Best Christmas Ever

We had an AMAZING Christmas! We started Christmas Eve off with going to Clint's Sisters for an incredible dinner (as always). We visited, ate yummy dessert and exchanged gifts. We came home and let the kids open their traditional Christmas Eve P.J.'s from Mom and Dad and then we always read the story about the Birth of our Savior before the kids go to bed.

The kids decided to sleep in on Christmas (of course the one day they decide to sleep in). I wanted to go and wake them up but Clint wouldn't let me. We put them at the top of the stairs and both Clint and I went down because we wanted to see their faces as they came down the stairs. I don't know what is more fun. Seeing the anticipation and excitement on their faces or being little again and feeling all that as a kid.
We let them dig through their stockings and then we let them open presents one at a time.

Curran our little O.C.D child would rip off one piece of paper and then say "here mommy." So needless to say that opening presents took us awhile. The kids were so good and would get sooo excited about everything they got and what the other one got.

Callie said her favorite present was her Tangle Barbie she got. She was pretty dang excited to have a barbie with so much hair considering she has an obsession with hair

Curran loves "yight yer" Buzz Lightyear. So of course he was pretty excited to get one for Christmas.

And last but not least...

Our most exciting announcement for Christmas is that we are expecting another little one in July. I hope that everyone had as wonderful of a Christmas as we did. Merry Chirstmas!!

"The" Haircut and Happy Birthday Curran

(Before)
Ok...Well I said I was going to cut Curran's hair around his Birthday and Since Today is his Birthday We had it done. There was a lot that went into getting this Haircut. I had so many people bugging me to get it cut and that is not the reason that I cut it...I cut his hair because I felt it was time, and I knew I was cutting it to thicken his hair up and then grow it back out. I really didn't want to think about cutting it. I just happened to be by the little kid Hair cutting place yesterday and just walked in and did it. I told the lady that I was really nervous to do this and that I still didn't want it to be super short.

(Before)

This is him just getting ready to get it cut. He looks so big and so cute in his Little Airplane

They put a Movie on for him and gave him some toys and he did really well.

They cut off at least 2 1/2 inches off his hair. It was A LOT of hair.

This is the final product. I really was sad to cut it off and while she was cutting it I was like "what did I just do?" I am still trying to get used to it. When they were cutting it I asked Curran; "where did your hair go?" He grabbed his hair and then looked at the ground and looked at me with big sad eyes and pointed "Hair, "Hair" Then I felt really bad! I think the hardest part of the whole thing was that Clint was so attached to his hair and now he doesn't have it anymore. Well, but it's been cut now and there is nothing we can do about it.

I just wanted to Wish Curran a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I love you Buddy!

Happy Holidays

From Our house to Yours!

Curran's Broken Arm

The kids were at my Mom's yesterday while I was at work. I got a text from my mom saying Curran fell off a chair and she thinks he might have broken his arm...Well being the insensitive Mom that I am I said well just watch it and if I need to come home from work I will. She continued to watch his arm and noticed he wouldn't use it and if she tried to bend it he would just cry, Well I called the Dr. on my way home from work yesterday and got him an apt. He thought it might just me dislocated, but he couldn't pop anything back into place, So he sent us over for x-rays. Yep it was broken right above his elbow. What's scary is there is a growth plate there. We will need to take him to an orthopedic Dr. to see where we need to go from here. He has been a little champ! I will post a pic of his hard cast when he gets it.

Happy Halloween

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

This was the ONLY picture I got of them on Halloween...It was sooo cold and wet and rainy... But Callie was DORA and Curran was a LION. We took them Trick-or-Treating between the rainstorms. They had a blast...they had so much candy. It was really funny because Callie would get to every door and as they would answer she would inform them "Don't give my brother chocolate because he can't have any" (he is lactose intolerant) The people would just laugh at her and say ok.

We Carved pumpkins the night before Halloween and Curran would not touch the inside of his pumpkin, but Callie had no problem diggin' right in and getting dirty.

We had a friend Halloween party and this is all the kids dressed up minus Mya and Sadie who were missing in action. But we got all the kids together; did lunch, crafts and stories. It was so cute and I think all the little ones had sooo much fun

I took this picture for Callie...These are the Witches from where I work. In the month of October the Witches are a huge deal up at Gardner Village, and I took her to go see them one time and so every day when I would come home from work she would ask me for a picture. I finally took one and she asks to look at it all the time.

Family Pics

Fall Family Pictures

This one is my favorite!

Callie's Heros

Callie has been learning about Heros this past month in school. So on Monday she was asked to bring a little something about her hero. Well I asked her who her heros were and she chose Her Grandma Barb (Granny Panny) and Curran.

She loves my Mom to death because My Mom will let Callie do WHATEVER she wants. (Like her hair, put on makeup and make messes) And Curran is her Hero because he is her Best Friend.

Pumpkin Patch

Ok so Curran looks a little possessed in this picture, and Callie is just being herself. Anyway, we had fun going to the Pumpkin Patch tonight with the kids. There is a guy in our stake who grows pumpkins and then we can go pick them and then donate money for the Perpetual Education Fund. I think it's a great idea and for a great cause.

Of course Callie chose the most interesting pumpkin in the whole pumpkin patch. But what is normal for her...Right? She seriously cracks me up!

Curran's Cute Little Pumpkin...Just like him!

He was a little nervous because there were these little poles in the patch that were making noises like sheep and it was kind of freaking him out a little.

Oh Canada

I had the opportunity this past weekend to fly to Canada to visit my Very Best Friend in the entire world. We had a blast! We stayed up talking all night every night that I was there. We had a lot of laughs, no sleep and way too much fun!

We got to go to a Hockey Game while I was there. We had box seats that were right on center Ice. After the game we went out for wings with some of her friends which we had soooo much fun! We sat in the restaurant until one in the morning talking.

(Us at the Hockey Game)

On Saturday we went under the bridge and ate French Fires and Gravy. I didn't think the french fries and gravy would be very good, but it was actually really yummy! This Bridge that you see is the bridge the goes right into the U.S. She lives right on the Border of Michigan.

This is my Friend Krista and her two kids Rylee and Bosten. They were so cute and I had so much fun spending the weekend with them.

The craziest part of all came on Sunday when we went to Church. Let me back up a little and give a little bit of History. Krista just moved back to Canada as a single mom. Since she has been there the Missionaries have been a lot of help to her. Trying to get her back on her feet, she recently just moved into her own place and had the missionaries help her move in just two weeks ago. So before I came to visit she told me that she was going to have the missionaries over on Sunday for dinner as a Thank You for helping her move in. I though well that's cool and it will be fun.., Well after Sacrament meeting got over I was getting ready to walk out of the chapel and I see Krista talking with the Missionaries and low and behold it was my COUSIN!!! I thought NO WAY. What are the odds that he was "The Missionary" she had been talking about. It is such a small world. It was soooo great to see him and how amazing it was to know that he had been the one that she had been talking about this whole time. The most wonderful thing about it all was the fact that he was able to give her and her kids blessings that night. It was an amazing feeling...You could feel the spirit present that night. I am so glad that I was able to be there and witness him there doing the Lords work and helping out my Friend.

Me and my Cousin Elder Crook

Well to end it I had to get a picture of where her parents lived. This picture was taken standing in their driveway. If you look close you can see water through those trees. That is the Saint Clair River which borders Michigan and Canada. In fact when crossed the Saint Clair River on a little Ferry when we came into Canada and when we left. So you can look across into the states from her parents house. I AM SOOOO GLAD I went. I missed Clint and my kids but it was nice to get away for a bit. I can't wait until next time when we can get together and laugh all day and all night long.

Callie's Prechool Pics

Callie had her Preschool pictures done this week...Her individual picture turned out soooo cute and I am really happy about it...But of course leave it to Callie to be a little Goober Ball in the class picture...She makes me laugh!!!

Miss Katie's Class

Callie was SOOOOOO excited for her first day of preschool. Actually being excited was an understatement. She didn't even look back when I dropped her off.

I had her write the word Preschool on a paper to keep for her records, just to see how much she improves over the next year. The greatest part of the day was...

Her daddy showing up to see her off to her first day of Preschool. She has been talking about her first day all day. She already has homework and wants to do all of it right now. We are so happy to have her in Miss Katie's Class.