little kids...

While playing around with Connor last night

I was calling him my little boy...

He quickly looked at me 

 and said...

"Mom I'm not a little boy"...

"I'm medium!"

I thought was just too cute.

Our Webelo Scout....

During December's pack meeting...

All the scouts had to line up for uniform inspection.

Not everyone passed.

Bryan earned his fitness pin,

 

Bryan had to give a brief explanation as to what he did to earn his pin and badge.

He also earned his citizenship belt loop.

and filled all the requirements to earn his Webelos badge.

 

He pined his mom.

 

Last of all the Wolves gave the skit.

We are very proud of our boys and the hard work they've put into scouts. We are very thankful for the Scout leaders who have put in so much time to make sure the boys succeed. Bryan is now ready to go from the cub scouts to the boy scouts. He's trying to hurry and get everything done to earn his arrow of light before his birthday. Bryan's last activity as a boy scout will be the pine wood derby coming up in January. I can't believe how fast the time has gone.

The little baker....

Heidi has always loved to help in the kitchen. So when she got a little baking set from Mema for her birthday she could hardly wait to make cupcakes. 

 The set came with a miniature cupcake pan, cupcake liners,

measuring spoons, a wooden spoon, 

a whisk, a spatula, and an apron. 

She helped mix together all the ingredients.

 

Had to make sure it tasted just right.

 

Patiently waited for the cupcakes to come out of the oven.

Frosted them herself.

Then neatly placed them on the plates to her new tea set,

and went to go have a tea party with her babies. 

Gingerbread houses....

 

Yesterday my friend and her kids came to my house to make gingerbread houses. They had never made them before so it was a real treat. I am surprised that we had enough candy to make the houses with 5 kids constantly eating the building materials. We had a really great time though. It was fun to see the kids get excited over their creations.

 

The kitchen smelled like gingerbread.

 

(The Crandall House)

Christmas music played in the background,

(The Heim House)

 

and the sound of laughter filled the air.

 

I'm so glad that we were able to do this together. It was such a great day. 

My Sweet girl.....

I can't believe you are 5 years old today. I blinked and you weren't a baby anymore. Where has all the time gone?

 

You are such a sweet girl. You have filled our home with laughter, tenderness, all things pink and princess, wrapped up in a diva attitude. I look at you and am amazed at how much you've grown. You still have the biggest blue eyes. Your smile just melts my heart. I love how you want to always be the helper. It's nice to have someone to play with in the kitchen. You have the biggest imagination and I'm always in awe at the things you come up with. Your most favorite things are your babies and anything princess. Pink and purple are your most favorite colors. You can write your name and are learning to write other words like mom and dad. You are getting excited about going to school soon. You have such a tender spirit. You love to give squeezes and kisses. Sunday is your favorite day because you get to go to primary and see all of your friends. I am thankful everyday that Heavenly Father sent you to me and I am so proud to be your mom. I can't believe how much you've grown and I'm excited to see the little girl you are becoming.

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CUTE GIRL.

Love you, 

~Mom 

Ward Christmas party......

The ward Christmas party on Saturday night was so much fun. Brent and I had to help set things up earlier in the day. We got the tables set up and decorated. The stage was turned into a stop on the Polar Express. We also helped cook two of the turkeys. Our house smelled so good. They party started at 5:00 and we brought Bryan's friend Alex with us.

There were so many people that came we had to set up more tables and chairs. There was tons of great food. The main dishes were turkey and ham. Bishop Felt read the Polar Express while we ate dessert. Then the whole bishopric performed a fabulous skit. While wearing swim caps and goggles they pretended to be synchronized swimmers. The evening ended with Santa Clause. Heidi and Connor couldn't wait to sit on Santa's lap. They waited patiently for their turn. Heidi was so excited to tell him that she wants a new baby and a tea set. The ward Christmas party was great. We met so many new people. We love being a part of the Stone Creek Ward!

Bryan and his awesome music skills.

I just thought you might like to see Bryan and his band. My favorite is when Bryan taps his foot.

I'm thankful for...

1.) My Church Calling...

I'm thankful for my calling at church. Brent and I are on the activities committee. I actually love my calling. We are getting ready for the ward Christmas party this Saturday. It's been great to be involved in helping put things together. It's an easy way to get to know people and feel like you belong while also doing some service.

2.) Banks who are unwilling to work with you....

Odd as it may sound I'm actually thankful for our mortgage company Bank of Satan America. This time last year we were fighting with our mortgage company because our adjustable rate was about to go up. Brent being out of work and a full time student we were living off of student loans and couldn't afford the $300 a month increase. We prayed and prayed about what to do and decided to put our house up for short sale. It's been a year fighting with the bank. We've had 5 buyers walk away because the bank has been unwilling to negotiate. We just found out yesterday that our house will be sold at auction on Monday Dec 14 over a difference of $8000. Brent and I were talking about this last night and we both feel that even though this has been a trial we have truly been blessed to be where we are. We are in a house we love, in a neighborhood we love, and in a ward we adore. It's amazing how much Heavenly Father can bless us.

3.) Christmas cookies....

It's always fun to make cookies with my kids. Yesterday we had fun playing around with a cookie press that I got a long time ago but had never used. We made cute little Christmas tree butter cookies. Even used green food coloring to make the dough more festive. Each child got a spoon or a beater to lick. They got to take turns using the cookie press, and every one loved the taste of the warm cookies from the oven. Life is sweet.

4.) There was no damage...

I'm thankful that there was no damage done to our durango when a tree fell on top of it earlier this week. 

5.) Christmas break...

I don't know how greatful I will be in three weeks, but I'm thankful that today is the last day of school for the boys. It will be fun having them home. We will be doing a lot of baking and gift wrapping over the next few days.   

I looked out the window and what did I see.....

Last night the storm came and killed our tree. 

Last night before we went to bed we had family prayer. It was my turn, and I remember being thankful for the rain. I also remember asking for our family to be protected and kept safe. I never thought that I would have to pray to keep the Durango safe too. 

At least it didn't fall on the house. I just hope nothing is broken under there.

 

I'm so glad we just got it washed.  

Girls and dolls...

Heidi loves playing with her babies. I often check on her at night before I go to sleep and find several babies or stuffed animals tucked in beside her. They are usually covered up in one of Heidi's shirts or a hand towel. The last time she did this some of her smaller babies were covered up with a diaper from her cabbage patch doll. So for Heidi's birthday I decided to make her a blanket and pillow for her babies. We went to the fabric store and Heidi picked out this really cute material. It had to be pink of course and has all these cute little baby things on it.

We ended up with enough material to make 2 blankets, 2 pillows and 4 burp cloths. Heidi told me her babies were very excited for their new things. Heidi helped to stuff one of the pillows, but when one of the blankets was finished she had to try it out to see if her baby liked it. Next thing I knew she had sweet talked Connor into finishing stuffing the pillows.

As soon as I finished with everything I went to go check on my little mommy. She was in her room telling her babies it was dark outside and time to go to sleep. Heidi lovingly tucked her babies in and kissed them on their little heads. Heidi told me how they would be warm now but they won't stop fighting over the burp cloths. Little girls are so cute.

I couldn't help but take a few quick pictures of my adorable girl before leaving her alone to play with her babies.

When I walked past her room a little while later I couldn't help but stop and watch. She had lined up her dolls in front of her kitchen. Placed all the new bedding on the floor in front of them, and was taking pictures of everything using a box of crayons as a camera. Oh she makes me laugh. What an imagination!

Gratitude....

So I've decided that on Fridays I'm going to write about 5 things I'm thankful for. It's a good way to keep things in perspective and to remember how good my life really is.

1.) New Friends...

I am thankful for Bryan's new friend. His name is Alex and lives just two doors down from us. I'm so happy Bryan has found someone he can play with and talk to. It's also filled my heart to see how big Bryan's heart is. The first time Bryan talked to Alex it was while walking home from school.
Alex's bike broke just as they turned on our street. I was waiting outside for the boys when I saw Bryan stop to talk to a boy on his bike. Connor came running home telling me that Bryan was trying to help this boy fix his bike. Next thing I knew Bryan and this boy were in my garage working on the problem. Bryan reminds me so much of his dad, always wanting to help those in need. After about 20 minutes the bike was fixed and Alex was on his way home. Since then they've been really good friends. I'm thankful to have a son with such a caring heart.

2.) Cooler Weather...

I am so thankful that the weather has finally cooled down. It has been so lovely to be able to have our windows open during the day. It's nice to let the fresh air in. My favorite part about the cooler weather though is the night time. I love being able to wrap up in blankets up to my eyeballs and feel the cold air on my face. This really is my favorite time of the year.

3.) Hot Chocolate...


Now that it's colder I'm thankful for hot chocolate. Chocolate in any form is truly a blessing. However there is just something about hot chocolate that is both comforting and soul filling. I don't know if it's because of the memories of childhood that fill my mind as the smell of creamy chocolate goodness comes from my mug; or if it's because I'm always reminded of family and the comfort of home. With every sip it's like being wrapped in a warm chocolate hug. (Did I mention I like chocolate?) My children love hot chocolate. They all stand around the stove watching the steam come from the pan. Fighting over who gets to put in the marshmallows. The best part about hot chocolate are the chocolate mustaches and smiles that remain once the mug is empty.

4.) Being at home...


After having to work the last few Christmas' at your friendly neighborhood Walmart I am so thankful this year to be at home. I'm able to do all the things that I've really missed. Decorate my home with all of our decorations that we've collected over the years, bake cookies, watch old Christmas movies on tv, etc. I guess you could say that I'm thankful for time. Time spent with my family is my favorite thing in the world.

5.) Gratitude...

I am honestly thankful to have a heart filled with gratitude. These last few years have been extremely difficult. Full of burden and trial. I can look back on those now and feel blessed by the experience. I was taught many things. I learned that my family is my home and a house is just the walls that surround it. I feel we can overcome anything as long as we do it together. I know I'm stronger than I ever thought. I'm thankful for the things I have such as my husband and children, and the knowledge to know what's really important. When things were really tough it was hard to be thankful but now I wouldn't trade that time for anything. I feel my life is richer for the experience and that is something to really be full of thanks for.


with love
~amy

Thoughts...

I can't believe it's been more than 2 years since I last posted on this blog. I'm sure no one even noticed. I've thought about this blog a lot lately, ever since there was a lesson in Relief Society about remembering where you come from. It was also about the importance of keeping some type of journal, a recording of daily things. Some one had suggested that a blog was a good idea, or to keep a book with cards or notes that you've been given. So I've decided that I'm really going to try and write as often as I can about the things going on in our lives. Even though I haven't posted anything in over 2 years it was still fun to read the things I wrote. Even if I'm the only person that ever reads this, that's ok. It's fun to look back and see how things have changed and how my kids have grown.


with love,

~Amy