Family Ties

About a year ago we had a very challenging time in our marriage. Satan is real and he will try his hardest to break our families apart. We have learned how important it is to stay close to our Heavenly Father. We decided to make some changes to help us grow spiritually stronger. Since then, we started having family home evening, nightly scripture study and family prayer. We have grown spiritually, have a closer family bond, a better understanding of the gospel and a stronger testimony. I have so many blessings to be thankful for. I truly am grateful to have the gospel in my life. I am thankful for my Lord and Savior, I am thankful for the atonement and the gift of repentance. I am thankful for my challenges and trials in life because they make me grow stronger. I am thankful for a kind loving husband who is willing to grow spiritually with me. He is a hard worker, a wonderful husband and amazing father. I'm thankful for my children, the gift of motherhood and the opportunity to teach them. They are my life and the air I breath. I love their sweet spirits and do my best to raise them to be respectful, honest, compassionate and to treat everyone equal. I am thankful for life and all it brings; the ups and downs, learning new things, discovering new talents and just enjoying the journey.

Easter 2011

This year we spent Easter in SLC with my mom and dad because we were already in town for my grandma's birthday party. I love spending holidays with my family. I don't want my mom and dad to be alone. With my kids being the only grandkids it makes it fun for Papa and B-Ma to spend the holidays with their grandkids.

Aunt Courtney helped us color eggs. This is always a favorite for my kids! Our tradition includes coloring eggs the night before and leaving them out for the Easter Bunny to hide. Then in the morning we have to find the eggs so we can eat them for breakfast. This year the Easter Bunny had new hiding places because we were at B-ma and Papa's house. He hide Whitney's basket in the closet downstairs in the play room and he hide Caysen's basket behind the curtain in the living room.


My kids got spoiled with three egg hunts! Before we went to SLC our ward had an Easter breakfast and an egg hunt for the kids. The day before Easter we took the kids on an egg hunt at the park with our friends April and Richard and their kids. The kids got to see the Easter bunny and have their picture taken with him. Then on Easter B-Ma put together an egg hunt in her yard for the kids. She filled plastic eggs with prizes like candy, money and toys! The kids loved it!


Another tradition is to buy new matching church outfits for the kids and take their pictures. Here are a few of the many photos I took.

Disnayland

It's a tradition every year that my mom and I take the kids to Disneyland over spring break. This year Grandma Z came with us. Usually St. George has an earlier spring break than everyone else which ends up being the last weekend before the busy peak hours start. This makes it nice because the lines are not that bad. For some reason this year Disneyland was PACKED! I guess the spring break schedule changed for some states. Instead of it being the last weekend before the peak season it ended up being the first weekend of peak season. It was horrible! We tried to make the best of it. Whitney went on the Tower of Terror the last time we came to Disneyland and it scared the crap out of her. This year she absolutely refused to go on it again but my mom and I talked Suzan into going on it. She didn't know what to expect. It was so funny to see her reaction. I think it kind of scared her too. Caysen was in car heaven when he saw Mater and Mcqueen. He was checking out the wheels and their mouths. He was starring and touching and loving it! He couldn't get enough and we had to drag him away! Even though Whitney is seven years old she still insists on being in a stroller. She says it's not fair that Caysen gets to sit in a stroller. So we always rent a stroller. Besides, it makes it easier for us to get around and do things faster if we can just push the kids. Whitney NEVER takes naps! Ithought it was funny that she actually fell asleep in the stroller. Crazy how us adults are the ones doing all the work yet we have more energy than the kids and can't get enough of Disneyland but the kids get so worn out LOL. I wonder if she will still be in a stroller when she is 10?

Halloween

We had a very busy Halloween season. We took the kids to the corn maze and pumpkin patch, we had Halloween parties, school parties, trick or treating at the mall and around our neighborhood and John and I even went to a haunted house!

This year for Halloween Whitney chose to be a Monarch Butterfly and Caysen wanted to be Thomas The Train. The kids kept me busy. I went to Caysen's class to watch him learn how to Trick or' Treat, exchange candy and go on a "Bear Hunt". Caysen loves to go on a bear hunt. They listen to a story and do actions to what is being told in the story. It was fun to watch. We went to Whitney's school to watch the Halloween parade. It was fun to see all the different costumes. I helped out with Whitney's class Halloween party. We decorated the room spooky and had a smoke machine. Then we decorated cookies, played spooky BINGO, ghost bowling and had a coloring activity. When John got home from work we met my friend Kori at the mall and we let the kids trick or treat at the mall. They got a lot of candy but that didn't even make a dent compared to all the candy they were about to get. After the mall we went trick or treating around our neighborhood on our 4 wheeler. The kids loved it and so did I because I didn't have to walk. It was great because we could get around to the houses faster and all I had to do was sit and drive.