To the snow we go!!

Presidents day we went up near strawberry to play in the snow. We went with our good friends the Powells. It was a beautiful day! with just the right amount of snow for sledding.

Briana's friend Bryce came with us. These two have been friends since first grade. They are good buddies!


Brooke and Lauren two peas in a pod. What would they do without each other???

Braidman, the entire day looking for the fastest most challenging slope. We really need to get this guy on ski's.

Jenny and I getting ready to go!!!

Of course the day ended with a nice hot meal at Wendy's down in Payson. What a fun day!

Valentines Day!

Braiden and Brooke getting ready to go to school for their Valentines parties. I think they like Valentines parties better than they like the Christmas parties!



It has been a tradition for the past 4 years to take chocolate dipped strawberries to school for Valentines day. It's a fun treat and the kids look forward to it. In fact, one kid in Brooke's class eye's lit up when I brought them in. He said, "hey! I saw those in a magazine once" I was glad to give him his first taste.

The kids and I decided that for Valentines day we were going to go Heart attack the car while Otis was working at the restaurant. So, we snuck to the back of the restaurant and put hearts all over the car. We also surprised him with one of those big heart shaped cookies from Paradise Bakery. It was fun!

Peter Pan!

We went to Apache Junction High School for the annual play that they do every year. The kids look forward to seeing what they come up with year after year. This year it was Peter Pan with a ticking Alligator and all!

My little Brooke!

Brooke was the Character Trait Student of the Month for the Month of January. The Character trait that she displayed is Responsibility. Brooke works real hard at being responsible while at school and home. Good job Brooke!!

National Pie day!

Believe it or not there is an official national pie day! January 23rd!

"Created by the American Pie Council®, National Pie Day is dedicated to the celebration of pie. As part of our American heritage, this day is a perfect opportunity to pass on the love and enjoyment of pie eating and pie making to future generations."

This is the official national pie day poster.



My friend Cindi found out that there is an official national Pie day. Since our 2 boys love pie and are just a little bit obsessed with pie we decide to have a little "pie party" in celebration of national pie day. So we picked up some yummy pies and surprised our boys with a pie party. We ate pie and played some games, it was a fun night! Thanks Cindi :)

Steelers won the Superbowl!

I know! I know! we live in Arizona how can we not be cheering for the Cardinals?? Well, Otis has been a Steelers fan since he was 8 years old and he has passed the love for the Steelers on to Braiden. Although, when the Cardinals play anyone but the Steelers we cheer for the Cardinals. So, to us it was a win, win situation. this was a great game!

A Light Bulb Moment!

I was shuffling through some old Ensigns that I had and I came across this article written by M. Russel Ballard entitled, "Daughters of God". It caught my eye because for many reasons at this particular time in my life, I feel as though it is a time of great transition and discovery and I think just knowing that I am a Daughter of God puts it all in great perspective for me.

Elder Ballard asks the question; "What can you do, as a young mother, to reduce the pressure and enjoy your family more?" The key word here for me was "enjoy."

He goes on to say:

"First, recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments." There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction.
Author Anna Quindlen reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments. She said: “The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. … I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less” (Loud and Clear [2004], 10–11).

I love how he pointed out that the joy comes in "moments" when I looked the word moment up in the dictionary it said:

Outstanding significance or value; importance: a discovery of great moment.

I never thought of the word moment in this way, but when I think of moments in time with my kids they are very "Significant" and I do "value" these times when my kids.

When reading this article I thought about my kids and how they are still young and I still have plenty of time to "live in the moment" with them. Although there are already "moments" that I miss. Like having my Braiden as a toddler look up at me with arms stretched out grunting for me to hold him, or bathing my kids, or tripping over toddler toys strewn all over the floor and yes even changing a diaper. (surprise) And no I am not baby hungry nor am I contemplating the idea. ha ha

I decided that if I miss those times which were just a few short years ago then what am I going to miss that they are doing right now , that I really need to enjoy. So I thought about it.

I love the sound of my kids in my home. I love hearing the stomping of there feet up and down the stairs. I love hearing Briana playing the piano while Braiden is playing video games and Brooke is watching cartoons all at the same time. I love when their friends come over and raid our fridge for capri suns and otter pops. While this might drive most people nuts ( and on some days it even drives me nuts) I realize that these are the Moments with my kids that I love and someday I will miss.

So as I was constantly striving for structure I realized that there is a time and place for structure just like there is a time and place to enjoy the moments with my kids and that's what I love. This is as Oprah says it my "light bulb" moment. This is what is important to me. To be happy and "in the moment" with my husband and my kids and those I love and trust the most. And most importantly remembering along the way that I am a daughter of God.