Honey it's cold outside....

Well we are officially moved to Thatcher and freezing our booty's off! Nathan loves it, I am hoping that Santa brings me some warm slippers. I don't have a way to upload pictures yet, but have some fun ones to post of the kids decorating the tree and enjoying the new place. Just wanted to take a minute to say... THANK YOU to all our awesome friends in Queen Creek who helped us move and who we fondly think of during this holiday. Also so glad to be here with lots of family and doing fun stuff together like eating and playing and visiting.

Most of all, I have received every gift I could have wanted this year. I am together with my hubs and ALL my kids. I have missed my boys so much...more than I even thought. It is so fun to sit down on the couch next to them and realize that at the end of the day we don't have to say "See you in a couple weeks." Time is such a gift. I am blessed and lucky.

Here's hoping that you are all having a happy holiday filled with good food, good company and good memories!

Stay warm and cozy!

...The fabric of our lives...

So we only have 2 days until we move. The countdown never officially started because it has been so bittersweet for all of us. We cannot wait to be all together as a family. But it will be so hard to leave our "family" that we have here. I don't think that Nathan and I could have known how amazing the past 6 years were going to be. I am so thankful for friends that have encouraged us to reach our potential and strive to be better every day.

Having said that, there are sometimes that I think that my body is too old to do what my mind thinks would be "fun!" Enter Laura Woods...

Usually when she says she has and "idea" we all smile cuz we know it is going to be awesome. She has been wanting to climb a cotton bale for awhile now. I am so glad that my husband is super strong so he could lift me on top of the bale. It was pretty hilarious to see him almost fall off when he tried to jump from the truck to the top of the cotton...good times people.




I would do just about anything to see Laura as happy as she was after we climbed down the cotton bale. She reminds me that it really is the little things that matter. Not saying she is short or anything...

Love all these girls and glad that we have made the time to make lasting memories. This is what life is made of.

With Honors

All of the kids got awards last quarter for Honor Roll. Ethan actually earned high honors for Honor Roll and for reaching his reading goals. Awesome mom that I am only knew of the time for Ryan's because I have a fear of kindergarteners getting "F's" in homework (Not because that has ever happened to one of my kids. Ever.) so I look in his backpack daily. Anyway, I am so proud of all my kids for working hard and staying on top of their game. Someday, I will be on top of mine!

CONGRATS...Garett, Savannah, Ethan and Ryan. Mom and Dad are so proud of you!

Funky Fashion

Last week for Activity Days, I was invited to go to a mother daughter Fashion show. We were supposed to have one funky outfit and one modest cute outfit.... yeah...uh huh. I am awesome at fashion... as long as it involves comfy jeans and a tee shirt. So anyway, we pulled out some of Garetts old jersies and did our hair funky for our funky outfit and then under our jersey wore black shirts and put on cute scarves for our cute modest outfit. It was fun to walk the runway. She wanted me to carry her down the runway for our cute outfits. She was worried that I wasn't strong enough... I have to admit I worried about my....ummm... grace. Luckily I didn't drop her. We had a great night together and Ana and Daniella Nava (Two awesomely cute and fashionable young women in our ward) came to talk to the girls about modesty and how it is easier for the spirit to be with us when we cover our bodies. I love those girls. And I love my girl. She is amazing and beautiful and pushes me to my limits... it encourages me to stretch, to be a better mom and better example. I am so blessed and lucky.

Rocko Taco and Bobo China

Rocko has been the topic of lots of conversations at our house lately. He and Ethan are best pals and so lots of songs and skits(thanks to Savannah) have been made up about how friendship can stand the test of time. Ethan is pretty sad to move to Thatcher but is excited that Rocko's grandma lives in Pima so we are guaranteed a visit every once in awhile. Last month, I took the boys to Bobo's China to eat and Rock came with us. He is always great company. I hear that boy laugh and can't help myself... I have to laugh too. We had awesome chinese food and watched creepy chinese television... some soap opera (literally singing opera) The boys had a blast and I enjoyed watching them. It was great.



Look what we can do! Aren't we awesome?


Funny Faces



Ryan was sitting next to me. This is his signature funny face.

I'm A BOBCAT! Booo Yeah!

I know that all my brothers and sisters thought that I was gonna blog about being a BEAVER CREEK BOBCAT... back in the day when we were "creekers"... but no! This post is about Ethan. He has loved being in Scouts. He has a goal to get his Wolf before we move... High aspirations. I love it. At the last pack meeting he got his Bobcat. They branded him with the bobcat paw and he got to "pin me." This is my favorite part of being a Cub Scout Mom. I am so proud of Ethan and his determination. Plus he was pretty brave when they branded him! I am such a great mom that I forgot my camera so special thanks to my friend Louisa Child for sending these pics!

Getting pinned... proud moment.


P.S. To those of you who have yet to be pinned by your son... it is a good idea to wear layers. Avoids awkward poking in the boob. Just sayin'...



I love this boy...



I think I was more scared than he was. He loved that he finally got to be branded. Now if he can just gear up for drinking the Wolf blood when he gets his Wolf...


Just have to add also that he has the best Den Leaders ever! Sandie and Todd Snider ROCK! He loves being in their den. They have gotten him really excited about scouts and I love that! Way to go Sniders! They are in the background of the pics with our Scout Master, Cameron Heath... a real trooper as well. Have I said that our ward rocks? I love our ward.

The Boys

So Garett is officially moved down to Thatcher... only about 6 weeks before we get there. As you can see by this picture, these two are pretty close. Garett looks up to Tyler so much. He is going to live with Tyler in an apartment behind Grandma Priscilla's house till we move to Thatcher. I told Tyler yesterday that I would be surprised if they didn't throw down before we get there. He laughed and said... "Oh, we will!" If for nothing else, it will be over cleanliness. Garett has a little of my OCD... Tyler... not so much! I am so excited that Garett is gonna get to play basketball but cannot stand the thought of not having both of the boys living with us. It is not the same without them here. I remember when Garett turned 12 and I was so excited that 2 more men in our home held the priesthood. There is a different feeling in the home when priesthood holders are there... it was wierd for me to call on someone to say the prayer this morning. Garett usually does that when Nathan is gone. SO ANYWAY... I just wanted to say that I am so thankful for my boys... They are so handsome and are turning into amazing men! I love them and am so grateful for their example to their little bros and sister. I can't wait to be together again.

Can you dig it?

So a group of us girls decided to dress up as roller derby girls for the ward Trunk or Treat. We are the newest Roller Derby Team... CB Derby DIvas... nevermind that only a couple of us can skate and nevermind that I only ate crap once. It was fun to dress up and to act like we could be tough if we needed to.... The highlight of the night was Cami's mohawk and her sponsored by Birkenstock shirt. I am gonna make her dress up again and get some good pics of her. Then I will post the story about her shirt... maybe. In the meantime, if anyone wants a derby shirt, sorry to confess... Coolness unfortunately can't be bought.




Sonda Bryce...Derby name... Titanic Coconuts... Lightning Bolt for intimidation sakes.



Look out! If only I could stay upright on my roller blades!



Laura (AKA Glitter Phoenix) is one of the only other people that I have met that loves fake lashes as much as I do. I wear them every Halloween. Our lashes this year had rhinestones on them.



Some of us trying to look ferocious. Derby Divas... Bambi the Bombshell, Titanic Coconuts, Hurricane Hottie, Sparklin Jade and Crushalicious.



The whole team... Glitter Phoenix, Titanic Coconuts, Hurricane Hottie, Bambi the BOmbshell, Spike D, Crushalicious and Sparklin' Jade.

Free Family Fun Night... Monday after Halloween

All Neighbors and Friends are Welcome... This is a public event. Get the word out and feel free to contact me if you have questions!


FREE FAMLY FUN NIGHT Sponsored by Carter's Angels

Come on out and ENJOY the FUN!

8 is Definitely Great!

Ethan with his best pals... Rocko Woods and Gavin Bryce. (Cart Dog is squeezin' in too!)



Aunt Aisi gave the Holy Ghost talk. Ethan and Aisi have a special relationship and so this was especially awesome to have her there. Uncle Scott was missed!



The Proud Parents... I am so thankful to have awesome men in my life...



Ethan's biggest Fan



These three were baptized together. Ethan Bryce, Hailey Garner, and Caden Anderson.
They are such good kids. I am thankful that Ethan has good friends.


Ethan was baptized on the 26th of September. It was an awesome day that I know we will never forget. We had tons of family and friends here and Ethan has been so excited for this day. Right before we left to go to the church I sat down on the side of the tub with Ethan and told him how proud I was of his decision to be baptized. I am constantly amazed by the strength of my children and the quiet understanding that they exhibit at such young ages. He is so sensitive to the spirit and I hope that he keeps that trait as he gets older. I am lucky to be his mom.

San Tan Tri...Carter's Angels Ride Again

Today we did another tri in the name of love... for Carter. Nathan had Youth Conference and so Savannah was my transition coach. She was there at every swim lap cheering me on (even though I am pretty slow) and made sure I had my towel and stuff when I was done. She was there at the finish line and I just have to say I love my little girl. Nathan surprised me and made it to the last portion of the bike and watched me finish the race. Too bad I had to embarrass him by wiping out a couple of times and sorta (is there such a thing?) peeing my pants in the run! What a guy to hug me and love me anyway. I am the luckiest angel on the planet!

Scouts Honor

Ethan turned 8 in August and has recently started scouts. With the help of Grandma Bryce and Grammy Hall, he was able to get a full scout uniform. He was so excited to wear it and I believe that a boy in full uniform acts a little different...more respectable. I am so proud of Ethan. He will be baptized in about a week and I am so thankful for his sweet presence. He is a good boy and a great example.

Speaking of scouts... has anyone seen that movie with Gary Coleman called "Scouts Honor?" I wonder how old he was when he made that movie... I used to love watching that show and yes... I cried. Classic!

How will you know if you never TRI?

A couple of months ago, one of my crazy friends suggested that we quit being "lame moms" and do some things that were physically out of our comfort zone... one of those things being a triathlon. I have never thought of doing one... and wondered if I really could seeing as I never had formal swim lessons. Laura talked me into it and I started training. I have not only learned how to swim (HUGE shout out to my niece Victoria for schooling me in the mechanics of freestyle...Couldn't figure it out till she helped me!) but have learned that probably one of the reasons we fought so hard in the pre existence to come down and have a body is because maybe we would find out how amazing that body could be. My body is not perfect by the worlds standards. But it amazed the heck out of me this past weekend! Also got to do it with some of the most amazing and inspiring women I know. I learned so much from them through the whole process and my friendship with them was strengthened cuz we did this together. Here is Brooke, Laura and I at the Pima Pool before the race.


Nerves maybe starting to kick in a little at the reality of what we were supposed to accomplish!

Brooke lovingly called me condom head...U all know you are jealous of my swim cap. Had to keep my mop out of my eyes just in case I started swimming fast!



Couldn't swim before we started... now I love it! I am not fast but I can do it!! Here I am starting the race.



Here I am trying to transition to the bike after the swim. I thought the bike was gonna be the easy part...



I have to say that the bike portion killed me. It was the hardest part of the race for me. I cried alot during the bike. All of our husbands and kids were at various points in the race to cheer us on. I could see all of them ahead of me and knew that I had to quit crying and pedal hard at least for the 10 seconds that they were watching. The other time on the road when I was alone, I cannot explain the thoughts in my head. But I wondered if I could finish the race. There was a particular part of the bike race where I looked down at my speedometer and realized I was going about 6 mph...usually I can comfortably bike at 15 mph. Up in the distance I saw Mike and Mandy Ajeman.In that moment in the race, I lost it. I started bawling and couldn't breathe and couldn't believe that I have been blessed with such awesome friends. They were there from start to finish along with the rest of my family. It was definitely those moments of making eye contact with Nathan as I was DYING and hearing him say "You can do it! You are doing great!" that made me somehow keep pushing.



I hate this pic of me. But it shows the reality... I was dragging booty!


Brooke and I started in the same heat and so she was waiting for me under a tree when I crossed the finish line. I have a better pic of us than this but this shows how I really felt...



Laura started in the heat after us so Brooke and I walked a little ways up the trail to wait for Laura and run in with her. We thought it would be awesome for her photos if we ran behind her and made it look like she was kickin our trash. This was one of the most emotional parts of the day for me as Laura stopped, looked at Brooke and I and said, "I can't run. I got nothin' left." We encouraged her and then Brooke said, "You can do it. Do it for Carter." (Look for upcoming post about Carter's Angels for explanation.) Laura pushed through and finished. I thought it was freakin awesome that she puked 4 times! I don't knoww if you can zoom in on this pic. She would puke, spit and run a little more. Rocko and Ethan are looking on in this pic.



Here is us at the Finish Line. SO AMAZING!


It was the hardest and best thing I've done in a long time. My kids were all there (including Garett who was there start to finish... he even watched me swim!) my mother in law, (Thanks Jeanne) suprised me and showed up at the finish line. Mike and Mandy Ajeman were there along with all of Laura and Brookes families and parents who cheered for all three of us! We couldn't have done it without them. I didn't get a pic of me with Nathan so this old one will have to do. Let me suffice it to say, his belief in me pushes me to do things that I think I can't do. In his quiet peaceful way, he turns my head and tunes my heart in the right direction. Until I rediscover that I can do all things through my Savior. How on earth did I get so lucky? I LOVE THIS MAN! He rearranged work schedules and helped take care of kids and was my "transition trainer", and cheeerleader all on 5 hours of sleep during a 50 hour period of time! He is amazing! Thank you Nathan! xxoo

Updates coming soon.....

Sorry about the delay... SO MUCH has been going on... beach trips, Savannah's Birthday and Ryan's birthday.....It has been crazy around here so don't quit checking... Updates coming to a blog near you... hopefully it will be my blog! :)

Double Digits Baby!

Savannah Turns 10!! We had a very low key but fun day on Savannah's birthday. She had one of her really good friends, Cambree come over and we went to Peter Piper Pizza. It was really fun!

10 reasons we LOVE and ADORE Savannah... we are so glad she is ours!

1. She is so good with little kids
2. She has an infectious laugh...
3. She is great at sports and gymnastics.
4. She can sing and dance with the best of them.
5. She is pretty organized.
6. She is a great student.
7. She has a great memory and can remember lots of things I say that I have no recollection of ever saying.
8. She reminds us to do the things that are right. Loves Family Home Evening.
9. She knows how to make others feel at ease.
10. She is my only daughter and I am so thankful to have a little girl to dress up and do girl things with. I am the luckiest mom on the planet.

What do you remember about the Easter story?

Found this in my old drafts... shoulda posted it then but never got around to it.... wierd. Thought it was too funny not to share. I promise not to tell on the parents whose kids made these AWESOME comments.


Nathan teaches the almost 6 year olds in Primary. (CTR 6) He had to work Saturday night before Easter and so I told him I would teach his class. After reviewing the pictures and the accounts from the scriptures about the Easter story, we passed an Easter egg around and asked everyone what they remembered about the story. One little boy said, "... I know the erection!" We had to practice saying RESSURECTION several times after that! Another little boy remembered that the three women took stuff to put with Jesus' body so it wasn't smelly. When I asked him if he remembered what "stuff" they took, he said... "Ummmm... Pepper?" I think that was the only "spice" that he could think of!

"It's a chumbucket bucket hat!"

My kids were getting ready for bed the night before Easter after coloring eggs. We had bought these cool sand buckets for Easter baskets thinking we could reuse them in Mexico later. So my creative kids put them on their head and Ethan came up with the name "Chumbucket Bucket Hat" I am sure that it is Spongebob inspired... I don't know. But they thought it was hilarious and I couldn't quit laughing. Garett was not thrilled to take the picture but is always a good sport. Hope everyone had a great Easter.

Cousin Time

My little sister Molli is prego and has had some kidney issues during her pregnancy. Crappy for her... fun for me! I got to keep her two kiddos while she was in the hospital gettin hopped up on some sweet stuff. It was a blast and my kids were thankful to get to spend some time with Brynlee and Brennan.

Playin' out in the backyard


Harriet Potter



Peace My Brutha

Like a mom on crack...

So I think it is the white trash in me that loves to hit the Dollar Tree Store every time I pass it. It is like a drug... Even if I have been there in the last 12 hours, I think to myself that there could be something new and totally in the "that is an amazing deal" catagory. I also love the library... I love to read and I love books! So my friend Laura and I went a couple weeks ago and combined the library trip with the Dollar Tree trip. We thought it was fun and so the next week we invited our friend Brooke. On the morning of the trip, we all ended up with extra kids. It was funny to see all the car seats and all the other kids sort of thinking about buckling up... I know, I know! I am a stinky mom. It was totally my kid unbuckled in the back of Laura's van. It was still pretty funny when we made them pose for a pic outside the library.


Then we talked about attempting the lure of the Dollar Tree and decided that we could handle it...It was still kinda funny when we loaded all of them in 3 different carts and headed in to the store.



There was no amount of caffeine that could cure how dumb I thought we were to take 13... read the numbers people... 13 kids into the Dollar Tree. Ahhhh...the memories!

Are you worthy of the "Black Shirt?"

This post is way late, but when I took the picture, I knew that it would be something I wanted to blog about because I was so proud of Garett. On his football team this season, the players had an opportunity during practice to earn the "black jersey." It was just a plain black jersey that they wore over their regular practice gear. It could be earned for showing great dedication, hard work, hard hits, always hustling... you get the idea. Well, the guy who earned it got to keep it until another player stepped up and showed crazy awesomeness. Garett was one of 4 players to earn the black jersey and held it for the most consecutive days! He is a total stud! At the awards ceremony at the end of the year, the 4 players who earned the black jersey were presented with these cool black shirts to signify their hard work and dedication to the team! I am so proud of Garett. He is a great kid and I LOVE HIM TONS! Way to go Garett!