Piano Recital

Ok So the weather outside is FRIGHTFUL! We had a basketball practice, a basketball game and a piano recital tonight. In a 2 hour or so period we probably got 5-6 inches of lovely snow. Very wet snow! So after Lyle finally got home from the practice and game and slid all over in his trusty little truck. We got in the Suburban and went to the recital about 20 minutes late. Got there in time to see Aunt Molly play and for Rylee then Rayah to play. Then it was over. At least we got refreshments:) So the following is Rylee playing "Silent Night" She was supposed to play it again with a duet part with her teacher(Aunt Molly) but the sheet music didn't make it to the recital somehow. Good thing she had it memorized.

This is Rayah playing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas"

TWILIGHT midnight showing!

Watch the Trailer on Yahoo! Movies

Ok so last night I of course went to the opening of the movie Twilight. So if somehow you don't know what that is, it is the first in a book series that is fantastic. Read it, you will love it. So we went to the midnight showing. First we went to eat at Applebees. Some of our group was at their monthly Bunk-o group. So only half of us were at the restaurant. Rilee, Christy, Marla, their daughters Makenzie and Ashley. Their friend Jolee who is hilarious and her mom and Hannah. So its is about 9 pm and we are talking about when we will get in line and I realize somehow in all of the excitement, I left my ticket at home! Hello, I know kind of important!!!! Luckily our friends Jamie and Jodi are driving by my house (sorta) on their way from Bunk-o and go to my house to get it. As I had put my 6 kids to bed before I left, imagine their surprise when all of the lights in my house are in and once they pull in the driveway they all go off. HMM.... So they get the ticket, go potty, and tell my kids to go back to bed. We all meet at the restaurant and go to the theatre. There is a line, but we sent the teenagers ahead to save a spot and not just 1 or 2 of them but 6 or 7. Of course there was some childlike cutting in line and glaring and complaining ( mostly from teenagers) but whatever. We got great seats! And were probably in the first 40 in the theatre. They finally let us in at 11. We got in line about 9:40. It was cold. I had to scrape ice off of my windshield before I could drive home. We weren't too cold though, and waiting outside went pretty fast. Inside, sitting in our seats for that hour seemed to take forever. With all of the teenagers behind us it seemed longer. Makenzie was so excited and we took to planning what time would be the best time for the last bathroom break before the movie so we could not have to go during the movie. She and I decided 11:45 so we would be closer to when the movie was going to start. She then took to counting down because then it would be closer to the movie starting. She was so funny!
Marla and Christy in the theatre.
Shalyn, Jamie and Jodi hugging her popcorn. :)
Marla, me and Rilee.

So Michelle, my sister had some shirts made and here are some of us modeling them! Of course it was so cold so not a lot of people saw them but oh well!
Jamie, then Jodi and Jenny. Such lovey models.
























Here is Makenzie and her stylin' hat. Then Marla, Jodi and Jamie.
























Mikaela and then Rilee, Christy and Marla.




We had so much fun and the movie was great. A bit rushed I would say but over all, I loved it. Can't wait to see it again.

Fall 2008

So I know it has been while since I posted. Here are some halloween carving and football pictures.

Jake is 58.

And then the kids on halloween with their Nielson cousins.

How many Supermans can you get? :)

Here is one of just mine.

Check her out!

Walls and Stitches

Ok so it is a bit blurry but you get the idea. Rorie decided to chase our kitten Blazer and ran into the wall. BLOOD EVERYWHERE!

7 stitches later! You can see the blood in her hair. There was lots of it everywhere. We just got new insurance and Lyle had the cards so i had to go to KU and get them from him before I could go to the doctor's office. How is it as a parent to Jacob and Jensen who have hit their heads and every other body part they are not the ones I have ever had to take to have stitched up? Just Rayah at age 3 for her finger and now Rorie at age 3. This is our first major wound and head wound for sure. She should have a nice scar. I guess she'll always have bangs?

Spa Day

So with all of the peaches I forgot to tell everyone about my Girl's Day out with my mom, sister, Michelle and sister-in-law, Molly. For Mother's Day we went in together and got my mom a spa gift certificate. Our husbands as brilliant as they are realized that my mom would never go by herself. So they got all us girls one. We finally managed to get our schedules together and went the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. I wanted to take pictures but never did. We went to breakfast first at Morning Glory in Ashland. It was very yummy. Huge portions. Then we went to the Pheonix Spa. Mom and Michelle decided to get Pedicures. Molly and I were all about the massage. So as pedicures are fairly self explanitory and I didn't do that I will tell you about the massage! We got into the robe they provided and they took us to do a foot soak. Then we got our feet massaged while we picked the essential oil scents we liked. Molly and I both were about the cinnamon and vanilla. So after 10 minutes of foot massage we went to get the rest of us done. It was SO relaxing. There aren't words............ The only thing I can say is that I want to do it again. The whole body this time as I just did my back half. 30 minutes of bliss!! So needless to say my husband racked up major points with that one. Any husbands reading this go and get your wife a massage. You know she deserves it. IT WAS AMAZING!!!
Then we went lunch at the Apple Cellar. It was yummy! Check it out if you are in Ashland.

Just a thought for today (I emailed this to some of you)

GOD CREATED CHILDREN

(AND IN THE PROCESS GRANDCHILDREN)


To those of us who have children in our lives, whether they are our own, Grandchildren, Nieces, Nephews, Or students.....

Here is something to make you chuckle.

Whenever your children are out of control, You can take comfort from the thought that even God's omnipotence did not extend to His own children.

After creating heaven and earth, God created Adam and Eve.

And the first thing he said was 'DON'T! '



'Don 't what ?' Adam replied.

'Don't eat the forbidden fruit' God said
'Forbidden fruit? We have forbidden fruit?
Hey Eve, we have forbidden fruit!'

' No Way!'
'Yes way!'

'Do NOT eat the fruit! ' Said God.

'Why ?'
'Because I am your Father and I said so ! ' God replied, wondering why He hadn't stopped creation after making the elephants.

A few minutes later, God saw His children having an apple break and He was ticked!

'Didn't I tell you not to eat the fruit?' God asked.

'Uh huh,' Adam replied.
'Then why did you?' Said the Father.
'I don't know,' said Eve
'She started it!' Adam said.
'Did not!'
'Did too!'

'DID NOT !'

Having had it with the two of them, God's punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own.

Thus the pattern was set and it has never changed.


If you have persistently and lovingly tried to give children wisdom and they haven't taken it, don't be hard on yourself. If God had trouble raising children, what makes you think it would be a piece of cake for you?
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT!

1. You spend the first two years of their life teaching them to walk and talk. Then you spend the next sixteen telling them to sit down and shut up.
2. Grandchildren are God's reward for not killing your own children.
3. Mothers of teens now know why some animals eat their young.
4. Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said.
5. The main purpose of holding children's parties is to remind yourself that there are children more awful than your own.
6. We childproofed our homes, but they are still getting in.

ADVICE FOR THE DAY:

Be nice to your kids.

They will choose your nursing home one day ;

AND FINALLY:

IF YOU HAVE A LOT OF TENSION AND YOU GET A HEADACHE, DO WHAT IT SAYS ON THE ASPIRIN BOTTLE:

'TAKE TWO ASPIRIN' AND 'KEEP AWAY FROM CHILDREN'!!!!!

Blazer the kitten

Ok so I left on Friday for a Relief Society Retreat up at Lake of the Woods. So much fun of course. My sister Michelle is in the Stake Primary presidency and over the stake 11 year old campout. So she always plans it the same weekend and parties with us through the night. Anyway, after very little sleep I came home the next morning to see this on my couch...

So cute. He ended up bringing home this kitten from the high school football game. I guess he thought he would just keep it for the weekend and give it to someone on Monday. Yeah, Right!?? The kids and I fell in love with him. He reminds me of my cat "Prince" that I had from 6th grade to 10th grade. So I said that I wanted to keep him. So we are. He has blue eyes which I haven't ever seen on a cat before and he is tiny. He isn't even as long as my foot. Granted I wear a 9 1/2 but still. Rayah and I were trying to come up with a name and I jokingly said "Blazer" Lyle's favorite basketball team is the Portland Trailblazers. And of course our dog's name is "Dodger" for his favorite baseball team. So after all of these cute names Rayah and I came up with he ended up being named BLAZER. Here is a closeup.

So now we have three cats again and a dog. I know I really think I am a little crazy.:)

Basket-Head Mother Syndrome

My sister-in-law sent this to me today and I needed this reminder! Sometimes life feels this way.
I really enjoyed this quote by Anna Quindle.Elder M. Russell Ballard quoted her in my favorite talk"Author Anna Quindlen reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments.{or if I could enter here-the basket-head mother syndrome} She said: "The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less"(Loud and Clear [2004], 10–11).
Starting today I am going to be better. I never had a basket-head mother, and I AM NOT GOING TO BE A BASKET-HEAD MOTHER! I am going to listen, love, communicate, cherish, enjoy, teach, preach and prepare my children. Time for everything else later.

Millions of Peaches!

So this last Thursday we went to Medford for the holiday weekend. We finally got out of Klamath about 8pm. Jake had a scrimage and Jackson had practice. (Football)
Friday we got up went and got our new(er) Suburban. Then we went and picked blackberries, all 8 of us. Then we swam at my parents. Then in the afternoon we picked apples and pears. Then Saturday morning we got up with Michelle's 2 oldest and our 2 oldest and Grandpa and Lyle and me. We went and picked peaches. The line of cars to get into the orchard was about 1/2 mile long. 25 minutes or so we were finally in the orchard. Lyle dropped us off and went to park. By the time he got to us we were almost done. We had about
5 boxes to fill. It took less than 15 minutes. The trees were totally loaded. Apparently, we got a little carried away. We thought we had 100 pounds or so. Yeah, 330 pounds later. So we went a bit over budget. :) Needless to say since we got home we have been canning peaches. Some aren't ripe yet. So we will be canning throughout this week. So much for a break with the kids back at school!! I did 4 batches of Strawberry jam from the berries I froze earlier in the summer and never got to and then did 8 batches of Blackberry -

Raspberry jam. All before I got to the peaches. Luckily, there are very few pears that we picked so at least there aren't a ton of those to do also. We will do the applesauce this weekend. UHG!! Love harvest time! :) We made cobbler for dessert tonight. I will post the recipe on the side towards the bottom. It works with berries too and any other fruit. YUM-O!

New(er) Suburban

So we just got a newer Suburban. It has about half as many miles as the one we have and is a few years newer and gets better gas mileage and has lots of bells and whistles!

Ok so the last half of our trip. Well we got to Ogden to Pineview Reservoir. We decide where to put our tent. Lyle's mom, brother and sister were there already and the Davis reunion was looking like just Nielsons for awhile. So right before we get our tent out...freak rain storm. Lyle quickly sets up our 10x10 canopy to provide somewhere outside to escape from the rain.
So after about 45 minutes of drenching rain we set up our tent. Family trickled in right before and after our rain fun. On Friday we spent the day in the sun. Jean and her kids came. They decided not to rough it camping like us and rented condos. It was fun to see all of the cousins together. We had seen a lot of the adults at Lyle's grandma Davis's funeral a month before, but now we got to see spouses and kids too. It was really fun. Some of them I hadn't seen for as long as 12 years. Most of them 6-8. It was so fun to be together.. Friday night we did the campfire thing and played games and told some family stories, and of course smores.
Saturday was spent on the beach again.
Rorie never really went in the water just played in the sand the whole day.
And there were some reading the ever awaited Breaking Dawn book. The older kids (11+) and some of the adults played keep away in the water girls vs. boys. I even joined in for awhile. I was done though when guarding Lyle I ended up hitting a rock on the bottom and hit my knee. Nice bruise. You know those Nielsons they are competitive. No blood no foul right.:)

Saturday night was filled with stories about Grandma and Grandpa Davis. It was fun for all the kids to hear stories about the funny and crazy things they did.




The next morning was Sunday and we had breakfast and then a testimony meeting with those that were left. Then we took down camp and left. On the way back to Idaho we went to Lyle's foster sister's Arlene. She lives near Logan and has 2 girls. One 2 one 4 months. She has a new house and it is beautiful. She lives accross the street from Meika that I grew up with here in KFalls. We finally got to Fruitland, ID and went to Laurie's house for a yummy dinner. Our kids got to interact with some of the cousins that didn't make it to the reunion. We visited with them and left Tuesday morning. We of course made homemade icecream while we were there and played games and watched the Olympics. Finally we made it home. It was so fun but I am so glad we are home. Now onto the laundry.

First 3 days of our trip!

Ok so we left on Tuesday at 12:30 and drove to Fruitland, Idaho. We got there about 8:30pm(they are an hour ahead of us) and ate dinner and visited. We went to see a house Lyle's brother Lane remodeled that looks totally new. It was absolutely amazing. It is 2400 sq.ft. for 245k so if anyone needs a house in Ontario Oregon they should check it out. I can only say it was WOW! We stayed up til 2 am visiting and playing Xbox.

The next day we went to Provo and that trip took forever. We went and walked around BYU and each of us got something at the bookstore there and the kids took forever to decide. Then we went to the BYU earth science museum and looked at the dinosaur skeletons, then to the Monty L. Bean museum which has all of these stuffed animals. Hundreds of them. Rylee was terrified of this huge like 10 feet tall Kodiak bear. It was enclosed in glass. Rayah was freaked out by this huge moose. I didn't realize moose got quite that big. Unfortunately our camera was wigging out so we only got a couple of pictures one of which I posted yesterday. We went to my brother's house to stay for the night. He was away for military training so his poor wife Karen got to deal with us all on her own. She made us amazing pizza. The kdis had a blast and it was nice to catch up with Karen. She read books to the kids before bed.
On Thursday morning after doughnuts we headed to Salt Lake. We went and saw the temple, went to the beehive house which was amazing and then to the Conference Center. The kids loved that. Then we went to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and saw the movie about him there. I have seen it before but Lyle and the kids hadn't. They really enjoyed that. Then as we were on a schedule we quickly toured Temple Square. Both Visitor's Centers and the Tabernacle. We rushed up to UofU to get our nephew, Jordan from Bball camp so his mom wouldn't have to drive clear up there as we were already there. He is 15 and 6'2. Porr guy was quished in our car with our 6 kids who all seemed to want his attention, but he took it in stride and was so sweet to them. We ran by Burger King and ate and then headed to Ogden to Pineview Reservior for the family Reunion. I will post about that tonight.

We're Back, had a blast, so glad to be home

So this is us in front of a portrait of Charles W. Penrose in the Conference Center. He is Lyle's great-great-great how ever many grandfather. He was a conselor to Heber J. Grant and George Albert Smith.

This is a picture of Jensen with 2 of his cousins, Joshua and Jace. (Leah's Kids)
This is a picture of all of the kids at the Monty L. Bean museum in Provo.

Going on Vacation

So we are headed on a family vacation to a family reunion on Lyle's side to Idaho and Utah. We will be gone for a week. I will have lots to post when I get back. I just added the Twilight Movie Trailer to the bottom of my page so if you haven't watched it yet, check it out. :) Yes I am a little obbsessed. I admit it, I need a 12 step plan for recovery. Have a good week!

Lyle Hates The Dog????

So this is our dog "Dodger". Aptly named for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Lyle keeps telling me how much he hates our dog. First of all, a word of advise... Don't get a puppy! But still this is a very sweet 1 year old puppy. He is 80 + pounds and can drag the best of us around. As you can see from the second picture Lyle looks like he absolutely despises the dog. Just totally hates him, can you tell? He spent a good amount of swimming with the dog on the leash as Dodger can't be trusted to not take off where ever he feels like. He is a sweet dog, he just likes to chew on everthing and run and bark. :)

Grandma's Pool

Rorie loves the life jackets but not the water so much.

We spent a couple of days at Cherise's mom and dad's house. The kids got to hang out with their cousins and soak up some rays.

We'll try!

So everyone kept telling me I needed to do a blog. I've heard many reasons from family history in the making to just because it is fun. So we are going to try it! Here goes nothin'. :)