Zach

So I have to brag a little bit...Zach is the most thoughful kid ever!  He went out and got everyone presents for Christmas.  I think he will be an exceptional man when he grows up, when he hears something he remembers it.  I had said something about not having a certain size of knitting needles and he went out and bought me the size I needed and some yarn to go with it!  He also spent the last few days before Christmas making presents for his mom and stepdad.  If I am stressed out he orders me to go and take a bath or something else relaxing.  I love how he still is a child though.  He loves to play with Spencer and Kaden and has not lost his imagination one bit.  Most of the time he was staying with us last week, he spent up in one of our trees make a fort with rope and sticks, and playing with his homemade bow and arrows.   We are so blessed to have him in our family.

I hope I live through the Holidays

These past couple weeks have been painful for me.  Last week I went to the dentist to have a cavity taken care of.  It was just one small one so it was no biggy.  HA!  As my dentist was giving me the shot I could feel this achey sharpish pain in my jaw, where I think the needle was.  I didn't say anything because I figured he would be taking the needle out soon.  (He kept it in a little longer then I wanted.)  Everything was wonderful and numb hours after I had my cavity taken care of.  Around the kids lunch time my jaw started to ache.  And then around nap time it was killing me.  I could hardly talk...the more I moved my jaw the more it hurt.  I finally got the kids down, took some meds and tried to sleep.  More like I cried myself to sleep.  I couple hour nap actually helped with the pain a lot.  I didn't talk or eat much the rest of the day...my right side of my face was swollen and extremely tender.  So it continued to get less and less painful everyday after that, and about three or four days later, my pain was replaced by a giant bruise on my right cheek.  It looked like I had gotten into a fight.
So on to my next story:  Earlier this week I was walking down the stairs with Addy and as I took a step my heel slipped off of the stair and in trying to keep Addy from getting hurt I landed hard on my tailbone and left funny bone...NOT funny!  My whole left hand went numb for a minute or two.  This fall wasn't my most dramatic fall off of those stairs but it was the most painful.  Addy was fine, just scared...I called Brian and had him come home...luckily it was close to dinner anyway.  By bedtime I needed help getting undressed and dressed...I couldn't bend my elbow, it would tingle painfully and then send numbing tingles to my fingers.  Now my elbow isn't too bad, there is a big bruise and my pinky and ring finger still have a fall asleep tingle to them, and by tail bone is bruised and is not fun to sit on.  This is the fourth time this year that I have fallen down the stairs.  Brian is nervous that people are going to start thinking there is more to my stair falls the just me...he is probably right, with my bruised cheek and fall down the stairs...it does sound suspicious.  But to put everyone's mind at rest...it is all my cluztiness Brian has nothing to do with it.  Maybe I getting old and my body is falling apart...I just need to get one of those elevator chairs. 
So anyway that has been my week and a half.  Sigh!  So I wish you all a Merry and accident free Christmas!

REAL Wreath

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So I decided to be ambitious...I made a wreath. It turned out to be a lot simplier then I had thought. And it cost me 0 dollars!! I used a wire coat hanger, branches from my trees, and yarn, and about 40 or so minutes. I could probably do it faster now that I have done it once. It is not the prettiest wreath that I have seen but I am quite proud of it. If you want to make one yourself here is the blog. I love it...I'll probably make one next year too. I do have a confession though...for some of it I used a glue gun. When I finished one side looked very sparce and it was dark outside so trying to gather the cut branches was very hard. So I grabbed what I could and I hot glued them to the wreath...they weren't staying otherwise. I probably could have got them to stay but I was impatient and I wanted to show my fabulous hubby my creation when he got home. So there it is, my holiday wreath...I am so proud!

Nauvoo

I kind of took an untentional "vacation" from blogging. I feel like things have be a little crazy since Thanksgiving...anyone else feel this? A few weeks ago we (Brian and I) took a trip to Nauvoo to go through the temple with my brother and his wife Abbie. It was a lot of fun! Brian and I got to be the witness couple and it was an experience that I will always remember. Thank you Abbie and James for choosing to go to the temple. It will be one of the best choice you ever make.

Nap time

This is what happens when Spencer doesn't have a nap. He slept like that for about 40 minutes...he was supporting himself with his hand. Suprisingly he didn't fall off. I love this kid!

My first leggings!

Yesterday I made leggings for Addy out of a pair of my socks. It was so stickin' easy! I'm excited to go and buy more socks for her. I have knitted a pair for her but I actually like these better...and they took 2 minutes instead of 2 weeks. I like the knitted ones for an extra layer over tights or something, but on her bare legs they just come off. But these babies stay on! When I took the pictures she had been wearing them the evening before and all night. Yes, I am in love. Here is the link incase anyone is interested.

Snow!

It snowed for the first time yesterday! Colorado is crazy! On Monday it was 70's and very warm and then on Tuesday it was overcast and 40's and SNOW! Well I guess it is about time, it is November. Spencer is funny his smile for pictures lately has been more of a grimace. I'm not sure why. The hats they are wearing are ones that I made out of two sweaters. I didn't have a pattern so I just winged it...they are not very attractive but they do their job.

Birthday!

So for Kaden's birthday we took a trip downtown to the Fire House Musuem. It was tons of fun! There was hardly anyone else there. There was so much to see and play with. The boys had a blast. We even got to go to story time...we were the only ones there. We will definitly be going back soon!

I went simple this year with the cake...cupcakes!! Kaden loves the book "The Very Hungry Caterpiller" we read it like every day, so I decided to make the caterpiller out of cupcakes. My first thought was to try and make a butterfly cake, but simplicity won...and I am very happy with it. Most of it ended up under Kaden's chair anyway. He loves to shove things in his mouth but keeping it there is another story.

Kaden is 2!!

Warning: This will be short, I don't know how many seconds I have before kaos erupts again...we have a sick baby. So I'm a couple of days behind...on the 3rd Kaden turned 2. It was a great day. We gave him a couple of books and some bubble stuff. I also made him a little book of his 2nd year. It didn't turn out quite like I had wanted but it was pretty good for a first try. And here is just a happy picture of Addy that morning...yea for cute babies!

Charla, Brayton, and Ellie came to visit!

Contemplating Boxes

Aren't boxes wonderful! They are probably the cheapest and most loved toy ever! We got a new dishwasher (and my studly husband installed it himself...and it works!), anyway, we got a new dishwasher and the boys love playing in the box. They dump all their toys and books into it and play! When I took this picture Spencer was reading a book to Kaden...it was super cute! I think we should have a national box day...HORRAY for boxes!! They make my life a little easier.

Hurray for mom's!

So on Monday night Kelli bent over to pick something up and ended up on the floor in pain. She ended up tweaking her back somehow and could barely walk. So in my massive, well shaped arms I carried her upstairs to rest. Since she couldn't really stand\walk I took Tuesday off to take care of the kids while she continued recovering. I don't think I ever under appreciate how much my wife does, but when you don't experience it first hand sometimes you can become a little complacent. Do know how difficult and stressful it can be to tend to 4 kids by yourself? I think I did pretty good but when it came time for dinner I punted and ordered pizza. At the end of the day I was pretty spent, but Kelli was able to get some much needed rest. So "Cheers" to all the mom's out there for all the amazing things you do.

The So...

Today, I did something either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid...I cut the tip off of the So. The "So" is Kaden's pacifier. After several failed attempts to do away with the "So"...which resulted in an even greater attatchment on Kaden's side; we (by we I mean I) decided that we were finished with the "So". Hmmmm....maybe next I should start cutting holes in all their daipers. Maybe cutting holes in all things that are annoying or undesireable would be the answer to many of life's problems. I'll have to think about this...maybe first I'll see if I survive tonight without a So. Wish me luck!

So I know I just posted pictures...but I am so excited to share my first completed crafty project on my new sewing machine! It is not perfect and I'm sure it looks like a beginner made it...but I love it, probably because I made it. Yeah! Mom, I bet you never thought that you would be reading something like this on MY blog. Oh and the top picture is another one of my amazing creations ;), Addy, eating cereal!

General Conference/Zach's 11th Birthday