Merry Christmas!!

Well, I'm not quite sure where November and the first half of December went...anyone know? Right now, we are just enjoying the season.  We absolutely love this time of year!! I am determined to catch up on my posts, but for now, just know that we wish you a very Merry Christmas!

Toddler Teen

Braiden was asking me why Katie cares so much about getting a cell phone. 

"Because she's a TEENAGER..." I told him. 

He replied with, "But she's only a two year old teenager!" 

I laughed at that. Does that mean she's a toddler again?

But toddler or not, she's a great young woman and I love her.

....and she's waiting so patiently for the time when her parents finally let her have a cell phone. 

My Faith

I believe in Jesus Christ. I know that He is my Redeemer, my Savior, my everything. I know that through His atonement, I can live with my Heavenly Father someday.

I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, also known as the Mormons. I am, without a doubt, a Christian.

I am proud of my religion. If you have any questions about what Mormons believe, please ask me or click on the temple button on my side bar.

End of School Wrap-Up

Well, look at me blogging three times in one week!! Are you as amazed as I am?

I'm slowly getting caught up on this little blog of mine, but I just thought I would catch you up on what we are doing in the Fall before we review Spring. We enjoyed our annual Jackson trip, celebrated Braiden's 9th birthday, loved General Conference, and I am finally getting over having pneumonia and a sinus infection for close to a month!  I'm glad that October is here and the holidays are approaching!! And now, back to the past...

In May,

-We discovered beautiful blooms at the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point.  We had never been and we loved the gorgeous explosion of Spring!

-We saw Carl Bloch's beautiful works of Christian art at the BYU Museum of Art.  Wonderful experience!

-Ethan graduated from Kindergarten!  AAAHHH! My baby is growing up!

- We celebrated the trio of birthdays (mine, Denise, and my mom).  Another year older!

-Ryan and I went to Milwaukee to celebrate Uncle John's Dental Graduation and Haisley's blessing

- I took a photography class! So fun!

- We FINALLY had a basketball hoop installed in our backyard! (The BBall court was poured before Ethan was born...we are so pathetic!) The kids LOVE it!!  We now have the entire neighborhood at our house after school to shoot hoops!

-I went on several field trips with the kids

-The Gittins came to visit for most of the Summer!!

-We watched a beautiful robin build a nest on our front porch and lay 3 gorgeous eggs!

-We enjoyed a fun, but very cold and snowy Memorial Day at Grandma Janis' house

In June,

-Lauren celebrated her last day of Elementary School!!

-We partied on the last day of school for everyone!  Bring on the Summer!

-We enjoyed another wonderful piano recital and Katie was asked to be the final number!

- Katie performed in her ShowStopper performance and sang a wonderful solo.  She did a spectacular job!

-Grandpa Blair, Grandma Geneal, Ry, Katie and I went to NYC!

-We walked the Brooklyn Bridge, saw the Statue of Liberty, WTC, Chinatown, Top of the Rock, Empire State Building, Central Park, and shopped!  A separate trip post to come.

-We saw Phantom of the Opera on Broadway!

-We watched the robin eggs hatch, grow, and fly away!  We loved having these neat roommates for a little while!

-We played at Lagoon for Ryan's work party.  We love our friends from the firm and had a blast hanging out with them

-Braiden participated in Basketball camp and loved it

- We hung out at the Dinosaur Park with Grandma and the Gittins



-The boys had fun at Arts in the Park with Harper and Holland

-We rejoiced because we finally got our Expedition back from the mechanic!!!  Hallelujah!

-We had our ward swim party....twice because it was way too cold and wet to swim the first time!  What a crazy Spring we had!

Another "Last"

I'm so far behind on journal blogging, that I feel like I'm missing the HERE and NOW. So, I'm sharing what took place this weekend....

Ethan came home from school a few days ago with his first loose tooth. The kid is almost 7!! All of my kids have been late teethers and I guess they wanted to hold onto those baby teeth as long as they could. He was so funny wiggling it all week. So yesterday at Grandma's house, after Conference, he wanted Dad to pull it out.

It was still stuck pretty good, but he was very brave and eventually....

He was THRILLED!! Finally, after watching all of his older siblings "cash in", it was his turn. He put it in a baggie and carefully brought it home. The entire night was then filled with Ethan's tongue twisting around the hole in his teeth...so funny!

However, tragedy struck at bedtime when he could not find the baggie! We looked for a half hour, but with no success. The poor kid was heart broken, so we left the Tooth Fairy a note explaining our dilemma, and what do you know? She came through with a reply note and some cash!! What a gal!!

This is just another event in the long list of "lasts" that I'm experiencing alot more lately. My baby is growing up. I have the days all to myself now. I tell the kids to get ready, and they go jump in the shower and get dressed with only some encouragement from me. We can go on a road trip with a lot less gear and ride all of the big rides together at Disneyland and Lagoon. That is great, but I sometimes miss the crazy, haven't-washed-my-hair-in-3-days-and-it-looks-like-it-might-be-a-few-more-before-I-get-to times. There will never be another "first loose tooth". No more Preschool, no more sippy cups, no more Nursery....I could go on and on and it's hard to swallow. I love each new phase, but it's hard to see my kids grow up so fast.

I'm not trying to be a glass half empty kind of girl today, if anything, I'm trying to savor each "last" a little longer and enjoy my time with my kids. I love them all so much and I'm glad I can experience all of their firsts and lasts with them!! What a blessing they are in my life!!

Florida: Part Three

If I had to rate all of the Disney World parks, I think I would pick EPCOT as my favorite.  We spent a day and a half there and it wasn't nearly enough. We had a great time checking out all of the countries. Of course, navigating our large group around the world was MUCH easier thanks to Mr. Mapman himself.  Ethan was constantly checking his whereabouts and showing us the way!

In just a few short hours, we explored Mexico....

The Far East....

And even Scandinavia....

Some of us traveled better than others....

In Europe, Lauren obtained a beautiful purple flower...

And because Ethan is so influential, he wanted one too.  I caught on film how he not-so-sneakingly plucked one from a nearby planter and then lovingly gave it to me.  At least his heart was in the right place!

Our favorite ride was Mission: Space.  You are placed in a simulator and go all the way to Mars and back.  Best. Ride. Ever!!

Just being with my family was so wonderful!!  We simply had a great time and can't wait to go back!

A Quick Look at Spring

One of my goals now that my kids are back in school is to get caught up with my blog.  So, even though it's September, Spring has Sprung here at Sweet Joys!

In March,

--We watched Ry go off to a trial and work really hard.  We didn't really see him after our trip to Orlando except on Sundays (thank goodness for Sundays!)

--We took my dad to a Jazz game. We had great seats and watched them win in overtime!!

--Lauren graduated from the DARE program (anti-drug campaign at school). Her essay was one of three chosen to be read during the graduation.  Good job, Lauren!

--Played for nearly a week with MomNancy who came up for her birthday.  We always have a great time (and eat a lot of great food) when we are together!

--Enjoyed a visit from Grandpa Joe and Uncle Randy from South Dakota

--My wonderful friend Stephanie moved back to Utah!!!  I can't wait to frequently hang out over lunch!

In April,

--I went with Braiden's cub scout troop to the bowling alley.  So fun to hang out with these cute boys!

--I took a cake decorating class with my mom.  We had a great time and it was a nice get away while Ryan was gone with the trial. This was my first attempt at gum paste flowers...needs work, but not too bad and I really enjoyed it (which is what really counts)

--We went to the zoo with the Bodily family for Spring Break

--We enjoyed a spontaneous weekend up in Park City with Ryan and the kids. It was a great break and much needed "Dad time"

--Attended a mini Burrell Family Reunion (aka Filmy Uni)

--Ry and Katie celebrated their shared birthday at the Spaghetti Factory (of course)

--Soccer season started and we were constantly rained/snowed out

--Katie had fun friends party where they watched movies and played games

--We enjoyed a sugar rush at our annual Easter Egg Hunt (held this year at the lovely Tingey home due to a mini tornado hitting Grandma Geneal's house!)

--We had a wonderful Easter dinner at Grandma Janis' house

--Ryan's trial FINALLY ended!!! We rejoiced BIG TIME when he could finally spend some time at home!!

--Our beloved Expedition broke down and we wouldn't see it again until the end of June!! So sad!

--Ethan made his FIRST EVER soccer goal!!

As you can see, our Spring was filled with joys and trials (of all kinds), but we were reminded that family is truly the most important thing in life!