catching up . . .

i have really put blogging on the back burner the last few months. life has been full and productive. here is a small taste of how our family wrapped up 2009.

November:

we traveled to salt lake for thanksgiving and had a wonderful feast with the carter family. my mom prepared a fabulous dinner; my favorite dish being the stuffing!

"fly away jack, fly away jill

come back jack, come back jill"

highlights of the trip: visiting late at night with family - getting to know dave's wife kelli - dad's sunday school lesson on becoming as a little child - going to "new moon" with abi, lizzie, and mom - early morning walk with mom and sis - byu\utah game with mom, dad, & sis - citris grill with mom after the game - gingerbread houses and pizza with doug's cute sisters and families - going to see "a christmas carol" in 3D with kids, sam, melissa and family, laurel, dad, & mom - training table after the movie - late night movie "the blind side" with sam, melissa, doug, ed, val, laurel, dave, kelli, joe, & lynda - having doug be with us for the whole weekend - thanksgiving dinner and visiting around the table.

I am so thankful for my family, for the time we are able to spend together building memories, sharing, loving and growing. I love seeing the sweet interaction between my kids and my parents. I am always grateful to my parents for opening their home to us and taking such good care of us.

December:

always such a busy, festive, exciting, fun month. i love december. i love anticipating with my children, i love decorating the house, listening to christmas music, planning, reading christmas books with my kids and serving as a family. how blessed we are as a family and truly humbled as we focus on the gift of our Savior to the world.

here are a few pictures or our christmas house:

mr. peeps came to check up on the kids again this year. we are glad he is around to make sure everyone is behaving:)

one of my favorite's of the season is receiving greeting cards from friends and family. i love seeing how families are growing and changing!

December 16-20 i flew to salt lake for my brother joe's wedding on the 17th. besides my brother getting married, the highlight of this trip was spending time with my sister who lives in chicago. we were both traveling without our children whom we missed, but it was so nice to be able to spend that time together without the business of having the kids with us.

joseph & lynda

when i returned from utah, the kids had finished their las week of school and were out for the winter break. i love having my kids home from school! we celebrated mitchie's birthday batman style on the 21st. what a darling birthday boy he was!

on christmas eve we had our traditional feast. doug prepared prime rib, shrimp and cocktail sauce, funeral potatoes, and pumpkin pies for desert. we spent the day baking and watching christmas movies - my favorite being "it's a wonderful life"

the kids opened their christmas jammies and the gifts they had gotten for each other. before going to bed for the night, we watched "joy to the world" a christmas devotional which closed the evening with such a nice spirit.

we headed back to utah again to bring in the new year. one of our family traditions on new year's eve is to record and share a family memory. this is the tenth year of this tradition and we have quite a collection. it is always kind of a hassle to take the time to think of what to record and to actually do it - but we are always so glad. there is such a neat feeling listening to everyone's memory and a great way to bring in the new year.

another family tradition is bratzlie making. i used to help my dad with bratzlies and i was able to capture gracie and her grandpa making his third batch of the season. bratzlie making is an art (maybe because i can't do it quite right:) grandpa is a pro!

we are back home now . . . almost. doug and carter headed to arizona to cheer on the bronco's in the fiesta bowl. go bronco's!! kids started school and it's time to get back to a routine and a schedule. 2009 was an amazing year. we are blessed to be healthy and to have the gospel in our lives. welcome 2010.

Our Christmas Card

the story behind the card versed by my mother:

it all started splendid

oldest...pride and joy hair

fixed just so

all ready for the Christmas

family photo

then splat

a dastardly pigeon

let go

overhead

one amused

some concerned

a day not to be forgotten

for the wrong reason

little boys smile

perfect cooperation

hat girl sees the joke

but, oldest

just a poopy day

abi had spent an hour working on her hair for our photo shoot. what kind of luck to have a pigeon poop on your head . . . it took me a little while to see the humor in it, i was frustrated that the girl i usually don't have to worry about looking great in a picture had lost it!

on my wall

so, i had the silouhette's of my kids printed on a canvas and doug stretched it around a wood frame for me. it is large, but i love it. i love those sweet little profiles.

some of you requested to see the finished product hung on the wall . . . so, here you go:)

Boo to You!

we had our traditional chili and scones before the kids headed out the door to trick-or-treat. doug made a white chili to try something new which turned out fantastic. the weather was perfect for the holiday . . . i was a little worried that it was going to be really cold like it had been earlier in the week.

mitchell was especially fun this year going from door to door wishing everyone a "bappy halloween" on his way to the next house.

abi decided last year it would be her last year trick-or-treating. she had fun going to a few of the houses with lizzie and the kids and came home to help me pass out candy and watch some spooky movies.

always such a fun time of year . . . family, traditions, memories.

Pure

We had such a fabulous Halloween weekend. The most anticipated event was Carter's Baptism on Halloween Day. We all thought it was pretty awesome that he would be receiving the Gift of the Holy Ghost on Halloween . . . something he will always be able to remember!

It was so great to have some of my family make the trip from Salt Lake to be here for our special day. There is nothing like having family visit and spending the time together was so fun! The weekend went way too fast.

My sweet mom posted this lovely poem on her blog describing this sweet moment:

real power

five young girls

one young boy

fresh still, round downy faces

some permanent teeth

but, mostly baby

all dressed in white

there was no fanfare,

fireworks, or dignitaries

but what took place was

truly astounding

heavenly gates unlocked

angels and witnesses

all that really mattered

happened

pure, wet, shiny

six priesthood daddy's

mama's ever watchful

guiding

gappy smiles

shake hands and embrace

smiley eyes

perfect trust and obedience

angels...

"behold your little ones"

Double Digits!!

Gracie is: happy . . . fun . . . clever . . . kind hearted . . . thinker . . . competitive . . . smart . . . gives great hugs . . . honest . . . responsible . . . babysitter . . . a friend . . . animal lover . . . gymnast . . . compassionate . . . a family game night . . . goal oriented . . . bug catcher . . . cross stitcher . . . pianist . . . 4th grader . . . loyal . . . thoughtful . . . respectful . . . a family girl.

Happy Birthday Gracie!!

xoxo

weekend home

my mother composed this little verse describing the events of our first night at grammy's house:

one look at this face

and it's tough to imagine

he's capable of capture

his small hand a grabbin'

poor little Squidgy

our once faithful fish

in this innocent grasp

his poor life got squished

beware of a three year old

chasing loose and free

good thing he's a cutie

or i'd tie him to a tree

now his mama cried tears

for the fish and the boy

he was put to bed soundly

the catch brought no joy

i love them both dearly

this mama and son

we bought a new Squidgy

too bad he can't run

My Brithday Boy

The greatest birthday gift ever. I love you Carter . . . Happy 8th birthday!

SURPRISE!!!

This year we surprised Carter with a birthday party and boy was he surprised. It was so much fun to see him enjoying all his friends. We felt like we scored big with how nice the weather was. When we were planning the party, we weren't planning for 90 degree weather - so we lucked out and had the boys swimming, tossing a football, jumping on the tramp and enjoying some good ol' root beer.

What a great group of boys! I was so impressed with how well they kept it a secret too! Happy Birthday Carter.

another year already!

and they are off to another year of school experiences. the mornings find me home alone with little mitch. it is quiet and quite peaceful. the new school year is like a new year's resolution time for me. it is a time for goals, routines, and getting back to a schedule. it feels good, but we are all tired.

i don't have a picture of abi because it was dark when she headed out the door. all the kids are excited for the new year and ready for packed lunches, school buses, and the social life that school brings.

Silhouette Portraits Part II

This was a fun little project. Now I just need to decide whether or not to print them. Is it worth it?  I think that they would look good as standout's where the print is mounted on 1  1/2 inch light weight material - no frame needed to hang.  What would you do???

Silhouette Portraits

I just love the little profiles in my home and have wanted to learn how to make my own silhouette portrait like you can find here.

1. Photograph your subject, in profile, with a digital camera. Your camera should be on the same level as your subject. Try to shoot against a pure white background: this makes it easier to digitally remove the background later on.

This is how it looked strait out of my camera.  I hung a white sheet and used some lights behind him. I hung a picture in front of him on the wall to try and get him to look strait ahead and not at me.

 He was kind of tricky to get to hold still and have a calm look on his face. He's use to smiling and pulling faces at the camera:) I would have liked to have gotten  some eyelashes in there. 

2. Open your photo in Photoshop. With the Magic Wand tool, select the (preferably white) background for removal. Once clicked, the background will be outlined and highlighted, go to 'edit,' and select 'cut.' The background will disappear.

3. Go to 'image,' and select 'adjustments.' Select 'desaturate:' this removes all color. Also in 'adjustments,' select 'brightness/contrast.' Both lower the brightness, and increase the contrast: your image will take on the form of a silhouette. If your picture hasn't fully silhouetted, fill in the rest of the figure with black, or another color, using the Paintbucket tool.

4. At this point I used the brush tool to shape the shoulder area. When I got it looking the way I wanted, I used the magic want tool to select the silhouette. Then I cut and copied it into my new canvas and added some text!

I want to try this with my other kids. I'll let you know how it goes!

Expecting . . .

In February 2010

I'm a big kid now!!

It has been so fun to see this little guy accomplish this "growing up" part of his life.  We are so excited to have another little underpants wearer in our home! Love you  Mitchie.

From Little Girl to Young Woman

To Young Women

Elder Jeffery R. Holland

"I want you to be proud you are a woman. I want you to feel the reality of what that means, to know who you truly are. You are literally a spirit daughter of heavenly parents with a divine nature and an eternal destiny. That surpassing truth should be fixed deep in your soul and be fundamental to every decision you make as you grow into mature womanhood. There could never be a greater authentication of your dignity, your worth, your privileges, and your promise. Your Father in Heaven knows your name and knows your circumstance. He hears your prayers. He knows your hopes and dreams, including your fears and frustrations. And He knows what you can become through faith in Him. In the restored light of the gospel of Jesus Christ, a woman, including a young woman, occupies a majesty all her own in the divine design of the Creator. You are, "a sanctified investiture which none shall profane."

Happy 12th birthday my dear girl. You have always been such a gift and blessing in my life. I am so pleased with the decisions you are making and the wonderful example you are to your brothers and sister. You have been a perfect way to start a family. This is a special birthday - enjoy! Love, Mom

Gracie B Grace