The Real Meaning of Christmas!!!!

Jesus is the reason for the season. Keep HIM in your hearts during this Christmas season and ALWAYS!

Tie + Overtime + Shootout = Great night at the Predators game!!!

Silly Memories

My little girl has the personality of a FIRE CRACKER!! She comes up with some of the craziest things. This past 2 weeks I was talking with friends and family and sharing stories about her and a friend said "oh, you need to write that down so you won't forget." So here goes.



About 3 years ago Riley was in pre-school and I was going to school. Our mornings were tight for time so we didn't have a lot of time for wardrobe changes. Well, for those of you that know Riley you know she's gonna do what she's gonna do!! She would not get dressed and we were running late. So I got her dressed against her will and sent her out the door to get in the car. I grabbed her back pack and opened the garage door to find my 4 yr old naked in the garage screaming "I'M NOT WEARING THAT!!!" So I quickly picked up her clothes, put her in the car and took her to school. I did feel bad for her teacher. I dropped her off in her underwear hold a bag of clothes.....in tears.



She's always wanted to dress herself and we have gone the rounds many times. I tell her it doesn't match or it's to hot (in July) to wear a turtle neck and fleece pants outside. Her reply is always the same..."It doesn't matter, I like it." So I let her be herself and she now does her own hair. We call her Cyndi all the time in honor of Cyndi Lauper, of coarse.



From a very young age Riley has had it all figured out. At least SHE thought so. When it was time to play all was great. Run around & get out toys. But when it came time to clean up we heard a lot of "I can't want to" or the always popular "I can't, my tummy hurts."



She is the queen of the popcorn!!! She's loves popcorn as much as her daddy does.



We have had our fair share of broken arms in this house. Riley broke hers during a soccer game. I was worried that she would never want to play another sport again. Her coach even came to the ER and told her to never be afraid to try again. After her cast came off I asked her if she would want to play soccer again. She says "nope, cause soccer broke my arm. I think I want to play karate next." She has no fear!



Most recently we were home for Thanksgiving and Riley had her tonsils out. She had a few days of pain meds and just laying on the couch relaxing. She and I watched the Wizard of Oz together. She's seen it at least 2 other times. Close to the end of the movie she's says "huh, flying monkeys......you don't see that everyday?" Maybe that's the pain meds talking :)



Just this morning she was sitting at the bar eating breakfast. Gene came in to say good bye before going to work. Riley was wearing a t-shirt that reads "I'm a rock Star!" So her daddy asks "Can I have a kiss good-bye from the rock star?" and without skipping a beat she says "No, you don't have a back stage pass."

Like I said....FIRECRACKER!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The whole group!! Chilly!



Dave, Michelle, Tyson, Ashley, Tyler, and Alyssa.



Nancy and Gene....FREEZING!!!



Some Wii FUN!!!





Aunt Stephanie, Tyler, and Grandma



Da, Da, Da, DAAAA!!! TySoN!



Grandma and Riley time.




Riley and Alyssa making turkey place card holders.


What a week. After Riley had her tonsils out We had family come in and visit for the holiday. What a bummer that Lane was in Utah and Aaron and Austin were in Idaho. We sure missed them. It turned out to be a fabulous week of weather. It actually warmed up to the low 60's for a day or two. Girls night out to go and see "New Moon" and then a boys night out to go to a hockey game. The whole gang went to see "ICE" a Charlie Brown Christmas at Opryland. We loved seeing everyone and glad that they all traveled safe back to their homes.

Now it's just a count down to Christmas!!!

Say good bye to strep throat!!! We hope.

Riley has had a battle with strep throat this whole year so we finally got those pesky tonsils out!!! We waited until Thanksgiving break since she would be out of school a week to recover. She was a trooper. I was so proud of her. Our day started at 5 am getting up and out the door to go to the surgical center. 6 am check in and 8 am surgery. She was out of recovery and we headed home at noon. The first 2 days were pretty rough. Poor little thing had a nasty sore throat and head ache. She was living on popsicles and ice cream. Her Thanksgiving dinner was a bowl of macaroni and cheese. She's doing so much better today. Actually eating solid food. I think she will be heading back to school on Monday.

What I'm most thankful for!!!

My Family!

What am I thankful for???

So everywhere you look it's happening. What are you thankful for? Take a minute and think about it. It can be big or small. Here's my top 20.

I'm thankful for:

1. Good hair days
2. Crisp sunny Fall days
3. The color of the leaves changing in the Fall
4. Quiet mornings
5. My 4 not always wonderful but GrEaT kids
6. A loving husband
7. Being able to sleep in on Saturday mornings......when it happens :)
8. Good friends
9. My best friend
10. Memories that make you smile just thinking about them
11. Being able to laugh until I cry
12. My husbands sense of humor
13. My extended family......wish we lived closer
14. Wonderful teachers
15. The freedom of this country
16. My mom--She's such an example of strength to me
17. My health
18. The kindness of a stranger
19. Freedom to worship
20. My savior Jesus Christ

The New school year

Wow time flies!!! The school year is close to being half over. Time flies when your having fun right!!Now that Halloween is over we are counting down the days to Thanksgiving break and next stop Christmas.

Field Trips are fun!!!

Love the Fall field trips! They are lots of fun and the weather is usually beautiful. This week was not usual, of course. It's been raining on and off all week and has been a bit cold. I don't mind the cold so much as the soggy wet weather. We spent the day at the pumpkin patch tromping through the mud and muck! The kids didn't care it was all the mom's and teachers that were thinking of muddy footprints and dirty clothes.

First Wrestling Meet

What a day! My boy is so tired. He had his first wreslting meet today. Even though he didn't win, he did great! When he was done I showed him the video and he said "it looks like it's in fast forward. It sure didn't go by that fast when I was out there on the mat!!"

Birthday Dinner

We had a great night out with the birthday girl! She got to pick her favorite place "Rain Forest Cafe". She loves it for the dessert--Chocolate Volcano! The night was topped off with a trip to Build-A-Bear. What more could a 7 yr old ask for.

HaPpY BiRtHdAy To YoU!!!!!

Today was my little girls birthday party. Lots of fun! She even helped me make a "Hannah Montana guitar cake"--I totally stole the idea from a friend. Even though her actual birthday isn't until next week we let her open her gift early. Sporting new roller blades at the party was her favorite! Everyone had a great time. As fun as 15 girls rollerskating can be!! Woo Hoo! I even was brave enough to put on a pair of skates and get out there.

Labor Day

Isn't it funny that on Labor Day we don't work we try out hardest to ReLaX!!!
We spent the weekend in Gatlinburg, TN. Fall in the Smokie Mountains is so beautiful. We were there about a month to soon to see all the colors change but none the less it was GrEaT!!!

PoWeR JuMp!!!!!

A trip to the mall was a lot of fun! We started with a movie, did some shopping, stopped to feed the sting rays, and finished the day with the PoWeR JuMp!!! The boys did extra around the house all week so they would have enough money to do it all! They had a blast.

SuMmEr PiC's

We are sad to see summer go :( but the kids are ready to go back to school--or maybe that's just me?!?. So many great times were had this summer. It's so much fun making memories!!!