Festival of Lights

We are a "festival" family! We love the Festival of Trees and tonight we went to the festival of lights. It was perfect! I had been snowing (still was) and the trees all had blankets of snow on them. The lights glistened while the snow continued to fall. The boys especially loved the "dripping lights" on the trees (LED icicle lights). Luke was excited to see penguins and Zack took about 50 or more pictures on his camera. Tonight really helped me get in the Christmas mood. So much so that I went shopping online when I got home! HA HA! I love Christmas. YEAH for festivals!

Poor Baby

My little Maddie has a fever today. It was hard for her to go to church and sit during Sacrament meeting in her pretty Christmas dress. She didn't feel well at all. Kevin took her home right after Sacrament and she slept for 2 hours.

I sang in the choir today as well. It went well I think. I always love singing in the choir for Christmas time. Only five days until Christmas! YEAH!

He's Arthur...King of the Britains!

Zack got the part of one of the Arthurs in the school play. He's a fourth grader and he got Arthur! How cool is that?! I am excited that Zack finally got a lead role in something. He has been in Trevor's "shadow" being the younger brother and it's nice that he gets to actually be in something on his own. I am proud of him. YEAH ZACKY!

Luke's First Belt Test

Luke tested tonight for his first belt in Tae Kwon Do (yellow/white). He was so excited. He did a great job too. My favorite was when he added an extra "spin" to his round house kicks. He is a little ninja through and through. I think he's going to be really great in this sport. He has the drive. I was so proud of all the work he did. He has been taking Tae Kwon Do since he was three years old. Amazing.

My Sweet Luke

Today I had a hard day. Some tears were shed out of frustration with parental responsibilities (kids being naughty). Luke came over to me and patted me on the shoulder and said, "I'm here, Mom. It's me, Luke. It's alright, Mom. I love you. You can cry on me." What a wonderful boy. I need to spend more quality time with him. I truly love that boy. XO

Christmas Cookies

We decorated cookies tonight. Zack and Luke were really excited about it. Trevor decided to work on his poster instead. Kevin was awesome. He's always helping wherever he can. All of the cookies look great. I'm excited for the kids to give them to our neighbors. I love Christmas and I LOVE frosted sugar cookies.

Who-ville in the Elzey House

Today Luke asked to watch "The Grinch." Not the horribly disturbing live action movie, but the classic and perfect cartoon version. I happily obliged. He ate his cheese tortilla while watching and then quickly moved to the couch when he was finished eating. I left the room for a minute and when I came back the "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" song was on. I glanced at Luke when I walked by and a huge grin was on his face. He was laughing and loving every minute of the timeless classic. And I smiled in return.

Thank you Christmas.

All Worth It

So I've been having struggles with my Luke lately. He is a very head strong boy, but has a big heart. For some reason...he was snuggling me on the couch before bedtime. He sat at my side while we did our Christmas devotional and then prayed with the family. He wanted me to tuck him in before bed and then proceeded to give me a kiss and a hug...complete with smile. It's a good day. :)

Festival of Trees

This was Madeline's first time on our annual outing to the Festival of Trees....and her first trip to see SANTA CLAUS! She didn't even cry (she was more interested in the candy cane!). I tried to get a picture of all of the kids. But this was the best I could do. We loved watching all the little girls in their tutus and sparkly dresses ready to perform. Madeline was entranced with them as well. I can't wait to see her cutness in a tutu! Luke made a reindeer hat and took his time making it 'just right' while Zack took TWO trips to the origami lady. This is the first year Trevor didn't do any of the crafts or activities. :( He's getting so big. We still have all of his old ornaments that he has made over the years.

We enjoyed our scones and sweet rolls and all of the general merriment. I love going every year...it really gets me in the mood for Christmas.

Growing Up

Madeline is almost running now. She is truly growing right before my eyes. She has basically stopped nursing now. I've finished nursing my children. I was able to nurse all four of them. What a blessing for their health. I hope it has made a difference. I didn't think it would be that hard to be done...but everyday that passes with Madeline is a "last time." I remember all of the "first times" with Trevor and now here I am with the last times. It's harder and harder for me. I get more melancholy about it. I'm already a sentimental person that hates finishing chapters in my life and starting new ones. But, my children are beautiful and love their mommy. I love them too.

Super Hot!

One of my favorite moments lately with Luke:

Luke had chapped lips so I put some peppermint chapstick on them. He began to complain and said loudly, "It's hot!" Then, suddenly his eyes got bigger and he exclaimed, "Now it's SUPER hot!" It was pretty funny. I tried to rub it off and he yelled, "Now it's worse!" I couldn't win. But his face and expression were pretty funny. Again, love my Lukey!

Floats Our Boat

Tonight I helped my son, Zack, work on his county float for his 4th grade "County Project." I enjoy helping the kids with their school projects. It gives me one on one time with them and it creates a good memory for them. Hopefully they'll remember that their mom stayed up late, burned her fingers on hot glue and used a fortune in color ink to help make all of their projects fantastic! I love you Zacky!

With Rich County on the brain,

Lisa

P.S. Tonight was Trevor's opening night for "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown." I'm excited to see him play Snoopy tomorrow!

One Small Step for Madeline...

Well, Madeline has taken the journey that begins with one step. She is getting rather good at it. She can stand in the middle of a room on her own and take one step either backwards or forwards without falling. She will walk with us when we hold her hand, but then she gets bored/tired and plops down to crawl.

One of my favorite things is her toothy grin! She also throws her head back when she laughs. She throws it so far back that she falls over. It's quite funny.

She is starting to not want to nurse anymore. She's too busy. I'm nursing her in the morning and at night, but she's been distracted for today. I want to nurse her as long as I can. Not only for the health benefit, but she is my last...so I guess I don't want her to grow so fast. Makes me cry. My little Miss is getting so big. I love her!

Hero Day

Today was Hero Day at the boys' school. Zack spent A LOT of time figuring out what hero he wanted to be. His first inclination was his dad (aw...) but he said nobody would know what he was. He joked about shaving his hair to look like his dad! He has a great sense of humor. So, instead, Zack chose his very favorite person...the person he has written reports on, read books about and hopes to be like one day...Walt Disney! I took a snapshot of his costume (that he figured out entirely on his own BTW). He is an amazing boy with a brain that won't quit. I love how he is always interested in everything. His love of reading has given him such a huge scope of life for a 4th grader. I love my Zack.

Fall Break 2010

Oct 15, 2010

It's that time of year again...when I start to dream about going to Disneyland (don't I always do that?) Fall Break! Kevin had a free room at The Canyons in Park City so we decided to have a "stay-cation." We spent Friday in downtown Salt Lake while Kevin was at work. We took a tour of the Beehive House and walked around the outside of the Conference Center. Then we took a trip to the Gateway mall and each one of my knights got a book at the beloved Barnes and Noble.

When we met up with Kevin, we went to this great place that had gourmet hamburgers (using a restaurant.com coupon of course). The sweet potato fries and the kobe beef burger were especially delicious.

When we finally got to Park City, the boys had fun in the outdoor pool, which made a great excuse to use the "steam room" afterward. We then surprised them with the DVD of "How to Train Your Dragon" and I bought YUMMY pastries from our favorite bakery in Salt Lake, Gourmandie's. We ate to our hearts content and then tried to sleep.

The next day they hit the pool again in the morning and then we hit the outlets. I actually bought myself something too! Miracle. The kids had a blast and it helped take away the "we-aren't-going-to-Disneyland-this-year-'cause-we-ain't-got-no-money" blues.....well...at least a little bit. Fun memories!

Priceless Moments

Luke was waiting outside for the neighborhood carpool to pick him up for kindergarten this morning while I watched him from the front doorway. He walked across the grass and noticed it was wet when he saw his wet footprints on the sidewalk. He promptly went back to the lawn, got the bottom of his shoes wet and quickly walked over to the sidewalk again. I wasn't sure what he was doing dragging his feet onto the cement. Then after a few moments he exclaimed, "Look, Mom! I made a 'U'!" I told him great job to which he responded "Now I'm going to make a 'K'!" Big smiles. He's getting so big. I love my Luke. He can be my greatest challenge at times, but for the most part he is my Lukey!

Madeline's Blessing Day

What a special day. My baby girl was blessed. She looked lovely and lit up the room with her smile. I made cupcake holders for her "signature dessert." Since she is as cute as a cupcake...I thought we'd serve all white ones with white frosting. We also had soups and salads that everyone brought as a pot luck.

Her dress was of particular importance to me...being a first time mom of a girl. I loved it! I even loved the sweet bonnet that went with it. I made her a blessing bracelet that I hope to extend for her baptism eight years from now...and then extend again on her wedding day....30 years from now!

I love you, Madeline. You are my little symbol of hope in the world. XO, Mom

My Luke turns 5

It's finally happened...my Luke grew up. Somehow five is a magic number in the life of a child. There's "wisdom" in five. Five means Kindergarten and besides...it's a whole hand of fingers!

We had a great day. Luke chose a LEGO Star Wars theme this year (not straying too far from his last birthday theme of CLONE WARS Star Wars). I made the invitations on Illustrator (of course) and had them printed at Costco. Love the Costco! We also got the cake there. You just can't go wrong with a $16.99 fantastic birthday cake. We even put LEGO Star Wars guys on it for the finishing touches.

We opened presents and of course, Luke was set with his array of weaponry. His "armory" is getting quite full.

He made sure to thank his friends for all of his "loot." They were all TOO kind.

Then we headed off to the Kangaroo Zoo for a bouncin' good time. Luke had a little to much fun and at one point ran over to me with tears in his eyes and asked me, "Is my head cracking?" Apparently he bonked it and was worried about it staying together. Needless to say, he was just fine. No cracking.

All the boys got a Star Wars Kite and a Ring Pop (one of Luke's favorite candy treats). I wasn't too creative on this one. With an 8 week old baby attached to me 24/7, I needed simple--yet memorable. I think we accomplished that. Happy Birthday, Lukey! You are my sunshine. MAKE A WISH!