V. Merry!

The boys, Xmas morning. Cohen, Kyle (my brother Chris' son) and Ammon. Grandpa got them all matching camo hats.

Rylee still didn't get the present thing. I'm sure next year will be different.

BEST buddies. Ammon and cousin Madison.


Loving mashed potatoes, just like her mommy.

Aren't they adorable?

Dad, Alex and Mitch.

We had a wonderful Christmas. It went too quickly. Like usual there was an over flowing of delicious food. We drove up to my parents Tuesday. Tuesday evening we had a bridal shower for my sister Alex who is getting married on Friday! I still can't believe she will be a wife this week. She will always be 14 to me. Wednesday we cooked and cooked. We prepared the fixings for the turkey dinner on Xmas day and made our dinner for Xmas Eve, chimichangas. I was proud of myself for having all of my shopping done (besides a last minute trip to Kmart for some extra stocking stuffers).

It took me three weeks to get my hands on two Wii consoles. One for us and one for my parents but I DID IT! Luck was on my side. I got them both at Walmart in different cities. One in Windsor and one in Rohnert Park. When I bought the first one there was actually two left in the display but the stupid lady wouldn't let me by both. By the time I got someone else to pick one the last one up it was gone. I went to Costco the next morning but they didn't get there shipment in. So I went the next morning and they got the shipment in but they were sold by the time the store even opened! I randomly decided to try a different Walmart. I had Kasey (my sister) call ahead and a guy told her they were getting some that day. So I decided to go in and check the situation out. Right as I was about to ask the lady in electronics if they were getting any wii's she started pulling them out of the boxes. I got the first one!

So we got my parents a Wii and us one. We are having so much fun with it. I especially love tennis. Jody and I are both pretty competitive and we are loving playing against each other. Now if I could get my hands on a Wii Fit.

Back to Xmas. We had the kids do a little performance Xmas eve. I'm hoping someone got pics of it. Ammon was Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Cohen was Frosty the Snowman. They were super cute. Ammon especially loved Christmas this year. Everything was "awesome" or "so cool". He was excited about everything. He even loved his sweatshirt and pajama pants. The whole last month he wanted to watch xmas movies, or listen to xmas songs. I love his age. Poor Cohen woke up Monday night throwing up. He finally got to feeling back to himself by Wednesday. I just got word that my dad and Kyle are sick now and Jody was sick last night.

The kids loved playing with their cousins Madison and Kyle. Madison and Ammon got along great. He kept wanting to wrestle with her but she threw him down every time. She was such a good sport playing all of his make believe games with him. On Christmas day we played basketball at the church. I don't remember the last time I shot a ball but we had fun. We missed the usual volleyball game with Al and Linds. We also went to see Valkyrie. Tom Cruise is a weird guy but such a good actor. It was a great film I just wish they could have changed history! It was funny because I knew how Hitler died but kept hoping the movie would end a certain way but knew it couldn't. Go see it.

Jody surprised me with a camera for xmas! I freaked out when I opened it. I honestly was not expecting it. I got the Canon Rebel XSI. Now that I finally have it I'm feeling a little overwhelmed with the quality of pictures I should be taking (none of these are from it) and don't know where to start. Any suggestions peeps?

And we're leaving again! Off to Utah for Alex's big day! I can't wait to see my sister Lindsey and little Oliver who are coming in from London. I'm hoping to get some good pics with my new camera. Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

This is our family Christmas card this year.  Don't judge me too harshly.  I did it in five minutes and then uploaded it to Walmart.com but when I picked up the photos they were horrible quality so I just threw them away!  So this is it.  Merry  Christmas!

The Spirit of Christmas

We've been feeling it here this year. Despite all of the busyness we feel the spirit of Christmas all around us and in our home. A family in our ward lost their 16 year old son last night. He had a lot of health issues and went to the hospital in October to have surgery on his vocal chords. Due to complications he never came back home. He was in Jody's Deacon class. When I told Ammon about Jeremy's death he said, "But he's just a kid mom." Oh how grateful I am to know that I can tell Ammon that although his family will miss him they will see him again. The spirit of Christmas is really the spirit of Christ that we all feel this time of year. I know that. Especially this year as I looked across the phew in church today and saw Jeremy's family at church, not even 24 hours after he had passed. They were at church because they needed to feel His spirit and knowing that He helps them feel closer to their own son.

Right now I'm just really grateful to have a happy, healthy family. We never know what the future can bring. But we do know that we can be with loved ones again and how important it is to live in the present.

Rylee doing what she does best!

Ammon was in his class play on Thursday night. It was the Gingerbread Man and he was the farmer. The farmer's wife was his friend Livia. She's one of his four girlfriends. Ammon did a great job with his part. I was very proud. If I can get the video uploaded all post it!

Hiatus

I've been a bad bad blogger. And I've been horrible at reading or commenting on other people's blogs. I kind of took a vacation from the whole blog world. With the vacations I went on and starting as a Pampered Chef consultant a month ago I've been busy. I felt kind of dorky starting PC but it's been great. I did it to get a lot of products for a great price. Now I'm making money and getting more free products. Plus I'm having a lot of fun doing it. I have a website so if anyone wants to order, anytime go to: www.pamperedchef.biz/kellyed

I've kind of become obsessed with it! And I have other things I need to give my attention to like hello, Christmas? I am sending out holiday cards this year but haven't started them yet. If you would like one give me your address.

The kids are doing great. Ammon is starting to read now. It's slow but he's getting the hang of it. Cohen is hilarious, as usual. And Rylee is just crazy. She is one busy girl. We have a lot going on this weekend. Birthday parties, Xmas party, friends going away party and more.

What should I get the kids for Xmas? We're thinking about putting the grandparents money for the kids together and getting them a Wii. Then get each person a few gifts to open from us. I really don't have that much to buy. Just both sets of parents, Jody and the kids. We aren't doing any drawings with my siblings this year.

So that's my quick update! I don't have any shows for until January so I'll get back to my blog. Don't give up on me!

Snowbird '08

Living proof that my dad who will be 57 on Sunday and has 11 grandchildren snowboards. What a stud!

The camp director. She always cooks the best meals and plans the best vacations.

Ammon got his shoes on by his self and forgot to put socks on! He thought is was hilarious that his shoe got stuck in the snow and he pulled his bare foot out. If it weren't for his wimpy brother he would have stayed out all day.

The lovely couple who will be married next month. We all really liked Mitch.

Does Ammon look too old to be in here? I think Rylee might be to crazy to take baths with her brothers. She tends to grab at things she shouldn't.......

Ammon getting snowboarding lessons from Grandpa and Daddy.

It's always hard for me to get back in the swing of things after a vacation but it's even harder after a month of vacations. But no I'm not complaining.

Utah was great. Once again lots of good food, shopping and spending time with the family. I flew with Rylee on Thursday and the boys drove with my dad and Jody and got there on Saturday. Rylee was hilarious the whole time. She is even crazier than my boys. I think having two older brothers does something to a girl. She climbs up and into everything. She also loves to pull everything apart. Ever since I got back from Hawaii all I've heard is ,"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!" Each time her voice gets higher and she is always pointing at something. The minute we pull into a parking spot and stop the car she says,"want out." She was great on both plane rides.

Most days the girls would go shopping together while the boys would go to Cabela's, basketball games or to Park City. We also took the kids to the dinosaur museum with their friends Brayden and Maddie. They loved it and Ammon was so happy to see Brayden who moved to Utah this summer. I also got to see some old friends. I love getting togethe with old roomates. We went an saw Twlight together, which I love, and we didn't get any pictures! I miss those girls

On Thanksgiving my dad took Ammon down to the game room in the resort. Cohen wanted to go but he wasn't dressed yet. I told him that Jody would take him down to the game room when he got dressed. A few minutes later Jody left to take our niece Hayli back to BYU. An hour and a half later my dad, Chris and Ammon came back from the game room. I looked out the door and asked where Cohen was. They said Cohen wasn't with them. My heart dropped. I knew it had been a very long time since I had last seen him. I tried to call Jody but he had lost his phone snowboarding. So I called Alex, who left at the same time as Jody, and she said Cohen wasn't with Jody. I felt like I was in a nightmare and I started freaking out thinking of all of the places he could be. My mom and I had been sitting in her room watching TV while Rylee played around us and I knew Cohen couldn't be in the room unless he was hurt. I started running down the hallway to go look for Cohen when my mom, who was thinking clearly, called the front desk and asked if they had found a little boy. Halfway down the hall I heard my mom say, "They have him Kelly!" He was in public safety with a worker and a security guy. I could hear him crying from down the hall and the minute I put my arms around him I started bawling. One of the scariest moments of my life! I can't imagine losing a child yet people do all the time.

Supposedly Cohen got himself dressed and tried to find Ammon on his own. While we were there he was infatuated with the escalators and elevators. A couple found him in the elevator and took him to the front desk. He kept saying his name was Cohen Patrick. He got to drink hot chocolate and eat cookies. We had a big talk when he got back to the room and for the next couple days he would say, "I'm sorry I got lost mommy, or I'm sorry I pushed the wrong number (on the elevator and didn't get to Ammon)" I never thought he would ever leave the room. Then I didn't realize he was missing until and hour and a half later. I'm such a bad mom! Thank heavens he was okay.

We have another busy month with Christmas, going back to Utah for Alex's wedding, and all the parties and activities that come with the holidays. I just love this time of year!

What a month!

We're back from Utah. I'm trying to get things put back together. Lot's of laundry, no food and bills to pay. Details to come... We had a great vacation.