No time

I have so much to post about, but no time now. I will post Christmas pictures and thoughts soon.
For now, we are off to St. George to celebrate New Years in a bit warmer weather.

Haley's Prayers

My kids know that I don't like driving in the snow. This past week, the roads have been very bad. Every time we pull out of the driveway, Haley says, "I'm saying a prayer in my head that we will be safe."

Friday morning, Jason was leaving for work at the same time we were pulling out for school. So, Haley said, "I'm saying a prayer for you and Dad that you won't slip on the ice."
Then after a few minutes of quiet, she said, "In my heart, it just said 'I will take care of your Mom and Dad'"

I'm glad that she recognizes so easily the peace that the Spirit speaks to our hearts.

Britton's Class

On Friday, I got to go help out with Britton's class party. I really love going to his class. His teacher is great and it's just fun for me to see him with all his classmates and get to know them. I go every Wednesday afternoon to help out with reading, but this is the first time I had been for a party.

When I'm there on Wednesdays, it is after the track 1 kids have gone home, so I really only know half of his class. So when I arrived, there were lots of kids asking who I was. When I said that I was Britton's mom, one girl shouted out, "Britton is so silly all the time." She said it in kind of a negative tone and I thought Britton was going to feel bad because he's super sensitive, but instead he just said proudly, "Well, you should meet my Dad, he's way sillier than me." That made me laugh because at home we are always having discussions about who is the silliest. :)

I was in charge of the games for the party. I planned to play two games with one more as a back up just in case. It turned out to be so much fun. 6 and 7 year olds are so fun to be around. And they love playing games and are so easily entertained. The students were in small groups of 5-6 and then they rotated to different stations around the room. For the first game, the kids sat in the circle and I put a Santa hat on one of them in the middle and then blindfolded that person. Then I spun them around. The person in the middle would point to someone in the circle and that person had to say, "Ho, ho ho!" in their best Santa voice. Then the middle person had to guess who it was. It was a really simple, easy game, but they had such a blast. They laughed and laughed and were so excited for their turn. It was cute watching them try to sound like Santa. Anyway, it turned out quite fun. The second game was just Christmas charades. I put pictures of Christmas and winter things in a bag. They each took turns picking one and acting it out. That was a lot of fun for them too. The other stations were all crafty type things so I was very happy to be where I just got to play with the kids.

Now, I'm excited that Britton doesn't have to go back to school until Jan. 5! I won't mind sleeping in and not having to drive on the slick, icy roads every morning.

Seasonal Fickleness

Britton has been waiting for it to snow pretty much since July. He has been talking about snowball fights and snowmen and sledding and all that other good stuff. He insists that winter is his very favorite season because of all the fun things to do in the snow.

Well, this week we finally got a decent amount of snow. On the first day of the snow, Britton offered to scrape the van for me before I took him to school. He had a blast and then threw a few snowballs at me before we loaded up.

As we pulled out of the driveway and the cold, wet, uncomfortableness started to set in, I was surprised to hear him say, "I don't really like the snow. I think spring is my favorite now. When is it going to be spring?"

It just made me laugh. Since then, though, we've been able to go sledding and he's made a few snowmen so I think he's in love with the snow again.

At least until he gets cold.

Sick on Sunday

Today we stayed home sick from church. Jason and I were both feeling sick and didn't even want to get out of bed. We just felt like laying there sleeping and watching TV. And guess what Jason was hoping we could find on TV? A Little House on the Prairie Marathon! And he wasn't even kidding.
I love my husband.

Haley and Chloie--I love these girls!

These two girls are so funny. They are either best friends or arch rivals. They play really well together or else they only want what the other person has. It's hilarious. So, it's always good if they can both have the same things so that they don't fight.

Here Chloie saw Haley laying down, so she went and got a pillow and blanket (just like Haley), then she got a stuffed cat and another little stuffed animal (just like Haley), then she layed down right next to her. So cute. I think Haley's pretending to be asleep. (she does this a lot and sometimes she's really convincing, although here, the smile gives her away.)

Britton loves Babies!

Britton has always loved babies. And I love to see him with babies! No matter how crazy he is being before, as soon as he sees a baby, he gets really calm and gentle. He is so happy just staring at them, holding them, and talking to them. I love to see this tender side of him. He could really just sit there for hours holding a little baby.
He is so in love with his new cousins, Jacob and Emily. Jacob looks A LOT like Britton did as a baby, so I think he has a particular liking for him. He spent so much time over Thanksgiving just cuddling up with one of them.
Britton and Jacob

Britton and Emily (I love how he is just staring at her)

Thanksgiving Weekend

It has taken me over a week to finally sit down and write about Thanksgiving weekend. So much fun. I don't really have too many pictures. That always happens when I'm having fun, I forget to take pictures.
Tuesday
Well, the weekend began Tuesday night since there was no school Wednesday. Tuesday night all the girl grandkids, except newborn Emily, (Anna, Haley, and Chloie) went to the BYU women's basketball game with me, Patricia, Mijoung, and my mom. They were playing #1 UConn so they really wanted a big crowd. They got killed, but we had fun. Haley loves seeing Cosmo. The half time show and the treats were the highlight of the game. For half-time, they had a trampoline dunking team. It was fun to see all their neat slam dunks.
Wednesday
Hyrum got to sleep over Tuesday night so he was with us all day on Wednesday. We just played, went to Cafe Rio, then played with the rest of the Kammerman's in the afternoon. Hyrum was wearing this blue striped shirt, so I told Britton that he had the same one, so he got it on. Then when Haley saw them, she ran to get hers on. So funny.

That night 7 of the 9 Kammerman's stayed at our house (John and Reed stayed at my mom's). Patricia and I were stuck with all the kids while Jason and Aaron played volleyball into the wee hours of the morning.

Thursday (Thanksgiving)
We started a new tradition this year and began the festivities with a family kickball game. It was a blast! Both teams brought their "A" game and it was a tough competition battling until the very last play. Unfortunately, my team lost, but it was still so much fun. It's defintiely something we'll have to do every year. At least until everyone is old enough to play football.
Haley had my camera so there are a few pictures and lots of tiny video clips (I won't post those) that she took of everyone. None of them are the best quality.
Lizzy!
Destry and Anna!
Jason holding Jacob and Emily in their cute Thanksgiving outfits, probably the only time they'll be dressed a like.
In the afternoon, we headed up to Jason's Aunt Irene's for his side of the family's gathering. We were getting there about when a lot of people were leaving, but it was still good to see some people we haven't seen in a long time. I got to see the fireplace that Jason built at his aunt's house. He really does great work. We had a wii bowling tournament and lots of fun just being with people we don't get to see often enough.
Friday
We spent Friday mostly at home. Hayden and Corbin were over so Britton got to play with cousins all day again. In the evening Jason and I went to the Jazz game (thanks Desiree and Nate for the tickets and thanks to Mark for watching our kids!). It was a really fun game and fun to just get away for a bit.
Saturday
Jason was working at Biz's all day. (He is remodeling their kitchen.) So, we went up to hang out with Biz and Ethan. We went to Ikea then over to Sheryl's to play. Britton played with Dylan and Destry all day and the rest of us just hung out, talking, eating, and coloring. It was a fun day.
Sunday
After church, we went to Kim's for dinner. The kids got to play with most of their cousins on Jason's side and we just got to hang out and have fun. We had a wii bowling game and then watched the kids play. Corbin was the best with his "I totally won!" statement after he made a strike. So cute.
The whole week was so great. We got to be with family pretty much non-stop. We loved it! We're so grateful for such a wonderful family.

I love my kids!

My kids have both said and done the cutest things recently and I wanted to jot a few down so that I can remember.

*Today Haley showed me how she can jump from her dresser onto her bed. Then she said, "I'm not going to show dad. He'll say, 'Never do that again!' So, I'm only showing you. You won't get me in trouble, will you?" It just made me laugh. I have a feeling she'll be trying to coerce me into keeping her out of trouble many times in the future.

*Britton made a sign for his door with a picture of a girl and then a circle around it and crossed out for "No girls allowed". So today Haley drew a picture of a boy crossed out and then another boy that was just circled. She asked me to write "No boys except Britton". I love that she loves her brother so much.

*The other day as we were eating breakfast, Haley said that her doll wanted to say a prayer, so she folded her doll's arms and then said a prayer in her doll's voice. As she was saying it, Britton leaned over to me and whispered, "This is really cute." I love how enamored he is by his little sister.

*All weekend long we got to be around cousins. Britton is especially in love with his new niece and nephew, Emily and Jacob. He is so cute around them. (I'll write more about this later along with a few pictures.) After holding them one time, I made some comment about how cute they are and how much he loves them. And he said something along the lines of, "I just wish that babies never had to get hurt." He has such a tender, loving heart. It pains him to see them cry.

*The other day Haley said a prayer that just made me smile. Here is how it went, "Heavenly Father, I wish that my family could be good. I love them so much. I want to give them lots of good luck..."


*In another prayer recently, Haley said, "Bless Dad that he will have lots of yummy treats at work." I'm sure the Kammerman kids will find this particularly amusing since they always tease him about his treats.

*Whenever Haley is taking a nap, Britton comes in and gently touches her hair and says, "She's just so cute when she's asleep."

Haley's World

Haley brought in this picture and just began talking explaining it all to me. It went something like this:
"Here is the world. Here is Utah. Here is China. Here is Kloomee. Have you ever heard of Kloomee? It's where Kayla lives. And this is where Angelina lives. It's called Kloom. Everyone speaks with their hands there. And then this is Loomee Lu. It's where all the monsters live. They are scary and nobody likes them, so they have to stay there. Except there are some Meowey's there. That's what the cats are called--Meowey's. " And then she goes on and on and on. She's so fun to listen to when she gets going.

Look what they had in Walmart the other day! I think I would like a life-size statue of me built out of Legos. Maybe that's what I'll ask for for Christmas.

Creating

Haley and I did some painting today. She said her painting was of the sky. That's a pretty cool sky. (Even though she wears an apron, I still make her take off her shirt because she inherited the "messy gene" from me. )

Sunday Afternoons

I wanted to document how we usually spend Sunday afternoons.
Britton drawing. He was making a dragon book and it turned out so nicely. He even made me draw a couple of dragons and then laughed at my first attempt and called it the "Chick Drag" because it looked like a chicken. After a few tips from him, my second drawing was much improved.

Haley taking a nap while Jason watches football (very typical of Sundays).

Me, in the kitchen, cooking and cleaning.

Girl's Hairstyles

I saw a link to this blog on someone's site a while back. It shows lots of ways to do girl's hair. Anyway, it is fun to get ideas from. Since Haley won't even let me comb her hair, I don't know how useful it will be to me, but oh well. When I say I need to do her hair, she says, "I'm in charge of my hair and I like it this way." So, that's the reason she has crazy, snarly hair the majority of the time. Anyway, she does like to look at the pictures on the blog and she did want me to try one afterwards. I think we did a variation of something, but it was fun. She has two knotty twist things on top of her head, then just a braid in the back.

Haley's "Friends" Really Wear Her Out

My Boys

I love these guys!

Halloween

Britton as Obi Wan Kenobi (I made this costume)

Haley sort of dressed up as a fairy. She was not feeling well so she wasn't too thrilled about getting into her costume again (the 3rd or 4th time) to go trick-or-treating.

Haley and Chloie

On Tuesday, we babysat Chloie while Mijoung went to get her driver's license (Congratulations, Mijoung!) The girls played so well together. Afterwards, they both dressed up as fairies to go to storytime at the library.

Nie Nie

Okay, I just had my good cry for the day thanks to this. But, before you go to the link, here is a little back story for any of you who are not familiar with Nie Nie (if there's anyone left).

NieNie is a blogger that has an amazing way of sharing her passion for life, her kids, and her husband. That is what attracted me (and many others) to her blog. I have been a faithful reader for over a year and was always inspired by her words.

A little over 2 months ago, she and her husband were in a private plane crash in Arizona. Her husband's flight instructor was killed in the crash and she and her husband were badly burned over most of their bodies. I have been obsessed with the story because, even though I don't really know her, I feel like I do from her blog. And it hits close to home since Jason is also a pilot. What has happened since the crash is nothing short of a miracle. It is so inspiring to be able to read of such a strong family and friends coming together. Her sisters immediately took her children in and having been doing their best to care for them the way she would. And friends, acquaintances, and strangers all over the blogosphere have been organizing events and auctions and donating money to help her family. It's amazing to see the influence she has had. Seriously, if you haven't heard about this before, take a few minutes to read her sister's blog and be inspired by these people. It is such an example of the power of love, sisterhood, prayers, family, and friends.

Anyway, last weekend in Arizona, Mindy Gledhill held a benefit concert to raise money for the family. Claire and Jane, NieNie's two daughters, sang a song with her and that is what the link at the beginning is. Watch as these two sweet girls sing for their mother who is slowly waking up from a 2 month medical induced coma. The words are so fitting. And I love how the girls are clutching each others hands, giving each other support.

Receiving Counsel and Chastisement

I started writing this post about a week ago, but never finished. This is what I have been working on the past week or so.

So, the second thing that Pres. Benson talks about in choosing to be humble is to receive counsel and chastisement. My comments on this subject will be more brief than the first because I'm already so good at it. :) Just kidding.
I really tried to think about how I am doing about receiving counsel. I came to the conclusion that it really depends on who is giving the counsel. And, of course, we don't have to and really shouldn't follow after everyone's counsel. I love to hear the prophet and apostles speak and I hunger for anything that they are saying that I can use in my life. But, that doesn't mean that I am always so good about implementing it.
So, here are a few things I learned from the scriptures.
*We can trust the Lord's counsel because it comes from wisdom, justice, and mercy (Jacob 4:10)
*The Lord chastens us because He loves us (Helaman 15:3)
*When we don't follow the Lord's counsel, we lose the Spirit (D&C 63:55)
*We cannot be sanctified without chastening from the Lord (D&C 101:4-5)
*We must be tried in all things to receive the glory He has in store for us (D&C 136:31)

After studying this topic, I decided I needed to work on receiving counsel from the Lord with an open heart, but also receiving counsel from others humbly and without offense and then taking that counsel to the Lord to see if it is good for me. Since we just had General Conference, I decided to go back and study the talks that were given to make sure I am heeding all of the counsel. This will be an ongoing thing, since I have only made it through 3 talks so far. But, it's already helped me immensely.

Congratulations Kammermans!

We just got word that Patricia just delivered the twins--Jacob and Emily! They are all doing well. I can't wait to meet them and will post some pics as soon as possible!

Update: To see pictures, go to Aaron's blog.

Happy Birthday Ethan!

Saturday it was Ethan's (Biz's son) 1st birthday. So, we all gathered for a celebration.

Britton, Sheryl, Ethan, Haley

Biz holding Ethan as we are singing "Happy Birthday"

The blowing out of the candle--Ethan wasn't too interested.