Ear Piercing

Jordyn has always been afraid of the pain of getting her ears pierced. So it's never really been an issue of "when" to do it. I remember BEGGING my mom as a kid to let me pierce my ears. I had zero fear of the pain....it sounded worth any price of pain to me! But we had a rule we had to wait till we were 12.

So it sort of evolved to be a special treat to go get Jordyn's ears pierced with her cousin Alyson while she was visiting for the baptism. Something to make turning 8 even more special! For some reason, having Alyson come, made Jordyn's fears go away. They have a really special bond and we knew this would be such a fun memory for them. So Lindy, Carly and I took them to the mall for some ear piercing action.

They were so indecisive when picking out the earrings, but finally decided on a muti-color flower (matching)

I love this picture of Jordyn. It's totally her nervous face. And Alyson is taking some deep lamaze breaths!

Look at Alyson, so strong and steady. She went first.

And then it was Jordyn's turn. She was so calm and brave. And it hurt a lot less than she thought! She was so thrilled when it was over! She admitted that it made her feel "older".

And the final shot of the earring twins!

Eight is Great!

Jordyn was lucky that her big birthday fell on a holiday with NO school! So we could relax and have fun! In the LDS church, 8 is a big birthday because it's the age she can choose to be baptized. So I struggled to find the right balance of birthday celebration knowing that the most important part would be the baptism.

I made her yummy pancakes, eggs and bacon for breakfast....even put a candle in them to start the day out right! Lindy and Paxton came over to eat with us (Lyric was a school) and our neighbors Ava and Emma brought over some gifts and stayed to eat too! Fun morning!



Then Jordyn opened a few gifts from us. Her most exciting was her American Girl doll. She's been talking about getting one for about six months. I was surprised because she seems like she could be exiting the doll phase, but one of her closest friends has one and I'm sure that helps! Lucky for her, I had found a GREAT deal on one before Christmas and was storing it just for her bday. I even ordered a baptism dress for her doll!



Jordyn had a very specific request for her cake this year. She even sketched it out. "A temple, with me standing in front of it by some water ready to get baptized". And that's what she got!


Tucker took Jordyn to the movies to see "How to Train a Dragon" in 3-D with her friend Madi Lorang. And then Olivia and Emma came over for a bit. Finally, we all gathered at Me-n-Ed's for pizza that evening!

(Grandma and Grandpa with the grandkids and Jordyn's friends from school)

Friends from Mrs. Stone's class: Emma, (Jordyn), Madi and Olivia. They were all so giggly and funny together!

Me and my girl!

Jordyn got a kick out of the HUGE gift bag that my mom and dad brought her gift in. My mom put 8 presents inside, one for each year. If that's the "rule", then maybe turning 33 won't be so bad? wink wink

Lexi and Grandpa

Thanks to everyone who celebrated with us. I love you Jordyn. You know how to keep me on my toes and are a huge source of happiness and energy in our family! Hope you had a great 8th birthday sweet girl!

Easter 2010

So thankful for Holidays that encourage us to focus more on the Savior. I love that I can teach my children the true meaning, and also that I can teach the Valiant 8 class at church about these special things.

One of my kids favorite parts of the Easter Bunny visiting is the little white footprints it leaves when it brings their baskets.



Our Easter Bunny leaves pretty simple baskets. The girls like them for a few days, but nothing that adds permanent clutter to our house ;-)

Peyton, Paxton, Tucker, Lyric, Jordyn and Lexi

Then we did our traditional egg competition. Tucker's family has done it for 20 years, but on the years we don't go to UT, we do it here in CA with whomever is around! This year it was simple with the McLeods and us...and the kids had a ball!

(I love this pic Tucker took of me and Lindy crashing eggs. I can tell we're sisters by our hands :-)

So Long, Farewell!

I have never thought of myself as very book-smart. I mean...sure... I've done a lot of schooling. But I don't think that necessarily means I'm smart...like really IQ-smart. And I don't think you have to be really smart in order to do a lot of schooling.

I think the word is determined. And I think that's what I am is determined.

I usually won't do something unless I can do it 100%. And once I decide to do something, the determination sets in and even if it kills me...I'll do it. That's probably why it takes me so long to make decisions....because I know there's no turning back for my personality.

That's how I felt about this teaching job. Or, really, this whole entire teaching credential program. I didn't think I was the most qualified, or skilled or experienced at teaching (at all). But I did know that I would be determined to do whatever it took to make it work. Ask a million questions, Google a ton, and devote my heart to making it work.

I still don't think I was the BEST teacher, the most skilled or even the most effective. But I do know that today I got hugs from lots of moms. The sincere, heartfelt kind that say "Thank you for loving my child for the past few months...every single day!".

And the kids kept asking my why in the world I can't come back on Monday WITH Mrs. Robinson?

And the staff could not have been more gracious and kind! They got me a cake, and a card, gave me hugs, told me they'd miss me and booked me for future subbing jobs. Even the principal hugged me and said she wished she could keep me. Just nice, nice people.

I feel good. Like I just completed a huge marathon. A hard marathon that included a lot of frustration, exhaustion, tears, doubt, time, energy, professional growth, new friendships, support from my family, love and talking (ha ha). (It really is shocking how much a kinder teacher has to talk...and repeat).

Time to relax.....well, after the baptism this weekend. (yeah right...relax? what does that mean?).

Vegas!

Scheduled a much needed get-away with the Thurstons for Spring Break 2010. It was just what I needed. That's what good friends'll do for ya. Shocking that I felt refreshed given that we had 7 kids with us....but it really was rejuvenating.

Almost exactly a halfway point, we stayed at a vacation rental in Henderson. 4,000 sq feet and a pool (which made us crazy with the little tots)...made for lots of room to roam around.


A little out of order....but here goes.

Kids had fun ideas for April Fool's Day. One was to make chocolate chip cookies with too much salt. This is right as Lindsay and Jordyn were waiting for Lexi and Jacob to notice (which they did, and spit it all out!)



Took a trip to a pizza place and met up with the Valdez Family (who is from our Selma Ward). So there were ten kids there and they did a remarkable job with manners!

Me, Julie and Beth

Had a little pre-birthday action for Jordyn with her friends

Kids LOOOOVED this rock waterfall (with no water) so much. It was a perfect stage to pretend on!

Lukey and Pey Pey...friends since conception (ha ha ha). For three year olds, it's shocking how well these two play with eachother!

Lindsay (9) and Jordyn (8)

Pool table was a hit too! Lexi, Jordyn, Lindsay and Tucker

Somehow the kids always line up to watch movies together. Like a little pack that can't be separated! So cute.

We always have to swap a few kids for car rides because they don't like to be separated. Here is Jacob in our car...

And Jordyn in the Thurstons car.

We spent a day on the strip...well, more like a few hours. Seven kids are not easy to tote around such a crowded place! But we saw the lion exhibit and here is a shot of a lion from underneath a glass window! Peyton did NOT like this.

Here he is walking

M&M world was fun, of course. But it is NOT made for strollers and only has one tiny elevator. Kids loved it though!

Chose to eat at the Rainforest Cafe. Great choice. Food was decent . But the environment was large, loud and entertaining. Just perfect for our group!

Then it was Tucker and Dane's turn for a night out on the town. We had to catch this pic because it was hilarious to see them take off in a mini-van. They went to see the Chris Angel magic show. Said it was so-so, but still they had a good time out.

The next night it was mine and Beth's turn out on the town. We chose the Cirque de Solei show The Beatles "Love".

We were happy to find cheap and fun souveniers...these matching Beatles hats were on sale for $8, which is like free for a souvenier.

We laughed at how much more clothing we were wearing than most the women on the strip. Proud of it too!

The show was amazing. Very psychedellic and impressionistic. Maybe would have understood it more if drugs were involved? But nonetheless, we enjoyed ourselves a lot! Although, Beth and I seem to enjoy ourselves no matter what we're doing when we're together!

Such a refreshing trip Thurstons. Love you all lots and thanks a trillion for meeting us! Seems to be the only way we catch up these days, huh? Back to real life now...