Thomas the Train Live on Stage

I think I may be a softie when it comes to spoiling my boys. I loved having three girls first with dresses, ribbons, ballet, etc., but now I am thrilled to be getting into boy stuff. It's a whole new world to me - firetrucks, airplanes, legos, etc. Well, anyone who knows Cameron knows that he's been obsessed with trains since he was one and a half years old. It all started with a trip to the Sacramento Train Museum. Since that time, he has collected trains, is mesmerized when trains pass by, and loves to ride any train. Last May, Lloyd took him to ride on Thomas the Train. I was really disappointed I couldn't go too, but I had a previous commitment that prevented me from going with them. Well, a couple weeks back I opened the newspaper to see an advertisement for Thomas the Train Live on Stage. It seemed a bit extravagant to go, but I just couldn't resist the opportunity to take Cameron. So after visiting Ticketmaster online and around $50 dollars later, we had tickets to go see Thomas at the Bob Hope Theater in Stockton. We had good seats too in the fifth row! Our big date was on Tuesday, January 27. I wasn't thrilled at the idea of going to downtown Stockton without Lloyd (he had to work), but I was determined to go. Cameron and I left early so we could find our way there while it was still light. We wanted to go out to dinner before the show, but weren't really sure what places were around the theater. It was cold as we walked around for a while, but we finally found a pizza place called Red Brick Oven Pizza. The pizza was wonderful and Cameron even got some gelato with his kid's meal. They had TVs at every booth so Cameron and I enjoyed watching "Dirty Jobs" on our own personal TV while we waited for our pizza. Then we headed for the theater. When we got there they told us we weren't allowed to bring in any cameras. They even checked your bags! I looked at the security guard and asked, "What no cameras? What pictures am I going to have to put in the scrapbook?" Well, obviously the picture above in front of the theater was the only one I got before I had to take the camera back to the car. We ran as we went to put the camera away because we were cold and excited. In fact a man at the theater commented to me, "I don't know who's more excited you or him!" Once we got in the theater, I couldn't believe how many people were there to see the Thomas show. There were lots of boys and lots of girls too. It's a big theater and the whole thing was almost full. I never knew that many people love Thomas the Train. Before the show started, I kept wondering what the trains would be like. Would people be dressed up like trains or would they have actual trains. I tried to keep low expectations. Surprisingly, the show was very well done. There were eight singers/dancers who performed in the show. They all were fairly talented, but I couldn't stop from thinking what shows they'd rather be in than "Thomas the Train." I can't imagine Thomas the Train Live being their first choice as a show to tour with, but they were great performers for the kids and very enthusiastic. The trains were actual trains around the size of a small car (I got this picture from the internet). The trains drive around and blow steam. We saw Thomas, Percy, Gordon, and James. We also saw Harold the Helicopter, Cranky the Crane, and of course, Sir Topham Hatt. The whole story is about Thomas and how he helps to bring the circus to the island of Sodor. There's a clown, an acrobat, and a strong man as part of the circus. There was lots of singing and dancing and the plot was actually pretty good. The songs were familiar Thomas ones and even fun to sing a long to. It was a fun show to watch for both me and Cameron. I held him on my lap throughout the show so he could see better. It was well worth the price and I'm so glad we went. I have to admit, the songs were pretty catchy and I found myself singing, "Thomas, we love you!" and "He's a really useful engine we adore" throughout the next day. I took this picture of Cameron after the show. He got this light as a souvenir. I would have got a souvenir program of the show, but they didn't have any. I think Cameron and I will always remember this special night!

Snow Much Fun!

We had "snow" much fun on the mini snow trip our family took on Martin Luther King Day (January 19). Lloyd worked Sunday night, but took Monday night off so we could spend a day in the snow. We were going to head up to the snow with some other families, but they were all worried that the warm weather had melted all the snow. We decided to stick with the plan and even indulged by deciding to stay overnight at Long Barn Lodge. The trip probably wasn't in the budget and we all had school and work on Tuesday, but we decided to go for it anyway. This quick trip was perfect and a great getaway for our family. We realized we hadn't been on a family vacation since we went to Kauai last July so we really needed this time to spend together as a family. When we drove the hour and a half to Long Barn there wasn't a ton of snow, but plenty for us to have fun with. I really wanted Cameron to see the snow because he kept learning about it in preschool and could never quite understand why it didn't snow in Modesto. It was perfect that we had a hotel room because we had a warm place to go and rest when we were cold and tired.
Our cute boys!
Conner loved throwing snowballs. He loves balls of all kinds!

Sweet girls and good friends (most of the time).

Lloyd and I played like we were little kids. Here's Cameron with that devilish grin he often gets. He's always up to something! He really couldn't get into much trouble out in the snow. He loved exploring! Lloyd and the girls all went ice skating while I played with the boys in the snow. The ice skating rink is right at the lodge. It was perfect! Go, Lloyd! This was Kylie's first time ice skating. She said she liked gliding on the ice!

We didn't go find any major hills to sled down. They had a couple small ones at the lodge that were just right for us. Courtney and Cameron going pretty fast!

Katelyn enjoying a rocky ride. Conner and I loved it too! Lloyd captured his sled ride on the video camera. This seemed like a good idea until he ran right into me when I was taking this photo. It was pretty funny and he got it all on tape!

We had a fun night in out hotel room eating pizza from our favorite pizza place near Long Barn. It's called The Pie in the Sky and they make the most amazing pizza! In the morning, we ate homemade cinnamon rolls I asked my good friend to make for the trip. My family was pretty upset with me because I hogged the cinnamon rolls and ate way more than my fair share. I enjoyed every bite! We headed out early Tuesday morning. I had to go to work at noon and the girls got to school half a day late. It was simply a wonderful trip. I love family vacations and wish we had time for more of them. I cherish these precious moments we get to spend together!

Katelyn's Field Trip to the Challenger Learning Center

Katelyn had the opportunity to go on field trip with her class to the Challenger Learning Center in Atwater. We had a fun time exploring the center and looking inside an inflatable planetarium. The Challenger Learning Center was a mock launch sequence for the space shuttle challenger. Katelyn had a fun time with her classmates as they took turns performing various tasks at all the consoles. They manned consoles in mission control and even simulated a flight in the space shuttle Challenger.

Katelyn at one of the consoles in the space shuttle Challenger.

Katelyn with her friend, Alyse. Here Katelyn and Alyse had to determine the mass of a "meteorite". They filled a small beaker with water and wrote down it's level in ml. Then they placed the "meteorite" in the beaker and wrote down the new level in ml. They calculated the difference and sent the information off to mission control. Mission Accomplished!

Conner Is Two Cute!

Yes, my baby is officially not a baby any more. He turned two on January 9. I kept holding him close during the weeks that led up to his birthday. I kept telling him "You're almost not a baby any more. Please don't grow up!" Well, of course, he's not listening to me and he is growing up. It's hard knowing I won't have any more little babies. I'm already thinking about and looking forward to grandbabies. Conner's birthday actually fell on a Friday night so we took the entire family out to Chuck E. Cheese's for his real birthday. When I got there I realized my camera battery was dead so these are the only pictures we have, compliments of Chuck E. Cheese. We all had a blast as a family and it was so precious to see the excitement on Conner's face as he played the different games. He loved skee ball, but had a hard time rolling the heavy balls up the ramp. He wasn't a big fan of any of the rides that moved. You can see this by his apprehensive look in this picture. The next day we invited Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Bryce and Aunt Chareen to a small birthday party for Conner.

Since Christmas was just a few weeks before his birthday, he knew exactly how to unwrap his presents. He also knew all the presents were for him. When Cameron tried to help him unwrap some presents, he said "No! Mine!"He didn't get a lot of presents, but his big one from us was this Little People airport.From Grandma and Grandpa he got a pack of balls (basketball, football, soccer ball, and baseball). Balls are his absolute favorite (see below).Bryce and Chareen gave him lots of cars. He loves to play with cars. He pushes them around as he makes car noises.
He was "two cute" when we sang Happy Birthday to him. He was a little nervous about the candles being lit, but loved it when we all sang to him.As the “baby” of the family he is adored by all of us. We love him so much and are so grateful for the love he brings to our home.

At age two, Conner…
*Loves to eat! He will climb in his high chair all by himself when he gets hungry. Some of his favorite things to eat are hot dogs, graham crackers for cereal, all sweets, and even salad. He will eat practically eat anything we give him.

*Likes it when I play “This Little Piggy” with his toes when I put him to bed. He squeals in delight when I recite it to him and always insists I do it for both feet.

*Amazingly, still stays in his crib. This is a saving grace for us since he naps in there when I’m at work (Lloyd is asleep in the next room). He can also see out his window from his crib. It’s really heartbreaking when I leave for work and see him crying and holding his arms out for me from his crib. I think he really does love his crib though. Cameron is constantly handing him anything he wants so he’s never bored in there. Sometimes I find a mountain of toys/books in his crib with no space for him to lie down. We’re not planning to move him to a big bed anytime soon.

*Is amazing when it comes to balls. I guess he was really paying attention during all the soccer games he went to. He can actually drop kick a soccer ball or football really well. He also loves throwing and making baskets. We definitely see him as a ball player when he grows up, but wonder which will be his favorite sport. I’m thinking football.

*Talks a lot! These are some of the things he says or repeats: “Jesus loves ME!” “shoes,” "outside,” “thank you,” “Hi!” “Why?” “apple,” “Ginger (our cat),” “Mommy, Mommy, Mommy… (keeps repeating until I pay attention to him),” “Dee Do (for Courtney),” “I want out.” When we ask him old he is, he proudly answers "Two!" He also likes to name his body parts, mimic animal noises, and practice counting to ten. He never passes up an opportunity to “talk” on the phone. He loves to repeat scriptures and say his prayers. He has a cute little voice, and with four other siblings communicates his needs fairly well.

*Loves taking bubble baths with Cameron, pushing play cars around the house, passing out the scriptures to the family during scripture study, and greeting us when the garage door opens. He is scared of things that move on their own (like remote-controlled cars) and some animals at first.

*Is Nicknamed “Bubbba Loo.” We started calling him this when he was a baby and it has kind of stuck. I thought “Bubba” sounded too tough, so we added the “Loo” to soften it. We all love our little “Bubba Loo.”

Tender Mercies from the Lord

Today I had a sweet experience that let me know the Lord is mindful of me and watching over me. Last night I went to bed feeling pretty overwhelmed. Last week didn't seem too busy and I thought maybe January would be a quiet and calm month. Well, everything is beginning to pick up and I'm feeling a bit over committed. Girl Scout cookie sales and other GS activities are taking my time and energy. We are planning New Beginnings in Young Womens and I have multiple tasks to complete for that. I made a "To Do" list with about 20 things on it before going to bed last night. I tried to tell myself just to do one thing at a time and take it all in stride. Well, when I woke up this morning I felt prompted to read the conference report in November's Ensign. I made a goal to read it daily, but usually read it at night. I decided to follow the prompting and picked up the Ensign. I've read the General sessions and the RS session so now I'm reading the talks given at the Priesthood session. The talk I was to read today was by Henry B. Eyring and is entitled, "O Ye That Embark." Before I began reading this talk, I thought, "I could really use a talk on how to not feel so overwhelmed, but I doubt this talk is about that. " Amazingly, this talk was all about how we sometimes feel overwhelmed. In fact the word "overwhelmed" is used in the first sentence of the talk! This talk is geared toward priesthood holders, but I felt like it applied to me too. A scripture quoted in the talk is found in D&C 84:88, "And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up." This talk helped me to realize the Lord wants us to succeed. We are literally surrounded by angels who are buoying us up. If we ask the Lord for help, He will answer our prayers and help us accomplish our service here on earth. I prayed in my heart for the Lord to help me accomplish what I needed to do. I had a peace come over me that I hadn't felt last night. After work, I felt upbeat, but also a bit concerned at all I needed to do. One thing I have been worried about is finding boxes for handkerchiefs we plan on giving to all the Young Women. We're giving handkerchiefs to all the Young Women as a reminder to stay clean and pure so they can enter the temple. Each girl is to carry the handkerchief with her on her wedding day. It's perfect for the new value: virtue. Anyway, I wanted to get a nice box for each girl to save her handkerchief in. I had already tried Kohls and Target on different days and I decided to head to the mall today to look for the boxes. I was concerned about finding 20 boxes. I thought I may never find them or if I did, they'd say "JC Penney's" or something like that on it. As I drove into the mall parking lot, a sense of peace came over me. I felt like the Lord would lead me in the right direction and I would be able to easily get the boxes. I walked into Gottschalk's and asked for boxes at the jewelry counter. I told the lady working there that they needed to be big enough to hold a handkerchief. She showed me one that was perfect. I told her I needed 20 of them, but I was willing to pay for them. She was a bit surprised when I said 20, but she went about gathering 20 boxes. I gave her my credit card so I could pay for the boxes. She said she was unsure how to charge me and that I could just have them for free. I couldn't believe it! These boxes are so perfect and beautiful. They are textured, durable, and don't even say the store's name. I was next going to go looking for plain white wrapping paper, but these boxes are so pretty they don't need to be wrapped. I left the lady telling her that I would be using these boxes for church and I felt like the Lord had lead me to her. I hugged her across the jewelry counter and praised her with my sincere thanks. I left the store in tears. I could not deny that this was an answer to my prayers. I had not been in the mall for more than five minutes and the boxes were given to me! I then had time (before I had to pick Katelyn up from dance) to go to Michael's so I could buy the paper for the New Beginnings invitations. I said a prayer of thanks in the car before going to Michael's. I know this may not sound like a big deal, but I could feel the Lord watching over me today. He knew how important finding these boxes was and provided the way for me to do it. He knew I needed to read that talk by President Eyring today and He prompted me to read it. I truly believe we are blessed with little tender mercies from the Lord as we go through life. (Elder Bednar's talk on tender mercies is one of my most favorite talks ever given.) Another time I received a tender mercy was when I was searching for a white dress for Katelyn to be baptized in. I had been searching at all the stores I normally shop at and had found nothing that would work. Then as I was driving by a store I never go to, I was prompted to look there. I walked in and immediately found the perfect dress for her to be baptized in. These tender mercies help me to know the Lord is watching over me and that He loves me. I wanted to record what happened today because it was a very spiritual experience for me, and I think we easily forget these things. Now that I have this written down, I will always remember this tender mercy from the Lord.

Facebook Junkie

Okay, I think I almost totally addicted to Facebook. I mentioned in a previous post that joining Facebook was going to be a Christmas gift to myself. Well, it's turned out to be one of my most favorite gifts ever. There are so many things I love about it. Where should I begin? First of all, I love it that it is so easy to join. It only took me a few minutes to complete my profile and upload a picture. Then I could begin searching for people to connect with and be "friends" with. I love keeping in touch with friends and extended family and Facebook makes it so easy. I have been able to find so many people I haven't talked to in such a long time. I joined less than five days ago and I have 108 friends. I was just curious so I divided my friends into categories. I have 7 family members. I have 2 friends from elementary/junior high. I have 14 friends from high school. I have 43 friends from church in San Jose. I have 6 former students/parents and co-workers from San Jose. I have 30 friends from church in Modesto. I have 6 non-church friends/co-workers from Modesto. I'm still waiting for some people to confirm we are friends. My best friend when I was a teenager hasn't even confirmed yet. I love searching and getting in touch with old and new friends. Another thing I love about Facebook is that it is so easy to send messages to people. I've never been really into e-mail. In fact, I don't even know how to send an attachment! Facebook is so much easier than e-mail for me. I just have to click on someone's photo and I can easily send them a message. I even got Lloyd into it and he's enjoying it too. I stayed up way too late several nights this past week searching for old friends, but I loved every second of it. I can hardly wait to come home and log into Facebook. I've tried to limit myself to 3-4 times a day. It's the gift I gave myself that keeps on giving! I have to admit it's way easier and more enjoyable than blogging. I'm not quitting blogging though. I love my blog for family history. If anyone is considering joining Facebook I would definitely recommend it!

Girls Just Wanna Have FUN!

These pictures were taken on Monday, December 29. I let each of the girls have a friend over for a mini slumber party during Christmas break. They all got along so well and had a blast together. They ate snacks, played games, slid down the stairs on blankets, watched movies, had donuts for breakfast, and had tons of FUN together. I don't know if I'm going to officially write down my New Year's resolutions. I have a lot of goals, but I don't want to get discouraged by making a lot of resolutions I can't keep. I do have one I want to mention in this post. I have a resolution to be more FUN. I was always such a FUN-loving child and teenager and I want to recapture that zest for life. I want to work on not taking life so seriously. I want to lighten up and be a little more carefree. I want to be a FUN wife and mother. Life is too short to be bogged down with too many "To Do" lists and worrying about things I can't change. I want to more fully capture the joy life can bring.