Spirit Horse Ranch

Spirit Horse Ranch has been a marvelous experience for our family. Baden started riding horses at Spirit Horse in the spring of 2008. Porter was able to start riding in the fall of 2008. Hippo therapy not only helped strengthen the boy's muscles and help with their balance, but the boys really came to love being around the animals. It made me wish we lived in a place where we could have animals and land. The boy's last session at Spirit Horse was the spring of 2010. We miss going, but it was time for us to give up our time at Spirit Horse so other kids could have such an amazing experience.
The boys had to take care of their horses. They had to brush them, put on the saddle and then give them a treat at the end of the ride.

Baden was really comfortable on his horse. His trainer didn't even have to lead him around. He did fabulous two-points and was great leading his horse around the cones. He loved his horse, Tim Tam (mostly because of his smooth gait).

Porter started riding Merrilegs and then got to ride on Spirit. He loved trotting and would yell "TROT!" at the top of his lungs. He was very particular about the paths he rode on, which cones to walk around, which gates to go through. And he really didn't like two-point, but he finally decided it was okay.

Thanks, Spirit Horse!! We had a fabulous time.

The Big Nine

Baden turned nine in March. I'm a really great mom and we have no pictures of the event. We celebrated with family and it involved a long shopping trip to Walmart where he deliberated over several Lego sets before picking just the right ones. We are so thankful for this great guy in our home. He is thoughtful, responsible and smart. He still really loves Cub Scouts, swimming and riding horses at Spirit Horse Ranch. He also loves to read and when he finds a great book it's hard to drag him away from it - lately he loves reading the Percy Jackson & the Olympians books. Thanks for being such a terrific kid, Baden!

The Best Snow on Earth

Or at least the best snow in Dallas, Texas. On Feb 11th and 12th we had record breaking snow in Dallas. A local newspaper reported:

The extreme snowfall of February 11-12, 2010 goes down as THE snowiest 24-hour period in the history DFW weather records, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). An amazing 12.5" was measured, 11.2" of which fell on the 11th.

The best part was that it was really great snow. Usually when it snows here it's wet and slushy, but this was fluffy and plentiful. Everything shuts down here when it snows - especially when there's record breaking snow. This is delightful news for my school aged children - but this snow was an exception because it fell on the day of Brooklyn's Valentine party at school. There were actually tears shed because she couldn't go to school - I'm sure these events will never happen again - the amazing snow and the crying over missed school.

Brooklyn got over it quickly when we went outside to play. It would have been much more fun if we had actual snow weather attire, but we braved the cold and had a lot of fun.

We made snow couple since it was close to Valentine's Day and the girls in the neighborhood had a lot of fun decorating them. It took almost all the snow in the front yard and the best part was that the next morning the yard was blanketed again - even though Mr. and Mrs. Snowman had collapsed during the afternoon of the day before.

After the initial trauma, we loved our snow days. We look forward to the next snowiest day in Dallas, even if we don't see if for decades.

And here's proof that Valentine's Day parties are fun - even if you have to celebrate them after Valentine's.

Stride and Ride - Dallas Cowboy Style

Our annual MDA fundraiser, the Stride and Ride, changed venues this year. So, on the last weekend of January, we got to spend Saturday morning at the new Dallas Cowboy Stadium in Arlington.

It was cold and very crowded, but many of our friends and family joined us. We are continually grateful for all of the support and love. Go Team Combs!!

Pinewood Derby 2010

Baden participated in his second Pinewood Derby in January. I think his favorite part of the whole event was making his car with his dad. Doesn't his smile just say it all - his dad's as well. I think they both thoroughly enjoyed their time together using power tools.

Baden named his car Nitro. It was silver with a lightening bolt down the top. It had a crazy bolt on the back end which helped Baden earn the "most futuristic" car. Despite the car's good looks, Nitro didn't perform as we had hoped on the track. This picture depicts where the was in most races (it's the one in the middle BEHIND the other two cars). Poor performance aside, Baden and the rest of the family had a great time.

Looking back at 2009

What a year!! It was so much fun it's taken almost 6 months to catch up.
The most memorable thing for our family this year was our trip to Philmont. We loved it so much and hope that we get to go back there again one day. We also love all the time we got to spend with our family. We are continuously mindful of the blessing it is to live so near to our parents. Grammy and Grandpa and Nana and Papa are so good to us and we love getting to see them so often.
Baden turned eight in 2009 and he was able to get baptized and confirmed a member of our church. He also enjoyed swimming, horseback riding and absolutely loves Cub Scouts.

Brooklyn is still our energetic bundle of energy. She makes friend easily and everyone loves her at school. I love walking down the halls of the kid's school and have so many kids say, "Hi, Brooklyn's mom!" She loved going to dance camp and she loves being outside.

Ella has been mom's special helper this year. A lot of her friends started kindergarten and she wasn't quite old enough but she has enjoyed reading lessons with mom and playing with Porter. She loves to sing and she quote silly lines from movies.

Porter finally decided he was old enough to be potty trained. He makes us all laugh. He loves to tell jokes and he has a smile that can melt anyone's heart. He loved starting horseback riding and he looks great sitting on his little miniature pony, Merrilegs.

I tried my best to keep up with kids. I love spending time with them. I enjoyed the time I got to spend with the children at church and being able to teach them music about the gospel of Jesus Christ. At the very end of 2009, I was released from Primary and called to be the 2nd Counselor in our ward Relief Society Presidency.

Dallin continued to have wonderful experiences serving in the Stake Young Men's Presidency (he was recently released and called to be the Assistant Priest Quorum Advisor). He was laid off from his job in September - but Dallin looked at is as a chance to start something on his own and so the entrepreneurial adventure begins.

The year has had many ups and downs for our family. The good times have been wonderful and we treasure them. The harder times have humbled us and made us reflect on the things that are most important to us. We are grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and for the knowledge that we are children of God. The Savior brings us peace and we are grateful for Him.

And looking forward - 2010 has been great so far. It's hard to believe that it's almost half way over. We can't wait to see what's in store for the second half.

Christmas 2009

Since it's been so warm here lately, I thought I would reminisce about Christmas in hopes to cool off a little.
We had a wonderful Christmas!! The kids were able to visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus in early December at the Olsen's annual Christmas party.

I decided we would do a mostly homemade Christmas this year and I think that next year I might pass on that option. Or maybe if I just start now (since I'm writing about Christmas in May) I will get everything done in time. I was sewing sewing sewing right up until the last minute. The kids played with Grammy and Grandpa on Christmas eve so I could keep on sewing and we were finally all together as a family that evening. We even had a white Christmas eve - a special treat in Texas.

The kids opened their Christmas eve present - the beloved Christmas pajamas. It was my first go at sewing clothing from a pattern and let's just say I need a lot more practice. Porter's pants were the only things that turned out mostly okay. The girls nightgowns weren't terrible, but they were huge. I loved Brooklyn's face when she came down the hall tripping over the gown and the sleeves hanging over her hands and then she simply said, "Uh, mom, I think it's a little big." They were them that evening and then I put them in the sewing stack to alter them and that is where they still sit. Maybe I can just pull them out this Christmas and maybe they'll fit - or a couple more Christmases down the road - seriously, they were big.

Continuing with the homemade Christmas, everyone got a new library tote with a new book inside. Baden got a new Lego set, Brooklyn got a camera, Ella got new dress up clothes and Porter got Buzz Lightyear wing (they fit over his body and he loves to run around the house as Buzz but the wings are too wide to fit through door ways, so you can hear him banging and running into everything as he goes to "infinity and beyond" - not one of the smartest presents Santa has ever sent to our house). And the family got a fun new Wii game and new white towels (that way when I accidentally bleach them they won't get big orange blobs on them).

There was still snow on the ground on Christmas morning and it was fun to go and play in in for awhile. Without good snow clothes it just gets cold and wet really fast.

We spent the rest of the day and Nana and Papa's house. It was great time with the family and the kids love spending time with their cousins. I forgot my camera, Brooklyn accidentally deleted the pictures she took as she was getting used to her new camera's settings and one of the kids took these delightful shots with my iPhone (and trust me they are a real treat - my kids always catch me at my best).

The Tuckett Christmas kicked off a week later. I love that Christmas really does last for the entire month at our house. It was fun to spend several days together. We played a lot of Wii Rock Band and Apples and Apples and had lots of fun. We loved playing with Cassady and Everett and to see how much they are growing.
And to top the Tuckett Christmas weekend off was a light saber battle between my brother, Scott and his wife, Julie. There's always something to laugh at when Scott's around.