Vacation Surprise

I have gotten so behind on blogging! Here goes one update! For Christmas we surprised our kids with an upcoming trip to Disneyland! It was so FUN! On Christmas morning I made a little scavenger hunt and at each one there was a Disney t-Shirt. Of course Matthew started to figure it out.  Finally at the last one was a Mickey Mouse stuffed animal holding a card.  The card said "In March I will be seeing all of you, Can't wait!" We recorded the kids reaction they jumped up and down screaming. Madelynn danced and Marcus and Mckay hugged me!! It was as GREAT as we had expected and so fun for me and Jake! Unfortunately I couldn't get the recording to work on our computer! It was so fun! Madelynn has never been and we decided we were long over due for a "Real" vacation! Jake had a really busy summer last year and at the end of the summer we had some extra money. Jake came home one day and said " I know what we need to do with that money!" I have been wanting to take the kids to Disney for a few years. He told me we are going to go to Disneyland! I was so excited I cried! Jake is Great, I am so lucky to have him as my children's father! I booked the trip in early September, it was SO hard not to tell the kids! I wanted them to share in our excitement. We decided to go the end of March mostly because it was the first week of the new Semester at school (when you have a High School-er this is important!) and then me and Jake could spend our Birthdays in Disneyland! So we waited for March and then we took off for our week long adventure!

                If you can't tell, we loved Car's Land! It was amazing, just like the movie!

We spent 4 days in Disneyland-we took a day off in between to go to the beach. It was a Fabulous Vacation! I loved every minute of it. Except the waiting in line part!! LOL  It was pretty busy two of the days and OK the other two.   Here are a bunch of pictures of out adventure! I would go again in a heartbeat- Jake would like to go somewhere we don't have to wait in line!!LOL Disney is so magical and our kids had the time of there lives! Some of our favorites that we rode daily-sometimes more then once a day; Car's Ride, Splash Mountain and Thunder Mountain. We wore Minnie Ears, Goofy and Donald Duck hats, we just wanted to take it all in. While we were there we also got to experience an Earthquake-that was a little scary! What was so Scary was how people acted, We tried to remain calm, but people were running everywhere. I just took my kids hands and we all stayed together.  It was just a little one but it was something we will never forget! Marcus and Madelynn were our little "Dare Devils" they rode just about anything! Next time you see Jake ask him about the "Tower of Terror"- I don't think he will EVER do that ride again! It was good for a laugh!!

It's the Simple Things.........

I wanted to post about a few things I am Thankful for this year! For me this year its the little and simple things that I am most grateful for! Here it is a few things I am Thankful for this year:

A few months ago we bought a new Car-which we absolutely love! It's a Chevy Traverse and we all fit comfortable in it. We decide to keep our little car because we have an upcoming driver. Jake's sister was selling a Jeep. Jake wanted to buy it and was super excited about it. Me......not so much. He wanted to sell the car and buy the Jeep. I'm thinking really reliable, good sturdy car for and old.....Jeep?? Really?  So Jake put the car on KSL and we sold it pretty quick! Then he bought the Jeep. I was not to thrilled but I know he has wanted one and it's a hobby etc....... I have to say I am so thankful for that Jeep! I am even more grateful for a very insightful husband! All I could see was an old Jeep that we sold for a pretty good car! But to Jake and now to me this has been a life safer! Matthew Loves this Jeep and he would rather work on it and clean it and learn to change the oil in it then do anything else! Car's in general really interest Matthew- something we just learned! I am SO thankful for Jake and that he could see the bigger picture and wanted this silly Jeep to help build a better relationship with his son! Every time he works on it he calls for Matthew to help him. Jake is a Great dad! I love This teenager of mine! Matthew is a tough one sometimes but having an interest in something has really changed his attitude and given him something to do..... I am  so Grateful for that!

This is a tough one for me! I have tears in my eye as I am typing this! I am so Grateful for these two boys! I admire both Mckay and Marcus so much! Marcus really has some struggles but everyday he is giving it 100% and working so hard at school. Marcus would be a lost little boy without his Big brother Mckay! I hate to see Marcus struggle but admire his positive attitude its remarkable that he always has a smile on his face! I admire Mckay because he is amazing with him! Last weekend Jake took Matthew and Mckay fishing to Montana. Marcus and Madelynn stayed home with me. On Friday I came home form work and My sweet Marcus was just in tears... he was really upset about something someone said at school to him. He was really upset for about and hour.... he kept asking me when Mckay would be home and told me he just needed him today! On Sunday when they got home Marcus followed Mckay around for nearly 2 hours telling him all about what was going on  and what he had missed! When Marcus couldn't tie his own shoes (something he finally just learned a month ago) Mckay would tie them for him at school and home!Mckay sees Marcus struggle and just wants to help him. I am So grateful for the relationship these two have and I thank my Heavenly Father Daily for the amazing gift he has given me with theses two boys!

Madelynn-OOhhhh how I adore this girl! Madelynn testes me daily she has quite the attitude at 6! She reminds me of myself-that is scary! She loves to play all kinds of pretend games. she asked me this summer.. "What should I be when I grow up?" I said "whatever you want!" She said "Maybe a teacher, or maybe I could work at the snow-cone shack?" (we had just gotten a snowie!) I laughed at her. Then she said " No I actually think I want to be a Mom just like you!" In that one little comment I thought to myself.... Maybe I am doing something right-she wants to be just like me! I would want nothing more for her then to be an amazing mother! She reminds me daily to be a better Mom because she is always watching me. Some-days it is not easy to be the best mom I can be. But I am so thankful for her and that threw her I can be a better person!

 I was just thinking the other day how extremely grateful I am to have a home! I see a lot of Sad situations with my job some of my patients are nearly homeless I am grateful at the end of a very long day to have a warm, safe, loving home to go to! I am also Thankful for our sweet little dog Rex. This little dog makes my children happy daily....And I love that he always puts a smile on there faces!I love nothing more then to see my children happy! I am also thankful for were we live! I really like Payson and think it is a GREAT place to raise my family.  My kids are Happy here and we have some good friends and neighbors who help influence my children for the better-I am so thankful for good influences!  I am so Thankful to live in such a beautiful city.

 

I could probably go on and on. I am just a very blessed person! I am so thankful for the gospel! I just recently got called to serve in the primary presidency. I love this calling!  Threw this calling I have felt the love the savior has for his children. It amazes me! He has sent them to this earth at difficult time but threw him and his gospel he has provided a way form them to make it back to him! I love that!  I am so Grateful for the love of my Savior and everything he has given me! It truly is the small and simple things that make life amazing!

I'm A Slacker!

Were did the time go? I'm not sure what happened but here we are! It's been a busy few months here is a quick update!
 In August all the kids went back to school-I always have mixed feelings about this! Matthew is in the 9th grade Mckay the 6th, Marcus the 5th and Madelynn is a Big 1st grader! That leaves me home alone during the day-what a change that has been! Madelynn was super excited to go to school and even more excited to not have to go to daycare anymore-Lucky girl! She now gets on the bus with the boys and comes home with them. This was a BIG adjustment for her- She struggled for the first month and half-she would say "going to school is such a long day!" She would be so tired and grumpy at the end of the day.  Madelynn is doing much better now and is finally use to it! Madelynn is taking gymnastics and Dance which she is really enjoying! I'm still working at the Dialysis Center 3 days a week which is giving me something today during the day! Jake has been so busy this Summer- I dare say it was one of his busiest Summer's ever! Matthew has been working on his Eagle Project-what a chore that was! He refinished a sign up Payson Canyon for the Kiwanis Club-it turned out Great! We are SO proud of him he worked really hard to accomplish this-it's a lot of work.......and we still have to complete the packet of paperwork-ooohh Joy! Mckay has been playing Soccer like a Crazy kid!! His team is finally done until Spring- Yeah! The are about middle of there league again so in  Spring they will have finals- will have to see how they do! Mckay also just got done playing flag football-which he really enjoyed! He was great at it and scored countless touchdowns! He just loves sports! Marcus has been playing soccer on an accelerated team this fall which he has loved! He has such a cute little team. Marcus is the goalie about half the game and sometimes the stress of it all gets to him. He is a good little player! Marcus likes to watch Real Salt Lake he will tell you all about them if you just ask......This last Summer was great! Jake took Matthew and a group of boys on a back-packing trip. We camped a lot at my parents property. We took a few little trips.  We also got to spend some time at our friends beautiful Cabin at Scofield-thanks Websters for inviting us! We had a good summer! All in all things are going good! Were getting super excited for the upcoming Holidays! We have a HUGE surprise for our kids this Christmas-Hope I can wait to Surprise them...........I kinda want to tell them! Cross your fingers for me that I can hold out!!!

Birthday Boys!

If you know us you know that Birthday's around here come in twos. On September 9th it was Matthew's Birthday and On September 10th it was McKay's Birthday! Happy Birthday boys! I am a lucky mom to have these to in my life-I have been SO blessed!  Matthew turned the big 15-Were has the time gone? Mckay turned 12.  There are getting SO Big-Literally!!  For both the boys Birthday we had a BBQ at the Pasyon City park to celebrate. Mckay because he turned 12 received the Priesthood and is now a Deacon! We invited family and friends and had a BBQ at the park-with some Soccer of course. It was a great time!

Matthew is a great kid! This year he is in the 9th grade- So his grades really count! He enjoys hanging out with his friends, playing video games, watching movies, playing Baseball and Basketball. We are super lucky were we live-our little neighborhood has nearly 15 boys Matthew's age- This has been such a blessing in his life. He is friends with most of these boys- but he hangs out with his buddy Matthew D and Connor the most. He is your typical moody, sometimes mouthy teenager. (yeah for us!) He is really tall and so skinny-I wish he would gain some weight-he has his dad's genes.  Matthew loves the outdoors-he will never turn down a camping trip and enjoys 4-wheeler rides! Matthew also really enjoys Cars, Trucks, Jeeps etc..... he is always saying when we are driving places....."Did you see that truck?" He is now 15 so he is eligible to get his learners permit-Yikes. This means he can drive with a parent! We are working on getting that -I'm not so sure I am ready for that! Matthew is a good kid, he works really hard to accomplish things and is very smart he is also very kind to all his friends. Love you Matthew!

Mckay turned 12! Mckay is in the 6th grade this year so next year he will be in  Junior High! WOW! McKay likes all sports but his favorites are: Basketball, Soccer and Football. He is a very talented young man he excels at every sport he plays! (lucky kid) He can run super fast and others can't keep up-it is so much fun to see him play sports! His favorite is Soccer- he can play for hours!! Mckay also likes to read, play video games, hang out with his friends. Mckay also loves to go camping and 4-wheeling. Mckay is usually my least social child- he can stay home and just entertain himself by doing art, legos, playing soccer, or other things. Sometimes he asks me "Will you ground me tomorrow so I can tell my friends I can't play? I just want to stay home!" I love my Mckay! He is such a blessing to his brother Marcus- I can't even write about it! Marcus looks up to and adores Mckay! Thanks Mckay for being such an amazing big brother-We love you!

Summer Updates!

I has been SO hot this Summer! I'm ready for fall-and its' only July.  So far Summer has been great-Thought I would do a quick update. The boys have been playing Baseball-Matthew is on the Ranges and Marcus is on the Marlins. We just finished regular season City League. Matthew's team is number one in Payson and next week are headed to the State Baseball Tournament-which is always a lot of fun and a lot of baseball! Marcus team didn't make it and he was pretty bummed about it. He loves to be apart of a team. Marcus got to pitch a few times for his team he did a great Job. He would get so nervous-but he would pull threw a few times they would have to change him out because his nerves got the best of him. I'm not sure I could do that- I would probably "crack" under pressure. Marcus tried out for a soccer team in June- Nebo United U11 they had 5 openings and had 14 kids tryout. He was SUPER excited to make it and even more excited that Nico made it to- Yeah for Carpooling!! Marcus will be playing with Team Fusion this Fall and next Spring-all over UT. County! We are excited for him-like McKay- Marcus really enjoys Soccer and is excited to be on this team. McKay has had a pretty boring Summer-Poor guy. Mckay was swinging on an Unfinished door frame in the basement when he fell on  his arms on the cement. He was really upset and hurting I could tell almost immediately his right arm was broken. We got him in the car and took him in to our Dr. Office were he was shivering, crying and having panic attacks. Poor Kid! The DR. was amazing with him Mckay told him both arms hurt-he just looked at the left-didn't want to cause more anxiety for McKay. We were sent over to the hospital for  X-rays. X-rays showed both arms were broken. The right Arm was pretty bad-we had to wait 24hr and thankfully he did not need surgery! He had splints on  for a week and now has two casts. Needless to say he has been pretty bored!  He had to sit out of Soccer for 2 weeks but is now playing again-which has been an outlet for him! He can't wait for July 23rd-when he gets them off-we cant either! McKay decided to play with UT FC U12 this year for Soccer-he is Super excited and has already put in a lot of work to be apart of the team. I hope I can keep up with all these soccer games and practices all over UT. County with Mckay he is playing on a State Level and will play all over- Even St. George! It's going to be busy!! Madelynn has been doing summer gymnastics and loves the swimming pool! She wants to go everyday- she is such a FISH! She has been super excited lately because she lost two teeth! It is so fun to see her growing up! We have been out camping a few times and have more planned this Summer. We just recently bought a new 4-wheeler which has been alot of fun. The kids love to camp and 4-wheel they would live in the mountains he we could! Here are a few Pictures-

St. George Trip

We took a much needed little vacation to St. George with some good friends. We had such a good time we rented a condo-Which I have to say was so much better then a hotel. We went to Zions, Vegas, Hoover Dam, and bummed St. George. And we swam and swam sometimes twice a day! It was nice to be able to have a place to hang out and cook some meals- we even had a BBQ!  It was so much fun-Thanks to our friends the DeSantiagos we had a great time and can't wait to plan for next year!

                                              Matthew & Matthew-Ice cream

                                          Swimming and Swimming

                                          Hoover Dam-Made the kids Nervous!!

                                           Vegas and the M & M factory.

                                           Kids at Hoover "Dam-Madelynn was grumpy

                                           Playing cards at the Condo.

                                          Hike at Zions-Frank, Jake, Clarissa, Marcus, Madelynn

                                          Zions overlook

                                            Look I finally got a picture of my friend Ivanna!! lol

 

                                        Just Chillin at Zions!

                                     That's a heavy Rock! Tough Boys!

                                          We all rode in the Desantiagos Pilot-just for Zions-fun!