We have been reminded a lot this weekend about how fragile life is. We often get caught up in our day to day lives and forget how fortunate we are each day to be with our loved ones. Our sweet 2 year old nephew Nash has been diagnosed with retinoblastoma. Basically it is a cancerous tumor in the eye. We keep praying for him and his family. He is scheduled for a surgery this coming Friday.

We also found out that our Bishop's daughter lost her 4 year old daughter yesterday to Carbon Monoxide poisoning in their home. Our hearts are broken for them as they deal with this loss. They are also in our prayers. More than anything this loss has caused me to realize how life can change in a matter of moments and I have been holding my kids a little tighter and a little longer these last couple days. What a gift it is to have the knowlege of the plan of salvation and know that we will be with our loved ones again. It doesn't make the pain of losing a dear one go away, but it at least lightens the burden a little. So remember to say I love you to those you love and be thankful for each day we get to live here on this earth together.

For Christmas Danny got me a sewing machine. I have not touched a sewing machine since I was probably 8, but I am determined to start learning again. So I decided my first project would be a superman/batman cape for the boys. I thought it all out and had it completely visualized before I ever took my sewing machine out of the box. Brandon has really been into being a superhero lately and he had a small apron that he kept turning around to his back to be his cape. So yesterday I decided would be the day to attack my plan. We loaded up and went to Joanns fabric store. I told the kids they would have to be patient with me. We got all the fabric loaded up in the basket then headed over to find  some other sewing neccessities. I found a sewing machine kit with thread, pins, measuring tape, bobbins, scissors, and more. It was perfect! Then I decided Anna would need something too, so I grabbed some elastic and some tulle for a tutu.  I finally got my fabric cut and payed. Whew! First part of the plan was successful. DJ and Brandon were so excited.  We headed home and took DJ to Preschool. Then I put Anna and Brandon down and started the cutting. I found a batman logo and a superman logo online and blew them up to the size of a page and  printed them off. Those were  my patterns. The other cloth I just cut into rectangles. That part was done. Then the sewing machine part. I got out my handy dandy users guide. I figured out what everthing was called, and started following directions on how to thread the bobbin and the top thread. 45 minutes later I had it all figured out. Now I was ready to sew. The first lines went really well. Not beautiful, but I was happy that the thread was actually working. That means I understood the directions! Brandon and DJ helped me cut out and push the pedal. They were thrilled with themselves. By dinner we had all but the top part done. I wasn't quite sure how to do this. After the kids went down Danny and I used our combined brain power and sewing skills (both of which are not much) and by 1:00 in the morning we were done! Here is the finished product.

Not bad for first time sewers. Danny really pulled through for me. He was a trooper! 

I got Anna's elastic sewn together last  night but that is it. So today we worked on her tutu. We had to go get some more tulle and now we have the finished product.

She loves it! So that is our fun for a while. I am worn out but the kids are thrilled and I learned a lot and so it is worth it! Here is to fun stuff!

I just wanted to keep this picture in my memory forever.

Well, it has been a while since I have blogged. We have been busy with life. The kids are growing up too quickly. Anna is keeping up with her brothers. DJ and Brandon are both in preschool and they love it. It is amazing how many Christmas songs these boys know both from school and from listening to them at home. We sing them all day long. It is a winter wonderland here. Today DJ built a snowman. The snow was finally wet enough to make a snowman. A lot of times it is too powdery and it will not stick together very well.

Danny took me to Las Vegas for a quick 48 hour get away to celebrate (Relax) my finishing up my Masters Program. He has been so supportive and helpful to me as I did this. Thanks to Grandma King for taking care of DJ, Brandon, and Anna while we were gone. We got home and DJ said "We had a great time did you?" Brandon kept saying, "Do you feel better now mom?" I don' t know if he thought I was sick and that is why I had to leave. Last time I left for that long with Danny I came home with a brand new baby (Anna). So maybe he thought that was what was happening. I wish that were my excuse for being so big right now! Anyways, here are some random photos of things we have done lately. 

 We have been playing with play dough a lot lately. Brandon loves to play with play dough and since it is so cold outside it is one of our favorite things to do. Here is our snowman family.

  We got to visit Santa and tell him what we wanted

And of course we have been playing in the snow. Here is the snowman DJ built all by himself today

And here is the one Danny and Anna help DJ build after his other snowman fell down.

On Labor day we had a fun morning hanging out with Mamama, Stevie, Krista, and Tim. Then later in the afternoon we decided to enjoy the warm day and head to Bridal Veil Falls. Apparently a lot of other people decided to do the same thing. We still had a great time though. We finally got a new camara so here are some pictures of the fun.

 

Today DJ and Brandon start preschool. They are going to the same school just at different times. They are so excited. I think it will be really good for both of them. Brandon is pretty young, but it will be good for him to have a teacher give him directions. It will be good for him to have a social interaction with other children his age too. We don't get out much here, so his friends he plays with are Anna and DJ and that is about all. He is smart enough, but it is the social and listening skills I think will be the best for him. DJ's is starting to read words and he is getting excited about that. He will see a word and figure it out and then he is so proud of himself. For instance he read on the refrigerator that it said "on" and "off". They work on reading for his age level at school so it should be interesting to see how fast he picks up on words and sounds. He is very excited to get back to school. He loves Miss Konni.

Anna is growing up too. She is starting to say a lot of words. Some of them are more clear than others. Some of her favorites are shoes, outside, mom, no, thanks, ouch, milk, hello, hi, hot. She can say a lot more, but those are definitely her favorites. We had such a fun time this weekend. The boys went to Fathers and sons. Anna and I hung out. I decided we are going to start a new tradition for Fathers and sons. We are going to go buy new pajamas and watch a movie in our new pajamas. Then the next moring we will go out to breakfast in our new pajamas. Anna got new pajamas this year. They were so cute. I think I will join in the fun of new pajamas next year.

I can't believe my little Brandon is 3. It is amazing how much he has grown up this year. He is talking clearly and really likes to voice his opinion. I asked him what we should do for his birthday and he said, "Nothing." DJ said that would not be fun to not do anything at your party. Brandon said he didn't want a party. Then I asked him what kind of cake he wanted. We thought of a basketball cake, a dinosaur cake, or a cars cake. He said, "I just want a wegula cake." So we are having a wegula cake today. We invited Tim and Steve and Krista over and we are having a small birthday party after church today. We decorated the house with streamers and a birthday sign. He seems thrilled but he is trying not to show it. He is only 3 and he is already a grump on his birthday! What a guy. He really is a lot of fun and we are always laughing at the things he says. He is very clever. We love him so much! Happy birthday my Brandon Boy! 

Well, I decided to take the kids to get pictures today. Brandon is always a trick but he did pretty good today. Here are a few of the pictures. The edited versions are better, but here are the originals.

This has been a whirlwind of a year. A lot has been going on this year, and I can't believe my little Anna is 1 years old. She is such a cute little girl. We feel so blessed to have her in our family! She brings us so much joy. It has been amazing to watch her grow throughout this year. The boys just love having a sister. She has the best smile and the cutest laugh. She is getting really good at walking and practically running to keep up with her brothers. I keep telling her to stop growing up so fast, but that doesn't seem to be an option. Here are a few pictures of Anna growing up this year. I love you sweet girl! Sorry I don't know how to do the slide show so I will have a bunch of pictures instead.