The Dixon Gang

Sari get's an award

2011-09-04T09:36:00.001-07:00

Sari scored big at the awards assembly at the end of the school year!!!

Papa & Tyler Campout

2011-09-04T09:33:00.000-07:00

This year Craig had to work for the father son campout so my dad took Tyler. Tyler had lots of fun with papa!!! My dad had to actually wake him up to go eat breakfast :)

Helicopter Tour

2011-09-04T09:32:00.000-07:00

Everyone loves to go see Craig at the helicopter :) This is Craig and the kids with his parents who came to visit from Idaho.

8th Grade Promotion Dance

2011-09-04T09:28:00.000-07:00

I was in charge of the 8th Grade Promotion Dance at Sari's middle school this year. That was a lot of fun but oh so exhausting! There were 2 of us there from basically 8 am until clean up finished about 9pm. We had some helpers in and out through the day but definitely very tiring! But the kids had a great time - especially Sari which is what makes it all worth it :)

This is a picture of Sari and her friend Heidi who came to help her mom (Heidi is a year older than Sari)

Snaily

2011-09-04T09:27:00.001-07:00

Tyler got an insect watch for Easter and so his first "pet" was Snaily the snail :) Snaily actually survived the watch for about 4 days when finally he would not come out of his shell anymore.

PTA Convention

2011-09-04T09:23:00.000-07:00

In April I had the opportunity to go to the PTA convention in Long Beach with my good friend Debbie. We had a blast but were soooo tired!!!

5 Generations

2011-08-21T09:56:00.001-07:00

Here is a picture of my kids, my mom, my grandma, and my great grandma.

Easter

2011-08-21T09:48:00.000-07:00

We love Easter and the chance we have to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ. We love being able to chat with the kids and have special lessons about Christ and see how much knowledge they've gained since the year before surrounding this amazing holiday. And we still like to have Easter baskets and an Easter Egg hunt for fun. Here are some cute pics of the kids and their baskets.
Tyler had an especially fun time digging through his basket.

He was very excited over each little thing.

He especially loved the Tickle Ducky that sings and laughs when you tickle him.

Coloring Easter Eggs

2011-08-21T09:46:00.001-07:00

Sari is still too old to color Easter eggs :(

The Helicopter and Train Ride

2011-08-21T09:39:00.000-07:00

During Easter break we got together with some friends and decided to take a ride on the train. It just so happened that Craig was working at the helicopter that day so we headed there first and got a tour of the helicopter. Then we headed to the train station for a trip to Fresno and back.

With Craig at our helicopter tour.

Waiting for the train to come!

Tyler on the train.

At the restaurant after we ate.

Posing in front of the train in Hanford.

Tyler the Baseball Player

2011-08-21T09:36:00.000-07:00

Tyler decided he wanted to play baseball again this year. He was on the Texas Rangers. Funny thing is, he still wanted to play left handed even though he has been writing with his right hand. He had so much fun playing baseball this year and he did really well at batting!

A Healthier Me

2011-08-21T09:31:00.001-07:00

So I'm still on my quest to being a healthier "me" - in April I participated in my second 5k ever. My goal at this 5k was to jog the whole thing. I enlisted my friend Debbie to go with me and I managed to jog the entire thing. I was super proud of myself!!!

Guess It's Time To Update

2011-08-21T09:30:00.000-07:00

So once again I've been a total slacker and I have a ton of posts to do to get us all up to date. I hope you enjoy seeing some of the things our family has been up to since last April :)

Recent Tyler Quotes

2011-04-06T15:19:00.000-07:00

"Wow that's awesomer than an eagle eating a dead penguin" said in reference to the fact that the wii remotes can be player 1 OR 2. Upon being asked what sounded good for dessert he replied, "Chocolate chip cookies with strips of chocolate across the top - that sounds better than a frog eating a bug on a tree trunk!" Said as sweet as a 5 year old little boy can, "It's so hard to choose whether to eat dinner or be hungry til breakfast when you don't like fruits and vegetables and your mom makes such bad food full of fruits and vegetables." As Tyler was getting dressed after his bath he says, "dad, where did you put my underwear?" Craig says,"they're right there on the stool" Tyler says, no they aren't. Craig says yes they are, I'm looking at them. Tyler says, "no you're not, you're looking at me"

What A Mess!

2011-04-06T15:17:00.001-07:00

This is what happens when Mom relaxes and Dad goes to work on a Sunday :)

It Quit Raining!

2011-04-06T15:16:00.001-07:00

So it quit raining one day and the next day it was 85 degrees! The kids thought they were going to die of heat exhaustion so out we headed to the pool! It did take them a few minutes to adjust to the cool temperature but they did swim for about 1 hour that day. And just a note, the hot tub was not heated when they were in it!

Tyler's a Baby

2011-04-06T15:14:00.001-07:00

My sister recently moved and found our old backpack we had when Tyler was a baby. He decided to see if he still fit and wouldn't you know it he did lol! So Ashlie packed him around like that for about 10 minutes until she decided he was too heavy for her.

A Day Without Rain

2011-04-06T15:11:00.000-07:00

The central Valley has received a record amount of rainfall this year! We finally had a day without rain so we took advantage all headed over to the park for some exercise and fun! Here are a few pictures we took!

Sari's First Acting Gig!

2011-04-06T15:06:00.000-07:00

Last winter Sari auditioned for the school play. Before they cast the actors her drama teacher approached Sari and asked if she would be the Assistant Director working directly under the teacher. Sari was absolutely thrilled! She worked very hard every afternoon staying for play practice. She spent many weekends making and painting stage props. I was able to go to the opening night of the play and they all did a fabulous job. After the play was over they called Sari up on stage and gave her a bouquet of flowers in appreciation of all her hard work! She looked beautiful and did a great job!

Sari's Choir Festival

2011-04-06T15:02:00.000-07:00

Each year in the spring all of the choirs perform for a panel of judges. This year one of the pieces that Sari's choir was performing had a flute part descant. Sari's teacher asked her to play that descant part on the piano along with the pianist instead of using a flute. You can't see Sari very well but she is there :) She did a great job, the part was not very difficult at all but playing in front of a panel of judges and about 15 other middle schools from across the valley is a little intimidating none the less. She did great and her choir got Superior's across the board from all judges on all 3 songs.

Birthday Pics

2011-04-06T14:58:00.000-07:00

More pics

2011-04-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

Opening presents

Eating snackies

Tie dye Cupcakes

Birthday Pics Take 3

2011-04-06T14:53:00.000-07:00

Hanging out at the piano

Richard & Karen aka Craig & Melissa

More Candles - only did it one time but lots of cameras :)

More pics

2011-04-06T14:49:00.001-07:00

Coming into the party in the garage.

Waiting on dinner

Deliberating in the kitchen - who took Mimi???

Sari's initial reaction to the garage - there are a few different angles - we had a few cameras.

Blowing out the candles

Birthday Party Pics

2011-04-06T14:41:00.000-07:00

Me and Mimi the Butler (Debbie)

Sari and Emily working on a word game

Craig - like the bell bottoms???

Stephen, Emily, Sari, and Allie

Pamela the Maid - Jen

A 60's Mystery Party!

2011-04-06T14:07:00.000-07:00

We (I) decided to make this a super fun birthday party for Sari. Sari is so easy going and laid back that we just don't usually do a lot of unique stuff for her birthday. So this year, since she turned 14, I decided to be original. I planned a 60's themed mystery dinner. I worked for a couple of weeks almost non-stop. I wrote out a script and had everything planned down to the smallest detail. Craig and I had fun shopping at the goodwill stores looking for decorations and hippie clothes to wear! On the day of the party Craig took the girls to get their hair cut and that allowed me a couple of hours to do those few details that I couldn't get done with her around. I had asked my sister to be the "maid" that night and my friend Debbie filled in as "Mimi the Butler"! When the guests arrived everyone hung out in the front room, gushing over Sari's new hairdo, playing a game I had ready and snacking on rolled lunchmeat and cheese I had on toothpicks and then stuck into a pineapple. We had changed a few key lightbulbs from white to red and green to help create a more cozy atmosphere, we had 60's music playing in the background and had made a beaded doorway separating the two key rooms. After everyone was here we brought them to the dining room where we served dinner - homemade mac n cheese, crabbies (crab and cheez whiz on toasted english muffins) and jello salad. During dinner they played games where they all earned alternate identities and learned clues about each others personalities. After dinner was done and everyone was just talking around the table (we had waited until it was completely dark outside) the "power went out" and went the lights came back on Mimi the Butler had disappeared. The rest of the party the kids had to follow different clues that had been left and solve puzzles to help them figure out who took Mimi and where she was at! The activites included hoola hooping, musical chairs, word puzzles and a lot of laughing. At the end they discovered that I had kidnapped Mimi because I thought she was trying to break up my family. After more clues they had to search the house and finally found Mimi hidden in the garage and tied up. While they were searching the house, Craig, Tyler, Jennifer and I all went to the garage with Mimi so when they came through the door we all yelled surprise. We had decorated the garage with balloons and streamers to actually look like a birthday party. I had set up a table and filled it with cookies and cupcakes and all of the presents. It had been so hard to keep all of the details away from the kids during the planning stages but I didn't want them to know anything or else they wouldn't of been able to participate during the party! All of the hard work was sooo worth it! They all had a blast, especially Sari! And even the adults had fun. In fact, I told Craig when it was over that it had been one of the funnest parties I had been to in a very long time!

Sari Turns 14!!!

2011-04-06T14:00:00.000-07:00

So my sweet little 5lb 13oz baby is now 14!!! How does that happen??? I look back over all of the scraped knees, broken glasses, doctor visits, teacher conferences, class parties, sleep overs, and birthday parties and I realize that while life is racing past we are creating memories to last a lifetime! We are so blessed to have Sari in our family! She is an amazing young lady full of spunk and charisma and talent! Like any parent of a teenage daughter knows, we certainly have our moments of frustration, loss of priviledges, and emotional breakdowns, but when we hear stories of other girls her age we are still so thankful that we have the challenges we do! Our Sari never ceases to amaze us and is always full of fun new things to do! We love you Sari!

Valentines Day

2011-04-06T13:57:00.001-07:00

Tyler is most definitely a content communicator. That means that he describes in detail exactly what he expects of you. So he came home from school one day about a week before Valentines Day and informed me he would like for me to make cookies for him to take to his Valentines Day Party. But he didn't want just any cookie, he wanted them to be in the shape of a heart with white frosting and he wanted them to say Happy Valentines Day in pink writing for the girls and blue writing for the boys. From the picture I'm sure you can guess how I made his Valentine's Day treats, except I forgot and tinted all of the frosting pink so the boys had to eat pink. He came home that day and said that the boys said their cookies tasted just fine even though they were pink.

Honor Choir Festival

2011-04-06T13:54:00.001-07:00

Sari auditioned at the beginning of the school year and made the Honor Choir at school. They worked so hard 4 mornings a week before school for about 3/4 of the school year. Their performance was on a Saturday where they were put with all of the Honor Choirs from all of the surrounding schools and were able to work for 2 days straight to put on a performance! We were able to attend the actual performance and they were just amazing! It's hard to see Sari in this picture but she is on the left side, 2nd row from the top about 5 people in!

Sari gets an award!

2011-04-06T13:51:00.000-07:00

Sari came home from school one day and gives me a note that says she will be receiving an award at the school assembly that week. Unfortunately, the same day as the school assembly, her choir was performing at a special event in Fresno and would miss the entire day of school. Sari said it was no biggie and that she would just go to the office the following day and pick up her award. So, a few days later she comes home and says, "Hey Mom, you know how I said I was getting an award??? Well, this is what I got!" There she stands with two certificates, a medal around her neck, and a small trophy!!! When Sari says she is getting an award she means it!!! We are sooo proud of her! Such an amazing young woman and works so hard in all she does!

A Healthier Me

2011-04-06T13:44:00.000-07:00

Last fall Craig decided he wanted to be a "healthier" him by making better food choices and by

being more active. I was so impressed with his weight loss and his example of making better choices I decided to start the year off by being a "healthier" me! I need a little more of a push than him though so I decided the best way to make sure I was more active was to pay some money!!! So I convinced my sister and Sari to sign up and do a 5k with me! It was my first 5k ever!!! I honestly wasn't even sure if I could do it - so we started training with 2 weeks notice! And guess what - we made it!!! I walked the whole thing - but I felt so good with myself for actually doing it! Since that time I've made it a priorty to get in my walking every week. I joined a group that walks every Saturday morning and it feels great! Since I walked the whole 5k and was sooo proud of myself - I set my next goal to jog my next 5k! Since I'm a slacker on keeping up on my blog I will actually tell you that I have signed up for my 2nd 5k and it is this coming weekend. My goal is still to jog the whole thing - we'll see how I do - keep watching for posts!

Trip to New York

2011-04-06T13:40:00.001-07:00

Our niece Emily went on a misison for our church. So far with each of our nephews we've been able to go to their farewells to see them off. New York in January was a bit of a stretch for the whole family so only Craig was able to go. We missed him lots but he had sooo much fun. The top picture was taken the morning he was flying home. He was gone for 8 days and the kids were so excited for him to come home. I've also taken cupcakes to each of the missionary events but Craig didn't think he could fly across the country and keep the cupcakes unmangled so we opted for sugar cookies this time around. He said amazingly enough that many of them survived the trip with only a few broken pieces.

Drawing Time

2011-04-06T13:38:00.000-07:00

Tyler and Ashlie drew portraits of each one day. Ashlie drew Tyler as a Santa Hippie and Tyler drew her including the flower on her shirt.

My Friends Love Me!

2011-04-06T13:35:00.000-07:00

Two of my friends showed up with presents for me :) I was so excited to do some baking wearing my new apron :)

Dangerous Driver!!!

2011-04-06T13:15:00.001-07:00

One day when Tyler got out of school we met my sister at Chuck E Cheese, a local pizza parlor with arcades and toys for the kids. We ran into a little girl, Abby, from Tyler's class there. Abby and Tyler decided to ride the monster truck together with Tyler driving! I love the expressions on their faces!

Waiting for Dad!

2011-04-05T18:53:00.001-07:00

Tyler knows that the big hand points at the 12 and the little hand points at the 7 when dad gets home, so he is standing in the chair watching the clock for dad to get home!

Santa Came!!!

2011-04-05T18:51:00.000-07:00

The kids were so excited to come down the stairs on Christmas morning and discover that Santa had been here to leave them gifts. Sari got a way cool iPod Nano, Ashlie got a new digital camera, and Tyler got a Transformer Robot! Very fun morning for all!!!

Christmas Pajamas

2011-04-05T18:46:00.001-07:00

Gotta love opening one present on Christmas Eve and finding brand new pajamas!!!

It's Raining!

2011-04-05T18:44:00.000-07:00

Tyler came home from school one day and decided he wanted to try to catch the rain in his mouth!

Gingerbread House Time

2011-04-05T18:42:00.000-07:00

We love making gingerbread houses. Usually we just get graham crackers and frosting and candy and create our own - but this year the kids got a kit as an early gift!

Tyler's School Christmas Program

2011-04-05T18:38:00.000-07:00

Craig and I were able to go to Tyler's kindergarten Christmas Program. It was sooo cute watching them all stand up there and sing and show off all of their fun things in their classroom. After they were all done singing we all got to make reindeer sandwiches out of bread, peanut butter, m&m's, and pretzels. Tyler doesn't like peanut butter (weird I know, definitely did not get that from his mother) so he made his with honey once he got home!

Sari got her braces off!!!

2011-04-05T18:37:00.000-07:00

Woohoo!!! No more braces for Sari! Just a retainer for 6 months full time then night time only! She is counting down the days. They gave her a bottle of sparkling cider and a package of popcorn to celebrate!

Christmas Piano Recital

2011-04-05T18:34:00.000-07:00

These are pictures of the girls after their piano recital. Ashlie just finished her 3rd year of lessons and Sari is in her 6th year of lessons. Wow time flies! Sari was last on the program at her recital this year and ended with a Beethoven piece, Moonlight Sonata. She started teaching her to herself during the summer months and then finished it with her instructor's help during the year. AmAzInG!!! We are so proud of both of our girls and their piano talents!

Caroling at the Hospital

2011-04-05T18:31:00.000-07:00

Sari's school choir invited all the girls and their moms to go caroling at the hospital. We had so much fun and got to have hot cocoa and cookies afterwards. During our singing the director invited all the kids in the audience watching to come up and sing Jingle Bells with us. So Tyler, my nephews Ezra and Michael, and niece Brooklyn came up and sang.

The Christmas Parade

2011-04-05T18:02:00.001-07:00

If you've ever been a part of the "Isaacs" family you will know that a huge tradition is to go to the Christmas Parade on Main St. on the Monday after Thanksgiving. I've been doing this since I was just a little girl. We go take our chairs and save our spot as early as we can in the afternoon, then get dinner somewhere along Main, and hang out until parade time! And we love to have friends and family go with us!!!

Day After Thanksgiving Shopping

2011-04-05T17:58:00.000-07:00

Truly this should be called Thanksgiving shopping because we plan ALL day long over our Turkey Dinner! I failed to get a picture of the Black Friday Binder this year but next year for sure I will! I can't even remember the total # of stores we hit in all that night - I do know that my sister corrupted me and I had my first ever RockStar that night - I don't think it really affected me too much - however my sister might be the real judge of that!

Going to see our nephew Josh!

2011-04-05T17:55:00.000-07:00

Our nephew Josh is serving a mission for our church and was lucky enough to be sent to an area about 2 hours away from us. During his birthday month we made him cupcakes, a pie, decorated a tree, and filled stocking full of goodies for him and his companion. Then we made the 2 hour drive to go visit with him and have dinner! We had a great time and we're so excited to get to see him and see how great he is doing!

Sari's Fall Concert

2011-04-05T17:51:00.000-07:00

This is Sari at her Fall Concert for her Choir at school! Sari is in the Bronco's Choir as well as part of the Honor Choir which meets before school each day. The Honor Choir is extremely hard to get into, especially for the girls because there aren't very many boys who try out for Honor Choir and they have to keep the numbers even.

Holy Cow!!!

2011-04-05T17:50:00.001-07:00

I can't believe I haven't posted on my blog since Halloween!!! So - I will attempt to bring our blog up to date!!! Might take me a few days but it is a worthy goal right???

Carving Pumpkins

2010-12-10T14:27:00.000-08:00

This year we enlisted Sari's help on carving pumpkins. She's been a little too big to participate the last couple of years but this year Craig had to stay over at work and so Sari got to help! She helped Tyler with his and he was quite specific how the face should look. She did her best to draw on the face with a marker and then he did the carving. I got to help Ashlie who picked a design out of a pattern book!

Sari and Woogi

2010-12-10T14:22:00.000-08:00

The lady that Sari takes riding lessons through was in need of a new horse. And not just any horse but one that would be specifically for Sari to use for her gymkhanas. So Sari and Jennifer went up north and found this sweet 4 year old. Her name is Woogi! Sari and Woogi are an excellent combination because Woogi doesn't know how to do the events so Sari is having to work extra hard on her leads and such to teach Woogi how to do the events properly. So far Sari and Woogi are doing an excellent job together!!!

Carnival Time

2010-12-10T14:17:00.000-08:00

Every year at our Elementary School we have a school carnival. This year they had some really cute cut outs where the kids could stick their heads and take pictures! I thought these turned out sooo cute!!!

Tyler & Max

2010-12-10T14:10:00.000-08:00

I found Ashlie reading a story to Max and Tyler one day! I thought it was so cute that they had so many different positions during one story lol!

Tyler's New Glasses

2010-12-10T14:06:00.000-08:00

Every year we do our yearly eye exams and every year Ashlie leaves upset because she doesn't need glasses. Well, this year was no exception, until we found out at Tyler's appointment that he DID need glasses! So now Ashlie is the only one in the family that does not wear glasses - she doesn't really like that!

Tyler on the other hand loves his glasses. He always tells us how much better he can see with them! Poor guy - I never realized how hard he was working to see things! The first day he kept wanting to take them off because they were bugging him, but by the 2nd day we have not had a bit of problems with him wearing them!

Tyler Turns 5!

2010-09-06T08:20:00.000-07:00

Tyler is such a big boy now! He was so excited to turn 5! He has been counting down the days for a couple of months I think! And he was always quick to point out how big he is getting! His most common phrase was, (while holding his hand out to you) "Look at my skin, it's getting bigger!"

Tyler is a complete joy to have in our lives! He fits into our family perfectly and brings us all so much happiness!

He is a perfect little brother in every aspect! He loves to torment his big sisters lol! My favorite incident goes like this: Ashlie is laying on the floor watching tv. Tyler very casually walks down the stairs and sits down on the couch behind Ashlie. Very nonchalantly he says, "Hi Ash, do you wonder where your make up is???" Instantly Ashlie is on her feet and yelling at Tyler, "Where is it??? What did you do with my make up? MOM, TYLER DID SOMETHING WITH MY MAKEUP!" Tyler just sits on the couch smiling, seemingly not phased at all by Ashlie's yelling! He opens his palm up and there lays a little tube of lip gloss. Ashlie rips it out of his hand and goes marching up the stairs. Tyler just sits on the couch very pleased with himself.

Tyler still loves his trains, but is slowly moving into Lego's! I was a little sad this year on his birthday, it was the first year in many that he didn't receive a single train! He got tons of Lego's though and him and Craig have been spending countless hours building and rebuilding!

Tyler has been saying for months that he wanted an "X" birthday party. I wasn't sure what that exactly was, I finally was able to figure out that he just wanted X's all over the house. So I went with my mom and we cut out tons of X's and then we just taped them ALL OVER the downstairs. You can see one on the picture of the cake on the wall behind it. We also had a treasure hunt that took them all over the back yard and out to the front where X marks the spot. That was fun! And he wanted a dragon cake breathing fire!

About a month ago Tyler started in that he wanted a puppy! We already have a dog (Ginger), and didn't really want another one. But Ginger was already full grown when Tyler came along and really had very little patience for a little boy who wanted to rough house with her. So Craig and I finally decided we would get him a puppy. We were sneaky and found a cute little Queensland. He is a sweetheart of a puppy, about 3 months old. On the day of his party Tyler went shopping with grandma, so I went and got the puppy, took him to be groomed and snuck him home and into hiding before Tyler got back. It was cute because we wanted Tyler to name him so at the groomers he is known as Puppy Dixon since he didn't have a name yet! We ate dinner, had a treasure hunt and opened all of the other presents, which were tons of puppy things, before we showed him the puppy. This is the first time he ever saw his puppy!

It took him about an hour to decide on a name. He came up with Max. I think it is very fitting, and it has an X lol! We took this picture later in the evening after things had settled down a bit and Tyler could play with Max a little.

We are so happy Tyler is part of our family. Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!!!

Tyler goes to the Eye Dr.

2010-09-06T08:07:00.000-07:00

Craig, Sari, and I all wear glasses so just for good general health practices I make Ashlie and Tyler appointments to get their yearly eye exams also! Ashlie is hoping that one of these years she will have to get glasses but so far, they have all said she has practically perfect vision, just about as good as it can get! So no luck for her lol!

This year Tyler's eye exam landed on the same day he was the Happy Helper at school (refer to previous post). So not only did he get to go wearing his same shirt, we also took Corduroy along with us!

Our eye doctor is a very friendly guy - which is good! I had already been in to see him that morning for my appointment, so when I went in the afternoon with Tyler we just picked up on our previous conversation. We were talking about friends when he walked into the room. Tyler's very first comment to the doctor was, "I have more friends than you!" Dr. Baumann just chuckles and says, "You do??? How many friends do you have?" Tyler says, "18, and that's more than you!" And the appointment just went from there! I never realized how competitive Tyler is lol! Dr. Baumann was a great sport and just went right along with all of Tyler's comments - we couldn't have a better eye doctor!

And it looks like Tyler will be seeing more of him in the future Tyler is getting glasses! They should be in some time this week - I'll post pictures when we get them!

Other conversations between Tyler and Dr. Baumann:

T "I'm smarter than you"
Dr. B "Well, how do you know that? What grade are you in?"
T, "Kindergarten so I'm smarter than you, are you in kindergarten?"
Dr. B "No, it has been a long time since I was in kindergarten"
T "Well, you should go back, it's lots of fun!"

Dr. B asked Tyler if he could put some tickle drops in his eyes (dilate them), Tyler says, "No, I don't want you to do that." So Dr. B says okay I won't if you don't want me to. Then he lays the very cool disposable sunglasses on the counter and says, "I guess we don't need these." Tyler says, "What are those?" Dr. B, "Very cool sunglasses but you only get them if you let me put tickle drops in your eyes, and you don't want me to do that so we don't need the glasses, WAIT!!! Do you want me to put the tickle drops in so you can wear the glasses???" Tyler, "YEAH!!!" About 15 seconds later the tickle drops were in Tyler's eyes and the sunglasses were on lol!

Tyler the Happy Helper

2010-09-06T07:55:00.000-07:00

In Tyler's class each day a different child gets picked to be the Happy Helper. They get to help Mrs. Koop do things around the classroom, they are first to line up, and most importantly they get to bring home the classroom mascot, Corduroy! He is a little teddy bear that has his own backpack with his blanket and a book to read to him! Corduroy gets to spend the night and then you take him and all of his belongings back to school the next day for the next happy helper!

Just a couple of mornings after school started Tyler was quite excited because he was wearing his red striped shirt and he thinks he looks pretty handsome in it! He even had me take his picture that morning. When he came out from school that day he was ecstatic!!! HE was the Happy Helper! He had Corduroy in his backpack and a folder full of surprises to show me! Not only did he get to help Mrs. Koop as the Happy Helper but he got to stand in front of the whole class and they drew pictures of him - WEARING HIS RED STRIPED SHIRT - lol!!! He was so excited! So we have a book full of sketches of Tyler wearing his favorite shirt!

Here is a picture of Tyler and Corduroy!

Back To School

2010-09-06T07:41:00.000-07:00

Another summer has completely flown by!!! And now it is time to send the kiddies back to school! This year is especially fun because Tyler is a big boy in kindergarten now! The week before school started him and I were able to go to the school to meet his teacher and she gave him a tour of the classroom and we spent a few minutes there visiting with her. He was so bashful, it was funny!

On the first day of school he was excited to go, just nervous once he got there. He just stood beside me out on the playground and didn't want to play on any toys or anything. And then once we went inside and he sat at his table, he didn't hardly even move, he certainly never made a sound lol! And for anyone who knows Tyler that is extremely out of character for him! I gave him a hug and a kiss and told him I would be back and that was that. When I picked him up from school that day he was all excited and had soooo much fun! But then the next morning back to Mr. Bashful! He's been in school about 10 days now and he is starting to come out of the morning nervousness a little, although he is a little more clingy when I leave now. So funny, I never thought he would be clingy! He absolutely loves kindergarten though and his teacher is AmAzInG!!!

And the girls were so excited to start back too! Ashlie is in 5th grade and is so excited because she has the same teacher that Sari had for 5th grade (Mr. Price)!!! She is in heaven and Mr. Price loves to read so she is excited about all of the reading this year!

Sari is a big 8th grader this year! The biggest change for Sari this year is that she decided to ride her bike to and from school this year. It originally started because we thought she was going to have a pre-1st class and she would have to be at school at 7:20. That is right in the middle of when I am trying to get everyone else ready so she decided to ride her bike. We rode it a few times during the summer and she was very comfortable with where to go and what to do and actually very excited to ride her bike. About 2 days before school we realized she did not get the pre-1st, but she still wanted to ride her bike. So we said go for it! It is working great now that we have established the importance of being home by a set time.

More CGA Pictures

2010-08-15T18:29:00.000-07:00

These are more pictures of Sari and Lacy at the CGA State Finals.Sari & Lacy - aren't they soooo cute together :)

Sari with her winners ribbon to put all of her awards on

Sari and her teacher (friend) Jennifer!

Sari at the CGA State Finals

2010-08-15T18:21:00.000-07:00

If you have followed our blog at all over the past few months you would know how well Sari has been doing at her local Gymkhana competitions! With much hard work at practices and her competitions she was able to go to the State Finals in Hollister this year the end of July. She had to move up to a new division than she was used to competing in so the competition was a little more fierce than she was used to. That's okay - she still did GREAT!!!

Can you believe in 2 of her events she was actually too fast and placed in the division ahead of herself and so she was not awarded anything in those events - can you believe too fast??? One of them was 1/2 a second too fast and the other was 2/10 of a second too fast - craziness!!!

She still managed to get a 2nd place, two 3rd places, and two 7th places!!! She rocked the state finals and we are sooo proud of her!

Happy 10th Birthday Ashlie!!!

2010-08-03T10:09:00.001-07:00

10 years ago today our sweet Princess Ashlie joined our family! I had a rather long and difficult labor with Ashlie and so over the past couple of days we've had several opportunities to share with her exactly what we were doing 10 years ago! Despite the pain and challenges it's been fun to remember back to those first few days! We always tease her about how cranky and colicky she was as a baby - EVERYONE walked with her at some point in time because that was usually the only way to get her to be quiet :) I loved each new milestone with Ashlie because as she learned to do new things and gain her own independence she became happier and more content!

And now...10 years later I can still see the same personality traits in her! She is a beautiful young lady full of determination! She knows what she wants and does not quit until she gets it! We are so blessed to have her in our family!!!

Taking a Train Ride

2010-07-09T15:51:00.000-07:00

We went on another train ride. My sister and her kids and my mom went with us. We had a great time! I'm a little sad that now that Tyler is starting school we won't be able to do it as easily. I guess there is always summer vacations!

Michael, Tyler & Brooklyn

Ashlie & Ezra

We had to get proof of Mikey & Tyler hugging lol!

Our 15th Anniversary

2010-07-09T15:47:00.000-07:00

Craig and I celebrated our 15th anniversary the end of June. I can't believe it has been 15 years!!! We went to San Francisco for a couple of days! We had a blast. On our actual anniversary we walked over the Golden Gate Bridge! That was really fun to be able to say that we have done that! That evening we were also able to see the musical Wicked! Wow!!! Need I say more??? We had a great time and we certainly weren't quite ready to come home, but we did. I can't believe that 15 years has passed so quickly.

Ashlie's Dance Recital

2010-07-09T15:44:00.000-07:00

Here is Ashlie at her dance recital. She has been taking dance for about 5 years now and loves it! She danced in tap, jazz, and ballet this year. She might also start doing hip hop this coming year.

Craig's Birthday

2010-07-09T15:41:00.000-07:00

Ashlie's dance recital fell on the same day as Craig's birthday again this year. We had a variety of other things going at the same time including a funeral for my aunt. I wanted him to have a special birthday but I just couldn't figure out when to do it. So we decided to surprise him about 4 days before his birthday. The day before while he was at work the kids helped me and we made his cake. It is an iPhone. We hid it under Ashlie's bed so he wouldn't see it. The next day he was off but luckily had a meeting at work in the afternoon. While he was gone to his meeting the kids and I cleaned up around the house and decorated. My family came over and was here when he got home from his meeting. He was surprised! We had a fun time relaxing and being able to spend an evening celebrating him! On his actual birthday I took him to lunch and he spent the day relaxing. That's what he loves to do :)

Batman Tyler

2010-07-09T15:37:00.000-07:00

Tyler has been a little partial to Batman over the last year or so - trains still take precedence but he has had an intriguing interest in Batman. My Aunt went to Magic Mountain and brought this home for Tyler! He loves it!

Another Trip to AZ

2010-07-09T15:25:00.000-07:00

We love being able to spend time with our family - and especially when it involves sending off or welcoming home a missionary! We were able to head back to Arizona the end of May to send off another nephew on his mission. That makes 3 in 6 months time! We had soooo much fun!

On our way there we were able to stop in a city where one of our nephews is already serving his mission. We were not able to see him but we met a lady that he knows in the area and she was able to accept some yummy cupcakes to give to him! This is a picture of the area where he is at. It is right on top of the Grapevine headed to LA.

This is a picture of our nephew Josh helping at a yard sale.

Mikey, Connor, and Tyler going for a swim.

Tyler getting read to squirt someone.

Uncle Chris, Ashlie, and Tyler above water

Ashlie & Tyler

Sari & Ashlie

The gang watching the swimmers - L to R Glenn, Jeri, Gail, Alexandra

While we were there I "attempted" to teach my sil's a little about cookie decorating :) Not sure how much I taught them but we had a BlAsT!!! And the cookies were delicious!!!

Tyler Doesn't Nap Anymore

2010-07-09T15:23:00.000-07:00

When I had my foot surgery I wasn't able to get up and down the stairs so many days I had to attempt to put Tyler down on the couch for his nap. That didn't work so well and he ended up pretty much not taking naps anymore. But some days he still really needs one! I guess this particular day he did because I found him on top of all of the couch cushions on the floor crashed out! He slept for nearly 1 1/2 hours like this!

Sari's Young Woman's Project

2010-07-09T15:18:00.000-07:00

Sari is working very hard at doing her personal progress at church. It is a program designed specifically to help young girls as they mature to develop new talents and to learn how to rely on the Lord. There are several little items you have to complete under each value and then there is one large project. Sari decided she wanted to learn how to make a cake so she helped me with her cousins cake. She did a great job!!!

Manicure Time

2010-07-09T15:17:00.000-07:00

Ashlie loves to treat us special! This particular day I got a manicure :)

Tyler Gets Cold

2010-07-09T15:15:00.000-07:00

I found Tyler like this one day, funny thing is it was in the 80's outside lol! I guess his hands were still cold!

Family Night

2010-07-09T15:13:00.000-07:00

Every week we have family night together. We sing songs, have a short lesson, have a fun activity, and it always includes a dessert! Everyone takes turns doing the lessons including Tyler although he always has a helper. This week Ashlie helped him. They drew pictures together that went with a story they read. She is helping him hold up the right picture! I think it is so fun to see them working together :)

Cupcakes

2010-07-09T15:11:00.000-07:00

I brought cupcakes to my sisters house and all of the kids gathered around the table to eat up! I think they enjoyed them, don't you???

Tyler Goes To The Dentist

2010-07-09T15:08:00.000-07:00

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Tyler is very concerned about the health of his teeth! He makes sure to brush every morning and every night, he uses mouth wash, and he flosses regularly! He loves to read books and watch tv programs about keeping your teeth clean! He went recently to the dentist for his 6 month check up and was happy the dentist told him he was doing a good job brushing. Craig was at work so we had to take pictures of all the stuff he got from the dentist and send to him so he could see!

Tyler Plays Baseball

2010-05-10T15:39:00.001-07:00

Tyler is playing baseball for the 2nd year. This year he is on the Cubs! He loves to play and loves his practices!!! This is him before his first game! Isn't he handsome???

Ashlie needed pudding!!!

2010-05-10T15:36:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago my papa was rushed to the emergency room in the middle of the night. We eventually found out he had colon cancer and needed to have surgery almost immediately. I had spent the entire day after church at the hospital with my grandparents and had left the kids home under Sari's care. Craig had worked that day and him and I both got home within about 5 minutes of each other. We were both mentally and physically exhausted and came home to this note.

How could we not let her have some pudding after that???

Foot Update

2010-05-05T16:13:00.000-07:00

Here is the latest picture of "the foot"!!! Healing well I think! I returned my scooter this week - I am officially walking 100% of the time on my foot! I am still in physical therapy and am seeing great improvements - I also ditched "the boot" this week and graduated to an air cast. Which means that for the first time in over 3 months I am wearing a shoe on my left foot - hard part is not many shoes fit the left in the same size that fit the right foot - but we are managing!

Just thought I would update everyone on my foot! Much more family stuff to come soon!!!

Sari's Gymkhana

2010-04-22T17:48:00.000-07:00

It is the beginning of a new Gymkhana year for Sari and we started out at a new location! Unfortunately, last year the association we were with started breaking some pretty major association rules and so we decided to not attend there anymore! We found a new association in Bakersfield and Sari was able to compete in one of their Gymkhanas! Instead of the normal 3 events they have 6 events at each of their meets! Wow!!! Sari has been working hard on her riding, most weeks she rides two times instead of just once. And her hard work definitely paid off!!! She placed 1st in 3 different events, and also received a 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place score!!! She rocked her group!!! Way to go Sari!

Drywall Contractor Tyler

2010-04-22T17:43:00.000-07:00

I have tried to arrange my physical therapy appointments around Craig's schedule, but there have been a couple of times that have just not worked. So Tyler got to go to work with Papa for about 5 hours! Tyler was so excited to ride in The Diesel! He doesn't think my mom's diesel truck is very good because it isn't loud lol! But Papa's truck, that is cool!!! We got his seat loaded in the back seat of the truck and off they went with Tyler beaming from ear to ear! They checked on a few jobs and had to deliver some material to another job! That required a stop off at the supply store so Tyler got to go in and meet all of Papa's friends! They gave him a new hat and a clip on tape measure! Papa and Tyler even stopped at the gas station for "snacks"! Those consisted of Spicy Fries and Root Beer!!! So, Tyler came home, eventually, very dirty, and extremely happy! He had so much fun with Papa! He didn't put his tape measure down for almost a week! He even slept with it, and he measured EvErYtHiNg in sight!!!

What a fun day and what a fun memory for Tyler and Papa!!!

Easter

2010-04-22T17:40:00.000-07:00

Easter Morning was spent relaxing in bed, eating candy, and watching General Conference on tv! Could not have asked for a better way to start such a beautiful day! After conference we showered and headed over to my sisters for a family Easter dinner! We had a great time and the kids (especially Tyler) had a blast doing the Easter Egg Hunt!!!

Easter Egg Coloring

2010-04-22T17:38:00.000-07:00

We decided to take it easy this year on Easter Egg coloring and dropped in at my sister's house for the actual coloring process! It was hard enough just to boil the eggs and transport! Sari is much to big for those kinds of activities now, but certainly not Tyler and Ashlie! They had about 3 dozen between the 2 of them to color and they had a blast!!!

I am Handicapped Legally!!!

2010-04-22T17:34:00.000-07:00

So I've been driving (or being driven around) for 2 months and I have discovered that getting in and out of the car can be quite tricky if you don't have adequate room on the side of your car :) So, after prompting from friends I finally made it to the DMV (with Craig's assistance) and got myself a Handicap Plaque :) Of course its only temporary, until the end of June, but still! So, I've been using it for a couple of weeks and have discovered it comes in quite handy! However, now that I have one, all of those handicap spots that are always open when you can't use them, are now full when I can! Oh well, grass is always greener on the other side :)

Face painting!!!

2010-03-28T18:52:00.000-07:00

We went to a birthday party for my cousins twins who were turning 2. She had hired a clown who did face painting. Tyler was so excited for the clown to show up. He was first in line and wanted her to make him Batman. He was so excited!

Of course he had to make the "Batman" face :)

Ashlie was a Pop Diva :)

Response Magazine

2010-03-28T18:48:00.000-07:00

This is a local magazine that gets published and mailed to the community monthly. It features stories all medical related. This month the hospital got a new trauma designation so they put a group of ER nurses, techs, docs etc on the cover and then there was a write up in the magazine regarding the new trauma designation. Craig was featured in both pictures :)

Tyler The Artist

2010-03-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

Tyler has discovered how to create his own designs now when coloring. He hasn't always enjoyed coloring. It has only been in the last few months that he has really even colored in coloring books. He has always been much more into building with trains and blocks and things.

So it is cute to see him design little things now and give them to people. I think he learns that from Ashlie. She loves to draw us pictures.

Here are a few of Tyler's recent pictures!

This is a pictures of a house and sun that Tyler made for his cousin Ezra.

This is a rocket ship Tyler made for Dad.

This is a square Tyler drew for his cousin Isaac (he is 19 years old).

This is a picture of a heart Tyler drew for his cousin Josh (he is also 19 years old).

Ashlie is a Millionaire!

2010-03-27T18:55:00.000-07:00

Ashlie is a Millionaire!!!

Well, at least she had read a million words this year! At her school once they have reached the million mark they receive a new t-shirt and a gift card to Borders, to buy new books!

Sari's Birthday Cake/Cupcakes

2010-03-27T18:52:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of Sari's birthday treats!

She is too big now to do just one party with friends and family so we had the "cool" friend party on Saturday with a Twilight theme! I did Ice Cream Cupcakes with Twilight fondant pieces for the tops.

Then Sunday after church we did a family party and so I made a cake in the shape of her favorite horse she rides named Chester.

Happy Birthday Sari!!!

2010-03-07T21:22:00.000-08:00

Today is my Sari bo Bari's 13th birthday! My goodness, where has the time gone??? It seems like just yesterday she was toddling around with a little pony tail on the top and her chubby cheeks! Kind of scary to think that in just a split second she has become a teenager!!!

When Sari was born she was only 5lb 13oz! So tiny! The newborn clothes just swallowed her up, we went out and bought some preemie stuff - which lasted her about 2 weeks lol! Once Sari started growing she didn't stop :) Craig is a little concerned that she is going to pass him up! And she probably will!

Our Sari is the sweetest thing ever! We love going to meet her teachers because that is the first thing every one of them say, "Sari is so sweet!" Sari is a very kind person, she makes friends easily and everyone always wants to be her friend. She is a good example to everyone (including me) of what a good friend should be like. She is very considerate of other peoples feelings and thoughts. Although sometimes the teenage hormones kick in at home and we have our occasional moments :)

Sari is growing up to be a beautiful young lady. She is strong in her beliefs and not easily swayed. She has high standards and values and lives up to them. We love having Sari in our family! She is the best first child anyone could ever ask for! I find at times that I sit and reflect on all of the things that I've done wrong in parenting her, then I realize Heavenly Father must have known I would make those mistakes so he sent Sari first. She is so forgiving and loving! Always quick to help in anyway she can.

Sari is a great big sister to her brother and sister. They are lucky to have her!

Happy Birthday to my first teenage daughter! May Heavenly Father bless our home through the teenage years that we all come out in one piece :)

Registered For Kindergarten

2010-03-04T14:09:00.000-08:00

I am really not sure where the last almost 5 years have gone!!! Somehow they have just disappeared out from under me and now my sweet baby is a big boy! We just registered him yesterday for kindergarten! He is very excited, of course he thought he was going to get to go there today! He found a dinosaur book he looked at while we were waiting in line to turn in our paperwork. He thought it was pretty cool they had so many books he had never seen before. He is also very excited that he will get to go to Ashlie's school with her! So now we start the countdown til August 19th :(

Surgery Time

2010-02-15T17:31:00.001-08:00

Well, many of you know that I fell during the summer last year and messed my leg/ankle/foot up pretty good. I didn't really know how much damage I had done until it just did not get better. I tore tendons, muscles, messed up nerves all through my foot, ankle, and up my leg. I tried multiple treatments hoping that one of them would offer some relief. Every step I took sent excruciating pain from the bottom of my foot all the way up my leg into my calf. After 6 1/2 months of pain I told the doctor I couldn't do it anymore and it was time to FiX my leg!!!

So, on January 28th we fixed it :) My doctor was able to isolate the issues and determine what he needed to fix during the surgery. He made one incision about 3" long on the back of my leg down near my ankle and lengthened a tendon. That is what was causing the pain in my calf. You can't see the that incision very well in this picture. The second incision was on the side of my ankle and down the bottom of my foot partially that was 5" long. Here he was able to find the nerve that was trapped inside of a traumatized muscle and covered in scar tissue and free it up. He said he had estimated he would have about 2-3 locations to free up but once he got into the surgery he found 6 different locations where the nerve was trapped. In fact, on my first post-op check up he graphically described how he had his index finger shoved as deep into my foot as it would go to allow him to free up that nerve (that explains the foot tenderness!). Here are pics from my first post-op visit.

On my second post-op visit (2 weeks after surgery) you can tell the swelling has gone done significantly and I'm getting lots of pretty shades of yellow. This is just before the sutures came out. Slightly painful, extremely nerve wracking lol! Only got light headed once, of course the doc laid me back so that helped :)

Doc has given me an excellent prognosis. He says everything went great in surgery and he is extremely pleased with how it is healing! Now, if I can only survive the recovery period. Absolutely no weight bearing on this foot or leg - that means crutches and a fun knee scooter :) It also means lots of family chipping in helping out. I can't begin to express my gratitude to my kids, Craig, my parents and my sister for their countless hours of service! AmAzInG!!! So, for now, I am doing good. Just able to start driving again (for very short distances). Hoping to attempt to take the kids to school for the first time in 3 weeks this week. I will keep you posted as there are new updates!

Ready for Church

2010-01-11T13:03:00.000-08:00

Among some of the many Christmas gifts, they each received new church clothes. Ashlie and Tyler decided to have a mini photo shoot before church :)

Christmas

2010-01-11T12:57:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas this year! It was really fun to get to spend time with the girls and really talk about the true meaning of Christmas! Even Tyler was able to begin to understand a little that it was about the spirit and not the presents!

Craig was able to be home with us this year on Christmas morning, last year he had to work :( Here are a few pictures of the kids on Christmas morning.

Tyler got a train named Diesel that he has really been wanting. Then him and Dad got a remote control helicopter to share :) They've had lots of fun with that and amazingly enough it is still in working condition!

Ashlie got a puppy with her own carrying purse that barks, whines, and eats :)

Sari got an Ipod shuffle - now her cell phone battery lasts longer :)

Christmas Eve

2010-01-11T12:50:00.000-08:00

At our house we have the tradition of the kids being able to open one present on Christmas Eve. Mom or Dad get to pick the present and for some reason it always ends up being pajamas :)

Here are a few pictures of the kids opening their Christmas Eve gifts :)

Dog Bread House aka Gingerbread House

2010-01-11T12:33:00.000-08:00

Tyler resorted to referring to our gingerbread house as a dogbread house once again this year. Our dog's name is Ginger is what we finally figured out last year!

Once again Sari was too big to participate in the making of the gingerbread house, but Tyler and Ashlie had a blast!

We were smart and waited until Grandma was here one day to help us :)

The gingerbread house remained standing for 2 whole days despite the many little fingers constantly finding something to nibble on. And then Tyler was true to character and helped in the final cave in of the roof. That didn't stop the eating though :)

Christmas Dance Recital

2010-01-11T12:26:00.000-08:00

These are just a couple of pictures from Ashlie's dance recital. She does tap, jazz, and ballet. For ballet they did a portion of the Nutcracker. Ashlie was thrilled because she got to be a mouse :)

Christmas Piano Recital

2010-01-11T11:53:00.000-08:00

Both girls are still taking piano lessons and are doing great. Their instructor just raves about their progress and talent! Both are very good but Ashlie just seems to have this enthusiasm about it. If she learns all of her songs her teacher gives her before her next lesson she will turn the page and start teaching herself the next song. And she loves to sit down at the piano and just blast through all of the songs she has previously learned.

This year as one of Ashlie's practice songs she was given The Twelve Days of Christmas. She passed it off the week before the recital and Craig and I could not be more pleased! That is one of those songs and that just keeps on going! And she is supposed to play it 5x every day. When I realized she had it memorized I told her she only needed to practice it 2x each day until she passed it off. That afternoon after her lesson she came bouncing out to the car so excited!!! Her teacher asked her to play that very song as the prelude music at the recital which was still a week away! UGH!!! (After speaking with her teacher on a different matter she told me how excited Ashlie was that she could play the whole thing memorized perfectly and so she had to fit it in the recital somewhere!)

So we were able to enjoy the "Twelve Days of Christmas" for a few more days! She played it perfectly at the recital along with her other 3 pieces that were specifically chosen for the recital.

Sari also did a fabulous job. We found a new book with some extremely hard Christmas pieces and Sari did a great job. Just to brag a little, her teacher told me that Sari is probably the best student she currently has, including her own daughters :)

Making Cookies with Auntie

2010-01-11T11:44:00.001-08:00

I decided to be brave so I invited my sister and her 3 little kids to come over and make sugar cookies :) I scrubbed the table all nice and clean and threw out the flour and they had a blast. Sari wasn't very interested until the very end, then she had a good time too! My nephew Mikey (just turned 3) lasted the longest. In fact my sister told me just the other day he was asking about cookies again!

Brooklyn waiting on her dough

Tyler smashing his lol

Ezra playing in the flour with Sari in the background

Mikey getting ready to make a tree

Ashlie

Sari finally getting into the spirit :)

Our Trip to Delta

2010-01-11T11:31:00.000-08:00

The middle of December we had the opportunity to go to Delta, UT to visit with one of Craig's sisters and her family. Her second son, Josh, was having his mission farewell that weekend! We had soooo much fun! We had great weather to travel in and once we got there it started snowing! The kids (especially Tyler) were in heaven! I have to admit, it was quite fun for me too!

We got there Friday evening and got to go to Gail's and spend a little time visiting before we headed to the motel. It started snowing while we were on our way to the motel. The next morning we woke up to about 3 inches of snow on our car! How fun is that???

We spent the day hanging out with the family and then they took us sledding! Bummer deal I had to just sit and watch because of my foot, but the kids and Craig had a great time! They also make a snowman in the front yard!

Tyler had a blast playing at Aunt Gails. She has 5 boys, and they LoVe Tyler :) There were trains, balls, Nerf Guns (which everyone had a blast playing with), helicopters and anything else you could possibly imagine in a house full of boys!

We had sooo much fun and were quite sad to be leaving! However, Josh is serving his mission next door to where we live :) How fun is that??? If he goes to the most northern part of his misison he will be about 20 minutes away from where we live! So we're hoping we might be able to get in a visit once or twice.
This is Tyler sitting with Jeremy and Jordan (you can see Jace off to the far left)

Every night when we would get back to the motel it would only take Tyler seconds before he was crashed out snoring! They wore him out :)

Candy Cane Lane Parade

2010-01-11T11:25:00.000-08:00

It is a long standing tradition in our family that on the Monday night after Thanksgiving we go to the Christmas Parade on Main St. My parents took me every year as a child and we've carried on the tradition with our kids! Tyler enjoyed the parade tremendously. The girls just like going because we eat out at a restaurant somewhere on Main St. and we ALWAYS have hot chocolate :)

Tyler Dresses Himself

2010-01-11T11:17:00.000-08:00

Tyler is very much the baby of the family still. At this age both of my girls would completely dress themselves. And Tyler has the knowledge of how to do it, and on days that he is stubborn and needs to show his independence he can do most of it on his own. Uusally, though, we still help him get dressed. One Sunday Tyler came home from church and decided he wanted to get changed by himself. This is what he came downstairs wearing. Just a note to remember, it was December and was quite chilly outside and the rest of us were wearing sweats and long sleeves :)

The front is funny enough - he found this shirt at a yard sale a few months ago with my mom. And the shorts are from the summer before and are much too short for those skinny legs lol!

But the back is where the real story comes out. He had the shorts on inside out and backwards :) I attempted to help him get them on right but he refused. He liked them just the way they were. And so they stayed that way for the rest of the day :)