Christmas Fun!

Well, we have had a busy month! We had a great Christmas season, and stayed very busy! The ten days leading up to Christmas we had something every night! It was exhausting, and we are taking this week to recover! Christmas itself was very nice.

Bryson got a Wacom, Bamboo tablet from Santa. This allows him to draw on the computer. He is quite artistic and loves it! He received TONS of books including the entire Harry Potter and Olympians series! He loves to read!


Alyssa got a Pink Magic 8 ball from Santa. We gave her a camera, which she loves! She also got Hannah Montana the Movie and soundtrack among other things!
McKay got a Rip Stick from Santa. He is already practicing in our garage, he is quite good already! His favorite gift was the Big Bad Bow we gave all three boys! It is a hit!
Ty has wanted a Glo Doodle for a long time and Santa brought it to him! We gave him Bendaroos, but again, the Big Bad Bow was the hit!
Elysabeth got a darling unicorn stuffed animal, but all she wanted was Barbies! Luckily Santa threw in a couple of those as well! She got a lot of dolls, big and little, and her favorite princess Cinderella!
Bryce and I were very blessed and received some nice things. Some of our presents were "used" because we couldn't wait till Christmas to use them: a new TV, camera, and Blu-Ray player! Yes, we spoiled ourselves!
We truly do feel blessed this holiday season, and are excited to begin a new year!

Ambulance, not Life-Flight this time!

Okay, a freaky thing happened in regards to my last post. Today, just as the kids got home from school, I looked out a back window and saw a fire truck with flashing lights pulling into the cul-de-sac just next to ours! I was shocked! I pointed it out to my kids and they took off to check it out. I realized after they were out of sight that it probably wasn't the best thing for them to do, but oh well. Turns out a man was taken, by ambulance, not Life-Flight. We don't know why. My kids described him as a dad. I was sure glad it wasn't a kid this time, but still slightly freaked out! What is going on in my neighborhood!!!!!!!!!

Cute Kid!

I had to share a cute kid story. So, about 2 months ago a neighbor boy got hurt and Life-Light landed in the park across the street from our house. It was sad, but cool at the same time. BTW the boy is fine. Anyway, a month ago, maybe a little more, another Life-Flight helicopter landed at the school right down our street. Turns out a little league football player was injured in a game. Of course we went running down the street to see it. The first time McKay and Ty were asleep and Bryce had tried to wake them up, but they couldn't remember any of it. So, we all went down to the school to see the helicopter. Again, sad, but cool at the same time. I am pretty sure I heard that boy is okay too. So, on to my story. This afternoon, wouldn't you know it, we hear the Life-Flight helicopter again! McKay, Ty and I go running to see it. I mean, it isn't everyday you see a helicopter that close! (Well, actually, for us it is about monthly!) Okay, so we were watching it circle around the neighborhood and I said, "Not again!" Then Ty said, "Remember that boy that got hurt playing football? I bet they are bringing him home!" He was dead serious. I busted up laughing, but tried to cover it up, so I wouldn't hurt his feelings! How cute was that though? He is too dang cute! (The neighbor kids that went down to see what happened said some kid went off a jump on his bike and crashed and split his head open on a tree stump.) The thing that gets me is, I don't think they call Life-Flight unless it is really serious right? Well, maybe we should move with all the luck around here!!!!!

A House divided on Halloween!

We were carving pumpkins and Libby didn't want to do it, so I took over her pumpkin for her! Of course I had to carve U of U to counteract Ty's BYU. Well, when Bryson realized what I was doing he kept saying, "A house divided can not stand! Join our side!" I just laughed until he said it for about the tenth time. Then I had to explain to him that he will never be able to get me to come to the other side! I am a true Ute through and through! I thought I would include a picture of me and Ty and our divided pumpkins!

We had a great Halloween as usual! My family came over for dinner and then we trick-or-treated! Good times were had by all! Elysabeth especially loved it when she realized that tons of people were giving her candy! It was cute! The picture is pre-trick-or-treating, so no smiles yet!

Libby-Snow White

Alyssa- Miss America

McKay- A Bionicle

Bryson- A Ghost

Ty- A Hershey's Kiss
Most of the Cousins

Ty

Happy Birthday Ty! He is now 5! He had a great birthday! I thought I would post some pictures!

Friends at his party. It was a lizard party, and we launched rockets!

Football cake for birthday party! BYU v. Utah!

Cake for family party! I have now done this cake 3 times now! Once for all my boys!

And.....Great news, Ty got his cast off! About 3 weeks ago he was doing the monkey bars on our playset and fell and broke his elbow! He had a splint for 5 days and then a hard cast for two weeks! He was so excited to get it off today!

His cousin Ryan came to play at our house the day Ty got his hard cast on. He was swinging on our playset and decided to jump off and landed on his arm and broke it! He started screaming and came running in and his forearm was in a U shape. I told him his arm was broken and we were taking him right home! Yikes! His is quite bad, but he is doing great so far!

Para sailing!

Bryce and I were lucky and got to go para sailing last week! Bryce's boss has a couple of parasails and we took our boat and did it. We launched off the shore and away we went! I was totally nervous to do it, but once I saw someone do it, I was better. It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life! I loved it! It is so amazingly quiet up there! We were at Deer Creek Reservoir near sunset. The view was gorgeous! I would do it again in a heartbeat!

Bryce

Bryce "walking on water!"

Allison, leaning back enjoying it!

This shows how long the rope is!

Seven!

McKay is 7! I can't believe it! He had a great birthday weekend! We had his party Friday after school, Saturday we went boating with my sister Tiffany and her kids. And, Sunday we had extended family over for cake! Here are some pictures from the weekend!

Wizard Hat Cake! He had a Wizard Birthday Party! Grandpa Sweeney came and did a magic show! The kids loved it!

The second day of school and they celebrated his birthday!

Cake for family party!

Okay, I had to include these pictures. When we went boating Tiff and Bryson got a "$20 ride" in the tube! That is what Bryce calls it when he gives a wild ride! They were hilarious! Tiffany swears she has whiplash from it. I don't doubt her.

Bryce swears he wasn't trying to flip them, but they hit a wave and went flying! This is Bryson parallel with the water!!!! I love it!!

They were fine, although they landed about 20 yards away from each other! They climbed back in for more!

Battle Creek Falls

Okay, I have been wanting to do this hike all summer and we finally did it! It was way cool! We went for family night and invited my friend Sara and her 2 kids. All the kids but the 1 and 2 year old hiked the whole way! It was very pretty! If anyone is interested it is up a canyon in Pleasant Grove. It is the site of the first battle between the Indians and pioneers in Utah Valley! Anyway, here are some pics.

OOPS!

Okay, parents beware this blog entry is not for children to read! At least those who still believe in the Tooth Fairy! So, the other night we were all watching a movie in the theater and Alyssa pulls a tooth out! Cool, so about 30 minutes later Bryson also pulls a tooth out! Wow! What are the odds! To add to the craziness McKay had lost a tooth the day before. Well, for some reason we have no quarters in the house. Except for the kids banks. The tooth fairy had to raid McKay and Ty's banks to pay McKay the 3 quarters he gets for losing a tooth. I have to add that I did trade them nickels and dimes for the quarters, and they didn't even notice. Yet! Anyway, so back to Alyssa and Bryson's turn. So, the same night they lost their teeth we had an emergency in the ward that I had to help with, and didn't get home until late, and needless to say, the Tooth Fairy forgot to deliver. So, the next morning was Sunday and I was relaxing in bed with all the kids but Alyssa who was still asleep when for some reason it hit me that I had forgotten! Of course I have no quarters and how is the Tooth Fairy going to sneak into Alyssa's room at 7:30 without her waking up? So, the kids upstairs were distracted so I snuck down to Bryson's bank and found only 3 quarters and larger bills. I have to add that I didn't even have a dollar bill! Yikes! So, I snuck a dollar bill and put it in Bryson's pillow. His was a molar so they deserve more anyway right? So, then the tricky part. Alyssa was still asleep and her tooth fairy pillow was on the side of the bed closest to me. However, we had gone camping the day before and 3 camp pad were laid out on her floor yet to be pushed under her bed. So, I had to "quietly" move one a little to slide by. She didn't wake up! I made it to the pillow, retrieved the lost tooth and put in the money, all undetected! At 7:30 in the morning! I couldn't believe it! Awhile later, luckily while I was in the shower, McKay told me under the door that the tooth fairy had brought Bryson his money AFTER he woke up! As I was in the shower he didn't really wait for a response! Whew! Alyssa was none the wiser. Now, I am sure you are all wondering why I went to such trouble for my 11 and 9 year olds regarding the Tooth Fairy. I don't know why! Except that I am such a great mom!!! Just teasing! I know Bryson knows, but I really don't think Alyssa does. Oh well! Any advice on at what point I tell Bryson, sorry you are out of luck? I guess I could just hang in there, he is nearing the end of his tooth losing career? Anyway, I just had to share!

Meet Duma!

Bryson had his dream come true after years of waiting for it! He finally owns a lizard! It is a Leopard Gecko, named Duma. That is Swahili for Cheetah. He is actually pretty cool looking. The pictures don't do him justice, he is pretty yellow with hints of blue, especially on his tail!
He paid for him and the cage and everything with his own money. Thanks to KSL.com it wasn't as much as brand new in a pet store! So, we now have dormant mealworms living in the fridge! The things you do for your kids!

The BIG One

My parents took Bryson fishing at Strawberry Reservoir yesterday. My mom caught a big one first and they were talking about how big it was. It ended up being 18 inches and 7 lbs. Well, then Bryson pulled one in. It was even bigger! It ended up being 21 inches 8 lbs 3 oz. The thing was huge! Bryson was so excited! We had a BBQ and ate it last night! I had one bite to say I tried it, but it is not for me! But, Bryson ate a ton! He loves fish! Good job Bryson!

Change!

Our sweet little Libby is hilari ous! She LOVES her swimsuits, and because of hand-me-downs, she has 4! All day long she wants to change which one she is wearing. Most of the time we aren't even swimming or playing in the water but she has to be in one. I decided yesterday to document one day in the life of Libby and her many changes. I forgot to take a picture of her in her PJ's so that would add one change. Here she is!






I have to remind you all that none of these changes were my idea except the pink dress and that was because we were going to the park and I wanted her clothed!