Arizona Science Center

Since we were unable to go camping a few weeks ago we took the kids to the science center instead. Easily one of the coolest places in the city. You can see Rylee and Cole learning about the pully system in this first picture. All the kids loved the spinning pole. Gracie had to be distracted from it so she would let other kids have a turn.

Air was blowing out these tubes and making the little balls float in mid-air. Gracie couldn't get enough of it and was so proud of herself when she would catch one and then put it back so it would be floating again. So cute!
I don't know who these strange creatures are, but they sure had a good time with this machine!

MY KIDS WATCHED CONFERENCE!!!!

Well, the first session anyway.

In last months Ensign there was an article with suggestions for involving your children in conference. I loved how one parent talked about how they never forced or expected their children to watch conference. But as parents, they never missed one and that set a great example of how important conference was to them for thier kids. These parents did use insentives (sometimes known as bribes) to help encourage thier kids to sit and listen, even on saturday. They had some great suggestions and I love how they never forced thier children to sit with them, but lead by example.

Since my kids are still pretty little, only a few of the suggestions apply to our family now and they worked great! The other suggestions are things my husband and I have discussed and have come up with a plan for the future ( things like going out for lunch and dinner between conferences to talk about what was learne, only those who participated will be invited to go).

Here's what we did today!

First, for Rylee I printed out a conference packet which you can find HERE and she really loved it. For Cole, I found some coloring pages. I put both inside some fun folders (hello kitty for Rylee and spider man for Cole). These were helpful but did not keep their attention the entire time.

Second, I printed out a bingo game that my bishop had e-mailed to me in another awesome packet (let me know if you want it and I'll send it to you). There are both words and pictures so the kids can listen for words to be said and win a prize. The prize my kids won is they get a dollar to take to the dollar store later this evening.

Lastly, my kids favorite and the most effective game was "Magic Word." For each speaker I gave my kids one (or two) magic words to listen for. Everytime they heard that word, they got a piece of candy (jelly beans in this case). They loved this game. They had no interest in leaving the room and they are even looking forward to the next session.

Don't get me wrong, I still had to remind them occassionally to be quiet or reverent so mommy and daddy could listen, often followed with the threat of dismissing them from the room. But mostly I encouraged them to listen for the magic word. It was amazing how much they listen when you think they don't! They got nearly every word, even Cole! I thought this game might have been a little more difficult for him, but he was on top of it!

I know I'm posting this early, but I thought maybe this could be helpful to others with small children. Enjoy conference!

My baby is growing up!

Today is officially Rylee's sixth birthday, although she is somewhat confused since she thinks she turned six three weeks ago. When we sang to her in her bed this morning and announced she is officially six-years-old, she told us she was seven because she was already six! I love her!

I can't believe what a big girl she is. She has grown into one of the neatest people I know. I love hanging out with her. She makes me laugh and makes me smile daily and brings so much added joy and fun to our family. This morning I made chocolate chip pancakes in honor of our birthday girl and while she was eating she gave me an interview. I saw this on my cousin's blog and thought it was a good idea.

1. What is your favorite color?

"I like the rainbow."

2. What is your favorite number?

"100"

3. What is your favorite letter?

"Z, because it starts the word zebra."

4. What is your favorite game to play?

"Cat in the Hat"

5. What is your favorite book to read?

"The Fat Cat, and No More Monsters For Me"

6. Who is your best friend?

"Eowyn"(her best friend at school)

7. What do you like to do with mommy?

"Go to the candy store."(I'm not a very good example of nutrition, I guess)

8. What do you like to do with daddy?

"I like to go with him and help him with his work."

9. What do you like to do with Cole?

"I like to play funny games with him, like ghost."

10. What do you like to do with Gracie?

"I like to play and walk with her and help put her in her chair."

11. What is special about being six-years-old?

"I am special because I'm a special girl and I have a lot of good ideas."

12. What will be hard about being six-years-old?

"Lifting up heavy things, like Cole's tractor. That's a big thing."

13. What is your favorite thing to learn about at school?

"I love to learn everything, especially art."

14. What is your favorite food?

"Fruit pizza"

15. What is your favorite movie?

"Tinker Bell"

16. What is your favorite song?

"The fast popcorn popping" (i have a cd where men sing it acopella (sp?) in a 1920's style)

17. What is your favorite chore/responsibility?

"Cleaning up the dog poo." (crazy girl!)

18. What is your favorite candy?

"Jelly beans. I love the jelly belly store."

19. What is your favorite thing to do?

"Eat healthy foods."(okay, some nutrition is being taught)

20. What is your favorite toy?

"My spot puppies (Dalmatians) Lucky and Penny."

Tonight we will be having her favorite dinner: Pizza, cheetos and grape soda, and fruit pizza for dessert. If you have time, give her a call and wish her happy birthday. A special girl deserves the most special of days!

Rylee, Birth to Age Six

Indoor Camping

We were suppose to go camping this weekend with the Bushman family, but unfortunatly, thier girls got sick so we had to post-pone. The kids, especially Rylee, was pretty upset about it so to make it up to them we had a traditional campfire dinner, with hot dogs and s'mores, and they got to sleep inside thier fort in thier room. Gracie only lasted a few minutes before she had to get up so we had to put her back in her crib, which she was less than thrilled about.

Tomorrow, the science center! Pictures to follow. . .

To my photographer friends and family. . .

I'd love to know what you think and any suggestions you might have for change, improvement, good, bad, anything and everything. Thanks! Click HERE

Gratitude Attitude

Lately my kids have been struggling with having a "gratitude attitude" (if you're at all familiar with "Bright" then you know what I'm talking about)

So for our family home evening on Monday I wanted to help our kids develop a "gratitude attitude." And, since I don't have any decorations to celebrate the coming of spring, I "killed two birds with one stone."

They made this cute little flower garland (since one of the things I'm grateful for is beautiful flowers). I gave Rylee and Cole five circles in different colors and they wrote five things that they are grateful for.

Cole's List:
1. Flowers
2. Heavenly Father
3. Family
4. Friends
5. Jesus

Justin helped Cole with his list a little bit since he's pretty young, but Rylee came up with her list all on her own.

Rylee's List:
1. Water that makes the grass grow
2. Doing chores (she's little, she doesn't know that chores aren't fun yet.
3. The Visitors Center (she said more specifically the statue of Christ)
4. Jesus heals people (she recently said a prayer for me because I was sick and she believes that Jesus heals me since now I'm feeling better. I think she's right.)
5. Making a lot of friends

After we were done writing what they were grateful for on the circles, they pasted the circles in the middle of their flowers. Rylee liked her colors to be mis-matched and Cole liked his to match. It made for a perfect pattern on our garland.

We hung the garland up so it's the first thing they see when they come down stairs or walk in the door when we go places. Whenever they get to complaining too much they can be reminded of the things that make them happy and hopefully develop a stronger "gratitude attitude!"

Sometimes the best examples . . .

. . . come in small packages.

This is something I want to remember so I'm posting about it along with writing it in Cole's journal.

Rylee went to bed early while Cole and Gracie stayed up for a bit with their daddy. While they were playing, Justin's mom called so I put Cole and Gracie to bed. We almost never forget family prayer and for Cole, tonight was no different. He said to me as I tucked him in his bed, "We need say family prayer, remender?" ( remember is not misspelled, that's just the cute way he says it). I told him that daddy was on the phone so we'll wait until he gets off. Honestly, I thought for sure that Cole would be asleep long before Justin got off the phone. But 30 min. later when Justin said good-bye, in walks Cole into our bedroom and says, "We need say family prayer, remender?"

I love him!

He was the only one awake so we said prayer with just him. Justin asked him to say it and he says the same thing every time:

"Heav Fader, Thank you for day, bless church, Jes Christ, Amen!"

I love, love, love him!

With a little boy like him helping to keep our family on track I think we'll be alright!

Family Pirate Night

After Rylee's birthday party I guess I was in the creative mood, so I decided to do something a little more creative with our family movie night tonight. We had a "family pirate night!" First, we got all dressed up like pirates, except Gracie who was dressed like Tinker Bell. Then we popped in the movie "Peter Pan" and dished on our favorite pirate snacks which included: Crocodile Blood, Goldfish, Pirate Ship Hot-Dogs, Apple-Cheese Swords, and Captain Hook Tuna-Fish Sandwiches (sorry, no pic of the sandwiches, but they weren't anything special to look at). You can see the kids making their very best pirate faces in the last picture. Super Fun! I think this could be a fun family tradition. No more boring movie and popcorn nights. Now we have themes complete with costumes and fitting food!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday, and since they say that once you hit 30 you go backwards, she is turning 13-years-old today! These are a few pics from her recent visit here. And since my mom is the big 1-3, I will give you the top 13 things that I love about my mom:

13. My mom is fashionable. Growing up, she often wore the "mom" outfit of jeans and t-shirts, but in more recent years, she has discovered her own beauty and dresses the part. She wears nice things, and I know my dad is proud to have her on his arm (although, he always was, even if she wore sweats with her hair in a pony!)

12. She's BEAUTIFUL! Do you see the picture of her below! She's gorgeous! I only wish she could see what all the rest of us see when we look at her. I'm proud to say, that I often hear my family talk about how much I look like her when she was my age. Look what I have to look forward to! Thanks for that mom!


11. My mom calls and visits often. It's always fun to have her around. She's helpful with the kids and often let's Justin and I get away for an evening, and sometimes overnight, while she stays with the kids. She loves it when they all crawl in bed with her.

10. Being far away from home I often feel out of the loop with my siblings and cousins and what's new in their lives. My mom is always really good at keeping me in the loop with my family so I don't feel left out.

9. My mom is kind . . . to everyone! She makes friends everywhere she goes. Just this weekend, she was making friends with the lady who sat next to us at the mall playground. She's just a likable person and people sense that about her.

8. My mom is generous in so many ways. She loves a lot. She gives a lot. I know there have been times when she has sacrificed in order to give to someone else. She is an example of Christ's love in that way.

7. My mom is a good listener. If I need someone to just listen to me vent or complain I can always count on her to let me.

6. My mom is non-judgemental. It is amazing to me to see how much she can love a person instantly, even if by exterior appearances they look less than lovable. She makes no immediate judgements and accepts people.

5. My mom puts a lot of effort into building relationships with the ones she loves. That sort of ties into #11. She visits so often because she wants to get to know her grand kids and them to know her. It's important to her that the ones she loves know her.

4. My mom raised me in the church. My mom is the only member in her family. As a teenager, she would find a ride every week so she could go to church while the rest of her family did not. I don't think she is aware of the spiritual strength that she has. She is an example to me of faith in that way. It had to have been difficult without the support of her family members to stay strong. And I'm thankful that she did because it was at a church dance that she met my dad!

3. My mom is only the best grandma that a person could ask for their children. My children will never know just how lucky they are to have her in their lives. She loves them so much, unconditionally (the way a grandma should). They can do no wrong in her eyes. I often joke with her saying that the day I was born, she looked at her sweet little baby girl and thought to herself, "I'm going to be a grandma someday!"

2. My mom loves my dad. I am often overwhelmed with the relationship and intense love between my parents. They did not have the easiest start to their marriage, but it is clear to see how much they love each other. They are always hugging and kissing on each other and you never see them sit next to each other without holding hands or my dads arm around my mom's shoulders. I truly believe that the best gift a parent can give a child is to love the other parent. My parents have exemplified that by example. Thank you!

1.My mom loves me! In spite of all the things that I put her through in my childhood and teenage years, she loves me! Of course, that's probably easier now, but she loved me even when it was hard to love me. And I can't thank her enough for that!

Happy 13th Birthday, Mom!