bus

Life 2012 | First Day of School

JJ and Beth are going to a new school this year. The School District opened up a couple of new special classrooms for Autistic children and they moved JJ over to Orem Elementary. I was also able to get Beth in as well, so now they are both at the same school this year. I was also able to get Beth on the same bus as JJ, which just makes it easier. I hope they will both be able to adjust to a new schedule, make friends, and learn!

JJ is technically a 5th grader this year (although they have different age groups in his special classroom) and his new teacher is Mrs. Vitone. JJ has grown so much and I love that we are communicating so much better. He loves playing games on the computer, the Wii, apps on the iphone/ipad, and his Nintendo DS. He thrives on structure. He is starting to enjoy reading and he likes to help out around the house. He loves watching his dad on the computer and I can just see him growing up just like his daddy. JJ LOVES Agent P/Perry the Platypus, Phineas and Ferb and all superheroes. He likes to run and to draw. He’s always so busy and hardly ever sits/stands still. He really enjoys movies/tv and his favorite food is pizza. I love watching my JJ grow and use his imagination in all that he does.

Beth is in second grade this year and her teacher is Miss Funk. She loves reading, playing with friends, and doing crafts with her mom. She loves My Little Pony, Disney Princesses, and horses. She likes playing on the computer and playing soccer. She thrives on attention. She’s emotional and has a good heart. She has recently taken over washing dishes, because she knows her mother doesn’t like it and she finds enjoyment in it. Her favorite food is Ravioli and Potatoes, Ham & Cheese. I love my Bethie girl and I love seeing her learn and grow!

My Layout:

I used my School YearZ Kits.

Project 365 | Week 41

Monday, October 5, 2009

I think the Crockpot is one of life’s greatest inventions. I really need to use mine more. I stuck some chicken, some pinapple and some teriyaki sauce in the crockpot in the morning and it cooked all day. All I had to do was cook up some rice to go with it and dinner was done for today. Why can’t I remember to do this more – it really made my day so much easier and dinner was so good! Today was my first day without crutches. The ankle is still weak and I am still using the aircast, but at least I am getting around better!

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

I was able to go to the Relief Society Enrichment tonight and it really felt good to get out of the house. It was craft night and I was able to make these adorable Family Home Evening Dice. One dice included the names of my family members (2 are blank so I can add to them as my family grows) and the other dice included all the components of a Family Home Evening (Lesson, Activity, Song, Prayer, Treat). You roll each dice to see which family member is going to do what thing for FHE. I thought it was a really cute idea. I think we are going to stick with me and Joey doing lessons for awhile, but the kids can do some of the other things for it!

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Beth got to go on a field trip for school today. They went over to the fire station and got to talk to the firemen and see inside the fire station, the fire trucks, an ambulance, and even got to sit in an emergency helicopter! The firemen gave them little fire hats and cotton candy! Beth was so excited to get to wear her Center Stage shirt and jacket for the first time too!

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Fall is in the air and its definitely time to start bringing out the jackets. It was pretty cold this morning and JJ got all snuggled up in his new jacket as we waited for his school bus!

Friday, October 9, 2009

Beth’s little tradition after school is to have lunch (pretty much always a ham and cheese sandwich) and get to eat while watching a couple of her shows. But she is so funny because I think her favorite thing to watch is COMMERCIALS. Joey thinks maybe she is going to go into advertising or something because she just gets a kick out of commercials and doesn’t like when we fast forward through them (thank goodness for TiVo). Silly girl!

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Joey spent the whole day in Salt Lake City in some meetings so we just had a casual day at home. The kids played all day and I spend most of the day on my laptop doing the part of designing that I don’t particularly like – the advertising and loading new products into my stores. It’s time consuming and it took all day but I finally got it all caught up.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

The Colts played the Sunday Night Game and it was fun to see them win and do such a good job. I really love being able to watch football with Joey and even though we watch football really different – I’m the vocal one and Joey is very quiet – it’s still a wonderful thing we get to do together!

Project 365 | Week 34

Monday, August 17, 2009

I’m so excited about the new look on my blog! I didn’t even know what I was missing until I happened to find some inspiration/instruction on how to update the look on your blog and started playing! It just feels so “me” and I’m so glad that I did this!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

I love the wonderful moments when my kids are just so sweet together. They were playing so well together today and I pulled out my camera to watch them play through my lenses. I was so happy when they decided to give each other a hug – so precious!

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

JJ had a hard time keeping his excitement in today. Tomorrow school is going to start! He had to be sure he was ready and got his backpack, shoes, and his clothes put out by his bed. We did laundry and cleaned up the house today as well as begin our nighttime schedule for the school year with baths, scriptures, reading stories, and prayers.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Morning came bright and early, but JJ was ready. He was so excited and it didn’t take very long to be ready. We spent quite a lot of time outside on our porch, waiting for the bus!!! He came home with a big smile on his face and said that school was great!

Friday, August 21, 2009

I really love that JJ gets picked up and dropped off right at our doorstep everyday. It’s a wonderful blessing to not have to actually get dressed and out the door so early to take him somewhere. And I really love seeing the delight on JJ’s face as he climbs on and off the bus!

Saturday, August 22, 2009

We woke early and headed down to Grandma and Grandpa Smith’s house for an overnight stay. It was nice to be there and we got lots of time to visit. JJ and Beth LOVED playing with their cousins, Logan and Alyssa and it was fun to see them play so good together. They got to draw pictures and play with all of Logan’s toys. Joey and I got to play the Wii for a long time and it was really fun to do that together!

Sunday, August 23, 2009

It was a long weekend, but we made it through. I can honestly say that I am so grateful for HOME. We may not own our own house, we might have an old broken down van, but it’s still HOME because Joey and I and our kids are together and I am so grateful for a husband who works so incredibly hard all the time to give us what we have. Life isn’t always perfect and I can’t help but dream of a house and a nice car and other things – but I’ll take what I can get and be grateful for my life with my family and all the adventures that it brings. Alongside Joey and my children, I am HOME and it’s where I belong. One of our family’s favorite songs and kind of our family’s motto is by Laurie Berkner, “We’re not perfect, no we’re not. We’re not perfect, but we’ve got what we’ve got. We do our very best, we do our very best, we do our very best each day. But we’re not perfect, and we hope you like us that way.”

Project 365 | Week 13

Monday, March 23, 2009

We spent the day in Universal Studios-Hollywood. As a family, we love movies and so we had to spend some time here. It has changed quite a bit since I went there 10 years ago. More rides and since the fire last summer, the Studio Tour has changed too. I miss the King Kong – but what can you do? The new Mummy Ride was probably my favorite of the rides. Beth was SO scared on the Shrek 4D Ride at Universal Studios. With her 3D Glasses on – the spider looked WAY TOO REAL. She screamed and screamed and screamed and we had to take her glasses off. For the rest of the trip, every ride we went on started with, “Is there any spiders on this ride?” Poor Bethie. JJ was excited to see all the Spiderman stuff and we were able to get photos with Scooby Doo and Shaggy and Curious George. Beth and her Daddy shared a special memory of going on the Simpsons Ride together. The kids all had a fun time shooting water and balls at the Curious George Playpark. Lots of fun things to do. Since Universal Studios closed at 6 and we were back to the hotel by 7:30pm, we decided to have a date night. My parents watched JJ and Beth (and took them to Denny’s for dinner) and we went with Cody and Becky to STEAKHOUSE 55, a fancy restaurant. It was really nice to have a little time to be together and visit and the food was good, although expensive. But a really great end to the day! We came home to 2 happy and sleepy kids!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

We visited Knott’s Berry Farm today. It was a nice change of pace. A lot less people and not too hot. We mixed it up a lot and went on all kinds of rides. I went with Cody on the BIG ride – the Xcelerator and it was a blast! I really enjoyed that one. Joey got to go on one of his favorite kinds of rides – this one was called the Supreme Scream. JJ really liked the rides and got to play with some remote cars for awhile. Beth went on the Ferris Wheel TWICE. It was her favorite ride for the whole week! And we went on the famous log ride and a Stagecoach ride. Lots of fun things!

We got back early to the hotel again so we decided to use our extra ticket and head over to Disneyland. Unfortunately, it was SO CROWDED, that we just got really frustrated, so we ended up just seeing the Castle and riding the monorail to Downtown Disney and walking home. Kind of a waste of a trip, but the kids got their first glimpse, so I guess it was okay.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

We went to Sea World today. Beth completely loves dolphins, so we watched the Dolphin Discovery Show the very first thing and both the of the kids really loved it. We also visited several of the aquariums, including the amazing Shark Encounter where we walked underneath the Sharks – really neat experience. We also saw the Clydesdale horses, the Sesame Street Lights, Camera, Imagination 4D Show, the Wild Arctic, Shipwreck Rapids, and my favorite ride, Journey to Atlantis. It was a cross between a roller coaster and a raft ride and I loved it. I wish I would have had the time to go on it again! The last show we saw was the Shamu BELIEVE show. It was amazing and I am just in awe of what they can do with these amazing sea creatures. Beth spent the next few days going around the room doing the “Shamu Slam”, which they taught us at the show – except Beth keeps calling the whale “Shampoo” – and when the show ended, JJ said “Dad, I don’t want to go on anymore rides, I just want to watch Shamu again.” Unfortunately, that was the last Shamu show of the day. We finished our time at Sea World at the Sesame Street Bay of Play with a couple of kiddie rides and running around.

Before leaving San Diego, we made an impromptu stop at Mission Beach for a little walk in the ocean. Most of the kids had never seen the ocean so even though it was dirty and messy, I’m glad we did it. We arrived at sunset and splashed around for about 45 minutes. The ocean at sunset is a beautiful sight to behold and I’m so glad that JJ and Beth were able to have that as their first beach experience!

Thursday, March 26, 2009

We headed out bright and early for Disneyland. As we were walking to the bus stop, Beth put her right arm forward and said, loudly, “Disneyland, here we come!” From a 3-year-old this was just hilarious. We got in line early and we were one of the first groups of people into Disneyland. We headed straight to the Finding Nemo Submarines. We were able to use JJ’s special access pass at the Fast Pass Lanes and/or exits to get on the rides sooner. This truly made our day so much better as JJ was overwhelmed. We went on the Matterhorn Bobsleds, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, Star Tours, Autopia, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, the train, and the Winnie the Pooh rides, as well as toured the Sleeping Beauty castle. I also took Beth to the Princess Faire where we were able to see Cinderella, Aurora, and Pocahontas, while JJ and Joey went on the Indiana Jones ride. The longest line we encountered was at the Princess Faire. We waited in line for almost 2 hours. Bethie and I were definitely tired and my feet were killing me by the time we actually got to the Princesses – too bad we couldn’t use JJ’s pass for that. 🙂 But it really was worth it to see Beth’s face as she hugged the princesses. The Cinderella was the same Cinderella we met at Goofy’s Kitchen and she recognized Beth! Out of all the little princesses she sees everyday – what an amazing moment to have her remember our little princess, Beth! We also got photos with Buzz Lightyear, Pooh, and Tigger. My only regret is that we didn’t get to go on some of the other rides like Peter Pan, Pinocchio, Dumbo and the rides in Toontown, but still a really great day. We were starting to really feel tired and worn out so it was good that we didn’t push it too hard. I think we could have used just one more day in Disneyland to see everything. We took time to have some pizza in the park and even went back to our room for dinner (we ordered chinese food) and had a nap for about an hour before heading back to watch the amazing firework show. We picked a wonderful spot right on main street, in back of the Walt Disney and Mickey statue. I think it was the perfect spot to have the best experience because it was right in the center of the action and we had fireworks going off around us! Truly magical!

Friday, March 27, 2009

We spent most of the day in Disney’s California Adventure. We were pretty tired today as it has really been a busy week. So we definitely took it easy today. Today was our Red Shirt Day, where all 34 of us wore our red shirts that has my castle design on it. We got some great photos taken in front of the Mickey made out of flowers. We took in the Playhouse Disney and the Aladdin Shows in Disney’s Hollywood and they were amazing! We had great seats for both and the kids really enjoyed it! We spent some of the day with my parents, brothers, and nephews and I really enjoyed that. We also did the Monsters, Inc, Muppet Vision 3D, Grizzly River Run, Toy Story Mania and the Soar ‘n Over California rides. We got photos with Sully, Pluto, Lightning McQueen, and Mater. The Soar’n Over California ride was a big hit. It is a simulator attraction that has you lifted up into a huge movie screen and you feel that you are gliding over some of California’s beautiful scenery. It felt so real to Beth, that when we glided over the ocean, Beth put her feet up on her seat because she didn’t want to get her feet wet! We went on the ride TWICE! We had the perfect seats for the Pixar Play Parade. We sat on a bench and watched the fun Pixar Characters go by and the kids just really took it all in with joy! We then did a little shopping and returned to Disneyland for the Fantasmic Show. While Joey saved our spot for the show, JJ and I took my brothers and went on the Indiana Jones ride, since I didn’t get to go yesterday. I didn’t have very good seats for Fantasmic, but Joey lifted JJ up on his shoulders and it was still a really awesome show – in one part of the show, Capt. Hook and Peter Pan sail by on a boat, and this must have made a really big impact on JJ because he spent the next few days using Capt. Hook as the “bad guy” in all his imaginary games with his sister. Sadly, Beth missed the entire show because she fell asleep in her stroller before it started. When it was over it took a long time to get out of the park since the fireworks were going on, but we finally made it. We were all so tired, but really so excited and happy that our trip has been so wonderful!

Saturday, March 28, 2009

It was kind of sad to be packing all of our bags into the bus again. I can’t believe that our trip is over! I think even the bus didn’t want to go home yet, since we had a delay of about an hour since the bus driver locked the keys inside and we couldn’t get in. But we were finally on our way. We started our vacation with a buffet dinner at Goofy’s Kitchen and we stopped in Las Vegas and ended our vacation with a buffet dinner at Circus Circus. We arrived in St. George in the dark and my parents and brothers and sisters still had to drive home. But the Bakers side of the family and us stayed in the motel for a night. The kids were beat and went to bed with Joey and I went over and played some games with my Aunt and Cousins until past midnight before finally turning in.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

We stayed at the Rodeway Inn in St. George again and then finished traveling home. What a trip! I’m so glad we were able to do this as a family. I hope that my children will remember this. We had such a wonderful time and did so many fun things. I wish it wasn’t over, and yet it was good to see home again too. Joey and I plan to save up some money and go back in a few years. We really had a great time!

Here is my Weekly Layout:

I used my Believe in the Magic & Digital 365 Kits to create this layout.

Project 365 | Week 12

Monday, March 16, 2009

JJ was still a little sick, so he stayed home from school today. The kids were actually really good today and played together all day. I thought this was the cutest candid photo. They were sitting in the rocking chair together – sipping their water and watching movies.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

We went for a walk after dinner tonight and it felt like Spring. I think it is actually coming. I captured this adorable hug between my kiddos and I really love the moments when they are so good to each other. Unfortunately, Joey got our sickness now and he was really miserable today. He stayed in bed all day – I hope he gets better soon.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Our vacation is almost here! I am rushing around like a crazy woman trying to get laundry done, get packed, and clean the house. Beth was my little helper today as we got the bathroom cleaned and laundry done. I so can’t wait until Saturday!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

I made some more yummy Red Velvet Cookies today to take and share with everyone on our trip. They turned out great! I also finished all the laundry and the cleaning of the house today! Yay!

Friday, March 20, 2009

Everything is ready! We are set to go on vacation tomorrow morning! Our countdown is down to one chain and our bags are all packed and ready to go! I can’t believe it is finally here – less than 24 hours and we will be on the bus. I’m a little nervous about all the stuff I have – but I think I have everything that I could possibly need. I think I am even more excited than the kids – is it Saturday yet?

Saturday, March 21, 2009

We are on our way! The bus picked us up about 11:30am and we joined the Baker side of the family on the bus. JJ really loved riding on the bus – he just sat there staring out the window, so happy! When Beth first boarded the bus, her first words were “Where’s my cousin, Whitnee?” Unfortunately, she would have to wait one more day before Whitnee would come on the bus. We traveled to Nephi, Utah – had some lunch and then continued to our hotel in St. George. We were able to meet up with Lucas, Heidi, Jacee, and Landreth Alfred for dinner at Denny’s and it was so awesome to see them and visit with them, especially since it has been a few years since we have been able to be with them. Joey and the kids hung out in the motel room before bedtime, while I was able to visit with my cousins, my aunt, and my uncle for a couple of hours. A great start to our vacation!

Sunday, March 22, 2009

What a day! It began about 7:30am when my parents and brothers and sisters arrived with their families. We had a total of 35 people on the bus (including our bus driver) and it was a good drive with all of us visiting, some sleeping, and watching DVDs. We had lunch in Barstow, California and we were able to go to In-N-Out Burger. YUM! We finally arrived at our hotel. We stayed at the Best Western Stovalls Inn. We could see the roller coasters at Disney’s California Adventure across the street. Then the highlight of the day came, when we walked to Downtown Disney and had dinner at Goofy’s Kitchen. It was a lot of fun for the kids. We got to see Goofy, Pluto, Geppeto, Chip, and Cinderella. Beth was so excited to see her favorite Disney princess. She even got to dance with her! The kids enjoyed tasting Goofy’s Kitchen’s specialty, Peanut Butter and Jelly Pizza and lots of other food. After dinner we walked back to our hotel and went swimming. The kids enjoyed splashing around in the children’s pool and Joey and I enjoyed the Hot Tub.

Here is my Week 12 Layout:

I used my Digital 365 Kits to create this layout.