We'e back!!

Hey everyone! We are finally back from our super long trip! We went to see the California Williamsons and then on to Disney!

The kids and I really enjoyed spending time with and getting to know the family. They are very excited to have lots of aunts and uncles and another grandma and grandpa and they were spoiled rotten with lots of attention and fun. Sean was able to go to the park and play baseball and make cool things with his uncles, and have treasure hunts with his Auntie Kris. One of his uncles even went with him on rides at a little amusement park. I just wish the time hadn't gone by so fast!

We finished up the trip by spending 5 days at Disneyland...and that was a blast! The kids are at a fun age and were able to enjoy all that Disney had to offer. Sean is so like his mom and dad and loves roller coasters and thrill rides. We spent a lot of time on Space Mountain (the family favorite), Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and things like that. Eric and I were the biggest kids of all. We couldn't wait to get to Disney each morning when it opened! We proudly wore our mouse ears and smiled so big our faces hurt. :) Avery really loved Peter Pan, Monsters Inc., and Pirates of the Carribean. But what she loved most of all was Buzz Lightyear. She LOVES Buzz and I mean LOVES Buzz!! She had to hug and kiss him multiple times per day. The princesses are next in line and after she was able to hug and kiss her Buzzy, we went to see the princesses. Avery was so excited to meet them and was even able to get her hair done just like a real princess. She loved that!

The only sad thing is that I dropped and broke our camera early in the trip, so the only pictures we have of Dinsey are the ones they took for us. I have to order those (of course) and so I won't be able to post them for awhile.

On Vacation

Will post next weekend! :)

Who knew?!?

You Are Cinderella!

Dignified and hard working. With a gentle and soft-spoken manner you have something many people don't. Patience. Even through the moments of heartbreak you're still able to hold onto all of your hopes and dreams. Bide your time; your dream will come true.

Which Disney Princess Are You?


I have to say, I wouldn't have guessed it! :) But it is right about one thing, I never stop believing that my dreams will come true!

Day from Hades

I was reading my friends blog entry (kaylynn) and I had to laugh! I thought it was going to be about how great motherhood is and as it turns out, it was about how bad it can be at times. I have just had the day from hades! Really! There is just no other way to describe it. I throw in the towel and admit defeat. This job is too hard! :)

Sean got in tons of trouble at school (which he never has before, and while I was on the phone Avery got into the cats litterbox (EWWWWW) and dumped the entire contents all over the office...on the floor, on the furniture, on my papers, I mean everywhere. As if that weren't enough, I spent over an hour talking with Sean and sharing scriptures and stuff with him and nothing got through. I feel totally and utterly exasperated. Sometimes, we try and try and just see no results. At least it's that way at our house right now.

I am taking a bath and going to bed! Please oh please let tomorrow be better! :)

I've been Tagged!

Tag!! I've been tagged by Cindi!

20 YEARS AGO...
1. I was 11 years old and I hadn't found the church yet.
2. I was living in Illinois and attending an all girls college prep school.
3. I was listening to the Fine Young Cannibals "She Drives Me Crazy" and Phil Collins "Groovy Kind of Love". :) Those are the songs that I always associate with that time in my life.
4. This was the year that I discovered my love for volleyball and earned the nickname "mitochondria" because I was our class powerhouse on the court (and we were learning biology that year). :)

10 YEARS AGO...
1. I was 21 and living in Salt Lake City.
2. I was in my third year as a Big Sister for Big Brothers/Big Sisters and loving it.

5 YEARS AGO...
1. I had been married for two years. :)
2. I was the Mom of a very cute one year old boy named Sean.
3. I was working nights and taking care of Sean during the day. I was tired!!
4. We had decided we were going to buy a house and started the search.

3 YEARS AGO...
1. We were still in Illinois, but living in a different town in our very first house!
2. I was pregnant with Avery and very sick. This month three years ago marks the first of many hospital visits during my pregnancy.
3. My Mom came to stay with our family to help take care of Sean and me. :)
4. I was serving in the primary presidency in our ward.

1 YEAR AGO...
1. We decided to leave Illinois and move the family to North Carolina.
2. I was in Illinois by myself with our two kids trying to sell our house.
3. Eric was in North Carolina working and waiting for the house to sell so we could be together.
4. We were in limbo limbo limbo :)

THIS YEAR...
1. Is the best year yet! We sold our house early in the year!!!
2. We packed up and moved to North Carolina and we were all together again! Yes!
3. Sean started kindergarten!
4. I was called to serve in the young womens presidency my second week here! Yikes!

YESTERDAY...
1. Was a very bad day to be a mom! Avery got into the litterbox, Sean got in trouble at school, and Eric had to work very very late!
2. I started packing for our trip to California ( we are going to see Eric's family and then to Disneyland)!
3. I did a ton of laundry and wished for a maid!

TODAY...
1. I went to a friends house to make candles! It was fun and I learned a lot.
2. I am doing more laundry and trying to get things ready for our trip.
3. I am working on the young women's lesson I have to teach Sunday.
4. We were going to go to the temple but Eric has to work late, so I will try to get the kids to bed on time and enjoy the quiet.

TOMORROW...
1. I am getting my hair done! Yes! Finally, some time for me! :)
2. Running a ton of errands!
3. Taking Sean to a friends birthday party.
4. Playing Volleyball

NEXT YEAR...
1. Sean will be in first grade
2. Avery will start preschool
3. I will have more free time! Yes!

Updates

Hanna came through last week and she was about as dramatic as a thunderstorm. :) We had a little wind and a ton of rain, but we didn't lose power and all was well. A few flooded places here and there but nothing too severe. Ike is the one I'm worried about now. It's headed for Florida and that's where my Dad is right now. We plan to keep an eye on it and hopefully it won't strengthen as it heads for the U.S.

Now for the volleyball update...well, tryouts were nerve racking (I hate doing that kind of thing) but in the end it was worth it because I made the team! Yeah! So, now I can play once a week at church and once a week competively. I'm excited! I always feel so good after playing and it keeps me in shape which is becoming more important as I climb the hill towrads old age! :)

Bracing For Hanna

Okay, so this is offically our first North Carolina hurricane experience. They are really taking this thing seriously and the temple and church have been closed for at least today and tomorrow, maybe Sunday depending on what Hanna brings us. In the past, hurricanes that have hit NC have really caused problems and the last major one that occured was Fran who left people in our area without power for 5 plus days. I went to the store to buy a few more things and boy was it crowded.

Hanna is expected to hit us in the wee hours of the morning and stick around most of the day tomorrow. Hopefully all will be well. We have a ton of tall pine trees in our yard and we will be watching those closely. Will let you know how things turn out!

More Volleyball

Ok, so I've been bitten by the volleyball bug. It has always been my favorite sport and since we've moved here I have had the chance to coach the young women as well as play every week with the men/women. I love it and I look forward every week to my volleyball night. As if that weren't enough. a couple of the women and I decided to try out for a real league so we could play even more. :) So, Saturday, I will put myself on the line and try out for a real team! I am nervous and excited! I always wanted to play in high school but I was too shy and wouldn't try out. I feel like this is my second chance and I am going to take it. :) We are getting together this afternoon to practice/hone our skills some more. Wish me luck at tryouts and hopefully I can stay injury free (especially since we are going out of town for a week and a half later this month).

Labor Day Adventure

We have all been so very busy lately and we really haven't had much time as a family, so we decided to go away for labor day weekend. We went to Charlotte because they have a six flags type amusement park there and also a great childrens museum. We spent Saturday at the amusement park and had a blast. They had a ton of rides the kids could go on and even scaled down versions of roller coasters like batman. Sean is like his parents and he loves roller coasters. He went on every ride he was tall enough for. Avery, our giant girl, was tall enough for most of the roller coasters (and she's only 2)but we decided that we wouldn't put her on them. Even though she's tall enough, she is still young and I wasn't sure how she would handle them.

Anyway, things were going great and we were having a blast when things took a turn for the dramatic. :) I had given Avery some childrens sudafed because she was congested (like the rest of us) and while I was in the restroom, she got into my purse and found my pillbox. I came out to find her mouth covered in red and my adult sudafed bottle totally empty!!! Yikes! Not only did she have her own dose of sudafed she had eaten about 8 of the adult ones! After a quick call to poison control we were off to the ER. Scary as it was, things turned out fine. Avery was given lots of "halloween juice" (charcoal) to drink and she did great. She drank it all and most of the medicine was absorbed. She had an acclerated heart rate and her eyes were really dilated but she came through everything just fine and after about 5 hours we were able to leave the hospital. The hospital we took her too had a childrens ER and they were amazing! She had the best doctor and nurse and we couldn't have been happier with all that they did.

We are so thankful that she is fine and everything is back to normal.