Kaijsa

Our daughter Kaijsa could use some prayers and even fasting in her behalf. Our family too if you want to include us all. :) Kaijsa is in the hospital to get help for several different issues. We are sad to see her go through this but know she must. We hope the family can grow closer through all these trials and so far so good. She will not be graduating this year but will hope to catch up and graduate next year. The road will be long and difficult but we know she can do it, especially with love and support from family and friends. We will keep you posted on how she is doing and when she may be coming home, right now she is doing ok and we have no idea how long she'll be in there. Thank you again for supporting and loving us all. We love you Kaijsa and we know that this too shall pass.

Valentine's Day and Then Some...

Jennie came to visit for a day in February and I loved it as did my kids. We got to meet her new beau and we liked him. Here's to her happiness and to many more visits. We love you Jennie. You can come anytime too Papa! We miss you as well. As for my brother and his family the invite is open as well and you better come some day or I may not forgive you. :) Friends are welcome anytime but be warned our house is a home and well lived in.

Here are a few pictures of our Valentine's Day or day after. Kaitlyn and I made homemade sugar cookies in the shape of hearts and then homemade frosting too. Can you believe it was my first time with the frosting?! The cookie recipe I got from a friend at church/joy school and they are the best sugar cookies. Light, fluffy and so yummy. The little ones had fun decorating them and eating them too.

Larry and I got to go out on a date for V-day. We went to see the movie The Eagle and it was good. I like it. We gave each other little gifts and gave the kids each something too. It turned out to be not completely awful. It's still not one of my favorite holidays.

Joy School is going well for Kinsee Belle. She loves it and I do too. I enjoy helping when it's my turn and I like being able to walk to school and back. Kamden is doing well in his Pre-K program too. I also like walking him to school and getting some exercise in. We don't get to do it too often but I enjoy it when we can. I think they are both improving with their speech but still have a way to go. I have applied to one of the Charter Schools in town for Kamden for Kindergarten so we'll see if he gets in. I sure hope so because then Kinsee and the others can get it easier. It's a good school and I really hope he gets in.

Larry's health is up and down but we're working through it. Health is such a struggle and something I no longer take for granted. Instead I'm hoping to get into school and become a nurse. I forgot what a hassle applying for school can be and all it entails. I actually hate it but really do want to get a degree that is useful for me and my family. I really feel that school and nursing is what I should do. Now to keep the faith that Heavenly Father will help us during this process and time.

I'm enjoying my calling as the Ward Bulletin Specialist. I like picking out hymns to sing and a picture/quote for the front. I hope to have the spirit with me so I can touch someones heart through music or picture or word. We even got to sing Hie to Kolob the other Sunday and all the verses. I love that hymn and we don't sing it often enough. It's funny how each ward seems to pick their favorites and that's what we tend to sing over and over again. I'm hoping to introduce some new hymns and enjoy doing it in the process.

The kids are all finally healthy and doing well. Kaijsa is busy trying to get everything done for graduation. Kaitlyn is busy with her school musical. She got the lead role again, this time as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Kira we talk to every once in a while but not often enough. Kamden and Kinsee I've already told you about. Kai is talking more and has quite the little personality. She is blossoming and it's fun to watch. She really is a mini me, help us all. Kallen is wonderful and starting to realize that any little noise gets him picked up. So our goal with him is to teach him to be happy on his own. We just can't spend the whole day holding him, even if we could we shouldn't. I love to spoil him and snuggle with him but I want to see him learn and grow on his own as well. He rolls over from front to back quite well and often. He's so close to rolling from back to front. We'll see where his milestones are at compared to the others. I love my kids and am so grateful for them and their sweet spirits. They can be rowdie and crazy but soft and loving too.

Tomorrow they have no school and I have no work so I'm excited to spending the day with them. I've been having my struggles but it's made me take notice of my life and where it's at. I do have things to be thankful for as well as things to work on. May we all fast and pray for peace and joy in our lives and homes and in the lives of those we know.

Here's to the holiday of Love and now on to the Holiday of Luck. I could sure use some happy luck!

Sundays

Kallen looking so handsome for church. I'm getting bigger mom!

Kaileigh J saying "seriously mom, another picture"?

Kaitlyn looking lovely. She's the new Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz at school.

Kaijsa looking pretty. Getting closer to graduation day.

Kinsee Belle, Me (Mom), and Kamden all ready for church. I have a new haircut that I'm still trying to decide if I like.

Kallen saying "I don't want my picture taken". Me saying "get used to it".

Here we all are just before church today. Larry wasn't feeling well so he stayed home. We've all been fighting the winter bug and this time it was his turn. Feel better Larry Dean. The rest of us went and enjoyed fast sunday. The kids were good for the most part. I think they are getting a bit better during church and Kam and Kinsee love primary. Kai is just not sure about nursery. Kallen normally sleeps but today decided to stay awake for the meetings. I was going on about 2 hrs of sleep since I work Saturday nights. I woke up grumpy which set the tone for the family to be grumpy. Now that it's the end of the day we're all a bit happier than at the start...me I think I'm still grumpy. We had fun skyping to Jen and Papa. My sister Jen is going to come out for a day this week and we're excited for that. She's met a guy that doesn't live too far and works for southwest so she's going to come out here to hang out with him and us. Work is going ok. I've set out my resume to a couple of job opportunities but haven't heard back from them. I'm thinking of going back to school in Nursing. I'm hoping to have time this week to call ASU and see what I need to do to apply or get in. I also need to find a part-time/full-time job while in school if they let me. I'll keep looking and maybe once I have more time off saved up I'll take some and really work on finding a job. I'm trying to clean up the house. With us all taking turns being sick the house has kind of gotten crazy. I just finished working on Kam and Kal's room, ok the clothes in that room. Kallen is outgrowing some of his clothes and so I needed to get rid of those and bring out the next size. I now need to work on Kinsee and Kai's room. Getting the clothes washed and put away or to the donations box is my goal for the week. If nothing else I'd like to have this done. I'm so tired of there being clothes everywhere! It doesn't help that Kinsee plays dress up a hundred times a day and has to have a different outfit for each scenerio. oh well, I love her. Life in AZ is going ok. We're settling in and doing well. Kait auditioned for her school musical The Wizard of Oz and got the lead of Dorothy. Kaijsa is getting things ready for graduation. Kamden is getting ready for Kindergarten and loving Pre-K. Kinsee is in a Joy School program the mothers in my ward have put together and she loves that. I love that they are all learning and doing well. Kallen is still a very happy, peaceful baby boy. I try to get out and walk them to school at least 2-3 times a week. I have some exercise DVD's I try to do on other days. Lately I've just been tired though so not a lot going on. Sorry this has been a bit boring of a post but that's life sometimes. The kids went to a local carnival and had fun. Larry and I are going to try and have a date night each week or two. Let's hope we can do this. Sometimes I just feel there isn't enough time in the day to do all I need to do. I will keep working on things though. I didn't get to rest too much today but hope to next sunday or sometime this week. So excited to see you Jen!