Bits of Last Week

Phones are always held close, too close for my liking.  I can’t believe how much communication goes on, to soooo many from that little device.  Growing up we had a party line that we shared with THREE other families.  The chances of me talking with friends on the phone was non-existent.  I had to go to my friend’s houses to talk to them!

Nathan’s TCA team of friends won the top high school division in indoor.  They were such a fun team to watch in indoor because of their fancy footwork.  I might add that they were the only team that had a couple of girls on their team as well.  The rest were all boy teams.  They are now proud owners of these yellow t-shirts.

The big girls had a fun day at the Air Force Academy basketball game with their teammates.  Rebecca’s coach’s fiancé coaches the girls team (did you follow that?).   After the game we headed up to Janelle’s shower.  SO excited for that baby to get here!

Ashley had an indoor recess and they played dominos.  We are now finding it quite the past time to set up elaborate domino patterns to knock down thanks to Ashley.

The big girls are busy with their middle school basketball teams.  The 8th graders have only lost one game and the 7th graders have NOT won a game yet.  LOVE watching my girls on the court!  Kaylee’s 8th grade team have team dinners every Friday night with little devotionals.  Such a sweet team of girls!

I took the little girls to Annie.  Ashley sang out loud to each of the songs.  That girl is going to be on Broadway someday!

The frost has been beautiful in the forest.  I don’t enjoy driving on the icy roads but sure enjoy looking at the frosty trees.  Another perk of the icy roads is Stephen working from home.

Ash has been crafting away.  She actually finished the scarf but I haven’t gotten a picture of it yet.  She is now ready to make a dress on her little loom!  We shall see how that goes!

Ashley and Nathan made a line of five snowmen across our driveway so that no one could get out or get in.  Here is a pic of them in the process.  They used all of the snow that had drifted in the ditch bank.  I had to drive over to the neighbor’s driveway to get out.  When I got home that night the five snowmen were there to greet me.  Ashley had us drive around them for days.

Last week we also took in a Blizzards game with the three soccer kids. 

Ashley decorated her bedroom and had a fancy tea party set up for the family.  That girl loves to throw a party.  The older kids like all of the treats we buy for the tea parties, so they are always game to attend!

Yesterday some of the kids had friend things in the morning.  That afternoon we took all of the family to Blackforest park for a little soccer game.  It is fun how competitive we are and how much we laugh as we are playing.  I might add that MY team won.  It was a beautiful afternoon.

I think that sums up all of last week.  I’m determined to stay on top of these posts.  I hate playing catch up and back posting!

Marshmallow Snowmen

The little girls and I found ourselves home alone.  All of the big kids had school and for some reason the littles didn’t.  Of course a project ensued…..

We wanted to do some type of painting project.  I headed to Pinterest and we found this marshmallow painting.  They probably made a few more marshmallow paint snowflakes than they should have,  BUT painting is too fun and you just can’t resist doing a few more….

We then had hot chocolate and marshmallows.  I know that I’m constantly saying that I like projects as we sit around the table visiting and laughing.  LOVE it!

Ticket Jar

Last year I bought the older girls jars to keep all of their tickets in.  This idea is all over Pinterest and I thought how clever it was to keep all of those memories stuffed inside.

The other night Rebecca brought hers down and we went through all of her tickets.  She even had her airline ticket from her trip to Arizona in her jar.  As we sat there reminiscing about all of these activities I was surprised by all that we had done and seen.  I also sat there jealous that I don’t have my own ticket jar full of memories. 

Anyway, super easy idea to save and display all of your tickets!

New Year’s Eve

The Hopkin’s came over for the New Year’s festivities.  It’s a tradition!

The older kids went to the dance.  The younger kids had packages for each hour of activities to keep them busy.  They were going strong all the way up to midnight.

Glowsticks was in one package.  They love to play hide and seek along with sardines with them.  Rebecca and Tea made a cool 2015 out of them.

Another package was the game Picwits.  It’s the Apples to Apples like game played with pictures instead of words.

Another activity was the sheets that have the kids review their past year.  I’m always surprised that they sit down and fill them out.  Maybe it’s because that’s one of the activities and they fill obligated to do each thing.  I always smile at the different things that are written down on them.

Trenya had a fun minute to win it type game.  The kids had to use straws to move various treats from bowl to bowl.

Anyway, we made it to the New Year!!!

I love Jerrica in that series of pictures!

Bring on 2015, you HAVE to be better than 2014!

Sky Paper Lanterns

Cute Aunt Janie sent us a giant sky paper lantern.  Janie is one of Stephen’s sisters that we adore.  She is always so thoughtful of my kids.

We had friends over for dinner and decided to give it a try.  I commented to my friend that it was going to be ripped before it even made it out of the package with all of the hands that were tearing into it.  Then as we stood outside with the chill and slight breeze I commented again that this is probably not going to work and the kids will be disappointed.

BUT boy oh boy that thing worked!  We were in awe as it rose and rose to the moon.  As it disappeared we stayed out there straining to see it.  SO fun!!!

Thanks Aunt Janie!  We love you!

11:00pm

Saturday night everyone was out of the house, except for Jerrica and I.  All of the kids were busy with friends and nights out.  Stephen was even gone!  Jerrica and I watched a movie with popcorn and did each other’s hair.  After a while she started doing her doll’s hair and I started texting different friends.

One friend was reading a book and told me a little about it and the author.  It happened to be the same book that I skipped last month for bookclub.  I then diverted my attention to this author on the internet and her battle with cancer.  She is dying and has four cute little kids.  The end is near for her.  What surprised me was that she was not bitter, but instead grateful.  Grateful for each day.  Grateful for the outpouring of love towards her.  Even grateful for cancer!  She wrote, “Cancer was this gift that exposed to us what is important and what’s valuable”

How can she say that cancer is a gift!?!?!

Yet you could see in the eyes of her children the love.  You could read in her words the love.  Love that might not necessarily be there had not the cancer quickened their living.  She really made me look at how I appreciate each day and how I use my time to show love to my children and Stephen.  I take “time” for granted.

One by one each of my kids and Stephen came home.  Yet, it was different because I stopped what I was doing and hung on every word that they described to me about their evening.  I could see the connection in their eyes as they explained their activities with friends.  I actually saw their eyes because I stopped what I was doing to give them full attention.  I couldn’t possibly multitask after what I had read.

Then everyone headed to bed.  Nathan asked to stay up to play XBox for a bit.  Stephen crashed as soon as he hit the pillow.  I laid there in bed and couldn’t resist the urge to go up to the loft and watch Nathan play his game.  I pulled out the other gamer chair and started talking.  He looked at me like I was crazy, even asked me a hundred times why I was up there watching him play.

It was fun!  We laughed about the names of the other Live players playing on XBox Live.  We joked about who the people were that were up playing this game.  We scrutinized the ridiculous graphics in the game.  After a while he eventually told me I was good luck and should come up more often to watch him play.  Nathan has a funny personality and I couldn’t help laugh out loud quite a few times. 

When I finally went to bed I smiled to myself.  I was there!  I was doing something without multi-tasking or for some specific purpose.  I was there!  I could feel that Nathan knew I loved him, and oh how I do love that boy!

This year is going to be different.  I feel it with the goals I have set.  SO excited for the fresh start!  I’m already planning for the next late night with Nathan … buy his favorite treats and stash somewhere until we have our next little late night party.

Sleep is over-rated when there are memories to be made!

New Year’s Posters

We did our traditional goal posters for FHE this week.  I had to roll my eyes when Nathan held his up.

Ya that’s my overachiever, Nathan!

Jerrica made us all laugh out loud.  She has major anxiety when it rains because our basement flooded a couple of years ago.  She found a picture of a boy playing in the rain and announced that she was going to be like the boy and smile when it rained.

We talked about how to set a goal with the reason why we are going to do it and listing the steps of how we are going to do it.  I explained that it’s not enough just making a goal and never making the steps to achieve it.

We ended with the quote in the New Era in the section all on goals.  I loved it!

“Even though we might fall short of our finish line, just continuing the journey will make us greater than we were before.”  - President Uchtdorf

Isn’t that so true!  We pointed out that Stephen has been practicing the piano and guitar a lot lately.  Even if he doesn’t stick with it forever, he is now farther along than he was before!  We talked about how it is more important to run the race than just stay at the starting line, AND you never know, we may just finish the race of whatever goal we are striving to achieve!

Love the new year and the fresh start it gives me!

Bits of Christmas Part TWO

The boys got new XBox games and disappeared into them for DAYS

They did reappear to go see Unbroken and the Hobbit.

Christmas Eve we had Lael, Keith’s family, my parents and Jane.  We had tons of appetizers, played the chimes, did an Elf movie trivia game, a gift exchange and another cheesy game I had.  The big girls played their flutes, we acted out the nativity and then Jane played the piano for all of us to sing Hymns.

The kids opened PJ’s for their night present.

We had a wide array of presents.  There were clothes, games, tablets, violins, shoes for every sport for Rebecca, just a big variety of gifts for everyone.

A cool nail nativity from my mom.  She also gave me a set of embroidered dishtowels.  Love homemade gifts ….( loved the money too mom)

Kim brought over a cool gift.  It was a DVD and then basket filled with stuff from the movie including food that was in the movie.  Wish that I had a pic of it!

We LOVE games!  Aunt Lindsey gave us this game of Wackee Six and then a friend gave us Picwits.  Picwits is like Apples to Apples with pictures.  Super fun!

I am just thrilled to not be sick anymore!  Sad though that I didn’t get more pictures to remember everything!