's wearing Rebecca's panties - possibly 3 pair at once, Rebecca's old sweater, my socks again, and Rebecca's crocs that Sydney has adopted as her own.

Helping me with the laundry wearing my shirt....

Oh, and can you see through the shirt?? No diaper!!

December wrap up

Here's what happened in our world throughout the month of December - beware, it's a mighty long post.

Made a Christmas CD

A good friend of mine from Logan lives here in Vegas. We don't get together nearly as much as we'd like to because life keeps us busy and there is still about 30 min. between us. She invited us over for a Christmas get together. She has made a couple cds and has a recording studio in her home. She helped us make a Christmas CD of the kids singing songs. It was a blast! We all had such a great time. Thanks Amy for all your time, help, and talents.

Rebecca was in performance heaven. She was completely in her element and she had so much fun. She sang "Once there was a Snowman"

Hayden and Rebecca sang "Jingle Bells" together, with Sydney doing a "hohoho" at the end.
Hayden sang "Santa Claus is Coming to Town."

I wasn't sure if Hayden would be too shy or quiet. He's not really a shy boy, but it was a new situation and I hardly ever hear him sing much. But wow, did he sing. He loved hearing his own voice singing. He did a great job.

Sydney just likes being like the others. She had a great time with the headphones and mic. She didn't sing any songs, but she said some words into the microphone and we got her saying "ho ho ho" at the end of one of the songs.

We all sang "We wish you a Merry Christmas"

I had a blast singing "The Christmas Waltz"!

Went to a birthday party with face painting

Live Christmas Nativity

The live nativity performs for only one or two weeks in December and I really wanted to take the kids. Jerry wasn't able to go with us so I went with my friend, Korina, whose husband wasn't able to go either and we took the kids together. We felt like we were "single moms" for the night. It was way across town, so we left in plenty of time to get there, but we didn't take rush hour traffic into the equation. The show started at 6:00, and we got there at about 5:55. At least we made it. so we thought. As we started walking toward the outdoor theater an usher told us that it was all full and they were turning people back to wait for the 8:00 show. What?! No way. We were not about to keep 6 hungry kids happy and occupied for another 2 hours, then expect them to sit and be good for a 25 minute show. The nice usher took some mercy on us and told us we could stand outside the gate and maybe see in. Good enough for us. We had to stand up on the concrete benches, with Rebecca on my shoulders for the entire 25 minutes peeking through the iron gate. The kids were actually pretty captivated, and we could see enough to really enjoy it. After the show we were allowed to go see baby Jesus and pet the animals. Then we went inside the building to see all the nativities. Even though it was a long night, and there was some stress trying to keep all the kids happy, I'm so glad we went. The kids really loved it, and talked all about it on the drive home. It was a beautiful Christmas memory.

They were even able to feed some of the animals. It was very cool.

After the nativity we went inside to see all the nativities that were on display from all over the world. It was beautiful, and I was very glad that between all 6 kids, not one nativity was broken.

We went back to the van and had some hot chocolate and cookies after the nativity. (This is the only picture I got.)

Self portrait of two "single mom's" for the night, that did it. Two moms, 6 kids, but it was worth it.

Went to the ward Chirstmas Party

Hayden and Rebecca sat on Santa's lap to recite their lists.

Sydney wanted nothing to do with him. She preferred playing on the cushioned chair.

We celebrated Hayden's birthday

Took some family pictures.

Rebecca loves to pose for the camera. I think it shows because I couldn't decide between these two which were my favorites. I had to include both.

Hayden was very excited to wear his suit. He said he wanted to look like a missionary. I think he accomplished that.

Sydney's dress was picked out by Hayden and Rebecca. I had to get it because it came with a matching dress for her doll. It is pretty cute, just like her.

Helped out in Hayden's class for the Christmas party.

It also happened to be Pajama day at the school, so they got to wear their pajamas for the class party.

Took a Trip to Utah

I took the kids up to Utah for a quick weekend trip the weekend before Christmas. Jerry wasn't able to go, but we still had a great time. They loved seeing the snow. Rebecca loved playing in it and catching snowflakes in her mouth.

All the kids "SQUEEZED" in as much fun as they could.

We went up so we could go to the Roylance Christmas Party. We had a great time making Reindeer Food, playing the foot game, unwrapping presents, and watching the Luke 2 movie. Wonderful time with all the family that could be there. I'm so glad we could be there.

p.s. notice Rebecca's beautiful dress. She fell in love with that when she saw it at Kohl's. She begged for 2 days for that dress. I told her she had to buy it with her own money. She had some money left over from her birthday, and the kids can trade in tokens they earn for behavior/cleaning/ helping, etc in for money. She did everything she possibly could for those two days to earn more tokens. The house was so clean. I couldn't let her down after she tried so hard. I did pay about $4 to help her out, but she paid for the rest. I must admit, she has a fashion sense. Seeing it on the hanger I thought it was ok, but couldn't figure why she was so in love with it. But once she put it on, it was darling. I love this dress, and she has worn it about every other day since she bought it.

Usually Joseph and Angela make a Christmas trip to Vegas and our kids do a small dollar store present exchange. They look forward to it, and love picking out the presents for others. It was fun once again.

Jerry and I got some sparkling cider with small drinking glasses. Jerry and I have a fun little "Sunday night date" tradition. We like to watch Mad Men, and to fit in we drink our apple juice in glasses because EVERYONE in the show does. So much for avoiding the appearance of evil, huh.

The younger four posing for a fun picture...

while the older 2 played with the bionicle that Ethan gave Hayden for his birthday.

Rebecca got some fun stickers for part of her gift and had a blast transferring them to paper.

Made our Gingerbread Train

Christmas Eve

We went to see the movie, "Tangled" that morning. Such a darling movie. Then we stopped by to visit with some friends briefly before getting Sydney down for a short nap. That evening we went to Jerry's brother, Barry's house for the Ewell Family Christmas Party. Great food, lots of fun, and we even had a special visit from Santa! Everyone in Jerry's family was there, including his sister,that came all the way from Alaska, and brother from Arizona.

On the way home from Barry's house I got a call from Alonzo Snodgrass. He said that he came by while we were at the party. He wanted to give us our presents, but since we weren't there he hid them in the house where no strangers would be able to find them. When we got home we started the search for Alonzo's presents.

Looking for Alonzo's presents - we found them under the kid's bathroom sink. He's a sneaky guy.

Kindergarten Kyle

Betty the ballerina and princess fan

Race Running Rhonda

Studying Sam

Barbara with Bieber Fever

(This requires some explaining. There is a blog that I like to check and the music on her playlist would always start with Justin Bieber's song, "Baby, baby..." Sydney LOVES this song. Before long she would request to hear the song everytime I sat at the computer, and she started singing along too. Check out the video at the end - hopefully it downloaded ok - and remember it was recorded 1st thing in the morning before I did hair or makeup:))

Hayden left some carrots for Rudolph...

...and they sprinkled reindeer food

They got to buy their own candy for their Christmas Eve party in their room. We put it in bags for them and they were able to stay awake for a while watching Christmas movies with their candy. They weren't awake too long. They were so exhausted after such a fun filled day that they were out pretty soon.

Hayden wrote a letter to Santa. Rebecca had no interest. She said he already knows what she wants and she wanted to play with her toys instead. Sydney wrote the best she could.

CHRISTMAS!

Santa came, and spoiled us good!

Waiting upstairs. Photo shoot before they can go downstairs. They can't contain their excitement. Hayden woke up at 3:00 that morning ready to go see if Santa came. Luckily he went back to sleep and slept till about 7:30, when they all woke up.

So excited to go downstairs and see what Santa brought!

Some people had a hard time waking up

He came!

He filled the stockings!

Hayden had to check to see if Rudolph got his carrot sticks. He did!

We torture the kids by making them pose for several pictures before we open presents.

Sydney was most interested in the chocolate from her stocking. She unwraps everything and eats a couple, but manages to get melted chocolate everywhere.

Make up for our princess

After all the presents were opened Jerry needed the kids to help get some food from the freezer for our traditional big breakfast. We were surprised to see that Santa had left two more presents in the garage. Bikes for Hayden and Becca! Very exciting.

Rebecca was so excited that she got her barbie doll house.

Hayden wanted to go outside and try out his bike. He did great. (Thanks training wheels)

He rode over to his friends' Katelynn and Aiden's house to show his bike to them.

The aftermath of Christmas. Lots of fun, lots of memories, and lots to clean:) Later that day we went over to Jerry's parents house and spend some time there. It was a wonderful day.