Great time-saver

Claire and Lahela helped me discover a really quick way to dry kids. You just put them in the dryer for a few minutes and they're good to go.

HOORAY FOR A WARM DAY!

We finally had our first warm day after the long, cold winter. The kids and I totally took advantage and went to the park. They rode their bikes, ran around the playground, went down slides, played on swings, walked the puppy, Rosie, found their neighbor friend Emily and her dog Chipper, and basked in the sun. It was GREAT to finally get out of the house and actually enjoy being outside!

Our great friends from AK!

In December our friends, Joe and Rachael Sanger, moved to Utah from Anchorage. They have two adorable little girls and are getting ready to have a baby boy. I was so excited to hear that they are living in North Orem, and we recently had them over for a fun late night and dinner. They were like family to us in Alaska when we didn't have any nearby. I hope we can get together again soon!

Just my luck!

Yesterday as I was preparing to take a shower, I decided to spray the bathroom walls first with a Glade (like Febreeze) spray. The walls still have a faint cigarette smell that I'm trying to get rid of. I didn't close the cupboard door because I was trying to hurry, and I kicked the corner of it on the top of my right foot really hard by accident. It was one of those kinds of pains that leave you breathless and you think you're going to throw up. Well, my foot hurt pretty bad for the rest of the day.

This is not the end of my sob story, though. Lately Lahela has been coming into my bedroom in the middle of the night and climbing into bed with me. She tosses and turns sideways and kicks until I get so sick of it that I take her back to her bed. Last night was no different. I got up at around 3:30 a.m., carried her upstairs, and put her in bed without turning on any lights. On my way back downstairs, in the dark, as I neared the bottom, I thought I had one more step down when I actually had two. I fell forward, twisting my ankle. It was on the same side as the foot I kicked on the cupboard. I can't even describe that pain. It was horrific. I crawled back to my bed, shamelessly crying like a baby, where I felt myself going into shock from the extreme pain. I was shaking and shivering uncontrollably.

Today my ankle is a tiny bit swollen and it hurts to walk on it. Actually, it hurts when I'm not walking on it too. Pretty pathetic, huh?

I am such a good mother!

Here are some pictures of what Lahela did while I was playing Scramble on Facebook. She was being super wiggly in my lap, so I put her down. After I had done a few rounds, I looked down by my feet to see her fast asleep. She probably just wanted me to hold her all cuddly, but I was too busy. Boy don't I feel like Mother of the Year.

The new puppy

Kimball came home yesterday with a big surprise for us....a new puppy. I wasn't too thrilled. I'm not sure if we'll keep her, but here are some pictures. Hazel and Claire named her Rosie. She is a Blue Heeler. These pictures are her first bath. Hazel helped too. As you might guess, Hazel is in love. She's had a dream for a while now of having a dog and being a veterinarian when she grows up.

The Dickens family Christmas party

I was really bummed to be extremely late to the Dickens family Christmas party. We had spent the whole day driving back from Torrey, UT, then we had to hurry and finish putting together our dessert in time to leave for the party. When we finally arrived in Riverton, we realized that we didn't know where the church was. We stopped at a pizza place to use the phone and call somebody, anybody, but to no avail. Then we decided to go knock on some of Shauna and Doug's neighbors' doors to ask where the church was. Finally we found someone who was just getting into their car. They drove to the church while we tagged behind. We were very grateful to them for showing us the way. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, everyone had already been having fun for almost an hour. We did end up having lots of fun with our family for what remained of the evening. I didn't get any pictures of the delicious chili and baked potatoes, or the cute Christmas tree crafts, but I did manage to get some pictures of the talent show and present-opening.

Samantha, Hazel, Athena and Amanda sang a beautiful rendition of Silent Night.


My sisters and I sang a song, and I can't even remember what it was now, but it was probably a very beautiful rendition also.


Hayley sang I am a Child of God. It was adorable.


Nicholas sang a very nice song from his choir One Voice.


Nathan and Lahela are patiently waiting for the present-opening for the kids.


Katelyn got one of the coveted chocolate bars.


What adorable little girls.


Kimball was really hoping that Claire's present contained a roll of toilet paper. Okay, for the record, he is standing here telling me that he was just SCRATCHING his nose. (Yeah right!)


Nathan was quite thrilled to get five monkeys in a bed.


Kids just hanging out while the adults clean up.