Chuck E. Cheese

This weekend Grandma, Papa, Elizabeth, Zachary and I went to Chuck E. Cheese. Elizabeth wanted to take Grandma there for her birthday, but we haven't had a chance to go until now.

When we arrived we gave each of the kids a cup with their tokens. Zachary was very excited to have his own cup and was very possessive over it! It was so cute to see him walking around with it. He is getting so big!

The kids rode all of the different rides but I think the merry-go-round was the favorite. Zachary must have ridden on it at least 10 times. It was so fun to see him holding on and going around. He would wiggle his bum from side-to-side as he was going around. I guess he just had to dance to the music. It was making grandma and me nervous though, because we thought he was going to fall off. As soon as the ride was over he would say, "more". When I asked him if he wanted to ride again, he would nod his head up and down.

Elizabeth is getting to be such a big girl. She would head off with a handful of tokens and entertain herself. She knew how to put the token in and could get on all of the rides herself. She is growing up so fast!

It was fun to see them enjoying all of the rides. Zachary liked driving the car. At one point, he was steering both steering wheels and looked up at Grandma with a huge cheesy grin. It was adorable.

One of my favorite moments was when Elizabeth taught Zachary how to play the popcorn game. She showed him what to hold onto and how to move the bucket from side-to-side. What a good big sister!

Elizabeth was really into all of the games this time. She did a great job of trying. I am not sure that she knew what she was doing most of the time...but hey, she was having a blast.

Zachary is such a copy-cat and wanted to do everything that Elizabeth did. He could barely reach most of the games but he had fun trying.

Zachary did not stop the entire time we were there. He just ran from one side of the building to the other looking at everything and watching all of the people. It was fun to see him having such a great time. He loved watching the Chuck E. Cheese show. He just kept pointing and smiling the entire time.

We had to get in a few games of Skee Ball, since it is Grandma's favorite. Elizabeth is getting better at it but we still stand back when it is her turn. We can never guarantee that the ball will stay on the machine, or that she will roll the ball forward.

Zachary tried really hard and had a lot of fun playing skee ball. He rolled the same ball the entire time because it kept coming back to him. All that matters is that he had fun...and it seems like he had a blast!

It wouldn't be a party without a treat! Elizabeth picked out a Rocket Pop. I had an ice cream sandwich, while Zachary snacked on some Skittles. Zachary was very sweet and shared with everyone...even Grandma after a little coaxing.

We ended our trip to Chuck E. Cheese at the prize counter. We ended up with 165 tickets. Elizabeth and Zachary were so excited to see what they could get. Zachary picked a Chuck E. Cheese ball and Elizabeth picked a Belle princess doll.

Thanks Grandma and Papa, for a wonderful time at Chuck E. Cheese. We hope Grandma enjoyed her "birthday party" at Chuck E. Cheese. Luckily, Grandma was spared from wearing the Chuck E. Cheese crown!

Show-and-Tell

Elizabeth has been looking forward to bringing her Squinkies Princess Carriage for Show-and-Tell since she received them on Christmas Day. It has been a long month of waiting...but finally the day has arrived. I asked Elizabeth what she was going to tell her friends about her Squinkies and she said, "I want to tell everyone that I love them and I want to show them the Beasts' tiny, little pony tail!"

Lantern Moon Bali Weekender

Those of you that know me well, know that I am a complete bag freak. I love bags...all colors...all sizes...and I just cannot get enough.

Earlier this year I received the Lantern Moon catalog in the mail. Inside, were the most amazing and beautiful knitting bags that I have ever seen...with the most expensive prices that I have ever seen. I longed to own the Lantern Moon Bali Weekender. It would make a great knitting bag or a fun weekend road trip tote! I loved the rich colors, the size, the pockets, and the punch needle texture.

Well today my dreams came true and my Bali Weekender was delivered to Kamille's. I am one lucky lady to be able to call this bag my own!

Now I just need to fill it up with a fun knitting project!

Love This Boy!

Have I mentioned lately that I love this boy?

Well, I do!

Junior Nursery

My little Zachary had his first day in Junior Nursery today. I was a little nervous because he is such a mommy's boy and usually freaks out when I leave. I brought him to the Nursery and introduced him to his two amazing leaders (Sister Emily Preston and Sister Michelle Lunceford). Zachary immediately started playing with toys and didn't even complain when I explained that I was leaving and said goodbye.

The best part was when I went to pick him up. He saw me, grinned from ear to ear, ran to me and yelled "mama".

Seriously, all of that stress and worry for nothing. He was fine. What a blessing!

Dad's 70th Birthday Celebration

Today we met at Buffet City to commemorate my dad's 70th birthday. It was great to be able to get together as a family to celebrate with my dad.

 

In attendance: my dad, my mom, me, Matt, Elizabeth, Zachary, Meme, Uncle Bill, Michael, Kris, Talon, Titan, Maddie, Macgyver, and Maverick.

My dad is such an amazing Papa. My kids are so lucky to have him in their lives. You can tell that he counts his grandchildren as one of his most treasured blessings. I don't know very many grandpas that call up and ask to babysit their grandchildren. My dad loves to spend time with Elizabeth and Zachary...and they love to spend time with him!

My brother Michael has been working out-of-state so we haven't seen him very much lately. We were happy when a local job opened up so that he could come back home. It was great to see him and his bunch at the party!

What to say about my dad...he is a little crazy, sweet, caring, outgoing, loves life...but loves his family more.  He takes life by the horns and lives it to the fullest. He loves to help those around him. He would give you the shirt off his back, the shoes off of his feet, and then ask if you want his coat too! I have never met anyone like him...and I don't think I ever will! He is truly one-of-a-kind and I wouldn't trade him for anything. I love you Dad!

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for a great get-together. I am so happy that we were able to celebrate dad's birthday together. Here's to many, many, many more!

Do you see something wrong with this picture?

As I was taking down all of our Christmas decorations, I noticed something while boxing up our Nativity set. It looks as though Elizabeth decided to make some changes to the story. According to Elizabeth, it was Tinkerbell that was born on Christmas night!

The Clint Project

In mid-December, my friend Kamille Bauer and her husband, Clint received some devastating news. Clint discovered a lump near his hip, an x-ray and CT Scan confirmed a very large tumor was present in his pelvis and hip. After more doctor appointments and many more tests, they found out that he had Chondra Sarcoma stage 2, in other words, a really rare form of bone cancer.

On December 28th, Clint underwent 10 hours of surgery (and a 32 inch incision) where doctors removed over 20 pounds of bone cancer tumors. The largest tumor was the size of a watermelon and measured in at around 15 inches long. Needless to say, Clint has a long road of recovery ahead of him. He will need time to heal, as well as, quite a bit of physical therapy to regain his strength.

A good friend, and co-worker, named Lisa suggested that we knit an afghan that Clint can wrap up in during his time of recovery. A little way for us to show our love and support...to let Clint know that we care. Lisa designed and organized the perfect project. Clint's afghan consists of 24 knitted squares, each handmade by a customer or employee of Kamille's knitting shop.

Here is a photo of the block that I knit for Clint. I am grateful for the opportunity to do something to show my support for Clint, Kamille, and their darling little family.

This intricate, cabled pattern is featured in the Great American Afghan series. It was a difficult pattern that tested my knitting knowledge. I learned a lot from this project and cannot wait to find other interesting cables to try!

Good luck Clint! We are all praying for you and for a speedy recovery!

Senior Nursery

This year I was called to be a co-teacher (along with Sister Sarah Burnside) in the Senior Nursery. Although, I am a little sad to be leaving my Sunbeams, I am looking forward to getting to know my new little kids. Currently, we have about 9 kids on the roll, with about 6 that come every week. The kids are 2 years old, and will turn 3 this year. I absolutely love this age and cannot wait to get to know all of the kids better throughout this upcoming year!

2012

Hello 2012! Here's hoping that this upcoming year will be filled with much happiness and success! As I have thought about the new year, I have thought about the word "resolution". Many people I know are discussing their resolutions for the year and it has made me think about the things that I would like to accomplish during 2012.

Here is a list of 12 goals that I have made for 2012. This is not a list of things to accomplish during the year; however, it is a list of things to work on in an effort to better myself and my family.

1. Keep a Clean Home.  There are turbulent times in the world right now. I believe that a home should be a place to escape all of the pressures and evils of the world. All family members should feel comfortable, safe, and accepted within the walls of their home. I make it my priority this upcoming year to create a safe and clean environment; in addition to a welcoming spirit in our home.
2. Grateful Heart. I am blessed with an amazing family, two precious children, a nice home, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, among so many other things. In a world full of more...more...more, I want to be full of gratitude.
3. Bake More. I just loved homemade, beautifully decorated goodies. Whenever I see them in magazines and on my friend's blogs, I long to know how to make them. This is the year where I am going to start to learn. With Zachary's food allergies, it is hard to find things that he can enjoy. My goal is to create delicious goodies for him to savor!
4. Read More Books. I have really slacked in the reading department for quite some time now. This year I plan to rediscover my love for reading. Since Matt gave me a Xoom Android Tablet for Christmas, which is an electronic reader, I really have no excuse. I am excited to find all of the wonderful books that I have missed out on in the past. 
5. Be Conscious of the Spiritual Needs of my Family.  I really want to work on all of the things that are important for the salvation of my family. I want to draw closer to the Holy Ghost so that I can be in tune with what Heavenly Father wants for my family. Instead of having the necessary tasks of saying prayers, reading scriptures, going to church, etc, feel like tasks, I want to make them an embedded part of our daily lives...just like breathing and eating.
6. Learn Something New. I feel that in order to grow and improve ourselves, we constantly need to be learning something new. If we stay in one place...the world will go on without us. I don't want to be left behind! This year I will make it a priority to learn something new...something I have always wanted to learn but have never taken the time and resources to do so. 
7. Knit for Enjoyment. I have been blessed with the ability to knit. I love knitting and find such pleasure in using my hands to create projects. I have also been blessed with the ability to use my knitting talent to make money by teaching classes and knitting items for sale. I make it a goal to not let knitting become something I "have" to do!
8. Cooking. I have never been good at cooking...and I have never enjoyed cooking. This year I plan to make a change. I have been working on finding recipes that I enjoy making and improving my cooking skills. This will be something that I continue to do throughout this year. 
9. Be a Better Friend. I am family-oriented...almost to a fault. My social calendar revolves around my family which does not leave much time for my friends. This upcoming year, I plan to be a better friend. 
10. Be a Better Mommy. I have to admit that I am a structured person that does not like to be spontaneous or silly. I like to have a plan, a to-do list, and a schedule. I have to say that sometimes I let my to-do's get in the way of being a mommy. I need to be silly and spontaneous and really enjoy my kids. Here's hoping that I can lose some of my inhibition and go a little wild every once in a while. 
11. Finish what I start. This one is huge! I always have great intentions...but my follow-through lacks a little. I have projects throughout my house that I have started but have not finished. I have knitting projects that I have started but have not finished. I have blogging that I have started...and you guessed it...have not finished. The list could go on. This year...and for many years to come, I'm sure...I plan on finishing what I start!
12. Play More...Stress Less. I have been following a family in the news that experienced a great tragedy over the Christmas holiday. They were driving home from a Christmas Eve Party and were hit in a head-on collision. The mother and father were badly injured, and sadly, their 18-month old son was killed. This story touched my heart and brought to my mind that life is short. That there are no guarantees. That you have to enjoy the time that you have. With this in mind, I have decided to play more and stress less. Who cares if my to-do list does not get done. Who cares if there are dishes in my sink. Who cares if the beds are not made. I care that my kids feel loved. I care that they are happy. I care about whether or not I have made them my priority. I want to enjoy every moment that I have with my family. I want to share my gratitude and my love. In the end, I want to look back and know that I did everything in my power to let my family know that they are what mattered most!

I look forward to this new year. I look forward to the opportunity to work on these things. I am grateful for the chance to make myself a better person.