and the countdown continued . . .

We introduced Eddie the Elf to the kids this year as part of our Christmas countdown.  I told them that he was here to watch them and then to report back to Santa each night on their behavior.  Their job was to not only be good kids, but they also had to find Eddie each morning and see what he had been up to while they were sleeping.  The first evening that we had Eddie with us, Jaxton came crying to me upstairs that he had seen Eddie move, that he had turned the lights on and off and that he heard him whistling to his elf friends to come get him.  Mac overheard the conversation and even though he had been questioning the whole "Santa" thing, he began telling everyone that he was pretty sure that elves and leprechauns were cousins and that since leprechauns were known to be tricky, Eddie was going to be nothin' but trouble.  Beckam couldn't sleep that night, convinced that Eddie was going to "get" him during the night. At this point I wondered if it was too late to return Eddie to the North Pole a.k.a. Target. The next morning they found Eddie in the fridge and to their delight he had brought them a breakfast of snow-covered donuts, apples and juice -- thankfully they didn't find him so scary after that.

We also marked off the days until Christmas by:

And then came Christmas Eve . . .

We spent the day at the Life & Science Museum

and then happily joined the Kelly family at the Klopfer home for more Christmas extravaganza then we could have hoped for.

To say we are big fans of the Klopfer family, would be an understatement.

We returned home with just enough time to open up cousin gifts before we shuffled the kids off to bed to dream of Christmas wonderfulness.

(But not before putting food out for the reindeer.)

I think everyone's dreams were made in to reality on Christmas morning.

Just look at that face -- his expressions says it all!

After presents it was off to church we went -- what better way to celebrate the Saviors's birth

Our Christmas princess was looking especially beautiful on such a special day.

And then it was back home to lounge in grandma and grandpa's gifts of USU attire.

We had a wonderful Christmas filled with the excitement of the season as well as the spirit of Christ's birth.  How grateful I am for His humble birth, His life, His death and His resurrection.  Merry Christmas!

SIX

Let me take a break from our Christmas countdown to celebrate my sweet Jaxton's 6th birthday.

I can hardly believe it's been six years since this little guy made his surprise entrance into the world three weeks early. He made the transition to being a mom of two so easy breezy.

Words can not express how wonderful I think this lil' guy is. Wherever he goes people are naturally drawn to him. I'm not sure if it's his smile, his easy going demeanor, his squeezable physique, his twinkly blue eyes, his contagious giggle or a combination of all these attributes, but there is never a shortage of people wanting to be around him.

I love you, Jaxton James, to the moon and back and beyond.

Christmas Countdown

There's lots of wonderful things happening around here. Each day we participate in some kind of activity -- it's the highlight of our day.

We've made cookies (my best sugar cookies yet, thanks to my sister's recipe).

We had a sleepover with our cousins in OH. But let me clarify -- we didn't drive 7 1/2 hours each way just for a Christmas activity; our nephew, Logan, was getting baptized and we were so excited to be a part of his special day.

Beckam had his half birthday (4 1/2), so we celebrated with him by taking a trip to the dollar store and letting him blow a candle off a treat of his choice.

We've also been

And we've been to our ward's Christmas party.

Christmas countdowns are the coolest!

Christmas is in the Air!

Thanks to Pinterest, I revamped a wreath that I had made last year and after a million gazillion ornaments and glue sticks, this is this year's final product.  I'm sure by next year there will be something even more creative and time consuming that I'll just HAVE to try with it, but until then, we'll enjoy this decorative accessory in our home for the next month.

I also brought out this beauty from last year, our official Christmas Countdown. Luckily I put away half of the kids Halloween candy and I was able to use it to fill up the 24 slots for our four kids. I love when things work out as if I had planned it that way all along. Each slot not only contains a treat for each child but a Christmas activity as well. Just when my kids were beginning to think I wasn't a fun mom, the Christmas Countdown has saved me (I just hope the memories made can last six months until I pull out our Summer Adventure bags).

And because Mac decided he didn't believe in Santa anymore, I needed to do something to bring back the "I believe" spirit in our home. I thought Eddie the Elf (named by the kids) would be the perfect solution until I took the kids up to bed and Jaxton (who had lingered a little longer downstairs alone) came barreling up the stairs in full-blown tears claiming that Eddie was doing crazy things. Not only did Jaxton witness Eddie moving his head, but he claims that Eddie turned the lights on and off and that he heard Eddie whistling to the "other" elves to come and get him. Jaxton's experience then led into Mac telling everyone that he was pretty sure that elves and leprechauns were cousins and since leprechauns are super sneaky, he was sure Eddie was going to be nothing but trouble for us. All of this caused Beckam to not want to go to sleep since he was positive Eddie was going to "get him" while he was sleeping. I did my best to reassure them all that Eddie was indeed a good magical elf and that they didn't need to worry about him, especially at night, because that's when he makes his journey back to the North Pole to give his report to Santa. If my explanation didn't do the trick, the breakfast that Eddie brought with him the next morning seemed to mend the relationship -- what problem can't be fixed with a few donuts? Eddie continues to show up in a different location each morning, and while the kids enjoy finding him each day, I also find them "checking" on him frequently throughout the day just to make sure he hasn't tried anything troublesome.

SWEET soccer success!

As a four year old, Beckam was able to play his first season of soccer. What started out as high expectations from Nate and I, ended up as sideline pleas from us for Beckam to just "GET THAT BALL!" Beckam doesn't lack in energy or ball skills, but for some reason we just could not get him to move anywhere fast when he was on the field. It took everything out of me not to run out on the field and give him a push start. Unlike the other boys, we would find that after he had been on the field for a couple minutes he would tug on the coaches sleeve and say, "Coach, I'm ready for a rest," and then he'd happily sit on the bench finding more joy in sipping his Gatorade than playing the game. We're not quite sure what happened to the 2 year old with the best drop-kick, batters stance and swing than most much older than him. What I do know is that when you're dealing with Beckam it's all about timing, HIS timing. He does things when he's good and ready to do them and not a moment sooner. Until then it looks like I'll have some opportunities to improve on my self-control and patience.

Beckam did score a goal mid-season, which we were thrilled with, so as promised, he earned himself a golden medal. Go Beck!

Jaxton had an awesome season. This is his third season of soccer and it's been so fun to watch him gain more confidence and better skills. He's quick, aggressive and tough as nails. He and another player would collide and the opposing player would bounce off Jaxton, fall on the ground and cry and Jaxton would just look over at us, shrug his shoulders and keep playing.

Before the season began, they kept sending out e-mails asking for volunteers to coach. Jesica and I talked and decided that we would step up if we could co-coach together. Admittedly I was very timid in the beginning, but soon learned as many rules as I needed to know to coach seven 5 year olds. When the season was said and done, Jesica and had I coached our team to an undefeated season -- go Warriors and go US!
Jaxton insists that he wants me to be his coach forever, but Mac has decided that it's his turn to have me as his coach -- it's so nice to be wanted.  :)

Mac also had a great season. He was part of a team that was truly awesome -- each boy could hold their own and they had a wonderful coach who pushed them every practice and every game. Mac enjoyed being part of a team that took the game seriously and was as competitive as he is.

The Raptors went undefeated (with one tie game) and ended up taking first place as well as making a great name for themselves.

At the end-of-season party, Coach Scott said how much he enjoyed working with Mac. He loved his intensity and competitive spirit and said he brought his best game every time. Coach also said that he loved watching Mac's eager smile at half-time when he would always tell the team the same thing, to "turn it up a knotch" -- he always knew Mac would give it his all out on the field.

Now that soccer is over it's on to basketball. Mac's hoping to have a full year of 1st place teams -- only time will tell.

Scrap Skirt

I spotted this cute idea on Pinterest and knew I had to duplicate. I not only ended up making one for Jilli, but I also made one for a baby shower present for Saturday. So fun and so cute!

But then again, with a face like this, I think she can pull off just about any look!

hAlLoWeEn 2011

Our annual "pick a pumpkin" outing (but do it quick, 'cause it's super cold!).

Jilli followed in her brothers footsteps and dressed up as a chicken for her 2 year Halloween experience. She loved her costume and had no problems putting it on and wearing it around.

Just like last year, Mac took his ninja duties very seriously.


We found that when it comes to being a ninja, Beckam definitely takes after Mac -- all business when the costume is on.

Jaxton on the other hand, can't be serious for an extended amount of time even if he had to. He was the "smilingest" ninja that I had ever met.

On the morning of Halloween I always make "Witches Brew" with oatmeal and a few "other" ingredients. This year I realized (a little too late) that we didn't have enough oatmeal -- good thing witches know how to improvise. Each "little pretty" had their "goblin guts" of choice (cereal), then I added "ghost blood" (milk), "snake venom" (green food coloring) and "bat eyeballs" (mini chocolate chips). I'm not sure if it was my wicked cackle or the "ingredients," but none of my kids finished their brew off this year.

Our Halloween dinner was a bit more successful -- who can go wrong with "Mummy Dogs?"

It was a good thing that I got some good pictures earlier at the trunk-or-treat, because on Halloween Jilli was in no mood. Between throwing up, running a fever and getting a sandpaper rash all over her body, the last thing she wanted to do was pose for pictures. She spent the majority of Halloween being totally pitiful (but not before the whole family went to lunch together and freely passed and shared drinks between all of us).

Here is the trick-or-treating crew, minus the Bush clan. We stayed in the neighborhood and had an awesome turnout.

Our three ninjas and lil' chickadee hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween!