Parker's School Program

Parker had his 1st grade Christmas Program on Monday. He was so excited to be performing at the performing arts center for us. They had 2  programs, one at 1:00 in the afternoon and one at 6:00 in the evening. There weren't very many people at the afternoon one, but Grandma Yancey and I were able to make it to watch Parker and his class sing their songs. The evening performance was huge, there were close to 1000 people there to watch the 1-3 grades perform. They all did a great job, but the first grade was the best! (I can say that) Parker actually sang, which is a bug improvement from his Kindergarten program. He is loving being in 1st grade and loves his wonderful teacher.

A New Tradition

We have started a new tradition at our house this year. The Elf on the Shelf. We had a special visitor come to our house, the day after we werent feeling so great. So it was such a nice suprise to see something good and to have something fun and exciting to look forward to. The kids and I named our special elf Fritz. Fritz was sent to our home from Santa Claus to help watch after the kids and their behavior before Christmas time. He then reports back to the North Pole each evening and lets Santa know what the kids have been doing. He can watch them and the kids can talk to him, but he cannot talk back and the kids are not allowed to touch him, because his magic will wear off. So far the kids love getting up each morning and seeing where Fritz is hiding. They talk to him and they are quick to do something I ask them when I remind them that Fritz is watching. Paxten even gets excited when he spots our special Elf. He has also been really great not to touch him. We are thrilled that this has become a tradition and we look forward to the rest of the month and many more years with our new favorite Elf Fritz!!

Sickness

Parker stayed home from school a day last week because he had been up all night throwing up. I was not thrilled about him missing another day, but the poor kid was miserable. Matt was nice enough to stay up with him during the night, but I didn't get much sleep either, I hear everything that goes on in the house! I was so hoping that Parker would be the only one to get this horrible bug....but I was wrong. Parker was up Wednesday night/Thursday Morning and was feeling better by Thursday night so it was just about a 24 hour bug. No one else was feeling yucky on Thursday so I thought we were in the clear. The Friday afternoon I started to feel it coming on. I let Matt know, he was working a double shift the day. He came home about 6:00 to check on us and while he was home on a break Paige started to feel sick. So Matt called into worked and told them he needed to stay home and take care of me and Paige. Luckily they let him. I am not kidding when I say that within the hour of him being home, he got horribly sick as well. Then Paxten. It was miserable!! All 4 of us sick, with one bathroom! It was one long night and I think both Matt and I thought we were going to die. There is nothing worse that feeling so miserable, and still having to take care of other people and their illness. It was so hard!! We did make it through the night and the next day and by Sunday night we were all starting to feel like our selves again. I don't think Matt has ever been that sick since we have been married. So I know it is a bad bug when he gets it too and it affects him like that. Anyways, we are glad that is over with and we are back to normal at our household!

Big Sister

Paige is a pretty good big sister! I often find her and Paxten on the couch with Paxten alseep in her lap. Sometimes they cuddle together on the couch and she puts her arm around him and it just melts my heart. Then before I know it Paxten is alseep and she is telling me to be quiet so I dont wake him up. It is just so cute! Paxten is at the age where he thinks he doesn't need a nap and it is often a fight to get him to take one, so days like this are cherished! Love these kids!

Grandpa's 80th Birthday Party

This year was a special one in our family, our wonderful Grandpa turned 80 years old. His kids planned a party in celebration of him and his wonderful life and the poseterity that he has raised. It was so much fun to get together and to see family that I haven't seen for a long time. Grandpa has 10 kids and 9 of them were able to make it. Roseanne (Gus), Grant (Gwen), Serena (Paul), Marilyn (Val), Zina (Kyle), Sarah (Tim), Kyle (Katie), Krystel (Kevin), and Rebecca (Travis). Most of the grandkids were there as well. We were only missing Garrett (Arial), Chad (Ashlee), Carrie (Erick), Courtney (Paul), Lauren (Rhett), Lyndsay (Brenden), Mandy, Jacob, & Cody. We missed Loretta, who is living in Michigan and couldn't get away with it being the Holiday weekend. There were 91 people that attended and about 75 were from grandpa's line, the others were Sharon's kids. It was so fun to let the kids play and the adults visited and caught up with each other. I have great memories with all of my cousins and I feel like we have had great opportunities growing up to be able to spend time with our cousins and to get to know them and for them to become some of my greatest friends as well. I am glad that our family is so close and that we love to get together and spend time together. I seriously could spend weeks with all of these people and never tire of them. I love them all and I am so grateful to be a part of this truly wonderful family. I am also very grateful to call Richard Williams my grandpa!

Thanksgiving Day

For Thanksgiving this year my Parents had dinner at their house with just my sister and I, and our families, attending. So it was a smaller bunch, but we had a fun time together. My mom made the turkey, potatoes, gravy, and rolls. Charyn made a relish tray with the very important pimento stuffed celery, and pumpkin pies. I made the stuffing and the sweet potatoe casserole. All of the food was so delicious and we were all so full afterwards. It made it very easy to all contribute to the meal and not at all stressful. We played a few games together and then Matt and I went to visit his mom who is staying with his brother Jared right now because of a knee surgery. While we were there visiting Josh and Lydia came to visit and Brad and his boys. So we were able to see 3 of his brothers in one visit. We had good intentions of making it out to Moreland to see the Keller clan, but time got away from us and we didn't make it out there. It is getting hard to split the day into thirds and I am sure we are going to have to start rotating holidays soon, but how do you choose. We have such wonderful families, that we are lucky to get to spend time with all of them.

Family Photos

I like to take a few family snapshots at Thanksgiving time each year. These are the ones that I was able to get in the short amount of time the kids would cooperate. Notice there isn't an individual of Paxten, because he would not stand by himself to let me take a picture. He is at that age, and I didn't want to fight him for a bad picture of him crying. It was freezing cold, so Parker and Paige didn't last long outside either. Nevertheless, we got a few good ones! Matt 30, Erika 30, Parker 7, Paige 4.5, Paxten 20 months.

Disneyland Day 5

We woke up on the last day in California, had breakfast at McDonalds, caught our shuttle and made it to the airport by 11:30. We made it through security with only me being subjected to further screaning, because Matt was holding Paxten, I was the one that had to do it. We had to wait in the terminal for abour an hour and then we boarded a very full plane. On the way there, there were empty seats and we were all able to sit by each other. this flight was very different. We were all spread out throughout the plane in 2 seats here, 2 seats there. There was not one empty seat on the plane. Matt sat with Parker and Paxten and Paige and I were together on the very last rows in the plane. The flight was a little bumpy on the way into Salt Lake because of the weather, but it was a beautiful sight to look out the plane window and see the blanket of clouds covering the earth. It was amazing. Paige slept the mojority of the flight and we landed in Salt Lake to 34 degree weather! We had left California and it was in the 70's so 34 seemed so cold!!! There had been a storm while we were gone and the car had about 5 inches of snow on it. By the time we got our bags from the baggae claim, got the car out of the parking lot, stopped for dinner and gas, we didn't arrive home until 9:30 that night. It was such a fun vacation and we were so glad we made the effort to take the kids while they were young. It was truly magical and the kids were so well behaved, I was amazed!! We were also lucky enough to go with Matt's Dad and Mom Kerry and Tara, and Quentin, Macee, Race, and Tosh. It was so fun to spend time with them and to get to know them better and to create these memories with them. The great news is that after spending a week side by side with each other we still love each other and want to spend more time together. Family Bonding!! We love it!!! The kids are constantly asking me when we are going back....we will be going back, I am just not sure when at this point!!

Disneyland Day 4 Part 2

Some of our favorite snacks were:

2 Dill Pickles ................................................$5.98
2 Churros.......................................................$8.00
2 Mickey Ice cream sandwiches .......... $9.50
5 Diet Cokes.................................................$17.50
2 Mickey Pretzels .w/ Cheese ............$10.00
1 Dole Whip Float .........................................$5.60
1 Watermelon Cotton Candy ...................$4.00
2 Slushies .....................................................$9.00
2 Bananas ......................................................$3.98
1 bag grapes ...................................................$2.99
1 bag cheetos .................................................$2.99
5 Corn dogs .................................................$30.00
1 Cars Collectors cup W/ root beer ........$9.50
.........................................................................$119.40
Priceless!

The food in the park was rediculously priced, but we did splurge on a few items to really get the whole Disneyland experience. They honestly had THE best pickles I have ever had, I would know! The mickey pretzel with cheese dip was also amazing. And one of my very favorites was the Dole Whip Float, pineapple ice cream floating on pineapple juice. It was delicious. Paige and I each had a mickey ice cream sandwhich and it was creamy and delicious as well. Parker like the churros and the pretzels and the cotton candy. I think we really did experience the true Disneyland and loved every minute of it!! The kids can't wait go back. We probably could have spent two more days at the parks doing all the things we missed and visiting stores and stuff that we didn't even get around to. But my feet, as well as everyone else's might not have made it 2 more days. 3 days was just about right!

Disneyland Day 4 Part 1

For our final day at the Happiest Place on Earth, we went back to Disneyland to ride the rides we had missed the first day as well as some of our favorites. When we first entered the park we saw Mary Poppins and Pinnocchio. We went to Mickeys Toon Town and rode a ride there, we went on the Teacups again, rode Mr. Toads Wild Ride, we rode Pirates of the Caribbean again, splash mountain, and Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. Some of them also went on the Space Mountain again and the Buzz Lightyear ride. We were really lucky to have gone at the time of year when the lines for the rides were pretty short. There is no way we could have ridden all those rides again if it had been the middle of July! As we were about to end our day of fun, It's A Small World reopened and we were able to go on that. That is a classic and a must if you visit Disneyland. It was all decorated for the holidays and they sang holiday songs as well as It's A Small World. It was fun to end our adventures with that ride. Matt and Tosh wanted to ride the tower of terror one more time over at California adventure, so they went over there and the rest of us went to Downtown Disneyland where the kids picked out a toy and a shirt as a souvenir. I was exhauseted after chasing three kids in the store by myself. It had also rained off and on that day and was much cooler, which was nice, but our feet were very wet when we got back to the hotel. We had a nice dinner at IHOP and then went back to the hotel to get our stuff packed and ready to leave in the morning. 

Disneyland Day 3 Part 2

After drying off and getting in a nap, we went back to California Adventure to ride some more rides before the show started. Parker, Matt, Tosh, and Macee went on the Screamin Californis Rollercoaster and Race and Paige went on King Triton's Carousel. Parker wasn't too sure of that coaster after he got off, it was pretty fast and went around in loops a lot. At least Matt was with him. We did some shopping around the Paradise Pier and rode the new Toy Story Ride. It was one of my favorites, you sat in a chair and wore 3D glasses. As the ride moved, you had to shoot different targets in Andy's room. It was really fun. Matt and Parker, and Tosh and Macee went on Mickey's Fun Wheel and then they went on Goofy's Sky School. We bought our family 5 corndogs, and spent $30!, we found a spot to stand and watch the World of Color Show. It was pretty amazing all the stuff they can do with projectors and color. It was about a 30-40 minute show and we were tired of stading in one place for that long, but the show was well worth it. It incorporated different images from years of Disney shows and music to go along with it. It was fun. We then went back to the hotel and the older boys hit the hot tub and I stayed back and got the kids to sleep. We sure know how to wear them out!

Disneyland Day 3 Part 1

We decided to use our early morning pass and get into California Adventure one hour earlier than the regular Park opening. The downfall of that is there ar 500 other people doing the same thing. And on early morning openings they only open certain parts of the park so everyone is congested to one part of the park until 10:00. Cars Land happend to be the part that was open and we all rushed to try and get on the  Radiator Springs racers before everyone else arrived. It was amazing walking into that part of the park, it looked identical to the town in the movie Cars. It was so fun!! The first ride we stopped at was Mater's Junkyard Jamboree and everyone but Paxten and I were able to ride this ride. While we were waiting for them to finish we got our picture taked with Lightning McQueen. The others finished just as we were and they were able to get pictures too before the crowds realized Lightning McQueen was there, so we didn't have to wait at all to se him. We then saw Red the Firetruck and Stanley, the founder of Radiator Springs.  We finally made it to the Radiator Springs Racers and we werent sure they were going to let Paige ride, she was right on the verge of being too short. But she made it. Paxten and I were once again the lone persons not able to ride. So we walked aroung Radiator Springs and took some pictures and saw Mater! We got a drink at the Cozy Cone, in a cone shaped cup and then we walked to another part of the park where Paxten could ride the rides. We met back up with the others and got our tickets for the World Of Color show that night. We went to a Bugs Land and rode the rides there, then went to the tower of terror. Matt, Parker, Tosh, Macee, Tara, and Quentin rode that ride. Grandpa, Grandpa, Paxten, Paige, Race, and I went for a ride on the trolley and saw Mickey the conductor, Jake from Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Chip and Dale, and Goofy. After a bunch of pictures, we went on the Monsters INC ride and Tosh and Matt went back to the Tower of Terror. We then made our way to the River Rapids ride, were we all got wet but had a great time. So much so that we rode that ride twice and took turns watching Paxten. After that we decided to go back to the hotel for a few hours to dry off and take a break before going back for the night show.  

Disneyland Day 2 Part 2

Paxten was not big enough to ride on quite a few rides, neither was Paige. A lot of the rides you had to be 40" tall. Paige was about 39.5" so some of the rides she snuck by and was able to go on and some she wasn't. She was able to go on Splash Mountain and she was in the front and boy did she get wet!! She wasn't too sure about how fun that ride was after she came off and was pretty soaked. While they were on that ride Paxten, and Grandma and I rode the Winnie the Pooh ride and then Paxten and I got our pictures taken with Tigger and Eeyore. After those rides we went and rode on Pirates of the Caribbean. That turned out to be one of our favorites and all of us could ride it together in one boat. That really made it fun. After that we decided that we had about had enough walking for the day and we were all hungry. We had packed in snacks and stuff, but hadn't really had a substantial meal all day long. It was about 6:00 and  as we were leaving the park we saw Pluto, and Mickey Mouse! We had to get a picture with them, after that Minnie Mouse came right by us and we got a picture with her. Tara happened to see Aurora and Cinderella walking and she literally chased them down to get a picture of them with Macee. After she got her picture she came and grabbed Paige and they both took off running to chase them down and get a picture with Paige. Paige was so excited to get a picture with some of her favorite princesses and that was a wonderful ending to our first day. We left the park and had dinner at McDonalds right by our hotel. The kids were completely worn out! Matt stayed with the kids in the hotel room and Tosh, Tara, Quentin and I hit the hotel hot tub and relaxed and visited for about a hour. It felt so good to relax and rest from walking all day long. We were very excited about the next day when we would be going to see Cars Land in California Adventure!