crazy fun!

dave's parents, sister and two kids came for our very full, fun weekend. we loved having them here and felt especially grateful that they made time to come right before christmas. they came to watch sadie and abe perform in the Nutcracker (and i did not take one picture!) it was such a positive thing for sadie and abe to be involved in and a really fun show. it made it much more special having family here for the occasion.
we also went to phoenix, watched abe play two soccer games, then rushed back for his last performance. abe played well then changed into his costume in the car on the way back to flagstaff, danced his little heart out...and by the end of it all was exhausted!we made a gingerbread house and exchanged christmas cousin gifts-- and played and played.

what a crazy full, fun weekend.

shoes

this post is not about the red shoes some man helped a child buy a mom for christmas....nope.

but these also caused me to tear up.
these are the shoes that abe's teacher told him he was not allowed to wear to school...ever again :)

what kind of a mom makes their child wear these shoes?? honestly, i bought these shoes three months ago and i didn't realize the holes were THAT big... he is a pretty active kid.

i am thankful for...

BINGO...

and BLACK-OUT!

every thanksgiving my parents play bingo with the grand kids. this is completely their kind of fun and a great tradition. even the teenagers love to earn christmas money through bingo and are good sports, well, slightly sarcastic sports. when someone gets bingo they pick one of my mom's hands from behind her back, one holding a chocolate dollar and one a real dollar. kai looked forward to bingo for weeks. he loves the numbers, the competition, cousins, the candy, the money, and mostly the grand prize for black-out. i am grateful i have an honest mom...except when it comes to bingo. i'm pretty sure she "helped" the last two years so kai would end up winning the black-out prize. he was thrilled!

cherry pie

the kids and i drove to utah a few days before thanksgiving so we could help my mom prepare. i enjoyed cooking with my mom and learning how to make some of the traditional things we eat at thanksgiving. i loved watching my mom give the kids a pie lesson. my mom makes fantastic pies and she prides herself on her flaky crust. she was trying to demonstrate, but max took over and wouldn't let go.... i am thankful for treasured moments like these, and cherry pie--kai's favorite!

baby roja

while in utah, sadie and i hosted a baby shower for my nephew's wife, robyn. the guests were all the little girl cousins, my sisters, and my mom. we ate yummy food (thanks to my husband. did i mention nicest husband in the world?? he helped me prepare at midnight, after watching tyler play at byu). we played a couple games: guess which candy bar is smashed in the diaper--classic for girls age 8-11. a naming game in which my clever sisters came up with Roja-- a mix of robyn and jake, and moalauny connie--a mix of samoa, since jake is samoan, and connie is my mom's name. i added one that abe came up with when i was prego with max, just in case it's twins: Is-a-belle and ring-a-bell...we think we are so funny.sadie did a great job with the petal party for the girls (they made some cute flower headbands) while the rest of us helped my mom with a darling quilt. dave took care of max, who woke up sick and puking. once again, thanks dave...you make life better. we are excited for jake and robyn and can't wait to meet baby sienna!

kick for the cure

abe played in the kick for the cure soccer tournament yesterday. it is a great fund raiser for breast cancer. abe played his first night game, under the lights--so fun. in school they set some personal goals for the year and abe's was to get a goal in club soccer...and he did it! he played goalie half the game and forward half the game and even though his team lost, it felt like they won, he was so excited. i wish i had a video of him getting the goal and then running back and hugging his team. you would have thought they won the championship game. later he explained what was going through his head, how he noticed a pattern in the other team's moves and knew if he went a certain place that he would be able to block it. it all worked and he ended up with a goal in the last few minutes of the game. the teams in phoenix are amazing. abe's team has been working very hard and improving, so it was nice for abe to experience a little moment of magic.

we ended the night at my brother's house for a quick visit. it was fun to talk and laugh. we watched a video of his son, taylor, who's serving a mission. he is a wonderful example for our family--so neat for our kids to see him as a missionary in Uruguay.

veteran's day

these are a few pictures that our friend sent us from afghanistan when he was serving there (thanks justin)--we used them when sadie sang in her talent show. they are very similar to the pictures my brother brought home when he served in afghanistan. i look at these children and their parents and my heart goes out to them. after watching my brother and others serve our country, i know i could never understand the sacrifice it is to be a soldier. i am very grateful for the freedoms we have and for the soldiers who protect them. god bless america, the soldiers, and children everywhere.