Snow Day!!

The snow from the last 2 nights is the largest accumulation they have seen in 10 years. I'm pretty sure at our house we got, at least, 11-12 inches. It's been fun watching it fall...from inside the house, of course!! We took the kids out last night when there was only about 4 inches. Here are some pictures.......










This was from last night...about 3-4 inches had already fallen......

This was from this morning....about 11-12 inches......

I'm trying to convince Thomas to take them out sledding. I am watching a little boy today, so hopefully we will be able to get some pictures to share!!!

Peter, Peter, Pumpkin CHEATER!

Uh, yup....that's what Ryker shouted out to one of the girls during a game of Go Fish.

Oh yea...it's that ruthless.....

Little Missmatched....LOVE it!!

I just found this adorable site! CLICK HERE to go to Little Missmatched. They have the cutest socks and tights and lots of other stuff. Their socks are purposely sold in sets of 3, and each sock in the set is different. Each leg in their tights are different too.

This totally solves my problem for mismatched socks!!!

Every Year......

Every year, my poor Sierra seems to get jipped on her birthday one way or another!! This year, it was the blog post. I was able to do everyone else's birthday post on their birthday except Sierra. Her birthday is December 30th, and well, with all the hullubaloo of the holidays, it just kinda gets pushed back. She did get her birthday present early, though, so I think that makes up for a late post. She got a new Nintendo DS just like the other older 3. She was so excited to get it early, because that meant that she could use it on the plane to Vegas.

Sierra is my uber smart, uber inquisitive kid! In 1st grade, she was reading at a 5th grade level and completely understanding what she was reading. If she wants to know about something she is NOT afraid to ask, and she won't stop asking until she gets an explanation or some kind of answer. There are so many nights that Thomas will go in to tuck the girls in and an HOUR later I have to go in and break up the deep converstation going on. Right now, she is reading The Lord Of The Rings Series. She even asked for the set for Christmas. How many 11 year olds have you heard asking for that for Christmas?? I'm guessing...not many! I love that she loves to learn, and I hope that she won't quit. She told me last Summer, that she really, really wants to go to Harvard. If I know Sierra, she'll be there!! (Guess I better start-a-saving!)

Here are some things that I love about Sierra.....

- She is the BESTest friend anyone could ask for! She is so compassionate and loving!
- She won't take NO for an answer.....sometimes this can be hard on me, but in other areas it makes me extremely proud!
- She has a strong will to choose the right.
- She is beautiful!
- She is an excellent artist, both in her writing and in her drawing.
- She is a GREAT sister!
- She loves ME!

So...Happy Birthday Sierra!! We LOVE you!! Keep being the wonderful person you are!!

I Can't Wait Until I'm 8...

For Then I'll Be Baptized You See!

On December 27th, Ryker was baptized. We are so grateful to all of our family for taking the time to help support Ryker in this decision. We are so proud of him, and enjoy watching him grow into a fine young man.

My favorite picture of Ryker!

Ryker right before getting baptized.

These are all the wonderful men who stood in the circle to confirm Ryker.

We are so thankful to everyone who helped us make this such a special day for Ryker!

It's Official...The Weatherman Said It's"Just Darn Frigid!"

Here is our 7 day forecast as of tonight. As you can see, we should only get up to 2 degrees tomorrow with a low of -14. Our wind chill temp will be around -25 to -35 degrees. Then, just like Indiana always does....a 20+ degree difference in one day! We'll even have a Heat Wave by Tuesday of next week!! Ha Ha

What's the point of this post......just looking for some sympathy from all my peeps in the desert enjoying 65 degree temps!! Doesn't this post make you want to come and visit us and hang out!! Hee Hee

2nd Week in Vegas

Here we are at The Magical Forest. This is an annual activity for my side of the family. We really missed it last year, and were so glad we could go this year!

Here are the kids helping Grandma and Papa make cinnamon rolls. They had a blast. This was actually done on Christmas Eve. I just forgot to put it in my other post.

Here are some random pics from the trip....

Harley & Marina sleeping with their new Zobies! Thanks Uncle Jim and Auntie Jaimee!!
You guys gotta check these out! They're adorable!!
www.zoobiepets.com

Ryker & Jimmy ready for bed!

Me, trying to get Maddee to smile!

Uncle Jimmy reading a good night story!

The grandkids at Macayo! This is where I grew up eating at. I can't believe they are still open! Such great memories!!

I'm going to do a post for Ryker's Baptism and Sierra's Birthday. I thought they deserved their own posting. Gosh, I am getting old....Sierra is 11 now, and I can't believe my baby boy is old enough to be baptized!

Are we Jet Lagged??? NAH......

This is Marina after telling me over and over how she was NOT, I repeat NOT, tired at all!!
Yea...Sure!!!

By the way, I kinda like this whole "sleeping in" thing. Man, have I been missin' out or what?? The kids have been sleeping in anywhere from 9:30am to 11am. So much nicer than when they were waking up at around 6:30am or 7am! It's a good thing we are doing this home school thing, or they would be really cranky! Although, we all slept through the alarms our first morning back. I missed hearing the doorbell for the daycare kids, and the kids missed their first day back at the Learning Center. It was all worth it!! I'm sure it won't last much longer, but I'm savoring EVERY minute of it.

Our First Week in Vegas! Hang in here with me, it's kinda long!!

I have a bunch of pictures to share, so hang on tight!!

This first set are just some random pictures. Mostly with Kayslee, my niece. The kids pretty much terrified her for the first hour or so, but after that she warmed up to them like she'd known them forever. My nephew Hunter is in here too. He just barely turned 3 on the 20th, and is already taller and bigger than Marina!

This next set of pictures is of our Christmas Eve. Every Christmas Eve since I can remember we have ALWAYS gone Christmas caroling. My dad bought a little fire truck a few years back, so we take that around now. It was raining that night, so the kids didn't get to ride in it as usual. But, it was still a fun family night together.

The rest of the night was spent eating our annual Christmas Eve buffet dinner. Plus, all the grandkids helped Grandma make a gingerbread house.

This next set is of our own Garyson Christmas morning with the kids. It was a fun, quiet time for us to open presents with just our little, all right, I guess big family!

Hope you were able to stay awake during all of that!! Our second week pictures will be coming soon!!!

Ahhhh...Home Sweet Home!!

We finally made it...luggage and all!! We drove into our driveway at about 1am, got the kids showered and in bed, Thomas is at the store getting some milk and other necessities, and here I sit, completely addicted to updating my blog at 1:51am. Yep, I think I need an intervention!! More to come......

No Fly Zone!

Well, I guess today was just a trial run! We were officially bumped off our flight today, but our luggage wasn't. So after delays of over 2 hours, Marina almost being eaten alive by the escalator, Sierra nearly breaking her thumb, no luggage, starving children, and a wierd hotel room just off the strip, MAYBE we'll make it home tomorrow!

Again....wish us luck....we're gonna need it!!

All set to go....

We had a great time these last few weeks, and I can't wait to share all the pictures and memories. We are pretty much all packed up and ready to head to the airport tomorrow afternoon. We ONLY have 14 bags/boxes/car seat to check.....nothing major!!! Should be a breeze!!! Hee Hee

Just thought I'd give you a funny image of 2 parents trying to get their 5 children, 9 suitcases, 4 boxes, car seat, 4 carry-0ns, and a partridge in a pear tree through security and onto an airplane in a timely and orderly fashion!!! (okay, okay...maybe not the partridge, but you get the idea!)

Wish us luck....we're gonna need it!!!