Date night with the kids

Tonight was a fun night. Dave and I took the kids out to a quick dinner and then to see Madagascar 2 at the theater. The kids were really excited when we told them that we were going out.

The movie was pretty funny. I liked the first one a little better, I think. But, it had some really funny lines. Easton and Paisley loved it. Avery did okay, too. She had her moments, but for the most part she sat and ate her popcorn and watched the movie.

It was just a fun night together. I really enjoy the times that it is just Dave and I and the kids. I enjoy taking the kids out to do something fun and out of the ordinary. It makes for good memories! I hope we are creating some good memories for them as well!

(And just so you all know, I didn't eat popcorn, just Dave and the kids! You know, the biggest loser contest and all! Okay, I can not lie, Avery fed me a few little kernals, but not much!) :)

Will I be the Biggest Loser???? I hope so!!

Last night was the official beginning of the Biggest Loser competition that I am in. The group is several girls in my ward plus my mom and one or two others. It should be fun!

About this time last year I decided to lose weight. I had gained quite a bit of weight, too much! So, I was really good and dieted and exercised. Over about the next 5 or 6 months I lost 40 pounds! It was a really good feeling! After I got such good results I kind of got lazy. I didn't go totally off, but I wasn't as committed. So, the weight loss plateaued. I was able to just maintain. (Until the holidays and our cruise and OF COURSE gained a few...)

So, now it is time to buckle down again! My goal is to lose about 35 more pounds. I did it before and I know I can do it again. I am hoping that this contest will be the motivation I need to get the last of the weight off. And, it should be fun along the way!

So, last night we all met at my house for the big "weigh in". We weighed in in private, with just one person to witness our starting weight. We really didn't feel the need for everyone to know our weight! :) Afterwards we did a great thing. We went out for one more "bad" meal! :) Just what we should do, huh? But, it was fun. I didn't eat horrible, okay, I had some onion rings. But, they were sooo good so it was worth my last splurge! :)

I am excited for this next little weight loss journey. And, hopefully I will win so I can use the prize money to buy new clothes. Because, hopefully I will need a whole new wardrobe when I'm done!!!

Deal, deals, deals!

Does it worry anyone else that several retail stores in town have gone out of business lately? Linens and Things, Circuit City, and now Blockbuster.

My brother texted me today and said that Blockbuster is going out of business and all their videos are $5. I didn't have a lot going on first thing this morning, so I hurried and got Avery ready and we headed over. I got there before they opened and then was one of the first ones in. Anyway, I walked around and found about 5 DVDs, all for the kids, and 3 PS2 games. All of them had their cases with them and were in good shape. So, I got all of those for $42. That is crazy considering we spent that much on one PS2 game for Easton for Christmas!

The store was super crowded and the lines were really long, but it was worth the wait for the deals I got. Easton's birthday is next Tuesday and so I am going to give him one of the movies and a PS2 game for his birthday. Nice, $10! He won't know or care that they aren't new.

Later in the day I went to Target and was able to take advantage of some of their really good clearance. It was a good shopping day for me! :)

IT'S BAAAAACK!!!

It's official...it's back! Winter is here again! Wednesday afternoon my friend and I were saying that it felt like spring! There wasn't much snow left. My kids rode their bikes! Granted, it wasn't for too long, and they had hats and gloves, but they still rode their bikes!! I shouldn't have even dreamed that it would last!

Last night we got DUMPED on! I hope that you can see in the pictures I took. I mean, look how much snow is piled on the trampoline! I don't know how many inches!

Oh well. We need the snow, (I guess). And, it is still January. But, Mother Nature, why did you have to tease us like that?

First day of preschool...again?

A while back, in October, my visiting teacher was telling me about the free preschool program at school. It was 5 days a week and about 2 1/2 hours a day. At the time I talked to her they didn't have enough kids to fill the classes and had opened it up to applications from anyone. So, I thought, since we weren't too far into the year, I would see if I could get Paisley in and take her out of her current program. I mean, free is free, right?

So, we were supposed to find out in November if she got in. We never heard anything. So, I had pretty much forgotten about it. Then, finally, while we were away on our cruise, the lady at the school district called and left two messages saying Paisley got in. I called her back on the Monday we got back, left a message, and then didn't hear back. During this time of waiting, I decided not to pull her out of her current preschool. We are at least half way through the year and I love her teacher and the program. I didn't think it was fair to pull her out this far into it. Plus, I want to put Avery in the same preschool and didn't want to burn any bridges.

The lady finally called me back on Friday and said she had two more openings, one in the afternoon and one in the morning. Morning?? I hadn't considered that. I thought, maybe she could do both. I called and consulted with Dave and then with Paisley. We decided to put her in the preschool in the morning and then let her continue 3 days a week in the afternoon.

I worry a little that that might be too much. If it is, we can take her out of one. But, I think she will be fine, and love it! She was really excited when I took her today. It doesn't matter at all to her that she is the "new girl" and doesn't know anyone. She is such an outgoing little girl, and loves new situations! Plus, she gets so bored while Easton is at school, this will be fun for her to have some activities for a few months.

I, on the other hand, have mixed feelings. It is kind of wierd and quiet this morning with just Avery and I. I miss my little helper. She is the sweetest girl and is sooo willing to help me. Easton, who is quite shy, was very worried about her being the new girl. He suggested that she get a blessing from daddy because he remembered getting a blessing each time he started school and knew it would help. So,last night, Dave gave Paisley a blessing. It was very sweet. I am so thankful for Dave, and for Easton's sweet faith.

So, I better go play with Avery, I think she is missing Paisley, too. I hope Paisley enjoys this new little chapter. What I would give sometimes to go back to preschool! :)

Happy 29th Birthday, Dan!!

Dan with our sweet little Avery on the day she was born.

I thought I would try to give a "shout out" to all my family and friends on their birthdays this year! We will see how it goes! Don't be offended if I forget someone, it will happen...

So, today is Dave's younger brother, Dan's birthday! He and I are 11 months apart and so I tease him that for a month we are the same age! (And, I am NOT 30 yet!!!)

Dan is a great guy, always willing to help someone out. He has a kind heart and is just a friendly guy. We sometimes joke that he beats to his own drum, which he does, but in a good way. He is super laid back and just goes with the flow.

He is a great uncle, and luckily has had practice with nieces and nephews because he and his wife are expecting their first baby, a girl, in May! He will be a great dad!



As a side note, we celebrated his birthday at Dave's mom's tonight. He served his mission in France and so he has a great recipe for crepes. So, Dave's mom made us all crepes and we had all the fixings to go with. SOOOO YUMMY!!

So peaceful...

I was going to go to bed a few minutes ago. I began my night time routine of locking doors, shutting off lights, and checking on the kids. I do this religiously, I can not sleep if I haven't done all this, especially checking the kids. I walked into Avery's room and this is how she looked:



So peaceful, and so relaxed. I love how her pacifier is hanging out of her mouth and her arms and legs are all over.

When I checked on Easton and Paisley they were the same...




So, relaxed.

It is moments like these that I realize how much I love these 3 crazy kids! They are truly so sweet and innocent! It makes me wonder how I could ever get frustrated with them. But...then they wake up and it all comes back to me!! :)

Zip lining, Rappelling, and Hiking, Oh My!

During our cruise we stopped in Cabo San Lucas for a day. We had previously arranged to go zip lining that day. None of us were sure what to expect. They picked us up right near the dock. They took us in a small bus on about a 30 minute drive. We drove back a little ways into the desert.

When we got there they hooked the safety straps on us, going around us kinda like a diaper. :) They also had us wear helmets. They gave us a small orientation. There were 3 Mexican guys that guided us. Lollo, the main guide, Will, and Crazy Joe, the photographer. Those guys were very funny and made the experience that much more enjoyable.

We had to hike a bit to each zip line. I hadn't really thought about that part of it. I am not really a fan of hiking. :) But, honestly, it wasn't that bad. There was one little stretch where I thought I might die, but other than that, not too bad.

They took us to 8 zip lines. At the end of each zip line there was a concrete pad to land on. The first one was fairly short, it was a practice. They told us not to put our feet down to stop ourselves at the end. They would definitely stop us. They also showed us how to break. So, when I went off on the first one, I was enjoying it and then saw that I was about at the end. I panicked a bit, thought I was going to plow the guy over, and put my feet down. I ended up scraping the top of my foot up a bit. Andrew said if I did that again I would break my ankle.

So, the next time, same thing, without even thinking about it, I put my feet down. This time I scraped up the top of my shoe. (When I would but my feet down, my feet would go underneath me and I scraped the tops.) Luckily I had closed toe shoes on or I would probably not have toes left!

The next time I was determined to do it right, and I did. Yea! So, the 4th zip line, the longest one, came. I believe it was about a half mile long and 500 feet up. (I could definitely be wrong, but it was LONG and HIGH!!) So, this one I was again enjoying the beautiful view, and going extremely fast. I was coming in so fast at the end, that again I thought I was going to take the guy out! So, I instinctively put my feet down. This time the bottoms of my feet hit the edge of the beginning of the concrete. I hit hard, I was going so fast. It really jolted me and killed my right foot.

From then on, I made sure that my feet did not hit the ground until I was totally stopped. I really hurt my foot and limped the rest of the way. In fact, I limped that whole night and part of the next day. It was very painful. But by the next night it was quite a bit better.

Anyway, I was the only one with injuries. And, injuries aside, it was a FABULOUS time! The views were incredible. It was so much fun. I would suggest that if you ever have the chance, go zip lining!

They also took us to a place where we could rappel. They didn't ask who wanted to, they just took us all up. That is a good thing because if they had asked, several of us probably wouldn't have done it. It was 180 feet off the ground. For those who aren't familiar with rappelling, they hook you up and then you basically step off the ledge that goes straight down. Very scary! But, once you take the initial step, it is a fun experience.

Then they took us by truck back up to where we had begun rappelling. The last zip line was there and it was a double, so we got to race our spouses. That was fun. I think all the girls won by a mile!

After the zip lining we went to their little outdoor cafe area and ordered homemade quesadillas and homemade chips and salsa. Sooo good! The salsa was wonderful!

We had a great time! I am so glad that we did that excursion! It is something that we will never forget, that is for sure!!

Baja Mexico Cruise

Our cruise was an awesome experience. It was so relaxing and fun. I loved it!

We started out on Monday morning flying into San Diego. From there we took a bus to our cruise ship. We had to go through the check-in procedures and at about 12:00 they let us get on the ship. I didn't know what to expect. But, we went in and it reminded me of a big, fancy hotel.

The first thing we did was...eat! Would we have done anything else? :) Afterwards we went around and toured the ship. It was so big that at the end of the week we were just starting to get used to where things were. There was a couple formal dining rooms, many little clubs and bars, a casino, a library, a card room where we played games, several stores, pool, a couple hot tubs, a miniature golf course, a spa, a big auditorium, and many other things.

Tuesday was a full day at sea. We spent the day playing mini golf, games, some of us napped, we ate, then we ate some more, we joined in a few games on the ship, and that night was our formal dinner. We all got dressed up and enjoyed a dinner of prime rib and lobster. Each night you could choose appetizers, main dishes, and desserts. Usually we each ordered 2-3 appetizers. That was kind of fun. They usually had REALLY good soups.

One of the nights we went to a hypnotist show. That was my favorite part of the cruise. My brother, Andrew, got hypnotized. He had been hypnotized once before on a different cruise. I have rarely laughed so hard in my life. He truly was the star of the show. He was so dang funny! At the end of the show the man gave him a black hat with a black wig and a glove and told him that he was Michael Jackson. I have not seen dance moves like that come from him ever!! Hilarious!!

Wednesday we went to Cabo San Lucas. We had signed up to go zip lining. I am going to do a separate post about that. Afterwards we walked along the docks and shopped. It was really pretty there and perfect temperature. We also ate at a fun little restaurant there.

Thursday was another day at Sea. I really enjoyed those days. They were the most relaxing. We filled them up with lots of fun and food!

Friday we went to Ensenada. We rode a bus for about 40 minutes out to the Blow hole. There are only 3 blowholes in the world, Ensenada, Australia, and Hawaii. It was pretty neat. Water get sucks up in a hole and then spouts up. When we were there it was more like a mist, I think the tide needed to be higher to actually spray. They had about 1/2 mile of shops leading up to the blowhole. On the way back we did a bunch of shopping. We ate at a fun restaurant called the Habanna Bananna.

We had a great time. We played lots of games in our spare time and just enjoyed hanging out together. Thanks guys for the fun time! We missed you tons Jarom and Jackie and Justin and Chelsea and hope you can join us next time!

Thank you to Erin, Brandon, Shirley, Mike & Kalli, and Heather for all your help with the kids. Avery ended up getting a high fever and Dave's mom had to take her to the doctor. Nothing was wrong that they could tell and so it all ended up okay. She did throw up and keep Erin up 1/2 the night one night. Sorry Erin! Thank you so much for taking care of her, though. The kids were in good hands and we are so thankful to all those who made this cruise possible for us. It was great!

No, worries! All is well!

Well, we are back! We are safe, and all of my worrying was for nothing, for the most part. We had a GREAT time! It was just what I wanted it to be, RELAXING!! We had a really fun time with my family and did some really fun activities. I am going to blog in more detail about some of the things, but I just had to let you all know we are safe! :) I know you were all sooo worried! :)

Cruise time, baby!!!

Well, it is finally here! Dave and I are leaving to go on our first cruise tomorrow afternoon. Actually, we leave to Salt Lake, and then fly out Monday morning. So, I have looked forward to this for like 6 months...so why am I starting to dread it???

There are so many days that my house is crazy and I think how I would love to be in Mexico or somewhere else right now. But, then when it really comes down to it I am super scared and worried! I am the biggest worrier you will ever meet. So, I have a lot of worries tonight on the eve of our trip.

I worry of course about the safety of the kids. They will of course be in very good hands, that I know for sure. But, anything can happen. I worry that they will be sad and miss us and cry. I worry that they won't miss us! :) I worry that they will drive the poor people who are watching them completely crazy. I worry that the people watching them will not like us when we get back. (Just kidding!!) :) I worry about them getting to and from school.

I worry about our safety. I worry that we don't have a will. I worry that we are going to miss our flight for snow and then miss our cruise! (I am worrying about that A LOT!) I worry that we won't bring enough money. I worry I won't pack enough of or the right kind of clothes. I worry they will lose our luggage.

And the list goes on...

I am obviously kind of a pessimist, but I can't seem to help it. I try not to worry, but it doesn't help. I do it anyway!

But, I am actually still excited to go. I can't wait to get away with my family, especially Dave. It is on trips away without kids that we seem to remember exactly why we are together in the first place. It is great to reconnect. I am also excited to just totally relax, especially after the craziness of the holidays!

I am very, very, very, grateful for the 3 separate families that will be watching our kids at some point this week. Really great friends, great brother and sister-in-law, and Dave's sweet mom. Thank you soooooo much! We owe you all SOOOO big! We know that they are in good hands, and that does relieve some of my worries. I know they will be well taken care of and loved while we are gone. Also, thank you, Heather, for helping with the school situation! I owe you big, too!

So, good bye for a week. I hope to have awesome pictures to show and lots of fun stories to share when we get back!!!!!