Jesus Bingo!

Curious as to what Jesus Bingo is? Why it is how we open our Christmas gifts around here, don't you?

Each year I try to come up with a fun way to open Christmas gifts. I don't like when we blow through the gift giving in 10 seconds flat and nobody knows what the other person received. let alone what they just opened. I like to take our time and have a fun, calm gift giving session.

This year it went off with out a hitch, we won't talk about mishaps of previous years :)

Each gift was labeled with a "bingo number" such as J8 -instead of a name.

The kids each took turns pulling a bingo piece out of a bag, hanging that piece up on the big Bingo Card hanging on the wall and then go and find the gift with the matching number and turn the piece over to find out whose gift it was and then give it to that child.

In the end it made this picture.

It was wonderful. Aybra had to wait three rounds before her turn to open a gift came but the kids weren't worried about whose turn it was to open a gift, they were just excited to find out who the lucky one was. 

The last gift they opened was a Bingo game for the family to enjoy and hopefully bring back memories of a wonderful Christmas.

 I will have to think long and hard to compare to this for next year.

Thankful Thursday

Only one thing on the list today:

The Birth of of our Savior, Jesus Christ. He truly is the greatest gift of all. He makes all things possible and because of Him, His Birth, Life and Death I can have my family FOREVER, and for that I am truly thankful.

Merry Christmas!

Twas the Night Before Christmas Eve...

About 8:00 our doorbell rang and Joshua rushed to answer it. I heard a jolly "Ho, Ho, Ho, are your brothers and sisters awake?" Curious I headed to the door and what to my wondering eyes should appear? 

Santa Claus!

Well anyone that knows me also knows that my little kids go to bed early but I couldn't let them miss this wonderful surprise. 

Corben had just barely drifted off to sleep so he was easy to wake up.

Zachary on the other hand was out cold and had a really hard coming to.

* I have a funny video of Zachary after Santa left that

I haven't had any luck uploading so I will have try again later

Joshua sweetly obliged me a photo op, even though he felt he was above sitting on Santa's lap

Aybra was sleeping over at Ganny's and missed the whole event. Darn it

Thanks for thinking of us Colleen

Thankful Thursday

1. Christmas Shopping is done! except for perishables
2. Tomorrow is the last I have to drive car pool for 2 weeks! I am ready for a break.
3. My heating pad tucked under my covers. It is down right chilly crawling into bed at night and my toes are thankful for the pampering.
4. Peppermint ice cream - I may or may not have stocked up!
5. Hot Chocolate - you just might find a scoop of the aforementioned peppermint ice cream floating in my mug.

The lengths he will go...

Corben: I want to be a police officer when I grow up

Mom: You do? How come?

Corben: Because I really want a dog, and to fight bad guys and sneak up on people.

Mom: Wow that does sound exciting

Corben: But really I just REALLY want a dog

Thankful Thursday

1. Online shopping - I have done at least 85% of the christmas shopping online this year. It has been fantastic. I haven't had to get babysitters and everything comes boxed up. It is much easier to hide that way.
   
2. UPS/FEDEX/USPS- all of my packages have come quickly and arrived in good shape. 
   
3. A Christmas Story - I love this lift the flap book. It tells the birth of Christ from both the Bible and the Book Mormon. 
   
4. My Willow Tree Nativity  and Little People Nativity - I have collected a bunch of nativities over the years but these two are my favorite. The willow tree is gorgeous and the fisher price the kids can touch and arrange however they want with out me worrying.
   
5. Christmas Lights - They just make me happy
   

The girl with one red shoe

My baby girl LOVES shoes, your shoes, my shoes, her shoes, any shoes, but she does have one pair that she loves above all others.

These are the shoes she searches out first thing in morning, that is if she hasn't slept in them already.

Quips and Quotes

Last night after a particularly rough start to dinner time I asked the kids to go around the table and say 3 nice things about each person. Corben's compliment to me was "You make food that looks really good, but I don't like the way it tastes."

Umm... THANK YOU?

Oh christmas tree...

Every year, the night we put up the tree, the kids each get to open an ornament that "represents" the year for them. It is one of our favorite traditions. Here are this years additions to our tree:

Joshua took the football world by storm

Aybra pursues her love of all things musical

Corben turns everything he touches into an art project

Zachary and his obsession with construction

Ellasen and her many one sided phone conversations

Mine and Brents - In honor of THIS

Thankful Thursday

1. It almost looks like winter outside - Good enough reason to break out the hot chocolate.
2. Family in town - We got to spend the day with Brent's sister form Tuscon. It was fun to just sit around and chat while the kids played and played and played. 
3. Portable Battery Jumpers - The kids were loaded up and we were off to drive carpool - but wait the car won't start. No need to fear the battery jumper is here. A few cables to hook up turn the ignition, close the hood and off we go all in under 10 minutes. Whoo Hoo
4. Footy Jammies - I love when it is cool enough at night zip the little ones up in the footies, few things are cuter!
5. A gorgeous new christmas tree that is half as wide as the old gorgeous christmas tree. I was so excited to put it up instead of dreading crowding the other one in.

Splish Splash

Ellasen HATES the carwash - the only way to get a smile, tell her we are all done!

The Breakfast of Champions

This is what happens when you leave a five year old on his own for breakfast -

but he finished every bite.

Thankful Thursday

Today is is simple:

1. I am thankful I am not still throwing up
2.  I am thankful Zachary seems to be done throwing up 
3. and I am thankful so far no one else is throwing up.
   

Arizona and back

We drove to Mesa, Arizona this weekend - left friday afternoon and home by Sunday night. Quick trip but fun trip

I drove all the way from home to Panguitch while Brent rested up for the last leg of the trip. That means I finally conquered my fear of driving Highway 20 (and it was dusk no less). 

Highlights of the drive down:

• 5 DVD players running in the car
• 5 sets of earphones on little ears
• 4 out of five children doing this for much of the drive there:

* She really is wearing a seat belt I promise

• Running over a dead deer just outside of Mount Carmel
• Josh wanting to get the deer head and mount it 
• Stopping in Panquitch, Kanab, Page, Page and Flagstaff before driving into Mesa - lovely
• Arriving at Jared and Michelle's home at 1:30 in the morning to find cozy beds all laid out for every one - Thanks guys!

Highlights while in Arizona:

• Josh going to a scout day camp with his cousins (at 6:30 am no less)
• Watching cousins play in the house, in the yard, in the sand and in the water
• Austin's baptism - the real reason we were there. 
• Zachary trying to work his way up the front to see another little girl baptized, tripping, almost falling into the font only to be caught by the girls father 
• Cox family dance



• Heart cookies - Mutti style
  
  
• Trampoline catapults
• Swedish Fish fights in the driveway

Drive Home:

• Stopping in Cave Creek, Camp Verde, the side of the road, Flagstaff, Page, Kanab, Panquitch and Beaver before arriving home - MOST STOPS EVER!
• Ellasen throwing up
• Trying to clean up Ellasen while Brent is driving in the snow over a dark bumpy 2 line highway.
• My head repeatedly bumping into the light and turning it on/off.
• Kids sleeping most of the second half of the drive!
• Crawling in bed at 12:30 am while Brent unloaded the car so I could drive carpool in the morning.

Thanks Cox Family - We always have a great time down there.

Thankful Thursday

1. The weather is still BEAUTIFUL! 
2. Halloween is tomorrow - I don't think I can take getting the troops in and out of their costumes one more time.
3. The Shower - strange? Maybe but when I need 10 or so minutes for a little kid to decompress I can toss them in there. They are contained, alone and happy. Sure maybe al the shampoo get squished out down the drain, but it is so worth it.
4. Football season (Little League) is OVER!!!! Don't get me wrong I really am a fan of football, but knowing I don't have to drive Josh to and from practice three night a week is wonderful.
5. Painted Toenails- Petty? sure, but hey make me oh so happy. I even did Ellasen's, she walks around chanting "Pretty". A girl after my own heart.

Annual Family Halloween Party

Once again Joe and Michelle hosted a great Halloween Party for the family.

Great Costumes

Great food 

and best of all

 Great fun. 

Thanks Guys!

Thankful Thursday

1. School Lunch - because who am I kidding I am not together enough to pack a lunch every that doesn't consist of the exact. same. thing. every. single. day. 
2. The mountains - We didn't make it up this year to drive through and see all the beautiful fall colors, but I can't imagine not seeing their beauty each day.
3. Gas prices dropping - They finally have dropped to just under $3.00/gallon just in time for a trip down south.
4. Burt's Bees Chapstick - BEST EVER!
5. Cell phones- I would never be able to get a hold of Brent with out it, plus I feel much safer traveling all over town with my kids in tow knowing help is only a phone call away if needed. 

National Cupcake Day

Who can pass that up? Not me. Although maybe next time I will think twice...

Cupcake pan - CHECK

Liners - I only have 8 cupcake liners - no big deal I can grease the pan

Cake Mix -I only have lemon - no big deal, I will make it from scratch

Kids to help CHECK (until Zach starts eating handfuls of flour - gross)

Grandma Bakers chocolate frosting recipe CHECK

Beautiful cupcakes - Not so much. 

The "made from scratch" recipe cooked very differently than I am used to:

I have my nifty cupcake icing tip, turns out the cocoa clumped in the icing and kept clogging the tip

SOLUTION: Squeeze a blob on each cupcake and let the kids ice them themselves - way more fun! 

So it didn't turn out as planned but in the end the kids got their cupcakes, I got to continue my crazy celebrating of National "whatever it is" Day and Brent felt bad for my whole ordeal and cleaned up the kitchen. Success - CHECK

Thankful Thursday

1. A long weekend - Thank you UEA. I have no carpools to drive, no homework to check, no where to be unless I want to.
2. The public library - My little kids were able to go enjoy a puppet show there this morning. They were thoroughly entertained and I got some new books to read.
3. My tomato plants didn't freeze - After the cold spell we had this week I was worried but with a little TLC from Brent they pulled through just fine.
4. Brent is home this weekend - One of the perks of having a school teacher husband is when the kids are out he is usually out too!
5. Aybra's egg making skills - She is the best little egg chef around and I got to enjoy one of her creations this morning. YUM

That's what you get for having 5 kids.

This is my normal, albeit insane, routine on a Wednesday.

I spend a large chunk of the day driving around town (my least favorite thing)

5:30 kids awake

5:31 Breakfast

5:45-7:30 get kids ready for the day

7:30 Throw on gym clothes and brush teeth to drive carpool

7:55 Josh leaves for the bus

8:10 load other kids in the  car

8:15 pick up carpool

8:40 Gym or workout at home

9:45 home from gym/give kids snack

10:00 Ellasen nap

10:00 Shower/get pretty

11:30 lunch

12:00 Ellasen wakes up/lunch for her

12:25 Corben leaves for school

12:30-3:00 pick house disaster of a house/run errands /make dinner

3:10 Pick up Josh from school

3:30 Pick up Corben/Carpool from preschool

3:45-4:55 badger kids to do chores/homework

4:55 Drive Josh to piano

5:00 Dinner

5:25 Drive Aybra to piano/Pick up Josh

5:30 Feed Josh dinner

5:50 Josh to football

6:00 pick up Aybra from piano

6:15 Little kids baths

6:30 Stories and bedtime for little ones

7:20 Pick up Josh from Football

7:30 Feed Josh another dinner

8:00 Pester Josh and Aybra to go to bed

8:10 collapse

There is only 3 weeks of football left but then I have to add scouts back into the Wednesday mix.

Happy Birthday Corben!

You have the brightest smile!

You have a big heart. You are always willing to share. You are the first kid to offer to help someone.

You love nature. A walk with you is always a nature walk and you come home with great collections.

You love new adventures

You have big, beautiful brown eyes.

You sucked your thumb 24 hours a day and then suddenly quit cold turkey.

You are a big jokester.

You love a good hat

You are 5!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CORBS!