I'm so glad I'm 8!

I love to twirl in my dress!
I'm about to walk her down to the font

What a very special day we had! It was filled with tons of family and friends who came to support my little girl on her baptism day. It was so beautiful-a day I will never forget. I know Jenna will never forget either. She was so prepared, so she knew exactly what she was doing. I had her take the discussions just like any one who was interested in the church would do. Sister Olsen and Sister Stephens taught her 6 lessons over 3 months. She was excited when they came over and really listened to what they said and took the challenges they gave her. She prayed after every lesson and received answers to her prayers- she told me. We had Sister Olsen give the baptism talk and Papa gave the talk on the Holy Ghost. They were both wonderful and moving talks that we will always remember. We had the kids sing "When Jesus Christ was baptized", which I will post later. I'm so grateful for all the help I was given to be able to have such a wonderful experience. Ken came to my rescue again when the video I made for Jenna, to be played while she finished getting dressed, did not want to work! We were blessed to have everything run smoothly. An extra special treat was when she received her very own monogrammed scriptures for her birthday! She was so excited to receive this gift from grandma and papa. I highly recommend having your own soon to be 8 yr. old to take the discussions. I had never heard of anyone doing it but I felt impressed to have her take them. I feel that the world is only getting harder. We need to have our children know everything they can so that they will be prepared and really have a testimony for themselves instead of being carried on their parents faith. It is my prayer that I will be able to give her opportunities to learn and to grow so that she will be prepared. It is hard to believe we have already passed this milestone. They really do grow up fast!

Out of the mouth of babes

A conversation on the way to Joy school:
Samuel-Wow mom the sun is really bright today
Me- It sure is!
Samuel-Is Jesus in the sun?
Mom-well he made the sun
Samuel-Well, Jesus is the son of God, and the sun is shining so bright today. I think he is trying to tell us something today.
Mom- oh-what do you think he is trying to tell us?
Samuel-He wants us to be happy and nice to each other.
My son-Mister insightful!

My Husband the geniusPlaying cards with the bearded Kens
Happy Birthday to my Jay- My best friend! We had a very nice day. We played card games with my grandpa and learned some new tricks! In the first picture Jay has mastered the golf tee. This has been at my grandpa's for years and no one has been able to put the ball on the tee-Until NOW! We are all so impressed! I'm a Lucky girl!!! We have so much fun together(and a little crazy-town too). I'm so Blessed to have him in my life!

A day in Chi-town

Jenna and Rachael at the Portillo's- They have the best beef's ever!
I could not believe how big these teeth were!
Uncle Danny, Rachael and Jenna
the boys
We were so excited to finally see the Dinosaurs! Samuel has been asking for a while to see them, so we thought it would be a great Christmas present! The T-Rex's name is Sue. He got a great kick out of that too! On a side note, For those of you thinking about getting a zoo, or a museum pass, I have a deal for you. Go to Boonshoft Museum.com. It's a Dayton museum, I have never been there. But the pass through them is $69.00 for a family pass and this pass gets you into over 300 recital zoos, museum's, and science centers! It is an amazing great DEAL! It is good for a whole year and it's nationwide! This has been great for us and I did the research and it will get us into almost everything in Chicago. This is amazing considering the Field museum is $22.00 a person normally. Also a bonus that they sometimes do is they will let up to 8 people in with just one pass. I was planning on paying for the rest of our party, but they let them in with my pass! This is family fun for a whole year! Yes, I get really excited about good deals! Anyway, I just thought I would pass that on. So, the museum was fabulous- the bubble on our tire from running over a huge Chicago pot hole- not so fabulous. We got to hang out with my uncle and we got meet Rachael. SO much Fun! Then for dinner we had a beef! This is just about the best dinner one could ever have! You even have to order it a special way-Beef, sweet, dry with dip on the side! This is a great Chicago tradition, that we've had ever since I can remember! It's always fun coming back!

Christmas Day

My grandpa and My cousin Adam
Christmas Morning
The Master of yet another Light saber!


Christmas morning is so Fun! There is a sparkle in my kids eyes that is only there on this special morning. I love when they rip open their presents and scream with delight when they see their new treasures! I've noticed that what is inside doesn't matter too much, but ripping off the wrapping paper in anticipation is Great! After we were all finished, we packed up our bags and we're off to Indiana to grandpa's house! We had such a Wonderful time!

More Memories

Game time
The Bearded ravioli filler!

Dancein' Crazzies!
Making the Ravioli's-Everyone has a job!
Samuel rolling for the First time!
We make raviolis for Christmas-This is a tradition passed down for generations on my mom's side of the family. I have so many memories of doing this my whole life, and with my uncles. It's so fun to continue the tradition with my own kids! It is so great that two of brothers could be home with us for Christmas!

Christmas Memories

Christmas with Grandma Jo and Grandpa Mike
My 1st Christmas Angel
My 2nd Christmas Angel

The Best part about being near family is that we get to have many Christmases! We were very busy this year- Here are some of the highlights!

The Joy School Christmas Play

The play
Mary and baby Jesus
The joy school kids with their siblings for a full cast
The shepherd

Mary and the Angel



We had a great night at our house with yummy food and great friends! Joy school has been such a wonderful thing in my life! I am still friends with the kids I did joy school with and I hope the same for my own kids. This program teaches values as well as kindergarten readiness. I feel so blessed to have been able to do this with both of my kids. They Love it and wish we had it every day! Jenna helped me teach a few times and she thought that was great! The kids were so cute tonight! They did the play and my friend Loni had these amazing costumes! She made them at an Enrichment night-I'm thinking this is a fabulous idea! They were so cute and they even sang 3 songs! I was so proud of all of them! I will have to put the song footage up later though. I hope Everyone has a blessed wonderful Christmas. Watching our children do this play puts me in the right spirit and reminds me of what a precious gift we have. Merry Christmas Dear Ones!

Baby Julie is 6!

The Little Mermaid!
Jenna and Julie at the rec center- we LOVE swim parties!

I was there when this little angel,My 1st niece Julianne, came into the world! What an amazing experience to actually get to watch a baby come into this world! It's one of the best things I've ever gotten to do. It's a totally different experience when you don't feel the pain! Julie has been a spunky little thing from the beginning! She has so much personality! She is such a happy little girl and she was such a happy baby. Jenna called her Baby Julie, and she has been her favorite playmate! We have had so much fun with these 2 in 6 years dressing them up and taking pictures and playing little tea parties! We all love Julie and we're so glad she is part of our family!

Happy Birthday Mom!

This was supposed to be a picture of the girls but Samuel had to jump in! My Sister Nicole came to have a christmas visit!
We LOVE this woman!
My Mom! There are so many wonderful things I could say to describe this wonderful woman to whom I was so blessed to come and be her daughter! I don't know anyone more amazing than her. As I have grown up she has become my closest friend and confidant. She is such a blessing to me and to everyone that knows her. As Much as I despise this cold dreary Cleveland I love being close to my parents. We have so much fun together and I love learning from her experience. Having a mom and then being a mom is the greatest gift we could get from our Father in Heaven! Our Family would be lost without our rock-WE love you mom!