Spring Break 2012

This spring break found our family off on an adventure.  We decided to DRIVE to Texas!  We loved it...now with that being said, we would do it again in a heart beat, but we would FLY!  We knew that we would be spending 4 days driving there and back and we wanted to have enough time to fit everything in.  We left Kemmerer on Friday March 30th at about 4 pm.  We drove to Denver and called it a night.  The next day we knew would be about an 18 hour day.  It should take us 16 hours, but we counted stops and thought we would give ourselves about 2 extra hours onto our travel time.  Well, I thought that the GPS and I were on the same page, I looked at a route online and thought it looked like a good way to go.  We would go from Denver to Colorado Springs, down into Oklahoma and then straight down to San Antonio.   tom tom had a different route planned.  I was driving along thinking any minute now, tom tom will tell me to turn south...NOPE.  Into Kansas we went.  I didn't want to turn back and lose time so Ted and I decided to keep going.  We had planned to come home this way just to see more of the country, but I hadn't planned on going there this way.  It didn't look faster on the map!  So we went halfway across Kansas, turned south and went on through Oklahoma.  When we got to Oklahoma City, I thought of my brother Bryan.  I tried to picture a skinny missionary walking those streets.  It made me smile.  We drove on into Texas, hit Fort Worth, Waco, Austin and finally at the wee hours of the morning we hit San Antonio.  I had called our hotel and let them know we wouldn't be there until 2 or 3 in the morning.  (GPS', way made it a 20 hour trip from Denver to San Antonio!)  I got out and went to the hotel to check us in and the desk clerk unlocked the door and got us checked in.  He also got me scared to death.  He told me to unload everything and leave nothing of value in the car.  He looked around, said "San Antonio is 'busy', unload and I will lock the door behind you"  ummm....not the warmest welcome!!  Ted and the kids got everything in the hotel, I went and parked the car and then RAN as fast as I could back to the hotel.  (Chicken, yes I know).  After 4 hours of sleep, my eyes popped open!  I couldn't go back to sleep so I got everyone else up and we started our day at the Zoo.  It turned out to be a bust, none of the animals were really in their exhibits...except the fish.  So we saw lots of fish.  And the cutest little baby turtle!  I would show you pictures, but for reasons unknown, my memory card won't let me upload the pictures I took....BUMMER.  After the zoo we headed to the Alamo.  IT WAS AWESOME!  I didn't think I would really like it, I was going mostly for Ted.  But it was so cool!  The only thing I didn't like, was how loud the Alamo is inside.  I was expecting more reverence, I guess.  But I highly recommend going to see the Alamo.  It was worth the drive.  We then went across the street and took in the River Walk.  GORGEOUS!  It was so fun, we went on the river walk cruise, walked the streets and took in some food.  We went back to the hotel, exhausted.  Well, Ted and I did...the kids wanted to go swimming.  I took the older kids and left Ted with Chrislyn :)  Monday morning we decided this would be the day we went to Sea World.  We wanted to miss the weekend crowds.  We drove to Sea World and the GATES WERE CLOSED!  I started to cry, I was so upset.  They were open on Sunday, but were closed on Monday and wouldn't open again until Thursday.  (I didn't see this on their website, by the way!)  So we decided to go back to the River Walk and Alamo and just see what else we could do there.  We filled the whole day, lots of stuff to do!  Tuesday we headed for Bonham Texas, it is about 6 hours north of San Antonio.  We started out and thought we should be there by 2...NOPE.  Mother Nature had other ideas!  We didn't know it, but we were driving into some storms.  I was about 45 minutes outside Dallas, when the radio was interrupted with a Weather Advisory.  It started listing counties, I didn't know what county I was in so we just kept going.  I did think, well, if we are hearing this, we must be near those counties.  I saw several people pulled over at the Safety Rest Area (they have tornado shelters).  After I passed that, I thought, well maybe I should take a hint.  I had talked to my friend and she said I should worry when they put out a warning, but not necessarily an advisory. So I wasn't too worried, then she called me back.  She asked where I was and then told me I need to pull over and find shelter.  It was about noon and we would be to here house by 2 if we kept driving.  We got to a town called Waxahachie and pulled into a parking lot.  The RAIN came from no where!  It had a river running down the street in a matter of minutes.  We couldn't see anything and I was getting nervous.  We said a prayer for guidance and safety and decided that when the rain let up we would continue on our path.  I while later, the rain lessened and we started to drive.  As soon as I hit the free way, it was again pouring so hard, I couldn't see.  So, we pulled into the next exit.  We sat there for quite a while.  Ted had fallen asleep so I said another prayer asking what I should do.  We were near a hotel and I thought about going in and staying there, but got the feeling once again, that we need to move.  So when the rain had let up a bit and I could see, I started driving again.  I had studied a map while we were pulled over and I was listening to all the radio alerts.  I now knew where I was and what counties I would be driving through.  Once we left Waxahachie, in ELLIS county (see how much I learned) I heard on the radio that a tornado had touched down in Waxahachie.  The rain was pouring, but I could still see to drive. The Hail started soon after.  I was worried about the golf ball sized hail I was hearing about on the radio, I didn't see any of that, thank heaven.  They were also talking about a black wall of clouds.  I didn't see that either.  BUT I saw a VERY GREEN sky...weird right!?  We kept going and made it into downtown Dallas.  It was slow with all the traffic stopped on the roads, the wind, the rain and the hail.  Very slowly we made it out of Dallas and headed north to Bonham. I was very nervous at this point, but very grateful that we had been safe.  Listening to the Radio, it seems the storm and I both had the same travel plans!  At about 6 pm, we made it to Beth and Jason's house, without incident!!    I was so good to see Beth and her kids, and meet her husband.  I had missed them. We were able to spend the rest of the week with them.  We went to Chuck E Cheese, swam in their pool, went to the movies and out to eat and just had a fun time visiting with them.  Friday came and it was time to get back on the road.  We headed west, across the top of Texas.  We stopped in Amarillo (I had George Strait's song Amarillo By Morning in my head ALL day!)  for something to eat.  Ted wanted to go the the Big Texan and check out their 72 ounce streak...but he was out voted.  So we didn't get to watch that rodeo :)  We kept on heading west to New Mexico and then north to Colorado.  We stopped in Pueblo for the night.  It was so nice to get some rest!  Saturday morning we continued on and got home early in the afternoon.  It was a lot of driving, it was a lot of heat and humidity, and it was a lot of fun!  We are defiantly going back!  ~if I can figure out what is going on with my memory card, I will post pictures.

For My Sister

I have been thinking about my sister a lot the last little while...so naturally, I am going to blog about it :)  I started this post on Sunday and I wrote things and then deleted them and wanted to think some more about it.  Then I read her blog and decided, I should really get my thoughts out there in blogger land and hopefully she will get them!  So here we go:

Dear Sister,
I just want you to know that I love you.  I know you worry about our family growing apart since we are all living farther away from each other.  There is a saying that I love and I wanted to share it with you.  It says: 

Family like branches on a tree; we all grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one.

 I know it is hard to be away from your family, but no matter where we go or what we do, it all comes back to family.  We are forever.  We will always be there for each other and no amount of distance can take that away.

And since I am the older sister, I am going to get kind of bossy, opinionated, pushy whatever you want to call it!  Ready?  Here I go, don't let other peoples opinions (including mine) determine your course in life.  I read about Christmas and you being worried that someone would leave a rude comment about what you did or didn't get for your family.  If I may be so blunt, screw them.  Who cares what anyone else thinks.  Now I know this is easier said then done, cause from time to time I struggle with it too.  DON'T LET THEM WIN.  Ready for another quote?  Christopher Robin said this on Winnie the Pooh :)  

Promise me you will always remember:  You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think and twice as beautiful as you'd ever imagined.      

Cling to those that truly matter.  You are loved, you are a Daughter of our Heavenly Father.  You have your earthly family that cares and prays for you and a spiritual family that is rooting you on! 

 

Love,

Your Sister            

Change

Times, they are a changin'!  Last week I was released from my calling in the Young Women.  It is the only calling I had that I cried when I was called and I cried when I was released.  When I was called, I thought "The president must not have prayed about this too well, I am NOT the right person for this job"  But oh, how I loved it! I loved (almost) everything about it.  I am going to miss those beautiful little ladies. It will be an interesting transition.  I was wondering what I would do with myself on Wednesday's and Sunday's.  I still don't know yet!  Last Wednesday, I still went to YW and Sunday I subbed in the primary (oh I hope that subbing doesn't become permanent). 
Ted was released from the primary and was called to the YM, he will be teaching the lessons to the Priests.  He is thrilled with this calling, I have never seen him so excited!  When he got to church on Sunday he found out he gets to do more than just teach, which made him even happier.  They are going to have him involved with some of the activities too.  Guess what they have planned....snowmobiling, boating, working on vehicles.  No wonder he is so excited!!

Christmas Break

It is a bitter sweet day for me (can you tell I am feeling dramatic)!  I got off work at Noon on December 22nd for Chrismas Break.  The kids got out of school a at 1:00 on the 23rd.  We have relaxed, lounged, traveled, gorged ourselves and had absolutley NO SCHEDULE!  Well it came to an end today.  I had to return to work and the kids had to go back to school.  I have mixed feelings about it.  I am so glad that we are back to a normal schedule and have some structure again.  But with that schedule and structure comes the end of our "stay in our pj's until noon (or all day...)" way of life.  (poor me!)  So on the 22nd, I ended up running to Logan as soon as I got off work.  I needed to pick up our Prime Rib for Christmas Eve dinner from Lowers Food in Richmond.  I also needed to do some Christmas shopping, because of course I wasn't ready!  Ted was working, so Paige and Dax went with me and Chris.  We had a great visit on our drive.  Friday, the 23rd, I volunteerd at Mica's school helping them learn everything they possibly could about Gingerbread!  When I got home I had to hurry wrap everything I could while the kids were still in school.  After getting the kids, we cleaned up the house a bit and let them relax while I started making stuff for our Christmas Eve dinner!  Christmas Eve found me doing more shopping (in K-town), more cleaning, more cooking and less relaxing!  We had Ted's Mom and Dad, Our Aunt Viv, Ted's brother Dugan, The Phillips' Family including Grandma and Grandpa Phillips' over for Christmas Eve Dinner.  We feasted on Prime Rib, Crab Legs (I didn't eat those....), Rolls, Stuffing, Potatoes, Salad, Pasta, Cake Balls, Gingerbread Cake, Pies and Sparkling Cider!  We opened some presents and just had a good visit.  I had woke the kids up pretty early that morning hoping they would go to bed at a decent hour, so Santa could come.  BUT NO!  They were still running around like mad at 11:30!  I went to bed leaving them up hoping that Santa would make it.  That sly guy, he was able to slip in and out when the kids finally sat still long enough to fall asleep.  Christmas morning brought with it gifts from loved ones and Santa.  We enjoyed our morning and then went off to church.  We were able to go to Christmas Dinner at the Phillips' that evening and had a wonderful time.  The rest of the week I kind of lost track of time, I read 7 books all of which I had read before, but still it was nice just to be able to read.  I went back to Logan (twice), we went sledding down a hill of ICE, I SLEPT IN, We watched some movies, I cooked and baked and loved it.  We went back to the Phillips' for New Year's Eve and enjoyed their company!  The next morning found us at Chuch at 9 am!  We were able to listen to a Missionary just returned home give his report.  It was wonderful.  When we got home I finaly took down our Christmas decor and made a Cheese Stuffed Pork Roast and we had Ted's parents over for dinner.  Monday (yesterday) we got down to business.  We cleaned our rooms, did mountains of laundry, spent some time with Ted's family and got ready for today.  Now we are back to our regular routines and I am hoping that I remember to fit some down time and relaxation into my routine. 

So there it is, a pretty long post, thanks for hanging in there!  I hope you all have a very wonderful New Year!

Why I refuse to celebrate "x" mas

This post is kind of a rant....so if you don't like rants...STOP READING!  With Christmas come and gone this year I am a little behind on this post.  I have been thinking about ALL season.  I am constantly hearing "Merry x-mas" or seeing people write Merry x-mas".... I DON'T CELEBRATE X-Mas!!!  Sorry, I just don't!  I believe in Christ, when it is time to celebrate the birth of our Savior, I celebrate CHRISTmas.  I love Christmas.  I love the feeling in the air, I love the service that is freely given, I love seeing the nativities, I like certain Christmas music.  I don't like Christmas shopping, some Christmas music and I am so not a fan of FORGETTING what the holiday is really about.  So if you are a "Merry X-mas" wisher.... I would rather you didn't wish me a Merry anything!  Tell me Merry Christmas or nothing at all.     Ahhh, that feels better.  Sorry for the rant.  I hope you all had a Very Merry Christmas!!!

November

What can I say about November, except I am SOOOO glad it is over!!!  We had some high points in November that I really enjoyed.  But for what seemed like all of November I was sick and just wanted it to end.  The first week of November, I found myself in the ER with kidney stones.  IT WAS HORRIBLE!  My back always hurts so I didn't think much about how bad it was hurting.  But one morning I woke up and thought my insides were exploding and that I was about to die!  I called my wonderful brother who diagnosed me over the phone and told me to go the hospital.  Once I realized I wasn't dying, I started to wish I was.  At least then the pain would stop!  The pain that came with it was so bad that I was always sick to my stomach.  Then there were the pain pills they gave me, they made me even more sick...but I didn't have the pain.  So I felt like a Zombie for the first part on November. 

Nick turned 9 in November!  For his Birthday get away he wanted to go bowling and have the chocolate fountain from Golden Corral.  So we ended up going to Rock Springs the Saturday after his birthday.  He got the chocolate fountain, and was disappointed.  We ended up going to a movie instead of bowling.  I didn't get any pictures of this, I was still in my zombie phase.  But I did get a couple shots of him the night of his Birthday.  I didn't have a party cause Ted was at work.  Nick did get to choose what his Birthday breakfast and dinner were. Want to take a guess at what was for Dinner......

He drew a map on his shirt so that I could find where to get his dinner!  That kid seriously cracks me up sometimes! 

After Nicks birthday I felt ok for a few days and then right before my birthday....Yep  I had another kidney stone attack.  When I went to the ER the first time they said I had already passed some and I had several more to pass.  YAY for me!!  I took more medicine that made me sick, but took away the pain.  Ted had been planning a "surprise" birthday party for me.  I kind of knew what was going on, maybe not all of the details, but I knew there was a party in the works.  I hinted to Ted that if we had anything planned for that weekend, he was scheduled to work and we should change the plans.  He ended up cancelling the party but didn't TELL everyone.  So while he was at work and I was laying around getting over my most recent Kidney Stone issue.  I was very surprised when my Mom and sister Jennifer came to my house!!  They were almost to Kemmerer when they finally were able to talk to Ted and found out that there was no party.  I am glad they came.  We talked until late into the night and had a great visit.  They had to get up and leave early the next morning, so it was a very short visit, but I loved every minute of it!!  The next week was Thanksgiving.  We went to Utah to spend it with my family.  I was feeling a little off, but but loved spending time with my family.  On Saturday morning, I wasn't feeling well at all.  I was hot, then cold, then hot..... you think I would know what that meant, but I didn't.  I was confused at why I was so hot, then cold.  We went to Park City and did some shopping then on into SLC.  We had some more shopping to do, then went to visit my brother Daniel and his family.  We planned on going to Temple Square to see the lights and get a picture taken for our Christmas card.  That day it hadn't been too cold, so we were hoping for a warm evening at Temple Square.  NOPE, it was so cold.  FREEZING COLD.  And there were about a million people there.  So not our best Temple Square trip, but we did hurry and snap some pictures of the family. 

Do we not look thrilled!!

We went back to my brothers and spent the night.  I was still either really hot or so cold that I couldn't stop shivering.  We got up the next morning and drove home.  I slept the entire way, once we were home I went to bed.  It was then that I realized....oh I have a fever!  No wonder I am hot or cold.  I ended up back in the ER on Monday.  I think Ted was sick of listening to me complain.  I had a double ear infection.  And one heck of a chest cold.  YIPEE! Once the Antibiotics kicked in and my fever broke....it was Wednesday, the last day of November and I remember thinking... OH I AM SO GLAD NOVEMBER IS OVER!  

BOO!

Here are some of the troops filing out of the house.  Chrislyn and Daxton didn't stop to pose!

Carson was a old time gangster, Micalyn was a witch (with a dislocated elbow!) and Nick was the Devil....

Here is a shot I got of my little Lamb, Chrislyn.  SOOOO CUTE!

The kids were really excited about their pumpkins.   I didn't buy any candles to put in them, but the glow sticks I bought the kids to put on their costumes while trick or treating some how ended up in the pumpkins!!