Carter and Kayla

I was so happy when my friend Kayla came to visit! She is not only one of my super best friends, she is also the love of Carter's life (thus far!) **When asked, "Carter, who loves you?" Carter says, "Kayla" first.
When Kayla first came to the door, Carter greeted her shyly. Once he realized that there were other people who wanted to talk to her, he grabbed her hand and took her on a tour of his most favorite toys- his Lego trains, his Lionel train, and his bowling set. He asked her right away if she would play bowling with him! His second question to her? "Honey, can I sleep with you?" I promptly answered for Kayla, "No, Carter." Carter replied, "Awwwww, why?" Thinking fast my answer was, "You aren't married yet." LOL! Carter accepted this answer, but insisted on sleeping on the floor next to Kayla. LOL!

**These are pictures from my camera

The moment that Kayla came to the door Carter was excited! He hugged her so hard that she nearly fell over- which is why she is holding the wall in this picture, lol!

Harrison, riding one of the rides at Chuck E Cheese!

Carter pretends to give "my Kayla" a ride in a car!


Kurt waits patiently for the clock to wind down.

Carter rides a ride at Chuck E Cheese.

Awwwwwww

Kayla is going to show me how to knit!

READY!

Harrison took the camera and snapped this picture, too cute!

Kayla's Farewell Breakfast... trying not to cry =(

Carter and the love of his life (thus far).

Carter was totally depressed for days after Kayla left. Here is Carter 30 mins after we said goodbye to Kayla.

Carter and I sent a voice message to Kayla, here is the script:

Me: "Carter? Are you happy or sad?"

Carter: "Sad"

Me: "Why are you sad?"

Carter: "Because Kayla's not kissing me."

Me: "Ohhh, I'm sorry."

Carter: "Yeah..."

He sounded SOOOO depressed. The above pic is all him- can you tell he misses her?!

Kayla- with a better camera!

Having Kayla here was such a joy. I really loved it. She taught me how to knit. We watched "bonnet movies" made by the BBC. We snacked, laughed, and cried! She was the PERFECT cure for Winter Blahs- and I am so thankful for her friendship! I miss her already- and I am not the only one!


**Taken with Kayla's camera

I love Carter's face in this picture.

Carter and Kayla on a roller coaster ride!

They pretend to be scared, lol!

GOING DOWNNNN!

"OOOOOooooOOOOooooo"

The boys play air hockey!

Action shot of Mr. Harrison- you can tell he is really into the game!

Carter gives Kayla his best smile.

This was Carter's favorite ride- and his face says it all!

This was Harrison's favorite ride, "woahhhhhh!"

Sean was home sick from school, so he asked to play with Kayla's camera. He took this picture of himself, and it happened to get Kurt cleaning in the background, lol!

Carter was SO ANGRY when he saw this picture. "HEY! SEAN!!!! NO! Don't touch! That's not yours!!!" Of course, "that" was Kayla! LOL!

Sean took this awesome shot =)- Kayla!

Sean took this too- what a neat picture!!!!

Kayla, sipping coffee and letting Sean take pics of her, lol- yup, this picture was by Sean too!

Carter wanted to go bowling with Kayla... alone. He settled for Mom as a chaperon. It was the best day of his life - Kayla, bowling, and dinner at a restaurant that had pizza on the kids' menu... life doesn't get better than that!

Kayla bowls! She beat Carter in both games =)

Carter kept sneaking glances at Kayla, lol!!!

Carter, Kayla, and bowling!

High Five!

I wanted to take a picture with Carter, but he kept closing his eyes!

When Carter goes bowling he always puts his feet on the line after he throws the ball- here are his feet with Kayla's =)

Neat picture- taken by Kayla

Carter and Kayla at dinner... awwwwwww!

Carter draws pictures with Kayla! He would draw some, and she would draw some- it was so cute! Here he had drawn a picture of bowling, and was explaining that it was going to be a spare.

Reading for Miracles

When I first heard that my dear friend, Becca, was doing a Book of Mormon reading challenge I was all in! I just thought it would be a great chance to track reading, have others reading with me, and for me to have someone there to hold me accountable for reading my scriptures every day. It was an excellent addition to my "to do" list (I have a weakness for lists- I love them!).

Becca started listing the participants of her challenge on her blog. The list got so long, and the entries of the readings were so detailed, she moved everything to a separate blog! Something that stood out to me was over the names of the people who had signed up, she had written something to the effect of, "Reading to see Miracles." That made me stop for a moment. I thought about it, and when I decided to link the info on my own blog, that is what I decided to tittle her challenge as. At the time, we had absolutely no worries or cares in the world. We had just moved, we were living in a beautiful home, we were surrounded by family- all healthy and happy.

What I didn't know was just how important seeing those miracles would be. What I didn't know was all of the challenges that would come for our family, like waves upon waves in a typhoon. What I didn't know was that through everything, although I would feel unsure, frightened of the future, and stressed about the situation- that because of this scripture reading, I would have a deeper feeling of peace than I have ever felt before. I would feel more comfort than I had in my life. I would grow closer to my Heavenly Father and my Savior than ever.

Heavenly Father always has a plan for us. I love Him. The Lord does not abandon us. He does not forget us. Yes, there have been times, during my darkest moments, that I felt alone and frightened, but every time that I ASKED for help, it was given. I hope that my children notice that I did not type: "every time I NEEDED help" - because that is not the same thing. When I was reading to see miracles, I saw that throughout the scriptures there were times of joy and times of sorrow. Times where things were pretty good, and times where things were pretty bad. The difference was in how the people ACTED. I read time after time of a humble servant of the Lord, doing all that he could to do the Lord's work, and then, after exhausting his own resources and energies, calling upon the Lord for help. In order to knock, we must show Him that we are willing to set aside our personal desires and allow him to carry us in a direction that will truly lead us to everlasting happiness. Sometimes our answers will take us to unexpected destinations, but time after time, with hard work, and faith- we are given situations that end up being better for us than we could have realized. Our time here on Earth is not a time to work to acquire stuff- it is a time to learn, share, and grow.

Becca has expressed desire to continue to read scriptures like this, and invited people to join her. Her faith, inspired actions, and her desire to help others find peace is so inspirational to me. Her story is so amazing- right now her family is experiencing its own real miracle, and I couldn't be happier for them! I am so extremely lucky to have gotten to know her!

I pray that the New Year brings a feeling of renewal and hope to our hearts. I pray that my children continue to grow in their love of their Savior and their Father in Heaven. I pray that we continue to remember who we are, and strive to return with honor when we are once again in the presence of our Father above. Things on Earth are not perfect, but the Lord and His teachings are. As 2011 greets us, I am going to keep my thoughts and actions centered around my theme word: Present. I will work harder to really be present- fully present- when dealing with my faith, family, and home. I am going to continue reading with Becca, and when I read I am going to be present in the reading, and absorb everything the Lord would have me see. I am going to be present with my family- and remember that it is the little moments that make memories: the candy-mouthed kisses, and sticky-handed hugs. I will be present with my husband, and I will work hard be the woman that completes him. I will strive to be more present in my life, so that my eyes are more open to opportunities to serve The Lord.

May the blessings of God be upon all of us, and may 2011 be a truly wonderful year =)

Cold hands, warm hearts!

The boys are so cute in their new snowsuits! Grandma Joyce gave them to the kids for Christmas!

Carter is such a sweet snow angel =) He loves to feel the snow touch his face.

Carter throws snow, Harrison hides!


Harrison gives us his charming smile.



The boys play together!

Kurt takes a break from snapping photos to toss a few snowballs! Harrison swings, lol! Sean gets his snowball ready!

Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Our Christmas was really wonderful. Christmas Eve was spent with Brian, Sean, and our little family. It was great! Brian had the day off work, so we all hung out, and we got ready for Grandma and Grandpa Smith to stay the night! Grandma made a yummy lasagna (gluten free! YAY!) dinner, bread, and dessert! After we were full, and the dishes were done, we all piled into Grandpa's SUV and we drove around looking at Christmas lights! SO PRETTY! Kurt stayed home, he was feeling better, but didn't want to overdo it. We were thrilled to see him up and around!

Kurt and I woke up really early, and we saw that Santa had visited! (We went back to bed, it was too early!) I was the first one up on Christmas morning. Kurt and I were up at 7am. The sun was coming up, it was one of the most beautiful sunrises I have ever seen. The colors were fantastic! I woke up Brian, and then my parents. We all gazed at the sunrise, and then started the day. The kids woke up and were THRILLED to see the presents under the tree, and LOVED that Grandma and Grandpa were here already! Sleepovers are the BEST!!!!!!

We opened Christmas Crackers and then started with a few small gifts. We then enjoyed cinnamon rolls- Harrison and I shared a gluten free one! MMMmmm! We moved on to bigger gifts, and when it came time to open the gifts that Santa brought the kids were thrilled beyond expression. We started with the youngest child first, and Harrison was SOOOO happy to get his Buzz Lightyear with Utility Belt ("Sir-Dah-Hoes" Buzz, instead of "Servos Buzz"). Sean went next, and literally shouted for joy when he saw that he didn't just get Ironman Hands (like he asked for), but he got an Ironman helmet and chest thingie (sorry, I don't really know Ironman very well) too!!! Carter was last.... he was so amazing to watch. He was literally buzzing with anticipation. When he opened the first gift, it was Polar Express posable figures. He didn't really understand that they were a part of a set, but was happy to get them nonetheless. When he opened his next gift, a Polar Express diorama, he went NUTS. He started jumping up and down, screaming, "POLAR EXPRESS!!!!!" His excitement flooded the room, and a few of us were teary eyed at how excited little Carter was just for a cardboard cutout! I wont lie... pretty sure that we could have just put that up over one of his existing train sets, and he seemed like he would have been thrilled. He opened his next gift, and it was train tracks. He looked a little confused, and then hopeful, when he realized he had one more gift to open, and the tracks that he just opened didn't fit any of his current trains. Then, he opened his last gift. He went CRAZY. He was jumping all around and telling all of us to look at his Polar Express Train! He wanted to hold it. He wanted to see it. He wanted to just gaze! HE WAS SO EXCITED! It was great!

All the kids enjoyed their gifts, while I made a breakfast casserole. Grandpa Russ and Kurt helped Carter set up his Lionel Polar Express Train. Grandma Joyce and Brian helped Sean put together his awesome Lego set (a gift from Brian to Sean). We had breakfast, and Brian had to go to work. We all watched Grease, a new Blu-Ray movie that Brian and I got for our mom, and snacked on homemade goodies. The kids played with their toys all day. A few games were played (Toy Story Memory, a gift from Grandma and Grandpa Lyle to Harrison, and R2D2 Star Wars Trouble, last year's gift from Carter to Kurt). What fun!!!

We finished the evening with a ham and cherry sauce, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potato casserole, mixed veggies, and baked beans. Everyone enjoyed the meal, and we had great conversation.

There never was such a Christmas =) We pray that other families had as wondrous a day as we did. May the joy of the Savior, and the love and atoning sacrifice He gave to all, bring all of us peace =)

Our tree, late at night after Santa came!

Christmas morning!

Kids are ready for gifts!


Harrison needs a bit of help from Daddy, they are opening Harrison's gift from Santa!



Harrison tries REALLY hard to unwrap his gift!



Dang. Not in focus. Oh well, Harrison is so excited to get his Buzz Lightyear with Servos!

Sean's turn to open his gift from Santa!

He is so excited!

IRONMAN HANDS!!! AND... MORE?! He is so happy!!!!

Carter's turn!

He is SO happy!!!!

This is the only pic I captured of his face- I couldnt take pics fast enough! He was SO THRILLED!

Carter shows us all the glitter on his feet! LOL! Looks like Santa likes glittery ribbons!

Grandma and Brian help Sean put together his new Legos!

Daddy and Carter put together tracks!

Grandpa helps unpack Carter's new train!

Grandpa, Kurt, Harrison, and Carter love putting the train together! (Maybe it reminds the older men of being kids, and playing with their own Lionel trains?)

This is where Carter was. All day. LOL!

Lionel Polar Express train! Carter LOVES it!

Harrison is excited. Daddy gave him a REAL Anti-Gravity Servos belt, he matches his new Buzz!!!!

Sean, is IRONMAN! Seeing him in this little outfit makes me giggle, he is so cute! LOL