Ms. Toothless

  Savannah took a while to start loosing her teeth, but once she did, they all started to go.  All four of her front teeth fell out within a few months of each other.  My dad has started to call her "Toothless."  It does make for a cute smile, though.

Her tooth has to be in a baggie so it won't get lost in her bed and the Tooth Fairy can find it in the dark.:)

California Dreamin'

  Back at the beginning of March we were able to go to California for a family vacation.  We were planning on going last fall, but my lovely health issues wouldn't allow that.  Thankfully, we were able to go finally, and what a blast we had.  We decided to drive to save the money, but in retrospect I think we'll fly next time.  (My kids did FANTASTIC in the car.  It was more their mom who had to keep stopping to exercise my legs.  We got really good at cleaning up after being car-sick, too.:)  We stopped overnight in Vegas and had fun at Circus Circus, then left the next morning in order to get to our hotel in Aneheim by around lunchtime.  We hit the beach that first day, although I think the locals thought we were nuts.  To us, 60 degrees was very warm since it was snowing back home, but they were all bundled up in sweatshirts and long pants, if they were even on the beach at all.  We did get a few of them smiling, though.

Jumping the waves with Daddy

Savannah was so excited to find seashells.  Thankfully, we convinced her to leave them at the beach...:)



I just love this picture of Isaiah.  He was THRILLED to see the ocean, and couldn't stop jumping around.

  Next came a few days of Disneyland.  For those of you who've never been during the off-season, I most highly recommend it.  Sure, a few of the rides were closed, but the longest we ever waited in line was 30 minutes, and that was for Space Mountain and Peter Pan.  (The normal wait was about 15 or less.  Awesome!)  I absolutely loved watching my kids react to everything.  They were so excited, they could barely stand it!  There's just something about the magic of that place for kids, and even their parents.:)

This was taken just before we went in.  Do you see those smiles?

Group hug!

There's a great story with this picture.  Mary LOVES Mickey and Minnie Mouse.  We had waited in line to see Mickey, but had yet to really see Minne.  We were walking through California Adventure when Mary suddenly starts jumping up and down and takes off running.  We look up just in time to see her run to Minnie, who was also jumping.:)  We were lucky to get the camera out in time.  Thanks for making my girl's day, Minnie!:)

A Family Portrait (with a little help from Lightning McQueen and Mater)

About halfway through the day, Savannah and Mary decided to start posing for all of the pictures, since I had taken so many.  Aren't they cute?:)

I love how Mary can't even stop looking at Mickey long enough to take the picture.  She was SO thrilled!

  Something else I absolutely loved about this trip was that we decided to just make eating at the park part of the plan, so it was in the budget.  Because of that, we didn't just go to the cheapest places, and as a result had some FABULOUS food.  (Although, most of the food at Disneyland is fabulous.)  My favorite was Cafe Orleans, just outside Pirates of the Carribean.  They have the most amazing parmesean-coated french fries, with a tasty remoulade sauce for dipping.  We loved them so much, I searched the internet for days when we got back until I found the basic recipie, and then played with it in the kitchen until they were replicated.  SO yummy!
  We also hit Sea World while we were at it.  It was a little strange because almost nobody was there, but it was also fun to have everything more to ourselves.  We got great seating for all the shows, and walking between the arenas was a lot more pleasant.

I can't believe I actually got this shot.  My timing had been off with my other attempts, but I decided to give it one last try.  Boy, am I glad I did!

The sea lion show was absolutely hilarious!  Here are some of the performers pretending to be CSI investigators.

Waiting for the pet show...with Angry Birds.  (That's about how the trip went.  Any time we were sitting anywhere for longer than a couple of minutes, whether it was in line, at a show, at the hotel, or in the car, at least one of the kids would say, "Dad, can I play Angry Birds on your phone?"  I think we passed most of the levels off on the first day...:)

Petting the rays in their swimming pool--so fun!

  We had an amazing time, and I can't wait to go back!  Too bad it takes at least three years to save up the money needed in order to go...:)

So long, California!  Hope to see you soon!

The Make-Over

  So, the other day I hear my girls calling from upstairs, "Mom!  Come look at us!" Here's what I found:

I think we're going to have a talk about making it look like your not wearing any makeup when you put it on.  Then again, I'd love to be able to get away with wearing eyeshadow like that.:)

It's been HOW LONG?

  I can't believe how crazy my life has become!  Between school finishing, swimming lessons, vacations, sports, doctor's appointments, and everything else, I barely have time to breathe!  I have tons of pictures to upload, and hopefully soon I'll actually have some time to do it.  Stay tuned!:)

A Great Little Pick-Me-Up

  So, with all of this fabulous April weather, I was feeling a little down the other day.  I had to go grocery shopping in the rain and, of course, all the food packaging got pretty wet, as well as Mary and I.  It was freezing cold, and so we decided to go to this little coffee shop nearby called Coffee Creations and get some hot chocolate. I'd been there before, but usually during the summer to get frozen hot chocolate, which is completely fabulous.  Since I had no idea what to get, the cashier suggested something called the "Sinful Mormon." (Only in Utah, right?:) It's a mix of Dutch chocolate, white chocolate, carmel, and English toffee.  I cannot even tell you how absolutely wonderful this stuff was!  I recommend it completely for anyone in need of a dose of sunshine. It certainly perked my day up.:)

Random Family Pictures

Goofing off at Jungle Jim's Playland--Savannah must really like that pizza:)

Cute cousins in matching outfits from Grandma

At the hotel in St. George--adorable!

My kids totally love their cousins--so cute!

At the narrows in St. George--I'm not really sure what they're all looking at...

My cute girls with matching braided pigtails--Mary saw me braiding Savannah's hair and asked if she could be like her big sister:)

I love my little family!:)

St. George Half Marathon

   You know, I'm not sure I'll ever understand the appeal of running, but my husband sure loves it.  He recently completed another half marathon, this time in St. George.  I was really impressed because almost his entire family ran this year as well, and every single one of them finished!  Wahoo!  Jason totally amazed me as well.  He finished in 1:34, and it was like he'd never even been running.  He had so much energy and was entirely too happy for someone who just ran 13 miles.  But then again, he's always like that.:)

All the kids waiting at the finish line

Here he comes!

Aren't they cute?

  I'm so proud of you, honey.  I never knew it was possible to run so far and still be so happy.  Way to go!:)

Savannah is 7!

  I can hardly believe my little girl is almost old enough to be baptized.  She is so grown up!  I'm so impressed with how loving and giving she is.  She's always more worried about everyone else and is quick to offer help when she knows someone needs it.  (That quality is really going to serve her well.  I really hope she keeps it.:)  Here are some pictures of the festivities:

I just love her big smile, complete with missing teeth.:)

Savannah asked if she could have a cheesecake for her birthday this year instead of a regular one.  This is a girl after my own heart.:)

Happy birthday, sweetheart!  I'm so proud of you and love you very much!

Holiday Fun!

  I know I'm totally late, but I thought I should really post at least a few pictures from Christmas.  (Thanks a bunch to Ann for helping me get the whole camera mess straightened out!:)  We had a fabulous holiday, and surprisingly it was much more relaxed than normal.  We have lots of family close by, so Christmas day is usually spent running from place to place.  Somehow it all worked out this year that things were much more mellow.  (I guess it helps when great-grandparents show up at grandparents houses.)  We were able to spend a fabulous morning at home, head to Jason's parents to say hello and talk with his missionary brother over the phone, and then headed to my parents.  The funniest part for me was when we were heading back home again we realized it was dinner time.  Nobody felt like preparing anything, (after all, it was Christmas) so we ended up getting Panda Express.  I'll never forget how long the line was, but it ended up being a lot of fun.  (There aren't many restaurants open on Christmas Day.:)  We ended our great day by hanging out at Jason's sisters with many different Wii games.  So fun!

I know this is sideways, but I just love this picture.  Isaiah's eyes were that big all day long.:)

Mary could hardly wait to open everything.  She was such a cutie!

This is Savannah in what Santa brought her.  (This is the second time she's asked him for summer things.  Thankfully Santa knows how to use the internet...:)

  What a fabulous day!  I'm sort-of glad all the hustle and bustle is over, but I still can hardly wait until next year.  I just love it!:)

The Joys of Digital Cameras

  A while back, the switch on my digital camera that makes it so you can see the picture you just took broke off.  I thought, no big deal, so I can't see the pictures right away.  It'll be like an old school camera again.  Boy, was wrong.  Yes, the camera can still take pictures, but I can't upload any to the computer without that switch being engaged.  I tried for almost an hour last night to make it work, eventually even sticking a safety pin in the hole where the switch was to push down the activator.  The only problem with that is that if it moves AT ALL, the uploading software won't detect the camera anymore. I don't know about you, but there is no way I can hold THAT still.  At least, not while I have to type at the same time. What am I, a statue?  At any rate, I'm going to have to figure out a different way of updating photos on my computer.  (And I thought having a digital camera was going to make my life easier...:) Does anybody know a good camera repair man?:)