I Couldn't Resist

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Determined

Wasn't Halloween seriously just last week? What happened to November? Here's what happened... I set a goal to be completely done with Christmas preparations by November 30th and you know what? Here it is 13 days until Christmas and I'm still scrambling! I have had a few setbacks though a.k.a. 3 kids with the stomach flu, one of them, bless her heart, made it to the toilet every single time. The others, not so much. So in the midst of cleaning my carpets and doing insurmountable loads of laundry, most of which is still in a giant heap on my bed waiting patiently for me to fold, there are of course the cards to mail, presents to wrap, staff Christmas party to plan and carry out, pageants to attend, neighbor gifts to bake and send out, my blog to keep updated (ha, ha) and make sure my kids understand the true meaning of Christmas! I always wonder why I get the post-holiday blues and now I think I'm starting to understand a little more. We, or at least I, spend the whole month of December running around like crazy trying to please everyone and accomplish all of our "to do's" and hardly take any time at all to sit and contemplate that very first Christmas night, which something tells me, was slightly more peaceful than Christmas today.
Above all else, I really want my kids to know and feel the peace and love that this time of year brings. I want their first thought to be of what others need and not themselves. I want them to realize that the "magic" of Christmas comes from giving and not recieving. We are so blessed. I love my family more than anything in this world, I have an amazing husband and wonderful kids and I couldn't ask for any better Christmas present than that. So I hope all of you have a wonderful holiday season and that we can all take a "time out" and truly feel the peace of the holiday.

Trick or Treat...sMeLL mY FeEt!

Can I just say how much I love Halloween? Not necessarily all the hype and materialism, but seeing my kids all dressed up in cute little costumes is such a highlight for me! So much fun! We actually had a "traditional" Halloween last night instead of the ward "Trunk-or-treat" which has taken its place for the past few years. The kids had a blast going from house to house trick-or-treating and each had a boat-load by the time we were done! Kate is such a candy fiend and was in HoG HeAvEn all night! She couldn't believe that you just say TricK or TreAt and they put candy in your bucket! She had those words down perfect by the end of the night! Here are a few pics to document our fun!


Hannah Montana A.K.A. Morgan


Layton as Optimus Prime


Allie and her blonde hair make the perfect Cinderella



Kate wearing the same witch costume that both Morgan and Allie have worn. How sad that I don't have any more girls to put this cute costume on! Seeing Kate in this costume was like seeing Morgan in instant replay...they look so much alike! (Morgan 13 mo.)



My four little kiddos knocking on the neighbors door. How cute are they?

Irony

So I'm driving down the road the other day just minding my own business, and kind of gazing out my window preparing for a left hand turn, when the lady in the next lane who is slightly ahead of me, decides to change lanes right into my front right bumper. I KNOW! So we stop, a policeman approaches and analyzes the situation. He asked for all of our information, tells us to wait in the car, and he'll be right with us. So after sitting in my car for (no kidding) 45 minutes, he comes back and this is pretty much how it went...
Officer: So what happened?
Blind spot lady: I think I changed lanes and didn't see her.
Me: hmmph. (just kidding I didn't really hmmph.)
Officer to Blind spot lady: Well, you are being cited for the accident. Here is a ticket for $75 just pay at the courthouse as soon as possible.
Officer (turning in my direction): And YOU. Here is a ticket for your EXPIRED drivers liscense and a court date set for November 18..You better show up or they will have a warrent out for your ARREST!
Me: (Dying inside)Umm, what day is that? (I know, like it matters)

My ARREST? But I'm a good person! I'm a stay at home mom! I have four kids and a mortgage and I try to do what is right! Did he just say MY ARREST?

I guess that's what I get for living in Idaho for 3 years and still having a Kentucky drivers liscense. Oops, lesson learned.

I wonder.....

How many families were doing THIS for Family Home Evening last night?



The fun part was watching our pumpkins go from THIS....


To THIS...


To THIS...

And to watch our kids' excitement as they carved the pumpkins grown in their own backyard!

A favorite.....

I saw this on a friend's blog and loved it so I thought I'd share...

"Boys are found everywhere-- on top of, underneath, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around, or jumping into. Mothers love them, little girls hate them, older brothers/sisters tolerate them, adults ignore them, Heaven protects them. A boy is truth with dirt on its face, Beauty with a cut on its finger, Wisdom with gum in its hair and the Hope of the future with a frog in its pocket."
--Alan Beck

Love and Logic Moment

I love those moments when the opportunity presents itself for you to teach your kids a profound lesson in responsiblity...which in our home happens quite often. Sometimes I'm not prepared for it and the opportunity passes me by much to my regret, but not this time. Here are my two oldest kids doing the dinner dishes. Note the look on Morgan's face. She's not happy about it because it is 6 AM and she and Layton just had a rude awakening that the dishes would not do themselves, and since they chose not to finish the night before, they would do it before they got on the bus. It is really hard for me to leave dirty dishes in the sink when I go to bed, and I almost did them, but Quinn stopped me. And I'm so glad. What a perfect chance for them to learn something! And I have to say, my kitchen was clean and dishes were done as my kids headed out the door that morning...and I made sure to give them a big kiss as they went! (I love that Morgan was so tired, she couldn't even stand at the sink and had to sit on a stool the whole time!)

Pack your bags kids, we're goin to Utah....

Or so we told them. What we didn't tell them was that we were headed to the AIRPORT in Utah, where we would then catch a plane to DISNEYLAND! All the way down for 3 hours they kept asking, when are we going to see our cousins? Are we there yet? And Quinn and I would just glance at eachother and smile. I was dying to tell them, but held out until we were in the parking lot at the airport, then I let the cat out of the bag...Kids, we're flying to Disneyland! And you know what? No one believed me! It wasn't until we were settled in the terminal waiting to board the plane that it finally sunk in.

So we boarded the plane and were off to "The Happiest Place on Earth". We arrived in L.A. at about 4:30 on Thursday afternoon, then rented a car and drove to Anaheim just in time to catch some dinner, and make a quick walk through "Downtown Disney", this great little shopping area with all sorts of cute little shops and cafes including Build-a-Bear and Lego Land...much to my kids delight!
We got up early Friday after much coaxing and pleading with my now super-excited kids who were "too excited to sleep" and headed off to Disneyland! Oh what a magical place..I think I had just as much fun as my kids. They had a blast. Kate being our one exception, the two year old stuck in the stroller all day who pretty much just tolerated it. She did get excited to meet all the characters though. And she did ride a few rides including the Madderhorn (I KNOW!!). Quinn said she was covering her eyes the whole time and when we finally got off, her poor little face was red from holding them so tight! Morgan and Layton's favorite ride was Space Mountain and Allie loved the Alice in Wonderland ride. We stayed in the park until 9:30 that night, after the fireworks were cancelled due to high winds that were apparently really high, because we felt nothing down on the ground! But we had a great day and REALLY sleepy kids!

The next day, after a quick stop at the beautiful San Diego Temple, we were off to Sea World! I was especially excited about this having never been, and wanting to ever since I was a kid. And I was not disappointed! I was completely enthralled with those amazing animals. They seem so happy and truly have such neat personalities. After seeing the Shamu show, we were able to have lunch pool side and watch the whales practice with their trainers. It was so fun to see them up so close. It was a very quick trip and the next morning we woke up early to catch our flight back to Utah... with some pretty happy and exhausted kids!

Allie

Allie was tagged by her cousin Madyson so here are five things that you may not know about Allie..

Allie was born in Louisville, Kentucky.

Allie has a special blankie that she has slept with since she was a baby. Her favorite part about it is actually the tag, which in her subconscious sleep state, she will feel around for until she finds it then rubs it between her fingers.

Speaking of sleep, Allie is always the one to say "I'm tired Mom, put me to bed. I've never had a tough time getting that kid to sleep!

Allie is definately a non-conformer. If everyone is doing it, she won't. Which is great except when it comes to the "fun days" at preschool...like last week was clown day when all the kids dressed up like clowns...except Allie. She's allergic to clowns she informed me.

Allie has a knack for making everyone laugh with her little antics...Here's the latest...
Allie and Kate in the bathtub:
Allie: Hey Kate, listen to this song...Don't you wish girlfriend HOPPED like me...

Allie is a great kid and we love her so much...she is my little shadow and I couldn't think of a better little companion to have around.

We tag:
1. Abby
2. Halle
3. Ella
4. Tyler
5. Emma

With my limited understanding of politics.....

I'm not usually the one to get on a political soapbox, or any kind of soapbox for that matter, but I guess with the current election, state of the economy, and media all combined into one, I can't help but feel a little concerned and frankly a little helpless. It makes me more than a little nervous that our future is in the hands of men in Washington who are less than honest and trustworthy, and definately NOT Godfearing.(Give or take a limited few) I can only take comfort in knowing that our Heavenly Father is very aware of our situation and that if we are prepared, we shouldn't be afraid. I received this in an email from my brother recently and I loved it so much I had to share. I have always been a Diamond Rio fan, and this is awesome! Beautiful pictures, inspiring song! Not all of us can write music like this to get our voices heard, but we can research, study up, and definately be prayerful, and get out and vote this November! Okay, I'm off now.

Good Mail

THIS is what I call "good mail"! An email received from Layton's teacher last week:

I just wanted you to know how much I enjoy teaching Layton. He is a ray of sunshine in our class. I can count on him being "in the right place" and "doing the right thing". He deserves a hug for this! Mrs. C


And hug him is exactly what I did!

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Morgan!


Ten years ago when Quinn and I were married, we received a serving tray from my aunt and uncle that has become one of our most cherished wedding gifts. It has been used, abused, and used again. We've used it for serving dinner to sick kids in bed, surprises for Mother's Day, Father's Day, anniversaries, birthdays, and just because. I mean, really, how fun is it to wake up to the wonderful smell of fresh waffles and orange juice and know that someone loves you enough to get out of bed and go to all that trouble? Cute Quinn did just that for Morgan on her 9th birthday. What a great dad. And what a deserving kid. Here are a few things that we adore about our sweet Morgan:

*She has a heart of pure gold.
*She loves to help "be the Mom"
*She is becoming a wonderful babysitter..slowly but surely!
*She is very aware of other people's needs and is right there to help!
*She still sleeps with her "blanky" that she recieved at her baby shower!
*She loves music and often is seen bopping around the house with her ipod in her ears and the said "blanky" around her neck.
*She is a wonderful sister, daughter, and friend.
WE LOVE YOU MORG!

What is your most memorable wedding gift?

Funnies

Allie overheard me talking with Quinn on the phone the other day about his mom needing to come up to have her bridge fixed...she couldn't quite grasp the concept of a bridge in someone's mouth and after a lengthy explanation, I assumed she understood. Later that day when we were driving in the car, she leaned over to Layton and
said " Layton, guess what? Grandma ate a bridge!"

Sneak Preview

I finally got around to having Kate's two year old pictures taken and I'm so glad I did! My amazing friend, Katie, lives just around the corner and has a studio in her house( see more of Katie's awesome pictures by clicking on Katie Portraits on my sidebar)...she has such an amazing talent and captures the most precious moments. Here is a sneak preview of our sweet Kate....



Since I neglected to post this on her actual birthday, here are a few things I love about Kate..
* She is so happy when she wakes up in the morning and greets me with an excited squeal when I walk in the room.
* She loves her sisters and brother and often follows them around trying her best to be one of the "big kids".
* When she says "no" with a smile, it means yes. When she says "no" with a frown, it means no.
* She loves baby dolls, strollers, bottles, blankies, all things babies.
* When I'm getting dressed in the morning, she often walks in and tugs on my pantleg, and says " Tyute(cute), Mommy!"
* She adores her daddy...often preferring him, but most often stuck with me! Good thing I come in a close second!
We love you Kate

Super Mega Summer Post part deux

Summer's over already? Yup, it's officially the start of the new school year. And boy did we go out with a bang! Here's a tribute to the last month of our summer....

The kids loved taking swimming lessons at Heise Hot Springs, but their favorite was swimming with their dad after lessons were over.

The Mikesell Family Reunion was the first weekend in August. After a picnic in the park and a family softball game, we went to the Riot Zone in Rigby and had a blast on the climbing wall, the bumper boats, and the go-carts.





The second weekend in August was filled with another reunion...we met up with the Burtons for a fun-filled day at Lagoon! Believe it or not, my kids had never been there so it was a total blast for them. The kids played like they had never been apart! It was so fun to see them together again.


















Brenda up to her old tricks! Whatcha seein' in there Bren?






We also ran into a few other friends from Louisville completely by chance... Mike and Stephanie Cook and Alan and Jennie Davies were there as well! What a fun surprise! It was great to catch up with everyone.





The next morning, Quinn and I woke up at 3:30 AM and traveled to Provo to meet Brian and Brenda where we ran the Provo half marathon. It was our first and the Burton's second. Brenda's sister Amber and her husband also ran with us...I mean, ahead of us! I'm proud to admit that I brought up the rear! It was a fun race and even though we were stinky at the end, (some of us VERY stinky!) it was great to be together. Thanks Burtons!


Now fast forward a few days to reunion #3... The Herbst Family at Bear Lake.
The following are pictures from an awesome trip with my family.


Kate was thoroughly entertained with the sand..and her sunglasses! Allie was my waterbaby that day!
My cute mom and dad on the four-wheeler!
Poor Austin at the mercy of girl cousins!
Layton playing with the surprise sand digger that Grandma and Grandpa brought for each of the families! Thanks mom and dad!
Cute Colby riding his own 4-wheeler!




Our family at the Minnitonka Caves just outside of Bear Lake.



Now, here we are. It's the first day of school, the bus has just arrived home, it's time to breathe that sigh of relief...then jump right into piano, dance, gymnastics...and the list goes on.....Is there any rest for the weary?