A Wonderful Tribute.

One of my talented friends, Kerri, created a video tribute of President Hinckley and posted it on her blog. It is really special and she said I could send my friends to her blog to see it so take the time, it is great.

Birthday Babies!

We had Andy and Ashlyn's Birthday party yesterday. Taylor was SOOO excited to have a party for them. She told Tyler she was going to decorate the WHOLE house. We didn't but had fun decorating the family room.

It is almost impossible to get the two of them sitting still and smiling at the same time for a picture so here is one of each of them smiling.

Eating the ribbon and wrapping paper is much more fun than what's inside. The older kids could not understand this part. There is a video of Andy crawling away while we were attempting to open presents and little Tyler tries to stop him and explain that it was time to open presents. Taylor had fun opening presents though and everything was "what we always wanted."
Eyeing the cake.

And Ashlyn's got it down!

The guy on the left is Tyler's best friend Andy who is the reason for our little guy's name.
After the party Tyler and I went to the Garth Brooks concert with Craig and Sara. We had so much fun! Tyler and Sara have already posted pictures and a synopsis of our night and said pretty much everything I was going to say so for more information about our fun night click on their links. I did love when Trisha Yearwood came out and sang with her man and the concession stand worker at the end (now you have to go to their blogs to know what I am talking about).

One of my favorite people has passed on.

He will be greatly missed. He was always a great source of comfort to me when I would see him and hear him during various broadcasts. His many talks have had a great impact on my life. I can only imagine the homecoming he received today as he completed his mission here on Earth.

LDS Church President Gordon B. Hinckley Dies
Last Update: 8:18 pm
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The 15th president of the LDS Church, Gordon B. Hinckley, passed away on Jan. 27, 2008 following nearly 13 years as the LDS church prophet. (Photo: LDS Church) SALT LAKE CITY - The president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints died on Sunday at the age of 97.It was announced on Sunday evening that Gordon B. Hinckley, president of the LDS Church since 1995, died from issues related to his age.Born on June 23, 1910, Hinckley ascended to the church presidency on Mar. 12, 1995. For years, Hinckley served as the 15th prophet of the LDS faith as a successor to Howard W. Hunter.Hinckley became the oldest president in LDS Church history on Nov. 2, 2006 -- surpassing David O. McKay.Hinckley might be best known for his aggressive attitude in building LDS temples around the world. As of an. 2008, 124 LDS temples were operating worldwide. Prior to Hinckley's presidency, there were less than 50.

One Year Ago Today...

Andy and Ashlyn entered the world and into our hearts.
What a difference a year makes.
Andy and Ashlyn turned a year old today. Most people think it has flown by and can't believe it has been a year already. It is a little different for me. It seems so long ago that we took that top picture and they were that small. This last year has been one of the most challenging years I have ever experienced and yet also one of the best. After the twins were born my sister told me that I looked happy. Of course you are happy after a baby is born but it was different this time. I felt an overwhelming peace after they arrived. They completed our family and completed me. They have brought so much joy and love into our family and we absolutely adore them.

Why we love them:

Andy is our sweet little man with a smile that will melt your heart. He is desperately trying to talk and now says hi and hey all day long. He says uh oh and oooo and will start to whisper jibberish when he wants to tell you something. He also gives 5's and loves his Daddy and Grandpas. I think he feels a bit out numbered during the day so when the men in his life come around, he is very excited. He should be walking soon as he is not going to let Ashlyn do too much without him.

Ashlyn is the funniest baby with a mind all her own. She has to explore everything, climb on or into everything (whichever the situation will allow), put everything into her mouth, and no obstacle is too big for her. She is photogenic and enjoys be center stage. She is also a dancer and will even bounce to Taylor banging on her drum. She has very short legs but has mastered the art of walking and even tried to run today.

It has been so fun this last year watching their different personalities develop

and watch as they have become best little pals. I LOVE my babies!

BACK ONLINE!

Finally!!!

I have been without the Internet for a week now due to our move. I have felt totally disconnected from the world but I am back and life is good now that I have the Internet and TV. YEA!

So we are moved in and slowly adjusting to a bigger house, stairs, hardwood floors, and life on Old Peak Lane. It has been a stressful week and a little difficult transitioning to this house but everyday gets easier and better so I am much more optimistic than I was on Monday. I do have to share one of my favorite things about it: We have 2 shower heads in our master shower. Now if you had asked me about this before we moved in, I probably would not have known that we had 2, it was not really a big deal to me but let me tell you...best thing EVER! On Saturday when I was worn out, exhausted, and stressed out I took a shower using both shower heads, used my aromatherapy RELAX shower gel and I thought I was in a day spa. Then I climbed into my bed with my new down comforter...heaven! One of our goals for this house is to make our bedroom and bathroom a sanctuary. In the last house our room was the laundry room, hide the clutter from the rest of the house when people come over room...Not this time. It is awesome!

She reached the finish line.

Ashlyn has been taking steps for a month now and everyone thought for sure she would be walking by Christmas but this week she learned to stand up from a sitting position without any assistance and therefore decided NOW she could walk. Every day since she has been going farther and farther and doing it more often. Of course Andy can't let his little sister be too far ahead of him and so he has started to stand unassisted and today took 3 steps.

Oh my goodness, what will life be like with 2 walking one year olds? Now the fun begins!

Taylor got a new toy!

Because Taylor was sick on Christmas, Santa decided to wait to give her a trampoline. It is a good thing too because a tornado swept through the neighborhood that night and would have taken the trampoline with it. Now that we are only 2 days from moving in to the new house, we set up the trampoline and surprised her with it 2 days ago. I think it was a big hit with her and the neighbor kids (which are our friends...so fun!)

Fun in the Snow!

Yesterday we went to Wrightwood to visit with Tyler's parents and play in the snow. Taylor has been asking for months to play in the snow ever since her shows started playing winter episodes. She had a blast and would have lasted longer if she would have worn her coat. I did try but she thinks she is immune from being cold.
Building a snowman.
That little red house on the right is one of our vacation rentals.

www.wrightwoodcabins.com
Prefect little hill for Taylor.

Never a Dull Moment...

I should probably start by explaining the current condition of my house. Our front room is full of boxes as we attempt to pack and move next week.

It is chaos trying to stay organized during all this with 3 little ones. One week and counting! My kids are not allowed in the front room but I was sorting laundry out there and so they followed me in. I was doing my housewife responsibility when Ashlyn crawled to me and I noticed she was chewing on something. Now this is a regular occurrence with her. She is ALWAYS finding nonfood items and putting them in her mouth...drives me nuts, so I pick her up and start trying to open her mouth to see what she has so I can get it out. Well she wouldn't open it so I stuck my finger in her mouth and what did I find but PINE NEEDLES.

That's right a little branch of pine needles from our Christmas tree that was removed from our house 3 weeks ago! I swear I have vacuumed many times and thought all this stuff

was cleaned up. Leave it to Ashlyn to find something she shouldn't.

I realized as I was trying to get this out of her mouth that they were breaking and going farther into her mouth and down her throat and NONE were coming out. So my panic level begins to rise and I begin beating her on the back...NO RESULTS. She begins coughing and gagging... Panic Level intensifies. I continue to pound on her back and call Tyler but by ring 2, her coughing stops, her gagging stops, and she is not getting air. I am now beyond panicked and I am freaking out as I grab the home phone and dial 911 all the while turning her face down, hitting her back, screaming to the 911 lady that my baby is choking. By the time they transfer me to emergency assistance, Ashlyn begins to cough again and therefore begins getting air. Nothing came out so she must have swallowed what remained of our Christmas tree. So here is where the humiliation part sets in. The lady on the phone continues to ask me what she swallowed probably wondering why there were Christmas tree branches in my home 3 weeks after Christmas and how I allowed this to happen. She tells me Paramedics are almost to our home. And this is what arrives, lights and sirens blazing.

Humiliation Part 2 begins as they enter my chaotic mess of a house. Remember the laundry I was attempting to do, well that was all over the last remaining bit of floor that could be seen. I tried to explain that we are moving but they probably didn't hear me and were just thinking, "no wonder this baby choked on something....look at this place." While one paramedic checked Ashlyn, the other one asked me if all these kids are mine. I love that question. I get asked that EVERYDAY because apparently having 3 kids is outrageous. Anyways, the good news, Ashlyn was and is fine. They wanted to take her to the ER by ambulance but we opted not to do that and just call the Pediatrician so that I could retell the story of the Christmas tree branches to cap off my evening of panic and humiliation. It took me about 3 hours to recover from all this and instead of spending the night packing, Tyler and I turned to Matt Damon.

Really good movie by the way.

Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam!

Taylor is officially a Sunbeam. Today she entered Primary and boy was she excited. She received her very own Book of Mormon with her name printed on the front and a little bag to carry it in. All day she sang Primary songs. I have played CD's and sung Primary songs to her since she was born but I think those songs have more meaning to her now.

She is growing up so fast! I love my little Sunbeam.

A Great Day!

Top 3 things that make a day great:
1. Great food: BJ's pizza and chocolate chip pizookie...mmmm!
2. Great Friends: Craig and Sara
3. Great Surroundings: Balboa

On New Year's Day we packed up the kids and headed down to Balboa with the Blumes. It was such an amazing day. I don't think I have ever seen the beach more beautiful. It wasn't too cold, there was no wind, and no moisture in the air to make our hair frizz. It was crystal clear: I have never seen Catalina so clearly, you could see the entire island. The water was so calm, it felt like we were on a lake. Tons of dolphins swam around the pier and we capped on the evening with one of the most amazing sunsets I have ever seen. Tyler and Sara played photographer and captured some incredible shots. There were so many great pictures I had a hard time choosing which ones to post so I may post more later. You can check out Tyler's blog for more and I am sure Sara will put some on also.

It was a great way to start off the New Year.

Funny Babies! and a kitchen...

Bath Time Fun!
Playing with the fun toy from Grandma and Grandpa J.
This is my new kitchen for those of you who haven't seen it.

Just imagine it with hardwood floors. This video is so funny to me. Just remember that Ashlyn is the shortest thing EVER but she has the funniest personality...there is no obstacle too big for her. My sister and I have determined that she is a little snobbish, that is the only way to describe her. She just does what she wants, takes what she wants, climbs on anything she wants even though she is risking her life sometimes and Andy won't even follow her to some places. She loves to be the center of attention and have her picture taken. I think it is because she knows she is cute. She is just so funny!

Happy 2008!

Happy New Year!

We spent the evening with our friends, soon to be neighbors. We thought we would have dinner and return home early to put the kids to bed but the babies went to sleep in pack n plays and the older kids watched a movie so we made it to about 11:30 when all the kids came out and Tyler (not my Tyler) informed his dad that he was tired and ready for Paige and Taylor to go home. At about the same time Taylor went to my Tyler and said, "Dad I really really want to go home." Apparently they were ready for bed and for the night to come to a end. So we drove home (it will be so nice when we just have to walk across the street) and we made it home with 6 minutes to spare.

We had a great time. We had a little bounce house, pinata, noise makers, poppers, hats, confetti, silly string, TONS of food, and don't forget American Idol Karaoke.

All I wanted was a cute picture of my kids with their New Year's hats on

but this was as good as I could get. Do you think they liked the bounce house?!
LOVE HIM!
Taylor excited for all the candy.
So Paige got a little impatient with the pulling of the string pinata thing so she decided to hurry it up a little bit. Check out the video.

As for my New Year's resolution, I'm not really into the whole New Year resolution thing. I've never really ever thought about resolutions at the beginning of a new year. I feel like I am constantly reviewing my life and recognizing things I need to improve and change and so nothing has really changed just because it is Jan. 1st. But recenlty I did set some new goals and my hope for today, tomorrow, and the whole year is just to be a better person overall. That is vague but all encompassing. I am trying to be a better wife, mother, sister, daughter, friend, have more patience with my kids, study not just read the scriptures, pray like I should, attend the temple. Gosh the list goes on and on. I basically need and want to improve in all areas of my life. I have a lot to be thankful for. I have a wonderful life with a wonderful husband, great, cute, healthy kids and no real big trials (knock on wood) so I should be happy and able to become the person I described above. President Eyring gave a talk about recognizing the hand of the Lord each day. He said, "We promise that we will always remember the Savior. We promise to take His name upon us. We promise to keep His commandments. And we are promised that if we do that, we will have His Spirit to be with us. Those promises work together in a wonderful way to strengthen our testimonies and in time, through the Atonement, to change our natures as we keep our part of the promise." I think that is the key to being happy and to being the best person I can be so I have resolved to keep my part of the promise.