Logandale Fair 2011

We love the Logandale Fair.  We went last year for the first time but I think has started a tradition.  As soon as we drove away last year, KK has been asking when we could go back.  Needless to say, she was excited when she found out we would be going to the fair. 

It was a windy but not cold, so the kids loved it.  There weren't very many people there so my kids went from one ride to the next without having to wait in line.  We met up with our friends Hollie, Nelson and their two boys. 

KK riding the Merry Go Round

Corbin chillin in the stroller while the kids were on rides

We had to force Aidan to go on the first ride. We had to physically strap him in. He was crying and whining at the beginning but by the end he was all smiles.  We have to do this sometimes.  We have to force him to do things to show him it's not scary.  He is the biggest scaredy cat alive and he wouldn't do anything if we didn't make him.  We only had to do this twice before he realized there was nothing to be scared of.  After that he rode every ride.  You can't really tell but in this picture he was crying. 

Aidan happily riding with his friends

 

We gave the kids their own money so they could choose what they wanted to spend it on.

Aidan choose to spend his on a sno cone.  If you can't tell by his stained red face and jacket. 

KK got cotton candy but gave up her Sno Cone in order to jump on this trampoline.  She did it last year and has wanted to do it again since.  She is my dare devil.  They were having her jump as high as it would go and she loved it.   They also taught her how to do back flips and she loved doing that anymore. 

We watched a mini monster truck race.  KK got chosen to be a judge.  She was able to help decide who won.

 

When the race was over they let the 3 judges ride around in the trucks. 

 And took their pictures next to the truck.  She was so happy that she got chosen.



It was so fun that we didn't leave until really late, and we would of stayed longer if KK didn't have school the next day.  We can't wait until next year. 

Surprise Trampoline

We have been going back and forth for a long time now on whether we were going to get a trampoline.  I was worried about it ruining the fake grass, but I know it would give the kids countless hours of fun.  Especially with summer coming up, they need a way to get all their energy and wiggles out.  We finally talked to a friend who has fake grass and a trampoline and they reassured us that it hasn't damaged their grass at all.  So we finally broke down and bought one.  We kept it a secret from the kids.  They went to spend the night with Trev's parents so we waited until the weekend to put it up.  Trevor really wanted the kids to come home and have it already put together, so that's what we did.  

Trev putting the trampoline together 

I love how thorough he is. 

Trev climbed on the table to move the light so .....

Corbin followed his dad's lead.

We were Trev's cheerleaders as he put the trampoline together.

I didn't get pictures of them seeing it for the first time but I did get it on video.  They loved it.  Aidan likes it but he is gets off and on all day.  KK on the other hand loves it and will stay on it all day.

KK Rash

I think the worst thing about being a parent is having your kids be sick and you can do nothing to make them feel better.  Since December (no lie) we have not gone more than a week without someone being sick.  I am so over it.  I guess with a kindergartner, a preschooler and a toddler in nursery we have not had the best luck.  

 Well two weeks ago, KK kept complaining that her throat her.  I kept looking at her throat and it was a little red but not pussy or any white spots, so I doped her up on Tylenol and hoped after a day or two it would go away.  No such luck!!! After three days, KK woke up with her face and neck swollen  I could hear her trying to breathe. I felt her neck and there was a huge hard ball (about the size of half a golf ball) on each side of her neck.  I took her into the doctor.   They were surprised they were so big.  They tested her for strep and it came back negative.  They doctor said it was a clogged lymph node.  They put her on an antibiotic and after two days it was almost all gone.  I thought it was over, but a week later while KK was playing in the hot tub she broke out in a huge rash.  She was covered from head to toe.  I was paranoid because I thought she might be having an allergic reaction to the antibiotic. Here is what it looked like a

We went back to the doctor.  I was just hoping she wasn't allergic to the antibiotic and come to find out she isn't.  She had gotten something else.  It is called 5th disease.  It's more common in girls.  It is only dangerous for an unborn child so really nothing to worry about which was some good news.  She just had to bear the itching for the next 3 days until it went away.   

All I can say is...
sickness, sickness, go away
Come again some other day (or never)

PS. As I write this post (which is two weeks past due), KK is sick again.  She has a high fever and is complaining about her throat again.  I hate kindergarten germs!!!!!

 

Corbin Update

Corbin has grown up so much in the past couple of weeks.  He has gone from a baby to a toddler.  He is so busy.  I feel like I am constantly cleaning up after him.  He is getting better about playing by himself or with his brother during the day so I can actually get things done with out him clinging to my knee.  He loves his brother and sister and loves any attention they give him.  He likes to mimic the things they do.  It is quite hilarious. 

He can open the closet that has the vacuum, broom and mop.  He loves to get all three out and play with them.  I have wised up and I turn on the swifter and let him sweep up the floor while he plays.  He will drag it everywhere.

He loves to sit on the stairs and chill.  He will sit like this and watch TV.

KK got a kids IPOD for Christmas but doesn't really play with it anymore but Corbin does.  He will walk around with it all day.  I thought him laying on his stomach playing the game was so cute. 

KK and Aidan  went and spent the night at G Ma and Papa's house so Corbin had all mine and Trev's attention.  He loved it.  Here he is watching Conference with his dad. 

I love this little boy.  He brings me so much joy!!!!!

KK Update

I am so in love with this little "big" girl.  She amazes me almost everyday with the things she does, says and learns.  I love how spunky, sensitive, assertive, compassionate, and fun loving she is.  I want to just snuggle her especially when she gives me that sly smile.  She loves to take pictures and this is one of them. 

Of course, we have to do our silly faces.

Last week was reading week at school.  Each day they had to do something different to show their support.  The day she got most excited for was "Crazy hair" day.  She loved the thought of not having to do her hair.  She was so proud of it.

KK is doing church T Ball again and on this particular night she was so excited that her team was playing against the team of the boy she has a crush on.  His name is Benjamin.  He is in her class at school.  They are LDS but he is in another ward.  She talks about him all the time.  She tells us he is "Hot" and that she is in love with him.  She told her dad that she is going to wear a sign on her back that says, "I love boys".  Her dad doesn't like it so much but what can you do. Well this is a few pictures of how the night went.

When Ben's dad came over he posed them for this picture.  Afterwards, KK was so happy cause her cheek touched Ben's.  If this is happening at 5, I can only imagine what I will be dealing with when she's 12.

Here's to her first love!!!!!

Aidan's Loves

Aidan is still a very active 3 year old boy that has more energy than I know what to do with.  He is constantly moving and because of that he is always making us laugh with the things he says and does.  Aidan is at the age where he is starting to have likes and dis likes.  He is also starting to have his favorites.  He will get attached to something and want to do it or use it all day long.  For example, his favorite movie is batman, favorite costume is batman. 

Here are some other favorite things Aidan loves.

Aidan loves music.  He loves to listen and dance to it.  Here Aidan is enjoying daddies "New Ears".  They are high tech ear phones that all the professional singers and song writers use.  I am surprised daddy let anyone touch them.  They are his prized possessions.   

One of Aidan's favorite things to do is play with his train.  He will spend hours setting it up and then only play with it for a minute before he tears it apart. 

Aidan's new favorite thing right now is his cowboy boots. I got them on for $4 so I couldn't resist but he wants to wear them everyday no matter what he is wearing.  I have to draw the line with shorts.  I just can't do cowboy boots with shorts. 

 

I love how interesting he is becoming and love watching him grow and turn into a little man.  

I love you!!!!

First Move Away

All my family still lives in Vegas.   Well at least this was the case until last weekend.  I have 6 sisters and 1 bother and for us all to have stayed in Vegas I think is very unusual.  I have only known Vegas as home and no where else (minus the year I went to hair school in Utah).  I can not imagine moving away and I guess no one else had either but Toresa finally did.  She moved to Arizona to move in with her boyfriend. 

Kaitlyn and Aidan have had a hard time with it.  We had Gianna and Toresa live with us for 6 months so my kids grew to love Gianna more like a sister than a cousin.  They were very sad to see her move.  They ask about her constantly but I think the knowledge that we are going to go visit them this summer has helped. 

Here is a picture I took of them playing at her house for the last time.  They were very sad to say good bye. 

I love my sister but I know she found happiness that she had been lacking for a while, so I am happy that she followed her heart.  I can't wait for this summer when we can go and visit. 

Testimony

Dear Kaitlyn, Aidan, Corbin and any other kids I have or will be blessed with,

This past weekend was General Conference, and as I watched it I was reminded of just how blessed we are to have the true church in our lives.  I use this blog to keep a journal type record of your childhood, and I wanted to let you know what I know to be true so when you doubt or are being tested you can read what I knew to be true.  I don't want you to ever doubt that I had a testimony.

 I am so thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who loves me and knows me personally.  I am thankful for my brother and Savior Jesus Christ who died for me that I might live again with my family forever.  I am thankful that I know why I was sent to this earth.  I am thankful for a prophet who can lead us and give us counsel to help us to be the happiest we can be in this life.  I know I am not perfect but Heavenly Father doesn't ask for us to be perfect...he only asks for us to try to be perfect.  We only have to try our best and he will make up the rest.  I have had a hard time in my life trying not to compare myself to other people.  I use other people's accomplishments to rate how successful I am.  I am trying to change this but it is a work in progress. I came across a quote that truly touched me.  It said..

"Let me cite a hypothetical example of a dear sister in any ward, the one who has perfect children who never cause a disturbance in church. She is the one working on her 20th generation in her family history, keeps an immaculate home, has memorized the book of Mark, and makes wool sweaters for the orphaned children in Romania. No disrespect, of course, intended for any of these worthy goals. Now, when you get tempted to throw your hands in the air and give up because of this dear sister, please remember you’re not competing with her any more than I’m competing with the members of the Quorum of the Twelve in winning a 50-yard dash.


“The only thing you need to worry about is striving to be the best you can be. And how do you do that? You keep your eye on the goals that matter most in life, and you move towards them step by step.” Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin (1917–2008) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “One Step after Another,” Ensign, Nov. 2001, 26.

When I feel overwhelmed and get caught up in all that I am expected to do as a mother, wife, friend, sister, daughter, church calling, etc.  I reflect back on this quote.  As long as I am striving to be all that I can be....that is all that matters.  It also helps me remind me that I need to do it a step at a time.  If I try to do it a fast pace...I am going to get tired and fatigued and I will probably eventually give up. 

To me this life isn't about how fast you move or about how much you get "done".  It is about how much you love, help, and thought of others.  Sometimes I forget this though, but I hope people remember me by how much I loved and cared and not by how much I "did". 

I also testify that Heavenly Father knows us each perfectly and individually. He knows all that is lovable and beautiful in us. The world teaches us to think we are unattractive, unacceptable, and unworthy of love if we don’t meet the arbitrary standards it sets for us. Sometimes it’s hard to turn away from such loud and convincing lies, but our Father in Heaven will always be there to remind us of our worth and of the value He sees in us. His standard, not the world’s, is the true measure of our worth. The more we believe and accept the Lord’s love, the more we will love Him and trust in Him.

When I do start to doubt and give into Satan's thoughts I try to remember this quote. 

Opposition turns up almost anyplace something good has happened. It can happen when you are trying to get an education. It can hit you after your first month in your new mission field. It certainly happens in matters of love and marriage. … There are cautions and considerations to make, but once there has been genuine illumination, beware the temptation to retreat from a good thing. If it was right when you prayed about it and trusted it and lived for it, it is right now. Don’t give up when the pressure mounts. … Face your doubts. Master your fears. ‘Cast not away therefore your confidence.’ Stay the course and see the beauty of life unfold for you.”Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “Cast Not Away Therefore Your Confidence,” Brigham Young University devotional address, March 2, 1999.

This quote helps remind me that Satan is real.  He is as real as you and me.  He does not want us to be happy.  He wants us to be as miserable like him.  He never gives up and he never takes a day off.  He will try in whatever way possible to bring you and I unhappiness and we have to try to always be aware of his snares so we don't fall into them. 
Even though, Satan tries to bring us down....there is someone who is there to bring us up....Jesus Christ.  We are supposed to be happy and joyful in this life and as we follow Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ we will be that happiest have the most joy possible. 

I love my children and have tried to do and be the best mother I know how to be.  I hope they will see through my faults and know just how much I truly love them.  They are my life and my world.  They are my happiness and bring me the most joy.  I love you so much!!!!

Love Mommy