A Glimpse Into Our Life

Anthony has just finished working 3rd shift for the last two weeks. Talk about a horrible schedule. He worked from 5:30 pm - 6:00 am and then was paged many times during the day. He camped out in the computer room downstairs. (He worked from home the last 2 weeks, yet we saw very little of him.) I got a small idea of what it would be like to be a single mother and I did not like it one bit. On the positive side, at least he has a job. (I kept reminding myself of that every night when I went to bed by myself.) Between his job at Coventry, being the Elders Quorum President and Membership Clerk, he doesn't have a lot of free time.

Zach missed his Explorers meeting on Tuesday. He had some missing assignments at school so we decided this would be the best punishment. He loves his Explorer Program for the Salt Lake Police and he wasn't happy about missing. He stayed home and worked on his assignments. Zach went on a double date - there were 4 LDS kids. It was a blind date. He had a terrible experience. They went to the movies and to Yogurt Land. The girl complained about the movie and wasn't happy or grateful.The boy shoplifted from a store and then he pointed out where all the Drug Dealers were at Jordan Landing. Zach was irritated he used his hard earned money for this date. Zach has decided from this experience to never go on a blind date again.

Kassi has been sick for the last several weeks. We found out she is anemic. She is on a iron medication and other meds to help her. Her immune system is low. She got pink eye again, the second time in a month and ended up missing two days of school. The worst thing about her anemia is how tired and exhausted she is. She sleeps half the weekend away. Many days after school, she comes home and goes to be at 3:30 pm. The Dr. said it will take up to 4 months for full energy to be back. I will be glad when she is back to her normal self, I miss all her energy. (I never thought I would say that.)

Kaeden is loving cub scouts. He already received his Wolf award and now is working towards his Bear. He has only been in cub scouts for 7 months. Kaeden is doing well in school. I think his teacher is a genius. He has a Tattle Tell Box. You can only tattle on good things you see people do. He also has a weekly auction where he auctions off toys kids bring to school from home. You get points by doing your homework each night. This has helped Kaeden out so much. He eagerly does his homework each night without any reminders and he doesn't want to take his toys to school. (That was a huge problem last year for him.)

Blake has been super hyper lately. It seems like I get daily negative reports from school. He has jumped the recess fence several times. He went to Wheeler Farm for a field trip with his class and let go of his teacher's hand. He was lost for 15 minutes until they found him. Thank goodness he was found safe and sound. I love Blake with all my heart but life with him is definately a challenge. Since he is unable to communicate, you can't reason with him, know how is feeling or what is wrong. I pray daily for strength to be up to the challenge of caring for him and protecting him.

I have been busy trying to keep everyone's schedule straight. Thank goodness for a calendar, otherwise I would be lost. I feel like a Chauffeur. The kids always need to go or be somewhere. Life is busy and it seems to fly by. Thank goodness I only work part-time while the kids are at
school, otherwise I don't know I would be able to do everything. Being a mom is a full-time job in and of itself. It can be exhausting but it is very rewarding. I love my sweet kids!

A Long Week

It felt like this week was never going to end. It was Zach's last week of Drivers Ed which I am grateful for. It was a pain to have to pick him after school three days a week instead of using the carpool. Blake was sick and came home early from school on Monday. Kassi got Pink Eye on Friday and then a Bladder Infection on Saturday night. Of course it couldn't happen in the same day so I would only have one Dr. co-pay. The finale was an extended family picture at the Peace Gardens that turned out to be a lot of fun - NOT. Then BYU went and lost their 3rd game in a row.

Anyhow, here a few photos that we took with our cheap camera at the Peace Gardens. I thought the colors were out of this world beautiful. After the extended family pictures, Zach left with Grandpa Evans to watch the BYU game at Iggys, so I don't have any pictures of him.

Time Flies

I can't believe it is September. Fall is in the air. I love fall! So much has happened since the last time I wrote. I need to be better about writing. I think about it a lot but I just don't get around to it.

Anthony has a new job that he started the end of June. He is working at Coventry. He likes it. He works a lot of hours but is learning a lot. It was a nice raise from what he was making before. He now does programing. Before he was a LAN TECH. Anthony was also called as the Elders Quorum President in May. So, needless to say, he is very busy.

Zach is a Junior. He wants to get his permit. I am a little nervous about him driving. He drives fine at his grandparents ranch but it is totally different to drive on busy roads. He is liking school this year and has a lot of fun classes like Intro to Film, Social Dance and Hero Generations. Anthony and I went to his Back to School Night last week and we both wish we could be in a few of his classes.

Kassi is a freshman. She made the Advanced Dance team at school, so she was really excited. She also just tried out for a role in the Connecticut Yankee - it is with the community theatre. She made a lead role. She is Lady Allisandra. Besides that she also is playing Church Volleyball. She loves to stay busy.

Kaeden is in third grade. He loves his teacher this year. His teacher is a male and makes learning fun. He has a tattle tale box in class and you have to tattle good things about others. Kaeden is loving Cub Scouts. He was just made a Wolf - after only 6 months. He looks forward to going to scouts each week. He is also loving legos. He will do extra jobs so he can earn money to buy lego kits. He loves putting them together with his dad.

Blake is in second grade. He has a new teacher this year and is doing really well. He still does not speak- well he babbles. He uses PECs which is a Picture Exchange System. He can do sentences with this. He can give me the pictures to say I want candy please. Blake is quite smart if we can only help him communicate. He has had several medication changes. His current meds have been really helpful. He has gained 22 pounds - which is great. It was skin and bones before. He is able to concentrate better and is not as impulsive.

I am still working - just part-time. I love that I can take the kids to school and pick them up. I feel like I am a full-time chauffer. Between the car pools, play practice, church activities and Driver's Ed, I spend a lot of time driving. I have been watching BYU football - I haven't enjoyed that much since they lost their last two games. Hopefully, they will get things together and start winning. Life is busy but good!

Fortune Cookies and Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

Today the kids didn't have school since it was President's day. We spent the afternoon in the kitchen - one of my favorite pass times. Today is a memory I hope to keep for a long time. We made fortune cookies and cinnamon sugar pretzels. We talked and had fun together. There was no fighting! That is what made it so enjoyable.

Zach and Kassi wrote the fortunes  for the cookies. My fortune was, " You will have the best job in the world." Correction - I have the best job in the world. I am a mom. I have wanted to be a mother since I was a little girl. It is the hardest job I ever had but it sure is worth it. I sure do love being a mom. I love my kids. I am very blessed with four beautiful, wonderful children. My husband is pretty great too!

It's Great To Be Eight

Kaeden turned 8 years old yesterday. He had the great pleasure of being baptized on his birthday, a family luncheon and then a Pirate Birthday Party. Now days, not many people are baptized on their birthday. He was baptized and confirmed by his dad.  He was baptized with his cousin, Abby. They are just 3 weeks apart. 

After the baptism, we had a family luncheon. Grandma & Grandpa Evans gave Kaeden his first set of scriptures and a journal. He has already started to read his scriptures.  Kaeden looked so cute in his new suit - he looked like a mini missionary.

Then, we had a Pirate Birthday Party with 12 pirates. I made a Treasure Chest Birthday Cake (Kaeden was real happy with it - he asked me to make him one for his birthday next year.)  

This is just a brief synopsis of Kaeden's day. Pictures to come as soon as I figure out how to load my pictures to my lab top. (Our home computer is broken.)

Fast Sunday Traditions

I love traditions!!!! Today was Fast Sunday because we had Stake Conference last week. Anthony only had one tradition from his childhood. This tradition came from when he was in a foster home for almost year. His foster mom, Bonnie Chase, would always make homemade pizza and root beer floats on Fast Sunday. 

Since this was his only tradition, we have tried to keep it up, although I changed it a little. We still do homemade pizza but we do different kinds of soda. (I don't like root beer.) The kids seem to really enjoy this.

Another tradition we just started today is to have a Family Fast and Testimony Meeting. Everyone shares their testimony and then has to say one thing they are doing to try to be more like Jesus.  I hope this develops into a great family tradition that makes a difference in my childrens' lives.

NutRageous Candy Bar & Buttercream Frosting

You may ask what a NutRageous candy bar and buttercream frosting have in common. The answer is: I love both of them!!! NutRageous is hands down my very favorite candy bar. Good thing they are hard to find. I have noticed that Harmons has NutRageous. Anthony probably wonders why I always volunteer to go get all our prescriptions. My secret: I buy my Nutrageous and slowly eat away at it while I wait for the prescriptions. It is my moment of heaven with no interruptions.

Buttercream frosting is on my mind because I bought Kaeden Spiderman cupcakes from Sam's to share with his classroom to celebrate his birthday. The buttercream frosting on these cupcakes was heavenly!!! Who cares about the cake, I just eat the frosting. Blake takes after me, he loves frosting too!

Time Out For Women

I had a great weekend! I went to Time Out For Women in Ogden with two of my sisters. (Traci and Tricia.) We even splurged and stayed at a hotel Friday night. I shouldn't say splurged because the hotel was not that great but it was nice to get away. Friday night we listened to Chieko Okazaki, John Bytheway and Jenny Oaks Baker. Boy can Jenny play the violin. Our Saturday session consisted of Linda Eyre and her daughter Shawni Pothier ( I love them and all their parenting advice), Amanda Dickson, Emily Freeman, Richard Hozalpfel, Mariama Kallon and the singing group Mercy River.

It was such a nice get away - I was really uplifted. The conference theme was infinite hope. I was really touched by Mariama's story. She is from Sierra Leone, Africa.  She has gone through horrific things in life and yet she is so hopeful and happy. The interesting thing about her is that she stayed at our hotel. She stood in line in front of me at our hotel's continental breakfast. She was dressed in her African headress and all. I had know idea who she was and then she is one of our speakers. What hit me about this experience is at breakfast I noticed her but didn't think much of it. A couple hours later, after hearing her speak, I was totally touched by her words. It made me think of how much each person has to offer and many times I don't take the time to get to know the person and learn from them.

Friday night we ate at the Pie Pizzaria. I love that place! After the conference, we stopped at Tony's Burger in Centerville - I have been wanting to try that place. (I'm always on a quest to try different restaurants.) I enjoyed my Caprese Salad. Then we went to Sub Zero. I love how they make their ice cream - with nitrogen. They spray the nitrogen gas into the milk and wala you have ice cream. Pretty cool! 

Christmas Pajamas

Blake

Kaeden

Kassi

Zach

On Christmas Eve, the kids always get to open one present. It is their new Christmas pajamas. I didn't think the kids cared about it until I heard Kassidi mention she was looking forward to getting her Christmas pajamas.

Christmas Eve

The cousins opening their presents.

The cousins listening to Granpa Evans' Christmas talk.

Zach and Blake. Blake really enjoyed his gift from Grandma and Grandpa Evans.

Grandma Evans (my mom) crying over her Christmas present. My sisters
and I had a professional picture done of all 16 grand kids. I hope she enjoys it
because I don't know if we want to do such an undertaking again.

My dad sporting his Christmas hat that Tricia gave him. It fits him perfectly!

All 16 of my parents grandchildren on Christmas Eve at Traci' s home.

The Ronald McDonald House

My sisters and I take our older kids to make the dinner.
Tyler, Zach, Trent, Lexi, Kassi, Aubrey and Cameron.

The Ronald McDonald House

Our annual Christmas Tradition - making dinner at the Ronald McDonald House.

We made Navajo Tacos and a Sundae Bar.

I love The Festival Trees. I went with Zach this year.

Kaeden and Santa. Kaeden wants transformers and a Wii for Christmas.
He was a good boy - so he received both. (The Wii was a family gift.)

Christmas

I love Christmas! I love everything about it! I love the anticipation of Christmas. I love Christmas music, the goodwill toward men that is in the air otherwise known as the Christmas Spirit, Christmas movies, cookie exchanges, neighbor gifts, Christmas cards/letters, Christmas goodies (receiving and making them.) gingerbread men, Christmas decorations, giving my children Christmas presents and I could go on and on.

I am not a fan of the after Christmas let down. The goodwill towards men disappears quickly. That being said, I will focus on our Christmas season and the good things.