My So Called Life

Christmas Day

2010-01-15T17:24:00.000-08:00

Over Christmas we stayed with Emily & Steve and their kids at their new house - which we love! The kids played so well together. Christmas morning was a lot of fun... Love the fresh morning looks!
bed head!

Lexi got the Barbie castle and barbies she asked for.

And Jackson got all sorts of Thomas stuff - including this one that moves and talks.

We had a relaxing day at Emily's hanging out with everyone, playing games, eating, and watching Blindside. Saturday the boys went golfing and then the girls went shopping and out to lunch.
That evening we met up with the Jensons, who were staying in Valencia for Christmas. We got a bite at Red Robin together before we headed back to Vegas...wish you guys were heading back there, too!

Christmas Eve

2010-01-15T17:13:00.001-08:00

This year we went to Yucaipa to be with the Luszecks for Christmas. Christmas Eve we got up in the morning and went to meet a group of Jeff's friends for breakfast in Oak Glen.

Oak Glen

The clan - Lindsay, where are you??? :)We all met at the Luszecks in the afternoon for the traditional Christmas Eve meal - rouladen. Gavin made quite an impressive Jenga tower!

And then it was time to open presents from the family. Jackson loved his new train set!

And Lexi carried these barbies around the rest of the night!

Our attempt at a cousins picture - this was the best shot I got!
Luszeck siblings

Christmas Activities

2010-01-15T16:43:00.000-08:00

Sitting on Santa's lap at the ward Christmas Party

On Sat. Dec 12th we met up with the Simpsons to ride the Polar Express in Boulder City.
kids with Santa

and Mrs. Claus

And of course, I had to make a batch of sugar cookies during the holiday season. The kids were happy to help!

Saturday Excursion

2010-01-15T16:30:00.001-08:00

Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend Jeff wanted to take the kids to the Luxor and Excalibur. I wasn't too excited about the idea, but I went along. Well, as I expected it was pretty lame! The (only) highlight was taking the kids on the tram between the two hotels. Since Jackson is obsessed with trains, he thought it was pretty cool. I think we actually rode it twice!

me (and my belly!) and Jackson

After we went to Town Square to let the kids play and then ate a Claim Jumper. Luckily the pretzels with cheese dip made up for the rest of the trip! :)

Thanksgiving

2009-12-20T15:33:00.000-08:00

This year we hosted our first Thanksgiving Dinner for some of the Luszeck clan. It was so fun to have them come stay at our house for a few days. They arrived Wednesday afternoon, and headed to the Dinosaur park in Aliante to let the kids play. That night we heated up the hot tub and Jeff and I went in with all of the kids, which was a lot of fun.

Just as we were heading to bed I pulled the turkey out of the fridge to prep it for baking...only to discover that the inside of it was still frozen. Ugh! I couldn't believe it. It had been defrosting in the fridge since Sunday! Well, it took us until 12:30 to get it thawed enough to pull the giblets out, rinse it, and get it ready.

I set my alarm for 4am so I could stuff the turkey and put it in the oven. Since I was baking the turkey on the lowest rack in the oven, I put foil down on the bottom of the oven in case it dripped. Right as I was going to put the turkey in the oven I noticed a funny smell and realized that the foil had melted to the bottom of the oven! I tried to scrape it off, but some of it wouldn't come off no matter what I used. Hello - panic! Here I was alone at 4:30 in the morning thinking I had just ruined our brand new oven. And not only that - I was trying to figure out how we could pull off Thanksgiving dinner in 10 hours without the use of an oven.

Jeff's dad wandered in right about then and eventually we woke up Jeff. He pulled out the oven instructions (which happen to say "don't use foil to line the oven!") and was able to remove the bottom tray where the foil was melted. I was so relieved. I didn't know that it was a removable part. By 6:00 the turkey was in the oven and we had gone back to bed, but neither of us could sleep after all of that.

Fortunately the turkey turned out just fine. And with a lot of help from everyone - especially Linda and Emily, dinner was great. Steve had brought a turkey fryer with him, so we also had a fried turkey. That was my first time trying fried turkey, and it was delicious! Honestly I've never had better turkey.

Macie. Lexi loved having Macie stay in her room with her.

Lexi

Gavin. It was so fun getting to know Gavin a little better this trip. He usually doesn't say much to me or Jeff, but he was OBSESSED with the fact that I was pregnant. I can't count how many times he touched my belly or commented on it! We had several conversations about it. It was funny to see how fascinated he was by it. Here he is trying to make his own little belly.

Jeff doing his signature move - sticking things up his nose. This used to be the only way to get Gavin to laugh, and it started years ago at Disneyland with grapes. But a fork will work, too.

Thanksgiving night I thought we'd go see a movie or something, but we were all really tired. We just hung out and played cards, which was fine with me. That night Jeff, Linda, and Emily woke up at 2am to hit the Black Friday sales. We got some good deals!!

Steve brought their four wheeler and motorcycle with them. Friday morning we took the kids out for rides. They were in HEAVEN!

Emily and Lexi - the funny thing was Emily said the whole time they were riding, Lexi was watching Steve on the motorcycle and saying that she wanted to go fast like him.

with Papa

MAcie took Jackson for a quick little ride. I love how you can only see his eyes, but you can tell how big he is smiling under the helmet!

The Jensons

2009-12-15T22:05:00.000-08:00

Right after Thanksgiving our good friends, the Jensons, moved to San Antonio, TX. We got together a number of times in November before they left (how did we never get to play cards again?). We will miss them!! We have done so many fun things together in the last few years and have so many great memories with them.

Date night at Claim Jumper

Alyson, Leslie, Lana, me (the giant!), and Nicole

One day Alyson hosted a surprise goodbye party for the kids. The whole thing was cowboy themed. Isn't the sign she made the cutest thing!

She even ordered a bounce house! It was so fun to have the kids play and for the moms to visit for hours.

The last weekend they were here we had a few families come for a final hang out at our place.
The last day they were here we dropped off some goodies for the car ride and said goodbye.
Lexi still says daily, "mom, it is not good that Lindsey and Haley moved far, far away." I agree!

Backyard

2009-12-15T21:05:00.000-08:00

When we bought our house as a foreclosure, we knew we would have a few projects to do. The biggest one was the back yard. This is what it looked like when we moved in:

The lovely shed behing the hot tub was the first thing to go. Our neighbor came and helped Jeff tear it down one Saturday. I'm sure he was just as happy to see it go as we were. We also put a gate around the pool the first day we moved in. We still need to find the replacement grill for the built in BBQ.

against the house

right side of pool

left side of pool

Jeff and I talked a lot about what we wanted to do in the back. We got a few estimates from landscaping companies, and decided to go with one of them that had given us a few ideas. we basically removed all the grass, rocks, plants, and trees that were there, replaced the entire sprinkler system, removed a few concrete slabs, and then added grass, rock, plants, and trees back where we wanted them. We also had the bushes from along the pool transplanted to the perimeter of the yard.

There was a crew of five or more here from Monday morning through Friday afternoon. By the end of it, this is what we had:

against the house
right side *The palm trees look a little funny, because you have to keep the branches tied up for the first month.
We didn't really know what to do with the huge empty side of our yard. For now it's filled with rocks. Someday we'll figure out what to do with it.

left side

The back corner triangle will hopefully be filled with a playground and trampoline sometime sooner than later. We haven't decided what we want on the ground under all of it, so we left it empty for now.

Megan's Shower

2009-12-15T20:58:00.001-08:00

Three generations of amazing women!
In October my cousin, Megan, had a baby shower here in Las Vegas. It was so fun to see my cousins, aunts, and grandma.

Airshow

2009-12-15T20:35:00.000-08:00

One Saturday Jeff and Kris took the kids to the airshow at Nellis Airforce Base.

The kids got to go inside a helicopter
You would think that they (especially Jackson) would have been so excited, but Jeff said they saw a bounce house that was set up there, and the whole time they just bugged him about going on it. He never gave in! :)

Jackson

2009-12-15T20:25:00.001-08:00

Daddy's shoes and socks!

Making a baby in his tummy!
My big guy!

*He is OBSESSED with trains, especially Thomas.

*He is now potty-trained. Wahoo! He loves to wear his Thomas underwear! And for a reward we bought him...you guessed it...a Thomas train set. The funny thing was we had meant to get him the train for weeks, because he had been doing so well not having accidents. Well, one night we finally bought the train and were up in the loft putting it together...and he peed his pants!

*When he sees something messy he gets all serious and says, "hey, who did this mess?"

*Loves to take baths. When we first moved into this house he took at least three a day just for fun.

*Loves his Thomas blankie. (Thank you grandma!)

*He went through a phase when I would ask him to do something (can you go potty before we leave? or can you pick up your toys?) and he would just shrug his shoulders and say, "pobaby not mom." Hey, I appreciate the honesty! :)

*This fall we've been going to singing/story time at the library each week, and each time Jackson goes right up to the front and stands next to the librarian and even tries to "help" her with the visual aides on the board. It's so funny for me to see this side of him.

*Loves to turn on the keyboard as loud as it will go and dance around or jump on the bed to all the pre-programmed songs. We hear it blasting several times a day.

*Has mastered the two-year-old tantrum, and I'm pretty sure his favorite word is "no!"

Lexi

2009-12-15T20:06:00.000-08:00

First day of Preschool. Lexi LOVES it! This is her teacher, Miss Shannon.

Lexi is in Sunbeams at church, and this fall was her first Primary Sacrament Meeting Program.

Not happy!

For Halloween Lexi wanted to be a ballerina. We were headed out to trick or treat when we noticed the little additions she had added to her costume - glasses and a crown.

An Occasion To Remember

2009-12-11T22:55:00.000-08:00

First swim in our pool!

**Don't worry, the hideous shed behind the spa is gone, and the landscaping has been completely re-done since this picture was taken. More on that later!

Other Summer Fun

2009-12-10T22:18:00.000-08:00

Right before we went to London, my cousin was driving through Vegas and came to visit with his family. It was great to catch up with Nathan and Sarah Jane and to see cute Nora. Please come see us again!And right when we got back from London Jane was driving through on their way home from California and came to stay for a night. It was fun to show her the house we were buying and to just hang out.

And of course we had lots of time swimming at the Tews. Lexi improved her swimming a lot from last summer. It was so nice to not have to worry about her.

My fearless little guy!

Trip Part Four: Thursday-Sunday

2009-12-09T17:01:00.001-08:00

Okay, so the last few days of our trip are a bit of a blur for me, so I'll just put in the highlights:

1. Chicken Tikka Pita from Cafe Diana ("Cafe D"). This one's for Kel and Jess! We discovered this place around the corner from the BYU center last time we lived there. I went there three times the week I was in London, and that wasn't enough! : ) And other food - we ate at Santorini's (they were out of "Greek soup" - dang it!), pastries, kabobs, yogurt (why can't they make it that good in the states?), and chocolate.

2. Best picture from the trip - if Lexi is the judge! This was at the "Britain at War" Museum.

3. Bike tour of London. This was our favorite thing we did. It started along the south bank of the Thames and took you all over the city to a ton of the tourist attractions (Eye of London, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Buckingham Palace - during changing of the guard, Hyde Park, Covent Garden, etc. ) It happened to be a beautiful, sunny day and it felt so good to be on a bike after walking all week. 4. Plays - We went Thursday night with my parents to see Arcadia and Friday night we all met up at the Globe Theater to watch Troilus and Cressida.

5. People watching at Trafalgar Square one afternoon.

6. View from the top of St. Paul's Cathedral. I tried to get on the elevator since I was pregnant, but they didn't go for it. So we walked all of those steps up to the top. It was worth it!
7. Meeting up with an old friend. We got to spend the day with Lorianne, who is my friend from high school and just happened to be studying at Cambridge this summer. She took us to Saturday's Market on the south bank, which was awesome.

8. Dinner at Khan's. Saturday my cousins, Aaron and Colin, arrived in London for a week visit, so we got to catch up a bit. We all went to dinner that night at our favorite Indian restaurant.

9. Playing Phase 10 ("skip Judy!"). This was a little family tradition from last time we lived in London, and finally Saturday night I got to play a round with Jenn.

10. Spending time with my parents. Coming from such a big family, it's always a treat to have one-on-one time with them. We have missed them since they've been in London. And I've taken so long to post this that they are done in London and are literally on their way home right now...probably just heading tot he airport. We're excited to have you guys back in driving distance!

11. Going home. Actually, just being home again...the actual getting there was a nightmare! It took us 30+ hours from start to finish, and we hardly slept on the planes. We had the worst, rudest cab driver from the BYU Center to Victoria Station, then we took a train to the airport. The airport was a disorganized mess. We were in line for over an hour even though we had checked in online. I had to leave the check-in line to throw up, then I had to leave the security line because I almost passed out (such drama!). Then I threw up on the plane some more. When we landed, Jeff's parents met us at Ontario, CA airport with our kids and the car all packed at 11pm (so nice of them to make it easy for us and save time driving back to Yucaipa). But then we got in the car and I drove the whole way home to Las Vegas while everyone else slept (NOTE: I chose to drive, since Jeff had to work the next morning, and because I trust myself to never fall asleep at the wheel). But it was good to be home and GREAT to see the kids again. We were all exhausted the next day. I had just fed Jackson lunch when I found him curled up asleep on our small, hard chairs!

Trip Part Three: Tuesday/Wednesday in London

2009-12-01T21:27:00.000-08:00

Tuesday was our first full day in London. We started out by taking a walk all together (me, Jeff, dad, Kathryn, and Jenny) around one of my favorite places in London - Hyde Park. The BYU center is just a few blocks away, so I had spent a lot of time at the park when I lived in London before. Here I am with Jenny at Kensington Gardens.

Then Jeff and I got our tube passes and headed off to explore the city. It was so fun to not have kids with us. We would just pack our backpack for the day and head off without having to really plan and we could stay out as long as we wanted. It reminded me so much of my college days when I had done a lot of travelling. It was funny, but it made me feel so young! We went to a number of sites and were able to catch Evensong at Westminster Abby. It was great because just to go into the Abby was 15 pounds(we couldn't believe how expensive EVERYTHING was there!), but if you went for a service it was free.

After that we had dinner - curry from a take-away shop, and then walked down by Big Ben and the Thames to have a treat. While we were there some family walked up to us and gave us four free tickets for a river cruise. We had arranged to meet dad, Kathryn, and Jenny there in the evening to walk around, so we all got to go on the boat cruise instead, which I loved.

It was a beautiful evening!
And after we got off, we got to walk along the Thames. Here is Tower Bridge in the background.
Wednesday we bought a three day London Pass, which gets you in to a ton of the tourist sites. And we definitely got our money's worth out of it! First we went to the Tower of London. We got into a group led by one of the Yeomen Warders (or "beefeaters"). This is in front of the gate that comes in from the Thames where they used to bring prisoners in.

Jeff just outside of the Tower of London.

Nest we went inside the Tower Bridge and saw a short documentary on the construction of the bridge. We got to walk up all of the stairs to the top of the bridge and walk across to the other side. It was an awesome view from up there.

And then we took a tour of the HMS Belfast. It reminded me of when we lived in London the first time as kids and Jon Jon had his birthday party there.

After pounding the pavement all day we got something to eat and then went to the Apollo Victoria Theater to see Wicked!!! Jeff was a champ and had woken up early that morning and went to the theater to see if we could get some of the last minute tickets that the cast had not used. He was first in line and got us center seats on the front row for 35 pounds!! It was so fun to see the show again, but I have to admit, it was better in LA!

Trip Part Two: Wales

2009-12-01T17:38:00.000-08:00

Sunday evening we got dropped off at our hotel near Conway Castle (you can see it in the background). Jeff had served close to this area when he was on his mission, and when I was on study abroad in London in college we had taken a weekend trip up to the area and had loved it.

They claim that this is the smallest house in Great Britain.

We walked down by the bay and then walked the castle walls that surround the city.

Pretty cool view! After walking around we got fish & chips for dinner and then relaxed at the hotel.

Monday we had breakfast at the hotel and then Jeff picked up our rental car that he had arranged for the day. He did great driving a stick shift on the opposite side of the road! We pretty much drove around the whole Isle of Anglesey, which only took a few hours and was absolutely beautiful. This was our first stop at Beaumaris Castle.

We stopped at llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, which is the city with the longest name. After that Jeff wanted to see if he could find Lizzie, a woman he had baptized on his mission. I could not believe it, but he drove right to her house without an address or anything.

We had so much fun visiting with Lizzie. She was hilarious and had us cracking up the whole time. I was amazed how much she remembered about Jeff and other companions he had served with that we know. We were sad to learn that her husband had recently passed away.After touring the Isle I wanted to take Jeff to Betsws-y-Coed, a little town in the mountains that I had visited and loved eleven years before. It did not dissapoint! It is beautiful there.

These pictures do not do it justice!
I wish I had a better picture of Betws-y-Coed. It is the cutest ilttle town with shops and restaurants and a tiny train station. We ate lunch and walked around a bit and then headed back to Conway to catch a train to London.

Trip to England Part One: Manchester

2009-12-01T16:14:00.000-08:00

Jeff served his mission to Manchester, England, and for as long as I have known him, he has wanted to go back to visit the people he met. Last year my dad was asked to be the director of the BYU London Study Abroad for Summer and Fall 2009. As soon as we found out, we knew it would be the perfect opportunity to go back to England. We planned a trip for late July, and now that I'm expecting, it turned out to be the perfect timing - minus my being so sick!

Jeff's parents agreed to watch our kids for ten days (yes, they are saints!) so that we could go alone. Thursday night we drove down to California to Jeff's parent's house. We got there late, slept for a few hours (had to be up at 4am), and we were off to the Ontario airport. We slept most of the way to Atlanta, where we had a six hour lay over. We knew we couldn't wait at the airport, so we bought tickets for the MARTA (local train system) and went off to explore down town.

We ate lunch at Hard Rock Cafe and then walked down to the Centennial Olympic Park. It was a really nice day, and we were happy to stretch our legs a little. Then we headed back to the airport for our all night flight. Neither of us could really sleep, and the next morning we were in Manchester!

Ihrfan and his wife, Hannah, picked us up from the airport. Jeff had taught and baptized Ihrfan while he was on his mission. Hannah's dad was the bishop of the Stratford ward back then, and a few years later, after Ihrfan served a mission to London, he married Hannah. They live in York, but they came and stayed at her parent's house (the Saunders) in Manchester, and arranged for her parents to watch their kids so they could host us for the weekend - and we stayed there, too. So nice of them! Really they were just amazing to us.

We were really tired when we arrived, but we knew we had to stay awake most of the day to get used to the time difference. So, they took us downtown in Manchester and past several places Jeff remembered from his mission. Then we ate at a kabob shop - something both Jeff and I had been craving since we planned the trip to England.

Saturday afternoon we visited Janet. She had been inactive for decades, and Jeff and his companion visited her and helped reactivate her. Since then she has served as Relief Society President in the ward. She was so sweet and fun to visit with.

We took a short nap in the afternoon and then went to an indoor skiing place called Chill Factore. I've never seen anything like it. Then went miniature golfing and ate at a huge mall there called the Trafford Center. It was a really fun day, and we were definitely ready for bed that night.

Sunday we went to the ward there in Manchester. It was pretty small, but everyone was so friendly! Several people came up and welcomed us. Jeff recognized many of the ward members from his mission. And we had a "small world" moment. There was a couple there serving a mission. I knew the wife looked really familiar and it took me a second to figure it out, and then it hit me. They were the Hafens from Las Vegas. Their twin daughters, Julianne and Marianne had gone to BYUH with us. Marianne dated Jeff's roommate/friend, and in the summer we all met up at the Hafen's house in Vegas for a few days and stayed with them.

Anyway, church was great, but I was starting to feel the jet lag. It totally made me think of the general authorities and wonder how they are able to travel all over the world and be tired and jet-lagged and then sit through hours and hours of meetings!

Ihrfan, Hannah, and two of their kids (I think it was Luke and Marianna?)

After church we went back to the Saunders, and they fed us a full traditional roast dinner with yorkshire pudding, roated potatoes, gravy, etc. It was delicious!

The Saunders - you could not find nicer people! That evening Jeff and I were heading to Conway Castle in Wales, and we had planned to take the train. Ihrfan and Hannah absolutely insisted on driving us. After several attempts to try to get them to just drop us off at the train station we gave in. They were too good to us, and we hope we can return the favor and host them here in Vegas sometime.

House Hunting

2009-09-30T09:27:00.000-07:00

A good part of May and June was spent house hunting. We were obsessed with the MLS listing. I'd constantly search and re-search on a few different websites. My real estate agent, Amy, is a friend of ours, and she has two little girls. Once or twice a week we would pack up our kids and meet to walk through different houses. We found several that we liked, and we made a number of offers. Then we'd wait to hear back, always with the same response: your offer has been rejected.

After making several good offers on houses I started to feel like I was wasting my time. I knew we would find the right place, I just thought maybe this wasn't the right time for us to move and we should wait a few months to look again. The week before the 4th of July we got another rejection, and I just had to take a break for a week or so. When I got back from the weekend, I decided to start looking again, and for the first time I went to an area called Iron Mountain Ranch. We saw a few houses on Monday and then a few on Tuesday. We submitted a few offers, and Wednesday morning I got a call from Amy saying our offer on a house we saw Tuesday was accepted!

That night we went back to the house so Jeff could see it. It was a foreclosure and needed some work, especially in the front and back yards, but we were really excited about it. Some of the things we loved were:

-we could raise our family here and never have to move

-master and kids rooms on the same floor

-it's in a small gated community

-our street has eleven houses and ends in a cul de sac (minimal traffic)

-close to church (it's literally one house away - first thing I thought of was that I wouldn't have to drive to early morning seminary!!)

-close to schools (a few blocks from elementary and high school)

-has a pool and tons of potential in the back yard

-proximity to shopping (Costco, Walmart, Target, Best Buy within five minutes)

The closing date was set for early September, which was nice, because it gave us time to get ready for the move. That Sunday we visited the ward, and we loved it and felt right at home. People were so friendly, and there were tons of young families. Everyone also raved about the elementary school we were zoned for. So, the first part of my summer was spent looking for a house, and the rest of the summer was spent preparing for the move, meeting people at the house to get estimates on work to be done, and packing.

Chuck E Cheese

2009-09-30T09:21:00.000-07:00

One summer night we wanted something fun to do with the kids, so we took them to Chuck E Cheese. I don't know who had more fun - the kids or Jeff! He played the basketball game over and over again to try to beat the high score. He got pretty close! Maybe next time...

4th of July

2009-09-29T08:11:00.000-07:00

This year for the 4th of July weekend, we met the Banners in Utah. We got there Thursday night and stayed at my parent's new house. They had moved in just before they left to London for a few months, so they weren't there. The house was in the process of being renovated, and I can't wait to see it when it's done.

Friday morning we met the Banners at the Paxman cabin up Provo canyon. It was fun to visit with my grandparents and let the kids play in the creek. Then we all drove up to the bottom of the dam and tubed the river with our four little kids! (I wish I had a picture) That is one of our favorite things to do when we're in Utah in the summer.

Then we arranged for my niece and nephew to watch our kids so we could go out. We ate at Tucanos and saw The Proposal.

Saturday morning we met my grandparents, Isaac and Liz and kids, and a few of my cousins at the parade. Jackson went right up and sat on my grandpa's lap. It was so cute!

Sarah is a cheerleader for Centennial Middle School, and they were in the pre-parade this year.

After the parade we went up to Pope's for lunch. It was so beautiful up Hobble Creek Canyon. We ate, hung out, went four wheeling, and Louis shot off bowling balls in the cannon. We got to visit with Jord and Taryn and cute little Abby for a bit, too.

After that we went back to my parent's place and just relaxed in the back yard.

The kids loved running around and jumping on the tramp and looking at the flowers.

That night we ate at Brick Oven and then found a spot on BYU campus to sit and watch the fireworks. (Note to self - don't ever take a picture from that angle again! haha)

Banners

Me and Jackson. Notice his legs. He crosses them all the time. My favorite is when he's stretched out on his back with his arms behind his head and his legs crossed. So funny to see a two year old doing that.

Sunday we drove back to Vegas with the girls in one car and the boys in the other. It was so fun to have that time to just visit and catch up more with Lindsay.

Vanessa's Wedding

2009-09-28T09:14:00.000-07:00

Father's Day weekend we went to San Luis Obispo for Jeff's cousin's wedding. All of the Luszecks had come up for it, too. It as a LONG drive from Vegas, especially for a short weekend - and since the sick phase of pregnancy had already set in for me, but it was a lot of fun.

Saturday we went over to Ashley and Tyler's place in Cayucos. It was so fun to meet Merrick for the first time and see where they lived. We all walked down to the beach and on the pier. It's such a cute little town, and it made me miss living close to the beach.

Then we got ready and went to Vanessa and Matt's wedding. It was at a really nice outdoor facility. They had a nice ceremony, dinner, and dancing.

Bride & Groom
The cake

The tables had decks of cards, so Bailey and uncle Reid played a game

my boys
Vanessa and all of the Luszeck cousins

After we ate, Jackson found a dancing partner! We were all cracking up

And Lexi loved dancing with Vanessa. All day she referred to her as "the princess."

Sunday morning we ate breakfast together and then played at a park with Ashley, Tyler, and Merrick before heading back to Vegas.

Lexi's Party

2009-09-27T15:08:00.000-07:00

Lexi turned four in June, and we threw her a birthday party. We invited a few of her friends and told them to wear their favorite princess dress ups. Lexi was so excited to wake up in the morning and find her new Little Mermaid outfit.

Birthday Cake

Party Favors

The girls sat down and decorated frames (that I had already painted pink) with glitter, stickers, and jewels.

They turned out really cute!Then there was a knock on the door...and Ariel came to the party! The girls were so excited. They huddled around her the whole time. She did face and hand paintings for them.

And then put a little makeup on each girl. Jackson didn't want to miss out!

Then Ariel sang songs and danced with the girls.

What cute little princesses! We took pictures of each girl with Ariel to put in their frames.
Then it was time for cake and presents!

A Little Surprise!

2009-09-27T13:37:00.000-07:00

Well, I am months behind in my blog after a crazy few months. I'm hoping to get caught up in the next few weeks, since we have had a lot of fun changes, events, trips, etc. in the last few months.

First, a little news. In early June I went to the doctor about terrible headaches I had had for weeks. I get these horrible headaches every few years, and they last for weeks and then are gone. We finally figured out that they are called Cluster Headaches. The doctor asked if it felt like an ice pick stabbing in one spot of my head - and that is a perfect description! They typically hit me in the middle of the night, and they are very intense and painful. The first time I got one in this round, I woke up in so much pain I thought I was going to have to go to the hospital. I started just taking some left over ibuprofin when they would hit and rubbing my head until they would go away. Some nights they hit twice. It was miserable. Anyway, I went to a new doctor to talk about what they were and to see what I could do to help and prevent them. Unfortunately, there isn't much known about what causes them or why they come back. Anyway, after a long time figuring out a combination of prescriptions that I can take as well as increasing magnesium and potassium in my diet we started talking about how hormone changes can cause them. After a little more discussion and a urine sample - the doctor informed me that I was pregnant! I was totally suprised, but really excited. I just couldn't stop laughing. Obviously we had to re-vamp the prescriptions he gave me, and the headaches went away within a few weeks anyway. I went home and told Lexi and Jackson, and then when Jeff got home I let Lexi tell him the good news. I'll never forget his response - a little shoulder shrug, and two words: "I'm indifferent!" I've given him a hard time about that one, but we are really excited.

**Feels funny writing about this now, since I am already five months along! A week and a half ago I had an ultrasound, and everything looks great. And as for the baby's sex: we know it's a girl or a boy! :) We've decided to wait this one out the old-fashioned way.

First Performance

2009-07-06T15:19:00.000-07:00

I signed Lexi up for a dance camp the first week in June. Some girls in our stake put in on, and it's an hour a day for five days, and on the last day the do a performance for the parents. The best part is it's $10 for the week! I surprised Lexe and picked up Jeff for the performance, which was on the stage at the stake center. She was so excited when she saw he was there. Her group did a dance to "Come on Feel the Noise." It was hilarious to watch. Lexi hardly knew any of the moves, but we were so proud of her for doing it!

Nana and Kurt visit

2009-07-06T14:53:00.000-07:00

The day after my trip to Utah, my mom flew into town. We had a crazy few days together. We loved swimming at the Tew's pool, eating out, looking for new houses, and hanging out. Kurt flew in a few days later, and then they went to stay at their hotel on the strip. On Saturday we spent the day with them swimming and lounging around by the pool. It was so nice! I'm so bummed we didn't take any pictures of them, but we loved having them visit. This trip Lexi called Kurt "Curtain" the whole time. It was pretty funny.

They flew out Monday morning but had their hotel room until Tuesday, so I took the kids down on Monday and we spent the day swimming and hanging out. Jeff met us that evening and we ate and then went swimming again. Later that night we decided to walk with the kids down the strip to watch the Pirate show at Treasure Island. We got ice cream and then waited for the show to start.We waited for almost an hour, and then they announced that it was too windy so they cancelled the show. Dang it! But they had the pirates inside the hotel to take pictures. Jackson walked right up to them for his picture. So funny! After we stopped by the Wynn waterfall and then went back to the hotel. We stayed over night and then the kids and I swam until check out at 1. It was such a fun last minute getaway, even though it was so close to home.

Utah Trip

2009-06-09T20:03:00.000-07:00

At the end of April I decided to head up to Utah with the kids to see my family. So, on my birthday I packed the kids in the car and off we went! On my way out of Vegas I met Kim at Aliante park. She is always so great at celebrating my birthday. She spoiled me with presents and lunch and we ate and let the kids play while we caught up on life. Thanks Kim!! After the kids had eaten and used up some of their energy we started our drive. My plan worked perfectly - Jackson was asleep within minutes! We got to my parents house that night and had fun catching up.

Thursday was pretty crazy. I met Jane at Thanksgiving Point. She gave me my birthday gift, which I LOVED! It was thirty songs for thirty years. She burned a CD of all the songs she had picked, and she had typed up a little explanation of each one and what part of me or my life it represented. We both cried as I read it! Then we took them to feed the animals at the farm.

and went on a hay ride

After that we went to Jane's house in SLC so the younger kids could nap. Then in the late afternoon we took the kids to the zoo! They were in heaven with the animals and the carousel

and the train ride

happy boy!

I left the zoo and headed back down to Provo. I got a sitter for the kids, picked up Isaac, and we went to my dad's choir concert. They performed Brahms's "German Requiem."

Friday I went back up to SLC to Jane's house. we had a sitter for the younger kids, so Jane and I took Brooke and Lexi to Nordstrom Rack for some shopping and got a few cute things! Love that place! That night Jane and I went to a yummy dinner at Market Street Grill and then met Whitney at the theater to see Duplicity. It was such a fun night out.

Saturday was rainy and cold, so we took the kids to McDonald's so they could play on the indoor playground.

That afternoon I went back to Provo to hang out with Kel and Jess and see the houses my parents were considering buying. That night a bunch of the family hung out and my parents ordered Bombay House for dinner- my favorite! Around 11pm I headed back up to SLC!

Sunday morning I dropped my kids off at Kaira's house and went to Abby's blessing. She is so darling!! And it was so fun to get to meet Warner, my new nephew, too, on the trip.
After the blessing we went to Jord & Taryn's house for brunch.

Love these amazing women in my family!

Then we all went back down to Provo to have a delicious dinner and celebrate my birthday! It was such a busy few days, but it was so fun to see my family and catch up, especially Jess and Kel, who I don't get to see much anymore now that we're all spread out across the country.

Jane made these yummy coconut cupcakes!

Jackson Dancing

2009-06-04T22:40:00.000-07:00

I can't figure out how to rotate this the right way, but I thought this was so cute. Jackson will just climb up on the counter and go turn on the iPod. If he doesn't like the song that's playing, he'll move to the next one until he has the right dancing music!

April

2009-06-04T22:05:00.000-07:00

April was such a fun month! Here's a quick review:

The first week of April my best friend from growing up, Kaira, came into town to see LOVE. I told here I would watch her duaghter, Maya, while she and her mom went to see the show. I took Lexi with me down to the condo they were staying in, and I had so much fun with these two cute girls who were instant friends - just like their moms! After I fed the girls dinner we went swimming and had a blast. When Kaira and Codi got back it was so much fun to catch up a bit. Codi was my second mom growing up. I think there were weeks that I spent more time at their house than at my own.

The first weekend in April we went to Ally's baptism. Ally is a sweet girl in our ward and we have done some fun things with her family. I was honored that they asked me to give the talk on baptism that day.

We got passes to the Lied Children's Museum. The kids love it, while I stress the whole time trying just to keep track of them! we met Catherine, Cooper, and Brennan there one day and then went again with friends in our ward. Lexi dressed up and had me dance with her on stage!

silly kids
Ward Easter breakfast and hunt

That afternoon we went to Sadie's baptism and then went to her grandparent's house for a really fun party

Nicole made an amazing feast, as always! We ate and talked and hung out and the kids swam in the pool and hot tub

Then the kids found these darling baskets that Nicole made

Nicole does everything over the top. She's AMAZING! These baskets were better than the ones we gave our kids! We had such a great day hanging out with the Luths and getting to know some of their family and friends.

Lexi had her first dentist appointment. She did awesome, but she had four cavities! I honestly didn't even know kids that young could get cavities! We have since implemented a strict brushing and flossing routine at night and only give the kids water in their sippies at night. Two visits later we still don't have her dental work completed. Next visit she's getting the sedation and nitris combo that will hopefully do the trick to get the other fillings taken care of!

I also celebrated my birthday in April - the big 3-0! Jeff took me out to a nice dinner at Texas de Brazil where we ate ourselves sick! Then we walked around the shops at Town Square before we headed to the Strip to see LOVE. Thanks to all of you who made my birthday so great! The night before my birthday I was thinking a bit about my twenties, and I have had ten AMAZING years! From college in Hawaii to travelling the world, working at PwC, awesome callings, getting married, becoming a mom, accomplishing some major goals, spiritual experiences, making great friends... wow! As I thought about all of the blessings in my life I felt so overwhelmed and grateful, and I hope the next ten years of my life are just as good.

MARCH

2009-04-08T16:14:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm behind again...what a surprise! So, here's a quick re-cap of some of the fun we had in March.

Playing at McDonald's and getting an ice cream

My annual pass to Spring's Preserve ran up in March, so I took the kids there one last time

They loved seeing the animals, watching the flash flood, and playing in the sand and on this train

Playing at Lone Mountain park - Lexi obviously dressed herself!

Our play group did a tour of Peter Piper Pizza, and you got to make your own pizza

The kids (and moms) loved that one!

Jeff's parents came to visit us one weekend. It was so fun to have there here. We went to Lake Las Vegas on Saturday to eat and walk around

I love this picture! One nice day the kids just went to hang out in the back yard together.

Lexi

We got passes to Lied Children's museum, and we met Catherine (Jane's sister-in-law), Cooper, and Brennan there. They have the cutest Clifford exhibit there right now. I was so excited to catch up with Cat, but chasing my two little wanderers around is a full time job ( I lost them both several times) so we hardly had a chance to talk!

Jackson loved playing with tools

And we had our first Primary activity on Saturday, March 28th. It was so much fun, and we had a great turn out with over 60 kids (even though we had to change the time the week before the activity due to a funeral - as we learned, a funeral trumps all other planned events at the church building). First we had the kids make and decorate baskets out of paper bags & pipe cleaner handles.

Then they split up in groups and went to eight different rooms to learn about the events from the last supper through the resurrection. In each room the leader read a scripture and explained the even that occurred. Then the kids got something to put in a plastic egg that represented the event as well as a strip of paper with the corresponding scripture. (toothpick cross and tiny nail for the crucifixion, piece of white cloth and herbs for preparing Jesus' body for burial, fake dimes for Judas betraying Christ for 30 pieces of silver, etc.) The idea was that the kids could then take their basket of eggs home and use them for FHE with their families.

After that we all gathered back in the gym, played a few games games, gave the kids a candy filled egg, and then headed out to the grass, where we gave the kids cupcakes while they waited to be picked up(no mess in the church)!

It was great, and I was so grateful for all the work that the presidency and Shannon, our "Primary Activity Coordinator" put into it. I knew I was inspired when I made up that calling! :)

Losing Lexi

2009-03-20T15:49:00.000-07:00

Today I took Lexi and Jackson to Super Walmart to do a little shopping. Jackson was in the cart, and Lexi was just walking beside us. I stopped to look at some storage bins, and Lexi ran off to another aisle. I wasn't worried. She does this all the time when we're shopping, but she usually stays within a short distance and comes right back. I looked through the bins for a minute, and then said "Lexi." There was no answer, so I started walking and calling her name some more. Then I hear a page over the intercom, "Attention Walmart customers, will ...... please come to the jewelry counter. We have .... here." Since I wasn't sure about the names I wandered for a minute more and then made my way to the jewelry counter. Sure enough...there was Lexi! I was just laughing. Little stinker! The best part was a minute later Lexi said, "well mom, I just ran away from you so I could say bad words!" Where does she come up with this stuff???

February

2009-03-18T16:53:00.000-07:00

Wow, has it really been a month and a half since my last post? Yikes! Well, I have tons to catch up on, but I'll start with February. It was a great month!

Kathryn and Jenn came to visit for a weekend for Steven Tew's homecoming. It was a quick visit (Saturday to Sunday), but we had fun, especially visiting with everyone at the Tews on Sunday after church.

The night they were here Jeff got frosted cookies for the kids & Jenn. Luckily we had them eat them in the bath, because they were so messy! Jackson pooped blue for three days after! :)

The next weekend I took the kids to Utah. I drove up Friday to miss a snow storm (so glad I did because we got about 6 inches of snow at my parents house Saturday). Sat. afternoon we had Taryn's shower, and it was really fun to see her and everyone who came.

Sunday-Monday a group of my high school friends got together at Julia's parent's place in Fountain Green. It was so great to get together and catch up. All we did was talk and eat, and that's just how I wanted it. We also got to meet Lorianne's fiance for a minute, and we all approve! :)

Relaxing by the fire

I love these girls and think they are amazing!

Tuesday I headed up to Jane's to stay with her for the week while Whitney was out of town. It is crazy having all five kids together and no hubbies around to help, but we managed..and even got out of the house a few times!

One night we went to the Church History Museum. Hello - best kept secret! They have the cutest area for kids to play, and it's free.

They have blocks to build a temple

And the cutest little baby area where you can dress them up and then wiegh them and give them little check ups with doctors kits. The kids loved it!

We also went to Thanksgiving Point to pet the animals and go on pony rides. Wait - did I really not take any pictures of the kids on the ponies? Oops!

That Friday night my mom flew into town, and Isaac & Liz and the kids came up to hang out at Jane's. It was so fun to see everyone. Then saturday I made the trek home.

Haley had a fun birthday party at Peter Piper Pizza.

These girls are so cute! Lexi talks about Haley all the time. Whatever she is playing with at home she'll say, "and this one is for Haley."

And Jackson loves her, too. He says "hi Hayhay!"

Jeff and I went with a group of friends to go Indoor Skydiving. Do we look ridiculous or what? It was a blast. We'd definitely do it again, and it made me want to go real skydiving again.

January Highlights

2009-01-22T15:41:00.000-08:00

This has been such a fast, busy month! We have done a lot of fun things, and here are some highlights:
1. Jesus Want Me For a Sunbeam! Lexi is officially a sunbeam at church. I kept telling her about how she wouldn't go to nursery anymore and that she would be a sunbeam. After one time of explaining to her she said, "But mom, I don't want to be a sunbeam, I want to be Lexi!" The first few weeks were pretty rough, since I am in Primary. I was conducting the first week and doing sharing time the next, so it was hard for her to sit with her class while I was there. She's done much better the last few weeks.

2. The little guy is growing up! Jackson turned two!! I can't believe it. He was so excited about blowing out the candle on his cake. Each time he would clap and say "yay!" We did it over and over again! It was really fun to have my dad, Kathryn, and Jenn here to celebrate, which brings us to our next item...

3. Visit from dad, Kathryn, and Jenn! They drove down from Utah for MKL weekend. It was perfect weather while they were here, so Saturday we went for a walk and then played at the park. That night we all (minus the kiddies) met Wayne & Patrice for Thai food and to visit at their house.

Sunday we had church and then went to the park after dinner.

And Monday...we went to the park again! Wayne & Patrice met us there, and it was a perfect day. Then they had to leave. :( We also put my dad to work while he was here. He replaced the cartridge in our guest shower, so now there is hot water in there. It was so much fun to have them visit, and we look forward to seeing them more in February!

4. Chuck e Cheese! We took the kids last weekend to go on the rides and play games.

5. Playgroup. We've gone to the park, played at the church gym, and had a tour of Great Harvest bakery.

6. Swimming! Since the weather has been warm and nice, the kids have been asking to go swimming. We took them to the YMCA indoor pool last night. They loved it!

7. Hiking at Red Rock. We did the Calico Tanks hike today with the Jensons. Here's Jackson and "Hay-Hay"

View from the top!

8. Amazing weather. We have had the warmest, sunniest weather this month. I think we've been to the park about 15 times this month. It's been so nice for that and to take the kids for walks.

9. Jeff's firm moved into their new building last Friday, so his commute to work is now 3 miles!

10. Jeff ran the St. George half marathon. He loved it and is excited to participate in more of them.

The Holidays

2009-01-04T22:38:00.000-08:00

We've had such a busy few weeks. Here's a quick re-cap:

--It snowed about 4-5 inches at our house!

--My mom, aunt, and cousin came into town the week before Christmas. They stayed in a hotel on the strip, but I got to spend a lot of time with them. We had so much fun: saw Mystere, ate at RA, went to Town Square, shopped, saw Four Christmases, sleep over at their hotel (talked until 4:30am), shopping at the outlets, etc. And it was really fun having them come to my house a few times to hang out with the kids. The kids loved Nana's Christmas present, which we let them open when she was here: A Kitchen!

--Primary craziness: new teachers, update binders, deliver binders, burn CDs for kids with 2009 songs, Christmas gifts, teacher appreciation breakfast, three baptisms, countless calls with the bishopric, BofM reading program, new birthday gifts, etc, etc.

--Christmas in California - we had a blast at the Luszecks!

Santa came to visit!

Lexi with uncle Tyler and Santa

Presents!

Santa was pretty smart this year - he brought the kids each their own guitar and four wheeler - he must realize that they're having problems sharing! :)

Christmas Day at grandma's house

And a day at Knott's Berry Farm!

--got home and had a fun few days with the Banners (both sets!) including a fun night out at the VIP movie lounge at Red Rock to see Marley & Me.

--New Year's Eve uncle Tyler & uncle Reid drove up to see us. The kids were hilarious when they saw them - bouncing off the walls with excitement! Jeff and his brothers braved the strip that night, while I hung out with friends in the ward. The kids both stayed up until midnight! Luckily they both slept in, too!

Now we're just getting back to our normal routines, which feels good.

Polar Express

2008-12-18T13:47:00.000-08:00

The weekend after Thanksgiving we went to Williams, AZ, with four other families in our ward for the Polar Express. We had so much fun.

Kiddies in their pajamas

Here's our whole group before we got on the train

On the train we sang songs and read the Polar Express story

mamma's boy

daddy and daughter

they served hot chocolate and cookies. Jackson was so exhausted that he fell asleep sitting up and holding his cookie! The kids were really excited to meet Santa. He gave them each a bell.

After the train ride we went swimming

Then we put the kids to bed and the adults congregated in the hallway for cards and treats until after midnight when someone complained about the noise!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-06T22:33:00.000-08:00

We had a blast in Utah over Thanksgiving week. I drove up with the kids on Monday morning to have a few extra days to hang out at Jane's new house in SLC. Her house was AMAZING! This was the first time I had seen it all remodeled and furnished. And it just worked well with the kids. My kids were in heaven in the play room. I don't think they've ever seen more toys in their lives!

Monday night we went to the Sky Box at Gateway for dinner and games with a group of families from Jane's ward.

We played games and went on rides

And I had to play a quick game of the original Mario Brothers!

Cute cousins cracking up!

And the blue-eyed boys
Tuesday we went to Hogle Zoo. It was my first time there, and it was pretty cool. We dressed Brookie and Lexi in matching shirts!

My best friend from growing up, Kaira, came to meet us with her daughter, Maya. Isn't she adorable?? We all went on the carousel and train ride and looked at the animals.

Then Kaira came to check out Jane's house. That night Jane and I put the kids down and snuck in a quick trip to Nordstrom Rack and to se Jordan & Taryn's new house. It's so cute!

Wednesday we packed all five kids in Jane's car and ran some errands. The kids did really well together this trip. They just played and had fun. It was the best I think they've ever done together, which made it nice for Jane and I!

Thursday I picked Jeff up from the airport and then everyone met at my parents' house. We had a delicious Thanksgiving meal in the afternoon and sat around and talked. Later we went to see Isaac & Liz's new house (lots of new houses in our family)! Friday was boy's day. My dad took all the boys shooting in the canyon and then to Boondocks to play minature golf, lazer tag, bumper cars, and video games. Jess and I snuck out for a few quick errands while grandma watched the kids (Thanks Kathryn)!

That night everyone met up at temple square to see the lights.

It was really fun. I hadn't been in years. After we all met at Jane's for treats.

Saturday was girl's day. Kathryn took all the girls to lunch at Happy Sumo. Then we went shopping and to see The Secret Life of Bees. We had a great time together, and it was fun to run into the Jacksons from Hawaii. That night we got sitters for the kids and we all went to see The Christmas Carol at Hale Theater. I was really tired and didn't feel like going, but I ended up loving it. It's such a great story, and I definitely came away from it wanting to be better.

Thanks dad and K-mom for such a fun Thanksgiving weekend!

Twilight

2008-12-04T16:36:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I tagged along with Kim and her friends to dinner and to see Twilight. We were first in line thanks to Amber's husband, Vaughn, who stood in line for hourse while we ate! It was a fun night, and it was hilarious to be in the theater with all of the tweens who ooohed and aaahed anytime a boy was on screen!

I Love to See The Temple

2008-11-20T14:51:00.000-08:00

A week and a half ago we had Stake Conference. One speaker recommended taking your kids to see the temple. Lexi had been asking to go for months, and Jeff had Tuesday off for Veteran's Day, so we went to lunch and then walked around the temple grounds.

I'm so grateful I get to be with these guys forever!

The always successful family self portrait.

Jeff's Bday (and the rest of our crazy week)

2008-11-12T18:15:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm already behind a week. This was two weeks ago!

The kids new favorite thing is to play with all of the couch pillows. They make tents and cribs and slides and mountains and anything.

Here's Lexi being a good mommy to baby Ariel

Thursday Jeff had a birthday. We were so excited to go out that night and go indoor skydiving to celebrate. Well, a few minutes before I picked up the babysitter I called the skydive place and they were closing early for a special event. Ugh! I was so bummed. So, we ended up going to grab a quick bite, and then we saw Eagle Eye. We still need to go indoor skydiving one of these days.

Some of our friends were in town for the day, so I met Lindsay at the mall. Turned out to be quite the fiasco for both of us. Between losing keys and a cell phone, the kids play area being torn down, Lexi peeing through her jeans (I mean SOAKED -- luckily I had just bought dress ups for Xmas presents, so she was quite happy to change into the new Snow White dress!) and the kids crying because they wanted to go on more rides (Jackson was screaming so loud that everyone in the area was just staring at me), we hardly got to catch up. And did I mention that I got home and couldn't find some of the stuff I had bought...I had left it at the store.

That night Jeff and I went to the temple for ward temple night, which was quite the fiasco, too. I left my dress at home and we got there with just seconds to spare! Fortunately I left feeling much better than I did when I arrived!

Saturday was a gorgeous day. We went hiking to Mary Jane Falls up at Mt. Charleston with some friends from the ward. We went prepared for winter cold, but it ended up being hot and sunny. It was really fun.

Can you read this??

2008-11-11T10:29:00.000-08:00

Several people have told me that they can't read the text on my blog. I just changed my font to black, so let me know if that helps!

Boulder City Train

2008-11-05T15:57:00.000-08:00

Saturday Jeff THOUGHT it would be fun to take the kids down to the Boulder City Train and go for a ride. Well, we seemed to forget that we have two very opinionated and independant toddlers and any fun activity can quickly turn into a miserable one given their moods. Jackson sat still for about two seconds, and then he wanted to wander up and down the train cars. There were several sessions of screaming and one throw-myself-on-the-floor tantrum (pictured below). Love that!

At one time this engine was actually used for the Heber Creeper!

enjoying the ride...for a moment anyway

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-03T15:58:00.000-08:00

We started our Halloween celebration last Monday by carving our little pumpkin for FHE and reading Halloween stories and singing Halloween songs.

Is that the saddest little jack-o-lantern or what? :)

Friday Jeff had the day off for Nevada Day. We took the kids to lunch at Sammy's Woodfire Pizza. The whole shopping complex there was doing "safe trick-or-treating" for the afternoon, so we joined in the fun (even without the kids' costumes).
That night we went to our ward trunk-or-treat, which was a lot of fun. It's such an easy way to do it for our young kids.
Jackson was a bat. Not the cutest costume, but definitely worth the $5 we spent on it! :)

Lexi was a cheerleader. She just thought she was part of High School Musical!

Jackson's favorite part was the popcorn

After the trunk or treat we met a few other families at the Jenson's and hung out. The kids were all lining up on the sidewalk to take a picture together, but Jackson just plopped down in the middle of the driveway...and I just noticed that he is still holding his popcorn!

One more funny story. My mom's birthday is on Halloween. We called her earlier in the day, and I had asked Lexi to sing "Happy Birthday To You" with Jeff and I. Well, my moms answering machine picked up and we sang, but Lexi barked the whole song like a dog (yep, she's still in act-like-a-dog phase). After we were done I scolded Lexi for barking the song and told her it made me sad that she wouldn't just sing for Nana. Well, then I looked at my phone, and it was still on, and the whole scolding was left on the message! BUSTED!! I just had to laugh...and I'm sure my mom did, too!

Afternoon at the Bellagio

2008-10-28T13:45:00.000-07:00

We have had the nicest, warmest fall here in Vegas. Saturday we wanted to enjoy the nice day and go to the Bellagio to see the new display in the atrium.

The kids loved this tree creature that moved his eyes and spoke.
Lots of pumpkins everywhere

fall tunnel that has water shooting over you

After we went out for the fountain show. They did my favorite song, "Time to Say Goodbye" by Sarah Brighton, and some others.

Busy Week

2008-10-24T22:00:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday night we took the kids to the Haunted Harvest at Springs Preserve. They had several trick-or-treat stations set up and it was all decorated. We met our friends there, and it was fun!

Monday I took the car in to get our new tires (which we just bought on Friday) checked out because they were making a funny noise. They said it would be just a few minutes, so I took the kids next door to Chuck E Cheese's. An hour later I went back to check and the car hadn't even been looked at yet. Urgh! I was so annoyed I just left. But at least the kids had fun playing games and going on rides...
Monday night was really nice weather and Jeff suggested we hike Lone Mountain for FHE. We made it almost all the way, but it got dark and we had to turn around. Lexi walked the whole thing herself! The view was awesome from up there. Who knew the desert could look so nice!

part way up there's a bench that Jackson rested on

View from (almost) the top!
Thursday I took the car back to Pep boys to have the tires checked. This time I called first and explained what happened Monday. They assured me I would have first priority and it should just be a few minutes. So, we took the car back in and I took the kids back to Chuck E Cheese's while we waited. An hour later I went back to check on the car and guess what...they had forgotten to check it out! I was beyond frustrated. I explained to the manager what happened, and he was really nice about it and apologized several times, but seriously...what a waste of time!

Today I watched my friend's kids for a few hours. My kids loved it! We danced, played play-doh, did bubbles outside, played with cars, ate, etc. Lexi and T were playing babies and wanted me to make them cribs out of couch pillows!

This week we also went to Town Square story time and to Claim Jumper, worked out, had stake auxillary training, plus all of the normal errands/cooking/cleaning. Tonight Jeff and I got a sitter and went out. It was nice to just have time together. Our lives have been CRAZY lately between his work being busy and my new calling. I mean CRAZY. I feel like I've never been busier, but life is good!

Randoms

2008-10-12T21:48:00.001-07:00

Cookies! They're peanut butter cookes with a Reese's PB cup smashed into the top. Yum!

Last week we went to the pumpkin patch

(they actually have one here in Vegas!)

We got to pick pumpkins

and then we all met for lunch at Zaba's

This past week we've all been sick, so we spent days stuck in the house. You have to get pretty creative to keep busy. Lexi and I played Cranium, and this is what she did with all of the game pieces.
And Lexi has started acting like a puppy - barking and all. I'm hoping this is just a phase that will pass quickly, especially since she started crawling around COSTCO the other day! She has me feed her on the ground and today we made her a doggie bed on the floor to sleep in.

And this is Lexi's new computer! It's just a tag from Jackson's pants, but she had me write letter in it and plays with it.

Primary Program

2008-10-06T16:40:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday was our ward's Primary Sacrament Meeting Program. This was my second year being in charge of it, and I am so relieved that it is over! The kids did awesome! We tried some new things this year that I really liked. And thanks to our awesome chorister, Felicity, the music was amazing, including a beautiful arrangement of I Am a Child of God that she had someone put together for the program.

Among other things, I had one child give a talk on each topic using their personal experiences (the talk on the temple was given by a boy whose family was sealed two years ago, the talk on following the prophet was by someone who accepted Pres. Hinckley's challenge to read the Book of Mormon, the talk on baptism was by a girl who was baptized this summer, etc.).

Here were two of the talks that I wanted to remember:

The first was by Kaylin, an eleven year old girl. A little background on her - she is the oldest of five kids, and they have been in foster care for a while. Our new bishop and his wife have teken foster kids into their home off and on, and this family of five came to their home a few months ago. They are amazing children. They weren't raised Mormon, but they know every question in primary, know every song, and are just so well behaved. She is not a member of the church (yet)! Anyway, I had her give a talk on the theme, I Am a Child of God, and this is what she wrote:

Before I came to earth I knew there was a plan for me. I knew that there would be trials and I gladly accepted them. Now that I am here on earth I have had many obstacles put in my life and I am so glad that I know that I have a Heavenly Father that loves me and knows what I go through each day.

My mom and dad have made bad choices in their lives that have affected me and my brothers and sisters, but Heavenly Father found a way for us to learn about him and his gospel and the plan for us so I can return home and live with him forever.

I am thankful for the people I have had in my life to teach me about Heavenly father and that he loves me. I know that where ever I end up I can take this knowledge with me and I can keep it and share it. I know that the gospel is true. I believe that the Book of Mormon is true. I believe in prophets, and I will follow their counsel. I love my Heavenly Father and my savior Jesus Christ. I am thankful for my primary teachers that have helped teach me. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

And this next one was by Brock on missionary work:

I am very grateful to be a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Knowing who I am and where I came from and what I am supposed to be doing is a comfort in this unsure world. That is why it is so important to be a member missionary. We can share what we know with our friends, neighbors, and even our teachers.

When I was in kindergarten our family read an article in the Friend one morning about a boy who gave a Book of Mormon away as a valentine. I thought of my kindergarten teacher and what a good person she was. I kept thinking about it now and then until many days later, when I was riding home from a friend's house, I told my mom that I wanted to give my teacher a Book of Mormon. As soon as I said it out loud I had such a strong feeling of happiness that I couldn't keep it in. My mom said that my feet were hardly touching the ground as we walked in the house and that feeling was the Holy Ghost letting me know that what I had decided to do made the Lord happy, too.

I took one of our Books of Mormon that we had for giving away, and I wrote my testimony inside. Being in kindergarten my testimony was very simple. I wrote: "I know that this book is true, Love Brock."

The very next day I put the book in my backpack and went to school. I felt a bit nervous. When I saw my teacher I remembered the feeling I had the night before, and I pulled the book out and walked up to her and handed it to her. She seemed happy that I had given it to her and the next week I got a card from her that said, "Dear Brock, thank you for the book. I feel very special that you would give me something that means so much to you. I will think of you when I read it."

I hope I will never forget how it felt to share my testimony that day. Being a member missionary is important for all of us and good practice for me for when I get to go on a full time mission for the Lord when I am older. I have a testimony of this gospel.

Attack of the Green Popsicle

2008-10-06T16:25:00.000-07:00

Looks like the popsicle won!

End of Summer

2008-09-28T14:54:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday our play group went to tour the Ethel M Chocolate Factory. It was a pretty quick tour and then they give you a sample of their delicious chocolate!
Outside they have a cactus garden. (Notice Lexi's shirt - she always does her buttons all the way up and won't let me undo them!)

After the tour a group of us went to lunch at TGI Friday's
Saturday we went to the Tew's pool for what may be our last swim of the summer. (I hope not!)

Goodbye pool! Thanks for all the fun! See you next year!

Game Night Anniversary!

2008-09-27T16:01:00.000-07:00

Last September we started a weekly tradition with our friends, the Jensons. (Or I guess I should say they invited us to be a part of their tradition!) We meet every Sunday evening to let the kids play, have dessert, and play cards. Last week we were busy on Sunday, so we had a BBQ on Monday night instead to celebrate our anniversary! Thanks for the year of fun, frustration, fasting & praying(!), winning, losing, hanging out and yummy treats!

PS I just needed ONE card!!

A Blessing (and Lexi's interpretation of it)

2008-09-23T14:46:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, Jeff and a group of guys from our ward drove to Cali early in the morning, went to the UCLA football game in the afternoon, then went to the Dodgers game at night. When the game was over they piled back in the suburban and drove home. They made it back around 3am. First of all, I was so relieved when I heard Jeff come home and knew they were safe, but that's not the story I wanted to talk about...

So, Lisa called on Friday and said she wanted to have people over to swim and have lunch on Saturday while all of our husbands were gone. Sounded great to me! We headed over around 11, and it was a perfect, warm day. We had a great time swimming, then we all got out to eat lunch. And then we all swam again. At one point Lexi was done, so I changed her and she went inside to play. I was still in the pool with Lisa, Jackson, and Lisa's kids and nephew. Lisa and I were talking in the pool on the little wet deck (an area in about a foot of water), when Jackson climbed out and started running around the pool to the other side. He had done this several times to get to the hot tub, and I figured he was doing the same thing and I would go get him before he had a chance to climb in. So, I turned to Lisa to say something (this all happened SO FAST) and turned back to watch Jackson running, but I couldn't see him. I looked around, and then I saw him in the pool just under the surface. As this all registered, I pushed off and swam over to him as quickly as I could. I grabbed him and brought him up, and he was coughing and crying. It took a few minutes to calm him down, but then he started laughing and having fun again.

What had happened when I turned my head for that half of a second was that Jackson was running one way and another kid was running near him and bumped into Jackson, so he fell into the pool. It was just an accident, and the little boy apologized over and over again to me. I was obviously so relieved that I had gotten to him so fast and that he was fine. The other thing that was amazing to me was that Jackson was just underneath the surface of water the whole time (the top of his head was even with the surface) - in a section of the pool that is a few feet deep. Somehow he must have been moving his arms/legs to keep him up. He has never done this before. Anytime I have let go of him or tossed him in the air to play around, he immediately sinks straight down.

As I reviewed this event over in my head, I couldn't help but think of my prayer the night before:

"Heavenly father, please help us to be safe and protected...And please HELP ME TO ALWAYS BE AWARE OF MY KIDS, especially since we're going to go to a new pool tomorrow that we're not used to, and I will have the kids there by myself. Please just help me to be aware of them and not let anything happen to them." I am so grateful that my prayer was answered, and I have prayed several times since then to thank Heavenly Father for answering my prayer and helping Jackson to be okay.

So, Lexi was inside while that happened to Jackson, and I didn't tell her until last night. After we put her to bed she came into my room (she always finds some excuse to get out of bed!) while I was reading the BofM. She climbed into bed with me and asked me to tell her "the story," pointing to what I was reading, so I told her about Samuel the Lamanite. She wanted another story, so I told her about Jackson falling into the pool and how mom had prayed to always be aware and Heavenly Father and Jesus had helped him to be okay and helped me to be aware of Jackson so I could help him. Lexi thought about this for a second then said, "and Jesus was in the cool(pool)? and Jesus put his swimsuit on?" I just had to laugh. But who knows...

Lexi Language

2008-09-22T16:09:00.000-07:00

Lexi has her own pronounciations or words for many things, and I need to write them down before she grows out of them and I forget!

bebu = belly button or stomach

cool = pool (mom, do they have a cool?)
pretty tail = pony tail
pretty hair = hair done in any way
applekine = pineapple
anybody = somebody, everybody, or anybody
alutter = another
loodle = little
loodles = noodles
logurt = yogurt (what's with the "l"??)
dippie = any dressing, salsa, sour cream, sauce,
see friends = go to kids gym
princess hello = Barbie Island Princess
clippies = any sort of rubber bands, clips, bows, or hair accessories
jumpy house = trampoline
Talego = diego
Chrowfridge = drawbridge

And here are some recent experiences with my three year old

last week during FHE
me: Jesus was obedient. He ALWAYS listened and obeyed.
Lexi (totally sincere and excited): like me!
me(cracking up): something like that...

almost every time Lexi gets dressed
Lexi (head tilted to the side): mom, does this look hot?
me: it looks really cute (I don't love my three year old wanting to look "hot," not that she even knows what it means)
Lexi: no, does it look hot?
me: you look really pretty
Lexi (annoyed): but is it hot?
me(also annoyed): yep

last week while we're making breakfast for dinner, Lexi sitting on the counter
Lexi: I'm so cute making waffles!

Few weeks ago, as I was heading to the temple.
Lexi:mom, where are you going?
me: to the temple
Lexi: I want to come to the temple!
Me: Sorry sweetie, just moms are going
Lexi (sobbing now):But I want to go to the temple. Mommy, I want to go with you!
She was so upset. It was so sad and so cute at the same time. I had recently taught her the song I love to see the Temple, and I think she just thinks it's a castle. I told her I'd take her to see it sometime.

Today, while we were practicing "little letters"
I taught her the capital letters during the summer, so now we've been going over the lower case. On the back are pictures that start with that letter, so after she'd get a letter right I would show her the pictures and say "a, like apple; e like egg,"etc., but Lexi's versions of what the pictures were cracked me up, especially because she is so excited when she says it:

i = ink "like messy!"
d = dog "like a puppy!"
h = horse "like pony!"
j = jet "like air -a -plane!"
l = lion "like tiger!"
o = octopus "like jellyfish!"
r = rose "like flower!"
x = x-ray "like a picture!"

She's definitely not picking up on the link between the letters and pictures!

Baby Tag

2008-09-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

Name and meaning: Jackson Tyler Luszeck. We just liked Jackson, but I don't know what it means. Tyler is Jeff's brother's name.

Age: 20 months
Nicknames: Little guy, little dude, Jack Jack, bud

Favorite Activities: swimming, eating, reading books, playing at the park, destroying the pantry, playing with water, watching cars go by out the window from his crib (he probably does this for an hour a day after he wakes up!), and standing on the stool

Favorite Foods: chocolate banana protein shakes (he stands on the stool to watch while I make mine every morning then helps me finish drinking it), pasta, popsicles, peanut butter

Least Favorite Foods: veggies. He usually just spits them out!
Favorite Music: Anything. I sing to him a lot, and he loves to dance around. He loves Itsy Bitsy Spider, BINGO, primary songs, the wicked soundtrack, and rockin' out to The story by Brandi Carlisle
Favorite Toys: The puppy, cars, anything Lexi is using, cups
Favorite Book: He just loves books. I regularly find him sitting on the floor with a book in his lap like today (I didn't pose him for this picture). He loves The Hungry Caterpillar, any touch and feel books, pop-up books, etc. I love listening to the excited oohhs and aahhs and squeals he makes when he's "reading."

Favorite item of clothing: nothing that I've noticed, but he loves his blankie ("deetee")

What makes him happy: mom and dad and Lexi, his blankie and bottle, getting what he wants , eating

What makes him sad: when Lexi hurts him (which happens many times a day), getting something taken away from him, when I leave

Jane's Brithday

2008-09-14T14:07:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I flew up to Utah to celebrate Jane's birthday. Jet Blue now flies direct from LV to SLC for $50 each way, so it makes it easy to get up for a quick trip. Friday night Jane picked me up at the airport with her kids. We got the best Thai food on the way home...mmm. That night we just ate and hung out and talked to my parents and Jenn a bit.

Saturday we woke up and Jane and I headed to Salt Lake to check out her new house which is being remodeled. It was AMAZING! It looks great, and I can't wait to see it completely done, furnished, and decorated. They will move in this week. Jane's friend, Erin, met us at the house, then we headed to the Cliff Spa at Snowbird. I worked out while Jane got a pedicure, then we all laid out by the pool on the top of the hotel. Check out this view! Brooke Clayton and Jane's HILARIOUS friend, Julia, came and joined us. We were starving when we left, so Erin, Jane, and I went to eat at Red Robin. I think I found my newst addiction: their fries and BBQ dipping sauce. To die for! They brought Jane a piece of ice cream cake for her birthday.

That night Jane, Whitney, the kids, and I went to the reception for our second cousin, Elizabeth Florence. I hadn't seen anyone in the their family for years, so it was really fun to catch up.

Sunday morning Whitney made us a delicious breakfast: sausage and homemade chocolate chip pancakes served with whipped cream. So yummy! Then we headed to SLC to attend their ward. Everyone there was SO NICE. I have never been to a ward where people were so welcoming. And it was fun to run into one of my old friends, Stan Olsen, who is in their ward.

After church we had planned a surprise party for Jane at the Clayton's house. It was so fun! Whitney and the Claytons made an awesome dinner and cake. Dad and Anna

Sisters

Happy Birthday Jane, I love you!!

Beverly Hills...That's Where I Want To Be!

2008-09-05T14:30:00.001-07:00

For labor day weekend, Jeff and I celebrated our 6th Anniversary (which was actually back in July) with a trip to Beverly Hills/Hollywood. Jeff's parents agreed to watch our kids so we could enjoy a weekend of fun. And I had Hilton points left over from when I worked at PwC and travelled a ton, so I booked us a room at the Beverly Hilton for the weekend.
We went to Santa Monica beach. (Which was okay. I've been spoiled by Hawaii beaches!) We lounged by the pool. We ate out and just relaxed! We were able to meet up with Travis (one of my friends from BYUH) and his date, Monica. We went to dinner in Westwood village right by UCLA and then got ice cream cookie sandwiches at Diddy Riese. Then we went to the Griffith Observatory, where there was an amazing view of the valley.

At Griffith Observatory

Then we got Pinkberry frozen yogurt and ate it on our balcony. So yummy! (PS I feel kind of dumb with all these pictures of just me. That's the problem when there's just two of you!)

Rodeo Drive

That night we went to see Wicked, which was AMAZING!!

Then we walked down Hollywood Boulevard to the Chinese Theater where all of the movie premiers are

And in front are the hand and footprints of celebrities
We saw the stars along the street (I uploaded this pictures several times and it would always rotate the wrong way!)

And we walked around Hollywood and Highland Center and got a bite to eat

We met Jeff's parents and the kids at Ikea and then took them to lunch. Thank you so much for watching the kids for us! We had a blast!

Summer Update...again

2008-08-25T21:29:00.000-07:00

I don't know why I've had such a hard time keeping up with blogging this summer, but I have! Here's a little update of what we've been doing:

A few weeks ago, my friends and I dressed up and went to a Breaking dawn release party. Are we lame or what? haha We went to Claim Jumper first to eat, then went to a Barnes & Noble where they had all sorts of activities. I finished the book last week, and it was okay. A little too long for me, so I'm happy to have it done!

We've been playing at the park, and I started tennis lessons again

Weeeeeeeeee!

A few weeks ago, Mike & Lindsay came into town for a visit. They got a room at the JW Marriott, so we joined them for dinner and then went swimming. The next night Lindsay and I met and went to see MaMa Mia.

Lexi & Kaitlyn

Our special little guy! haha
Here's a picture from their visit in June. We met them at Mandalay Bay for dinner then hung out at their suite at the MGM. So fun!
The weekend of Aug 8th we took a very quick trip to Utah. We got to Provo after midnight Friday night. Saturday we drove up to Heber to meet our friends from Indianapolis. We spent the day with the Gibbs and McKees. We shopped in Park City and swam at an awesome pool in Kamas. That night we got sitters and met up at Tucanos for dinner, shopped at Riverwoods, and went to see Hancock. It was so fun to see them again! Sunday we went up to Wildwood to see Paxman relatives and visit, then we had dinner at my parents' house with some of my family and had to pack up and drive back to Vegas. On the way home we stopped for our first time at Fort Cove and took the little tour, and sadly that is the only time I took pictures the whole weekend! We had a great time, but I don't think we'll do a trip to Utah for that short of a time again!

Here in Vegas we've been doing a lot of swimming, and Lexi is starting to swim on her own. Here's a little video of it:

That's about it for now!

Welcome Home Elder Luszeck!

2008-08-07T20:01:00.000-07:00

Two weekends ago we went to California to see Jeff's family, especially his brother, Tyler, who had just returned from a mission to South Africa. It was so fun to see him again and have him meet Jackson for the first time. It was a quick trip (Friday night - Sunday night), but we had a great time.

Saturday Jeff's parents were nice to take the kids shopping for toys so me, Jeff, Reid, and Tyler could go see Batman. It was awesome!
Amber, Macie, Lexi, and I went to the nail salon. Lexi got her first manicure and pedicure, and she was in heaven!

Lexi actually sat still the whole time!

She got pink with white polka dots.

Saturday evening we all went to a park and had dinner. Here are Jackson and Gavin. Jackson and Macie
Uncle Reid bought the kids ice cream
Jackson had a total break down when Jeff took his ice cream away!
That night we went to a dance festival put on by the youth from 12 stakes. This week there is an article about it in Church News.

It was quite impressive when all 2,600 of the dancers ran in to the stadium!

We spent most of our spare time having Guitar Hero battles! So fun!

Sunday we went to church and heard Tyler speak, then we had lunch and had to drive home.

Summer in Vegas

2008-07-29T15:45:00.000-07:00

Last summer we travelled so much that we didn't get to experience much of summer in Vegas. Not this year! It's been different to spend more time home between trips, but it's been a lot of fun, too. Here are some things we've been up to:
Back in June we went with three other families to see Beauty and The Beast at Spring Mountain Ranch.

At the end of June I got together with two friends from high school, Lisa and Tammy. I hadn't seen Lisa for about ten years. Way too long! It was great to catch up.

A few weeks ago another friend from high school, Lorianne, came to Vegas for a convention and stayed with me for a few days. It was perfect, because Jeff was in Mesquite golfing with his high school friends that weekend.

One morning Jackson was playing in the pantry when I saw something behind his back. I thought, "that cockaroach has really thick legs!" Then I looked closer to discover that it was a scorpion! Yikes! Luckily it was already dead and we haven't seen any others. Isn't that the creepiest looking bug ever?

The kids have been doing their usual playing and getting into things. One day I heard Jackson whining and when I came downstairs I found him stuck in the stroller!

We took the kids back to Spring Mountain Ranch a few weeks ago to see 1776, and it was a disaster!! The kids lasted an hour, and when we left, Jeff said, "Is it too much to ask that they just sit still for an hour?!!!" I reminded him that they are one and three, and yes, it is too much to ask! We're definitely getting a babysitter for Aida next month.

Last week I took Kim to dinner at RA for her birthday (finally)! The sushi was to die for! And we shopped at the Nordstrom sale.
Last week we had a blast with Kathryn and my sister, Jenn, who came to visit for a few days. We had nothing but fun for days! We swam and ate and swam and ate and shopped and ate! The kids loved being spoiled by grandma, and it was so nice to have one-on-one time with her again.
We ate at the best Thai restaurant one night. It's my new favorite place.
The kids kept us busy during dinner by spilling drinks, screaming, banging in the table, etc. Ugh!

Wednesday night we had a BBQ and swam at the Tews.
Thursday I got a sitter, and the girls went shopping and to lunch. It was so fun. Thanks again Kathryn!! We had a blast!! Come again soon!

Portland

2008-07-09T15:07:00.001-07:00

For the 4th of July, we went to Portland to see my mom, Kurt, and my brother, Jon. We had the best time! My mom and Kurt totally spoiled us!! They were so helpful with the kids, fed us great meals and had all sorts of fun things planned. It was so great to spend time with them again. Besides a brief few hour visit in Utah a few weeks ago, my mom hadn't seen me or the kids since Jackson was born!

It was Jackson's first time on an airplane
Here the kids were entertained by the DVD player (at least for a few minutes!) and were sharing headphones for the first time. Jackson first tried to eat them! We had to show them how they worked in his ear.
Kurt picked us up at the airport and took us to meet mom and Jon at a park for dinner and to let the kids play. It's so green and beautiful in Portland!

Wednesday morning mom took us to the zoo. I think that was the kids first time at one.
You can buy cups of juice to feed the birds
One of them hopped on my shoulder. As scary as that was for me (not a huge animal person) it was better than the bird that pooped all over my foot and in my shoe! One got Lexi, too.
Giraffe
The kids got to pet and brush baby goats

That afternoon we drove to the beach house that my mom and Kurt built on their own. It's amazing!! When we got there we all walked out to the beach.

We're here!

The kids loved playing in the water

View of South Bend
relaxing on the deck. We did a ton of relaxing and just hanging out, which was so nice.
me and mom - check out the view from the deck! The sun actually came out for a few hours, so we were able to lay out and enjoy the warmth

One of many delicious meals. We also tried oyster shooters (not a huge fan) and had some fresh local crab dipped in butter (to die for!)

We went for several walks. It was nice and cool - highs in the 60s, which felt great after the Vegas heat!
Nana bought sparklers for the kids on the 4th, which they loved
Then we sat on the porch and watched the amazing firework show the neighbors put on
Saturday we drove back to Portland. Kurt arranged a babysitter that night and went to a nice restaurant on NW21st. It was so nice to have a quiet, peaceful meal without the kids interrupting or destroying something!
Sunday morning we got together with our friends from BYUH, Jeremy and Kristin, who now live in Portland. We hadn't seen them in years, and it was so fun to catch up!
Then it was time to say goodbye! Thanks so much for the great week mom and Kurt! We love you!!

Utah

2008-06-30T18:54:00.001-07:00

Last week I took the kids to Utah. It was a crazy week! I always forget how hard it is to have your kids at someone else's house, especially when Jeff isn't there with me to help.

Thursday night and Friday we went up to the cabin at wildwood. Kel was in town with her kids so it was really fun to see them again. The kids loved exploring the cabin and deck, playing in the water, and being with family. I enjoyed little tidbits of conversation that I could squeeze in between running after one child or the other and playing tennis with my dad.

Jackson on the deck
with Aunt Jenn
his first ride in a big boy swing!
Jackson LOVES my dad
Lexi got to play a lot with Katelyn

Saturday I went up to Salt Lake to get together with Jane's family, my mom (who was in town to help Jane shop for her house), and Isaac's family. We had dinner and then had a little birthday celebration for Lexi and Brooke. The girls couldn't have been happier with their princess cake!

Paxman cousins minus Sierra

Sunday plans changed (again!), and I stayed down in Provo. I went to Brooke & Rich's ward with Kel and her kids and Kathryn and Jenn. It was fun to see what their ward was like. You could just tell it was full of GREAT people. I ran into some friends from BYUH and one from BYULondon.

After church, Jackson loved being held by grandpa. I tried to get him to come to me so I could put him down for a nap, but he would just give me this smile as if to say "sorry mom, I'm happy where I am!"

Cute PaxHoop cousins enjoying popsicles

Monday Jane and I played waterballoon games with all of the kids outside and then went swimming at the Dastrups. They live up Provo Canyon and have the most beautiful place with an amazing view! That night JonJon came into town and we all had dinner and then did birthday cake for Lexi and Brooke with everyone. I can't believe my baby is three!

Cake, again!

And more presents!

Tuesday most of my family left to Lake Powell. Jane and I took our kids to the dinosaur museum with Elizabeth Harmer. It was really fun. Afterwards I packed up the car and the kids and headed home a day early! We made it home in five hours with no stops again. It's been nice to be home. I decided no more trips without Jeff. It's too hard!

Family Update

2008-06-16T14:51:00.001-07:00

Well, it's been a long time since I just gave an update on the kids and what's going on with our family in general. So, here it is!

Jackson - he's 17 months now. In a few more weeks he'll go to nursery, and we can't wait! He is in to everything, loves making messes, and has a temper that already scares me! If you take something away from him, he'll start screaming, throw himself onto the floor, or the latest is he'll just start hitting and knocking things over. So fun! He still doesn't talk much. He's got mama, dada, Jackson (also sounds like "dada," but he points to himself), "nnn" for nose, moo sound, "woof woof" sound for dogs and "more," which he signs. A few weeks ago I went looking for him in the hall and found this:

and within a few days I went into the kitchen to get him, and he was no where to be found. Then I heard something and opened the door to this cupboard and found this:

Jackson also recently discovered how fun it was to lay back in the bath. Of course then Lexi had to show us that she could also lay back!

Lexi will be turn three next week. I can't believe it! She's having a hard time waiting for her birthday to get her presents, which she saw me buy a few days ago. Next time I'll shop without her! She has been busy lately. In May we signed her up for her first class. It was gymnastics and met once a week for six weeks. Here she is in her little outfit for the class:

She loves it. She calls it her "underwear dress!"

One night Jeff put it on Jackson. It looked so funny. Lexi didn't like seeing him in her dress!

The first day we got to class and Lexi ran to the mat and started biting her toes! My friend took a picture of it, becuase I didn't have my camera. Yuck! Lexi was a good head taller than everyone else in class. The teacher asked her how old she was, because it's supposed to be a class for 3 year olds, and she looks four. Lexi said "two." The teacher couldn't believe it, so she turned to me and asked, "how old is Lexi?" I just laughed and told her she really was two.

Here's Lexi on the bar doing her first and only flip. She thought it was scary, so the rest of the class when they did the bar she just hung from her arms and did a little swing back and forth. That was money well spent! :)

Last week Lexi also started swim lessons. Two of her friends, Ashley and Hailey, are also in the class. Lexi loves to run over to me during class and tell me what she did ("mom, I put my face under!" or "mom I kicked my legs!")

Poor Jackson just has to watch the action from his stroller.

Here's Lexi with Hailey and Ashley
A few weeks ago I found this Little Tikes climber/slide on craigslist. The kids have been on it all day everyday since. I think in the last three weeks we've already got our money's worth! We've had a crazy few weeks doing a ton of fun things. Lexi and I put on temporary tattoos!Last week we had classes every morning, two swim parties, and different things every night of the week. Here are the kids at one of the swim parties (they had a sandbox that they loved playing in after we swam).

And Wednesday night we went to the park and played tennis with our friends while the kids played at the park (we took turns watching the kids).

Thursday night we went to the temple. Friday night it was Ireland's first birthday party at the park.

Saturday Jeff went for an all day hike with the young men to the top of Mt. Charleston, and that night we went shopping at Town Square.

Friday night I was also asked to speak in church on Sunday. Ugh! Worst timing! They asked me to speak on how the Priesthood has affected my life. I did it, and I'm just happy it's over!

Jeff still loves the new firm that he is at, which is great. And me? I'm just trying to survive the craziness that is my life! :) No, things are great. I'm looking forward to a trip to Utah later this week to see my family/friends and meet my newest little niece!

I don't exist!

2008-06-09T16:57:00.000-07:00

So, I've seen several blogs where people have gone to the howmanyofme.com site and figured out how many people have their same names. Well, I just did it, and here was my result:

There are 0 (zero) people in the U.S. named Judy Luszeck!

Wow, all this time I thought I was someone! Not only that, but they say that there are no people with the last name Luszeck. They just wiped out our whole family!

Sunny California??

2008-05-29T15:40:00.000-07:00

A few weks ago Jeff was offered a position at a new firm. I don't know what he was more excited about... actually working for a new firm or the fact that we could work in a quick trip to Disneyland between the transition! (Actually, Jeff started his new firm on Tuesday, and so far he love it and sees great potential there - Yay!)

Anyway, Jeff stopped working for his old firm last Tuesday (May 20th), and the next morning we headed to California. We found a hotel on priceline, and within the first few minutes of checking in both telephones in the room were pulled to the ground by the kids, Jackson had unrolled the entire roll of toilet paper onto the bathroom floor, and Lexi set off the alarm in the elevator! Life with kids is never boring! :)

That afternoon we went over to Disneyland. We went on a few rides at California Adventure, and then Jeff's dad met up with us for a few hours.

That afternoon I ran into two different friends from high school - Quinn Fulmer, Aimee (Bradford) Malloy - and a couple we knew at BYUH. It's always fun to run into people you know.

Thursday was cloudy and cold. We took our time getting ready, and then went to Disneyland to meet up with Jeff's sister and her kids. It was so fun to see them again. We had only been there an hour or two when the rain started. Worst! It rained off and on the rest of the day. I had no idea it was supposed to rain and be freezing cold, so I hadn't packed for it. I finally just threw on Jeff's huge sweatshirt, rolled up my jeans, and off we went. The best part of the day was taking Lexi on Soaring over California for the first time. She loved it! We kept going on rides, but after a while the stoller was soaked, and we were so cold. It was around 5pm and Jeff wanted to stay, but when he asked Lexi if she wanted to stay and go on rides or go back to the hotel she immediately said, "hotel!"

That night we met up with my friend, Tammy, from high school. I hadn't seen her in years or met her husband or kids. We met them at Wahoos for dinner, and it was so much fun! Her kids are the cutest things! And it turns out that they know tons of our close friends. After dinner we went to their place and just hung out until midnight. (I wish we would have taken a picture!)

Friday we went to stay with Mike & Lindsay in San Clemente. It was rainy and freezing again, but the boys were determined to go to the beach, so they took wet suits and went body surfing for a few hours. That night, Lindsay, Stephanie, and I went out to dinner at Tommy Bahama and then got dessert at Red Robin. It was so fun to hang out.

Saturday the boys went surfing in the morning while we watched the kids. It was crazy! Lexi loves Kaitlyn, and they played together pretty well, but Jackson and Carson were hilarious! They just fought over anything and everything the other one had. They were seriously doing a tug-of-war and grunting and screaming over a stuffed animal at one point. It was so funny to watch! In the afternoon the boys took the kids to the beach, so Lindsay and I could go shopping at the Spectrum. We got Pinkberry frozen yogurt. To die for! I've been craving it ever since! We shopped a bit, and I ran into Tarah & Aimee! It was so funny to run into Aimee twice in a few days. And I hadn't seen Tarah in years. It was fun to have a quick catch up.

That night Brian & Steph came to Lindsay's and we all made pizzas and hung out. And I was introduced to another yummy treat - Sprinkles cupcakes! After the kids went down we watched Juno. Sunday we spent the day in Yucaipa at Jeff's parents' house and then drove home. We filled up for the drive home, and I had to take a picture of this! $4.05 a gallon. $60 to fill up the Camry! I remember the good old days when it was only $15 a tank!

What Happens In Vegas...

2008-05-18T15:43:00.000-07:00

This year for Mother's Day Jeff got me the best present: a full day break from the kids to have fun with my friend, Leslie, and relax! Jeff and Kris booked Leslie and I a room at the MGM hotel for Friday night. At 2:00 on Friday the boys took over at home, and we were off. It was so fun to have the Vegas Strip experience (well, the G-rated version of it anyway)!

First we stopped at the outlets to finish what we started last week. I got some cute shoes and jeans. It was really hot, so we checked in at the hotel and went right to the pool. After laying out for a little while we walked around to check out the different pools. We found the coolest pool, actually I guess it's an outdoor club at a pool, called Wet Republic (see below).

After we had had our fill of swimming/laying out we changed and went to dinner at Diego's, a Mexican place at the hotel. Then we went to see What Happens In Vegas. On our way to the theater, we ran into these Elvis Impersonators! It was after 11 when we got out from the movie, but we decided to head to the New York, New York roller coaster. It was the jerkiest roller coaster ever! We seriously felt like we had been beaten up by the time we got off! But it was fun. Then we had to get a little treat before we went to bed. Gotta love Haagan-Dazs! Mmmmm

So, part of the reason the boys gave us this gift was so we could enjoy a good night of uninterrupted sleep, and so we could sleep in as late as we wanted. Well, we got to bed really late, and at 4:45 I woke up to a screaming baby being walked up and down our hallway. Unbelievable! Not only did it wake me up, I couldn't fall back asleep, so I sat there in the dark until 6:15! It was a miserable hour and a half. I only ended up sleeping for five hours that night! Dang it!

In the morning Leslie and I just laid in our beds and talked for a few hours, then we hit the pool again.

We laid out, had virgin strawberry pina-coladas, and dipped in the pool when we got too hot. We also got tubes and used them in the lazy river for a while, but it was a little too crowded and crazy to enjoy. We gave our tubes away to moms with kids, and they were so happy!

At 2:00 we had to check out and head home. It was such a blast. Thanks Jeff and Kris for arranging such a fun day for us!

My Birthday

2008-05-14T16:44:00.000-07:00

Well, this is a few weeks late, but I wanted to thank everyone who made my birthday so great this year. It's always nice to be remembered by so many friends and family. The morning started with a sweet card from Jeff and a list of things he was getting me for my birthday, including a 90 minute massage (which I had the next day, and it was heaven!) and tickets to see I'm so excited! I have wanted to see it for a while now, and I've heard nothing but great things about the show.

I got this darling package from my mom with treats, fun gifts, and money for shopping.

My friends called and picked up lunch, and we all ate and hang out by the pool. Leslie told me she had made me a cake, and pulled these beauties out of a grocery bag! I love lofthouse sugar cookies! (Notice the sparkler candles on top!) Thanks again girls!

Leslie's birthday is a few days after mine, so a few of us met last Friday to go to the outlets and shop. They just opened a new section of stores with True Religion, and we each got a pair. Love them! :)

I also got several phone calls, cards, and emails. It was a great birthday!

Zion National Park

2008-05-04T21:04:00.001-07:00

This weekend we went to Zion National Park to camp/hike with our friends, The Jensons. We got there Friday afternoon (after a quick stop at the St. George Outlets!) and set up camp. We camped at the Zion River Resort, which was actually pretty nice. They had nice clean bathrooms and showers, a pool hot/tub, and our camping spot was right along the river (not to be confused with the spot by the highway - inside joke)!

Friday night we had tinfoil dinners and smores and just hung out by the fire. It got pretty cold that night, and the zipper on my sleeping bag was broken. I was fine until Jackson kept waking up. Ugh! I would move around, and he would finally go back to sleep cuddled in my arms. Only problem was that my sleeping bag would have moved off of me by that point, so I was cold, but I didn't want to move and wake him up. Oh, the sacrifice of mothers! haha Needless to say, I did not sleep well.

Saturday we went to Zions. We did the two mile Riverside Walk. Leslie made these cute little explorer packs for the girls that they carried with them. It was the perfect hike for kids. It's paved and is right along the river the whole time. We saw frogs, chipmunks, and even a long, skinny snake. At the end of the trail there's a nice sandy spot where you can go and play in the river.

The kids got nice and messy!

We got ice cream at the Lodge then went back to our campground. Lexi and I took a quick nap, and then we met everyone at the pool. After we made dinner, we put a movie on for the kids on our tiny portable DVD player.

And then the adults got to play cards!

Jeff found a new game for Jackson!

We got back today and after scrubbing ourselves clean, we all napped for hours. Then we cleaned, unpacked, and I think I've done about six or seven loads of laundry to remove the campfire smell from everything. It was a great weekend, but camping is just a ton of work with kids. Next time we're getting a hotel!

Visitors!

2008-04-24T14:02:00.000-07:00

Last week was a blast! My brother, Isaac, and his family came down to stay with us for Spring Break. I love to talk to Isaac & Liz about...life, marriage, family, the gospel, etc. We always stay up late talking, and I am still recovering from our discussions until 3 and 4am!

Sarah and Josh are getting so big. Lexi and Jackson loved playing with them and especially with Tucker, their dog. They followed him around and played with him the whole time (with the occasional kick, push, or punch). We're still working on being gentle!

Friday we swam and played at my friend's house (thanks again, Nicole!)

Then we went to the Strip at night.

We ate at Cheesecake Factory in Ceasar's Palace

Lexi loves uncle Isaac!

Then we watched the fountain show at the Bellagio

and went to the M&Ms store. We didn't get home until after midnight!

Saturday we swam at the Tew's and visited with Wayne & Patrice.

Lexi and "Flat Cooper" (my cousin's son, Cooper, sent us this as part of his class project on the book Flat Stanley). He's been to Texas, California, Oregon, Washington, and Nevada, and I just sent him to Utah.

Anyway, thanks for coming to visit Isaac, Liz, Josh, Sarah and Tucker!

Clark County Fair

2008-04-14T20:59:00.000-07:00

Friday night we went to the Clark County Fair in Logandale with some of our friends.

We had a great time. The kids loved seeing the animals
and especially petting some of them

One of our friends was there performing with her clogging class, so we got to see her. Lana, you did a great job!!

After that we ate yummy, greasy carnival food and then took the kids to go on some rides.

Jackson loved the first one...
but halfway through the second ride he started crying, and it was so sad to see him looking up at me everytime he went around! Lexi saw how sad he was, and she scooted over to him and put her arm around him to calm him down. It seriously was the sweetest thing she has done as a sister. I was almost in tears just watching how cute it was!! :) It almost makes up for all of the time she bullies him!

PS Saturday night we went out with some of Jeff's friends that were visiting. We met them at RA down on the strip for dinner. It was the BEST sushi I've ever had. Can't wait to go back. If you have a chance, go and get the Viva Las Vegas roll. It's to die for!

A little catching up...

2008-04-06T20:50:00.001-07:00

I'm getting behind, so here's a little update:

A few weeks ago Lexi got her first haircut! Jeff wanted to make sure we got it done, so he decided to take a chunk out of her hair so we wouldn't put it off any longer!

I wasn't sure how she would do when they cut her hair, but she loved it. She kept smiling and laughing and looking at herself in the mirror!
It's a little shorter than I wanted it (thanks to Jeff's little cut!), but I think it turned out cute.

Last weekend (last weekend in March) was so much fun. Friday night Jeff called on his way home around 5pm and said, "we should go out tonight." I called our babysitter, and she was available, so we dropped the kids off at 6 and headed to Red Rock. We ate a quick meal at Rubios (love their fish tacos!) and Capriottis and then went to see 21. It was so good! I loved it. It was fun to have a last minute date and to go out just the two of us for a change.

Saturday afternoon a group of girls went to get pedicures to celebrate Alyson's upcoming baby (she refused to have a shower). It's so nice to have my toes painted again.

This past week has been pretty mellow. The weather wasn't as warm as last week and the kids have been sick. Tuesday night I hosted book club. We discussed Life of Pi, which was so interesting.

This weekend has been fun. Friday night we went out with the Jenson's to Cheesecake Factory and to a few shops.

Most of the weekend has been spent watching general conference. It was crazy to hear that Elder L. Whitney Clayton is a new member of the Presidency of Seventy. Elder Clayton is Jane's father in law, so that is pretty exciting!

After conference on Saturday we headed to Red Rock to hike. Jeff and Lexi hiked up to this ledge.Today we watched general conference. I think my favorite talk had to be Elder Ballard's talk on mothers. Didn't you love that!!

Why I Love Vegas

2008-03-29T22:19:00.001-07:00

It's still March, and last week we went to the park a few times, went on several long walks with the kids in perfect weather, went swimming, and went waterskiing at Lake Mead. It's been so much fun, and it makes me excited for SUMMER!

At the pool...

Why swim when you can suck on the can of sunscreen?

Wednesday our friends that Jeff grew up with , the Crossmans, came into town for a youth trip. They brought their boat, and we met them at Lake Mead that afternoon. The weather was perfect...mid 80's with no wind. The kids loved being on the boat.

They were all smiles!Lexi loved the Crossmans
The water was pretty cold, but we decided to ski anyway. I got in one nice, long run, and I'm still sore from it! Haven't used those muscles in a while!Captain Jack!
We forgot how much we love boating. Maybe we'll have to go to Powell this year.

Also, since we're so convenientely located between Utah and California, we got to see my parents twice: wednesday night/thurs morning on their way to Cali and again Sunday afternoon on their way back. It was so fun to see them, The kids were in heaven!

Easter

2008-03-25T22:50:00.000-07:00

Easter was so much fun this year. It was a little hectic, too, because we had a BUSY weekend. Saturday we worked out, went to Springs Preserve, grocery shopped and then had a BBQ with the Jensons. That night we got home late, and I was in charge of Sharing Time the next day, so I stayed up until after midnight finishing preparing for that and getting ready for Sunday morning. Since Jeff is Executive secretary, he has meetings before church. Church starts at 9:00, so I have to get myself and the two kids all ready and out the door by 8:45. (And we are not morning people - we usually sleep until around 9:00!) So to get ready on time, I have to have EVERYTHING set out the night before: everyone's outfits, shoes, Primary stuff, and especially the diaper bag: prep sippie cups and extra milk, snacks, books, diapers, wipes, keys, etc.

When I woke Lexi up last Sunday, I told her I had a new Easter dress for her, and she was so excited! Here she is wearing it (along with the necklace she made in nursery).Jeff also has meetings after church, which means that I also bring the kids home alone. Last Sunday I got home, put Jackson down for a nap, and then made funeral potatoes. As soon as Jeff walked through the door, I ran the potatoes and ham to the Jenson's to start baking. I ran home, got the kids ready, and prepped eggs for the Easter Egg Hunt we were going to have. At three we met at the Jensons, where we had Easter dinner with their family and Felicity, Nathaniel, and Asher. We had a FEAST! Everything was delicious. We ate and ate and ate.

The kids loved playing in the back yard. Jackson just wandered all over.

Lexi loves jumping on their new trampoline. Here she is with Hailey.
After dinner we had the egg hunt, which the kids loved. Jackson didn't waste any time before he dumped everything out of his basket, opened the eggs, and found candy!

Affter the egg hunt, we had dessert. We had put the three girls outside to eat, and when they were done Jackson found their plates!

My Little Girl Is Growing Up...

2008-03-11T22:16:00.000-07:00

Well, Lexi is growing up (maybe a bit faster than I would like)! No, but she has taken a few big steps recently. She has been potty training for about a month now, and she is doing awesome. She pretty much did it herself. Last week she had a few accidents, and she still wears pull-ups while she's sleeping, but other than that she is in "big girl panties,"
and she is loving it.

And last weekend we took down her crib and put her in a "big girl bed" with "big girl bedding." She LOVES it! She has to show anyone who comes over, and every day she now tells me, "mom, I want to go to sleep." Hello - why didn't I give her a bed a long time ago! :) She hasn't fallen off of the bed yet, either, which I'm so happy about. I got the bed and all the bedding for a steal a few years ago (it was all used as the floor model at Pottery Barn), so it works for now. We still have to move stuff around on her walls and rearrange her room a bit to go with the change. Eventually I think the bed will be perfect for Jackson in a boys room. And there is a full drawer underneath the bed that we're using as storage for dressups and toys for now, but it is made to be a trundle bed, so it holds a twin matress and will be nice to have as an extra bed down the road for visitors.

Here is Lexi right before she slept in the bed for the first time. Can you see how happy she is?

Happiest Place On Earth???

2008-02-27T17:04:00.001-08:00

I'm not so sure anymore! Last week we spent three and a half days at Disneyland/California adventure, and we had more than our share of moments that looked like this:

The look on Jeff's face cracks me up. I can just hear him, "Lexi, we asked you not to _________ " (take Jackson's bottle, hit Jackson, hit mommy, hit daddy, climb on the railing, pull mom's hair, etc.)! I don't think Lexi has ever been so naughty! But, despite her bad behavior, the long lines, and the unexpectedly cold weather, we still had some fun.

On the first day there, a women came up to us and was cracking up. She looked at Jackson and said, "now that's JackJack (from the Incredibles) if I've ever seen him!" She couldn't believe that his name was actually Jackson, and we do call him JackJack sometimes. Everyone at the gym daycare calls him that, too.

So, what do you think? Do you see the resemblance? Pretty funny.
On Wednesday our good friends, the Banners, came to spend the afternoon with us. It was so fun to see them. Thanks for meeting us on a cold, windy day!Lexi and Kaitlyn have so much fun together. Here they are giving their CHEESIEST smiles!
That same evening Jeff's dad came and met us at Disneyland. He was so nice to watch the kids so Jeff and I could go on a few rides together. He also spoiled the kids at the toy store.

He got Jackson his first official Disneyland attire!

Lexi picked a pack of princesses. She was in heaven playing with them back at the hotel. I looked over at her right as she was going to sleep, and I loved how she had lined them all up in a row next to the bed.

On Thursday Jeff's sister, Emily, met us with her kids, and it was fun to see them.
One of the benefits of Lexi being a giant is that at 2 1/2 she already meets the 40" height requirement for many of the rides. On this trip she rode the Matterhorn, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, and Splash Mountain. I think this is how she got through all the big rides!

And I think this was Jackson's favorite ride for the week (as Jeff was wheeling the luggage from the hotel)!

At the end of the trip, we were all pretty exhausted. (I love how Jackson is sucking on Jeff's sweatshirt in this!) We're happy to be home for a while. I told Jeff no more trips until summer!

Miami

2008-02-15T15:16:00.000-08:00

Last week ( I guess it's been two weeks now) I drove up to Utah on Monday with the kids. We actually made it the whole 5 - 1/2 hours without stopping, which was a miracle to me! The kids did so great, thanks to our new DVD player. It was fun to be home for a day before Jane and I headed out to Miami...

Day 1 - The Endless Travels

Early Wednesday morning, Jane and I drove to SLC airport at 6:30 am to catch our flight to Miami. It was snowing, and after we boarded the plane, we sat there for three hours (without being able to get up) before we took off. Ugh! We were also starving, and by the time the food cart got to us, they were sold out of everything except bagels! So frustrating. So, we finally got to Atlanta and had missed our connection to Miami. They had rescheduled us on a flight the next morning, but we were determined to make it to Miami that night. We waited on stand-by for a few flights, and finally caught one a few hours later to Ft. Lauderdale. From there we shuttled to Miami airport, picked up our luggage, and headed to the hotel. We finally got there just before midnight Miami time.

Day 2 - Dinner for One
Thursday we slept in until 12:30! (That's only 9:30 Vegas time, so I didn't feel bad!) Jane felt totally sick when we got up, but I thought it was just a little morning sickness or something. I went down to the pool, ordered my virgin strawberry-pinacolada (the first of many!), and waited for her. It was a perfect day with clear, sunny skies. After a few hours, Jane finally came down, but only for about a half an hour. She was so sick and tired. She must have had the 24 hour flu or something. After she left, I went to the beach and swam by myself. I hadn't been to the beach since summer, and the water was perfect. I loved it.

Late afternoon I went back to the hotel and Jane was still feeling sick. I went and got her chicken soup at a deli, but she couldn't even eat that! Anyway, I was sitting there thinking, "I can either sit here in the hotel room, or I can just go out to dinner by myself." So I did! I had never gone to a restaurant by myself to eat, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Jane wanted me to stay close, so I just went to the restaurant on the patio of our hotel that overlooks the pool. Dinner was great, and right as I was finishing this band was setting up. They just looked like a few local kids, and I wasn't expecting to stay and listen, but then they played their first song, and they were AMAZING!! I ended up staying there until 11:30, talking to the band, and meeting some of the main singer's family who were sitting at the table right behind me. They've just been signed with a group that's part of Warner Brothers and have an EP coming out in March. You have to check it out: http://www.myspace.com/jacobjeffriesband. They don't normally play at hotels, they were just doing it as a favor to someone last minute. Lucky for me!

Day 3 - Just Another Day in Paradise
On Friday Jane felt much better - yay! We spent the day at the pool and the beach. We took our lunch to the beach, and all of these birds started coming towards us. While I was holding a sandwich one of the birds flew right by my hand, and it scared me so badly that I threw the sandwich in the sand. That night we went out to a restaurant called Nemos and shopped a little bit. On our way home we got mango & passion fruit gelato - to die for! (Don't ask me what I'm cracking up at in this pic!)

Day 4 - Good Day Sunshine

Saturday was forecasted to have scattered thunderstorms in the morning and afternoon. Luckily we woke up to sunny skies, and it stayed that way until around 4pm. It was so nice to have another day relaxing in the sun. We talked, laid out, swam, ate, walked on the path by the beach, and just had a great time. That night we were heading to the Ritz Carlton for dinner, but it started pouring rain, so we walked in the closest hotel to us, the Delano. Turns out it was the COOLEST place! The lobby was also a restaurant/bar, and everyone was totally done up. You seriously felt like celebrities were going to start walking by. We decided to stay there for dinner. The food was amazing, and it was so fun to people-watch.

When we got back to the hotel, we made some bows for our girls, watched a movie, and started packing.
Day 5 - I'm Leaving On a Jet Plane
Sunday we basically spent the day travelling home. We went to the airport early to try to get on an earlier flight, but everything was full. Dang it! We finally got home at 1:30pm.

It was so fun to see my kids the next morning. We spent the day hanging out and driving around Alpine/Highland looking for homes for Jane. Tuesday morning I packed everything up and headed back to Vegas. We made the whole drive without stopping again. It's been fun to be home for a few days...we're off to Disneyland again this week!

AND THANK YOU TO WHITNEY FOR SENDING JANE & I ON SUCH A FUN TRIP TOGETHER!!

Red Rock

2008-02-01T11:16:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday was a perfect day. It was sunny and clear, and we decided to take the kids to Red Rock and do our favorite hike to Calico Tank. It's 2.5 miles round trip, and Lexi walked the whole thing! Jeff carried Jackson in a pack, and he was happy to sit there and look around until about the last five minutes. It felt so good to get out.

Beloved Prophet

2008-01-28T22:14:00.000-08:00

Last night we heard that President Hinckley had passed away. It still hasn't really hit me. It is going to be so strange to watch conference in April and not have President Hinckley there. I sort of feel like he has been my prophet. (In the sense that he was the prophet that has had the greatest impact on my life so far.) When he became the prophet I was still in high school, and I have listened to him and his counsel through such important phases of my life - college, marriage, motherhood, etc. - through those years that really shape the direction your life will take. As much as I love him and will miss him, I have to say I am so happy for him that after 97 years of service, he can finally rest and also be reunited with his wife.

Happy Birthday Jackson

2008-01-22T10:16:00.001-08:00

Last week Jackson turned one! I can't believe it has been a year since he was born! I was looking back through some of his pictures, and I forgot how small he was! Here are some pics of him

just minutes after being born!
A few hours later
Two weeks old
A few months old
And last week...destroying his cake!
MMMMMmmmmm

It was all fun until I had to clean everything up! :)

More Fun Over the Holidays

2008-01-06T20:44:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm behind, so I'm just going to lump the rest of our trip to Utah into one post. Here are more highlights from our week...
1. I forgot to mention in my last post that for Christmas, Jane's husband, Whitney is sending Jane and I to Miami for five days in February! Check out the hotel! It may be pushed back since Jane is due in March and they are buying a house and have so much going on, but I'm so excited for whenever it happens! Here is the pool right on the beach.

2. Jeff and I took our kids and my sister, Jenn, to see the Bee Movie at Movies 8, and surprisingly the kids made it through the whole movie!

3. Celebrating grandma and grandpa Paxman's 65th wedding anniversary. A bunch of our Paxman relatives gathered at my parents house for a nice dinner and program. It was fun to visit with everyone.

4. Visiting with friends. Thursday we went to SLC to visit my best friend from growing up in Hawaii, Kaira. We hadn't seen eachother in a year and a half, so it was fun to catch up (even though Lexi was a total stink while we were there)! After that we went to see our friends from grad school in Indianapolis, the McKees, who now live in Heber. We love them! That night when we got to our car it was -2 degrees. Too cold for me! ( I wish I had pictures of all of this!)

5. Date night! Friday night Kathryn was nice enough to watch our kids (thank you!) so Jeff and I could go out. We went shopping and then ate at Zuppas. It was so good! Then we met Jess & Jaron up at Rich & Brooke's and played games until around 2am! We were tired the next day, but it was so worth it!

6. Annual Pope Christmas Party. Saturday we went to Louis & Chris's house to see all of our Pope relatives.

The Popes live up Hobble Creek Canyon, and there was a few feet of snow up there. Lexi jumped into it a few times. I loved this shot of her laying in it!

7. Seeing Josh in his full BYU football gear he got for Christmas. Santa really pulled through this year! :)

8. Music Appreciation. Saturday night Whitney, Jess, Jaron, Brooke, and I were up talking and hanging out. We got on the subject of music, and Brooke and Whitney, both very musically talented, gave us all a lesson in music theory. Whitney pulled out the guitar to demonstrate different chords, and then we all just sang songs while he played. At midnight Whitney wanted us to hear a new song, but we didn't want to wake anyone up, so we all bundled up in whatever coats and shoes we could find and piled in to his Landcruiser parked on the street out front. We sat out there for over an hour and listened to songs. It was so much fun, and the best part was at the end of it Whitney gave me the three mix CDs we had listened to.

9. Going home. As much fun as our trip was, it's always nice to come home. We got home Sunday afternoon, and that night we got to visit with more friends from Indianapolis. We hadn't seen them in years, and it was so great to catch up. Chelsea (on the left) was the YW president and I was her counsellor in our ward in Indy. She and Brad started dental school the year Jeff started law school. Kristen and Ken came the following year for Ken to attend law school.

Poor Brad - It's hard not to look small when you're standing next to Jeff (6'7") and Ken (6'5")!

Christmas

2008-01-03T10:41:00.000-08:00

We had a blast this Christmas. We went up to Utah to spend the week with my family. Christmas Eve a bunch of us gathered at the house for a nice dinner and program.

Jackson
Olivia, Jenn, and I
Grandpa taught Lexi the story of Jesus' birth using this toy nativity. She just wanted to play!
Here is the spread Santa left for Lexi.She loved her dress ups and shoes.
Jackson was happy just to sit on a box! Relaxing with dad after the fun was over.

After we were done opening presents, a bunch of us went sledding. It was Lexi's first time playing in the snow, and she loved it!

That night we went to my grandparents' house for dinner. Lexi stole sprinkles off of grandpa's piece of cake. Me and my greatest gifts!

Christmas Fun

2007-12-14T22:39:00.001-08:00

The last few weeks have been so busy with shopping, parties, and getting ready for Christmas. We have done some fun things. Tonight was Jeff's work party at Fleming's Steak House, and it was so good!

Last week was our ward Christmas party. They did a breakfast (instead of the usual ham dinner) and had a bunch of fun crafts and activities for the kids. My only complaint was that it was at 8am on a Saturday...way too early for me!

Lexi decorating an ornament
Jackson's first time sitting on Santa's lap (Lexi was too scared!)

Tuesday night we went to the Bellagio with Travis, a friend of mine from BYUH, who was in town. We had him take some pictures of us in hopes that we could use them for our first ever family Christmas card, but there wasn't one where all four of us were looking at the camera and smiling. Ugh! Here are some of the rejects. Luckily I did get one of just the kids that worked for a card...but you'll have to wait to get it in the mail to see it! Oh, and one of Jackson's shoes got left at home...nice socks! :)

After checking out the atrium, we all bundled in our coats and went outside to watch the fountain show, and it was FREEZING when the water sprayed us. Poor Jackson couldn't even move in his coat!

Thanksgiving

2007-11-27T22:18:00.001-08:00

We had a BLAST this Thanksgiving! We first spent two days at Disneyland and California Adventure. Emily and Amber met us with their kids. Lexi loves Macey and follows everything she does, so she was in heaven!

Heimlich's Chew-Chew Train.
Luszeck cousins
Mike & Kaitlyn met us that night, too.
watching the fireworksDay 2 Jackson goes for a ride on the Zephyr!
and on the carousel

and he met Chip or Dale (not sure!)

and rode in the stroller a lot.

Thursday morning we headed out to Emily & Steve's for Thanksgiving dinner with family and friends. We all had fun hanging out, playing cards, and eating, eating, eating. It was a perfect, warm & sunny day.

The boys

Lexi was happy with her princess sippie cup!

Grandma Luszeck fed Jackson

family photo - notice Lexi found dress ups!

That night we headed down to Laguna Beach and crashed the Banner family party at Steph's parent's house, which was amazing - complete with theater, elevator, dance studio, etc.! Friday the girls shopped and the boys played golf. It was so much fun!

The boys watched plenty of sports in the theater!

Lexi and KaitlynAfter the kids went down it was time for games!

We drove home early Saturday morning to miss traffic.

I spent most of the drive sitting between the kids entertaining them, as always!

I'm Thankful For...

2007-11-19T16:22:00.000-08:00

many things, but I'll just name a few (not in order of importance)

1. The fact that my sacrament meeting talk is now done!

2. My Kids. Here are some pics of our trip to see the dolphins and lions at the Mirage last week.

3. My husband. We finally went to Ruth's Chris Steak House Friday night to celebrate his birthday. The food was so good, and it was fun to have a night out without the kids!

4. Girlfriends. We had a girl's night out on Saturday night. We ate at Claim Jumper and then went shopping at the new Town Square. We loved it there! There is a huge new H&M, and I got some cute stuff!

5. Family (wonderful parents, siblings, aunts/uncles, grandparents, nieces/nephews, cousins, in-laws, etc.)
6. The gospel. What would my life be without it? I don't want to know!
7. Good food. If you know me, you know I love to eat! Can't wait for Thursday!
8. Freedom and opportunities.
9. Good Health.
10. Road trips. Our next one starts tomorrow...two days at Disneyland and then a weekend of fun with the Luszecks and friends in Cali.

Quick Update

2007-11-12T21:19:00.000-08:00

Wow, I'm behind again! For a quick re-cap:

Last weekend I felt like I hadn't fully celebrated fall, so I made this little Thanksgiving decoration with a bunch of things we're thankful for. Lexi saw it and said excitedly, "that's so cute!" I love her little compliments. Who knew a two-year-old could make you feel so good!

And I made yummy sugar cookies - cut into pumpkins and leaves. I hadn't made them forever, but they were so good! A week later they were still soft. And the frosting....yum!

Other stuff:
Jeff celebrated his big 3-0 last week! Unfortunately I got sick the morning of his B-day, so he opened presents but we postponed our visit to Ruth's Chris Steak House to celebrate. Can't wait to go soon!

Jackson got his first tooth last week! It's his top right middle tooth. I can tell the left one is going to come in any day now. Big news for him is that he is finally on a regular nap schedule and is sleeping through the night! I'm loving it!

And for the last two weeks Lexi has been just the sweetest, most obedient little girl! We don't know what happened, but we hope it lasts! :) She has been cracking me up lately with little phrases she picks up on. One of my favorite is that everytime she hears me say "Ouch!" (even when she's in the other room), she'll ask, "you okay? " or "what happened" and often offers "kisses" to make my owie feel better. She's been my little dancing queen lately, and it's been fun to put on music and just dance around together every day.

Jeff recently joined the gym I go to, and it's been so fun to work out together. We've been five times in the last week. I just hope we keep it up. We were asked to speak in sacrament next Sunday. The topic is gratitude. Anyone feel like writing a talk for me? :) I'm going to base it on Pres. Eyering's talk from conference on remembering and writing down blessing every day.

Halloween Fun

2007-11-02T21:49:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday we wanted to have a little fun, so we went down to Freemont Street (totally old/crappy area by the Strip) to try fried twinkies and fried oreos! I had heard about them for years and had wanted to try them, but it was a HUGE disappointment. They were so nasty! We tried a bite and then threw the rest away. Probably better that way...one less thing to crave! :)

Afterwards we met our friends at the Bellagio to watch the fountain show and check out their fall atrium display. It was awesome, as always! Here are a few pics from it.
This bucket of spilled apples was so cool.
I don't know where they found a pumpkin this big!
I just LOVED this tree creature.
Can you see the water fountains

shooting over Jeff's head?

And here are the kiddies on Halloween night.

We went to our ward trunk-or-treat,

which was a lot of fun.

Lexi just squealed with excitement when she saw her costume. It was so cute. She loves Barbie the Island Princess and asks to watch the movie every day. Now she wants to dress up everywhere we go. Yesterday we had to compromise to take off the dress and just wear the shoes and necklace to the gym and to run errands.

Jackson was our little cow.

Can you believe how blue his eyes are??

Thank you Luszeck genes! :)

(Another) Trip to Cali

2007-10-29T22:27:00.001-07:00

Last weekend (I'm behind - I mean the weekend of the 19th) we went to California for our friend's surprise birthday party on Friday night. Mike is Jeff's best friend from growing up, and a bunch of their old friends from Yucaipa were at the party. It was hilarious to hear all of their stories from high school. Jeff's parents watched the kids that night, and they were nice enough to watch them again Saturday morning so Jeff and I could go to the Redlands Temple.

Saturday afternoon we met some of Jeff's friends at the apple orchards in Oak Glen. Lexi was so excited to wear a balloon hat and ride on a little choo-choo train.

Sunday we went to church and had dinner with Jeff's family then drove down to San Clemente to stay with Mike & Lindsay. On our way down, we got kicked off the road due to a fire burning on a hill to the side of us. (This was the start of the fire that was in Orange County). It was pretty scary to see such a big fire burning so close to us and know that if the winds changed, it could head our direction at any time.

Monday we woke up and there was tons of smoke outside from all of the fires. Despite the poor air quality, we decided to head to Disneyland as planned. Jeff and I finally redeemed our annual passes that his parents had given us. We spent most of the day at California Adventure, which I had never been to. Loved it! They have the best roller coaster I have ever been on, and we loved Soarin' Over California, the Bug's Life kids rides, and the Maliboomer. Lexi was hilarious dancing with the Miner 49's band. They asked kids to come up and learn a dance. She didn't follow instructions like the other kids, of course. Instead, she just pushed her way to the front of everyone and just danced around. It was hilarious! She stole the show! We stayed until around 8:00pm, and by that time Jeff, Lexi, and I were exhausted...but Jackson was somehow wide awake! Where do kids get their energy from???

Jeff had to work the next morning, so we drove home that night. Due to the fires, the I-15 was closed, so Jeff and I had to drive through an alternate route which didn't get us home until 2am. We were dead, but it was such a fun weekend, and we can't wait to go back to Cali for Thanksgiving.

2007-10-18T14:30:00.000-07:00

Friday night we took the kids to a pumpkin patch.

Jackson hung out with Jeff

while Lexi got to go on rides!

He was still happy!

I attempted to get a cute shot of the kids with the pumpkins, but this is the best I could do with my SLOW camera (after which I informed Jeff that I need a new one!)

Saturday night we took the kids to the BYU/UNLV game. It was Jackson's first football game, and he loved it!

We were all happy that BYU won!

And Sunday, we went to church.

Fall Treats

2007-10-12T14:26:00.000-07:00

Last night we had a meeting at my house for a Music Makers group we're starting. I though it was a perfect excuse to make some yummy treats! I served Pumpkin Cheesecake with a Gingersnap Crust. Yum! I especially loved the crust! I found a few recipes off of allrecipes.com that I combined to come up with this:

Crust:
1 1/2 c. gingersnap crumbs
3 T. brown sugar
6 T. melted butter

Mix and press into the bottom of a 9" springform pan.

Cheesecake:
2 packages cream cheese
3/4 c. sugar
1 (16oz) can pumpkin
1 1/4 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. salt
2 eggs

Beat cream cheese and sugar. Add pumpkin and spices and mix. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well. Pour onto crust. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes. Chill overnight.

Top with a layer of homemade whip cream (add sugar and vanilla to taste).

NOTE: I thought the cheesecake could be a little bit sweeter. I think next time I try it, I'll increase sugar.

I also served Carmel Fondue with apples and banana slices. This recipe has been a favorite for years, and it's so easy.

1/2 c. butter
2 c. brown sugar
1 c. karo syrup
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Warm almost to a boil to melt sugars. Add vanilla.

Weekend Fun

2007-10-08T15:59:00.000-07:00

Friday night we had a ward luau. We dressed the kids up for it, and it was a lot of fun to eat and hang out with our friends. Lexi loved it. She danced up front during all of the musical numbers they had. And she found a few packages of butter that she thought was some type of dip, and she went to town! I think she was on her second package when we found her. Yuck!

We spent most of Saturday and Sunday watching general conference (which was great! I loved so many of the talks and felt really inspired to live better.), but Saturday night we went out with our friends to Tony Romas, since they had some all-you-can-eat ribs special. Halfway through the meal we piled all of our bones on one plate, and we were amazed at what we had eaten. Kris and I tied for the most with 2-3/4 racks of ribs each! I think we're all done with ribs for a long time!

It's Over!

2007-09-30T22:58:00.000-07:00

Wahoo! Our Primary Program for Sacrament Meeting is over! I feel like I just finished finals week or something - I even stayed up until 2am last night "cramming!" I had to put together a bunch of posters that the kids could read off of, and of course, I didn't start working on them until 10pm. So me!

I have to say, the kids really pulled it off and did a good job. After our disastrous practice on Friday I was a little worried, but the kids did great, and everything ran very smoothly today. All I have to say is, I'm glad I have a whole year until the next one!

What I've Been Up To

2007-09-27T22:06:00.000-07:00

I know I've been slacking on my posts lately, but things have been so busy, because I've been:

1. Reading: In the last two weeks, I finished Water for Elephants and Encyclopedia of An Ordinary Life, and I just started Eclipse last night.

2. Visit Teaching: three appointments this week, all at different days/times.

3. Planning the Primary Sacrament Meeting Program: I'm the counselor in charge of it, so I had to write it, assign parts, and coordinate our practices. Our last practice is tomorrow night, and the program is on Sunday. The rest of the presidency and our chorister have all been really helpful, too, but I'll be happy once it's over!

4. Working Out: I just joined a new gym last week, Las Vegas Athletic Club, and I love it! It is a lot further than the other gym I had been going to, but the facilities are much better, and I love the classes they have. I've been trying to get back into working out after slacking all summer. I've been taking the kids on walks, too, since the weather is finally cooling down.

5. Cooking/Baking: Now that our crazy summer travelling is over, I'm getting back into all of my normal routines...like actually cooking dinner! Something about fall also just makes me want to bake (and eat). In the last week I've made Reese's PB cookies, Ande's mint brownies, and Chocolate Scotcheroos. Mmmmm...

6. Running errands: After several trips to Costco, Vons, Smiths, and Walmart, I think we've finally restocked our cupboards and fridge. (All summer we were saying "let's not shop much, we're leaving again in a few days anyway," so our supply of food was severely depleted.) Plus there are the other usual errands. The kids both had doctors visits last week. We finally got Lexi measured, and she is 38" tall, which is off the chart for her age. The doctor said she's the height of an average 3 1/2 year old!

7. Watching TV: With football season coming, the pressure was on from Jeff to turn our TV back on after having it off for months. I was hesitant, but I agreed on the condition that if it becomes a problem, we'll cancel it. For the first time we got more than just five channels...we signed up for DishNetwork's top 100, and it includes Tivo. I still don't watch much, but I don't know how I'll ever go back to watching shows without Tivo. It's the best thing ever!

6. Taking care of the kids: Jackson is teething and has decided to stop taking naps. What a fun phase! :) I don't get how he sleeps so little. Not to mention that he still doesn't sleep through the night! He is crawling everywhere now, which is fun. Lexi hasn't been so great with naps, either, because long after I think she's asleep, she'll climb out of the crib and come inform me that she needs more juice or she has a dirty diaper or she wants to watch a movie. We're working on teaching her to answer "what is your name?" and "how old are you?" I think she mixes her answers more than she gets them right (What's your name?" "I'm two!"). Someday.

7. Other: We watched my cousin's three kids last weekend at their house. I had book club Tuesday night. Jeff and I taught the young women in our ward how to play tennis last week. We've been to the park a few times, since the weather is so nice. And Jeff and I met some friends at Claim Jumper last night for dinner, which was a lot of fun.

No wonder I've been so tired!

Newport Beach

2007-09-17T21:39:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I took the kids on yet another trip last week! We spent three nights at marriott's Newport Coast Villas. Our good friends, the Banners met us there, and it was so much fun to hang out with them again. We had perfect weather the whole time, so we spent quite a bit of time swimming and laying out by the pool, which overlooks the ocean. Loved it! :)

My brother-in-law's cousins live about ten minutes from the Villas, so I was able to arrange babysitters for the kids for Wednesday and Thursday nights. It was so nice to go out without the kids! We went out to dinner and then stopped by a bakery/ice cream shop both nights. I think I'm still full from all of the food we ate!

Friday we decided to go to Disneyland. I hadn't been in ten years, and this was the first time our kids had been. Lexi thought most of the rides were scary at first, and I couldn't blame her! Even I thought that Whinnie the Pooh's crazy dream and the little dolls in It's a Small World were a bit creepy. Lexi has just discovered Princesses, so she loved the parade. In a classic Lexi moment, she ended up watching the entire parade from the lap of a stranger in her scooter chair! The kids did suprisingly well all day, and we had a great time, but we were EXHAUSTED by the time we got home that night!

Saturday we spent more time at the pool before heading to Yucaipa to see Jeff's family. We crashed their ward's BBQ at the park. They had a bunch of stickers for the kids, and Lexi thought they accessorized her dress perfectly!

Now we're home again...for at least a few weeks.

Confession

2007-09-06T20:57:00.001-07:00

I bought this pack of Lofthouse frosted sugar cookies last night. There are ten cookies in the pack, and Jeff and Lexi each ate one. That leaves eight cookies that were devoured by me in less than 24 hours!

PS And no, I'm not pregnant, but at this rate, I'll probably look like it soon!

Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay

2007-09-05T14:14:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine arranged to have a tour of the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay for our kids. It was a lot of fun (minus two or three very loud tantrums)! Lexi is officially in the terrible twos.

Since she's obsessed with Finding Nemo, she was

excited about all of the "fishies."

And Jackson was just along for the ride!

While we were in this tunnel surrounded by water, a diver was in the tank. He came down in front of a couple and held up a sign that said, "Jennifer, I love you. Will you marry me?" -Noah. And then the guy got down on one knee and proposed. Only in Vegas.... I felt bad for them that our stroller parade happenned to be in the tunnel with them.

Tew's Pool

2007-08-30T21:37:00.000-07:00

I don't know how we would survive summer in Vegas without my aunt & uncle's pool. They are so generous with it. They told us to come swimming any time - and we do! We often invite groups of friends to come with us, and we have so much fun. There are a bunch of waterfalls off the back and a great waterslide that make it really fun. Tuesday night we went over with some of our friends for an evening swim. Lexi loves to swim. She is FEARLESS. I almost wish she had a little fear to make her cautious, but she will just walk/jump/slide in to the water without any hesitation. We usually keep a life jacket on her, and she does really well swimming with it.

Stating the Obvious

2007-08-29T13:39:00.000-07:00

As you can tell, I had a new header and template made for my blog. I LOVE it! It's so much better then my old one. I wish I could take credit for it, but I'm not that creative or technically savvy. Anyway, the person who designed it is Kristen with KMH Scraphic Designs, and she only charges $25 for the custom header and new template. What a steal! Here's her blog info in case you're interested in updating your own blog: http://kmhscraphicdesigns.blogspot.com/.

PS She also did my friend's blog if you want to see it here.

Weekend in Utah

2007-08-27T22:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I just spent the day unpacking from yet another trip. Ugh! I love to travel, and this summer has been a lot of fun, but I think I have been gone more than I've been home in the last few months. I almost forget what it's like to just have my normal day-to-day life here in Vegas. I'm so ready to be home for a while that I actually talked Jeff into postponing our trip to Hawaii that we had planned for September. (I know, I'm kind of regretting that now, because a vacation without the kids does sound pretty nice!)

Anyway, we just went up to Utah for a really quick trip this weekend. We arrived around 2:00am Friday night (I guess technically it was Saturday morning!), and the kids were WIRED! Lexi was jumping all over the bed, dancing, singing, and laughing, and Jackson was squealing and making all sorts of noise. We kept trying to calm them down so they wouldn't wake up my sister and her family in the next room.

Saturday we slept in a bit and then went up to Wildwood to see my grandparents. We had a great time visiting. Grandma took Jackson on the swing at the park. I hope I'm still riding swings when I am 88! Then grandma watched Jackson while Jeff and I took Lexi tubing down the Provo River for the first time. We weren't sure how she would do, but she LOVED it. She rode on Jeff's lap, but she would stick her hands and feet in the water, and then she started leaning back and dunking her whole head in the river. It was so funny.

That night we went to Grandma & Grandpa Pope's for Grandpa's huge 85th birthday party. They had a really nice dinner outside in their garden, and there were over 300 people there. Now that's a party! It was a beautiful night.

It was really fun to see a bunch of family and friends there. I also ran into Brother Flake and his wife. They were my teachers for the spring term that I spent at the BYU Jerusalem center, and I love them! Brother Flake loves babies and held Jackson all during dinner for me, which was so nice!

Sunday we went to church and had dinner with my family, and then we got home around 11:30 last night. Today I've done nothing but clean, grocery shop, unpack, do laundry, sort mail, etc., and I'm exhausted! Good thing I have a whole two weeks before our next trip! :)

Tagged

2007-08-19T22:25:00.000-07:00

I know, I'm way over due for a new post! This last month has been crazy (I feel like I'm always saying that). I've been gone more than I've been home, so I have a lot of catching up to do before we leave again in a few days...

Anyway, Leslie tagged me, so here you go:

1. What is the best thing you cooked last week? homemade chocolate chip cookies. I modified Jane's recipe just a little, and they are to die for!

2. If money, time and babysitting were no object where would you go and with who? I've always wanted to go to Tahiti. I would go with Jeff, of course, and a group of family or friends - couples only - no kids.

3. When was the last time you cried? I'm trying to think...oh, it was two weeks ago in Utah. Jane and I were watching some chick flick and we both got choked up at one part...and then we immediately burst out laughing at ourselves.

4. What is the most played song on your ipod right now? I can't find it or I would check, but it would be something from my work out play list. Probably "Stay" by No Motiv.

5. Is there something on T.V. this week that you are more excited about than the So You Think You Can Dance Finale? Well, we decided to get rid of TV in our house months ago, so I'm totally out of what's on, but Friday night while I was babysitting/housesitting for my cousin we all gathered and watched the premier of High School Musical II on the Disney Channel. And let me just say.... "You are the music in me....nanana, yea)!" haha

Okay, I tag Jane and Lindsay

Five Years!!

2007-07-26T23:24:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I just celebrated our five year anniversary. I can't believe it's been five years since our dramatic/traumatic wedding that almost never happened! :) It's funny to me that I can look back on that day and honestly say that it was both the worst/most miserable and the best/happiest day of my life. (Well, it's funny now!) Fortunately it started awful and ended happy and not the other way around! Note: it helps to decide whether you are going to get married before you actually show up to the ceremony, lol!

On our anniversary I was thinking how fast the time has gone and how much our lives have changed. So, two moves, one law degree (Jeff's), one very short accounting carrer (mine), and two kids later...here we are!