SNOW . . . sledding . . . SNOW

In all of my not-posting-much busyness I forgot to post about our TOTALLY fun trip over the Christmas break. On New Years Day Scott played some flag football & injured himself within the first 15 minutes of the game (in fact I think he said it was in the first PLAY!). So, when our friends the Brazell's called to invite us to go tubing...he wasn't up to it. But I was!!! So I loaded up the kiddos & we headed off into the wild blue yonder...which then turned grey and finally white.

Have I mentioned how much I love the snow??

As I'm following their 4x4 truck up the mountain and feeling my wheels catching every-so-often while watching lots of smart people with chains in their car pull over to put them on their tires...I kept following (and worrying a little bit about coming back down that mountain in a while...especially around certain curves and drop offs).

We finally pulled over to chat. Austin was in their truck & Momma Brazell was with me (which made our vehicles the boys vs. the girls). Daddy Brazell asked Austin if our van was 4x4, "oh yeah." he answers (we definitely do NOT have 4 wheel drive!) So we decided to just stop where we were and make the best of it (they had another spot that was their favorite).

Here are some videos . . . not the greatest & does my voice REALLY sound like that?!

Here is Chloe LOVING the snow...really she loves anything outside!

Ellie enjoyed exploring & perching on a tree stump.

Joslyn & Spencer Brazell had one of the longer runs before crashing.

Wyatt Brazell crashed early on & then Austin passed him by.

At one point I took the little girls back to the van to get warm while everyone kept sledding. I have an ingenious method of making snow pants . . . I just take draw-string garbage bags and put one on each leg and tie them to my coat. It works GREAT! I don't get wet at all.

When we went back to the van there were police cars there & we were trying to figure out if there was an accident or if they were closing down the pass. Cars were SLOWLY coming by us. As one car came by the lady pointed at us and laughed. I thought maybe she knew us. About 5 minutes later I looked down and it dawned on me that the lady was laughing at ME & my snow pants! I doubled over laughing so hard at what these people must think as they looked at me! (I wish I had taken a picture of it).

Chloe Turns 2

Chloe just turned 2. She got the game Elefun (way cute game for toddlers! well who am I kidding?? all of the kids like it). Here are some of the girls playing it...she has an ingenious way of getting the butterflies into her net! Notice her outfit...it is standard Chloe-issue these days. Every morning she gets dressed and before lunch she has shed her shirt and puts on this very dress-up over her pants. If it's a cold day I make her do it over her shirt. We have gone to town a few times dressed like this & I just forget that she even has it on & can't figure out why people are giggling at her.

This kid gives us a run for our money! (I'm thinking of calling her Bonus Bassett like Bonus Jonas) She is constantly on the look for something to do...you take something away and you can see her brain working on finding something else to get into! She's a climber & constantly has bumps and bruises from her escapades. She is stranger/adult shy (as ALL of my kids have been...it's a mystery to ME!)

Here is one of the many pictures that we took trying to get ONE decent family picture. Click on it and blow it up and look at her face...CLASSIC Chloe! It's the "I'm not looking at you...at least you don't THINK I'm looking at you" look. (Seriously...it's WAY better blown up!)

I love how she is so obsessed with Dora & Diego right now and when we put one on she claps her hands & plays along with the shows. I love her snuggling up at night for a bit before she is ready to get in her crib. I love when she and Ellie play together with their dolls & toys. I love playing Ring-Around-the-Rosie with her and when we are all on the ground she walks around the circle patting our heads saying "duck...duck...duck" and then just running at random without saying "GOOSE!" I REALLY love when she plays hide-and-go-seek and she just can't help giggling and squealing! I love this little girl...she's a keeper our Bonus Bassett!

Ode to Nevadanista

To my dear Nevadanista . . . you too have one of my FAVORITE blogs! (I don't consider it stalking to read every bit of your blog within minutes of you posting because I do at least know you . . . unlike the bloggers on my stalking list!).

You always make me smile and often laugh (which usually results in crying because of my crossed wires). You inspire me to go to fun new places and learn how to take cool pictures or spend hours watching wild horses. I sent my kids out to play in a downpour one day because I saw how much fun Ella had. Like I say, you inspire me!

I could go on . . . I KNOW how you just HATE when people do that!! So keep blogging my inspiring friend . . . I can't wait to see what's on my "I want to do that!" list.

Have you ever . . .

Tori had a fun game on her blog! Play along. Copy and paste and highlight the things you've done! Then when your finished add something you've done that wasn't on the list!

1. Started your own blog 2. Slept under the stars 3. Played in a band 4. Visited Hawaii 5. Watched a meteor shower 6. Given more than you can afford to charity 7. Been to Disneyland 8. Climbed a mountain 9. Held a praying mantis 10. Sang a solo 11. Bungee jumped 12. Visited Paris 13. Watched a lightning storm at sea 14.Taught yourself an art from scratch 15. Adopted a child 16. Had food poisoning 17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty 18. Grown your own vegetables 19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France 20. Slept on an overnight train 21. Had a pillow fight 22.hitch hiked 23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill 24. Built a snow fort 25. Held a lamb 26. Gone skinny dipping 27. Run a 1/2 Marathon 28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice 29. Seen a total eclipse 30. Watched a sunrise or sunset 31.hit a home run. 32.been on a cruise 33. Seen Niagara Falls in person 34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors 35. Seen an Amish community 36. Taught yourself a new language 37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied 38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person 39. Gone rock climbing 40. Seen Michelangelo’s David 41. Sung karaoke 42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt 43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant 44. Visited Africa 45. Walked on a beach by moonlight 46. Been transported in an ambulance 47. Had your portrait painted 48. Gone deep sea fishing 49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person 50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris 51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling 52. Kissed in the rain 53. Played in the mud 54. Gone to a drive-in theater 55. Been in a movie 56. Visited the Great Wall of China 57. Started a business 58. Taken a martial arts class 59. Visited Russia 60. Served at a soup kitchen 61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies 62. Gone whale watching 63. Got flowers for no reason 64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma 65. Gone sky diving 66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp 67. Bounced a check 68. Flown in a helicopter 69. Saved a favorite childhood toy 70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial 71. Eaten Caviar 72. Pieced a quilt 73. Stood in Times Square 74. Toured the Everglades 75. Been fired from a job 76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London 77. Broken a bone. 78.Been on a speeding motorcycle 79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person 80. Published a book 81. Visited the Vatican 82. Bought a brand new car 83. Walked in Jerusalem 84. Had your picture in the newspaper 85. Read the entire Bible 86. Visited the White House 87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating 88. Had chickenpox 89. Saved someone’s life 90. Sat on a jury 91. Met someone famous 92. Joined a book club 93. Lost a loved one 94. Had a baby 95. Seen the Alamo in person 96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake 97. Been involved in a law suit 98. Owned a cell phone 99. Been stung by a bee 100.Made amends with someone who offended you 101. Flew in a small Cessna plane with just you and the pilot 102. Ran out of gas 103. Eaten fried okra 104. Swam in the Caribbean Sea 105. Peed in a swimming pool 106. Stayed in a beach house 107. Hosted an exchange student 108. Been a Secret Santa to a family in need 109. Worked on a political campaign 110. Coached a sports team 111. Baked bread from scratch 112. Driven from coast to coast (although not in the same trip) 113. Paid off all of your debt 114. Roast marshmallows over a campfire.115 Cut up a credit card 116. Drove a car through a flood 117. Been on t.v 118. Had braces 119. Been to the twin towers in NY. 120. Have played in both the Atlantic & Pacific Oceans 121. Been to ground zero 122. Bite my fingernails 123. Likes to scrapbook 124. Hates pie 125. Visited Mexico 126. Seen a Tornado in person 127. Have ever been lost at sea! 128. kisses a frog. 129. Gave birth to twins. 130. Received 2 moving violation tickets in 1 day. 131.Been Life Flighted. 132. swore 133. stranded in a motel for Christmas. 134. Been in 2 countries at once! 135. had a baby without an epidural or pain meds.

Can Anyone Help Me???

Over the holidays I wasn't very good at stalking my favorite blogs (I always made time for cjane & almost can't believe that Nie is REALLY back!!!!!!!). So, I didn't notice that one of my favorites for Primary went PRIVATE!!!! Julie's Singing Time...I missed it & didn't get to give her my e-mail address! So...if anyone happens to know how I can get in touch with Julie I would be ever so grateful...she has some of the BEST ideas EVER for singing time!

I Am . . . Tagged!

My friend Allison (I love Facebook for bringing me back in touch with my long-lost friends!) tagged me. It was a difficult tag for me because she has such a way with words and witt. For those of you that I tag it won't be that difficult because I'm just not that creative or inspirational.

I am: crazy, sincere, a hard worker, devoted, a mother, a wife, a child, a sister, an aunt (one of my favorites)...


I think: about how life will be when my kids are grown and off with their own families...will they come and visit me??


I know: that when I flip the light switch the light will come on because we paid the bills & the light bulbs just got changed. (in today's economy that's a good feeling!!)


I want: to travel with my husband AFTER the kids are gone.


I dislike: people cheating in Pictionary!


I miss: playing Pictionary. (although not as much as my family and the snow)


I fear: death...although only in the sense that I die when my kids are young.


I feel: happy, content, at peace.


I hear: my kids playing with each other (aka music to my ears)


I smell: breakfast.


I cry: when I laugh...crossed wires.


I usually: never cry when I'm upset or sad...when I do than my family knows that I'm SERIOUS!


I search: the internet often for all different kinds of information & Facebook for long lost friends.


I wonder: why people don't always do what they say they will do??? And why did someone decide that brown and black don't match...I mean who was the first person to decide what colors look good together??


I regret: not spending enough time with my kids teaching them EVERYTHING...I doubt I'm alone in this one which gives me hope.


I love: how beautiful everything is after a big snowfall.


I care: if I offend someone...but I rarely get offended & so I don't really notice if I offend someone.


I always: try to do what I say I will do & I always try to pull my fair share of things.


I worry: about my kids CONSTANTLY.


I am not: a very good teacher...it's just not my forte.


I remember: a LOT of things!! Even from when I was like 4 years old! If I know you than I probably remember really silly things about you. My family always claims that I make things up because they never remember any of it...I'm NOT making it up!


I believe: that I can handle anything that happens to me in this life.


I dance: in my dreams because I am really uncoordinated & can't dance.


I sing: alto, but learned soprano & am just now trying to train myself to pick out the harmony because I just can't reach those high notes!


I don't always: do or say the right thing because I usually say what is on my mind & do what I want to.


I argue: to make my point understood...I don't always have to do it my way, but I want them to know WHY I am thinking that way.


I write: about my family & the silly thoughts I often have.


I win: arm wrestles with Austin (at least this week), but


I lose: races with Austin.


I wish: that I lived near my family again.


I listen: to all kinds of music...seriously ALL kinds!


I don't understand: Trigonometry & advanced physics...it's just beyond me!


I can usually be found: with my kids at home (at least that's where I prefer to be).


I am afraid: of snakes...I'm improving though...I used to freeze up and not be able to turn the page of a book with a picture of a snake on it. (That snake scene on the recent Indiana Jones movie about sent me through the ROOF!!!!)


I need: to read my scriptures more.


I forget: to stop and smell the roses often enough.


I am happy: REALLY...I AM HAPPY!





And so I am.

I tag Erin Gelmstedt (because you really need a new post!), The Crazy Clean Freak & Candy because you guys crack me up on these kinds of things!

Austin & Ellie's Picks

I know, I know...Christmas is waaay over with (am I the only one giving a sigh of relief right now??!). But, I never did get Austin or Ellie's favorite things posted.

Austin said that his favorite Christmas tradition was opening pajamas on Christmas Eve (hmmm hadn't been planning on doing that one this year...good thing I asked!!!)

Ellie said that her favorite thing was to play in the snow and build a snowman. I was a bit worried about that one, and then Mother Nature gave us a little hope...about an inch of hope. However it was powder so it wasn't very useful for building snowmen. I forgot to get pictures of the snowmen that they did build with it...they were about 10 inches tall!